The Queen Who Deserves To Be Tainted - Chapter 35.1

“Your Majesty, the Queen has arrived.”

Ejnar, seated at his desk in the office, nodded calmly at the attendant’s news.

He had expected her to come by. If she hadn’t, he would have been displeased at such foolishness. Thankfully, she hadn’t gone so far as to upset him.

While he didn’t expect the queen from an enemy nation to read his mind, he hoped she wasn’t naive enough to ignore that someone was clearly manipulating her. It wouldn’t be a bad thing, but having her close by would be suffocating.

Elfreda entered, still wearing the bright red dress she had on at the library. The fact that she had come straight from there caused a slight smile to form on his lips.

“It seems this is the first time the queen has come to see me first.”

“…I apologize. However, given the circumstances…”

Her response made Ejnar furrow one eyebrow. It sounded as if she wouldn’t visit him first again unless something unusual occurred. Then, he realized that his reaction made it seem as though he had been waiting for her visit.

He flinched at the thought.

In that moment, Elfreda handed Ejnar the stiff speech.

“This is the speech I received from a lady-in-waiting during today’s opening ceremony.”

His previous thoughts quickly evaporated as the chaotic letters in front of him filled his mind. As he had suspected, it was a cleverly manipulated speech designed to make her look ridiculous. He had said he would tolerate it as long as it didn’t cross a line, but he hadn’t expected them to go to such lengths.

Ejnar let out a wry smile.

“Marchioness Magnum and all the ladies-in-waiting of the Solar Palace claim they knew nothing about this.”

“Yet the queen’s speech today seemed quite plausible.”

“…I thought something like this might happen.”

“You memorized it all.”

“Yes.”

“Now, it makes sense why you were working so hard.”

With a chuckle, he asked directly.

“So, what do you want?”

“I’d like you to reduce the number of ladies-in-waiting by half.”

“Not a thorough investigation?”

His question was somewhat puzzling, as it wasn’t the response he had anticipated. Still, he figured that even if an investigation were conducted, it wouldn’t yield meaningful results, and even if it did, it would be difficult to punish such a prank severely.

In many ways, Marchioness Magnum had outsmarted herself.

If the matter would merely end with their dismissal, he would prefer to at least create a little breathing room. Reducing the number of ladies-in-waiting would also deliver a blow to Marchioness Magnum.

“With fewer people in the palace, they’ll be more cautious going forward. I’d rather end it that way.”

It wasn’t a difficult request.

After all, the primary duty of the ladies-in-waiting at the Solar Palace was to manage the queen’s affairs, so it wouldn’t significantly disrupt palace operations. While reducing the queen’s surveillance team could pose a minor issue, there should be no problems, as Marchioness Magnum was handling everything exceptionally well.

Thinking that it was a fitting conclusion for a queen, Ejnar nodded.

“If that’s the case, you didn’t need to come find me.”

“…Pardon?”

“All matters that occur in the Solar Palace fall under the queen’s jurisdiction. There’s no need to seek my permission for something as trivial as reducing the number of ladies-in-waiting.”

Elfreda fell silent for a moment.

While that was technically true, she wasn’t simply an ordinary queen, and her situation was anything but ordinary. Still, she worried that coming to him over such a minor issue might have disturbed him. Perhaps she should have resolved it through a letter.

“Well, since they were chosen by Your Majesty… I thought it was right to inform you, but I’ll handle it myself next time.”

Her answer sounded as if she was saying she would take care of such matters herself in the future, which momentarily annoyed Ejnar.

That wasn’t what he meant to imply.

If she continued to keep quiet like this, it would only frustrate him more. Ejnar asked, unable to hide his sharp tone.

“Do you have more to say?”

However, her next response softened his expression slightly.

“Thank you for taking care of me today.”

Elfreda had been reflecting on the events of the opening ceremony throughout her journey to the Central Palace. Specifically, she replayed the moment when Ejnar, awkward yet decisive, cut his finger on the stiff paper. The image of blood dripping from his finger kept flashing in her mind, making her feel dizzy.

‘You knew this would happen.’