Aww, my little…(19)
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Upon dismissal from the king, the royal guards began to drag the queen away.
The queen, who had been in a daze, began to struggle.
“This is unfair! It was a trap!”
The queen turned her head so fast that her neck looked like it would break and she glared at Aristine.
“This wench did this all on purpose because she wanted this! You knew everything! This wench knew everything!’
Tarkan cupped Aristine’s face, blocking her sight with his face. And his palm covered Aristine’s ears.
“You don’t need to see or hear ugly things.”
The moment Tarkan said that, the queen snapped.
“You bastard!”
Who knew where she got the strength, but the Queen shook off the guard’s hold.
Since they couldn’t hurt the queen, they held back some of their strength but normally, it would have been absolutely impossible to escape from the guards.
The queen rushed towards Aristine.
Tarkan hugged Aristine, protecting her with his body.
His golden pupils narrowed like blades and the moment the Queen met his eyes, she stopped.
Her body instinctively froze.
And that short gap was enough.
“Argh!”
A sharp scream gushed from the queen’s mouth.
Her arm was grabbed and twisted so roughly that the pain brought her to the point of tears.
“Who dares to…”
The queen began to say but couldn’t finish her sentence.
Because the person who grabbed and twisted her arm was none other than the king.
“Queen, have you lost your mind?”
The moment she met Nephther’s eyes, her breath caught in her throat.
“How can you attack the Princess Consort? Do you truly hope for something to happen to the royal grandson she carries?”
The queen and Nephther had never had a particularly harmonious relationship.
It was a political marriage, and Nephther was always wary of the queen’s power and greed.
As a result, he did not choose Hamill as his successor and the Queen resented Nephther for favoring Tarkan, who was born of a lowly mother.
But despite all that, this was the first time that Nephther had looked at her with such eyes.
His turquoise-hue eyes were as frosty as an ice awl.
“Y-Your Majesty, this is a scheme! That wench did this on purpose! To cut off my own limbs!”
She felt wronged.
It should never have gotten this far, but because Aristine acted like she knew nothing, she made the queen spill everything.
“How unsightly.”
The queen’s breath caught in her throat at a voice that came from the nobles.
“That doesn’t even make sense. If Her Highness the Princess Consort really knew Your Majesty’s plan, she would have avoided this entire matter completely.”
“If anything, she’d release the video at the beginning of the banquet and end things.”
“Indeed, exposing it at the banquet hall will create more than enough buzz.”
No. They were all wrong.
That wench was never the type to let things end so easily.
What would happen if the crime was merely an attempt and never actually happened?
‘Naturally, the punishment for my crime will also be weaker.’
Although she would lose the support of the people, the final ruling would simply be to confine her to her palace, and deprive her of a significant amount of assets.
“She purposefully feigned ignorance to turn me into an actual criminal! That’s why…!”
The queen’s cry was met with ridicule.
“Seriously, if you didn’t plan the crime in the first place, you wouldn’t become a criminal, no? Why are you blaming the wrong person?”
“Remember how Prince Tarkan looked when she asked if he planned it earlier. Obviously, if he knew about this plan beforehand, he would have flipped things upside down…”
“Alright, let’s say she deliberately waited to make you a criminal. Then, when Prince Marten first testified, she would have immediately asked Her Highness Paellamien to show the evidence.”
“I agree. A dragged-out battle like earlier would be useless. There’s no need for it.”
Of course, there’s a need!
The queen gritted her teeth.
People’s current attitude was proof that the dragged out battle was effective.
The queen perjured herself several times while asserting her authority. As a result, her words, actions, and authority lost all credibility.
Even the smallest trust in her as Irugo’s queen had been lost.
“Why…”
How could they not see it?
It was obvious the nobles had read the room from the beginning of the banquet and showed their goodwill towards Aristine.
After all, Tarkan was in a better position compared to the queen’s faction.
But now, without even needing to compare her to anyone, the nobles looked down on the queen.
“This is all her plan…”
Why did she only realize it now? How could they still not know?
“She must be delusional.”
Someone clicked their tongue and spoke.
“Soon, she’ll say the princess consort appeared in her dream and told her to start a cheating scandal.”
