Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Appointing another royal tutor and moving his memorial plaque to the royal chapel was a heavy blow to the Quinton family. It was as if it was being publicly acknowledged that Gerald had indeed been to the gentlemen’s retreat.
Although his title of Royal Tutor wasn’t officially revoked, did it really make a difference anymore?
The title itself was just a label. What truly placed Gerald at the peak of power was the respect of others. Now, this incident had dragged him down from the mountaintop straight into the muck. From here on out, every mention of his name would be laced with disgust and disdain. No one would speak of him with respect again.
It was as if a heavy burden had crashed down on the Quinton family. No matter how much they tried to conceal things from Gerald, he always found a way to uncover it.
He had already made up his mind to die, and now there was no trace of a will to live left in him. He refused to eat or drink, no matter how much anyone tried to coax him. Malcolm had even gone to Salvador, pleading for a special favor to allow Kylie to see Gerald, hoping that perhaps she might be able to change his mind.
Kylie believed her royal status could sway him, and she thought surely her words would reach his heart. She was, after all, the king’s
Enet and she held power in her own. She was confident her grandfather would listen to her.
In the end, Kylie sat by Gerald’s bedside and spoke for an hour, but he never once opened his eyes to acknowledge her. Not a single drop of the soup she personally spooned into his mouth went down his throat.
It seemed like he was on the brink of death. He refused even to say a final word, which drove the Quinton family to desperation.
Just when Kylie and Malcolm were at their wits’ end, Gerald finally uttered something a single request. “I want to see Sophie.”
Malcolm refused to send for her.
With tears in his eyes, he said, “Dad, she was only doing her duty. We can’t blame her for this. Please just let it go, okay?”
“Find her!”
Those two words came out slowly, painfully, as if each syllable took all of his remaining strength.
After a long pause, he added, “Bring her here… and I will take the medicine.”
Tears streamed down Malcolm’s face as he knelt before his dad. “Dad, His Majesty no longer favors our family. Why must you force me to offend Hell Monarch’s household as well?”
“Then let me die,” Gerald replied, his voice barely above a whisper. “If I die, you will all be free.”
With those words, he closed his eyes again, his energy all but spent. The few words he managed to say drained him completely.
Kylie had long since harbored a deep hatred for Sophie. The Quinton family, once at the height of power, had been struck a devastating blow by her actions. It left them severely weakened and ruined their reputation.
As a result, Kylie was also implicated.
Once outside, she said to Malcolm, “Since it is Grandfather’s wish, then let us call for her. It’d be best to summon Mr. Murray as well. At least then, we’ll have a witness to see how she’s the one who’s driven Grandfather to his death.”
Malcolm abruptly lifted his head. “What are you saying? Do you truly want to see your grandfather die? Is that what you want?!”
“Dad,” Kylie said, wiping away her tears. The cold calculation in her eyes was unmistakable. “Grandfather’s right. Once he dies, our family will finally be free. As long as he lives, we’ll be under scrutiny. Once he’s gone, people will start to celebrate his accomplishments. In time, they’ll forget about him going to the gentlemen’s retreats. All they’ll remember is the good he has done.”
Malcolm could hardly believe what he was hearing. “Are you out of your mind? This is just your grandfather’s angry outburst! How can you take this seriously?”
“Listen to me,” Kylie said, holding up her hand for him to calm down. “Isn’t Sophie to blame for what happened to Grandfather? He blamed her. That’s why he wanted to see her to die in front of her. This is his way of getting revenge, but also a way of freeing our family. Being devoted is about following his wishes. If he wants this, then as his descendants, we must comply. That’s how we show our respect.” Malcolm disagreed. “No! We don’t need to make an enemy of the Hell Monarch’s household. Sophie may have done things I don’t agree with, but she is a righteous person. Her actions to cleanse the gentlemen’s retreats were the king’s orders, and there were Sandoria spies there. This wasn’t a targeted move against our family.”
Kylie was livid “Dad, you’re blind to the truth! Whether we intended it or not, our family has already crossed paths with the Hell Monarch’s household. We may try to walk the righteous path, but they’ll be scheming behind our backs!
“If we don’t act first, we’ll only end up manipulated. Right now, our family is suffering. The only way forward is to unite and help Connor secure fis place as Crown Prince. After a few more years of patience, we’ll return to our former glory.
“Right now, the Hell Monarch’s household has already shown they don’t support Connor. The Hell Monarch and Lady Sylvia’s dad, Lord Patrick, are too close. If he backs Lady Sylvia’s son, our family will never rise again!”
When Malcolm remained unmoved, Kylie’s frustration boiled over.
“Dad, you said it yourself-Connor lacks the talent to secure his future on his own. You’ve worked to strategize for him before. Why have you stopped now? Have you given up on him?”
Malcolm was now in a state of confusion and unable to sort out his thoughts. He repeated himself in circles, lost in his indecision.
“This is different. Offending the Hell Monarch does no good for Connor or our family. Bringing Sophie to see your grandfather won’t benefit us, either. If our two families become enemies because of this, it will be irreversible.”
Kylie felt a pang of disappointment in her dad.
“Once this opportunity passes, there’s no turning back. We don’t want to wage war with the Hell Monarch’s household, but Sophie is at fault here.
“Even if it’s not because of Grandfather, she should have spoken up for King Sigmund’s sake. Now, Grandfather specifically wants to see her, and I happen to be here. I’ll summon her myself. She won’t dare refuse.
“If Grandfather dies in front of her, the Hell Monarch’s household will have no choice but to avoid us from then on. I don’t understand what you mean by offending them. Hearing such words-words that lift others while diminishing our strength-coming from me own dad’s mouth truly leaves me disappointed and heartbroken.”
After she finished speaking, she ignored the continued attempts by Malcolm to persuade her and immediately sent someone to summon Sophie and Jeremiah.
Upon receiving Kylie’s summons, Sophie found herself bewildered.
Why was she being asked to meet Gerald? If they wanted to question her, they could have called her directly to the palace. Why go to the Quinton family’s residence to see him?
Gerald was gravely ill. If he wanted to scold her, she wouldn’t even have the chance to retort. And if he died in front of her, no words would save her then.
Violet had filled her in on Gerald’s condition, gathered from the past couple of days’ inquiries. He had stopped eating and drinking, and it seemed like he was on the brink of death.
“Does Gerald want you there to watch him die? That old man’s got some malice,” Cynthia said.
She was aware of the whole situation, and she had always been sharp-tongued. Knowing how Gerald had treated Sophie, Cynthia didn’t hesitate to speak her mind.
“Don’t go just refuse the order,” Bun chimed in from the side. “The queen’s order isn’t that serious. The king’s reaction is what really matters.
Violet had matured a lot now, and she said, “Ignoring the queen’s summons might seem like no big deal on the surface, but the king will remember. He might not show it, but he’ll definitely hold a grudge since he’ll think you’re disrespecting him. You’re better off going. At least you’ll be able to go on record as having done your duty. It was bound to happen, and there’s no avoiding it.”
Violet knew how Salvador operated. When things were fine, there were no issues. But when things went south, he would remember every little detail. He wouldn’t come out and say it, but he would give the person the cold shoulder and make life difficult for them.
Sophie had already felt his frustration because of the gentlemen’s retreat incident.
In short, both the king and queen were difficult to deal with.
“I’ll go with you, Sophie,” Violet said.
Sophie thought for a moment. Given how things had escalated, she knew she would be blamed no matter what. At least she had the accomplishment of capturing the spies from the Sandoria.
Fine, she would go.
“You don’t need to come with me. I’ll have Sebastian accompany me, and I’ll request Madam Marjorie to come along as well.”