Chapter 13 - The Duke and the Duchess

Katherine Evenhart:

We had just finished dinner, and after all that time, I reunited with my old friends again. Sitting at that table and laughing with them stirred up a complicated mix of emotions inside me. Years ago, we were younger and more reckless; we'd head into battles after staying up all night, telling stories and drinking. We'd storm into bandit and gang hideouts through the front door, killing everyone... those were truly crazy times. We did those things, but the group was larger than the one gathered at that table today. I had Ethan, and Margaery had Erich. There were others, even some of their parents who would join our adventures.

Today, only a few of us remain after that war on the frontier. It was tough for all of us, as we regretted letting the royal army and their commanders lead the formation. Because of that, we were scattered and weakened... At the time, Margaery and I had to leave the war due to our pregnancies and left our husbands behind.

To this day, we still harbor grudges against those from the Royal Capital. We had our victory and defeated the Human Empire and the Theocracy, but the cost was much higher than we could have imagined. We lost our loved ones, and in the end, while everyone else celebrated, we returned home with a simple 'thank you for your service.' I couldn't bear that situation after losing my husband and the others I trusted with my life in battle and shared stories with by the campfire, so I decided to run far away.

Now, the ghosts of my past have come back to haunt me.

By being divided and depressed, we gave strength to an enemy within our lands. The rebellious son of the late Marquis is trying to claim authority over House Evenhart under the pretense that if he marries into the family, he can restore the territory's prosperity. Worse, he inherited his father's territory and controls a small part of the underworld that has grown in these lands. When the war came, we all had to go to the front lines, and slowly this evil grew in our gardens. When we returned, we were exhausted and everyone needed to deal with their own grief. Many families were lost, and most lost their parents and siblings. We didn't have time to deal with small bandits hiding in mountain hideouts when we had a bigger problem to solve. Margaery inherited the title of Duchess because of her daughter and had to act with an iron fist to prove to everyone that the Duchy would withstand the loss... I just chose to run far away.

Now, we needed to think about our next steps, or we could have a war within our territory. The last thing we want is a battle that will only harm us further.

What will be left if our armies fight each other? Nothing... the few who survive will have no men left to protect our lands and will be vulnerable to anyone.

I put Nathan to bed while trying to think about what I must do. Margaery called me for a private conversation in her room, and it made me nervous. I stopped at her door and knocked a few times.

"Come in..." her low voice sounded from the other side.

Nathan Evenhart:

It was my first night in that place. I was a bit nervous about sleeping alone in an unfamiliar environment. I was more anxious about sleeping in that protected room than I was sleeping out in the open in the carriage. There was a constant feeling of being watched, and I couldn't explain what it was. I understood that the people there wouldn't harm me, and that gradually eased my nerves.

During my time as a General, human relationships were simpler and less complicated. Just one order and people would obey without question. I didn’t need to explain anything... but here, it seems that human relations work together. If it were up to me, I would have already resolved this problem by killing all my opponents and hanging their heads on stakes so no one would dare challenge me again... those were simpler times.

I sat on the bed, sighing and thinking about what awaited me in the coming days. I felt defenseless being a child, unable to protect myself or those I loved.

The little red hawk was sleeping inside my coat, which was hanging on a nearby piece of furniture.

This guy can sleep anywhere... I guess he trusts his ability to escape or attack his opponents.

I lay back down on the bed.

But if I were him, I’d sleep anywhere too after being chained up with those infernal chains for so long.

I covered myself again and started thinking about a training regimen that would suit and adapt to this body. A soldier's diet is the most important part, so I would need to strengthen this body so it grows strong and healthy.

I don’t need to worry about getting protein from meat; my family has money, so I can eat as much as I want. Plus, they have their own training regimen that they said I’ll follow to become a ‘Legacy of Evenhart’ or something like that.

My aunt and my mother said I would learn what it means to be a Legacy through the monk Sifu and that I would learn a bit about our family’s truth from him.

I’m more interested in the fact that there’s an Asian monk here. I thought this world only had the European standard for humans. This continent has diversity, but it’s in the races. We have humans, demi-humans, elves, and high elves. Not to mention that demi-humans don’t have the same appearance; they are diversified with characteristics of other animals related to their tribe. And what about Sifu? Are there other types of humans in the Human Empire or only Asians?

They mentioned he was saved by my grandfather when he was a young monk... I’m curious about his story.

While lost in my thoughts, someone knocked on my door.

Knock! Knock!

I quickly got up to try and identify who was on the other side.

“Can I come in? We haven’t met yet,” said a child's voice from the other side.

Who is it?

