The Queen Who Deserves To Be Tainted - Chapter 38.1

“Are you okay?”

After all the noblewomen had left, Illene cautiously asked.

Elfreda, who had been working at her desk, looked up at her words.

“Huh?”

“Please don’t worry too much about what you heard earlier.”

Illene spoke with a face that looked concerned.

“It’s just a matter of a betrothal. I think it’s merely a level of pleasantries exchanged between the two countries.”

“Well, if they’ve had a friendship since childhood, it probably developed naturally.”

…Wait, this wasn’t the conversation she meant to have. Illene, realizing that she had inadvertently fanned the flames of Elfreda’s discomfort, quickly added.

“I mean, it wasn’t that serious! It’s almost embarrassing to even call it a betrothal.”

“I understand what you mean, Illene. I appreciate your attempts to comfort me, but I’m really okay.”

“…Really?”

“Hmm.”

Elfreda finally confessed.

“In my mind, at least.”

It wasn’t difficult to understand. The increased interactions, the resulting closeness, and the common practice of alliance marriages between childhood friends. However, in the end, Ejnar had chosen Makaeri. As she had stated earlier, Elfreda believed he would honor his own decisions and not go back on his choice.

Although it was undeniable that a trace of anxiety was growing in her heart.

“What I’m more curious about than that external story is… what kind of relationship the two of you actually had.”

“What kind of relationship? Just childhood friends.”

“So, it wasn’t actually a romantic relationship…?”

“Umm, as far as I know, it wasn’t.”

Immediately, Illene changed her response, as if that was a lacking answer.

“No, it definitely wasn’t. I’ve never heard anything like that.”

“Then, that’s a relief.”

If he had sacrificed his own feelings for the sake of the nation, it would’ve been unbearably sad. He had already set aside his personal resentment to accept her as his wife.

Nonetheless, even though Illene had eliminated all sources of anxiety, Elfreda still felt uneasy, largely due to her precarious position here. She couldn’t help but wonder if he would regret marrying her instead of reuniting with his long-time friend.

“….”

From a distance, Marchioness Magnum was watching Elfreda with an inscrutable expression.

* * *

Ejnar went to Elfreda after being overwhelmed by work recently. However, when he casually went to find her as he usually did, he unexpectedly encountered a situation.

“The Queen is currently resting.”

“…At this hour?”

It was still before 10 PM. Ejnar was briefly taken aback but then thought that if today had been especially tiring for her, it made sense. He decided to leave and return the next day, but when he did so…

“I’m sorry, but the Queen has gone to bed early again today.”

The next day.

“Has the Queen gone to sleep early again?”

Illene asked Ejnar with an apologetic look on her face.

“Should I wake Her Majesty to inform her?”

“No need for that. Is the Queen’s health all right?”

“There’s nothing wrong. She’s just been feeling a bit tired lately.”

Could it be…?

Ejnar’s brow furrowed as a possibility crossed his mind. The tea he was drinking didn’t guarantee a completely effective result. However, the next statement eased his suspicions.

“The palace doctor visited yesterday for a check-up, and there were no issues.”

So, it wasn’t something as simple as pregnancy. But then, why was Elfreda suddenly feeling so fatigued? According to the reports, nothing unusual had occurred…

When Ejnar returned to the central palace after several days of stopping short of entering the Solar Palace, a thought finally struck him.

‘Could she be doing it on purpose?’

There was no other reason. She was intentionally avoiding him. Why would the Queen, whose main goal was to bear his child, act this way?

At the end of his thoughts, the answer became clear, and Ejnar let out a wry smile.

‘This cunning woman…’

She was stirring his blood to boil.