TSMMT Ch 158

Never Forgetting a Debt

Rosalia was a thirteen-year-old girl. As a daughter of the Islag ducal house, she received elite tutelage comparable to that of instructors at Neust Academy.

She was fully aware of the icy tension between her parents. One truth remained unquestioned: her mother favored her older brother and her cousin, Oberon, far more than her.

For a daughter of House Islag, winning affection required total obedience to her mother. Her father was perpetually busy, leaving the children entirely in her mother's care. Sandwiched between an older brother and a younger brother, Rosalia received little attention. So, she obeyed.

Despite her youth, she possessed a keen grasp of political affairs. When the King severed Oberon's arm, her mother flew into a rage, turning her bitter hatred toward the foreign Queen responsible.

Her mother endlessly reviled the foreign ruler. Naturally, Rosalia grew to despise Dianna Brienne, the Queen from Panborough.

When her father ordered her to accompany the Queen to the Holy See to request food aid, her mother whispered in her ear.

[Dc. Islag] "Humiliate the Queen. The negotiations with the Holy See must fail."

[Rosalia] "How should I do that?"

[Dc. Islag] "A clever girl like you knows best. You are so young that any mistake you make will be forgiven."

In truth, she was far more precocious and astute than ordinary girls her age. Put less kindly, she was sly. Rosalia usually executed her mother's directives with sharp precision.

At first, she clung to Dianna's side with sweet flattery. But when she criticized Lady Kragel for treating the Queen disrespectfully, Dianna reprimanded her sharply. Shivering with humiliation, Rosalia vowed to take revenge on the rigid Queen.

Shattering the sculpture at the Holy See was no accident. It was thoroughly calculated.

Just as her mother instructed, she needed only to ruin everything and cry like a child. She never considered the citizens of Lodbrog starving without aid, nor did she care that her scheme put both the Queen and herself in danger.

She felt driven to obey, knowing it would win her mother's warmth and affection.

When the sculpture shattered, everyone condemned Rosalia. Some even suspected she had broken it deliberately.

She wept loudly like a child while calculating the Queen's response.

She will scold me. She will denounce me.

When that happened, she needed only to cry harder and let her mother handle the aftermath.

Yet reality defied her expectations. While everyone else hurled accusations, the Queen voiced only concern for her injuries. Without a single word of scolding, the Queen stroked her hair and held her in a warm embrace.

And so, Rosalia wept for real.

She wept out of genuine terror over the magnitude of her crime, terrified by the cold glares directed at her. Real emotion mingled with her fake tears.

The soothing touch assuring her that everything was fine felt so warm that she sobbed like the foolish children she despised.

Rosalia knew she deserved hatred. Yet despite the monumental disaster she had caused, the foreign Queen her mother reviled tended to her with utmost care.

Even the knights of House Islag were astounded. It was neither performative courtesy nor forced kindness. Dianna treated her with genuine tenderness, like a younger sister or a daughter.

Dianna adjusted her clothes, asked if she needed to rest, and kept her company with gentle conversation.

Still, Rosalia wondered if it was all a facade. Her suspicion came not from her mother's twisted influence, but from her own insecurity. She adored this gentleness and cherished the warmth, yet she feared what would happen if such kindness proved fake.

Yet when real disaster struck, the Queen never changed. To a terrified, sobbing Rosalia, Dianna acted like an older sister and a mother combined.

Even with her being a spirit summoner, the cave-in was a dire crisis. Her care inside that dark cave was no act. It was entirely genuine. No one could feign such devotion in the face of death.

Realizing this, Rosalia felt a crushing weight of guilt. She had set out to ruin Dianna, yet received only unconditional goodwill in return. It was no calculated favor seeking political leverage, but a genuine grace given freely.

Once rescued and reunited with her older brother, Rosalia rushed back to the capital of Lodbrog, leaving the royal couple to travel at their leisurely pace.

Knowing her mother, she was certain the woman would try to trap Her Majesty once again.

[Rosalia] "Father!"

Upon returning, she sought her father in his study. He sat with a heavy expression, but his face brightened the moment he saw her.

[D. Islag] "Ah, Rosalia!"

Normally a stern man, he embraced her with gentle warmth. Opportunities to speak with her father were rare, but unlike with her mother, she knew he loved her.

House Islag never forgets a debt. Having received such profound grace, she had to repay it.

Looking into her father's worried face, she spoke with grave resolve for the first time in her life.

[Rosalia] "Father, I have something to tell you."

