Chapter 15

This tea party is primarily to announce my mother's remarriage, so Grandfather said that it's not absolutely necessary to select my close attendants. If I don't feel a connection, there's no need to force a close relationship. That's a relief.

Well, a tea party, huh...

Actually, I'm not completely inexperienced with such events. It was informal, but I did have a tea party with the Queen.

Oh, it turned out to be with the Queen, the romantic partner of His Majesty the King, the King's weakness, his beloved wife. Well, in any case, she is the King's destined partner, bound by true love (laughs).

Four years ago, when my mother left the palace and I was to become the Crown Prince upon coming of age, but instead decided to renounce my right to the throne and leave the royal family to inherit the House of Marquess Fulftbahr, the Queen heard about it and came to see me. She came with the Chancellor.

Of course, it wasn't allowed for the Queen to meet the First Prince alone (even though she brought along her attendants and ladies-in-waiting). It's unclear whether this was due to the Queen's position or mine, but there are many rules in the palace. Especially when the Queen meets the children of a concubine rather than her own, there are various concerns.

Moreover, the Chancellor was probably most wary of Grandfather's explosive temper. After all, the King, the head of the royal family, is the one causing trouble. It might be impolite to compare the Queen with the King, but she is still his wife.

So, until then, I had never met the Queen. There are age restrictions for royal ceremonies and tea parties. After completing one's social debut and learning the necessary manners, one can attend. I had never completed my social debut because I was mostly confined to the concubine's palace, only occasionally wandering around the castle. I had learned the basic manners from my nurse and my twins, but I still didn't attend.

My mother was preoccupied with the King, so she neglected the arrangements for me. The King, needless to say, had his own plans and left me alone, with no intention of making any arrangements. Because of this, I feel that the King has never done anything for me and I can't even think of him as a father.

Due to these circumstances, I had never completed my social debut and thus did not meet the conditions to attend official events, which is why I never had the opportunity to meet the Queen. My mother might have met her a few times, but they were generally kept apart. The King, the Queen, and my mother would only be together when welcoming visiting royalty from neighboring countries. Even then, the surroundings were always vigilant to prevent the Queen and the concubine from speaking.

My mother, when she was first taken as a concubine, tried to pay her respects to the Queen. However, she received a refusal and, on the same day, the King told her that she didn't need to interact with the Queen. The King was wary that the concubine, who had been reluctantly accepted, might harm the Queen out of jealousy.

Later, I learned that the Queen's entourage was full of supporters of the King and Queen's romantic relationship, and they had their own considerations. Some were devoted to the King or the Queen and saw my mother as a threat to their relationship, a virtual enemy.

Indeed, my mother was deeply in love with the King. She had received princess education and understood that if she couldn't bear a child, the King would take a concubine. She probably never thought she would become that concubine. What I'm saying is, if the King had treated my mother like his wife, she wouldn't have been jealous of the Queen or acted out. If the Queen's camp had seen my mother as a partner supporting the King, like the Queen, things wouldn't have become so messy and complicated.

In any case, the Queen, who had nothing to do with me, came to visit me at the former concubine's palace, now my palace (renamed Sturmwind Palace), about a week after my mother left, accompanied by the Chancellor. There was a preliminary notice, about three days after my mother left the palace. My twins brought the message to me and told me to reply.

The Queen's purpose was undoubtedly to see me. If she had business with my mother, she would have contacted the House of Marquess Marcosias. I did wonder why someone with no prior connection would come to see me. I had no reason to think the Queen would want to meet me. Most importantly, the King would have been against the Queen's contact with me. He might have complained later. So, I replied that she should get the King's permission and contact me again.

The next day, I received a response saying that the King's permission had been obtained and she would come to see me. Once she had the permission, there was no choice but to meet. If I refused, there would be complaints. I won't say from whom.

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