Capítulo 195: [Chapter 195] Megara, aspiring to be the Empress
Neris wiped away a tear as she read the report handed to her by Dora.
"Twenty years ago. Were there any other times when she was absent?"
"Yes. At other times, she appeared at the royal gatherings at intervals of at least a few days. She started taking medicine from that time."
So, Megara and Megara's younger brother, the only children of the Duke, would be Rebecca's children.
Megara's younger brother, turning 13 this year, was the Duke's heir, but he had been frail since childhood and timid unlike his sister. Neris had thought they were truly different siblings.
Shortly after the birth of that child, the Duke's wife passed away. She was known to be very frail, so people believed she couldn't withstand the birth of her second child as she did with the first.
"Is there a possibility that the Duke assassinated his wife? Perhaps to eliminate any hindrance to passing off the illegitimate child as a legitimate one."
"It's possible. However, the death of the Duke's wife itself is not suspicious. It was known that the Duke's wife was miraculously able to give birth to her first child despite her frailty from a young age. There were rumors that she had fewer days of getting out of bed even before the birth of the second child."
"Is that so?"
According to Dora and Talfrin's investigation, Rebecca first came to the royal court 21 years ago and soon fell in love with the then-heir, the current Duke. At that time, he had been married for four years. They had no children.
Neris speculated that perhaps there was immense pressure on the then-heir couple to have children quickly, especially from the elders who emphasized the succession in prestigious families. Such pressure was archaic. From the day she married Abelus, she was treated as 'the body to bear the next Emperor.
Married for several years without any news of a child, and eventually receiving an infertility diagnosis, the story changed a bit.
Fortunately, luck was on the side of the then-heir's wife. After a few months of going to the countryside for recuperation following the uproar about her husband's infidelity, she returned with a child. That child was Megara.
The child had purple eyes that didn't raise any suspicions about their noble lineage and was very healthy. Around that time, Rebecca was briefly absent, but no one focused on that fact.
The then-heir's wife finally gave birth to the long-awaited child, and no one questioned it. Who would know if the commoner government of the then-heir briefly disappeared from the social circles?
Moreover, the fact that the woman who had been the then-heir's wife for a long time later became the Duke's wife herself.
So, no one suspected anything. It was assumed that Megara was Rebecca's child.
"Is the current Duke sure that the child is the then-heir's wife's?"
"The child was born at the then-heir's residence in the royal court. Many people witnessed the birth, so that part is certain."
"Then I understand roughly what happened."
There's no way to know the exact feelings of the parties involved now. However, the benefits the then-heir's wife gained by declaring the baby born outside as her own were clear.
Proof of fertility. A more stable union between the two families through the child carrying both lineages. And a slight reprieve for herself.
If given the choice, Neris would have done the same. She had already received a judgment on her body from a doctor before.
So, she knew better than anyone what the then-heir's wife would have faced if she had continued to live for a long time without a child with her indifferent husband.
Dora didn't doubt Neris's deductions. But she seemed puzzled by the situation.
"Even so, it's the child of the husband's affair partner. From the perspective of the esteemed Duke's wife, she might not have wanted to publicly declare it as her own child. I wonder if the Duke provided some kind of compensation?"
"That could be possible. However, even if not, after being married for 4 years without a child and considering her original frailty, the Duke's wife would have had to consider the risk of not being able to bear a child for her entire life. In that case, the Duke might have demanded a divorce. The Duke's wife might have been averse to divorce as her status upon remarriage could be lower than that of the Duke's wife."
In reality, such occurrences were occasionally seen in history. Noble couples presenting a child born from the government as the legitimate child of the wife to maintain their marriage.
Initially, they could deceive in this way, but as the child grew up and resembled the government too much, they would be exposed, or one of the wives would reveal the truth. In this case, the Duke's wife eventually gave birth to a son, so if he had been alive, she might not have revealed the truth.
Neris pondered for a moment. The reason the Duke didn't try to elevate Megara, who didn't bother him, to the position of Crown Princess was likely this. If investigated thoroughly in the palace, the Duke's abilities wouldn't be able to hide Megara's birth completely.
If that was the case, wouldn't it be better to have a noble wife firmly holding the Prince's heart?
"Tell Talfrin to ensure that this information subtly reaches Natasha Gruenwald. But not immediately."
It would be a waste to see a clever child like Megara fall. It would be better to prepare for a longer battle.
***
Megara keenly noticed that her father's attitude was different from usual.
She couldn't help but notice. Her father, Lord Ricandros, had always been lenient towards all her actions, but in the past few days, he had started to be unusually strict.
And she roughly knew the reason.
"So, Father, are you saying that I'm behaving inappropriately towards the Crown Prince?"
"Do you ask because you don't know?"
The Duke was sweating profusely. It had been like that since he was suddenly summoned to the palace this morning.
Megara thought it was strange. Lord Ricandros was one of the most prestigious Dukes among many noble families. So, he could move around the palace like his own home.
Why would he be sweating profusely when summoned to the palace?
