TSMMT Ch 99

Guiscard's Return

Dianna looked at the man reaching out to her. His gaze fixed upon her face. Her mind threatened to drown in those vivid purple eyes.

[Dianna] "Why are you……"

Her raspy voice cracked with effort. Breath hitched in her throat.

Fury and anguish warred upon his face. Offering no reply, he took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

[Dianna] "Ugh!"

However, blood poured from the wrist previously grabbed by the gargoyle. Releasing her hand, Guiscard lifted her into his arms.

[Dianna] "Wait!"

She thrashed in his grip, but he spoke firmly.

[Guiscard] "Stay still!"

[Dianna] "Only my hand is injured! I can walk!"

Despite her protest, Guiscard refused to release her. Instead, the strength in his arms tightened.

[Guiscard] "Your Majesty! The innermost sanctum of the royal palace is where you belong right now, not here."

[Dianna] "……"

[Guiscard] "Why? Were you trying to escape again?"

His cold words drained her strength to speak, and she stared at his face.

Unable to watch the exchange quietly, a knight spoke up.

[Vargrhati] "Forgive my intrusion, Your Majesty, but Her Majesty came here at the Prime Minister's request."

[Vargrhati] "Her Majesty's abilities were essential to clear that nest. Without Her Majesty, our forces would have suffered severe casualties."

Dianna noted his breathing accelerated.

[Guiscard] "Are you advertising your own incompetence to me? Are your skills so pathetic that you had to drag out someone who should never step foot outside just to seek her help?"

Though nestled in his arms, preventing her from seeing his face clearly, she could feel the raw anger echoed in his voice.

[Vargrhati] "We apologize, Your Majesty."

[Vargrhati] "Forgive us."

Dianna heard the knights' apologies.

Why were those men apologizing? While she didn't consider herself extraordinary, she knew she possessed strength.

Did Guiscard not know what power she held when they killed the Echidna together in the past? So why blame the knights?

[Dianna] "Can you offer nothing more than those words to men who risked their lives?!"

She spoke coldly. Being held in his arms with one hand made her feel humiliated, yet she had to speak her mind.

[Guiscard] "Don't say…… a single word."

She released a dry laugh at his growling voice.

[Dianna] "Fine, I shall remain quiet, just as you wish."

At her sarcastic retort, the atmosphere froze instantly. Held by Guiscard, she uttered not another word until they returned to the royal palace.

Though every meeting felt terrible, this reunion ranked among the absolute worst.

---

The royal palace was in a state of frantic activity upon their return. The King's arrival was that sudden. Five days remained before his scheduled return, yet he had rushed his schedule to arrive early.

Regardless, Guiscard sat in silence.

[Guiscard] "Hand it over."

Why the sudden formal speech?

Dianna refused to even look at him. When she felt a tug on her hand, she groaned and glared at him. As she tried to pull away, he gripped her hand tightly.

[Dianna] "Ah!"

[Guiscard] "Just stay still!"

He spoke in irritation and pressed a cotton pad soaked in disinfectant against her wound. A sharp smell of alcohol filled the air, and she gritted her teeth.

[Guiscard] "Does the pain bring you back to your senses?"

[Dianna] "Ngh……"

Though his grip on her wrist was firm, his touch while cleansing the wound was gentle.

It was merely a claw scratch. Not deep enough to sever a blood vessel, thankfully. If anything hurt more, it was the sharp ache in her wrist from being temporarily twisted.

He twisted her other wrist, disinfected it, and wrapped bandages around them.

[Guiscard] "Damn it……"

He continuously muttered curses, glaring into her eyes.

[Guiscard] "I know you possess unusual powers, but interfering everywhere you please exceeds your bounds."

[Dianna] "Exceeds my……"

She stared at him with a hardened expression. Regret flickered in his eyes, but she let out a dry laugh.

Why must this man express his feelings through anger? A man who hadn't sent a single letter couldn't possibly be angry out of worry……

Was he enraged because his knights accepted help from a Panborough woman—someone he deemed weak?

[Guiscard] "I never asked you to do such things."

She retorted with a cold face.

[Dianna] "Yet the people demanded I fulfill that role as Queen."

[Guiscard] "……"

[Dianna] "Does that exceed my bounds?"

How wonderful it would have been had this man returned even later!

When he failed to reply, she added:

[Dianna] "If that exceeds my bounds, then Your Majesty desires a 'different' role from me."

[Guiscard] "What?"

[Dianna] "A slave. The very hellish existence you experienced."

[Guiscard] "Watch your mouth……"

[Dianna] "Why? Is that not what you wanted? Telling me to do nothing ultimately means exactly that."

[Guiscard] "Dianna."

[Dianna] "What you want from me right now is for me to suffer as you suffered. Is that not why I am here right now? Against my will."

Rage flared in his eyes. Yet her eyes reflected nothing. Maintaining a cold smile, she spoke.

[Dianna] "If you dislike everything I do, dethrone me and turn me into a slave who merely obeys orders. You married me and confused me, making me mistake my place."

Dianna recognized that her words genuinely enraged him. He said nothing, staring at her for a long moment, brimming with fury.

Fear subtly stirred within the then. What if his enraged hand struck her cheek?

Yet he spoke in a flat, heavy tone.

