Chapter 99: The Unbelievers 6
Chapter 99: The Unbelievers 6
Chapter 99: The Unbelievers 6
"Another woman?" Victoria almost could not believe her ears when she heard Martin's words.
"Women there will be two coming next week. Two months later, her Blessedness will send another two and "
"Women?" Victoria felt her knees turn weak. She staggered but was immediately supported by her maid, Grace. "You you will accept another wife? You promised me "
"They will not become my wives. Father assured me that you will stay as the duchess and my one and only wife. They will only exist to give birth to more of my children. Once they gave birth, we can take care of them and "
"And you wanted me to take care of them?" Victoria's already pale face lost all its colors.
A different sensation rippled inside her stomach, making her want to puke her guts out. She swallowed the embarrassment and anger inside.
"Of course. Those women will be leaving their families. And children will grow up as our children."
Victoria pursed her lips as she sat down. Grace then handed her tea to calm herself.
"Is that what Father really wanted?" she could not help but ask. In response, Martin approached her. He then got down on one knee and looked his wife straight in the eyes.
"This is something for us and our future. Father wanted the blessing to stay in the family. This is not going to be permanent. We just need to endure." He held her hand and kissed the back of her palm. "Do you understand? We just have to endure for a few more months and everything will be alright."
She stared at her husband in disbelief. Endure? They wanted her to endure and let her watch as they let her husband take in more and more women.
The blessing for the ninth generation will never appear as it already belonged to Rosalind! Meaning no matter how many women he took, there will be no blessing.
He is going to break her heart for nothing!
She gritted her teeth as she stopped herself from blurting out the truth. No. Telling them that Rosalind was a blessed one was worse than anything. Rosalind would surely get all the attention that Dorothy deserved and she could not let that happen. No. She would never let that happen.
"So, they are going to let the women go after giving birth?" she asked.
"Yes. Father said so."
"Martin, my family would never want me to be second in your life."
"I know, darling. I know." With that, Martin pulled her into his arms, hugging her tight. In response, she hugged him back. She knew how much the Lux Family valued the Blessed ones and this was the reason why she would never reveal Rosalind's secret to them. Once that happens, Martin and Federico would surely favor Rosalind more than them.
This can never happen.
"Let us stop talking about this," Victoria said. "Grace, please brew us some tea."
"Yes, Madam."
"I know you have been very stressed lately," Martin responded. "What happened to Dorothy was not your fault, you should stop blaming yourself."
Victoria sighed. "The disappointment was normal. What was not normal was the fact that people are still putting pressure on her. She is just an eighteen-year-old woman. Don't you think she should spend more of her time having fun now that she did not receive the blessing?"
"Whatever do you mean?"
"Well Dorothy had been stressed over her upcoming marriage. She did not want to disappoint everyone again. She has been eating less and less and that is just I worry about her."
"Do you have something in mind?" he accepted the tea that Grace gave him.
"I thought she should have a vacation away from the capital. For a few weeks. Just let her spend time away from all this chaos."
"This is not the time to do that. People wouldl notice and would start talking about it."
"I know you would say that" Victoria sighed. "Rosalind will be leaving in a few days. And I heard there were soldiers outside the gates waiting for her. Don't you think we should at least have a banquet for her departure?"
Martin looked at her, he narrowed his eyes as he was digesting her point.
"A banquet with the soldiers from the North. This would surely divert the attention of everyone. The failed awakening would become the topic of everyone else, people would be looking at our every move. We need something to change the current atmosphere whilst diverting the attention and making people forget about Dorothy."
"At first, you did not want her to attract any more attention but now "
"I just thought it would be beneficial for us to let Rosalind take the brunt of everyone's attention. She would be leaving the Empire anyway. It would not hurt for her to show herself to everyone. If we asked permission from the Emperor to welcome the soldiers and hold a banquet on the Palace grounds, I am certain that many would talk about it. Many would see this as an opportunity to greet the great General and his people."
When Martin did not respond, Victoria continued.
"The Northerners, although barbaric and had no social etiquette, are still considered heroes who sacrificed their lives every single day to protect us. Showing our endless gratitude towards them should be of high priority. During the banquet, we could silently send Dorothy out of the capital and use the excuse that she wanted to take some time away before her wedding. People would not even talk about her as there would be more important matters like the General and his allies."
Martin frowned before he nodded.
"You do have a point."
"What we need right now is to divert everyone's attention," she calmly said. "What better way to do that than show them the people from the North?" Victoria smiled.
"Then, I will talk to father about this."
"Also. I thought it would be a nice gesture to send a few guards to accompany Rosalind to the North. I selected a few people. I will ask Grace to give you the list tomorrow." Victoria continued smiling.