Chapter 7
1176words
Until the heavy curtain of the carriage fell, isolating everything from the outside world.
He finally turned to me.
"Did you arrange this?" His voice was suppressed, like a wild beast about to lose control.
I stared back at him, letting the carriage rock.
"Is that so? Is that what you think?"
"Stop pretending!" he growled, his fists clenched tightly, veins bulging on the back of his hands.
"How could Selina have just happened to push the lady-in-waiting at that exact moment, in that exact place?"
I suddenly laughed, a soft laugh that sounded particularly clear in this cramped space. "Even if I did arrange it," I moved closer to him, watching the anger burning in his eyes.
"What can you do about it?"
"Now the entire royal family, the entire imperial capital, knows that your mistress attempted to harm the royal heir."
"What position are you in to come here and accuse me?"
His breathing became heavy, his chest heaving violently.
"Remember." I spoke word by word, my voice as cold as ice.
"If you dare to act recklessly again, the next one lying in the dungeon will be you." He suddenly leaned back, as if struck by an invisible force.
"You… you're too ruthless."
"I'm ruthless?" The smile on my face deepened.
"Who betrayed this family first?"
"Who took the jewelry my mother left me, gifts from the queen, and handed them one by one to outsiders?"
"And who made the Celeste name become the laughingstock of the entire nobility?" Hector opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.
He was completely silenced.
That night, the king rushed back from the frontlines.
Upon hearing that Winterborne had miscarried, he was furious.
The royal decree was issued from the palace overnight.
"Those who conspire to harm the royal offspring shall be put to death by slow slicing!"
After my first conversation with the queen, we tacitly formed an alliance.
She revealed a shocking secret to me:
That chief lady-in-waiting was throwing her weight around in the palace because of her pregnancy, but in fact, the child she carried wasn't the king's at all!
This was our opportunity. I wanted to bring down Selina, and she wanted to get rid of the Chief Lady-in-waiting.
We hit it off immediately.
I went to see Selina before she died.
She was curled up in the filthiest corner, her hair like a pile of withered grass, her once beautiful face now only showing decay.
When she recognized me, a glimmer of hope somehow burst forth from those empty eyes.
She scrambled to the cell door, her withered fingers clutching tightly to the cold iron bars.
"My lady, Duchess! Please save me!"
"Where is the Duke? Why hasn't he come to see me? He will save me, won't he?" I stood quietly outside the cell, watching her pitiful state.
Selina completely broke down, emitting inhuman wails from her throat.
The next day, she was executed at the scaffold.
A week later, Hector received a royal order.
To go to the most distant, coldest northern frontier, to guard the fortress.
Without a time limit, it was tantamount to exile.
On the day of his departure, I stood at the front gate to see him off.
I adjusted his simple military uniform for him, my tone gentle.
"This is the Queen Dowager's mercy," I said softly.
I remembered, many years ago, when I made my pilgrimage to the holy land, he sent me off in the same way.
Now our roles were reversed, how ironic fate could be.
He lowered his head, looking at me, those once spirited eyes now filled with deep hatred. "You just wait."
"Very well," I responded calmly. "If you manage to stay alive."
The carriage started, gradually moving away.
I stood on the steps of Celeste's mansion, watching the carriage disappear at the end of the street.
Three days later, my dear friend, Lady Valerian, came to visit.
She was one of the few who knew part of the truth.
"Has Duke Hector already set out?"
"He's gone."
"Do you really intend to let him leave like this?" Valerian lowered her voice.
"What if, in a place like the Northern Frontier, he actually accomplishes something meritorious and is summoned back by the king… what will you do if that becomes disadvantageous to you?"
I laughed softly.
"Accomplish something? In a place like the Northern Frontier, where plagues run rampant, just returning alive would be considered fortunate."
"True, the Queen Dowager favors you. Even if he returns alive, what could he possibly do?"
"Hmm." I nodded with a smile, not daring to tell my good friend the truth.
I don't understand scheming, but I understand women.
All these years I've earned favor from so many noble ladies, including the Queen Dowager herself.
The closer one gets to the center of power, the more terrifying power becomes.
The Queen's words kept coming back to me.
The Queen said the lady-in-waiting's child was not the King's. This claim somehow made the Queen Dowager believe it unwaveringly, which is why such an old woman who values bloodline was willing to help.
But was that child truly not the King's?
Two months later, good news arrived from the Northern Frontier.
The enemy actively sought peace and submitted a letter of surrender.
Along with the victory report came a list of those killed in action.
Duke Hector died heroically in the final battle against foreign tribes, covering the retreat of allied forces.
The King, in recognition of his merits, posthumously honored him as a National Hero and decreed that my son Arthur would immediately inherit the title of Duke Celeste.
In the castle of the Celeste family, funeral bells tolled endlessly.
Dressed in black, I stood before Hector's empty coffin, my face solemn.
"My lady, outside… outside they are celebrating the foreign tribes' tribute. The whole country is rejoicing," the butler reported in a low voice.
I nodded.
Outside the castle was an extraordinarily lively celebration, with drums and gongs creating a clamorous atmosphere.
Inside the castle was a deathly solemnity and silence.
"Mother, Father is gone, but I will protect you well," Arthur said firmly with reddened eyes, holding my hand.
I gently stroked his head.
There was no need for Arthur to know about the matters between Hector and me.
In this child's heart, his father would always be a hero who died in battle. I didn't want to taint my child with the dark truth.
After all, the Archbishop said, "Your firstborn Arthur is a pure child, beloved by God."
Late at night, I sat alone in the study, flipping through the family ledgers.
The noise of the celebration outside the window gradually subsided, leaving only the rustling sound of wind passing through the leaves.
I put down my quill, walked to the window, and gazed at the distant lights of the royal city.
The gloom had dispersed.
"Arthur, from now on, you are the master of the Celeste family."
