Chapter 43: Add Fuel to the Fire
870 Words
“My son!” The duchess dowager of Larenz hasted to the imperial palace of Calithea. She asked for an audience with the empress, and it was instantly granted.
“Serina, my son!” Her voice cracked yet it carried weight. “What mess have you made my son become entangled with?”
“Genevieve,” she lovingly called her name. “Your son is a duke!”
The duchess dowager’s lips parted but no words came out.
“You know very well what’s the cost of being a Duke Larenz,” the empress dowager gave her friend a worried glance.
She sat beside her and reached for her trembling hands. She put them on her lap and gently caressed them.
“S-Serina, what should I do?” She looked away from the empress. “You know how much I love my son.”
“Of course, of course, Genevieve,” she ran her free hand on the duchess dowager’s midnight black hair and tucked some strands on her ear. She smiled a little, briefly reminiscing about their childhood days spent almost together.
“What should I do? My dear son is suffering,” she whined.
“Genevieve…It’s just a shame,” she said. She appeared disheartened. “...that my own daughter was behind those…those sufferings of your son.”
Once she spit out those words, her trembling stopped. Serina could feel it and she didn’t know why, but it made her secretly smile.
“S-Serina, what…what is the name of your daughter?” the duchess dowager asked. Her head hung low. The empress couldn’t see what she was looked like but she imagined her darkened face.
She knew her friend well.
She could be the kindest person you’ll ever meet but her other side was complicated.
‘I’ll applaud that young maid and the duke for their dangerous stunts. Now, I’ll just apply a little fuel to the fire. I bet everything will turn out great!’
“I heard you two get along well with each other,” the duchess dowager asked for more than a statement.
The empress sighed, “Yes. She always gifted me things I want, like my favorite jasmine tea.” She shook her head, making look like she was disappointed.
“Then…” the duchess dowager paused before saying something once again. “It seems like you treasured her. I’m sorry if I…”
“I know,” the empress hushed, putting her finger on her friend’s lips. “Don’t mind me, Just do…what you think is right.”
Internally, the empress was grinning ear to ear. ‘Actually, I would love it.’
It was supposedly a normal busy day for Catherine when unexpected visitors came.
“How can I help you?” She plastered her most welcoming smile. As usual, she had the look of the loveliest person in the empire – a blonde fairy in a pink lace dress.
“Your Highness,” an armored tall silver man bowed his head. “You need to come with us.” Gradually, tall armored silver knights like him entered her garden, where she was currently relaxing lately, whose peace had just been destroyed by these uninvited men. They surrounded her.
Catherine secretly clenched her fist. “I-I didn’t know…w-what’s going on?” Her eyes started to well up, a well-displayed look of harmlessness and innocence.
“Your Highness, we’re here to escort you,” the knight said in his monotonous voice.
“Where?” Her voice became a tiny bit firm, her overwhelming emotion was leaking. She had a feeling where this whole damn thing was going.
“Your Highness, for now, we’ve been ordered to escort you to the Court of Justice.”
Catherine knew well blabbering about how innocent she was would be nonsense. She came with them but maintained a look of a weak and fragile beauty.
However, she had no idea if her charm was working or not anymore. She couldn’t see her face but she could at least feel glances. The strange thing is, none of the guards spared her a gaze of concern. They were like walking cold pillars surrounding her. No feelings of pity, no feelings of affection, have no feelings at all.
Catherine scoffed. ‘Such a bunch of boring people who tied themselves to an ending cycle of working.’
But Catherine wouldn’t yield easily. She might have tasted defeat but she was not yet sold out of trump cards.
“We’re here, Your Highness.” A huge white door with an elaborate carving of an enormous tree welcomed her.
As she stepped to face it, it opened as if it was waiting for her to arrive.
“Your Highness,” a silvery, deep, and pleasant voice could be heard at the other side of the door. “You’re finally here.”
And a tall man with distinct olive skin brushed back ebony hair, and a pair of hazel eyes appeared once the door flung open. He was familiarly handsome.
Catherine smiled. “Oh, you’ve been waiting for me? How sweet of you.”
The handsome man merely nodded.
“Lucio– no, Vice General of the Court of Justice, please take care of me.”
- Writer
