Chapter 39

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 39

Chapter Title: The Most Perfect Resolution

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The trouble began with the excessive loyalty of the Schwerin police chief.

What should have been handled at a lower level—a common missing person case—had escalated all the way to the police headquarters because the missing woman was none other than Erna Hardy.

Who was Lady Hardy?

The Grand Duke's lover.

And who was the Grand Duke?

Even if he had fallen from crown prince to poisonous mushroom, he was still the king's beloved eldest son.

After a few rounds of such self-questioning, he burst out of his office and headed straight for Schwerin Palace, where the king was staying.

Based on his accumulated experience, cases like this were usually tied to romantic entanglements. If the lady had truly gone missing, the first suspect on the list would be Prince Biern. Thinking of the idiot subordinates who had waited a full day before reporting this grave matter to his office made his head throb as if it might split open.

In these suspicious times when republicans were eagerly seeking any chance to sink their teeth into the royal family, a prince under investigation as a suspect in the disappearance of a young woman!

For him, who prided himself on being the most loyal royalist, it was an unbearable humiliation. But that didn't mean he could condone a crime. The best he could do was ensure the royal family was prepared before a full investigation began. Fortunately, the king understood his intent perfectly.

As the police chief departed, clutching the bolstered pride and loyalty of the royalists that King Philip III had reinforced—even in the face of news that his son might be involved in a crime, without losing his calm and dignified demeanor—the ball was now in the king's court. And he hurled it with all his might at his troublesome son, venting the anger he had suppressed.

"Summon Biern! Right now!"

The king's fiery command, so unlike his usual benevolence, stunned everyone. Even the queen. By the time Prince Biern was practically dragged into the annex, the atmosphere was at its iciest peak.

"I hear the lady from House Hardy has gone missing."

The king cut straight to the point before Biern could even finish his greeting.

"If this has anything to do with you, tell me honestly, Biern."

King Philip Dynister's gaze grew even sterner as he observed his son, who showed no particular surprise.

Composing himself, Biern first offered a respectful greeting to the king and queen before taking his seat.

"She hasn't gone missing."

The royal couple's faces went slack at Biern's calm reply.

"I have Lady Hardy with me. Circumstances arose that required my assistance for a short time. I'll resolve it soon, so please don't worry, Your Majesty."

Even before their ashen faces, Biern remained utterly composed. It was impossible to believe that this was the man who had secretly whisked away the very girl involved in that scandalous uproar with him, creating enough chaos for a missing person report to reach the police.

Without a word, the two exchanged glances, and identical sighs escaped their lips.

They had known from the moment they heard the police chief's report that Biern couldn't have committed such a vile crime. What the king had feared was precisely this situation: his son dragging that girl beyond the acceptable line, burning the bridge behind them in a dead-end move.

With reporters swarming the police station in search of scoops, how long could this stay secret? It would leak out somehow, and the pack of vultures salivating for a bite would pounce on their prey with glee.

What circumstances could possibly justify risking all that to spirit Erna Hardy away?

No. That didn't matter anymore. What shocked him was that Biern of all people—the heartless, coldly rational one—had done something so utterly absurd.

"Resolve it?"

Philip Dynister echoed in disbelief, only to let out a hollow, bitter laugh.

He hadn't believed it.

Even when the queen relayed that Biern seemed to have a special interest in the Hardy lady, even when she suggested allowing their marriage if the girl truly wished it, even amid the scandal rocking all of Retzen—he had maintained his "surely not" attitude.

Surely Biern wouldn't set his heart on a girl like that.

But that self-deluding belief had run its course. The conclusion from the reality before his eyes was singular: the queen had been right.

"Dear."

The queen's gentle voice roused him from his despair.

Is this truly the best course?

As if answering the question in his gaze, his wife slowly nodded. It was Isabel Dynister, the wise queen and loving mother. She would never make a decision harmful to her most painful finger, Biern.

He couldn't understand Biern or the Hardy lady to his satisfaction, but he trusted his wife, his lifelong excellent companion. He always had, and he always would.

I can see now that the girl is a fine lady unlike the rumors. But dear, that doesn't change the fact that House Hardy is beyond saving.

On the day his wife first brought up the marriage between Biern and the Hardy lady, he had countered with a furrowed brow. Looking at him steadily, she had smiled and replied.

Do you think His Majesty's son, who at such a young age held the cunning King Lars in the palm of his hand and bent him to his will, cannot handle one foolish, greedy noble?

That night's conversation, where he could offer no rebuttal, had erased his last hesitation.

At any rate, this was the girl who had moved Biern's heart—a man who had never shown private interest even in the flawless Princess Gladys. If they let this chance slip, the boy might live out his life alone.

