The Great Wish - Chapter 11.5

Vol.2 Chapter 11 Part 5 

The funeral was solemn and swift. There was no time for visitors to call on the ducal residence to offer their condolences. 

Even in death, Duke Rimone held quite a lot of authority. The Red King was still in good health, and the Silver King was still the apparent heir to the imperial throne. 

In a cemetery on the outskirts of the capital, a group of people in black gathered around the burial plot. Almost every noble said they'd attend, and it was no exaggeration. 

Because there were so many people, not everyone could see the coffin being lowered into the ground. The crowd was naturally organized by rank. Only close friends of the ducal family as well as high ranking nobles could witness the lowering of the coffin. The rest of the crowd could only watch from afar. 

The Emperor sent an attendant to read the eulogy that he had personally written. As the attendant read the eulogy in a solemn voice, Sienna watched as the coffin was lowered into the burial plot. 

'Please rest in peace.' 

More than three months had passed since his children had created this ruse. He was finally being buried in the ground. 

She was never overly fond of her maternal grandfather. Duke Rimone didn't treat Sienna as his granddaughter. He treated her as a princess. 

'I should have tried speaking to you more often while you were alive.' 

Because she didn't know what kind of man her grandfather was, she was having a hard time figuring out what kind of man his son, her uncle, was as well. Because she hadn't visited the Rimone residence very often, she wasn't aware of the family traditions in that household. 

Once the coffin was lowered, family members and friends took turns shoveling a bit of dirt onto the coffin. The burial was now complete. 

"Silver King." 

Sienna turned her head. The Iron King was walking towards her. He was one of the unexpected guests who had attended this funeral. Relatives of the Rimones clearly kept their distance from the Iron King's entourage, almost as if it would be catastrophic if they ever touched. 

"My condolences. May he rest in peace." 

"Thank you for coming today. My grandfather will now... be at peace." 

Their casual conversation was filled with hidden meanings. 

"May I speak with you for a moment?" 

"Yes." 

The two of them walked a bit further away. They went somewhere a bit more private so that their conversation wouldn't be overheard. 

"I wasn't able to get a good look because my back was turned to them, but weren't their expressions quite impressive?" 

Sienna covered her mouth with her hand as she looked at all the mourners. Her eyes met her mother's frustrated gaze. 

"Yes. Especially my mother's." 

Dian quickly covered his laughter by coughing. 

"You unexpectedly have a sense of humor, Silver King." 

When Sienna's expression turned grave, Dian quickly added to his remark. 

"Please don't take it so seriously. It was just a joke." 

"I see." 

"I know this isn't an appropriate time to bring this up, but I will be throwing an engagement party in five days." 

"Congratulations." 

"I wondered whether I should send you an invitation, but... I thought that it would cause misunderstandings if I didn't invite you in person. There's no other meaning behind it. I would just like for you to come and congratulate us, Silver King." 

"Then were you considering not inviting me?" 

Dian's eyes widened before he laughed lightly. 

"What a pity." 

"What is?" 

"I thought there was a large, uncrossable river between us. But now that I take a closer look, it turns out that it was actually very shallow. That's what I think." 

"..." 

"If we talk any longer, people will begin to become suspicious. I'll take my leave." 

Sienna watched Dian's back as he walked over to his entourage. Her eyes were filled with the regret that Dian had just expressed. 

* * * 

The Iron King and Violet's engagement party was magnificent. The party was held in Duke Grosi's residence. They followed the custom of throwing the ceremonial events at the woman's household. 

This would be the first royal function Sienna would attending after her coming-of-age banquet. The members of the nobility were quite curious and accepted the invitation in droves. 

"Oh my. That person came as well." 

A chatty noblewoman was suprised to see the familiar face of a middle-aged guest. This middle-aged man was very close to the Rimone family. 

"Earl Mersé is in attendance." 

"Really?" 

Those close to the Rimone family could be seen here and there throughout the banquet hall. It wasn't that they had been pretending to be on the Rimones' side all this time. This was merely a sign that they were stealthily straddling the line between the two sides. This meant that the Iron King's presence was steadily growing larger among the nobility. 

Everyone was extremely shocked when the Silver King's arrival was announced. 

"The Silver King is attending?" 

"What does this mean?" 

"I met with the Red King yesterday, and I wasn't even able to bring up today's engagement party to her. She was very upset." 

"Does that mean there is a rift between the two of them?" 

 A few of the guests began to raise doubts about the relationship between the mother and daughter. 

While the Red King and the House of Rimone didn't outwardly persecute the Iron King, most of the nobles caught on to the animosity between them. In other words, they all knew that the Silver King and the Iron King were rivals. However, this vague relationship between the half-siblings confused everyone. 

The guests whispered as they kept their distance from Sienna. No one dared to approach her. The only couple who dared to walk up to her were the stars of today's party. 

"Silver King, thank you for coming." 

"Congratulations on your engagement." 

Dian glanced at Violet as he spoke. 

"She is quite envious of you, Silver King." 

When Sienna gazed at her, Violet blushed and quickly lowered her head. 

"She said that it looked like you had a shield around you from far away. No one is coming near you from every direction." 

"Are you envious of this?" 

Violet's red face glared at Dian reproachfully. Dian happily teased his fiancée. 

"I apologize, Your Highness. I didn't mean to offend you. It's just that I get nervous whenever I'm in front of people, so... I just meant that I wanted to have your dignity, that's all." 

Violet's voice was a small as her physique. 

Sienna gazed at the course piece of wood on the end of a string wound around Violet's wrist. It was the same piece she had worn as a necklace the last time they met. Worried that the truth would be revealed, Dian nervously glanced at Sienna. 

"I told her I'd give her something better, but..." 

"I like this. It's my charm. You gave this to me as a gift, so why do you keep insisting on taking it back?" 

Violet hid her wrist defensively. 

It was nice to see. The engaged couple's eyes didn't hold any pretense. 

"Congratulations again on your engagement." 

Sienna smiled softly. Her smile immediately captivated those around her. Suddenly, everything went silent. Gasps rang out from their surroundings. 

Violet blankly stared at Sienna. A furious blush returned to her round cheeks. She clasped her hands as she gazed at Sienna. 

"Your attendance is... an honor, Your Highness." 

Dian's eyes anxiously flew back and forth between Sienna and Violet. His fiancée was dazedly gazing at someone else, and that someone happened to be... 

It wasn't exactly pleasant, but it would be laughable to say it was offensive. This was a very strange feeling.