56 - The Crown I Will Take From You
Episode 56
“Permission? Do I look like I’m asking for permission?”
“Birna… that child is not yet of age to discuss marriage!”
“Then isn’t it truly astonishing? How such a young girl could have such terrible thoughts? What would the Queen Dowager think if she knew about this?”
The Regent Duke glared at the Minister. His handsome eyes narrowed.
“Are you truly certain that the illness… is it truly Birna’s fault?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, considering your usual behavior, there could have been other reasons. But now you’re only blaming my daughter, so she can’t help but feel wronged.”
This time, it was the Minister’s turn to glare at Duke Claudio.
“Duke, don’t forget what I have in my hands.”
“Are you threatening me now? I don’t think I have any weaknesses of yours in my hands?”
“I’m merely reminding you that we are allies who must work together for a long time. It seems you’ve been blinded by the blood of your own flesh.”
“You’re the one who’s losing your mind over something so trivial, Minister!”
“Trivial?!”
Both sides stood their ground, neither willing to yield an inch.
\ \ \
“Where is Birna?”
The Regent Duke, returning home, searched for Birna fiercely.
“Ah, Father…”
And as soon as he saw his daughter awkwardly rising to her feet, he strode towards her.
Slap-!
Birna’s eyes widened as she clutched her cheek. It was the first time she had ever been struck.
“Dear!”
Catherine also opened her eyes in surprise.
“Do you even know what you’ve done? Why did you needlessly provoke Medeia and create this mess!”
The Regent Duke unleashed the pent-up anger he had suppressed in front of the Minister.
“Didn’t I tell you to be careful even during the fall from the horse? Do you not listen to a word your father says?”
“I, I…”
“Don’t even open your mouth. Don’t even think about going anywhere for the time being, just stay locked up, I don’t even want to see your face!”
Birna burst into tears.
“How could you hide such a big thing!”
Catherine, having belatedly learned the whole story, scolded Birna first.
“The situation is not good, Mother. He says that because his disability is Birna’s fault, he wants Birna as his wife.”
“What? That’s absurd!”
Then Birna, who had been sobbing, had a fit.
“I hate it! I’d rather die than do that!”
“You be quiet!”
Catherine rebuked her and then asked Samon again.
“What did your father say?”
“Of course, he said he absolutely couldn’t do that, but the Minister’s side is being too adamant.”
“……”
“We can’t afford to be at odds with the Minister like this… what should we do?”
The Regent Duke, who had firmly grasped the palace with Cuisine, the Head Maid, at his side, was gone.
To exert the same power in the palace as before, he had to hold onto Minister Etienne’s coattails.
“Minister Etienne has never failed in negotiations. I need to move before your father is persuaded.”
Catherine quickly headed to her daughter’s room.
Sheila, Birna’s close Maid, was cleaning up the mess Birna had made.
“M-Madam…?”
“Seize that child.”
Catherine’s maids grabbed Sheila, preventing her from moving an inch.
“From now on, write as I dictate.”
She forced a quill into Sheila’s hand and made her write a confession.
“I-I’ve written it all. Madam, I’ll beg for forgiveness on behalf of Miss Birna, so please, just once-”
Catherine’s eyes gleamed coldly.
“Yes. It’s your fault for not serving your mistress well, so blame your own inadequacy.”
“S-Save me, ugh-!”
Before Sheila could even beg for her life, Catherine’s maids poured poison into her mouth.
Birna froze.
Sheila was a close Maid who had taken care of Birna since she was young.
She thought that if she was caught, she would be beaten a little, or have a few months’ salary deducted, but she never thought she would be killed so quickly.
Her mother, who was always kind, disposed of her Maid without batting an eye.
“M-Mom…”
“It wasn’t Birna who put in the poison, it was Sheila. When you got into trouble, she was frightened and confessed her sins and died. Understand?”
Catherine calmly recited as if to make her remember.
“I hope you’ve come to your senses now, Birna. It’s about time you grew up.”
“……”
“Birna, pack your things. We have to leave tonight.”
The maids packed Birna’s luggage with practiced efficiency.
“W-Where to?”
“Stay at a convent for a while. And you, send that corpse to the Minister. Along with the confession.”
Catherine said firmly and left the room.
“Miss Birna seems to be very shocked, is it alright to leave her like that?”
“It’s fine. Let her clear her head. Leave two maids with tight lips with her.”
“She’s been raised so preciously her whole life, how much hardship will she have to endure living in a barren convent…”
The Head Maid wiped her eyes worriedly.
“Even if it’s hard, avoiding the Minister’s eyes is the priority now. She voluntarily left for the convent, would that man even try to bring our Birna back?”
As if she would like sending her precious daughter away.
But now was the time to act decisively. She had to avoid the worst-case scenario of marrying her to the Minister.
“If only that child had listened to me even once, none of this would have happened.”
Catherine sighed.
“Is she so fiery and reckless because she takes after him? Being passionate is good, but ugh, really…”
The Head Maid was quite bewildered.
Passionate? Duke Claudio was closer to cold water than a burning fire, no matter how you looked at it.
“What can I do? I can’t only swallow the good and spit out the bitter, so I, as her mother, have no choice but to take care of her.”
In any case, Catherine was fiercely devoted to her children.
She cherished her son Samon as much as her own life, let alone Birna, who was just like her.
Catherine headed to her husband’s office.
“Dear. Are you really going to grant the Minister’s request?”
How much energy had she spent overnight? The Regent Duke looked 10 years older.
“Birna…”
She was a selfish and immature girl, but she was his beloved youngest daughter.
No matter how big a mistake that child had made, he could never send her to the Minister.
‘Etienne, with his strange personality, might try to continue his lineage by using a relative of the Count’s family instead of her.’
Because he only thought of women as seed-bearers.
Claudio slammed the desk.
“I can’t let my daughter live like that for the rest of her life. I can never send her to that kind of man!”
Catherine was quite relieved.
She was worried about what would happen if he offered his daughter to the Minister, but she was glad that he was a man who protected his own offspring.
“I sent Birna to the convent.”
“Huh?”
“The dead Maid will be returned to the Minister to apologize. It’s a palace scheme, but since he sent us to find and send the real culprit, he won’t be able to ask for Birna as his bride anymore.”
“Well done. As expected, it’s you. You acted more wisely than I did.”
The Regent Duke praised his wife’s bold decision.
Catherine lowered her eyes obediently and gently patted her husband’s arm.
“So, try talking to him again. The Minister will try to find a compromise at some point.”
\ \ \
Royal Palace.
“Your Highness, Tom says that late last night, a carriage left the Duke Claudio estate and exited the Royal Castle.”
Birna must be in that carriage.
Did they make her run away in advance to avoid the Minister’s clutches?
Certainly, her aunt was quick-witted.
Medeia stared at the dim light of the lamp that illuminated the twilight evening.
“My aunt will try to end it at that level.”
She doesn’t care about other people’s lives for the sake of her daughter’s future. Only the unjustly killed Maid was to be pitied.
“Then what happens? Does the conflict between the two end vaguely like this?”
“Of course not.”
Medeia will use this situation as long as she can.
“Send a letter to Umberto and tell him. That Birna has run away to a convent.”
How far can the Minister’s pride, being mocked in front of his eyes, endure?
“And, about Birna’s dead Maid. Find out if there is anyone in her family who wants to go to my uncle’s house.”
There is no more reliable ally than sharing a grudge.
They will become Medeia’s ears and tell her the circumstances of the Duke’s family more enthusiastically than anyone else.
Neril bowed her head.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
