“Oh my goodness,” Ingrid gasped, pressing both hands to her cheeks.
It was the most animated she had been since entering the dining hall. The talk of guilds and extortion had evaporated from her mind, replaced with something far more exciting. The empire’s only princess looked on the verge of bursting with joy, her usual composed demeanor nowhere to be seen.
Determined to douse her enthusiasm, Marius quickly intervened. “Your Highness, this makes everything clear. The Duke must have seized the Isles Guild to win favor with his forcibly wedded wife. However, it doesn’t change the fact that he ruined an innocent man’s life through unjust means.”
