Chapter 80

An hour earlier.

Lord Gregory had just received the news that the Yan family and others had been detained by General Qi on charges of embezzling national tax funds.

And right after he got the news, General Qi arrived with over a hundred carts of tax money and the detained Yan family members, right in the middle of the still-ongoing sacrificial ceremony. This caught everyone off guard, including Lord Gregory.

With everyone watching, their reactions were mixed.

As expected by Elara, Lord Gregory didn't dare to go up against General Qi in that moment. Even though he was furious and deeply upset, he still had to agree to let General Qi return the seized tax money to the national treasury. Before the Yan family could even plead for help, Lord Gregory had already thrown all the blame on them.

He even openly questioned the ministers who had reported false tax figures, and before General Qi could do anything, he had those officials dragged out and executed on the spot for deceiving the monarch and embezzling funds.

He acted swiftly and cleanly, making sure General Qi had no chance to get any more information from those people.

But the problem was that Yan Qi was the blood nephew of the Yan family head and the legitimate son of the second branch. In order to keep his own power and secret dealings with the treasury hidden, Lord Gregory sacrificed Yan Qi without hesitation.

Even if the Yan family head remained loyal to him after this, there was no telling how much resentment and division it would cause inside the family, especially in the second branch.

By the time Elara got the news, it was already early the next morning.

She was still stuck in that little awkward scene, silently looking at Oswyn who was glaring at her, and at Imani beside her, who was still leaning close to the bed.

Imani was secretly surprised by how boldly Oswyn was speaking to her, especially given that she was the Princess. He kept glancing up and down at Oswyn while continuing to reach out, trying to pull her into his arms.

"Enough. You're about to spill the medicine all over my bed. I'm tired and need to rest. Both of you, leave."

Elara didn't feel like dealing with the two of them anymore and waved her hand, wanting them out.

But as soon as she said that, maybe because he felt threatened by how casually Oswyn spoke to her, Imani suddenly straightened his back. His figure in a bright red robe shifted slightly toward the center of the bed and he subtly squeezed Oswyn aside.

Then he gracefully knelt by the bed again, his eyes filled with worry and pleading as he looked up at Elara, striking the same pitiful pose he had practiced many times alone in his room.

"Princess, your body is still weak. Let me take care of you..."

Oswyn, who had just been subtly shoved aside, looked stunned and slightly furious at the sight of Imani's performance.

He had been in the Princess's estate for a long time, but this was the first time he had ever seen a man so eager to please this woman.

And this behavior of his... it was outrageous. A man, bold and strong, using his beauty to tempt a woman.

Shameless.

Oswyn already had a bad temper, and he never held back even in front of Elara. Now that he had been pushed aside by someone acting so indecently, practically glued to Elara, his anger flared up even more. He was about to explode.

"Enough."

Before Oswyn could lash out, Elara sensed the tension and cut in.

"I already said I'm tired. Why are you still here? I can drink the medicine myself. Whatever you want to say, do it outside. I don't need either of you to serve me."

She rubbed her temple and turned to the attendant waiting outside the hall.

"Francis, come help me."

A sixteen- or seventeen-year-old boy in servant robes quickly walked in with a slight bow.

As he passed by Imani and Oswyn, he seemed to sense the strange atmosphere between them. He gave a polite bow, then hurried over to the bed to help Elara up.

He was the refugee boy Elara had saved at the western gate of the capital, back when he was nearly taken by Gilbert. He had stayed in the Princess's estate recovering from his injuries and had only recently fully healed.

Elara had planned to let him go after that, but Francis cried and told her he had lost all his family and friends during the chaos. When he reached the capital, he had hoped to find a place to survive and was willing to do anything.

Since she had saved him, he begged her to let him stay and work in the estate. He said he would do any job, as long as he had food to eat. He promised to repay her kindness no matter what.

Though things inside the capital weren't much better than outside, Elara accepted his plea and made him a servant. It just happened to be his turn on duty that day.

With Francis now helping her, Elara pulled her hand out of Imani's grasp. She got out of bed and didn't even glance at the two men again. She followed Francis straight into the inner hall.