A face with a dark expression and a particularly malicious and unpleasant smile came to Megara's mind.
"Did you meet the Grand Duchess by any chance?"
Megara's gaze sharpened. The Duke lowered his head as if he had a headache.
"No. Why would that woman be in the palace? Stop talking nonsense and be careful from now on."
"Do not engage in any conversation with the Crown Prince anywhere? Father, that's a strange thing to say. I am the Duke's beloved daughter, and the Crown Prince is the center of the palace. How can we not talk? What did we do wrong?"
Abelus and Megara had become quite close recently. Despite Natasha's fiery gaze, they couldn't be together at all times, and Megara took advantage of that gap.
A pure smile on a picture-perfect face. Lovely gestures as if she could read the other person's heart. There were few who didn't like her.
Especially Megara, who had received admiration and affection mixed gazes from boys of her age all her life, knew well who was drawn to her. Abelus was clearly showing extraordinary interest in her.
However, their relationship was not at a level where others could be sure. Even Natasha, who seemed to sense something lately, looked at Megara with a strange gaze but couldn't find any clues.
Since Abelus and Natasha were not engaged, and there was no active interference from this side... there was no reason to blame. There was even less reason for her father to reprimand her now.
Thinking like that, Megara smiled brightly. The Duke hardened his cooling hand as he looked at his daughter.
He knew that his daughter's dazzling beauty only increased with age. Thankfully, while she resembled her stepmother, her father's features mixed in a different direction of beauty.
The noble face, grace, and purple eyes that were idealized by the upper class. Even if someone were to find a resemblance between Rebecca Shirley, the comically pretending "fake" Duchess, and the esteemed Duke's daughter, how dare they raise doubts?
His legitimate wife and the deceased real Duchess's child, even the current heir didn't possess such noble appearance.
The problem lay in the fact that this peace could be shattered at any moment.
Megara could have anyone in the social circles. The counterpart would gladly accept not only an alliance with Lord Ricandros but also the "perfect" Megara. The child she bore would become the eternal link between the Duke and the opposing family.
Except for the Crown Prince. The moment she entered the palace, the palace's secret investigation into Megara's background would scrutinize every detail.
Then the happy life of the adorable daughter would come to an end. And since the Duke himself had deceived several nobles, he couldn't just let it go.
"Don't try to overlook it, Meg. Are you trying to claim that the Crown Prince's sudden visit to the salon has nothing to do with you?"
"Oh my? His Highness, being the Crown Prince, should know about the salon since Her Majesty the Empress loves it. In fact, we were in different groups even during the gatherings. Don't you remember?"
"I made it that way! If it wasn't, what were you planning to do sitting next to him?"
"There was nothing to do, Father. I just attended the salon, but you're overreacting."
It was futile no matter what was said.
The Duke continued to tell Megara to keep her distance from the Crown Prince, but she either showed no sign of listening or shrugged it off. She sent a look of injustice, wondering why she was being unfairly accused when she had simply led a normal social life.
It was difficult to stay angry at that clear and lovely face. He loved his daughter so much, even more so.
Eventually, after expressing his thoughts to some extent, the Duke sighed quietly.
He understood Kamil's fear. While some nobles, still too young or of lower status, thought of her as a quiet lady, the high nobility feared her, regardless of the numbers.
Even this morning, when Kamil summoned him, it was terrifying. Could it be that she found out about her daughter's birth? Under the threat of exposing everything, he had to move forward like her protector, taking on dangerous and unpleasant tasks.
Fortunately, Kamil still seemed unaware of who Megara's biological mother was. She had only given gentle advice.
"Do not stir up trouble in predetermined matters," he said.
The Duke could do anything for his daughter. He truly loved her. Even now, living together with Rebecca, he felt the stability, joy, and clear affection that came from their long-standing relationship.
He cherished the heir as well. After all, they were his children. But his feelings towards Rebecca and the mother-daughter duo were incomparable.
If things continued this way, happiness was destined for them all. Once the young heir was engaged, the Duke would marry Rebecca, making her his legitimate wife, and Megara would become a presence akin to the Marchioness of Ganiel.
He was unaware of the Prince's antics with various women as long as it wasn't his beloved Megara.
The Duke couldn't share all these thoughts with his daughter. She truly had no idea about her own birth. But being a clever child, she knew what was advantageous for her and wished to step back.
Gazing at her father with innocent eyes, Megara inwardly felt annoyed.
Father was an ambitious and lowly man. So, bringing commoners into the household, leaving the daughter and son to be mocked or pitied by others.
Even if the daughter looks fit to become a Crown Princess if she does well, why should one be scared and retreat from the beginning?
That's why she ended up engaged to Colin Ganiel at this age. No, she even looked ridiculous in that engagement.
Thinking back to the still shaky engagement with Colin, Megara felt anger. It was just an engagement with the second son, yet he was being so difficult! Such engagements are rejected from this side too! After dragging it out for so long, even if it happens, it would only hurt one's pride!
Before returning to the Academy, she was supposed to become the next Empress.
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