Chapter 86
Daisy, who didn’t catch his faint murmur, replied with a mildly annoyed expression.
“No matter how curt Your Highness may have been, it’s still rude to storm out like that. Ugh, if we had known it was Lady Haisley who was coming, we wouldn’t have prepared the refreshments so meticulously. What a waste.”
Daisy spoke bluntly. Since the woman had long tormented Calix, there was no way for her to feel any goodwill toward her.
“Daisy.”
Calix, who had just entered the palace, sharply turned around. Looking down at Daisy, he rebuked her coldly, a tone unlike any he had used before.
“I’ll overlook it this once in light of your loyalty until now. But I won’t tolerate such impudent behavior again.”
Only then did Daisy realize that she had gone too far.
“…My apologies, Your Highness.”
Leaving behind Daisy, who bowed her head, Calix checked the untouched desserts and let out a quiet sigh.
For some reason, it felt as though he had done something awful to a sick person, and the unpleasantness lingered. He retrieved the gift Lea had given him, took out its contents, and held it in his hand.
It was indeed a magical tool that would prove useful. He couldn’t help but wonder how she had managed to acquire something like this.
Click, click.
He pressed and released the activation device, the earlier scene playing back in his mind.
“How dare they. So insolent.”
Though he found Zion and Derek—who had stood against him—laughable, he still couldn’t shake off his irritation. Most of all, it was Zion holding Lea tightly in his arms as if she belonged to him that grated on his nerves.
As he toyed with the magical tool Lea had left behind, lost in thought, a servant informed him that the artisan had arrived, and he made his way to the reception room.
He had resolved that, after today’s conversation with his father, he would sever all denial. As his father had said, he had to carve out his own path.
Now that he was a true adult, he would seize the imperial throne with his own hands, with pride.
Sitting before the artisan who managed the attire of the imperial family, he gave a languid command.
“Cut my hair. Very short.”
* * *
Bianca was weighed down by anxiety with each passing day. The betrayal by Lea had shocked her so deeply it felt as if she were slowly sinking into a swamp.
Of course, it wasn’t sorrow from being betrayed.
It was the humiliation of having been bested by someone she considered beneath her.
“That hurts!”
Bianca’s hysteria flared uncontrollably. She screeched at a court lady applying oil to her hair and slapped her harshly.
“Hah. How dare you send such a brainless thing to my palace?”
“Your Majesty the Empress, you must take care of your precious hands. I shall personally see to her punishment.”
The chief lady-in-waiting rushed over to soothe her gently.
“It looks like a few strands of hair were pulled out… Shave that wench’s head completely.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“I was wrong, Your Majesty! Please forgive me just this once!”
The court lady, dragged away, pleaded desperately, but Bianca muttered irritably,
“So noisy! Someone should gag her or something.”
“My apologies, Your Majesty. I was thoughtless.”
Only after the court lady disappeared did the other attendants secretly exhale in relief. Lately, the Empress’s nerves were so frayed that no one knew how to stay in her good graces.
After grumbling to herself for a moment, Bianca seemed to recall something. She pressed her forehead to her palm, then lifted her head and issued a command to the chief lady-in-waiting.
“Clear the room.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The chief lady-in-waiting, practiced in this routine, dismissed everyone and then knelt before Bianca, leaning in close.
“It’s time we stopped digging into Felitier’s second son. We should start a new rumor.”
“What kind of rumor shall it be?”
“There were whispers that I’m infertile, weren’t there? I’m going to overturn that.”
“…Pardon?”
Even the chief lady-in-waiting, who would normally comply with any request from Bianca, was caught off guard this time.
“I’ll be spending a few days at His Majesty the Emperor’s palace soon. After that, you’ll spread it naturally. You understand?”
The chief lady-in-waiting thought frantically. Spreading a false rumor regarding the imperial succession was a serious offense—an act of defaming the imperial family.
However, the Emperor had always forgiven most of Bianca’s transgressions. Even when his own son was on the brink of death and Bianca refused to provide guiding, he had said nothing.
His unwavering support for Bianca had been so absolute that even nobles who once leaned toward the Crown Prince began to change their stance.
The chief lady-in-waiting ultimately concluded that it would be in her best interest to obey Bianca once again.
“Yes, I shall carry out Your Majesty’s command.”
Only after hearing this faithful response did Bianca finally smile. Shaking off the unpleasant feelings that had clouded her mind, she muttered softly,
“I should take this chance to round up and kill all those wenches who dared whisper that I was barren…”
At her chilling voice, the chief lady-in-waiting trembled. She believed Bianca was more than capable of doing exactly that.
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