I look at my coat and see the little hawk sleeping in the pocket.

“Come in…” I respond to the child’s voice.

As soon as I speak, the door opens, and I see a little girl holding a lamp. She enters slowly and closes the door. The little girl must be my age.

I don’t know how to react and just observe her.

“I’m your cousin... my name is Chloe,” she says, sitting on the edge of the bed after placing the lamp on a table.

Oh, right... I had forgotten about her for a moment.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Nathan,” I say, sitting on the bed.

We look at each other, and an awkward silence fills the air.

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“I didn’t see you at dinner tonight,” I say, trying to start a conversation.

The little girl just sits there, looking at the lamp, not saying anything.

“I haven’t been very cheerful these last few days…” she says, clasping her hands together.

Okay, now what? I’m not very good with kids.

I quickly realized that she might be talking about her situation. My aunt isn’t the Duchess; it’s my cousin. Aunt Margaery only took over because Chloe is still too young. This internal dispute is based on the perception that they are weak and unworthy of leading the duchy.

At least, that’s the excuse that Nikolaus Wolves is using to try and convince the lesser nobles who want to take advantage of the chaos caused by the war and the power vacuum in my family. To do this, they need to arrange a marriage with this little girl. She already understands that everything revolves around her.

“I’m sorry, Nathan… it’s all my fault,” she says, looking at me and crying.

“Your fault? But why? You didn’t do anything wrong,” I tried to argue, but I think I ended up making things worse.

Chloe looked away to hide her tears.

I definitely don’t know how to deal with kids.

“I dragged you and your mother into this mess. My mom was going to try to negotiate a fake ‘engagement’... until we could get stronger, and I would never marry when the time came, but I ended up making things worse. I was immature and refused in front of the leader of the Wolves family... I didn’t know my mom had a plan. I ruined everything…”

Oh! So they were going to wait until they could regain strength and then refuse? I’m glad my family thought of that, but she really fucked up if she made a scene... even these lesser nobles have pride.

“After what I did... I made things even worse. I’m sorry... it’s all my fault.”

Chloe started crying.

Even so, she’s just a child and shouldn’t be worrying about these things. This is adult stuff; she needs to be a kid and enjoy herself. You only live once... I was lucky to get a second chance and be a child again. I don’t want to waste my second chance, and I don’t want her to lose her opportunity either.

I sighed internally.

“You’re only five years old... you shouldn’t be involved in noble disputes. You should be eating dirt and stealing sweets...” I said, patting her back.

She looked at me.

“Eating dirt?” she asked, confused.

“I don’t know what that means, but that’s what my mom says to me. I just prefer the part about stealing sweets…”

“I think I also prefer the sweets part…”

In the end, I stayed there consoling my cousin until she felt less guilty. After she calmed down, I guided her out of the room.

I said goodbye to her and closed the door.

Whew! That tired me out.

“Who would have thought you know how to treat a woman well,” Athena said, sitting on my bed.

“Fuck… you again.”

Katherine Evenhart:

We had been talking for a while as Margaery served me several glasses of wine. We reminisced about old stories from our time in this mansion... even the times we stole sweets, despite not being children, and blamed it on Sifu.

“Deep down, I think they knew it was us,” I said.

“But still, everyone blamed him. It was hilarious seeing Sifu pissed off,” she laughed.

Margaery was sitting on the bed. It had been a long time since I saw her genuinely smiling like that.

I sighed because part of me needed to ask why she called me here and what her next step was.

“Margie, I know you didn’t call me here to reminisce. What’s your plan?”

As soon as I asked, she took a deep breath, and her gentle face turned serious, transforming back into our queen.

“What do you think? I’m going to solve this situation. I’m going to take a step that will change everything,” she said, placing the wine glass on the table.

“What are you going to do?”

Margaery walked towards me and sat in the armchair next to me.

“I will resolve it with a marriage.”

“Marriage?” I asked, confused.

I didn’t understand… wasn’t she against the idea of marrying off her daughter?

“I don’t understand, Margie. Marriage? Marry who?”

She looked at me seriously.

“I think you know exactly who I’m talking about and with whom...” she looked at me and gave a small smile.

It can’t be!

“You can’t be talking about what I’m thinking, Margie. What exactly do you intend to do?”

I needed to hear it from her mouth.

“I just signed a document a little before you came in. I acknowledged the authenticity of Nathan Evenhart’s existence and even said I did a magical genetic test to prove his lineage... the document of his existence will be sent along with another document.”

“What other document, Margaery?” I asked, growing angry.

“A betrothal document. The royal capital will receive the news that my dear Chloe and your dear Nathan are engaged. They will marry and become the future of House Evenhart,” she said, smiling at me.

