The Duchesses

Chapter 10 : The Mess

Just when Ares thought he had Natalie in his palm again, he was so wrong, especially after that kiss. The Duchess' wicked smile had fooled him completely. After their kiss, the two drift apart separately with their most trusted man. Duchess Smith exhales her breath quite loudly when she rides her horse alongside Lord Apollo.

"It's just the beginning, and my energy is almost depleted already," Aurora pulls her hoods, covers her face, and stretches her neck by moving it from side to side.

A pair of grey eyes immediately fixed their gaze on the blonde woman, wondering about the incident that occurred between Ares and Natalie. The Crown Prince looked jubilant while Natalie smiled brightly at him. After more than a decade of being with the Duchess, he can tell whether Natalie is genuinely happy or not. But he is convinced that a smile is fake.

"My Lady, are you alright?" Apollo lets his curiosity gets the best of him.

Duchess Smith turns her head to Apollo before looking forward again.

"Yes," she answered before her horse galloped, leaving the place to her manor.

Meanwhile, at the House of Valimos, Duchess Medea heard three taps on her windows. That indicates that Marquess Hector has come to visit her. The silver-hair guy is wearing his usual grey coat that complements well with his purple eyes. Under the moonlight, his muscular build appears mighty. Many young ladies swoon over his good looks, but the Marquess has set his sights on his Lady, Medea, and she will be his only love. The Marquess lets him enter the Duchess' chamber while holding a few papers in his hand. That must be the information regarding Medea's request a few days ago.

"Hector," Medea looks him up from the couch.

"My Lady, this is the information you asked for last time," the Marquess reaches out the paper from his side.

The information is urgently required, so Marquess Alwyn had a bit of a struggle with that. However, that was nothing he could not handle. The purple-hair woman gazes at the paper, waiting for Hector to explain what he had gained for the past few days. The Marquess bows at her before handing the papers. Then, she walks over to her bed, maybe trying to get good lighting to read it. She slowly flips the page over a page with a poker face while Hector expectantly waits for her response. As soon as she finishes the pages, the Duchess stills in silence.

"Our progression is still slow but bearable. Yet, it is a good time for Ares to strike again now," Medea keeps her gaze on the paper.

The letters Eryx sent are also insufficient to determine the relationship between the Temple and the Crown Prince. The Duchess suspected it was linked to Hera's divinity power. However, divinity power is necessary for both figures because it would benefit their positions within the Empire. Since the Imperial family is more powerful than the Temple, it stands to reason that the Pope will intervene in this matter. As a result, Duchess Valimos decided to delegate that task to Eryx.

Eryx has been appointed as a Cardinal of the Angelos Empire. His first ordination was a disaster as Ares had caused havoc. However, Eryx is well-known among the commoners because of his kindness during his vagabond days. This entices Medea to invite him to join her mission to bring Ares down. His popularity among ordinary people is astounding. The Cardinal is also an honest, strong-will and has high faith in justice. That, however, almost vanishes during his first ordination. There would have been no second ordination for him if it hadn't been for Medea's plan to counterattack Ares' plan to destroy Eryx's position and the Vazoels' Kingdom.

The Queen of Vazoels Kingdom is grateful to Duchess Valimos for saving her kingdom from the Angelos Empire. At the time, Ares was looking for an opportunity to invade the Vazoels Kingdom. It is a small kingdom, but the Angelos Empire would benefit from conquering it as a maritime power. In addition, the Empire would be more powerful if it could control the trading power between the West and the East. However, since the current Emperor signed a treaty with the Queen at the suggestion of former Duke Valimos the last time, the Vazoels Kingdom has been considered an ally with the Empire under a condition where they must send 20% of its annual national income each year.