The Useless Duchess' Second Chance

Her Determination

Ariana woke up again when the maid at Alison's residence woke her up in the morning. As the girl got up from her sleeping position, Ariana subconsciously immediately massaged her nose in a bit of frustration. Yesterday was a pretty crazy day for Ariana. Now, Ariana knew she knew Prince Raoul in the past, and King Alexius would most likely die abnormally in the future.

Perhaps because this was her second life, she was provided the opportunity to know more things now. The palace which was always considered the safest place in the entire kingdom turned out to be a dangerous battlefield in a peaceful kingdom. Ariana was pensive with a serious face until the maid in charge of waking her didn't dare to disturb the girl even a bit.

Slightly blackened lips and nails. If Ariana hadn't drunk the same poison in the past, she probably wouldn't have noticed the slight change that happened to King Alexius. The poison that will slowly take away the victim's ability to move, is a poison that works for at most two hours. When they met yesterday, King Alexius already had symptoms of late-grade poisoning. From her experience, King Alexius should have been unconscious for at most thirty minutes since they parted ways back then.

“James.”

James immediately appeared not long after Ariana called him. Although Ariana shouldn't know James' identity at this point, she already knew that James was from a group of assassins specially trained to protect the Alison family. The man has great hearing and likes to hide in the shadows. Ariana knew she just needed to call, and James would appear shortly after her call.

“May I help you, Lady Aria?”

Even though James still didn't understand why Ariana never looked surprised, even though he always appeared quickly whenever the girl called, James was still professional when he asked in his usual calm manner.

“At yesterday's party. Did my grandfather meet King Alexius after we parted?”

Since Ariana had fallen asleep in the carriage last night, Ariana could calculate that her grandfather had been in the palace for over an hour since James had gone after her. If King Alexius had been exposed to the same poison that he drank in her previous life, King Alexius should have fainted while that man was in the Crown Prince's Palace.

“His Grace did meet His Majesty the King, so we were late returning to the carriage last night. The two of them talked long enough that we made Lady Aria wait long enough to fall asleep in the carriage.”

Seeing Ariana's serious face, James couldn't help but feel that something was wrong with it. James' face also turned serious, as he added his words to Ariana.

“Is there a problem, Lady Aria?”

Ariana hesitated a little to ask if King Alexius was okay while the two were talking. From James' answer, King Alexius should have been fine until her grandfather came home an hour later. That means her guess might be wrong. King Alexius didn't consume the same poison as her, as there was no way the poison didn't work once its victim had signs of late-stage poisoning.

The matter of the king being poisoned was not a matter that Ariana could easily speak to others about. King Alexius had a dozen doctors who were always ready to check on his condition. The fact that no one had spoken up to this point only meant that something was wrong within the palace.

Ariana thought the palace started to fall apart only when Emilio ascended the throne as king. But, it seems, she was wrong again. The palace had been rotten since King Alexius was still alive, and it would be even worse if he let Emilio and Queen Melisa take over the kingdom. War and famine would be everywhere, and Ariana couldn't let people like that be a king no matter what.

The Alison family was chosen as the only Duke in the entire kingdom because of their contribution to maintaining peace in the Sigmund Kingdom. They are the shield and sword of the Kingdom of Sigmund, which will protect and cut down anyone who tries to disturb the peace in the kingdom. And as the next head of the Alison family, it's Ariana's job to stop the chaos that is happening in the royal family.

She had supported the wrong person in her previous life. This time, Ariana will take a different choice. Prince Raoul maybe not be a well-liked prince and doesn't have a single supporter in the palace. However, raising a prince uncontaminated with political matters should be better than letting Crown Prince Emilio ascend the throne again.

Ariana had made up her mind in no time. Traditionally, the Duke of Alison will choose one candidate from the royal family to become the next king. There was nothing wrong with selecting Raoul, and Ariana was determined to educate Raoul as a wise king in the future.

“James, I want to go back to the palace today.”

After a long silence, Ariana suddenly spoke to James again. The butler involuntarily raised his eyebrows, as he was completely confused by Ariana's sudden decision.

“I'm going to see Prince Raoul.”

Seeing that James seemed to be curious about her plan, Ariana immediately explained her plan without hesitation to the man. Eventually, her grandfather had to know that she was planning to support Prince Raoul as the next king. Sending it through James would save time, as her grandfather wasn't always at home, while James and his son had a special way of contacting Duke Andrew under any circumstances.

“Lady Aria, too much contact with one of the princes can lead to misunderstandings in the palace,” James warned. Ariana nodded confidently to answer the man. “I know. In the future, I will officially support Prince Raoul as a king candidate,” she replied confidently.

This time, James was completely taken aback by Ariana's decision. This time, her decision was huge. Supporting Prince Raoul meant going against the entire palace that had supported Crown Prince Emilio as a king. Alison's family is a strong family. But going against the whole kingdom is still too crazy. Ariana has made many decisions that have sparked debate. Increasing her roster will only make Ariana have more enemies in the future.

“Lady Aria, that decision of yours ….”

“Please convey my decision to Grandpa, James. Today, I will still go to the palace. If you want to know the reason I chose Prince Raoul, you can come with me to the palace.”

James gave a small smile as Ariana decided on something big with confidence. Even though the lady was still young, she was able to convince an old man who was hard to convince like him. Ariana reminded him of Duke Andrew, who could hold on to Alison's family when he was just standing alone.

“As you wish, Lady Aria.”

James knows. Right now, Ariana is the key that can reveal the palace decay that Duke Andrew has been trying to uncover for many years. To his seemingly convinced granddaughter, Duke Andrew wanted to believe that Ariana had a way of solving her problems. And as a servant, James could only support his master with all of his heart.

James wanted to witness the greatness of a new generation of Alison's family.