Chapter 181 Meeting with Lady Selyma
Lady Selyma had rarely seen anyone treat her with such an attitude. For a moment, she was actually intimidated and couldn't help trembling. But years of habit were hard to break, and facing Kyle's threat, she still spoke stubbornly, "My... my nephew is the king, my son is a prince. What do I have to be afraid of... Ah! Damn it, how dare you grab me with your filthy hands! When I get back, I'll have the guard knights chop off your hands, and those eyes of yours too. Who gave you permission to look at me like that? I'll definitely gouge out your eyeballs and feed them to the dogs!"
Karina was anxious beside her. She could tell that this man in front of them wasn't afraid of trouble at all. If Lady Selyma kept going, Kyle might actually beat her up—and her pampered body couldn't take much.
When that happened, regardless of whether Duke Virlet and Prince Friedel would still get married, if something happened to Lady Selyma, her own days wouldn't be easy either.
Thinking of this, Karina quickly stepped forward and spoke respectfully to Kyle, "I'm sorry, sir. Lady Selyma and I meant no harm. When Prince Friedel came back and told her he was marrying Duke Virlet, she wanted to meet the Duke in person.""In fact, we sent a letter before, but it was intercepted by His Majesty's people. We had no choice but to come in person."
Kyle glanced at Karina, thinking to himself that at least there was someone here who understood reason and knew to back down and apologize.
He looked again at Lady Selyma's disdainful face. "No harm intended?"
Just as Lady Selyma was about to say something, Karina spoke first, "Our lady is just rather straightforward. In the royal city, she's always been cared for and doted on by Queen Mother Smith, and she's met few strangers, so she's not very good at talking to people she doesn't know."
These words practically spelled out that Lady Selyma had Queen Mother Smith backing her.
Kyle caught the meaning in Karina's words, and since he and Anne had already discussed this situation, he was willing to take a step back to let Anne meet Friedel's mother.
He released Lady Selyma's wrist and watched as the woman clutched her trembling arm and fell backward, finally caught by Karina and barely managing to steady herself.
Lady Selyma was frightened by this and was about to start cursing again when Karina stopped her in time. "My lady, let's hold back for now. If we keep fighting with this person, we might not even get to see Duke Virlet. Don't forget our original goal!"
Lady Selyma remembered she came here to teach the shameless Anne a lesson. If she wasted all her time on an ill-mannered servant at the gate, and word got out, she'd lose face!
She had no choice but to reluctantly shut her mouth, though she still glared fiercely at Kyle. But when Kyle made a move to approach her, Lady Selyma fearfully hid behind Karina.
Karina sighed inwardly before speaking calmly to Kyle, "Please help us. Just say that Prince Friedel's mother, Lady Selyma, has come from the royal city and wishes to meet Duke Virlet."
Kyle nodded and instructed a servant who had been watching the show to go into the estate and relay the message.
Anne had been in the study with Elisa handling estate business when she heard the servant's announcement. The two exchanged glances, and Elisa immediately had the servant bring Lady Selyma to the reception room.
"Miss Anne, she actually came," Elisa said, looking at Anne with some concern.
Anne wasn't worried. "If she comes, she comes. We're on the Virlet family's territory. Do I need to be afraid of her?"
"But what if she says nasty things, or if she tries to use her status as an elder to get physical with you..."
Anne nodded seriously. "Then we won't hold back. We'll just draw our swords and fight her. Whoever wins is right!"
Elisa paused, then realized Anne was joking. She glared at Anne without amusement. "I'm seriously worried about you."
Anne smiled confidently. "I don't need anyone's help. I can handle this myself. Let's go."
Thinking of Elisa's temper, Anne couldn't help reminding her, "Don't say anything during this. I don't want her targeting you. Just watch from the side."
"I know."
Elisa helped Anne straighten her dress a bit, and then the two slowly went downstairs to the reception room. By the time they arrived, Lady Selyma was already seated at the table, though judging by her expression, she must have taken quite a bit of grief from Kyle at the estate gate.
Anne pressed her lips together and walked calmly into the reception room. Lady Selyma turned her head at the sound and saw Anne's cold demeanor. Having already been wronged at the gate, and now seeing not a trace of guilt or worry on Anne's face, she was so angry she nearly jumped up.
Looking at Anne's face, Lady Selyma couldn't help feeling a twinge of jealousy.
"Hmph, such a seductive face. If there weren't no elves or monsters in this world, I'd really suspect you were one of those terrible creatures transformed to trick men."
Anne didn't get angry as Lady Selyma had expected. She simply smiled slightly. "Thanks for the compliment."
Lady Selyma's eyes widened. "I wasn't complimenting you! Listen carefully. I came here only to tell you that I won't allow you to marry Friedel. Write to Friedel right now and tell him to find someone else to be his wife, say that you're not worthy of him!"
Anne didn't answer immediately. Instead, she calmly sat down across from Lady Selyma, had Elisa pour her a cup of tea, and only then slowly spoke. "I refuse."