Chapter 8

As expected, or something like that.

The day after the tea party, Olivia was summoned by the queen. When she entered the queen's private room, she saw a table in front of the sofa laden with many sweets. As she inwardly smiled wryly at the familiar scene, the queen, smiling brightly, invited her to sit down. The queen offered her sweets, but it was clearly a bribe. Not wanting to get involved in anything troublesome later, Olivia only thanked her and reached for the tea.

Seeing that Olivia had no intention of touching the sweets, the queen pouted, looking unamused.

"Didn't the king ask you to be on his side? I know, you know."

Directly accused, Olivia could only smile wryly. The queen leaned forward towards her.

"Hey, Olivia, think about it. If Alan and Princess Florentia get engaged, Alan will remain the crown prince. Wouldn't that be convenient for you? If Alan becomes king, I plan to make Silas the chancellor. Then you can push all the state affairs onto Alan and Silas and read books to your heart's content in the library. Doesn't that sound like a great deal?"

Indeed, it did sound great. Olivia felt a bit swayed.

Olivia had been engaged to Alan since childhood and had always thought she would become the queen, but she didn't particularly want to be one. Honestly, the library was more appealing to her.

The queen must have noticed Olivia's wavering and continued.

"Besides, Olivia, as a woman, you should understand. I'm already forty. It's physically challenging for me to have and raise another child at this age. The king, being a man, doesn't understand this."

Olivia could somewhat relate to that. If she were asked to have another child after her children were grown, she would probably say, "Wait a minute." Probably.

(No, wait a minute. Maybe they should just give up and stop the bet altogether...?)

Olivia almost fell for the queen's mournful expression but then realized it and stopped feeling sympathetic. The fact that the bet was still ongoing was due to their own reasons. The queen neither said she wanted to stop nor that she would stop, so there was no room for sympathy. It was a bet that the king and queen had started on their own, and it was a major inconvenience for everyone involved. Even if someone said to stop, no one would.

(In the end, Her Highness just wants to win against His Majesty at all costs.)

Alan, who was caught in the middle, was pitiful. The queen, who had said that Alan needed an excellent assistant to become king, chose the shy and diplomatically unsuitable Princess Florentia, just because of the presence of Levanor behind her and because it would keep Alan as the crown prince. By the time she suggested making Silas the chancellor, she was clearly planning to have Silas assist Alan. This meant that Olivia, who was supposed to marry Silas, would also be involved. Reading as many books as she wanted was far from reality. It was absolutely impossible.

(Dangerous, dangerous. I almost fell for the queen's smooth talk.)

Olivia finished her tea, smiled back at the queen, and gave the safest answer.

"If Prince Alan and Princess Florentia both have the will to get engaged, of course, I will assist."

The queen's smile vanished instantly. Olivia just smiled wryly at the queen, who pouted, looking uninterested.