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"You’ve grown so much!" The Queen’s joyful voice echoed in the room. Unlike the mature and majestic woman from the tea party, the Queen now behaved in a very childlike manner.

"Your Majesty, thank you for receiving me in your chambers," Morrigan, despite her surprise, bowed gracefully to the Queen.

"Just call me Aunt, don’t worry, I don’t sweat the small stuff," the Queen said with a smile. "The last time I saw you, you were just two years old, and now you look so beautiful and mature..."

Morrigan smiled elegantly. The Queen gazed at her with gentle eyes. "You handled yourself well at the tea party."

"Don’t mind Juliet; she’s always the same."

Morrigan was taken aback by the Queen’s blunt tone, but a smile crept onto her lips involuntarily. She agreed with the Queen about Juliet.

The Queen then pointed to the table behind her. "Look, I had the kingdom’s best desserts prepared for you!"

The Queen exclaimed with excitement. Morrigan didn’t understand why the Queen was so thrilled, but her eyes widened when she saw the desserts.

There were many types of cakes and sweets. Morrigan couldn’t help but feel a craving. The Queen giggled when she noticed Morrigan’s gaze. "Come on, let’s eat without further delay."

As Morrigan and Queen Anna ate the desserts, Morrigan tried to eat them delicately so as not to appear disrespectful.

Seeing this, the Queen sighed. "You don’t have to be so formal around me. You can eat however you like."

"Here, like this."

The Queen took a dessert with her hand and popped it into her mouth, licking off the crumbs that stuck to her lips.

Morrigan was surprised—was the Queen really like this? Despite her astonishment, she felt happy.

Morrigan set aside her fork and began to eat the desserts one by one. As she ate, her cheeks puffed out, and her eyes sparkled.

"So sweet!" The Queen squealed like a little girl, her eyes shining with happiness as she looked at Morrigan. Morrigan ate the desserts greedily.

After taking a sip of her tea, the Queen smiled. "I’ve always wanted to meet with you, but you were too young."

"I’ve heard the news," the Queen said with a hint of seriousness. Morrigan stopped eating the dessert and looked at the Queen. The Queen continued, "The Church is acting more boldly than ever, be careful, Morrigan."

Morrigan nodded seriously. "I will be careful, Aunt."

The Queen’s seriousness faded, replaced by a gentle smile. "I was so lost during my first tea party as a Queen…"

The Queen looked away for a moment. "I was a little scared too."

Morrigan raised an eyebrow, not understanding why someone like the Queen would be scared. The Queen smiled. "During my first tea party, I acted very idealistically, thinking everyone was as honest as I was, but they weren’t."

"What do you mean?" Morrigan asked. The Queen continued, "I thought everyone who came here did so out of friendship…"

The Queen’s eyes narrowed. "But I quickly learned that a Queen must appear strong, mature, and competent on the outside."

The Queen then turned to Morrigan, who was listening intently, a gentle but meaningful smile on her lips. "You really made me proud there, making even a sly woman like Juliet lose her cool at your age."

A gleam of amusement flickered across the Queen’s face. "She’s truly a top-tier whore."

Morrigan smiled. "You don’t seem to like Juliet, Aunt?"

The Queen shook her head. "No one likes Juliet."

Morrigan felt a twinge of sympathy for Juliet, but remembering her behavior, that sympathy turned to satisfaction.

"Juliet, Arabella, and Baroness Amara are not to be trusted," the Queen said with disgust. "Especially Arabella, she’s the most dangerous of them all..."

Seeing Morrigan’s surprise, the Queen laughed. "You thought Juliet was the most dangerous, didn’t you?"

"Yes," Morrigan nodded. Juliet had been the one who talked the most and asked the most difficult questions at the tea party.

"You’ve met Baroness Livia, haven’t you?"

"Yes."

The Queen nodded and continued, "Livia’s mother was Juliet’s sister, Agatha. But Agatha broke one of the Orkney Duchy’s rules by marrying a Baron."

As Morrigan wondered about this rule, the Queen continued, "The Orkney Duchy, starting from the third generation, only allows marriages within the family to preserve their lineage."

Morrigan’s expression turned to one of disgust. Despite her own revulsion, the Queen went on. "Lady Juliet is the niece of Duke Louis of Orkney. Just like Agatha."

"When they wanted to marry Agatha off to her cousin, she fell in love with Baron Oscar instead," the Queen showed a sad expression for Agatha. "Agatha fled Orkney and married the Baron."

Morrigan noticed the Queen’s eyes lowering, her smile fading. The Queen continued, "Of course, the Orkney Duchy wanted to execute Agatha, but since she had married the Baron and cut ties with Orkney, she wasn’t executed."