“I don’t know why she’s blaming other when she did it herself.”
“Normally, it’s hard to admit failure. That’s why she wants to blame it on someone else.”
“There is nothing more to see here. Take her away.”
Nephther waved his hand. Then he turned to his kneeling son.
“Marten.”
Marten looked up at Nephther, a distraught look on his face.
“R-Royal father, I know that I have committed an unerasable crime. But it’s all because of Majesty the Queen’s order…”
“Shut your mouth! Who are you calling father!”
Nephther’s thunderous voice struck Marten like a whip.
“I have never had a son like you!”
“R-Royal…”
Marten was about to say father but Nephther’s gaze was so menacing that the words caught in his throat.
Nephther sighed heavily, like he was tired and opened his mouth.
“Marten will be stripped of his title as prince.”
“Royal father…! It was all on Her Majesty the Queen’s orders!”
“How can you do such a thing just because you are incited to do so! Don’t you dare feel wronged. Think hard about your crimes!”
Nothing could justify his actions.
Marten clenched his fists tightly.
When he was hiding in Aristine’s break room today, he was excited about the future.
But how, how did he end up like this?
“Your current palace will be repossessed. And your princely assets too.”
Those words were like a thunderbolt.
“T-Then how am I supposed to…”
Thanks to being born as a prince, Marten was able to live a good affluent life, but he had no skill to speak of.
“You shall be sent to be border. Right, I heard there aren’t enough people on the demonic beast plains.”
“What?!”
“Fulfill your duty to defend your country.”
“T-This is basically asking me to die! No matter what, I am still Your Majesty’s son…!”
“Are you saying that every time Tarkan is sent out to the plains, he is going there to die?”
At those words, Marten had no choice but shut his mouth.
Because he knew that arguing about the skill difference between himself and Tarkan would be of no use.
“And those. Lock them up for questioning. I will never forgive anyone involved in this.”
Nephther pointed to the cameraman and the drunkard.
“They must pay the price for daring to insult the Princess Consort.”
“Y-Your Majesty! W-W-We, we just…”
“How dare you speak!”
The guards scolded the two men for opening their mouths without permission. With a sharp blade aimed at their necks, they had no choice but to keep their mouths sealed.
“Ah, take the servants who were guarding the lounge too.”
Everyone involved was taken to prison.
Anyone could see that the King was determined to tackle this with a heavy hand.
The only reason he allowed this insult of Aristine to continue was to catch and execute all rats hiding in the wall.
It was a sign that a river of blood was about to flow through the royal palace.
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finallyyyy not a cliffhangerrr. i was so satisfied with this result huhu. thankyouuuu miss ruby🥺
Thank you for the translation!!
Wait, weren’t the servants guarding the room in on it with Aristine?
Also, I need more fluff moments, I’m satisfied with the queen’s falling but my need for fluff isn’t met yet 😭🙏
The servants guarding Aristine’s room were those bought off by the queen. She had tried to call upon them to give a false testimony in her favor. Because the queen had called upon them in the first place, Nephther rightfully assumed they were in on it, so they’re being arrested to be questioned.
Thank you so much for this chapter, Miss Ruby. Thankfully for all of us, it wasn’t a cliffhanger.
Um… yeah, queen. Of course, Aristine would allow you to dig your grave, while knowing the truth, so you couldn’t escape. Duh? But that doesn’t mean anything is her fault at all. The queen planned all this herself, and despite many, many points where she could have stopped, she took the shovel she prepared herself and continued to dig with her own hands.
If anything, Aristine took advantage of how wretched and rotten the queen is. If the queen had been even a tiny bit of better person, Aristine’s trap wouldn’t have worked. The queen truly only has herself to blame. Sucks to suck, your Majesty. 🤷🏻♀️
Ah the lovely sensation of the queen being exposed and locked up, we have been waiting for this for so long and I am satisfied actually.
Grandpa Nepther is going to protect his little bwaby at all costs and it’s so cute 🥰
Royal Father 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 this is soooo 😗🤌🏼 imagine if this isn’t the end of it, would totally love to see the rats be chased by the tigers