Chapter 31 The Princess’s Wedding Ceremony…
Chapter 31
31.1
On the eve of Bertha Caragaran's marriage to Prince Constance, Prince Constance lazily leaned on the terrace of Ravenmount Castle, his golden hair slightly loose, and smiled at Alex, "Alex Caragaran."
“…Your Highness.”
"You're a smart guy, aren't you?"
Prince Constance looked at him coldly. Alex was silent for a long time before finally answering, "Yes, Your Highness. I am a wise man. I will make wise choices."
Prince Constance smiled suddenly.
"That's good," Prince Constance said with a smile. "When I'm crowned, Bertha will become the Queen of the Wanzeta Empire. And the Karagaran family will become the most powerful noble family in the empire."
But this is not the entire content of the sacrificial incense. The record of the sacrificial incense does not stop here.
After Prince Constance revealed his ambition, Alex remained silent for a long time before he calmed down from the shock.
The night wind blew chilly across the terrace. The young noble stared at the serpent-like prince. He didn't immediately agree, but whispered, "Your Highness."
"Um?"
"The Karagaran family will become the most powerful noble family in the empire," Alex Karagaran said coldly, "and I will be the heir to the Karagaran family."
Prince Constance was slightly startled.
He looked at Alex Carragalan:
Alex is an elegant and gentle young aristocrat, always with aristocratic grace and elegant smile.
However, the eyes of this young and elegant nobleman now revealed a vigorous ambition that was very similar to that of Prince Constance, almost sinister; Prince Constance was not the only poisonous snake in the jungle.
Looking at the coldness in Alex's eyes, Prince Constance suddenly burst into laughter.
"Yes," said Prince Constance, laughing. "You are indeed a clever man."
He patted Alex on the shoulder and said, "The Duke's eldest child, Bertha, has married me. It is almost impossible for her to inherit the title of the Karagaran family. As the second-oldest child, as long as nothing goes wrong, the title of Duke will definitely be yours, Alex."
Alex shook his head slightly. "That's not necessarily true, Your Highness. Have you ever heard of the name 'Eustace Carragaran'?"
Prince Constance raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Oh, a Caragaran... who is that? Duke Hugh Caragaran's brother? A bastard?"
"Yes, he is my father's illegitimate son." Alex curled his lips, "But, he is more than just my father's illegitimate son."
Constance was listening. Alex whispered, "Eustace, he was the only bastard allowed to live in Ravenmount. And Eustace's mother, she was the only lover of my father allowed to live in Ravenmount."
Prince Constance stroked his chin. "Well, I haven't heard of that. It seems that Duke Caragaran has kept this news well-protected. I thought the alliance between Duke Caragaran and Duchess Agnes was very strong."
Alex shook his head slightly. "Mother also knows about their existence. Father and Mother reached an agreement... I think that woman, perhaps, is the one that Father truly cherishes in his heart."
"Ah, I see." Prince Constance clapped his hands happily. "You are afraid that your father will give the title to that illegitimate son he protects, Eustace, instead of to you, right?"
Alex looked at Prince Constance and suddenly smiled.
"Perhaps," he said, "I don't care who my father thinks is the heir to the throne. I don't need to satisfy him. I don't need to be chosen by him. I just need to replace him."
…
Alex's body trembled suddenly when he thought of the disrespectful words he had said to the Duke.
When Duke Caragaran said coldly, "You haven't told the whole truth. What else have you been hiding from us during that sacrificial smoke, Alex?"
Alex looked away somewhat embarrassedly.
Duke Karagaran calmed down when he saw his reaction.
The Duke said calmly, "You chose to resolve this matter alone, which means you don't want me, your mother, or the rest of the Karagaran family to know about the existence of the sacrificial smoke. You don't want us to know the content of that conversation. I believe that in that conversation, you must have reached some kind of agreement with Prince Constance. It reveals some selfish motive on your part—something beyond the interests of the family."
The Duke said this, and Alex's shoulders slumped.
"Yes," he said hoarsely, "I'm sorry, Father... In my conversation with Prince Constance, I hoped to be the new Duke, not Eustace."
Alex suddenly mentioned the name "Eustace", and Duke Karagaran was slightly startled.
The red-haired Duchess narrowed her eyes as she looked over, and the Duke, who had previously maintained a cold expression, fell silent for a moment. Alex whispered, "Father, I'm sorry, this is indeed my selfish motive. I'm afraid Eustace will have your favor. I'm afraid he will become my rival."
Duke Karagaran closed his eyes, rubbed his brow tiredly, and said nothing; instead, the Duchess spoke first.
