Chapter 22
Why, indeed?
Ejnar couldn’t understand why Elfreda was acting so haughtily. It was laughable.
He had heard of Machi people refusing even the slightest contact with the barbarians but never the reverse. If it wasn’t for the pride of a great Makaeri princess looking down on a king from a smaller kingdom like Machi, what could it be?
This woman had a knack for irritating him in many ways.
He made her position unstable by removing one of his supporting hands, making her position more precarious than when he was holding her with both hands.
Elfreda looked terrified, yet she kept her trembling hands tightly clenched and placed them over her heart.
Seeing this, Ejnar was struck with an idea.
He was curious to see how far she could maintain her composure as he widened his stride towards the bed while maintaining his hold. As Elfreda’s face turned pale, she tightened the grip of her clenched fist instead of reaching out to grasp his shoulder.
Ejnar coldly observed her maintain the same posture until they reached the bed, and finally, out of contempt, he released his remaining hand.
“Kyak!”
Elfreda fell onto the bed.
Although the soft bed prevented any injury, Ejnar was infuriated by her attitude of not trying to hold on to him even in that moment. He could have left in anger right then.
However, as she fell, her dress slipped even more disastrously, and Ejnar felt a familiar tension below his waist as when he first entered the room. Eventually, he climbed onto the bed and completely pulled off the inelegantly draped dress.
His actions became much quicker and more ruthless by his intensified emotions.
* * *
In the past, a king’s handmaiden typically meant a mistress. Still, Illene was a handmaiden whom the king kept by his side for her intelligence. He valued her presence without any sexual intentions.
Initially, people doubted the sincerity of these words, but over the years, the consistently straightforward relationship between the two made them undeniable. Moreover, Illene was indeed quick-witted and intelligent, helping the king in many respects.
“Lady Hagen.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“From today, you will work at the Solar Palace.”
When Ejnar issued this command early in the morning, Ilenne was slightly surprised but quickly grasped his intention. However, she feigned ignorance and asked.
“Am I to serve the Queen?”
“To be exact…”
Ejnar paused for a moment before he clarified.
“To observe.”
Ilenne responded with a peculiar smile and pointed out.
“But isn’t Marchioness Magnum already watching the Queen?”
Marchioness Magnum harbored as much resentment towards Makaeri as Ejnar himself. The Solar Palace was not a place where Elfreda could conspire with the enemy, and even if she tried, the Marchioness would not allow it. She was a woman intent on magnifying even trivial issues to oust the Queen.
After hearing Ilenne’s observation, Ejnar momentarily closed his mouth, then corrected himself.
“I mean, sending you isn’t primarily for surveillance.”
“Then…?”
“It seems Marchioness Magnum is being less cooperative with the Queen than I thought.”
Ilenne nodded in agreement.
The Marchioness’ overbearing treatment of the Queen was well-known even in the central palace. The stories Ilenne occasionally heard were discomforting, but the central palace saw no reason or justification to intervene.
It was not seen as appropriate for the King to meddle in the traditionally maintained position of chief handmaid, which Marchioness Magnum held, especially since there was no suitable noblewoman other than her for the role.
No one considered the position of the barbarian Queen’s chief handmaid an honorable one. Indeed, whoever held the position was unlikely to be of any help to the Queen.
“Marchioness Magnum’s hatred for Makaeri is excessive. She is not suitable to serve the Queen.”
“So, Lady, it would be good for you to go and provide more tangible help to the Queen. Right now, the affairs of the inner palace are hardly running smoothly.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“What do you mean?”
Ejnar, unable to grasp the full meaning, asked, and Ilenne subtly lifted the corners of her mouth.
If the inner palace affairs were not running smoothly, there was an alternative.
To exclude the queen and manage the inner palace around Marchioness Magnum as the core. After all, for years, the Marchioness had effectively controlled the inner palace, and who could complain if they temporarily continued this under the pretense of the foreign queen’s inexperience?
However, the king was currently trying to treat Elfreda as a legitimate queen, which was a surprisingly favorable attitude from a king who had lost family to her grandfather’s actions.
Ejnar was a ruler who loved Makaeri deeply and always acted objectively and rationally.
Ilenne clearly recognized that the current situation was unusual. Certainly, she wouldn’t be the only one to notice. Marchioness Magnum must sense something was off, too, but whether the king himself was aware of this was another question.
From his unflustered demeanor, it was hard to be certain.
Ilenne added another comment.
“No, it’s just that, as far as I know, the Queen hasn’t sought Your Majesty’s help directly.”
“….”
“Moreover, there’s really no need to actively restore the Queen’s authority.”
As this was all true, Ejnar hesitated for a moment.
He was aware that his current directives were uncharacteristic of him. This was, in a way, a stubborn act.
The previous night, Elfreda had remained silent about her current situation until the end and hadn’t initiated any contact herself. When Ejnar saw her finally close her eyes after being overwhelmingly tormented, a question piqued his curiosity.
He wondered how she would react if he were the first to offer help.
Would she maintain her proud demeanor and show no gratitude, or would she feel humiliated yet thank him superficially?
If it were the former, he could withdraw his help at an opportune moment to make her situation even more difficult, turning it into a satisfying game. And if it were the latter, it could prove to be an amusing and enjoyable diversion.
“At least initially, we must show her the respect due a queen, for the sake of Makaeri too.”
“Of course, that would be better for this diplomatic marriage.”
“Right. Plus, you can always return to the central palace whenever. There’s no need to feel too upset. Once this is over, I’ll call you back soon.”
“Well, I’m not really upset by this situation.”
“Your face seems to suggest otherwise.”
Ejnar looked puzzled as he asked Ilenne.
“Wasn’t it enjoyable working by my side?”
“Of course, it was. It’s just…”
Ilenne smiled subtly and glanced slyly at the king.
He was still unaware of his own situation. Indeed, it was a scenario that was very uncharacteristic of him, so it would have been a stranger if he had realized it. Nevertheless, Ilenne viewed this situation quite positively.
“I’ve wanted to serve the Queen for a while now.”
“The Queen? Since when?”
“Since the first time I saw her here.”
“What does that mean?”
“It might sound presumptuous, but she seemed pitiable to me.”
Frankly, like any Machi people, Ilenne initially felt uneasy when she heard that Elfreda was going to become the queen of Machi. Though she hadn’t lost a beloved family member to Makaeri like Ejnar or Marchioness Magnum, Makaeri was still an unpleasant and troublesome presence to her.
However, the barbarian queen had kept to herself since her arrival, and the responsibility for monitoring the queen was given to Robert, gradually causing Ilenne to forget her presence.
Then, one day, she heard that the king had rescued the barbarian queen from drowning.
After first meeting Elfreda, Ilenne could not help but be surprised.
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