How To Get Revenge On My Sister Who Stole My Husband - Chapter 48

“Lies. The Duke would never sincerely court you, sister. What are you and the Duke plotting? Are you trying to extract our family’s secrets for him?! If not, why would the Duke give such a precious thing to you, who’s inferior to me!”

“Danae! Calm down!”

“Lady Danae Rubina Yusten, what nonsense are you spouting!”

“Let go of me, Young Lord!”

I shouted back, pushing her away. Leonard also grabbed Danae’s shoulders, pulling her away from me while yelling at her. The nobles whispered as they watched Danae lose control.

“What’s this commotion?”

At that moment, the grand doors of the banquet hall opened, and Empress Maria appeared with the imperial family, Prince Justin, and Duke Yusten. At the Empress’s stern voice, the raging Danae stopped and hastily backed away. The Empress turned to Duke Yusten with a cold gaze and said sarcastically.

“Duke, your daughter certainly overflows with energy even at such an occasion. It’s good to raise a daughter to be lively and healthy, but shouldn’t you also teach her to observe proper etiquette at events like this?”

“I apologize, Your Majesty. It’s all my fault for failing to teach my daughter properly.”

The Duke bowed his head like a criminal as he spoke. The Empress turned her gaze away from him coldly. Then, with a benevolent face, she looked around at the gathered nobles and said.

“I’m truly delighted that so many have attended this ball for Princess Ella and Prince Justin. Now, before everyone, the two protagonists of today will have their first dance, and I, as the Empress and witness to their sacred marriage, wish to declare their engagement to the world.”

“Congratulations on the Princess’s engagement, Your Majesty!”

“Our felicitations, Your Imperial Majesty!”

The nobles all bowed, offering their congratulations to the Empress. The Empress nodded in response to their congratulations, her face clearly showing joy. Then she called the Chief Steward to her side and ordered.

“Tell the musicians to play a waltz, Chief Steward.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Chief Steward signaled to the musicians. As cheerful waltz music began to play, Prince Justin took Princess Ella’s hand and came to the center of the banquet hall. The two danced, smiling affectionately at each other. It was a completely different scene from their previous life, where they danced looking at each other with dead eyes, their souls having died after losing their dreams and love, bound by an unwanted political marriage. I quietly smiled watching this scene.

Soon the music stopped, and the two separated their embracing arms and stepped back.

The Empress looked at the two and said in a girlish, lively voice.

“How could there be a pair that matches so well! These two will surely be good partners for each other. Don’t you agree?”

“Your words are most wise, Your Majesty.”

Duke Klein responded with an excited expression. The elated Empress raised her glass high and shouted.

“Then without further ado, let us confirm the engagement of these two right here! Now! If anyone has any objections to the engagement of Princess Ella and Prince Justin, speak now! Once this moment passes, you must remain silent forever, and the engagement of these two will be established!”

The nobles all remained silent. The smiles of Duke Yusten and Duke Klein deepened. Their faces were confident, as if certain of victory. At that moment, Prince Justin looked at the Empress and said.

“I object, Your Imperial Majesty. I apologize, but I cannot be engaged to the Princess.”

The nobles who had been watching the Princess and Prince all gasped, and the faces of Duke Yusten and Duke Klein contorted with bewilderment. The Empress stared at the Prince with disbelieving, blank eyes. She soon frowned fiercely, striking the armrest of the imperial throne as she shouted.

“What, what is the meaning of this! You cannot be engaged to the Princess! Prince, what on earth is your reason for this!”

“It’s because I have feelings for another woman, not the Princess.”

Prince Justin said calmly. The Empress gaped, as if too shocked for words. She raised her voice in anger.

“What is this! Prince, do you realize what you’re saying? This isn’t just anything, it’s a royal marriage! An important engagement involving the interests of two empires! And you’re saying you’ll break this engagement just for love? And even publicly shaming the Princess like this? Do you not understand what repercussions this will have on both countries?”

“…I understand, Your Majesty. But forcing this engagement in this situation would only bring unhappiness to both myself and the Princess. Surely you, as her mother, want Princess Ella to be happy, not to spend her life with someone like me who cannot love her.”

Prince Justin responded to the Empress’s words pleadingly. The Empress, trembling all over with rage, spoke to the Prince.

“…Even so, to overturn a promise between empires like this? Prince, you still don’t seem to grasp the situation. Don’t you know that I could use this discourtesy you’ve committed against me and my child as a pretext to declare war on the Raska Empire right here and now?”

