In this country, particularly among noblen, maintaining an air of superiority was essential to preserving dignity. They were taught from childhood to never show weakness. Duke Soupley, like all others of his rank, had always adhered to this code.
It was often joked that the House of Soupley's long history of charitable work was rely a way to silence criticism. But the truth was that the Duke genuinely desired to be soone who could extend a hand to the vulnerable.
He had a daughter——a beautiful, perfect young lady who never defied him and always wore a gentle smile. Any man would eagerly seek her hand in marriage. Yet because of her innocent nature, he couldn't bear to entrust her to any man in this country. Over ti, he had co to yearn for a kind-hearted man for her. Yet such a wish was utterly unrealistic, given the nature of the n here, especially the noblen——all except one: Second Prince Yumanova.
His Highness Yumanova was remarkably gentle and kind, a rare trait in this country. Though rumors of his fondness for won circulated, such things were to be expected of soone in his position. Moreover, my daughter was the Young Lady of the Ducal House. We had raised her to understand that a Duke was entitled to take a concubine, and she would never complain about such matters.
Believing that His Highness Yumanova would make my daughter happy, I was pleased when the Royal Family, seeking to strengthen ties with the Church, proposed an engagent.
Our Ducal House had strong ties to the Church due to our extensive charitable work. However, we had always remained politically neutral. While this engagent might lead so to believe we had aligned ourselves with the Royal Family, we had poured countless donations into the Church over the years. They had no right to complain.
This marriage would secure my daughter's happiness. She was the epito of a virtuous noblewoman, a shining example of decorum and grace. I never doubted that such an exceptional daughter deserved an exceptional life——until that fateful day.
When I was summoned to the conference room, the sight of the Royal Family and the nation's most powerful political figures sent cold sweat trickling down my back.
The heavy, foreboding atmosphere of the room made it difficult to breathe.
An unbelievable report had just been delivered:
My daughter, Dahlia, had allegedly threatened His Highness Yumanova, the second prince, while hurling insults at him.
Moreover, she demanded he beco the father of a child conceived through her affair with another man——an utterly absurd request.
"Dahlia is an obedient child who listens to her parents."
"She must be an obedient girl who listens to everyone. She doesn't defy n and even asked the second prince for help."
The Chancellor's words startled .
Obedient to her parents… obedient to n. An obedient child… who obediently sought help.
Shocked, I realized there might be so truth to this. But even so, having a relationship with another man while engaged is sothing that, no matter how intimidating the n in this country may be, could never be tolerated.
She's a duke's daughter! Where could she have t such a man? If she had resisted, her maids or attendants would surely have reported it. The absence of such reports ans my daughter consented, and that she herself concealed the act.
Her considerable misbehavior caused him to clutch his head in despair, but the story didn't end there. His daughter was, after all, engaged to the Second Prince of the kingdom. To conceal her scandalous conduct, she had brazenly demanded that the completely unrelated Second Prince beco the father of her child. The blackmail attempt was so cliché it was almost laughable.
His head throbbed.
"Miss Dahlia apparently sought help from the kind Prince Yumanova not for the child's sake, but because she didn't want to be scolded by you, her father. When His Highness Yumanova refused, she threatened to abort the child, which reportedly darkened his expression."
A wave of dizziness washed over him. Could his daughter truly be this foolish?
"His Highness Yumanova has offered to keep the child's existence secret and publicly attribute the annulnt of the engagent to his own incompetence."
He snapped his head up, but not out of relief.
I stared at the King in disbelief, hearing him defend a woman who had betrayed him with the outrageous excuse of carrying another man's child. What is your son saying? Defending a woman who betrayed you and tried to contaminate the royal bloodline? Are you out of your mind? I wanted to ask.
From the perspective of a man in this country, this is absolutely unthinkable. Our pride won't allow it.
The king let out a deep sigh at my reproachful gaze, which ignored my position.
"I can't fathom what's going through his head. Politically, he claims it's to curry favor with you. As royalty, he says, the nation's interests take precedence over personal scandals. Utter nonsense, if you ask . It's not entirely wrong, but he's devaluing himself far too much. As a father, I can't approve, but as the ruler of this country, I suppose I can't object entirely. Duke Soupley, what do you want to do?"
The King sought my opinion.
Inwardly, he must be seething with rage. As a man of this nation and a mber of the Royal Family, he had never been subjected to such humiliation. Any previous king would have upheld his dignity by dismissing the matter entirely and executing us with a single stroke of his sword. It was clearly His Highness Yumanova who, through political maneuvering, restrained the King and steered him toward listening.
