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Her mind wandered to the rumors she had heard from Gillian, who had investigated and reported that Kylie had once summoned Sophie to the palace, mentioning that Salvador wished to make her his concubine.
The news had seemed ludicrous then. Despite Sophie’s respectable background, military achievements, and good looks, she was a divorced woman. Even if she were to enter the palace, her rank would be limited. It was inconceivable for a divorced woman to be given such a high position.
If the rumors were true and Salvador had taken an interest in her, then by marrying her, Rafael would be effectively taking the king’s woman.
How could that be considered safe?
It would lead to endless trouble!
Helen scrutinized Sophie, contemplating the possibility of the first reason. She recalled how she had initially tried to arrange a marriage for Rafael, only to be told that he already had someone he loved and would decide upon his return from his campaign.
However, when Helen later wrote to him, he replied that his beloved had already married, and there was no need for anyone to concern themselves with the matter.
That was odd.
If it were Sophie, Rafael would have expressed his feelings before going to war. And if Melanie knew about this, she would never have married Sophie to Blake.
It was indeed strange and puzzling.
Helen gazed at Sophie’s stunningly beautiful face, and then at her slender figure. It was hard to believe that someone who looked so delicate could possibly be as ruthless as Rafael described-someone who could cut a person into three pieces.
Recalling Sophie’s actions and words at Eleanor’s birthday banquet, Helen asked, “You offended Grand Princess Eleanor that day. Aren’t you afraid of her retaliation?”
Sophie remained unperturbed. “Her bark is worse than her bite. Why should I fear her?”
Helen’s voice turned cold. “You’re too young to understand her methods. She has many ways of getting back at people. Such people often strike you from behind. You’ll find yourself in trouble.”
“If she tries to come at us from behind, we’ll respond openly and twice as hard. We conduct ourselves with integrity-we’re upright and unashamed of our actions. We’re not afraid of her, whether she comes openly or covertly. It’s the things she does secretly that we should be wary of. Once we have a handle on a person’s weakness, it’s easier to deal with them.”
As Sophie spoke, she crushed a cup in her hand. Then, she nonchalantly placed the shattered pieces on the table.
Seeing this, Helen involuntarily straightened up. But then she quickly relaxed her posture, realizing it was a gesture of weakness.
With a casual flick, Sophie brushed a small piece of the broken cup off her intricately embroidered skirt and said, “At the Pathfinders Guild, we have rules. If someone doesn’t offend me, I won’t offend them. But if someone dares to offend me, we eliminate them at the root!”
Helen shivered at the words, but Sophie’s smile remained gentle and her tone soft
“Of course, this is a matter of personal vendettas and the ways of the martial world. As a noble family, we don’t act in such a manner. We always resolve things with reason. For instance, today, you invited me to speak with me and treated me with reason. If you had truly been harsh-like leaving me under the blazing sun, making me walk in circles, or slapping me-I could endure it the first time, but not a second. There was a cold, sharp light in her eyes.
Helen felt an inexplicable chill, but she was at a loss for words. Sophie’s casual remarks were laced with threats, and the way she spoke made it clear she remembered the events of their last meeting with disdain.
How bold of her!
Helen had an intense desire to slap Sophie across the face. She wanted to grab Sophie by the hair, drag her out, and trample her! She wanted to crush each of her fingers one by one!
Sophie noticed the myriad emotions flickering in Helen’s eyes. Turning her head to gaze at the sunlight streaming through the hall, she smiled faintly.
This old woman needed to be intimidated, or she might cause trouble.
After a moment, Sophie turned away and asked, “By the way, you summoned me to the palace, Lady Helen. Was there something specific you needed?” Helen rolled her eyes inwardly.
Sophie was playing the fool. If there had been a specific matter, Helen would have mentioned it when they first met. It was clear that the intention was to have her marry someone else.
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Yet, the conversation had reached this point, and it was awkward to bring it up now.
“I was merely feeling bored and wanted some company, I thought it would be nice to have you here to talk,” Helen said.
Sophie smiled warmly. “I’m more than happy to keep you company. If you’re still feeling bored, why not accompany me to Harmony Palace?”
Helen’s expression changed abruptly “Why would you go to Harmony Palace?”
“Just a visit. After all, she’ll be my aunt-in-law in the future.”
Helen looked at her as if Sophie was an idiot. “You would dare to visit her? There are no guests today.”
Sophie maintained a dignified demeanor, and said gently, “That’s exactly why I want to go today. There were too many people the other day, and it was difficult to talk freely. With no one around, I can speak openly. It’s best to avoid any future misunderstandings or trouble. I detest unnecessary trouble.”
Helen felt that Sophie’s words might be aimed at her, but couldn’t be certain. Sophie’s serious demeanor suggested otherwise.
As soon as Sophie left the palace, Helen hurriedly sent someone to follow her, to see if she actually went to Harmony Palace.
If Sophie dared to go there despite having offended Eleanor, it would mean two things-first, she was reckless, and second, she had no regard for the grand princess.
Either way, Helen couldn’t afford to antagonize her future daughter-in-law.
After leaving the palace, Sophie boarded the carriage bound for Harmony Palace.
Today, she had originally planned to visit Eleanor, but the sudden royal summons had delayed her. However, the delay wasn’t a major setback. By afternoon, Eleanor would have awakened from her nap and would be full of energy, so Sophie expected not to be disappointed.
In recent days, Sophie had been organizing the storerooms, sorting out the dowry items brought back from Valor Estate. Some items needed to be sold, while others were to be stacked in a corner. Since she was marrying Rafael, she couldn’t use those items as part of her dowry. After tidying up the storerooms, she needed to make a list of what new items were necessary. Frederick was to prepare this list.
Among the clutter, she discovered the miniature sculpture of the chastity belt sent by Eleanor. It was exquisitely carved and made from a rare, precious type of marble.
Such an expensive “gift” obviously had to be returned to Eleanor. When Eleanor had sent the miniature sculpture, the news of Sophie’s father and brothers’ deaths had just reached the capital. She was still in Meadow Ridge and had not yet returned, so she had never actually seen the miniature sculpture.
She had thought her mother would throw it away. Instead, it had been hidden in the storeroom. Perhaps Melanie had been too grief-stricken at the time to give proper instructions, and the servants, hesitant to dispose of it recklessly, had simply left it in a corner.
Sophie picked up the miniature sculpture, and examined it closely. It was the size of a jewelry box, with the words “Chastity” intricately carved on the front and “Legacy” carved on the back.
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She could imagine how enraged and helpless her mother must have felt upon receiving this miniature sculpture. The helplessness came from having lost all the men in the family, leaving her to care for her. orphaned grandchildren.
How could Melanie dare oppose Eleanor then?
Previously, Sophie had assumed the miniature sculpture had been discarded and thus hadn’t visited Eleanor. Now that it had been found, it had to be returned with proper respect.
During Eleanor’s birthday banquet, when Sophie mentioned that everyone could come see the miniature sculpture, she hadn’t actually known it was still there. She had been confident that no one would be interested in seeing it. Even if people felt deep down that Eleanor was cruel, they wouldn’t go out of their way to visit Northwatch Estate to view such a cursed object.
As the carriage arrived at Harmony Palace, Sophie instructed Lulu and the others to wait in the carriage. Then, she took the miniature chastity belt sculpture and leaped out.