Chapter 22
Chapter 22
Translation: godsn
"My apologies. I wasn't aware we had a guest."
An aide with a flustered expression approached and whispered urgently into Siseo's ear.
The head maid had reported the princess's secret affair, enraging the Queen Dowager who had summoned the princess to the palace immediately.
Siseo froze momentarily.
'An affair? The princess?'
Moreover, the informant planted in the Queen Dowager's palace revealed that the head maid had secretly leaked to them that the affair was with Etienne, the Minister of Palace Affairs.
She intended to publicly expose their relationship before the Queen Dowager.
'Etienne, you filthy schemer. Not satisfied with being the Regent's right-hand man?'
In an instant, Siseo realized this was a joint operation between the head maid and the minister.
A head maid nursing a grudge against the princess and a power-hungry minister. The worst possible combination.
He pressed his fingers against his throbbing temples.
This whole affair had begun with the conflict between the head maid and the princess.
If only she couldn't be helpful, she could at least stay quiet.
But he couldn't just leave things as they were.
If necessary, he would have to forcibly suppress this incident.
"Siseo, I'm entrusting Dea to you."
He couldn't ignore the King's repeated pleas before his departure either.
"We'll discuss this another day."
Without hesitation, Siseo brought the conversation to an end.
"As you wish."
"My apologies for making this trip fruitless."
Before anyone realized, Siseo had already left his seat.
A curt farewell, brusque footsteps. Anyone could tell something urgent had occurred at the palace.
"Boss, looks like the show's starting."
Gallo crossed his arms behind his head as he watched Siseo depart.
"Heard the head maid bribed the princess's closest aide. Wonder if Her Highness can escape this trap?"
Gallo turned his intrigued gaze toward where Siseo had been standing.
"Hmm? What do you think~?"
"Not particularly."
A bored voice answered.
"Not particulaaar? Aren't you curious if the princess will survive?"
"If she can't, then that's that."
"How cold. Boss, don't you feel even a little pity for a delicate girl struggling against the odds?"
Pity?
She'd handled herself quite cleverly so far, but if she gave her back to some lowly hyena aiming for her throat, then that would indeed be that.
"If you can't bite, you shouldn't bark."
"Bite who? In this situation, seems more like the princess is the one getting bitten."
Gallo drooped his eyebrows in mock sorrow.
"We'll see."
They'd find out soon enough.
If Valdina's princess truly resembled her homeland, she stood no chance.
Queen Mother's Palace.
The assembly murmured at the words spoken in unison by the head maid and Mariyu.
"You have evidence?"
"Y-yes, Your Majesty! There exists a token exchanged between Her Highness the Princess and her lover! An object engraved with the name of her betrothed..."
Mariyu hunched her shoulders but recited every detail of the evidence without omission.
"...It's in the princess's palace. Her Highness would gaze at that token day and night, pining for her beloved."
In conservative Valdina, exchanging love tokens was something only possible between those formally betrothed.
To that extent? People's mouths fell open. It was utterly unbelievable.
At the maid's revelation of the princess's scandalous behavior, everyone held their breath while watching the Queen Dowager's reaction.
"...Then we shall verify this ourselves."
The Queen Dowager commanded in an icy voice.
"Pinatelli."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
A tall, slender woman standing beside the dais stepped forward and bowed.
The Marchioness Pinatelli.
For nearly twenty years, she had been the Queen Dowager's closest confidant. With her calm disposition and incorruptible integrity that resisted all temptations, she was the person the Queen Dowager trusted most.
"You will now proceed to the princess's palace and conduct a thorough search. Should you find this so-called evidence, report to me immediately."
The Queen Dowager turned her head to gaze down at Medeia.
"Do you object."
"Not at all."
Medeia responded composedly.
The following hours passed in silence.
The Queen Dowager fanned herself vigorously, trying to suppress her simmering rage.
Yet her insides continued to boil furiously, and soon she flung the ducal silk fan aside in frustration.
