Chapter 14 – Punishment (2)

Lenoa could not hide her shock as she listened to Rosetta’s tearful confession. Even Betier had a startled expression on her face.  

‘She actually went to see the Grand Duke herself… How bold.’  

Neither Lenoa nor Betier had ever treated Kairan warmly, unlike some of the other courtiers.  

While Lenoa was unaware, Betier knew that Kairan disliked interacting with courtiers and avoided them altogether. As a result, most courtiers kept their distance from him.  

However, Rosetta was a maid who had only recently entered the palace, so it was understandable that she acted differently.  

Lenoa took out a yellow handkerchief adorned with intricate lace and gently wiped away Rosetta’s tears. Feeling the soft silk against her skin, Rosetta looked up at Lenoa in a daze. The Queen’s comforting smile was even softer and more beautiful than the handkerchief.  

“You were brave. That took courage.”  

Lenoa smiled sincerely and praised her.  

“You… You’re not angry?”  

“Angry? If I were in your position, I would’ve done the same. I understand.”  

Rosetta had expected Lenoa to reprimand her harshly for ‘overstepping her bounds with royalty.’ But instead of scolding her, Lenoa comforted her without even a hint of displeasure.  

Rosetta was so moved that her heart softened, and even though she confessed to being scolded by Kairan, Lenoa showed no signs of annoyance. It was hard to believe.  

“Oh, this isn’t the time for this. You may leave now.”  

“Y-Yes! I’ll take my leave!”  

At Lenoa’s dismissal, Rosetta bowed her head several times before quickly leaving the room. Lenoa’s gaze remained blank, and the corners of her mouth twitched up and down.  

“Your Majesty, are you truly pleased with Rosetta?”  

“Yes. I told her I would’ve done the same to comfort her, but in truth, I wouldn’t have been able to. Not then, not now.”  

Betier found Lenoa’s words surprising but soon smiled on her own. It was admiration for Rosetta, who had done nothing wrong.  

After a while, Lenoa regained her composure and spoke.  

“Betier, there will be no punishment for Rosetta.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty.”  

“Oh, as for the first-floor staff, I’ve left their punishment to you, but don’t be too harsh.”  

At Lenoa’s lively tone, Betier reconsidered her earlier decision to administer ten lashes and decided to reduce it to nine.  

“And…”  

Lenoa stood up and continued.  

“I plan to visit the Grand Duke soon. Please prepare something simple for me to wear.”  

It was already evening, and the makeup she had applied in the early morning had mostly faded. However, in the full-length mirror, Lenoa, wearing a snow-white silk indoor dress with her long hair flowing down, still looked stunning.  

“Shall I notify him in advance?”  

“No, I’ll go directly.”  

After applying light makeup, Lenoa draped a black shawl over her shoulders and headed to the fourth floor.  

Since this was an extremely personal matter, there was no need for prior notice. Besides, Kairan himself often barged in without any warning.  

‘Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen him at all today.’  

As she climbed the stairs, this thought crossed Lenoa’s mind.  

Before long, she arrived on the fourth floor and knocked on the door to Kairan’s office. Though she had come to deliver punishment, she knocked out of courtesy. There was no response from inside.  

‘Not again?’  

Annoyance began to creep in, and forgetting her manners, she stormed over to the door of Kairan’s bedroom and flung it open.  

“Your… Your Majesty?”  

Kairan, who had been lying on the bed with his arms outstretched, immediately sat up when his eyes met Lenoa’s.  

‘So he’s just been lounging around.’  

Lenoa felt a surge of indignation. It was the first time she had felt such an intense emotion toward Kairan.  

“Why… Why have you come without notice…?”  

Perhaps sensing the sharpness in her gaze, Kairan appeared visibly tense. He even slightly bowed his head toward her, looking somewhat pitiful. But Lenoa cast aside any sympathy.  

“I’ve heard everything. That you’ve been mistreating the courtiers. And furthermore, that you treated the maid, Rosetta, who was only concerned for my well-being, so harshly. The courtiers are not only my people but also yours, Grand Duke. They are also citizens of Celesta.”  

“…”  

There were two points of criticism. The first was his intimidation and bribery of the first-floor staff during their shared meals. The second was his harsh treatment of Rosetta, who had acted out of goodwill.  

Lenoa deliberately avoided mentioning her monthly cycle and glossed over the details of Rosetta’s incident. While the former was an embarrassing matter, it was ultimately for her benefit. As for the latter, Rosetta had acted with good intentions but had regretted it because of him. There was no need to explain further.  

If Kairan had shown complete indifference to Rosetta, Lenoa might not have brought it up at all. The punishment would have been lighter.  

Kairan understood her intentions. She had come solely because of his treatment of the staff. He couldn’t deny the accusations about the first-floor staff, even if he didn’t care about this “Rosetta” person.  

Lenoa likely assumed his actions were meant to keep her in check. Even if he told the truth, she wouldn’t believe him.  

“I will impose two punishments on you. First, as of today, I am revoking your authority over palace personnel. While I had entrusted this responsibility to you in recognition of your contributions, I can no longer trust you after this incident.”  

Although this was a significant penalty, Kairan thought it wasn’t too severe and nodded silently.  

He didn’t want to continue seeing the informants anyway, and since it wasn’t directly related to Lenoa, he felt relieved. The loss of authority over personnel was trivial to him.  

But Lenoa’s next words left him utterly speechless.  