“Congratulations, Katie. We are practically sisters now,” she clapped.

“Sisters? Sisters my ass, Margie!” I shouted, standing up in anger.

She just sighed, looked at her nails, and remained silent.

“You’re using my son as a bargaining chip! You’re trying to shut up the opposition with this!”

“I’m saving this family!” she shouted back.

“Saving how? By marrying off my child!?”

“Engaging! He will be engaged! The marriage is only when they are adults...”

I tried to calm down and focus, trying to find some way out, but there was no way out. Margaery wasn’t bluffing or trying to make a move. The moment she made it official and sent an official notice to the royal capital, there was no turning back. Backing out of such an engagement was not an option, no different from her rejecting the Wolves' proposal later. Nathan is a superior noble, and so is her daughter… a superior noble cannot be rejected once an engagement is official. Neither he nor she can back out of this marriage.

“You’ve trapped me!” I accused.

“I haven’t trapped you in anything; I’m saving us from one!” she shot back.

Margaery stood and walked towards me.

“Katie, deep down you know this is the best option. Do you know why I’m sure you’ll accept this? I haven’t even sent the document yet. I’ll do it tomorrow. I’ll leave it up to you to decide, but you’ll reach the same conclusion as me. Do you know why, Katie?”

“WHY!?” I asked angrily.

“Because you’re a mother! Because you love your son and want to protect him. That’s why it won’t just be me making this decision; it’ll be us together,” she said, holding my arms.

“There has to be another way. I can’t make this decision for Nathan!”

Margaery sighed.

“Do you think I haven’t thought of other ways? Listen to me, Katie! Our children are seen as treasures to be plundered. After what happened, only they are left! My daughter and your son are seen as meat for the vultures! Our weakness has drawn the wolf to our children. I’m taking this step for our own good.”

She sat back in the armchair, returning to her queenly demeanor.

“I am the head of the Evenhart family, and I must protect the last of the Evenharts. You are my only family left. Our two children are defenseless against those outside our House. You’re complaining about this arranged marriage? What do you think you’d have to do to keep Nathan alive? My 5-year-old daughter would have to marry a 37-year-old man… and hope Nathan could secure an arranged marriage if it came to that. Because as soon as the Wolves took over the Evenharts, they’d kill him and you. The Wolves already want to kill him now to try and seize power… imagine what they’d do once they have power?”

I sat on the bed, trying to accept the reality.

“Our children are defenseless, but together we can protect our heirs. They are our future, Katie. Let’s make this official together, protect our family, and stay united. Remember the motto of our House: Family united and enemies dead.”

Margaery looked at me, seeking some response.

“I can’t decide his future like this.”

“It’s this or we’ll be separated and conquered. Once we let the foxes into our henhouse, they’ll take our chicks away. Where is the famous Head-Cutter I knew? Where’s that brave and relentless woman I need so much right now?”

I sighed, trying to accept the reality, not knowing how to break this to my son.

“What do I do, Margaery? I can’t handle making this choice.”

“I can’t either, but I won’t be doing this alone. This is the best option for our children. We’ll unite and strengthen the Evenharts in an unprecedented union. The legacy of my husband and your husband will live on in these children. They’ll be our King and Queen… our Duke and Duchess. Accept my proposal, Katie… I need you. I can’t do this alone. I don’t want to lose anyone else. Let me act and save our family.”

She offered me a glass of wine, and I took it.

“And how will we tell them?” I asked.

“We’ll tell them at the right time. We’ll just let them grow up together… it’ll be the best option for them. We don’t need to force any kind of relationship for now. Your son is handsome, and my daughter is beautiful… we were young once; we know what can happen. Let them naturally grow close to each other.”

I downed the glass of wine in one go.

“I’m not a good mother...” I murmured to myself.

“A good mother protects her child, and you’re protecting Nathan. Cheer up, Katie. You’re not sending him away from you. You’re marrying him to a beautiful girl you’ll know so well she’ll be like your daughter… and I’ll do the same. I’ll marry my daughter to someone I’ll see growing up and make sure he becomes a good man.”

I sighed.

“I miss when you were just the Witch of Torture…”

“Those were simpler times, I agree… but look at the bright side. We have no interest other than protecting our children. Would you marry your son to someone who only cares about their Ducal name? We’re all family here, thinking about the good of everyone.”

She got up, grabbed a bottle of wine, and filled my glass. I tried to stop her, but she insisted.

“A toast to our prince and princess,” she said.

I took a deep breath.

“A toast to the Evenharts…” I said.

Nathan, forgive me, but this was the only way.