My Dear Grand Duke on a Leash - Chapter 87

Chapter 44.1 — Chalonné’s Man (3)

Narkissis crossed the bedroom and sat down at the tea table. His smooth, muscular chest was exposed through his loosely tied gown. Although his physique was like that of a statue, Ceres didn’t care at all.

The way she looked at him was more akin to how one looked at a son.

“This poor Queen only continues to owe Your Highness more and more. If Your Highness hadn’t sent the Grand Duke to investigate the suspicious people in advance, I would’ve lost my precious daughter. Moreover, who would’ve handled all the many tasks of the wedding?”

The one who caught the terrorist was Cain, and the person who handled all the wedding chores was Riette. Yet, funnily enough, it was Narkissis who received the gratitude.

“It’s nothing. It’s not the first time I’ve helped Chalonné. But, Your Majesty the Queen, despite the successful celebration of Bea’s wedding… you still seem full of worry.”

Ceres pointedly massaged her temples as she leaned back against the chair. A heavy sigh, drawn from the depths of her being, slipped out and disturbed the surface of the steaming tea in the cup.

“What else could be the problem? I don’t know where Lariette has been wandering since this morning. Leaving her sick sister alone like that, really…”

The corner of Narkissis’s mouth curved slightly.

Contrary to popular belief, favoritism wasn’t about a distinction of affection. It was the twisted resentment of feeling that every spoonful of food given to one child was a spoonful denied to a beloved other who would have been more satisfied with it.

Narkissis was a man adept at dealing with this distorted kind of affection.

“Oh dear. You must be truly upset. If only you hadn’t gone looking for Lariette so early, you could’ve offered Bea one more spoonful of breakfast.”

“That’s right. As expected, the only one who understands this Queen’s heart is you, Your Highness Narkissis.”

Ceres let out a deep sigh.

“You know very well that I care for you like my own son. How kind you’ve been to the women of this Chalonné royal family? I tried to keep it to myself out of concern for you, but I must tell you. Lariette keeps finding fault with you, and I can’t stand it. She warned me that you’re as sly as a snake. She told me never to trust you and to keep my distance!”

“I see. Is there… anything else she mentioned?”

“I sternly rebuked her, but that’s all she said. Before you leave Chalonné, would you please be generous and advise her? If it’s not His Highness the Prince of Helios, whom can this poor Queen, who has had to take in a commoner as the first man of her house, turn to?”

Lariette wouldn’t have confessed anything to her mother.

If that had been the case, this weak and dependent woman would’ve run to him, complaining and revealing everything. The Queen of Chalonné, her ladies-in-waiting, the personal physician, and even the guards were all within his grasp. Even after 15 years of building relationships, how could he have infiltrated the core of a foreign royal family otherwise?

It was all thanks to this queen.

Ceres always wanted a man she could rely on. However, she also loved her late husband so much that she couldn’t even dream of remarrying. In other words, the only trustworthy man around her for the past fifteen years was Narkissis, whom she had come to care for like a son.

It would have been most ideal for her if he became her son-in-law, though Ceres had no intention of sending her eldest daughter, whom she adored beyond measure, to a country where polygamy existed. Similarly, Narkissis had no intention of giving the prestigious position of crown princess to a princess from a lesser country.

Ultimately, a peculiar and secretive symbiotic relationship, akin to that of a mother and son, was born.

“Since Her Majesty the Queen has gone so far as to say so, I’ll go and speak to Lariette now. After all, Lariette and I have had quite a few disputes over the years.”

“Then, once again, I’ll trust only in Your Highness Narkissis. There are countless things I need to take care of for Bea, but I keep getting distracted, really…”

“I’m somewhat hesitant to mention this, but it’s probably because of a man.”

Ceres, who had been about to stand up, froze as if turned to ice. Her bright green eyes, strikingly similar to Lariette’s, darted around the room aimlessly.

Narkissis then drove the wedge into her once more.

“Didn’t I tell you before? There are rumors of a scandal in Helios. It’s usually the ones who seem upright on the surface who hide the biggest and sordid desires underneath. To be more specific, my cousin…”

“Your Majesty the Queen!”

The door swung open without a knock at the same time as the chamberlain’s shout. Before Ceres had time to frown at such flagrant rudeness, the ashen-faced chamberlain rushed in.

“Grand Duke…!”

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