Queen of Revenge - Chapter 16

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 16
“So it’s true. You conveyed your intention to propose to the Crown Princess.”
The King’s expression was far from pleasant.
He did not enjoy unforeseen developments.
The reason he had entrusted Catherine with the first audience with Commander Winterbark was to observe how the Crown Princess would resolve the border dispute.
Though he had rebuked her harshly the previous night, his trust in his eldest daughter had not been fundamentally shaken.
If she successfully concluded negotiations with Kalande, he had planned to entrust both diplomatic affairs and the border to her.
Yet suddenly, the Commander had made a proposal.
To his second daughter, no less.
The moment the Crown Princess reported this fact, the King summoned me.
“Did you know Commander Winterbark beforehand?”
“Ah, well… that is to say…”
I was equally flustered. But the King’s demeanor was grave. I quickly gathered my wits.
I had no idea what Kairon was thinking with his proposal, but this was an opportunity.
“I happened to meet him yesterday while taking a brief walk in the Garden.”
“You met him? What did you discuss?”
“He asked why my marriage had been postponed. I believe he was curious about why the order of events at the Foundation Day Festival had changed.”
“Hmph.”
The King let out a derisive snort.
“A secret meeting in the Garden at night? What, did the sight of a manly fellow set your heart aflutter?”
“Please don’t misunderstand, Father. We merely had an ordinary conversation.”
Cold sweat trickled down my spine.
I could not give the impression that I had approached Kairon first. Nor could I suggest that I had enjoyed a secret meeting with the Commander.
Honest enough, yet not so bold as to seem reckless.
I shook my head calmly.
“We didn’t spend much time together. Barely half an hour. Our conversation was nothing but idle talk—about the beauty of Elovis Palace, or the audience to come today, that sort of thing.”
The King keenly seized upon the clue I had deliberately dropped.
“You discussed today’s audience beforehand? What did the Commander say?”
“He seemed greatly anxious about the audience. The dispute with Kalande over the Unregistered Territory has been at a standstill for years, after all. It appears his position would become precarious if he failed to conclude the negotiations successfully and returned to Kalande.”
The King, who had been frowning for some time, spoke with displeasure.
“Then it seems that man approached you deliberately. He saw an opportunity when your marriage was postponed. He’s resorting to every trick to avoid kneeling before me.”
“Did the Commander say he wishes to form an alliance between Elovis and us through marriage to me?”
“Yes. He claims that if I give you to him, he will align all border disputes according to Elovis’s demands. He speaks of falling for you at first sight, but beneath such honeyed words, there’s certainly some other scheme.”
For such an abrupt proposal, the logic was remarkably persuasive.
A glimmer of interest flashed in my eyes.
“Father, do you have need of him?”
“He’s used the Demon Tribe as a pretext to build a fortress at the border and deploy massive forces. If I don’t suppress him decisively, Elovis will be the next threat after the Demon Tribe.”
“Then, perhaps…”
I swallowed dryly.
“What if you used me to your advantage?”
“Use me?”
“Yes. If I marry Commander Winterbark and go to the Northern Region, wouldn’t Mother be able to demand far more from him in exchange for sending the Crown Princess?”
A brief silence fell.
The King seemed entirely unprepared for such a proposal from Iolet.
“You would become a hostage yourself?”
“Yes. If he takes the Crown Princess as his wife, wouldn’t the likelihood of him threatening Elovis decrease considerably?”
“So you’re telling me to accept another nation’s bastard as my son-in-law?”
Iolet suppressed a laugh within herself.
So he had no objection to an older son-in-law, then?
‘As if he cared who I married at all.’
Yet outwardly, she cast her eyes down with a pitiful expression.
“Forgive me if my thinking was hasty. I merely wished, as Mother’s daughter, to ease your concerns.”
As Iolet finished speaking, the Audience Hall fell silent save for the sound of the King tapping his index finger against the armrest.
