"Close the gates!" George ordered.Boom.The gates of the royal prison slammed shut.Jane stopped in her tracks, not moving an inch.Up on the watchtower, Mary couldn't believe what she had just heard.'Jane? Your Majesty?'Jocelyn must have gone insane. Yes, that had to be it.Jocelyn laughed maniacally. After all, if she was going to die, she might as well drag someone down with her. Jane had used the token of royal pardon to save Kennedy. How could she have forgotten about herself?Jocelyn shouted at George, who was still on the watchtower."Your Majesty! You don't know yet, do you? I'm not the only one who impersonated Stanley, so did the queen–"Whoosh.An arrow shot through the air, piercing straight deep into Jocelyn's chest.The terror of death spread through her body. Her eyes widened in disbelief, following the trajectory of the arrow.She never expected that the one who shot her would be the king.George's gaze was ice-cold, his movements swift as he nocked and
Jane hesitated for only a moment before taking off her cloak.George kept his gaze straight ahead, his fists clenched tightly on his lap.After changing her clothes, Jane truly didn't want to hold back anymore."Your Majesty, I–"George suddenly looked at her, his gaze chilling to the bone."Jane, you'd best think carefully before you speak. The marriage substitution was my greatest concession."If there was anything worse than the substitution, he would not forgive her.Jane's gaze was resolute. "I don't want to keep deceiving you. Hmph!"George yanked her into his arms and silenced her with a fierce kiss. He kissed her harshly, as if he wanted to devour her whole.Jane tried to push him away, but he suddenly flipped her over and pressed her against the carriage wall. Outside, the carriage continued smoothly into the palace without obstruction. When it arrived outside Tyrian Palace, it came to a stop.Karlsen heard a commotion inside the carriage. It sounded as if somethin
A while later, Jane heard movement.George had returned after his bath. He drew aside the bed curtains, gazing down at her with an imposing and cold demeanor.Her gaze shifted to him. He was dressed in sleepwear, his hair untied. His strikingly handsome face carried a murderous aura. He was like a haunting presence that sent chills down one's spine.Facing such a temperamental king, Jane had to remain constantly on guard.George sat down.He turned slightly away from her, his gaze icy and silent. He didn't speak, and Jane remained quiet as well, lest she provoke his anger again.It was eerily silent, like the tense standoff before a battle. Both were testing each other, waiting to see who would break first.Under his piercing gaze, Jane found it difficult to ignore the stifling tension. She preferred directness. If he had questions, he should ask. If he intended to punish her–Suddenly, George leaned in.Her breath hitched, and the blade in her shoe was ready.Fortunately, he
George's emotions were in turmoil. On one hand, he felt a hint of relief that Jocelyn was not truly Commander Morris. On the other, he was furious at being deceived. Jocelyn had lied to him, and so had his queen.Jane lowered her head respectfully, offering no excuses."It was my mistake."Smack!George slammed the confession letter onto the desk."Of course, it was your mistake!" he exclaimed coldly. "You failed to see through her deception, hesitated when you shouldn't have, and gave Jocelyn the opportunity to take advantage of you! You thought you could fix things after the fact, but the damage only grew worse."Why didn't you tell me sooner? If you had, I wouldn't have made Jocelyn the first female commander. I wouldn't have given her the title of General of the City Guards And now, where does that leave me?"As king, the truth was important, but preserving the royal family's dignity and maintaining political stability mattered even more.If he publicly declared that Jocely
"You have risked your life multiple times to protect me. How should I reward you?" George asked.Jane believed him.Her eyes shone with sincerity as she opened her lips and said, "Your Majesty, I ask for nothing else. I only wish for peace within the kingdom and to serve the nation with all my life."In other words, she wanted to regain her freedom and return to the military."That is only natural." George's tone remained indifferent. "But if one is rewarded for good work, one must also be punished for failing their duty." His gaze turned stern and imposing. "I am not satisfied with this petition."With that, he strode over to the desk, picked up a quill, and swiftly wrote with powerful strokes.Moments later, he flung the completed document in front of Jane.It listed all her failures as queen–neglecting palace affairs, disrespecting elders, and failing to bear an heir.Jane glanced over the words, and one thought immediately crossed her mind. 'He's making trouble out of nothi
Suddenly, a large shadow loomed over Jane. She looked up and saw George standing before her, his gaze cold and indifferent."I'll give you one year to sort out these matters." His tone was distant. "For the next year, you will remain in the palace as my queen. First, to make up for your negligence as queen over the past year. "Second, given the extent of Jocelyn's disruption, you concealed the matter and failed to report it, practically aiding and abetting her. Thus, you must bear the consequences until the situation stabilizes."Do you have any objections?"Jane was speechless.Another year in the palace?The disapproval she instinctively showed only fueled the fire inside George, making his expression even sterner. His gaze turned sharp."Moreover, I will pardon the offense of deceiving the king by the Foster and Morris families. "Commander Morris, in regards to your concealed identity and the marriage substitution with Wendy, there's no way Kennedy was the only one aware.