Agnes Felix said coldly: "What a fool! How could I give birth to a fool like you?"
The Duchess seemed unfazed by the existence of the illegitimate child. Alex was startled. The Duchess sneered, "So-called marriage is an exchange of family interests. Your father's 'favor' for that illegitimate child is no more than the love he shows to a kitten or puppy. The true heir to the title will surely be chosen among the four of you."
When the Duchess said this, Alex gradually calmed down.
He stared at his mother. "Even so, my opponent is not only Eustace, but also Cecilia, right?"
Mrs. Agnes was startled, a hint of surprise on her face: "...Cercilia?"
Cecilia, who was standing nearby, also showed surprise, and Alex suddenly smiled.
"Xi," he said, "you're often sick and in poor health, so people subconsciously ignore your existence in the competition for the title. Perhaps Osborne can't see your ambition, but I'm not as foolish as he is. I can see your true thoughts... and your mother's preference for you."
Alex lowered his head as he spoke. "I'm already like this now, and I'm not afraid to say anything more. Indeed, this is why I didn't want to tell my father about the sacrificial cigarette—I reached an agreement with Prince Constance. He overthrew the Queen and was crowned the new Emperor; and I became the new Duke of Carragher. The heir to the title is not you, Xi, nor Eustace, not Osborne, not Bertha, not anyone."
Alex said this and the meeting room fell silent.
Cecilia and Lady Agnes didn't know what to say, and Osborne was completely stunned.
The Ravenmont meeting room fell into an awkward silence, with only the crackling of the fireplace as the only sound. Ashes flew from the burning wood, as if the trust between the members of the Karagaran family was being burned and crumbled bit by bit.
"Father," Alex said softly, "I took the blame for this matter myself and did not implicate the Karagalang family. Please forgive my sins in view of my contributions to the family over the years."
Duke Karagaran closed his eyes and sighed heavily.
He called out, "Knight Commander."
The Knight Commander silently pushed open the long door of the meeting room. Duke Karagaran said calmly, "The time has come. Take him back to the dungeon."
The Knight Commander saluted silently; the knights of the Order of Ravenmont returned to the meeting room and quietly took Alex away.
Osborn looked at his brother's back as he left with a complicated expression.
"I never expected that," he whispered. "I really didn't expect Alex to have such thoughts. He is obviously the gentlest among us."
No one responded to Osborne, who muttered to himself, "This whole thing is ridiculous... Prince Constance used sacrificial smoke to record Alex's ambitions, and Princess Matilda used this sacrificial smoke to threaten Alex into breaking off the engagement. Alex attacked the princess, and to avoid implicating the Karagaran family, he made up the lie of an 'illegitimate child'—and now, this lie has become the truth that everyone firmly believes."
Osborne said, letting out a long breath: "Fortunately, Alex did not implicate the Karagaran family. This farce ended in a ridiculous way."
Osborne said this, but Duke Karagaran shook his head slightly: "No, Osborne. This matter is far from over."
Osborne was startled, and Cecilia whispered, "There's something wrong with this matter."
Osborne said blankly, "What's wrong?"
"Think about it, Osborn," Cecilia said softly, "Alex said that Princess Matilda's goal was to use the sacrificial cigarette to expose him and Prince Constance. So, at the end of the banquet, he made up the lie of 'illegitimate child' and made a desperate attempt to kill Princess Matilda to prevent her from lighting the sacrificial cigarette. ... Osborn."
"ah."
"Alex, did he kill Princess Matilda?"
Osborn replied automatically, "Of course not. Lorenz Abrad saved her."
"So," Cecilia said quietly, "Princess Matilda, is there any chance of burning that sacrificial smoke?"
Osborne thought about it and finally understood a little.
He said in surprise, "She had a chance to burn that sacrificial smoke!"
Osborne excitedly pounded his palm with his fist as he spoke. "Lorenz Ebrard saved her. If Princess Matilda really wanted to expose Prince Constance, she would have plenty of opportunities to burn the sacrificial incense right next to Lorenz Ebrard. She could easily use this opportunity to expose the lies of the entire Karagaran family at the banquet."
"Yes." Cecilia curled her lips, "However, Princess Matilda, she didn't do that."
Osborn was stunned and scratched his hair dejectedly: "What...what is going on? I'm really confused."
Cecilia sighed softly, "This means that Alex fell into the trap set by Princess Matilda and Lorenz Ebrard with the sacrificial smoke. Princess Matilda didn't want to use the sacrificial smoke to expose Prince Constance. Her initial goal... was a marriage with Lorenz Ebrard."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
