**Chapter 79: His Majesty the King in Distress (Part 1)**
While Rodel was stoking his ambitions and hatred in the Detached Palace, a man in the heart of the royal palace was sitting with his head in his hands, groaning in despair.
“Honestly… how did that fool grow up to be so utterly foolish…?”
In the room resembling a conference hall, a large round table was set, and three individuals were present.
One was the master of the palace, the King of the Aiwood Kingdom, Darvit Aiwood. He was Rodel’s father and the man who should have been reigning at the pinnacle of the nation. Normally, he stood tall with an air of dignity, but today he slumped deeply in his chair, his back hunched. What troubled the King was the misdeeds of his third son, Rodel.
“To think he would unleash magic on his classmates right in the middle of the classroom… What on earth is he thinking?”
“Perhaps he isn’t thinking at all, Father,” replied a young man seated at the round table.
This was Richard Aiwood, the First Prince of the Aiwood Kingdom. In his mid-twenties, he was already recognized as the Crown Prince, with his ascension to the throne almost assured.
“Or perhaps his brain has devolved to the point where it’s filled with chiffon cake,” he added with a sardonic tone.
“Richard, this is no time for jokes.”
“I have no intention of making light of the situation. I’m speaking seriously.”
As the King glared at his son, Richard snorted dismissively.
“He is nothing more than a prideful beast. It was a mistake to expect any semblance of intelligence from him… It was clear he would cause trouble sooner or later.”
“…………”
The King silently affirmed Richard’s words with his silence.
He had known this would happen… it was true. Rodel was a member of the royal family, but he was a man devoid of compassion or mercy. He was a man who only thought of satisfying his inflated pride and desires. Though Richard was his half-brother, he had never thought of Rodel as a brother.
“Why not take this opportunity to deal with him? You have a justifiable reason, after all.”
“Don’t speak of things you know cannot be done. You know this as well as I do.”
The King had wished to deal with Rodel more than once or twice. However, unfortunately, that was not an option. Rodel was protected—by the late Queen Dowager and the Royal Consort. All the King could do was isolate Rodel and the Royal Consort in the Detached Palace, preventing any harm from reaching those who worked in the royal palace.
“Honestly… why did Mother raise Rodel like that…?”
The King muttered resentfully. The two protective walls surrounding Rodel were the late Queen Dowager and the Royal Consort. While it is said that a child’s sins are the responsibility of their parents, the King had not been involved in Rodel’s upbringing or education. Rodel had been raised and protected by the King’s mother, the Queen Dowager.
The Queen Dowager… her name was Frederica Aiwood. Her reputation was impeccable—perhaps too impeccable. Skilled in the art of manipulation, she had once united many people and ousted the tyrant of the previous king. At that time, she had decentralized the powers of the Aiwood Kingdom, which had been centralized, laying the foundation for local governance.
Some mocked her as a woman akin to a courtesan, as she could capture anyone’s heart with just a few words. However, her achievements far outweighed such criticisms. It was precisely because of this that the Queen Dowager’s faction remained strong even after her death, continuing to protect Rodel.
“…Despite being her grandchild, Grandmother never paid any attention to my brother or me. Frankly, I cannot fathom what she was thinking.”
Richard cast his gaze downward slightly as he spoke. The “brother” he referred to was not Rodel, but the Second Prince, Andrew Aiwood.
“I do not wish to speak ill of the dead, but it seems to me that Grandmother deliberately allowed Rodel’s education to fail. Otherwise, how could such a dimwitted prince come to be?”
“…Surely that cannot be the case. The mother who once saved the kingdom from a tyrant must have lost her ability to make sound judgments in her later years due to her affection for her grandchildren.”
The King sighed. Although he had denied his son’s words, the truth was that he, too, did not understand what the Queen Dowager had been thinking. She had been a remarkable figure who had ousted her tyrant husband and saved the kingdom, but she had originally been a baroness’s daughter, forced into becoming a queen by the previous king’s desire. During that time, her family had been destroyed. Her relatives and her fiancé had been killed, all because they opposed her marriage to the tyrant and incurred his wrath.
(Having her family and fiancé murdered and being forced to become the king’s wife… She eliminated her husband and seized power. Mother, what on earth were you thinking…?)
The King questioned, but no one remained to answer him. The Queen Dowager had passed away without ever revealing her true thoughts, even to her own son. Had she been unable to trust the son born of a man she had not wished to marry? Or was there another reason?
“…Enough with the sentimentality. Shall we discuss what comes next?”
A figure who had remained silent until now finally spoke. The man who had been listening to the conversation between the King and Richard was the Chancellor—Velios Crocus. He was the biological father of Celestine and held power second only to the King.
“Prince Rodel is a villain, but a minor one. He cannot commit grand misdeeds. Instead, we must dismantle the forces behind him.”
“…Indeed.”
The King nodded at Velios’s words.
The faction that had revered the Queen Dowager was a thorn in the King’s side, a political enemy that frequently obstructed him. He could not afford to let those who might rally behind Rodel and incite rebellion go unchecked. They must be decisively crushed.
“It is known that the influential figure of the faction, Marquis Aiger, has made contact with Prince Rodel, who is under house arrest in the Detached Palace. It seems they are plotting something nefarious.”
“…Do not take your eyes off Aiger. If we can expose his misdeeds and capture him, it may provide us with the opportunity to dismantle the faction.”
“…Understood.”
Velios acknowledged the King’s command and prepared to take action.
For Velios, the issue concerning Rodel was not merely someone else’s problem. His daughter, Celestine, had been betrothed to Rodel due to the Queen Dowager’s influence. To free her from that wretched man… he needed to dismantle the Queen Dowager’s faction as soon as possible.
As Rodel schemed in the shadows, those opposed to him were also beginning to move. The struggle unfolding within the royal palace, ignited by a single boy, would soon reach its climax.