Chapter 3
After reading out the imperial decree, Wallace carefully rolled it up, cradling it in both hands with utmost respect as he presented it to me.
"Baroness Winnie, please accept the decree," he said.
Everyone stared at me, their faces frozen in shock, horror, and fear as I made my way down the steps.
I moved slowly, stepping forward toward them.
Grant was kneeling right at my feet, his head bowed low.
I reached out and took the decree—the very document that would turn my world upside down.
"I am deeply grateful for His Majesty's favor," I said.
My voice was crisp and carried through the hall, leaving no room for doubt.
I stood up, looking down at the man kneeling before me.
He used to be my whole world.
Now, he could only look up at me.
His face was as pale as paper, his lips trembling, but not a single word escaped him.
Shock, regret, fear—all of it was written plain as day on his face.
He finally realized what he'd done.
The woman he'd pushed away wasn't some timid wife he could shape to his will.
She was Baroness Winnie, the one favored by the King himself, with legendary accomplishments to her name.
"Impossible... This can't be real!" Wanda shrieked, her voice slicing through the silence of the courtyard.
She staggered to her feet, jabbing her finger at me like she'd completely lost it.
"Who do you think you are? Your mother was just a merchant's daughter; how could she possibly have any plans? It's you! You stole the general's glory!" Wanda yelled.
Her face was twisted with fury, not a hint of her usual meekness or innocence left.
A loud slap echoed through the yard.
It wasn't me who struck her; it was Wallace.
His face was livid, and his shrill voice was chilling with fury.
"How dare you! His Majesty himself granted Baroness Winnie her title. How could someone so insignificant as you even think to slander her?" Wallace snapped.
"Mrs. Howe's achievements were proven when the head of the Howe family personally delivered the proof to the palace. Both His Majesty and the Queen Mother can vouch for it!" he added.
"If you dare to spout such nonsense again, I'll smack your mouth until it bleeds, right here and now!"
Wallace was an old hand in the palace, his reputation and influence intimidating everyone.
Wanda was left dazed by the slap, clutching her face as tears spilled down her cheeks. She shot Grant a pleading look, desperate for him to save her.
"General..." Wanda whimpered, her voice shaking.
But Grant was chilled to the bone, unable to say a single word.
The token...
It all suddenly clicked for Grant.
Back then, when Winifred handed him the blueprints, she'd also given him a small wooden token, engraved with intricate designs.
She'd told him to present it along with the blueprints, and the King would know.
He hadn't thought much of it at the time.
But now, looking back, he realized that was the Howe family's token all along!
Turned out, the King knew from the start who the real owner of that achievement was and had been waiting all this time, waiting for Grant to come back victorious, just to see how he'd handle the true heroine's daughter.
And in the end, Grant dropped a bombshell on the King and everyone else.
He used that achievement to marry a secondary daughter, and demoted his wife to a mere concubine.
What a joke! How ridiculous!
He'd basically slapped the King in the face.
Grant felt a cold dread wash over him, chilling him to the bone.
He was doomed.
"Winifred... Baroness Winnie..." Grant croaked out, his voice raw and barely audible.
He struggled to speak, his throat so hoarse it sounded like sandpaper.
"It's... it's all my fault. I must've been out of my mind... Please, forgive me. Let's not separate, please?" he begged.
He looked up at me, his eyes pleading, desperate for mercy.
"Wanda just wasn't thinking right for a moment. I'll have her apologize. I'll make her move out, and I'll restore your rightful place as my wife," he rambled, tripping over his words.
As if, by just saying it, all the things he'd thrown away could somehow return to him.
Just listening quietly, I couldn't help but let a sarcastic smirk curl at my lips.
"General Grant," I said coolly, "the King's decree's already been handed down. Are you really going to go against it?"
Grant flinched, his face going even paler.
"I... I didn't mean it like that..." he stammered.
"Oh?" I stepped forward, towering over him with a chilly smirk. "So what did you mean, then? You really expect me, the King's chosen Baroness, to stick around in your house as your concubine?"