Jane suddenly realized that the contract had a major flaw, but she couldn't let George have the final say. She immediately spoke up."Your Majesty, the contract doesn't mention–""What does it not mention?" George cut her off, feigning ignorance.Jane refused to let him play dumb on such an important matter. Her expression turned serious as she took a step back and bowed respectfully."Your Majesty, to me, you will always be the sovereign. Since the contract states the reason for my continued stay in the palace and has already been signed, please forgive me for being unable to regard you as my true husband."Her words were measured, leaving no room for misunderstanding.George gazed at her deeply. A few moments later, his expression turned indifferent."I also find it difficult to see you as my wife, Commander Morris. This is nothing more than a charade to deceive outsiders. Surely, you know how to play along?"Jane stood still for a moment before nodding slightly. "Yes, I unde
When George entered and saw Mary there as well, his brows furrowed slightly. It seemed that his sister doubted Jane's identity as queen and had come to test her."Your Majesty, are you finished at court already?" Mary asked with an ambiguous tone.George naturally walked over to Jane's side and countered with a question of his own. "What are you doing here?"He had not forgotten how she had threatened him with her life last night for Jocelyn's sake. It was utterly ridiculous.Even in George's presence, Mary's gaze remained on Jane."I had some words I wished to speak to Her Majesty in private. I hadn't finished when you arrived," Mary replied.George's eyes turned cold, carrying a hint of indifference."Oh? Should I step out and let you continue?" His words were harsh, laced with barely concealed hostility.Mary didn't understand why he was so wary of her. But time was on her side. She had plenty of time to uncover the truth behind Commander Morris.Mary gave Jane a slight bow
Jane never told George that Darren had died for her. The Thiberium poisoning had been meant for her. Darren had taken it in her place.She also never told George that Darren had already given her the Miracle Needles manual. At the time, she had been too busy waging war and had only learned half of it. So when he was poisoned, even though she hastily studied the rest, she still couldn't save him in time.Because of this, she could never forgive herself.That night, many struggled to sleep.George and the royal guards practiced combat through the night. The guards were miserable.Rachel lay awake until dawn, unable to calm her excitement about leaving the palace with the king the next day.The next morning, by the break of dawn, Rachel was already dressed and had prepared the offerings.The guards assigned to escort her had the carriage ready. When a concubine left the palace, she had to use the side gate.Rachel, however, didn't get into the carriage right away. Instead, she ask
In the evening, at Tyrian Palace, George was about to settle down for the night when he noticed that Jane was still reading.He walked over. "Is that book really so fascinating?"Jane didn't even look up."I've sent people to investigate the purchase records of floral brocade in recent years. While waiting, I thought I'd search for clues about that nine-tailed serpent motif."George snatched the book from her hands, forcing her to raise her head and look at him. "It could just be an ordinary design.""Perhaps." Jane reached for the book, but he spoke again."There's a military physician in the Northern Battalion with the last name Durand. Was he the one who taught you Miracle Needles?"Jane's gaze subtly shifted.Growing impatient, George pressed further. "I want the truth. Was it him?"Jane's expression was cold and detached. "Yes."A storm brewed within George.The Durand family never passed down the Miracle Needles technique to outsiders—only their own bloodline. That mea
There were screams from within the palace."You scoundrel! Who's sick? Who are you calling delirious? I'm perfectly fine! Ahh! What are you doing!"Since Mary was struggling so violently, Dina had no choice but to order her to be restrained. A moment later, Mary was tied to the bed, thrashing wildly as she shouted toward the door where Dina stood."Mother! Save me!"Dina couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. "Mary, I'm only helping you."Mary was utterly baffled. She had just been quietly embroidering a fragrant pouch, yet her mother suddenly thought she was ill."The queen. Get the queen!" Mary barked at Irene.Wilhelmina, who stood right beside Dina, felt a chill run down her spine.Why call for the queen? Could Mary really have lost her mind?–At Zen Palace, Jane was flipping through ancient texts, searching for any records of the nine-tailed serpent motif.Suddenly, Maya rushed into the inner chamber. She seemed out of breath."Your Majesty! Something terrible ha
"I only heard that Commander Morris was quite close to a military physician, and there were even rumors of an intimate relationship." At this point, Richard hesitated before adding, "But I believe those were baseless rumors. It was most likely just camaraderie between comrades."George's expression turned unusually serious."What is the physician's name, and where is he now?""I only recall that his surname was Durand."'Durand?'George immediately thought of the Miracle Needles. That physician was likely a descendant of the Durand family.Richard had no idea why the king was asking about this, so he returned to the main topic."Your Majesty, since Jocelyn is not the true Commander Morris, why have you not made this public?"George's gaze turned dark."I have my own plans."Right now, all he could think about was that military physician with the surname Durand.–Outside the royal study, Karlsen saw Richard step out and greeted him respectfully.Karlsen's face was expressi
