The rumor that a man claiming to be Sophia’s real father had appeared spread quickly throughout the castle.
Although Randall and the king tried their best to prevent the rumors from spreading, there were many who did not have positive feelings towards Sophia from the beginning, and the rumors spread with malicious intent.
Some people spoke of Sophia’s mother as if she were a prostitute, and the King, who initially laughed and said, “Nosense,” was also hurt.
(These people are all spreading such ridiculous rumors. They must have too much free time.)
Randall put down his quill and stood up, looking out the window. The window of Randall’s room in the castle overlooked the courtyard. In the courtyard, dressed in autumn, Keira was walking in a deep blue dress like lapis lazuli, accompanied by a maid.
Keira also seemed troubled by the rumors this time. For her kind-hearted sake, it would be best to resolve this quickly. However, just as he let out a sigh, there was a knock on the door. Kyle Levord entered without waiting for a response, neatening his platinum blonde hair that he inherited from his mother and dressed in a smart outfit resembling equestrian attire.
Casually waving his hand towards Randall, Kyle plopped down on the sofa without waiting for an invitation.
“I was sent by my father to come to the castle. He said that you were still neglecting Lady Sophia and hanging out at the castle, so I came to see how you were doing.”
Please stop making snide remarks with a smile.
Randall reluctantly called for a maid to prepare a tea set and sat down opposite Kyle.
“You didn’t just come to check on me, did you?”
“No, I just came to check. I was thinking about how to deal with these silly rumors.”
“A rumor about Sophia? It’s not my fault…”
“No. You also have responsibility. Because you neglect Lady Sophia, the rumors spread in a funny way. If you had protected her properly, rumors like neglecting Lady Sophia so much because of your shadow wouldn’t spread. Besides, if Lady Sophia weren’t His Majesty’s child, there wouldn’t be rumors spreading about divorce from you or expulsion from the country. If you had immediately denied the divorce with Lady Sophia as soon as the rumors started, wouldn’t it have been different?”
Kyle’s smile faded and he hit a sore spot.
Unable to retort, Randall fell silent. Kyle crossed his legs, tapping his knees with his fingertips.
“I doubt it, but you’re not seriously considering divorce, are you?”
“…I’m not considering it at this point.”
“At this point? So, if Lady Sophia isn’t His Majesty’s child, do you plan to divorce her?”
Kyle said in disbelief.
“Well… I can’t accept a commoner wife into my dukedom.”
As he spoke, Randall felt a little pain in his heart. When he married Sophia, he intended to divorce her if he found out she was a fake. That hasn’t changed now. But he felt a sharp pain deep in his heart. Randall hadn’t said anything wrong. The Duke of Voltius is a distinguished family. The head of the family requires a woman of a suitable status to be their wife. If Sophia wasn’t a princess, there would be no reason to keep her as a wife. He should divorce her as soon as possible. So why does thinking about the “what if” possibilities make him feel a sharp pain deep in his heart?
“You’re the worst. Why didn’t I propose to Lady Sophia sooner?”
Kyle covered his face dramatically and looked up at the ceiling. But then he suddenly turned to Randall as if he had changed his mind and grinned.
“Oh, I see. So I can have Sophia after you get divorced?”
“…Don’t say that so easily.”
“Well, my parents are very supportive of me marrying Lady Sophia. There’s no way they would object.”
“Even if she is a commoner?”
“We’re not as strict about marriage as yours. My parents married for love, too.”
“You’re the Duke of Levord’s heir, right?”
“Our family tradition is to value achievements, not lineage.”
Kyle laughed and said lightly that Sophia doesn’t have to be a princess. Randall stared at Kyle as if he was seeing something unbelievable, but was shocked to find himself caught up in his pace.
“I’ll tell you, at this stage I’m not divorcing Sophia.”
“Oh, right. Well, if you were to divorce Laly Sophia now, that would be like confirming the rumors, so of course. So, do you think you’ll be able to find out the truth of the rumors?”
“Right now, we’re searching around the area of the man who claims to be Sophia’s father.”
“Huh? Still at that stage? You don’t know yet?”
“There’s no information, so it can’t be helped.”
“Yeah, that’s what desk-workers do. You can just walk around and look for evidence. What’s the point of having two legs?”
Kyle sighed and stood up.
“I thought you might know something, but it’s not much different from the information I have. Anyway, I’ll look into it myself. If it works out, Sophia might be really grateful. What if she falls in love with me? This is getting fun.”
“…This isn’t a game.”
“Of course, I understand. Oh, by the way, I haven’t given up on Lady Sophia yet. I intend to take her if there’s an opportunity, so please support me.”
Randall was taken aback, but before he could respond, Kyle had already left the room, leaving the door shut with a loud noise. Randall slumped his shoulders.
“What’s wrong with everyone?”
Randall, in frustration, kicked the table leg, accidentally knocking over the tea on the table, covering his face and bowing his head.
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Translator Note:
Hello there! This is RJR. I hope you liked it <3
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