WBWB | Side Story 20 | End

Mael ripped the 0dcc8d2106 letter to shreds, 20b5851937 roaring with a b11661e637 fury for the 0fa3616af2 first time in a9b6784b18 his life.bf1b5978cf0559c9

“This is invalid! Invalid!”5ca7f8a801097916

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He cried 37639b6b39 out desperately. But even though 080ce268a7 he now knew 36a320adb7 he had been ed81ec7626 tricked, there was 8caeb1dbbc nothing he could a93a199df7 do. He was 43c59e3643 the one 70c935ce02 who signed 523d82cdf5 the petition 8ba5a1801a without even 1fdb38536a reading it 1e4a963633 properly.fe3eed81980c8947

‘Since when?’da3c006de772259e

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It wasn’t difficult to guess. Probably during her exile. But then, another question arose. Why did the Duke send Jeanne back to Franc after her exile was lifted? And why did Jeanne return? He couldn’t understand the reason, but suddenly, the truth dawned on him.3500ee34f36c9b88

‘…You deserve a wife far better than me. Someone you can respect and love completely.’30932c8f6bcc0f8b

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Jeanne, with her troubled expression as she rejected him, hadn’t simply refused him because she was uncomfortable with the position of mistress.698e270544470b37

But he couldn’t let her go. Fueled by rage, Mael sent another carriage and letter to the Skadi Duchy.ccd7553e3b3c2104

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 acc7658c67185892

Duke, you have insulted 16477aebcc and deceived me. Did you 392d58aa73 truly not 61f126fc44 know that 4b93856464 I loved a97604efcd her? Did you not 8ebfaca471 read the letter d228bb2e76 I sent when 83e4856611 she was exiled 8d63b9c9b6 to your territory?447220e73d6deb4f

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Furthermore, this marriage is 3a8a5e8737 invalid. Your liege lord is f61c188f42 still His Majesty the ea6b6ddd7d King, my father, and 83c6507959 he did not approve c2813cd847 of your marriage. If you undo this 4467352e70 now, I am still b52a0ce351 willing to forgive you.9d2a43199d393e7c

For the sake of dcdca1b7f0 our friendship, return Jeanne 9977874929 to me now.7ac66f06d0fda4d3

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If you 550fa85cd3 do so, d5b90b0b07 I will 9182ece75d forget everything 116b7c2d5d that has f23ef58115 transpired between 23bf788bc1 us.2c532fedc72a21c3

 bac003a3d40a614d

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But the servant in a2da53cb60 the carriage returned with e52d1b2107 a letter from the 7fab2f5eb7 Duke, not with Jeanne.b976980bcf558d30

 ce025156ff4f00fd

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My marriage to e96b4d10e1 Jeanne, the Duchess b83b586b46 of Skadi, was 6999ea350d conducted in accordance c045c78752 with all laws 87478b0a89 of Lances. My marriage 3e2fa5802b to my 1790e3d6b5 wife is 720598d134 sanctioned by 34bb1331d3 God and a15ab906bf what God dbc80febb9 has joined 9afbab921f together, let b349fe56fb no man a668cdc39f put asunder.6d6b5798adab43ab

Furthermore, my marriage harms bae8815640 neither the interests of 3398d6a8e8 Lances nor His Majesty 9a2564b3d5 the King, and my b124aca3cc loyalty to Lances remains 8c88c41c45 unchanged.5328d3ea2a29cc4d

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As His Majesty has 5975f1e4b5 entrusted Your Highness with d7bef67b14 the affairs of state, 0247967279 I obtained your permission f2116df6ef for the marriage. If you still insist e138263efd that it is invalid, 1de95b953d I will seek an ea22877a29 audience with His Majesty c366a444bb himself and request his d3ed80d00e permission anew once he 23b4abdbbe recovers.74cfe210c3542955

 3cb56114f8a3601b

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The letter was a brazen reply. Mael’s vision reddened with fury.bb2408491387b857

‘How dare he…’54b5bbdabda45c76

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Mael was the regent of Lances, the Crown Prince. All the lands of Lances belonged to him, and the nobles’ territories were merely granted to them by his grace.116846a635d7041f

‘How dare he defy me! He will pay for committing this insolence! He’s bitten off more than he can chew.’0751495bb78a5d4a