The nobles were shocked at these words. If war broke out because of this, not only the lords of the bordering territories but also the central nobles with armies would suffer great losses. Their faces turned pale. The attendants and maids from the Raska Empire also fidgeted uneasily, only able to look at the Prince’s stern face.

“If you’re doing this because of me, please withdraw your anger, Your Majesty. I’m fine.”

At that moment, Princess Ella, who had been silent and lost in thought, spoke up. The Empress turned urgently to her daughter and said.

“Princess!”

“No matter how angry you are, that statement just now was a bit rash, Your Majesty.”

The Princess said this as she slowly walked to the imperial throne. She took the Empress’s hand, kissed it reverently, and continued speaking.

“My wise and benevolent mother. I’m glad you got angry for my sake. But isn’t it too early to speak of war? We could find other diplomatic solutions, couldn’t we?”

“Other solutions? What diplomatic solution could you propose in this situation?”

The Empress, still not having calmed her anger, asked sharply. Princess Ella gently patted the Empress’s hand and then spoke to Prince Justin.

“Prince, you certainly intended to be engaged to me before arriving in our empire, didn’t you?”

“That’s right.”

“Then that means your mind changed after arriving in the empire. …Perhaps the woman you have in mind is from our empire?”

“…That’s correct.”

The Prince answered hesitantly. Duke Yusten and Duke Klein’s eyes widened, and the nobles began to murmur. The Princess calmly continued her questioning.

“Can you tell us who this woman is?”

“…Lady Evelyn Charington, daughter of Count Charington, who is Your Highness’s lady-in-waiting. She is the one I have in my heart.”

“What is this! There’s a limit to deceiving the Princess, how dare you fall in love with her lady-in-waiting! Chief Steward, immediately…”

At the Prince’s answer, the Empress slammed her fist on the armrest and shouted roughly. As she turned her head to call the Chief Steward, Princess Ella shook her head at the Empress and said.

“Your Majesty, please don’t. What fault is it of Evelyn’s? And isn’t it fortunate in a way? That the woman the Prince has fallen in love with is a noble, not a commoner.”

“Fortunate? Ella! Are you in your right mind saying this?”

“Of course, Your Majesty. If she were a commoner, it would have been difficult to find a way to resolve this situation wisely. …And there would have been no room to discuss the alternative I just thought of.”

“Alternative? What alternative?”

The Empress asked back, seemingly displeased. The Princess smiled meaningfully and said to the Empress.

“How about adding Lady Evelyn Charington to the imperial family registry as the adopted daughter of our late uncle? That way, we wouldn’t need to break this royal engagement between our empire and the Raska Empire, and Evelyn could properly marry Prince Justin and become a princess consort.”

The Empress’s eyes widened in great surprise at these words. Duke Yusten and Duke Klein immediately protested, shouting.

“What are you saying! You’re going to make the Count’s daughter an adopted child of the already discontinued Crested Grand Duke family! That’s unacceptable!”

“That’s right! Surely the Princess knows that to be added to the imperial family registry, you need the head of the family’s consent and the endorsement of three people of imperial descent! Even if you, Princess, vouch for Lady Charington’s background, how will you find the other two people!”

At that moment, Duke Haven spoke up with an indifferent expression.

“I’ll vouch for Lady Evelyn Charington’s background. So now we only need one more endorsement, is that right?”

“Du-Duke Haven!”

Duke Yusten shouted, his entire face turning bright red. The Duke turned to the Empress and continued speaking.

“Your Majesty, I understand that you’re quite displeased due to Prince Justin’s discourtesy. I also understand what you’re concerned about. But as the Princess said, war isn’t the answer, and it’s not right to force an engagement that neither of them wants for the sake of national interest. Of course, nullifying the royal marriage wouldn’t benefit either country much either.”

“…Duke Haven.”

“So if we adopt Lady Evelyn Charington as the late Grand Duke Crested’s daughter as the Princess suggested and have her marry Prince Justin, I believe we can solve all the problems mentioned earlier. It would be good for Prince Justin as he could marry the one he has feelings for, and both countries could exchange dowries and form military alliances as previously agreed upon in the royal marriage. Wouldn’t that be beneficial?”

“But what about Princess Ella’s hurt feelings? How can we compensate for the Princess’s damaged honor and reputation!”

The Empress asked him, mentioning Princess Ella. The Duke fell silent.

And as promised, Prince Justin spoke up as if he had been waiting.