(The Royal Palace - The Crown Prince's Study)
Duke Bastian von Weissberg stood before the desk of the future Emperor, his head bowed low. It was a position he despised.
"Your Highness," the Duke said, his voice smooth. "I must offer the deepest apologies of House Weissberg. My daughter... she was not herself yesterday. The stress of the attack, the confusion... she spoke out of turn. The request for an annulment was a moment of hysteria, nothing more."
The Duke waited for the Prince to accept the apology. He expected anger, perhaps a demand for concessions. He was prepared to offer land, gold, even the rights to his northern mines to keep the engagement—and his future proximity to the throne—intact.
But Crown Prince Leonidas didn't shout. He didn't demand.
He sat in his chair, staring blankly at a portrait of Felicity Gracewell he had commissioned that morning. His eyes, usually a warm sky-blue, were dull and glassy.