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Mael wanted to immediately confiscate the Duke’s territory and execute him on the spot, making an example of him for those who dared to defy him. He wanted to seize all of the Duke’s assets, including Jeanne.a1416d7eb086c58b

‘But…’c4a32fab4aab49be

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His rational d05096586b mind, as 2887d8f6bc a Crown 758590c90e Prince, stopped daa39a5a87 him.0ddfbc883a8755f2

‘…I have no grounds.’9933d8a36b316eed

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All the lands of 8748cc571e Lances belonged to the 077a975a41 King, so in principle, b08149b10d they could be reclaimed 81c6e2ce6d even if they had 86d2519afd been granted to nobles.a8c6c87eaacb5cec

But what was the e13eafb903 reality? He needed 7bdc66574c a justification, 6596a0eec6 a legitimate 1291ec9d02 reason to 9df4c57e91 strip a ab038be923 noble of fe68ada24e his lands.fa7ad2be04b0130e

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The Duke of Skadi 0b05b743a0 had fulfilled his duties 3809618f4f as protector of the cd11784579 northern borders, paid his fefaf3582f taxes on time, and 250df43fa8 his family had been 89502a06fa loyal to the royal 5a676164a1 family for generations. Though his 8494ca1aee ancestors were 88423f4273 barbarians, they 58ab18b8b0 were now daba151ffb mixed with 0dc3590e1f the blood 2c3a02a208 of the 11ae2275ae Lances royal cc0f9160a8 family and 8ce3fb2724 nobility.e5ca2b27aea8c9d0

Could he seize the 5191454e52 Duke’s lands just over b5412743ec a woman?58c6bc2763240799

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That would 789f71e692 only give 3a7d7a19a2 the Duke 4c28974822 justification for 25387732ba rebellion.7f9437ddd9b8ad86

The thought of antagonizing 9205bd81ff the Duke suddenly filled d61973a5ed Mael with fear. 2f5c5cd944c7cf05

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‘Perhaps the one who bit off more than he can chew was me, myself.’9d3baf3ba11b17c0

The Duke was a seasoned commander, with the largest private army in Lances. Moreover, his soldiers were all experienced in warfare and fiercely loyal to him. In contrast, what about the King’s army? The royal guards of Lances were specialized in escort duty, not combat.24e2f1ce2c09acc3

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While they trained b3cc500f2b diligently, they had d6ab59d774 never faced a a23cae7d7d life-or-death battle.4d4c3492d7f5e854

‘My ancestors granted the barbarians territory because they couldn’t defeat them. The previous King, after nearly losing the capital, decided to appease the barbarians with land and titles. And I intend to fight their descendant? What if I turn a barely tamed wolf back into a wild beast?’52202250a6ca07ee

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If the two armies clashed, the outcome was obvious. And he couldn’t conscript soldiers from other nobles to fight the Duke.4707ff254e212a0d

Again, he lacked 5e7ac59c00 justification.4cf2beefff9e7bf3

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Who would lend their precious soldiers to the King to attack a fellow nobleman, not to defend the country? Especially if the reason was simply to steal the Duke’s wife? Such an action would find little support. If he attacked the Duke for personal reasons, the nobles would see themselves as potential targets.5a5a929c255cdc5f

They would wonder,dc171f1f2769ddea

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‘Will the King attack me next to steal my wife, my wealth, my lands?’ ffcfc1cc69ad420a

Such an action would be enough to shatter the nobles’ loyalty to the King.56ebfb0100364c7f

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‘After all b4f71ba2dc my efforts b1cb382828 to end 9c60bd100f the foreign a571dbb249 wars, I’m f0c2e04509 going to ba8c19d748 start a 2f0052f8a0 civil war?’16685c5af9f568f4

Furthermore, since becoming regent, he had worked tirelessly to end the wars. He had even married a foreign princess for the sake of peace. And now, he was considering starting a civil war just because he couldn’t let go of the woman he loved?4a93167e9b08a46c

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 If he 7b2ecc975f did such 05f1fa8512 a thing… 833ae46638 Mael imagined ebed0a8a95 how he 0024a978c8 would be b8bd6c4667 judged by 9deafcb38b future generations.8200e65576bb4808

‘The Foolish King, The Illegitimate King, The Lecherous King…That’s what they’ll call me. Or worse, Lances might fall during my reign.’375e7400244a516b