[Guiscard] "Yes, had I known you would pull a stunt like this, I should have put a leash on you instead. I regret it."

The moment she heard those words, any lingering goodwill toward him evaporated entirely.

A physical blow would have been preferable. Yes, he was like this. In the past life, he put a leash on her to make her experience the exact same thing. People don't change.

Come to think of it, why would you be any different?

She had thought of him slightly differently, yet his core remained identical. He had acted gentler merely because she acted differently. Her memories of that wedding day, bound in a leash, had not faded in the slightest.

Dianna looked at Guiscard with revulsion and spoke.

[Dianna] "You should have put a leash on me before marrying me. Then I would have known my place."

[Guiscard] "That damned leash!"

[Dianna] "You brought up the word first."

[Guiscard] "You were the one who brought up being a slave first!"

Neither yielded. As Guiscard stared at Dianna, his eyes widened.

[Dianna] "Do you think I wanted to be dragged into a place like this?"

[Guiscard] "……"

[Dianna] "I merely tried to be of some small help. I was trying to do something useful."

[Guiscard] "……"

[Dianna] "I hate this."

Tears spilled from her eyes. The anger filling his eyes evaporated completely. Regardless, Dianna buried her face in both hands and sobbed.

[Guiscard] "Ann."

[Guiscard] "……"

[Guiscard] "Ann, I……"

Dianna shook her head, crying uncontrollably.

She had not wanted to cry, had tried not to cry, yet feeling all her efforts denied by this man left her hollow and resentful.

She had not suffered through so much just to hear words like these.

---

From the following day, rumors spread that the King and Queen had fought fiercely. Dianna didn't care, as the rumors spoke the truth.

Did it even count as a fight? When did one side unilaterally bark orders for her to become a slave?

Calling it a fight was a generous overstatement.

[Saruvia] "Why don't you take a rest?"

Unable to contain herself, Saruvia stepped forward. Dianna offered a cold smile and spoke.

[Dianna] "Can I afford to neglect my duties at a time like this?"

Dianna resumed reading documents and tending to her work. In truth, just as Saruvia suggested, dumping everything onto her might be proper. In the past life, appointing Saruvia as a lady-in-waiting and granting her all power had been Guiscard's will after all.

An ominous foreboding quietly crept in.

Perhaps he will return here, see what I have done, and fly into a rage……

Dianna had been treated as a slave from the beginning, so he might consider this an overstep as well.

Fortunately, even after several days had passed, Guiscard said nothing. Yet her mood remained at rock bottom, and she ignored him every time they crossed paths.

She had acted similarly in the past life, so this behavior was familiar. Whenever she saw Guiscard, she offered a formal greeting, then immediately departed or turned her gaze away.

Let him put a leash on me. Then I will take my own life. I will die.

A person wearing slave restraints could never commit suicide, but she would coax someone into helping her die in an instant. Her thoughts spiraled toward the extreme.

[Leonie] "I personally believe His Majesty is entirely in the wrong."

She spoke with a click of her tongue. As expected of Leonie. As long as Dianna held the purse strings, Leonie sided with her, considering Dianna the source of funds.

Dianna looked at Leonie with an unconsciously softened expression.

[Leonie] "Honestly, he is so ungrateful. You transformed this dreary palace into a place fit for human living, risked your life to fight bravely, and yet he gets angry like that?"

[Dianna] "……"

[Leonie] "Still, shouldn't you give him a little room to approach?"

What did that mean? Give him room to approach?

[Leonie] "I say this because watching the two of you makes me uncomfortable."

Of course.

What a selfish woman. Everyone around her was like this.

As Dianna grumbled and turned her eyes away, Leonie spoke.

[Leonie] "His Majesty keeps staring at you. Continuously, over and over and over!"

[Dianna] "……"

[Leonie] "Even right now!"

Looking where Leonie pointed, Dianna saw a window. Across the window, her eyes met Guiscard's. Glaring at him, she spoke.

[Dianna] "So?"

[Leonie] "Are you going to keep this up? Not just me, but these girls are having a hard time too."

Looking at her maids, Dianna saw them avert their gazes—a silent gesture of agreement. She spoke in exasperation.

[Dianna] "If they dislike it, he can issue an order."

[Leonie] "Issuing orders between husband and wife…… what on earth."

[Dianna] "He told me not to exceed my bounds, so what can I possibly say?"

[Leonie] "Really? His Majesty said such a thing?"

Anger suddenly welled up inside Dianna. Revealing such rumors was something she should avoid above all else, yet the words slipped out before she could stop them.

Making a mistake she wouldn't even have made back at the Duke Brienne's estate.......

[Leonie] "Wow, that is way too much."

[Dianna] "……"

[Leonie] "His Majesty really said that? After making such a fuss, he turned out to be a mouth straight from hell."

Leonie's rough words brought strange comfort. Tears dripped down Dianna's face. Experiencing empathy made her feel as though she could finally breathe again.

[Dianna] "He said even worse things, but…… I won't repeat them."

[Leonie] "Don't repeat them. What he said already crosses the line. Failing to recognize your hard work as Queen—he committed a massive wrong."

When Leonie looked behind her, the maids knitted their brows and nodded in agreement.

Though Dianna had always appeared calm and mature, seeing her weep bitterly made them click their tongues, convinced that the King was entirely at fault.

---

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