By the length of the silence, the King appeared to be slowly reconsidering Iolet’s proposal.
“If you go to the Northern Region, it would be as though Elovis bowed before Kalande. That serves no purpose.”
“I need not cross into Kalande’s territory. Remaining at the Northern Border Guard Command Tower would be sufficient to maintain the marriage alliance.”
—And I’m frightened of leaving Elovis anyway.
Iolet quickly added.
“If I remain at the Northern Border Guard Command Tower and the Commander visits periodically bearing tribute, then he bows before Elovis—not we before him. Simultaneously, I can observe the Commander from the most intimate distance.”
This time, the King’s silence stretched longer still.
“…Could you even endure the Northern Region? When battles with the Demon Tribe break out, dozens die in a single day.”
“Should I die in an unforeseen accident, the responsibility would fall upon Commander Winterbark. As my husband, he would have the obligation to protect his wife.”
By any measure, it posed no great loss to Elovis.
At this point, the King found himself deep in thought.
At first, it had seemed like utter nonsense, but upon reflection, it held considerable merit.
It was certainly more rational than the method proposed by the Crown Princess when she visited this morning after concluding her audience.
“The fact that the Commander makes such absurd marriage proposals proves he underestimates Elovis. You must never accept his proposal, Mother. Make him kneel before the Palace gates for a full week and night—break his spirit decisively.”
Catherine’s tone was unusually emotional, unlike her usual self.
Though not entirely pleased, lacking any better alternative, the King had been inclined to consider it when his second daughter’s proposal caught his interest.
This was diplomacy.
Not merely a contest of wills to force submission, but an approach to managing the situation that would determine future victory or defeat.
Regarding this matter, Iolet’s proposal was more rational than Catherine’s.
Of course, that was speaking purely from reason.
Suspicion took root in the King’s mind as he regarded Iolet.
His second daughter, who had never once stepped forward to assert her opinion, had begun to move.
Witness only her intrusion into the Banquet Hall yesterday. The King had immediately grasped the significance of the dress she wore.
By merely evoking Levia so overtly through her attire, the Crown Princess had stirred nostalgia in those who remembered Charlotte.
The King was among them. Though the ending had been unfortunate, Charlotte too had been one of the women he loved.
‘Was that her aim? What possible scheme could she harbor?’
Had Iolet now developed ambitions for power?
The King deliberately softened his voice.
“I cannot send you to the Border alone. To keep watch over the Commander, you must wield command authority over the Border Garrison Command Tower itself—only then can you truly pressure him.”
“You mean to grant me command of the Border Guard, Mother?”
Iolet’s eyes widened in surprise.
The daughter who had been fluttering her eyelashes as if questioning his meaning now spoke in genuine astonishment.
“That is… I lack the ability to command troops. If you believe I need sufficient power to check the Commander, then diplomatic negotiation authority alone would suffice. Of course, even that would be merely ceremonial.”
Diplomatic negotiation authority.
The King let out a soft laugh.
“You understand your place well, Iolet.”
She knew her station, yet possessed a vessel of considerable depth.
Had she eagerly accepted the offer of military command, I would have bitten back my words immediately.
Among royal prerogatives, military authority stands as one of the supreme powers.
Even Catherine, educated as Crown Princess from birth, only secured command of the Capital Defense Force last year. It was not an authority to be delegated lightly or revoked easily.
‘But diplomatic negotiation authority—that is different.’
Iolet met the King’s gaze directly as she considered this.
‘Not diplomatic authority in its entirety, but negotiation authority. I would lack final decision-making power over diplomatic disputes, yet I could modify and coordinate already-determined matters. Compared to military command, it is a trivial authority—hardly worth granting, yet equally worth withholding.’
Iolet’s calculation proved correct.
“Even as diplomatic negotiation authority, it remains inseparable from the Border Guard. The moment you accept any portion of military power, you can never return to the Capital.”
He had taken the bait.
Exhilaration coursed through Iolet’s spine.
“Will you still go?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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