At Grace Palace, Rachel sat in front of the mirror. Her gaze was slightly empty. Aurelia couldn't bear to see her like this."Your Highness, it's getting late."The king not coming didn't mean she should refuse to sleep.Rachel murmured softly, "Yes, it's late."Was the queen accompanying the king at this hour?She used to console herself with the thought that perhaps the queen, like her, was nothing more than a facade to deceive others and had never truly shared the king's bed.But if that were true, why would the king summon her to Tyrian Palace? Even Rosalie had rarely set foot there in the past. This proved that the king truly favored the queen.Then what was she?She had exhausted every means at her disposal, yet she couldn't make the king spare her even a glance.Tonight was destined to be a sleepless one.-The next day, during the court session, ministers were still debating over Jocelyn's death."Your Majesty, Commander Morris held great prestige among the people.
Jane proposed making the truth public to prevent the people from continuing to misunderstand. However, George's gaze was extremely cold."There's no need."Now, it was her turn to be confused. Between two difficult choices, one should choose the lesser evil. As a king, did he not understand this?George was very serious."If we expose that Jocelyn is an impostor, the Morris family won't escape punishment. Neither will the tens of thousands of Northern Battalion soldiers."Even if those soldiers were unaware of the truth, people could always find an excuse to accuse them. If that happened and someone with ulterior motives took advantage of the situation, the entire Northern Battalion would be thrown into chaos.By keeping this secret, he could still protect the Morris family and those soldiers.If the truth was revealed, he would have to handle the matter impartially. Otherwise, his authority would be compromised.Jane said nothing.In her heart, she naturally leaned toward her
George saw a light in her eyes that he had never seen before.The surroundings were silent. It was as if, as long as she looked at him like this, he could agree to anything.But he was not so easily swayed.After only a brief moment of distraction, he quickly regained his usual cold and imposing demeanor and spoke in a steady tone."In the second year of my reign, the allied forces of four nations attacked Nidora. I led the army into battle. After the war ended, I returned to the capital, passing through a misty forest on the way. There was an ambush in that forest."While fighting off the assassins, one masked individual released a creature that resembled a salamander. I was bitten by it and poisoned. Only later did I learn that it was Thiberium poisoning."Jane was well aware that Thiberium poisoning involved raising salamanders and feeding them a specially prepared poison daily. Over time, the creatures would absorb the toxins and become what was known as Thiberium, naturally
Mary was feeling guilty. Jocelyn had managed to escape from prison thanks to the Falcon Command Token she had secretly delivered to her. She had known the truth would come to light sooner or later, but she hadn't expected it to be this soon.Even more surprising was that after questioning her for a while, George suddenly stopped. Instead, he changed the subject and solemnly warned her."Mary, I can choose not to punish you for this matter, but from now on, stay away from Zen Palace."Mary's fists clenched involuntarily. She met George's gaze, refusing to back down, and smiled."Your Majesty, you've been on the throne for seven years now, yet you still have no heirs. That's quite unusual, isn't it? I heard from Grandmother that you've decided not to favor the harem unless the queen bears an heir?"Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but over the years, you've shown favor to Lady Rosalie and Lady Helena, and even spent nights with Rachel. Yet none of them have conceived. So why do
Mary stared blankly at the person before her.The queen was actually Commander Morris who had saved her all those years ago.Good heavens! What had she been doing all this time?She had actually believed Jocelyn and gone against the queen at every turn. She had even exposed the queen's marriage substitution.For the sake of Jocelyn, an impostor, she had nearly caused the death of her true savior.At this moment, Mary was filled with regret and remorse.Jane lowered her gaze to the bracelet on her wrist and sensed something was off.Their eyes met suddenly. Mary's gaze was emotional, her voice trembling. "You–"She had countless things to say, but she didn't know where to start."Commander, I personally measured your wrist for this bracelet. Now, do you still wish to deny it?" Mary gazed at her intently.Jane's brows furrowed slightly. "Princess–"Mary interrupted her. "I was a fool. I conspired with Jocelyn and went against you at every turn. It's only natural that you bla