Queen Consort Catalina

[Even though it's already in Mesina, meeting Catalina is tough. Since she was the queen, I thought she would always be present at every party the king attended. She will only be present at certain parties.

And once Catalina goes to the party, I have a hard time getting close to her because of King Tristan.

Honestly, I don't like how King Tristan always sticks to Catalina. He looks… terrible. Catalina seems afraid of him too.

Did something happen in their household?]

Selah's hands moved quickly to hide her mother's diary when she heard footsteps. A waiter comes in and serves lunch. It was there that Selah realized that she had been cooped up in her study for too long.

"Royal household…"

Her Majesty the Queen died before Selah was born, so she doesn't know how the king and queen lived at that time. Blair rarely talks about her mother, either. From Selah's impressions, there seemed to be no problem with the previous king and queen's relationship. Maybe because King Tristan didn't have any concubines.

Similar to the household of the king and queen, Selah didn't know much either. As of now, Queen Consort Catalina is still alive, but no one really knows how she is. Judging from how Aeneas was acting, Catalina should be fine.

"You," Selah called out to the waitress who was serving her lunch. "How old are you now?"

"Pardon me? I mean, I am 32 years old now, My Lady," replied the maid.

5 years older than Blair, thought Selah. "What do you know about Queen Consort Catalina?" she asked.

"Queen Consort Catalina?" repeated the maid doubtfully. She looked confused. "From her portrait paintings, Her Majesty is a very beautiful woman. Meanwhile, in terms of attitude… Her Majesty is probably a good person."

"Probably?"

"S-since Her Majesty rarely appears in social activities, there isn't much talk about her," explained the maid hurriedly. "The most famous thing is that Her Majesty takes good care of Crown Prince Blair."

"Crown Prince Blair is under the care of Queen Consort Catalina?" Selah never knew that. No wonder Blair never mentioned nannies, even though his mother died soon after giving birth to him. "His Majesty allows it?"

"Apparently so. All I know is that Crown Prince Blair is treated very well by Queen Consort Catalina. Therefore Prince Aeneas can be on good terms with him."

No. Then why did Aeneas want to kill Blair? thought Selah confused. If Catalina finds out, she will be sad.

"That means Queen Consort Catalina takes care of 2 children at once, huh?" muttered Selah. She couldn't imagine taking care of a baby and a 3-year-old boy at the same time. "It makes sense that Her Majesty rarely appears in social circles."

Then what is Helena's worry? After all, her mother's instincts were very sharp, so there was no way her mother was wrong.

Has something ever happened to Catalina?

***

In search of answers, Selah decided to go see her uncle. As expected, Baron Tullia was busy preparing for the charity ball regularly held every year.

"I didn't expect you to come here," said Baron Tullia after dismissing his maids. "Did something happen to you and Prince Aeneas? Gossip about you guys has been all over the place."

"I… have something I want to ask you," said Selah. "About Queen Consort Catalina."

"Selah, even though you know very well that you can find all the answers in Helena's diary, right?" said Baron Tullia softly. "Is it still difficult for you to remember your own late mother?"

Have a shy face. "Forgive me, Uncle. A lot has happened recently to my father and me. So…"

"Ah, of course, Duke Dulcia already knows about your gossip with Prince Aeneas," said Baron Tullia. "Are you okay?"

"You know how Father is. But… Prince Aeneas helped me."

"Oh, really? How?"

"How?" After thinking for a while. "His Highness comes to the house at night. He brought me medicine and food as if he already knew what happened to me."

"Were there other times when Prince Aeneas stopped by at night?"

Selah furrowed her brows. "Yes."

"Don't you feel something strange about the times of your meetings?"

Strange? repeated Selah in his heart. She also remembers her meeting with Aeneas.

At night when normal people sleep, otherwise, their meetings are during the day and even then very briefly.

"Someone is watching Prince Aeneas?" guessed Selah wasn't sure. But if someone was really watching him, who was it? Blair?

"Queen Consort Catalina is watching him," Baron Tullia told him.

"What?" parrot Selah. "That's impossible, right?"

"How do you explain it, huh?" muttered Baron Tullia. "That Catalina… is a fragile person. She's also… not that smart. You know how the Tullia area used to be, right?"

The Tullia region that was right on the border was ignored by the Kings of Balthasar. The area is dry and poor. The inhabitants in ancient times only relied on the transportation business as their livelihood. This causes much of the population to be backward from many things.

It was only when the ruby mine was discovered that the Tullia region underwent a change. Slowly but surely, the people there also have a better life thanks to good mining management. However, the hereditary disease is difficult to eliminate.

Selah did not expect that Catalina was one of the mentally retarded people.

"Then… " Catalina's condition has worsened since being forcibly brought to Mesina," continued Baron Tullia.

"So you're saying it's Aeneas who's been looking after Queen Consort Catalina? That's why he can only see me at night?"

Baron Tullia let out a long breath. "Anyway, you can just read Helena's diary to learn more. What's clear is…" Baron Tullia took a long pause, "Catalina doesn't want to be left by her son alone. She is afraid something bad will happen to Prince Aeneas again."

Again, Selah repeated.

Instead of getting an answer, Selah was even more curious.

But of all the ways, why should I seek answers from Mother? thought selah. She found it hard to do. Is it good if she just asks Aeneas directly?

"By the way, I'm inviting Prince Aeneas to a charity ball later. Well, all this time, I always invited him, but he never came," said Baron Tullia.

"I've ordered a custom dress to match Crown Prince Blair. I have also received threats to go with him," Selah replied.

"Get ready," Baron Tullia warned. "Prince Aeneas will definitely come this time. If that's the case, something interesting will happen."

"Suppose they both try to mess up at your charity party."