“The second punishment is that you are forbidden from meeting me until the debutante ball. I won’t be sending any summons to you either.”  

“Y-Your Majesty?”  

Kairan immediately knelt and clasped Lenoa’s hands. Bowing his head deeply, he pleaded with her to reconsider.  

The relationship they had improved through their secret rendezvous a few days ago was now ruined by his own greed. It felt worse than before their rendezvous.  

Even if he had committed a grave mistake, he couldn’t bear the thought of being distant from Lenoa. Today, he couldn’t even demand a summons or a shared meal, as he had already crossed the line.  

Instead, his thoughts were consumed by Lenoa, leaving him unable to focus on his work. The woman standing before him was all he could think about, day and night. There were still ten days left until the debutante ball. The idea of not seeing her for ten days was unbearable.  

“Your Majesty, I sincerely apologize. Please, withdraw this punishment…”  

“We’re both busy preparing for the debutante ball, aren’t we? I’d prefer not to see you until then.”  

“Who will take care of you, Your Majesty? Am I not your only secretary? I beg you, please…”  

Lenoa sighed deeply, as if the floor would give way beneath her. She had heard this excuse from Kairan before. It was a convenient pretext.  

This time, she had come to personally impose punishment as a Queen upon her vassal. The incident with the first-floor staff had made his so-called “care” for her painfully clear.  

‘Why is it so difficult for him to keep his distance from me?’  

He had accepted the first punishment, which was far harsher than the second, without complaint. Lenoa couldn’t understand why. Perhaps that was why the mask of cold resolve she wore felt flimsy.  

In the end, Lenoa relented.  

“I’ll allow you to attend official events. But still, I’d prefer not to see you.”  

Lenoa gently withdrew her hand and left the room, descending the stairs with Kairan behind her. She didn’t hear any footsteps following her.

She could count on one hand the times she had been firm with him. This incident would add another finger to that count. Though she had just used her authority as Queen to impose punishment, she was frustrated that she couldn’t completely reject his plea.  

‘If only he hadn’t done such things.’  

Lenoa didn’t want her relationship with Kairan to become distant again, as it had been before their secret rendezvous. But he had made a mistake, and she couldn’t help but feel disappointed.  

‘Thank you, Lenoa.’  

His gentle voice still lingered in her ears.  

‘How did we even manage to recover our relationship?’  

Lenoa wiped away the tears that had unconsciously formed around her eyes and headed to her bedroom. Tonight, she wanted to go to bed early.  

***

The next day, the two no longer saw each other. After all, they were both preoccupied with preparations for the debutante ball, which was now less than ten days away.  

Family invitations, food preparation, lighting, music… Every detail had to be reviewed and revised dozens of times, leaving no time even for proper meals.  

“Lady Lenoa, at this rate, you’ll exhaust yourself. Please take a break now and then.”  

Betier, worried about Lenoa, handed her a cup of tea as she saw her poring over debutante documents with fiery determination, even in the middle of the day. Only then did Lenoa set the papers aside and let out a long sigh.  

“This is the first event I’m hosting as Queen. This debutante ball will represent both me and Celesta.”  

She took a sip of tea and answered.  

As a Princess, she had simply enjoyed the debutante balls and other banquets that her parents and courtiers meticulously prepared. Now that she was the one organizing such an event, the harsh reality hit her hard. She felt both regretful and grateful for the efforts her parents and courtiers had put in.  

Still, she wasn’t completely unfamiliar with what a debutante ball entailed. She had learned by participating directly during her time as a Princess. She had also studied extensively through books and lessons in royal governance. Princess Lenoa herself had entered her debutante ball at the age of seventeen, which was practically another coming-of-age ceremony.  

‘The Grand Duke of Blandi made his debut the following year, didn’t he?’  

Recalling past debutante balls naturally brought Kairan to mind. Lenoa was eighteen at the time, and Kairan was twenty-four.  

Through his debutante ball two years prior, Kairan had formally introduced himself to the nobles as the legitimate heir of the Blandi Ducal House.  

However, the nobles’ reactions had not been favorable. Most viewed him with disdain, as if he were an upstart aristocrat suddenly appearing out of nowhere.  

‘He must be after power. As if it weren’t enough to live quietly like his father.’  

That was one of the snide remarks about him that Lenoa had overheard back then.  

Meanwhile, several noble ladies had been smitten with Kairan and shamelessly vied for his attention. But Kairan rejected all their advances. When the ball began, he walked straight to where Princess Lenoa was seated, knelt on one knee, took her hand, and kissed it.  

It was an invitation to dance. His demeanor made it seem as though he had been waiting solely for the chance to dance with her.  

It was customary to accept a dance invitation unless one was on bad terms with the inviter. Moreover, given their public relationship, she couldn’t possibly refuse. Though she wasn’t confident in her dancing skills, Lenoa eventually took Kairan’s hand and cautiously stepped onto the ballroom floor.  

‘I tripped and fell while dancing with him.’  

Thud. She remembered the loud noise that echoed through the hall, drawing everyone’s attention to her as she lay on the floor. At the time, she had been so embarrassed that she wanted to run away. The memory brought a wry smile to her face.  

She decided to set aside her reminiscence and return to work, but having already been distracted once, she found it impossible to concentrate.  

As Betier had suggested, she probably needed a short break. Lenoa rose from her seat.  

“Betier, I’m going to the garden for a while to clear my head. Please prepare for me.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty.”