Eustia abruptly released her clenched lower lip.
Though she was still surprised that Liurian had such thoughts, she could not remain silent even after hearing her son’s last words.
She looked at Liurian with tearful eyes, cleanly forgetting the discomfort she had been feeling all along.
[Oh, Liurian, my son. How much you must have suffered over the past year.]Eustia tightly grasped Liurian’s hand. The son’s skin felt incredibly rough at her fingertips.
It seemed to symbolize the fierce time Liurian had endured over the past year, and her heart crumbled once again.
How terrifying and dreadful it must have been. How hard it must have been to survive in the gruesome field of slaughter.
How hard a time it must have been, for her son who always seemed like a child to return as a mature adult in just one year.
Eustia couldn’t hide her tears.
Then, she realized that every word of Liurian’s was correct.
As Liurian said, if they won the favor of the nobles, the people’s favor would naturally follow.
Most rumors that stir the commoners were tales leaked from noble houses.
If Liurian himself wins the hearts of not only the nobles but also the commoners, Garde will have no choice but to recognize Liurian eventually.
That was the thing Liurian, who was thirsty for his father’s recognition, wanted most.
[I understand, Liurian. You may have your way.]Eustia stroked Liurian’s hollow cheek, sending a pitiful glance.
She was bothered by Lilia, but no matter how beautiful the daughter of the Duke, she could never be as lovely as her son. However, she could not simply neglect Lilia either.
Eustia took another sip of her tea that had cooled in the meantime. Then, a knock echoed in the quiet empress’s bedroom.
“Your Majesty, the Duke’s daughter has arrived in the reception room.”
The polite and appropriate words of the chamberlain were the news that Eustia had been waiting for all along.
Eustia put down her teacup without regret and rose from her seat. She naturally strode towards the direction of the hallway leading to the reception room.
(This is a time separator.)
As soon as Eustia entered the reception room, she smiled brightly at Lilia.
“Your Grace. I know it must have been sudden and disconcerting to be called like this, but thank you for coming.”
She sat down, greeting formally. Following her, Lilia, who sat down, lowered her head with narrowed eyes.
“No, Your Majesty. Every time Your Majesty calls me like this, I am very pleased.”
Knowing it was a mere lip service, Eustia was still charmed by Lilia’s words. However, now was not the time to enjoy Lilia’s flattery.
Eustia cautiously gauged Lilia’s mood. As always, there was no wrinkle to be found in Lilia today.
With a victory party ahead, no one could have even dreamt of what Liurian was thinking, but perhaps that’s how it could be.
Yustia wore a feigned stern expression, pretending not to know anything about what was in Lelia’s heart.
“I have urgently called for Your Highness at this late hour because I have a message to convey.”
“A message to be conveyed?”
Yustia, about to add more, suddenly wore a perplexed expression. Lelia’s eyes were too naive. The discomfort in having to deliver unwelcome news grew.
Lelia was the only match for Liurian that she acknowledged. Although she couldn’t give her the place of the crown prince’s consort, she was planning to make Lelia the empress immediately after Liurian’s succession.
If only that could be done, she could have fully empowered Lelia, unlike now. It was only a matter of time before she became an empress with more formidable power than the crown princess consort Evelia.
Furthermore, as Evelia’s position narrowed, the power of the Countess Caroline would also be pushed away, and eventually only the Duke Garnet’s power, her own, would dominate the palace.
That was the perfect picture drawn by Yustia. Even to reach the dreamed future, there was no good in hurting Lelia’s feelings.
Of course, there were other options, but Yustia liked Lelia very much.
So she didn’t want to hurt Lelia’s feelings as much as possible…
But it was an unavoidable situation.
Hadn’t she already told Liurian to do as he pleased?
Yustia firmly made up her mind.
“Your Highness, I’m talking about the victory party for Liurian taking place in three days.”
“I’ve been working hard to prepare, so I wouldn’t be left out of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince’s party.”
“It seems that the crown princess consort will have to be with Liurian for this party.”
As soon as the Empress’s words ended, Lelia’s expression hardened instantly.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