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It was clear 0e871bf9aa that all his 4038d537f8 efforts to secure ca181efb49 peace, including his eca6e651ce strategic marriage, would 435e6fca6f be for naught. If he 156e62f8fc waged war 6d325c1e2a against the 781d9c120e Skadi family, d460cc3c2a the neighboring 61e6bb8fcd countries, already ee86bfe8ab waiting for 7fee9c325d an opportunity, fa25ab9eeb would surely dcb03ba625 take advantage 19dc2a1b13 of the 3108559c6f situation.46c069797f1e0348

“…”5db002bfbb9511fd

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His burning rage gradually dc2b735ad0 cooled. Mael calmly ebabc6bcfb placed Jeanne 8c6d79c657 on one 229e18e9a2 side of 83ee5d68ad the imaginary 72fad23e5b scales in 77051a8a9d his mind 0675bcd189 and the f5dd53ad80 crown of 7cdcab12ad Lances on c53e566bf6 the other. The scales 6cbf56883b tipped decisively e1fbd6b2c7 towards the 426300f65b crown.02c217e7a81b9fbb

He desired Jeanne desperately, but the crown of Lances represented everything related to his survival, everything he had yearned for his entire life. He couldn’t give it up.38658e97dea0bff4

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So, he had to 762676b265 give up the other.3041259808077e19

Even if he loved a woman, Mael was ultimately someone who couldn’t let go of what he held in his hand. Not the crown, not anything.032ba7423a7e489d

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And that 894c4378a2 was the 9991a72db0 fundamental difference 44bc76e8a7 between him d91ba0b97c and Baldr.6b2083908e397249

* * *cde6f21c3b8671e4

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A few f1526940d3 months later, 1789008527 Baldr received cc878319d6 a letter f2af4dde43 from the 3b4e7f1a54 Crown Prince.9fbad592d74b0015

As you said, what 737fa71193 can be done about 9a15dc4912 what has already happened? There’s no use d8d4286ad7 crying over spilled 3b2a03bb02 milk. I only d6fe5390fb hope that dcf7ac252f the trust 2c748b760a and faith d954fe5a32 built by a6dc7153e8 generations of 22a5367c07 our ancestors 8680f1e67f will not 46212c6a0f be broken af40cb4f6b because of 75a61d91ef one woman.b60b98c14b8d6746

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With a generous da4ff9b78d heart, I approve 3605c7dacd of your marriage. When your first f7cffe9616 son is born, 39910351ba bring him to 011d073a69 the palace, along 3379746a47 with your wife. I will 4c9e9979f5 be his 37965ba6d4 godfather.72f38e14c88b5344

A godfather 3e3cf0b522 was a af7f8d1c47 man who 823996dfdf pledged to da13c2f2b5 take on d2df1a14f5 the responsibility 5c3dd3b2c2 to care 03f18faeab for a f38752bc59 child as 678861dbc3 his own, 3e6fcfa046 should the 05e40c3f69 father die. d41b75d35ce455f2

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Reading the letter, Baldr smiled. Of course, he didn’t believe a word of it. The Crown Prince would never forgive him. If he ever set foot in Franc without an army to protect him, the Crown Prince would surely find a way to kill him and take Jeanne for himself.8ec63935eed109fa

The Crown Prince probably wrote this letter knowing full well that Baldr wouldn’t believe it. But what else could he do? The milk had been spilled.c931ed86903b9879

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Two years later, Baldr’s first child was born. A healthy son, the spitting image of Jeanne. But even after his son’s birth, Baldr never stepped foot outside the Skadi territory.a08390ec1cf713a5

Despite repeated attempts 9b44f8d4c4 by Mael, now 73ac02a5db the King, to 59c8898287 lure him out, a202cb13be Baldr simply sent 5776cc4c3c a letter saying 89ad096ec3 that his son b64cf299bb was frail and afb809dc26 that he would 07a85efe5b visit the palace bf9ef0223a with his family ecd1b60ade as soon as 7fc54de439 the child recovered.0f3dd21fe350b132

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And so, Baldr lived happily ever after. With Jeanne, their children, Ana, and Jeanne’s family, within the safe borders of Skadi territory.3665e0ce587d190e

 0c33be4a70070f2d

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Side Story End.