---

[D. Levian] "Y-You... Duke Islag! How could you do this to me?!"

[D. Islag] "How could you commit such an abomination?!"

Duke Islag roared like a lion, his thunderous voice ringing through the hall. Dianna saw Duke Kragel wince and cover his ears.

[D. Islag] "Did you believe I would remain ignorant of your plot to murder Her Majesty and the daughters of the ducal houses?!"

A chilling silence fell over the hall. Dianna stared at Duke Islag, her expression rigid.

[D. Levian] "W-What absurd slander is this?!"

Having watched quietly until now, Duke Eirick stepped in.

[D. Eirick] "Your daughter was the only one untouched by that accident. Every single girl there was a candidate for the throne."

[D. Levian] "N-Not so! My daughter failed to attend solely because Her Majesty wished it! To claim she avoided the tragedy deliberately is an outrageous leap of logic!"

He shouted desperately. His performance was so persuasive that even Dianna briefly wondered if a mistake had been made.

[Guiscard] "Naturally, you would deny it."

Guiscard stepped down from the throne and walked forward with steady strides. He stopped directly before the prostrate Duke Levian and locked eyes with him.

[Guiscard] "Yet after we ripped open the mouths of a few bandits, they confessed everything quite thoroughly."

He looked down at the crouching duke and spoke coldly.

[Guiscard] "If I rip open your mouth as well, will you become honest?"

Though he spoke in a casual tone, everyone present knew he meant every word. In that moment, Dianna realized Duke Levian had no escape left.

As Guiscard spoke those chilling words, his gaze met Dianna's. His eyes widened slightly before he let out a quiet cough.

[Guiscard] "Regarding the administrator who ordered the assassination, apprehending the bastard proved quite troublesome. Disguised remarkably well... Who would have guessed the culprit was disguised as a man?"

Duke Levian's face paled to a sickly ash. Seeing his expression, Dianna knew Guiscard had secured decisive evidence.

An assassination attempt on my life…

Capturing the person behind it meant Guiscard had managed all of this during their journey together.

He had executed the entire plan while remaining right by her side. Before her departure, the royal knights and Duke Kragel had already prepared to apprehend Duke Levian.

When Guiscard claimed he was slowing their return journey, was it to buy time for this? She remembered the various reports delivered to him along the road.

[D. Levian] "No, it is not so! Your Majesty, it is not! This is a trap! The one who plotted treason first was her! Duchess Islag harbored resentment toward Her Majesty and sought her death...!"

Dianna recalled that viper-like woman, the one who had glared at her with such icy hatred.

[D. Islag] "Are you referring to my former wife? She is no longer a member of House Islag."

[D. Levian] "W-What?!"

[D. Islag] "I informed the Regent of the matter. While marrying such a woman was my own grave blunder, her rogue actions don't constitute the fault of my house."

Dianna remembered the document she had reviewed while Guiscard was bedridden. The scheme to drive a wedge between the Islag couple. Was this the result of that plan?

[D. Islag] "How could my house engage in a foolish plot that put an Islag child in danger? I never made any promises to you."

[D. Levian] "Y-You...!"

Duke Levian's face turned completely dark. He had never anticipated that Duke Islag would discard his own wife so ruthlessly. Hoping to drag the Duchess down with him before the entire court, he was instead met with Duke Islag's brazen declaration of divorce.

Though both had harbored treacherous intent, one had chosen the path of self-preservation.

[D. Levian] "You pretend to be clean while escaping alone...!"

[D. Islag] "I never harbored filthy thoughts in the first place."

As he watched this absurd farce, Duke Kragel stifled a yawn. Seeing him yawn amidst such gravity reminded Dianna of Lady Kragel, bringing a quiet smile to her lips.

A trial would proceed in accordance with Lodbrog law, though Guiscard had already sealed the outcome: treason and execution.

With the other dukes harboring deep resentment toward Duke Levian, his house would face total annihilation with their tacit approval.

Levian had likely believed that triggering a landslide to kill the Queen and the other ducal ladies would allow his daughter, Saruvia, to take the crown.

Dianna watched him with cold eyes.

[D. Levian] "Your Majesty! You can't do this to me!"

[Guiscard] "What?"

[D. Levian] "You can't do this! You will suffer severe regret if you do!"

He shouted frantically. Guiscard signaled the knights with a subtle glance, and they stepped forward. Seeing them approach, Duke Levian drew a sharp breath.

[D. Levian] "My daughter... Saruvia is pregnant! With royal blood, your child!"

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