Chapter 189 The Seed of Doubt
Queen Mother Smith pulled her thoughts back. She sat upright beside Rolf and handed the letter back to him. "Is Friedel the only one getting what he wants?"
Rolf looked up in surprise. "Mother, are you saying I have other intentions?"
Queen Mother Smith's expression turned serious. "Friedel is a prince who commands the Lion Knights. The Anne he's about to marry is a duke who also controls an army like the Ivy Knights. Their marriage means the empire's first and second knight orders will unite. But if this marriage involves scheming, there'll be a crack in their hearts, and the two knight orders won't truly become one."
"So you think I deliberately required Anne to find a husband within three months and made her suspect I'd already chosen someone for her, and that person is very likely Friedel?"
Rolf smiled, though he felt oddly uneasy inside. "Friedel is my own brother. Why would I scheme against him? I was planning to arrange their marriage when he returns anyway."
Queen Mother Smith sighed. "But you didn't expect Anne to go to the eastern battlefield and even earn merit, did you?"
"Actually, the Ivy Knights don't necessarily have to be in Anne's hands. Even with Duke Daniel unconscious, the Kivara family isn't completely without people. The existing knight commanders of the Ivy Knights can handle things fine. Having one more or one less knight order commander doesn't make much difference."
"But you gave it to Anne. From that moment, you planned to use Friedel to tie Anne to you. That way, the Lion Knights would be yours, and even the Kivara family's Ivy Knights. As for the Dawn Knight Order, you've long instructed those commanders to create divisions and undermine Holden. There's just no suitable replacement yet, so he temporarily keeps his position, though he can no longer command the knights."
"Let me think—you're waiting for Duke Daniel to wake up, then return the Ivy Knights to him. At that point, Anne can take over as commander of the Dawn Knight Order, is that it?"
Queen Mother Smith said slowly, "Because of Anne, Duke Daniel will naturally grow close to Friedel. But he'll realize the true purpose of this marriage—that Friedel is your spy planted beside Anne. For his only granddaughter's sake, Duke Daniel and his Ivy Knights will completely follow your arrangements. As for Anne, she knows Friedel's identity and that you're behind him."
"Even after they're married, because the marriage isn't pure, Anne will always keep her guard up and won't truly cooperate with Friedel. This eliminates any possibility of Friedel building his own power base or even overthrowing you."
"As for Friedel, he's your own brother. You and I both know he'd never rebel—he's always been loyal to you. Otherwise, when Selyma tried to arrange for him to compete for the throne, he would've become your rival long ago."
Rolf's throat moved. His back felt slightly cold. He could feel Queen Mother Smith's gaze seeming to pierce through his skin, seeing the wavering soul deep inside. "Mother, I didn't..."
Queen Mother Smith sighed. "Whether you did or didn't doesn't matter. As king, it's normal for you to worry about others holding too much military power. But I need to tell you—once the seed of doubt is planted, it can never be easily removed."
"Friedel is your brother. You grew up together. I originally thought that being so close, you must understand his character and trust him completely. But now I see I was wrong."
"He's so smart—he must have guessed when you made this arrangement that his and Anne's wedding would proceed smoothly no matter what. It's just whether Anne would truly accept him and how they'd get along that couldn't be certain. How do you know this line you've quietly drawn between them isn't also drawing a dividing line between you and Friedel?"
Rolf pressed his lips together. "Fine, I admit it. I did think that way at first. Friedel and Anne both command knight orders—that's a kind of trust from me. But trust often comes with betrayal."
"I know Anne and the Virlet family behind her would never betray the Soth Empire. That's why I gave her the Ivy Knights commander position—so she'd face my trust directly and give me her loyalty in return. As for Friedel, with a mother like that, I have to be cautious. I think Friedel understands this himself."
"I admit there was some deliberateness in their marriage arrangement. But Mother, you'd never guess—when Friedel proposed to Anne, it wasn't because he's in love with her."
Queen Mother Smith froze. "What?"
Rolf rubbed his head in frustration. "Friedel told me he said to Anne that he has someone he likes, and this marriage is just a partnership to solve their marriage problems. I bet Anne still thinks that after marriage, they'll each live their own lives without interfering with each other."
Queen Mother Smith fell silent for a long time, finally slowly raising her fan to cover her face.
She'd been worried that Rolf's doubts would doom this marriage to unhappiness. Now there was no need for doubts—Anne probably just thinks she and Friedel have an ordinary relationship with no possibility of going further.
This boy Friedel—he'd say anything to marry Anne.
Seeing Queen Mother Smith fall silent, Rolf stood up, bowed, and left her palace.
He returned to his study. Conor was placing documents that needed attention nearby. Seeing Rolf still lost in thought, he couldn't help but speak. "Your Majesty, you don't look very happy."
"Oh, I just discussed Friedel's marriage with Mother. I'm a bit worried."
Conor nodded knowingly. He'd also seen Selyma's condition earlier and naturally understood what the biggest obstacle between Friedel and Anne was.
"I think Queen Mother Smith will handle this problem for Prince Friedel and Miss Anne."
Rolf smiled slightly. "Indeed."
"You can go now. I want to be alone for a while."
Hearing this, Conor immediately put down his notes and left the king's study.
Rolf glanced out the window, then turned to look at the records on his desk. The open page was from the day Friedel came to report his successful proposal, when Rolf had Conor write it down. Afterward, they'd discussed preparing betrothal gifts for Friedel.
Actually, Rolf knew that Queen Mother Smith was worried he'd become suspicious of Friedel and Anne. If war broke out again in the future, a moment's hesitation from the king could very likely lead to soldiers' deaths.
Like Duke Skoda's death.