My Dear Grand Duke on a Leash - Chapter 100

Chapter 50.2 — Chalonné’s Man (16)

That was what she was really asking.

Cain’s eyes flickered to Bea’s hand, which had unconsciously come to rest on her stomach.

If it hadn’t been for him, she would’ve lost her child that day. Considering her current health, she might now be lying in a hospital bed, barely clinging to life. He never considered her a good sister, but even so, he swallowed the sharp words rising in his throat. The person he needed to confront wasn’t this frail, slender pregnant woman who seemed like she would shatter at the slightest touch.

After carefully refining and tempering the words that were about to burst out, he finally spoke.

“Did His Highness Narkissis mention anything to you?”

Bea’s long platinum lashes, resembling a canopy, fluttered slightly.

From that reaction, Cain was certain.

When it seemed like Riette was being threatened, Bea initially regarded Narkissis with caution. However, as her rational thoughts returned, she redirected her wariness toward him instead. Deep down, Princess Beatrice held a deep-seated trust in Narkissis. Perhaps it wasn’t as intense as Queen Chalonné’s, but it was there.

“My mother and I have only one concern. In finding such a wonderful gentleman like you, my sister Riette might end up drifting away from us…”

“Her Majesty the Queen and Princess Beatrice seem to believe that I’ve led the innocent Princess Lariette astray to cause discord among the women of Chalonné.”

It wasn’t surprising.

Manipulating relationships and emotions from the shadows—that was precisely Narkissis way.

From what he could see, Bea truly cared for Riette. And yet, despite witnessing such a situation, the fact that her heart still leaned toward Narkissis meant that her trust in him ran quite deep.

“Or perhaps…”

Cain’s blue eyes grew even colder.

“Do you agree with Her Majesty the Queen that I should have married you instead, Princess Beatrice?”

“W-What? How could you even suggest something so outrageous…!”

At his piercingly sharp question, Bea’s complexion turned pale.

“Her Majesty mentioned it several times, even in front of His Highness Narkissis, during the banquet.”

The fact that she unintentionally let similar nuances slip several times meant she was quite earnest in her intentions.

Ceres was so attached to her eldest daughter that it felt like her heart ached when she married a commoner. But for such an undeniably remarkable man to propose to her second daughter the very day after her eldest’s wedding—especially when he was the same man who had saved her eldest daughter’s life!

How devastated must her poor eldest daughter have felt? Worrying about her pride and dignity, Ceres eventually reached a breaking point, erupting in such a manner in the bedroom.

Had Cain proposed to Riette just a day earlier, she might have even tried to cancel the wedding and pair him with Bea instead.

Of course, there was a glaring flaw in her delusion.

She assumed that every man would naturally want to marry her daughter and that Bea, too, would want Cain as her husband. Not to mention, the feelings of the commoner son-in-law were obviously irrelevant, and naturally, Riette would willingly give up her marriage prospects for her sister.

Favoritism.

It wasn’t simply about favoring one child over the other. It was about focusing so fiercely on one child that everything else was pushed into the background, showing a harsh disparity in affection.

Cain didn’t grasp the depths of Ceres’s heart because he understood those emotions.

It was simply that he, in many ways, was accustomed to the preferential treatment of the eldest child.

“Princess Beatrice, I don’t believe it’s wrong for parents in noble families or royalty to devote their attention to the eldest child.”

Why does the eldest receive the entire inheritance? Wasn’t it because, along with the family’s wealth and prestige, they were expected to take on the responsibility of caring for the other family members? If the mother fell short in her role, it wasn’t Princess Lariette, the youngest, who should fill the gap, but rather Princess Beatrice, the eldest.

From his perspective, neither the mother nor the daughter of Chalonné had fulfilled their responsibilities.

“Her Majesty the Queen leans on His Highness Narkissis, adores Princess Beatrice, and sees Princess Riette as a nuisance.”

In truth, Ceres resented that any time and attention she could have given to Bea was instead taken by Riette. She loved and cherished Bea so much that she wanted to give her all the best things in the world if she could. Her favoritism was so blatant that even Cain, who had only been observing for a week, could clearly see it.

Therefore…

“You must have been aware of it as well, Princess Beatrice.”

From Cain’s perspective, Bea hadn’t done anything commendable either.

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