Watch that happen, or accept an unsatisfactory daughter-in-law.

Between the two, the answer was already set in stone.

"Very well. Resolve it."

Philip Dynister commanded with the face of a stern sovereign. Biern met his gaze with narrowed eyes, as if uncomprehending.

"If that's your will, I grant you Lady Hardy."

"...Father?"

Biern, momentarily dazed, called out with a wry chuckle. But Philip Dynister's expression, looking at his bewildered son, was colder and more solemn than ever.

"Marry her."

He commanded once more, forcefully, to his son who could only laugh hollowly.

"Marry Lady Hardy. For now, that seems the most perfect resolution, Biern."

Once the doctor finished his examination and left, a heavy silence descended. Mrs. Fitz, who had stayed by her side nursing her for days, had returned to the palace with the prince, leaving Erna alone in the townhouse.

After staring blankly into space for a while, Erna began pacing the bedroom, clutching the shawl around her shoulders. Her body, not yet fully recovered, ached with sharp throbs, but sitting still felt too anxious.

Just as she was about to refuse that absurd proposal, the royal decree arrived, and Biern left immediately for the palace.

"I'll be back soon."

He had said, looking at the stunned Erna.

"Wait for me."

With a casual smile as if it were nothing, he left the house without waiting for her response.

I'll give you money.

Recalling that insulting offer made her want to flee this place at once. Somewhere she would never see that man again. Far away. Very far away. But "wait for me"—the echo of those final words held her back from cruelty.

His insult didn't erase the fact that he was her benefactor.

On that cold, desolate night when it felt like the whole world had abandoned her, the prince had undoubtedly been her savior. The memory of their eyes meeting as he approached her collapsed on the rain-soaked road, bringing both shame and relief in equal measure, still lingered vividly in a corner of her heart.

As the dizziness worsened and she could no longer stand, Erna made her way to the chair by the window. The sunset spreading across the western sky bathed the still life of Erna gazing quietly down at the street and the sturdy old trunk in crimson hues.

Once he returned, she would convey her refusal and her gratitude for everything, then go find Pavel. If Pavel still hadn't returned, she could leave a letter and head back to Burford.

Even as she methodically planned her steps, Erna's gaze never left the street visible below the window. The lengthening evening shadows crisscrossed chaotically over the complex roads.

No police arrived even as a new day dawned.

Deciding she couldn't just wait indefinitely, Pavel hurriedly prepared to visit the police station as soon as morning broke. The two elderly ladies from Burford came along.

"Is a big city always this heartless, Pavel? Treating our Erna worse than a speck of dust. I simply can't bear it!"

Baroness Baden glared at the imposing police station building with eyes swollen from endless tears.

"It's probably just confusion from all the cases happening in the city, Baroness."

Pavel's face was equally rigid with poorly concealed anger as he offered consolation.

"I'll go in quickly, so please wait here."

Pavel seated Baroness Baden and Mrs. Greve on a bench in the police station corridor. Taking the two elderly women, whose tear ducts burst at the mere mention of Erna's name, before an officer seemed unwise.

After repeatedly urging them to wait right there, Pavel rushed off to the department handling missing persons cases. Something was clearly wrong, and he was resolved to confess everything and cooperate fully with the investigation. But the officer crushed his determination with the absurd claim that the Erna Hardy missing person case had already been closed.

"Look here, young man. The lady isn't missing, I tell you. See this."

The officer even shoved the case file in front of the skeptical Pavel. As he said, the case was closed. Reason: erroneous report due to family misunderstanding. It was just as unbelievable upon seeing it firsthand.

"That can't be! Erna definitely..."

"Hey, isn't this the noble lady case you mentioned?"

Just as Pavel tried to argue, another officer interjected.

"See? I knew it. Nine out of ten cases like this turn out the same."

He chuckled, tossing the newspaper he had balled up in his hand onto the desk. The provocative headline on the front page of the tabloid, which Pavel glanced at inadvertently, silenced his protest against the rudeness.

Missing Hardy Heiress Revealed to Be Cohabiting with Grand Duke.

No matter how many times he reread it in disbelief, it was the same.

Pavel snatched up the tabloid in shock. With each line of the sleazy article he read, the trembling in his newspaper-clutching hand grew. The corridor erupted in commotion just as Pavel's eyes reached the final line of the article.

"This is bad! The old lady collapsed!"

A panicked shout rang out amid the murmuring crowd.

Pavel, pale as a ghost, flung the newspaper aside and dashed into the corridor. Pushing through the layers of people surrounding the bench, he saw Baroness Baden clutching her chest on the floor and Mrs. Greve weeping beside her.

A copy of the tabloid lay crumpled near the baroness—the very one Pavel had just seen.