Queen of Revenge - Chapter 80

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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 80
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The moment the meal concluded, The King instructed the Butler to escort Iolet to her New Residence.
After offering her gracious thanks to The King, Iolet departed the Dining Room without a backward glance.
The King followed shortly after, his arm encircling the waist of his newly acquired Royal Concubine. The Crown Princess and The Duke remained alone at the lengthy Table.
Catherine, who had been sitting with her spine rigidly upright, exhaled deeply.
As she closed her eyes for a prolonged moment and opened them again, her intelligent and rational countenance transformed instantaneously into something sharp and volatile.
“Explain yourself, Duke. Why did you orchestrate this farce without my consent?”
“You understood perfectly well, yet you persist in this petulant display.”
“I’m warning you—don’t evade me with such evasions. Your uncooperative attitude has already worn thin on my patience.”
Catherine’s retort was glacial.
The couple who had gazed at each other with affection before The King had vanished entirely. A chill far colder than before their marriage now permeated the space between them.
A sneer played at the corners of Benedix’s mouth.
“I elevated you to Queen consort as you commanded, yet I cannot fathom what remains unsatisfactory.”
“Must I spell it out so crudely for you to comprehend? Did you not hear what The Late King expects of us both?”
As Catherine obliquely referenced an heir, Benedix’s eyes grew cold.
“We drafted a contract before our marriage, did we not? That we would produce an heir as swiftly as possible after our union. The longer we delay, the further my claim to the throne recedes.”
“….”
“I framed this as an agreement rather than a command out of consideration for you, yet perhaps I should have simply issued an order instead? Benedix Valer.”
“I informed you I was occupied. The preparations for our royal marriage left me with accumulated responsibilities—.”
“Which is precisely why I waited until today. Yet I never anticipated that wretched girl would resurface precisely now. Did you?”
Catherine rested her forearms upon the Table, her chin cradled in her palm.
Turning to regard Benedix in this position, she spoke with bitter mockery.
“How did it feel to gaze upon your first love while seated beside your wife, Duke?”
“Did Your Majesty not once say that the human heart transforms with each passing season?”
Benedix countered with equal derision.
Catherine, struck at a vulnerable point, issued a sinister warning.
“Do not dare to be so insolent with me.”
“If you wish for me to conduct myself with restraint, then cease your provocations.”
Benedix rose from his seat.
Turning his back to Catherine, he moved toward the Window and opened it. The tepid air only made breathing more suffocating.
Whenever they targeted each other’s private vulnerabilities, such collisions inevitably erupted.
Catherine exhaled a weary sigh and spoke bluntly.
“Let us dispense with pointless remarks. Explain why you assigned such a task to Iolet.”
“Prince Uter murdered Mongfer’s Second Son. The motive for the killing was that this man had stolen away a woman whom the Prince held dear.”
It was a sordid affair of passion. The enraged Johan Uter had summoned Mongfer’s Second Son and stabbed him to death with a blade, only to be apprehended by the Security Force on the spot.
The evidence was irrefutable, leaving no room for denial. Public opinion in High Society had already crystallized decisively.
The complication lay in the fact that Duke Uter was The King’s former mentor.
More precisely, he had been the tutor who instructed The King in statecraft and history during his years as a prince.
The King’s position had become untenable. Yet the verdict in this matter was already predetermined.
“Your Majesty is merely deliberating what punishment to impose upon a house as venerable as the Uters, but has no intention whatsoever of exonerating Prince Uter.”
In practical terms, the only sentence that could be handed down to Prince Uter was execution.
Count Monfer naturally advocated for capital punishment, while Duke Uter had even knelt before the King to plead for leniency toward his son.
“What Your Majesty likely expects from the Princess is merely to determine the severity of Prince Uter’s punishment. By foisting this troublesome matter upon her, Your Majesty avoids losing face before Duke Uter, and the Duke’s resentment will naturally fall upon the Princess instead.”
“Eloquently put.”
Catherine twisted her lips.
“Left alone, Duke Uter would have destroyed himself without intervention. So why hand it over to Iolet? Who knows what schemes that girl might concoct? Why complicate matters unnecessarily?”
“In my childhood, I once saw a servant of the Uter household at Queen Charlotte’s Palace.”
Catherine’s pupils dilated slightly.
She whirled around to glare at the back of Benedix’s head.
“Are you saying the Uters had connections with Queen Charlotte?”
“I cannot say precisely what their relationship was. Queen Charlotte kept many secrets even from me. At the time, it seemed unimportant, so I did not question Iolet about it, and Duke Uter never publicly supported Queen Charlotte. Nevertheless, among the elder statesmen of the Royal Council, the Uters are likely the closest noble house that Iolet can approach.”
Benedix loosened his suffocating cravat. The main course steak seemed lodged in his throat, and an unpleasant sensation refused to pass.
“If the Princess favors Duke Uter, she defies Your Majesty’s will and cannot obtain the credentials of Kalande’s Ambassador. If she sides with Count Monfer, she gains the Ambassador’s position but casts away her most powerful ally with her own hands. Either choice brings considerable loss to Iolet.”
The sound of Catherine tapping her index finger against the table echoed. The sharp noise of her nails striking marble created an unpleasant sense of refusal.
Benedix recalled the girl’s round, neatly trimmed fingernails that he had once groomed himself.
Even during the meal, his gaze kept drifting to those slender, pale hands. A ring he had not seen before glimmered on the ring finger of her left hand.
Throughout the meal, barely tasting his food, Benedix felt an impulse to tear that ring from Iolet’s ring finger and hurl it away.
Benedix glanced down at his own left hand.
A ring adorned his ring finger as well. A far more ornate wedding band that weighed heavily upon his finger. It matched the one gleaming on Catherine’s hand.
The dazzling brilliance of the ring restored his mind to its proper place.
Benedix closed his eyes, attempting to erase her afterimage that clung to his retinas.
“Therefore, Your Majesty need only sit back and enjoy the process of Princess Iolet consuming herself.”
* * *
Upon leaving the Dining Room, Iolet was immediately guided to the Main Palace.
She had never stayed in the Main Palace before. In childhood, she had lived in the Queen’s Palace, and the Main Palace was merely a place to visit briefly when meeting the King.
The Main Palace belonged solely to the King. Only those whom he permitted could reside there.
Conversely, this meant that anyone dwelling here must eventually depart.
The chamber I was shown to was roughly five times larger than the bedroom in the Command Tower.
The moment the Butler closed the door and left, I collapsed onto the sofa. My entire body ached with exhaustion after finishing the meal and engaging in such fierce verbal sparring.
I let out an involuntary groan.
“Lucian, could you help me with my shoes….”
Then I suddenly realized.
‘Right, he’s not here.’
I sighed and removed my shoes myself.
My entire body felt stiff. At this hour, a medicine box and water glass would normally be on the table. I was too lazy to rummage through my luggage, but Lucian would certainly be upset if he learned I had skipped my medicine.
‘I should have brought him along.’
Without Lucian, my quality of life plummeted dramatically.
I suddenly realized that Lucian had been serving not only as my guard but also as my personal attendant all this time.
I slowly unpacked my medicine bundle and hastily chewed down a handful of pills.
I’ve been far too idle. To think my stamina has deteriorated so drastically in mere weeks. What use is this frail body of mine?
Time was a luxury I did not possess.
The King had granted me four days. Prince Uter’s final trial was to take place in precisely four days.

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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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