Tears welled in my eyes. What a rciful and compassionate man he is.
"…If I may be so bold, I would like to throw myself upon His Highness Yumanova's rcy. However, this is rely a selfish request on my part. Whatever judgnt you render, I will never forget your compassionate proposal. The House of Soupley, even if its very existence is erased, will forever teach its descendants to serve the Royal Family and live by its side."
I vowed that even if the House of Soupley were to fall into ruin, its survivors would harbor no resentnt toward the Royal Family, but would instead work to rebuild it. Or rather, I promised this not so much to the Royal Family itself, but to His Highness Yumanova personally.
The King nodded in satisfaction at my words and pledged, "Then it shall be so."
***
"Father always said you were a remarkable person," she continued. "That you were the one who protected the House of Soupley. Yet you looked at as if I were so kind of alien——as if I could casually betray such a kind person. I've lived my entire life exactly as my father instructed, never forming my own opinions, simply nodding and smiling like a puppet. So why do you look at like that? Wasn't it my father who told never to defy n? I only did what he said. What did I do wrong? I don't understand."
Lady Dahlia stared at , her expression utterly bewildered.
Could she also be a victim of this country? But…
"Are you aware of the rumors circulating about your confinent to your territory?" I asked.
Miss Dahlia snapped at my words.
"Yes! My father is trying to exile from the capital to conceal the scandal. He wants to banish his shaful daughter——along with the child in my womb, the root of this disaster——to our territory, where I'll be imprisoned out of sight. That's why I ca to you…"
"Duke Soupley is said to be abdicating his title to your brother and moving to his territory with you and the unborn child."
"Huh?"
Lady Dahlia, who had been rampaging with a demonic expression, suddenly froze, her face blank with shock.
Ah, so she didn't know? She must have believed she was being abandoned because she was a disgrace. Is that why she clung to one last ti as a final resort?
Still dazed, Lady Dahlia stared at as I relayed the conversation I'd had with the Duke the other day.
"He said this, ‘She may be a foolish daughter, but I'm even more foolish. I can't abandon her. This situation is entirely my fault, so I want to protect her and the child in my territory and live there with them. And I want to hear her wishes——to watch over her days from nearby, see what she truly thinks, and this ti finally see her genuine smile.' He's really a kind man, the Duke."
"N-no, that's not true! Father… he's always been filled with regret about how things turned out. He constantly praises you, but when he looks at , he only expresses disappointnt. He never once ntioned anything like that…"
"Of course he wouldn't. Your actions wouldn't just punish you and the Duke; they would have far wider consequences. If made public, the damage would extend to every mber of the Ducal House, even the servants. To prevent that, I deliberately took responsibility myself. The Duke praises because he's deeply grateful. And since you severed your ties with ——the one with the power to protect the Ducal House——it's only natural for him, as its head, to feel regret."
Hearing this, she finally seed to realize the gravity of her mistake, her face draining of color.
Trembling violently, she murmured, "What have I done… I've made everyone suffer…" I sighed inwardly, thinking there was nothing I could do.
"Since you've realized your mistakes, why not face the Duke now? He's prepared to face you. You can do it even after returning to the Territory. Once you've cald down, take a good look at your father. Work hard to give birth to a child, and watch the way he looks at that child. Sothing will surely change."
When I said this with a smile, Lady Dahlia stared at blankly. Ah, was that a bit cheesy? I chuckled wryly, realizing it was out of character. Lady Dahlia's eyes widened as she blurted out, completely unrelated, "You refer yourself with ‘‘?"
"I truly never looked at you, Your Highness… No, I didn't think I ever look at anyone properly. A hollow girl like deserves to be ashad."
"Hmm, well, I can't deny about that. I suppose you weren't looking at yourself either. But I did like the way you smiled while looking at the flowers. You loved lilies of the valley, didn't you?"
"Huh? How did you know…?"
"It was all over of your face. That was the only ti your smile seed genuinely relaxed. You should smile like that at your children too."
"…Your Highness."
"Oh, but did you know that lilies of the valley are actually poisonous? Be careful when you touch them."
"!"
Lady Dahlia, who had been moved by my words, gasped at the ntion of poison.
I grinned at her, and her stunned expression softened into a soft chuckle. For the first ti, we truly looked at each other. Ah, guess she's got that side to her, too.
Perhaps feeling the sa, Miss Dilia blushed and smiled back.
Suddenly, soone tugged sharply on my arm from the side. It was Allie.
Eh? What's wrong?
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