Meanwhile, Catherine kept desperately trying to lock eyes with the Head Maid, straining to decipher her intentions.
'Hmph. You should've tried this hard to find me back when your husband was trying to drive me out.'
Madame Cuisine turned her body away completely, cutting off Catherine's efforts at the root.
If I make the Minister the Prince Consort, Catherine will be the one watching my moods instead.
Hah! She barely stifled a laugh at the thrilling thought.
Meanwhile, Virna, bored by the endless waiting, let out a yawn.
'Ugh, how tedious. When is that Pinatelli woman finally going to show up? Did she grow so old she only eats snails now?'
Still, curiosity about what would happen next kept her firmly planted in her seat.
The others kept their lips tightly sealed, exchanging only glances, wary of any stray sparks that might fly.
Medeia sat in perfect stillness, as if oblivious to the quiet commotion around her.
Her posture remained immaculate—so rigid one might believe she had turned to stone right there in her seat.
Everyone simply waited for Madame Pinatelli to return and break the tension hanging in the air like thin ice.
"The Chancellor has arrived."
Just then, a servant of the Queen Dowager's Palace approached and whispered discreetly into Her Majesty's ear. Soon after, Siseo entered through the door, having been granted permission.
"I pay my respects to Her Majesty the Queen Dowager."
"Ah, Lord Siseo. Come here."
The Queen Dowager's face brightened slightly, her earlier fury somewhat abated.
Siseo was a national treasure even the Late King had cherished.
A loyal vassal who actively supported her grandson Pelleus—there was no reason for the Queen Dowager to dislike him.
"What brings you here?"
"I came to fetch the Head Maid, but I heard she was at the Queen Dowager's Palace, so..."
Siseo answered smoothly.
"Your Majesty, if it pleases you, may I take the Head Maid with me?"
He concealed his true purpose for coming.
Even if the Queen Dowager favored him, she wouldn't take kindly to discovering he was receiving reports on the Inner Palace's affairs.
"I'm afraid not. Unless it's urgent, it will have to wait."
The Queen Dowager refused outright.
"It's not urgent, so as Your Majesty wishes. But, if I may ask, why are Her Highness the Princess and Duke Claudio's mother and daughter present here?"
He deftly shifted the topic.
The Queen Dowager hesitated. In her mind, she weighed whether it was wise to keep the Chancellor here.
'This matter will come to light eventually anyway. In the end, Siseo will be the one to clean it up...'
"You've come at the right time. I need you to assess the gravity of this situation. Medeia, that insolent girl—"
After hearing a brief explanation, Siseo accepted the Queen Dowager's request.
The Head Maid tensed at this unexpected variable.
'Why is the Chancellor here? Surely he doesn't mean to plead for the Princess's innocence?'
The two were famously at odds.
The Princess, who recklessly abused the Royal Seal and threw the administration into chaos, and the Chancellor, who repeatedly blocked her—their relationship was a disaster waiting to happen.
'No matter. Even if he tries to interfere, once Mariyu produces Minister Etienne's hidden proof, there'll be no escape. Medeia, you're finished.'
The Head Maid's lips twitched.
Just then, the servant opened the door.
"Your Majesty, Madame Pinatelli has returned."
"Ah, let her in at once."
"Your Majesty. I have returned after carrying out your orders."
Madame Pinatelli bowed deeply upon her return.
The Head Maid, Madame Cuisine, lifted her chin triumphantly, as if to say, 'See? It's just as I said,' and stared down at her.
"Well? Did you find it?"
The Queen Dowager asked.
A heavy silence fell.
Gulp. The sound of someone swallowing was the only noise in the room. Everyone's eyes were fixed on Madame Pinatelli's lips.
Had the Princess truly engaged in an illicit affair?
No—what they were even more desperately curious about was something else entirely.
Who was the Princess's secret lover?
Since they had supposedly exchanged inscribed tokens, if Madame Pinatelli had brought back the evidence, they would know right then and there.
At the peak of everyone's anticipation, Madame Pinatelli finally spoke.