Chapter 54

"Silence......"

Paeramen's lips closed tightly like a clam.

"......"

"......"

"......"

A perfect silence fell upon the room.

It seemed like this had happened before, but the atmosphere was quite different this time.

Everyone in the room knew that Aristine and Tarkan had destroyed their bed on their wedding night.

Stalina glanced at Aristine, a hint of unhidden curiosity in her eyes.

"Khom!"

"Homhom."

The princesses cleared their throats awkwardly and looked around, their faces slightly flushed.

They were all unmarried and at an age full of curiosity.

"......So that's how it is."

The queen merely muttered and closed her mouth.

As a married woman, she well understood the importance of compatibility.

If they could break a bed on their first night, they certainly couldn't stay apart.

No matter how much they argued and fought, by nightfall......

"Khom! Uh-hum!"

The queen cleared her throat awkwardly.

It was getting a bit warmer in the room, as if summer was approaching.

No one could speak.

During the awkward and embarrassing silence, Aristine, who had thrown the bomb, was sipping the milk tea she had made earlier.

Paeramen finally broke the silence and spoke.

"Well, that's it, then. As expected, Hamir O Rabani is truly remarkable. Being in charge of the mana stone mine means he is the most trusted child of His Majesty the King, doesn't it?"

She almost repeated what she had said earlier, as if she hadn't heard Aristine's words.

"That's right. Our brother Hamir is outstanding, and His Majesty the King knows it well."

"Indeed, Hamir has shown exceptional qualities from a young age."

Yenikarina and the queen echoed Paeramen's words.

They acted as if the talk about the bed had never happened.

"Unlike others, he carries noble blood, which makes him even more so."

Stalina added a jab at Tarkan, and Yenikarina smiled deeply.

"Indeed, a person of low birth could never handle such a task."

"Moreover, it's absurd for a commoner to rule over others."

Yenikarina and Stalina giggled and looked at Aristine.

Well, how about it?

This time, she would surely tremble with humiliation, unable to speak.

Or perhaps she couldn't hold back and would scream?

However.

"Ha...!"

Aristine burst into laughter.

She didn't try to suppress the laughter that burst out, and it sounded as clear and refreshing as a silver bell.

Yenikarina and Stalina's faces were filled with confusion.

They couldn't understand Aristine's reaction at all.

But when Aristine, who had barely stopped laughing, stared at them, a realization hit them, making their heads tingle.

In this room, no one had more noble blood than Aristine.

The Silvanus royal family, which had ruled for over a thousand years, was a family so noble that it was said to have gold instead of red blood.

Aristine was of that royal lineage.

Moreover, she was now a member of the royal family of Irugo, the ruler of the plains.

She was the only person in the world who belonged to both of these most noble families.

Realizing this, Yenikarina and Stalina's faces turned red.

It was like boasting about the brightness of a candle in front of the sun.

Click—

The sound of Aristine placing her teacup on the saucer was unusually loud.

Her demeanor while savoring the milk tea seemed infinitely relaxed and calm.

The more relaxed she was, the more Yenikarina's face crumpled.

Aristine didn't even need to say who had brought up the topic of bloodlines.

She had silenced everyone with just a laugh.

'Why... why...'

Yenikarina clenched her fists tightly.

She had mocked Aristine, who had been exiled and treated as a princess of no value, because of this.

Aristine possessed something that Yenikarina could never have, no matter how hard she tried.

"Ah, that was an interesting story. But I have one question."

Aristine leaned slightly on the table and spoke.

"By any chance, were you talking about my husband when you mentioned low birth and commoners?"

The people in the room gasped at her direct question.

It would be normal to pretend not to know or to deny it out of embarrassment.

But there was not a trace of embarrassment in Aristine's demeanor.

The princesses couldn't tell whether she should agree or deny it.

Directly mentioning someone's name and criticizing them was a breach of decorum.

"Indeed."

While they hesitated, the queen nodded.

"Why did you think I would deny it?"

The queen looked directly at Aristine and asked.

It was clear that Aristine was trying to get the queen to admit that Tarkan's insults were not true.

It was hard to add more words to something she had already denied.

'Good attempt, but it doesn't work on me.'

The queen said with an elegant but cold face.

"That's not a wrong statement, is it? Tarkan is indeed the child of a mother who never received a title."

"Hmm."

Aristine nodded calmly.

It was a response quite different from what the queen had expected.

"That's quite strange."

Tap, tap. Aristine tapped the table and tilted her head.

"The Irugo royal family has been the ruler of the Maus Plains for a long time. I believe this proves the nobility of the royal bloodline."

The queen raised an eyebrow.

"What obvious words. I don't deny the nobility of the Silvanus royal family, but that doesn't mean we can ignore the pure blood of the Irugo royal family."

"Isn't it you, Your Majesty, who is ignoring it?"

"What?"

The queen asked sharply.

Aristine smiled and asked lazily.

"Isn't Tarkan the legitimate child of His Majesty the King?"

The queen was taken aback by Aristine's unexpected question.

Aristine didn't miss the opportunity and continued.

When you push, you must push firmly.

"Low birth, commoner. You said all this was about my husband, right?"

She slowly looked around at the people sitting at the table.

"Are you saying that His Majesty the King's direct descendants have low blood?"

"......"

The princesses' faces turned pale.

Once the king was mentioned, the queen couldn't remain unaffected.

Aristine didn't pressure them further and lifted her lips in a soft smile.