Morrigan, if she had been surprised before, was now utterly shocked. The Orkney Duchy was far worse than she had imagined.

"After Livia was born a year later, Agatha died, and the Baron was killed by bandits."

Morrigan’s eyes gleamed with understanding. "It was the Orkneys, wasn’t it?"

The Queen nodded. "Thornfield and we are the only ones who know, but we can’t prove it. All the evidence is in Arabella’s hands."

"So Juliet is being blackmailed by Arabella?"

"Exactly. Think about it, have you ever seen Juliet and Arabella argue?" Hearing the Queen’s question, Morrigan’s eyes widened.

At the tea party, she hadn’t seen Juliet argue with Arabella even once. Morrigan’s eyes sparkled. Looking at the Queen, her eyes widened again. "So you’re blackmailing Juliet too, Aunt?"

The Queen nodded, a thin smile on her lips. "Exactly, that’s why the Orkney Duchy has softened."

"They used to oppose the Royal Family, but now they’re afraid to target us."

"Interesting," Morrigan could only be astonished by all of this.

"Anyway, let me give you some advice," the Queen said seriously. "The Thornfield Duchy is the most poisonous of the nobles."

"They control nearly all the casinos, bars, and brothels in the Kingdom."

"Aren’t you going to intervene, Aunt?"

"We’re trying," the Queen said, "But they have a better intelligence network than you’d think. If one casino is closed, they open another somewhere else."

"Can’t you glue them down?"

"How many can we imprison? Overcrowded prisons are more costly for the Kingdom."

"This—," Morrigan was shocked. Even the Kingdom itself couldn’t defeat the criminal empire built by Thornfield.

After taking a bite of dessert, the Queen looked at Morrigan, "Despite their actions against us, they prevent uncontrolled crime in the kingdom, so we can only make small, subtle interventions."

The Queen sighed and said, "Anyway, let’s forget about these things for now..."

The Queen smiled cheerfully and looked at Morrigan. "Did yoru father come to visit you?"

Morrigan shook her head. "No, he was about to come here, but something else came up."

The Queen sighed again. "He’s always such a workaholic. He never rests."

Hearing the Queen talk about her father, Morrigan looked at her with curiosity. Seeing this, the Queen smiled. "Your father was practically made for work."

"Since he was eight, he has always been serious and mature; sometimes, I even miss the old days," the Queen said nostalgically. "When your father and I were little, we were very mischievous, always running around."

Morrigan was touched by the Queen’s genuine smile as she told these stories. The Queen continued, "But once we reached a certain level of maturity, our father encouraged us to be more serious."

The Queen looked at Morrigan. "If there’s anything you want to ask me, you can."

Morrigan shook her head, looking thoughtfully at the ground. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to ask a question that had come to mind.

"Why does my mother hate me?"

Despite freezing at the question, the Queen hesitantly looked at Morrigan, sadness filling her eyes. "Your mother doesn’t hate you, dear..."

"Then why did she reject me? Why didn’t she ever send me a letter, not even once?"

The Queen sighed. "Your mother is just going through a tough time... She just has difficulty showing her love..."

Hearing the Queen’s gentle voice, Morrigan softened, but she wasn’t convinced. "Even my father never told me he loves me. Why would my mother?"

The Queen narrowed her eyes, cursing her brother under her breath. She looked at Morrigan with a comforting gaze. "My brother always appears emotionless, but deep down, he’s a good person, Morrigan."

The Queen looked down as if deep in thought. "Sometimes, he even acts cold toward me, but I don’t get angry with him because I know it’s just his nature..."

While Morrigan was lost in thought, the Queen gave her some time to process her feelings.

Seeing the pensive look in Morrigan’s eyes, the Queen sighed, about to say something when a knock on the door interrupted her.

"Your Majesty, King Henry requests your presence."

The voice from behind the door caused the Queen to sigh again. She looked at Morrigan with apologetic eyes. "Unfortunately, we won’t be able to spend more time together."

"I’m glad you called me, Aunt," Morrigan said. The Queen smiled and hugged her. "You can send me a letter anytime, dear."

Morrigan nodded and bowed slightly. "Good day, Aunt."

The Queen nodded, and then Morrigan left the room, heading to the carriage with the attendant.

When Morrigan reached the carriage, she was greeted by Thomas, who looked at her with a slight smile. "Did it go as you expected, my Lady?"

Morrigan nodded, smiling softly as she got into the carriage. "Today went well."

Hearing Morrigan’s words, Thomas nodded. "Then congratulations, my Lady."

Then Thomas called out to the coachman, "Let’s return to the manor."

As the carriage began to move, Morrigan looked thoughtfully at the sky.