"Of course, I don't believe it."

A cornered mouse will bite a cat.

These were not mice hiding in the shadows but the pillars of this palace.

Indeed, Paeramen, Yenikarina, and the queen remained silent, cautious.

'But what about Stalina?'

"Of course not! Princess, you speak so fearfully. How could we dare to call His Majesty the King's bloodline low?"

Aristine's smile deepened at the expected response.

"If it's not true, it's best not to say such things in the future. I'm fine, but—"

Her purple eyes, sharp like a blade, scanned the room.

"Others might misunderstand."

Aristine smiled, a harmless smile like the sun in spring.

"If it's not true that His Majesty Nefter's bloodline is low, there's no need to say such things in the future, right?"

In other words, if they insulted Tarkan's bloodline again, she would consider it an insult to Nefter's direct descendants.

The queen's jaw tightened, trembling.

'Stupid Stalina!'

Her angry gaze fell on Stalina.

Aristine wouldn't bring this to Nefter.

She realized this as soon as her panic subsided.

She had been momentarily surprised by the mention of the king's bloodline.

How could Nefter not know what people said about Tarkan's bloodline behind his back?

Of course, he knew. It was a long-standing concern of his.

But as long as it wasn't said openly, he left it alone.

To the king, more important than his favored son was the task of uniting various groups with their own interests.

If Aristine told the king that the queen and princesses were belittling Tarkan, she would only receive a cold evaluation that she lacked political acumen.

'But the foolish Stalina ruined it!'

By saying that mentioning low birth was an attack on Nefter, it became hard to say it openly anymore.

At least for the people in this room.

"And, you said something I couldn't ignore earlier."

'Again, what?'

The queen held back her urge to scream, forgetting her dignity.

"Tarkan's mother is a concubine who received a formal title. You didn't forget that, did you?"

The queen's face contorted.

How could she forget?

The moment Nefter ordered a title for the lowly commoner who was pregnant.

Before that, she had laughed at the idea of giving a title to a commoner as a concubine.

But when the commoner was carrying a royal heir, there was no choice.

And the son of that commoner grew up to be a threat to her own son's position.

Her jaw tightened involuntarily.

She wanted to spit at Aristine's calm face.

But the queen forced a smile.

"Yes, that's right. But Tarkan's mother didn't receive a title when she was pregnant."

Paeramen, who had been watching, quickly supported the queen.

"Tarkan was born after his mother became a concubine, so it's not wrong to say that Tarkan was born to a mother who never received a title."

Aristine frowned and looked at Paeramen.

'Are you serious? I thought you were smarter than that.'

Paeramen's face turned slightly red under her gaze.

But she lifted her chin.

Aristine's opinion didn't matter now. What mattered was the queen's mood.

"Yes, Princess Paeramen is right. So, about Tarkan's mother—"

"Why are you so eager to belittle Tarkan?"

Aristine cut the queen off.

It wasn't that Aristine intentionally wanted to provoke the queen.

She just felt extremely wronged. That Tarkan was so hated.

Tarkan's mother had been dead for a long time.

Had he endured all this alone?

"No matter how much they compete for the succession, why do you have to speak ill of him in such a setting?"

She understood when it was to incite the nobles or when there were observers.

But not now.

"To embarrass me? I'm not affected by such things. It doesn't even make me feel uncomfortable."

These people probably thought that being exiled meant being forcibly confined to the palace.

"Tarkan is a hero who saved this country. From the Maus and from the Silvanus."

This was a fact that no one could deny.

That's why the queen hated Tarkan even more.

"I am proud of my husband and glad that I married him."

It was true.

Everyone called her a sacrificial lamb, saying it was like going to certain death.

But Aristine truly believed that being a sacrificial lamb and meeting Tarkan was a good thing.

"Of course, Tarkan has a strong ego, and sometimes he argues childishly, and he requires a lot of effort, and he's a bit shy, and a little... Ah, that's not it."

Aristine caught herself and closed her mouth.

Paeramen's pupils wavered.

Arguing childishly, requiring a lot of effort, and being shy.

Was the person Aristine was talking about really her half-brother Tarkan?

Others also looked at Aristine with disbelief.

Wasn't she only saying things that were the opposite of Tarkan, except for his ego?

"Anyway, despite all that, I know Tarkan is a good person."

The queen's eyes twitched.

"So, what are you trying to say?"

It was more of a threat than a question.

Paeramen quickly signaled Aristine.

She had forgotten that they were on opposite sides.

But Aristine continued, "Well, the conversation got a bit off track... Even as a foreigner, no, an enemy, I admire Tarkan's bravery."

Paeramen and Stalina looked at the queen with fear.

Aristine alone remained calm.

"Can the leader of Irugo, who shed blood for Irugo, be ignored by the leader of Irugo?"

"What...?"

The queen's voice was like boiling fear from hell.

"Tarkan is also the son of Your Majesty, in terms of lineage."

But Aristine didn't stop.

"Can't his mother be more proud of her son?"

Snap.

Somewhere, a sound of reason breaking was heard.

Fire flashed in the queen's eyes. Crack.

The marble floor screamed as it was scratched by the chair.

The queen's hand shot up.

Her ring-covered hand was about to strike Aristine like lightning.

"Your Majesty, are you about to hit my wife?"

A low, lazy voice, like the roar of a beast, echoed.

I'll focus on making money now, not on my husband.