Chapter Text
Angelica’s POV
If someone had told me a few years ago that I would voluntarily come to the Queen to complain about her own son, I would have laughed and called that person insane.
And yet, that was exactly what I was doing now.
I was escorted to a small office within the palace. This time, there were no advisors, secretaries, or courtiers present.
Only Mylene and me.
Honestly, I was even glad about that.
The topic of our conversation was far too unpleasant for extra ears.
The Queen invited me to sit across from her.
“It's good to see you, Angelica.”
“And you as well, Your Majesty.”
For several seconds, she studied me carefully.
Then she let out a heavy sigh.
“Judging by the look on your face, this is not going to be a pleasant conversation.”
“No.”
“And it concerns Julius.”
I wasn’t even surprised.
Mylene was an intelligent woman.
She didn’t need much time to figure out the reason for my visit.
“Exactly.”
The Queen rubbed her temple.
“What has he done this time?”
I looked at her for a few seconds.
Then calmly replied:
“Your son has become a stalker.”
Mylene blinked.
Then blinked again.
“Excuse me?”
Only then did I realize what I had just said.
Damn.
I really needed to spend less time watching recordings from the other world that Leon and Luxion showed me.
Especially the modern ones.
“The word refers to someone who obsessively follows another person, constantly seeks encounters with them, and interferes in their life even when they are not wanted.”
The Queen silently listened to the explanation.
Then she thought for a moment.
Then looked back at me.
“Did you just describe Julius?”
“Exactly.”
Mylene closed her eyes.
And for some reason, I felt a little sorry for her.
Just a little.
“How bad is it?”
“Your son regularly wanders around my estate.”
“...”
“With his entourage.”
“...”
“Looking for Olivia.”
“...”
“Constantly.”
The Queen let out a heavy breath.
“I’ve tried talking to him.”
And that was the moment I nearly laughed.
Tried?
Really?
In all the years I had known Julius, I couldn’t remember a single person who had genuinely been able to control him.
Not even the Queen herself.
Especially not the Queen herself.
Julius always did exactly what he wanted.
If someone told him not to involve himself in a problem—he involved himself.
If someone asked him to take something seriously—he ignored them.
If someone warned him about consequences—he assumed everyone was exaggerating.
So Mylene’s claim that she was trying to influence her son sounded almost amusing to me.
Not because she was lying.
No.
I was certain she genuinely tried.
I had simply never seen any results.
“Your Majesty, with all due respect, I cannot remember a single occasion when Julius actually listened to anyone.”
Mylene said nothing.
And that silence was more eloquent than any words.
I leaned back in my chair.
“If this continues, I’m going to ask Leon to change careers.”
The Queen raised an eyebrow.
“Change careers?”
“To animal catcher.”
Several seconds of silence filled the room.
“Angelica…”
“I’m completely serious.”
“He is my son.”
“I know.”
“And his friends.”
“I know.”
“Then why specifically an animal catcher?”
I let out a heavy sigh.
“Because after everything they’ve done to Olivia, it’s becoming harder and harder for me to see them as normal people.”
Mylene frowned.
I continued:
“They spent months suffocating her with attention.”
“...”
“Constantly making decisions for her.”
“...”
“Assuming they knew better than she did how she should live.”
“...”
“Following her around.”
“...”
“And they still believe they’re doing the right thing.”
I shook my head.
“The worst part is that none of them even understand what the problem is.”
The Queen slowly closed her eyes.
She had no argument against that.
“So yes, Your Majesty. If one day I see Leon catching all five of them in a net, I doubt I’ll be particularly surprised.”
“That isn’t funny at all.”
“I’m not joking.”
And that was the truth.
The funniest part of the whole situation was that Leon wasn’t even jealous of Julius.
To be jealous, he would first have to see him as a rival.
No.
What irritated Leon was something entirely different.
His girlfriend’s former fiancé constantly lingered around our estate.
Constantly interfered in the lives of our people.
Constantly created problems.
And categorically refused to disappear from our lives.
That was what infuriated him.
So much that, at one point, he completely seriously declared that cannons existed for a reason.
And the most frightening part was that I had almost no doubt he was not joking.
Leon possessed enough weaponry to turn a small fortress into a pile of rubble.
“If nothing changes, Your Majesty, one day Leon is genuinely going to start viewing artillery as a diplomatic instrument.”
“He wouldn’t fire at a prince.”
I only smiled sadly.
“I wouldn’t be so certain.”
Silence settled over the office for several seconds.
Then I decided to change the subject.
“By the way, speaking of Olivia.”
Mylene immediately became attentive.
“What about her?”
“She made me look at the academy differently.”
And that was absolutely true.
Once, I considered the academy normal.
Imperfect.
Occasionally strange.
But normal.
Now, I wasn’t so sure.
Leon was the one who first made me think about it.
He had never attended the academy.
Because of that, he started asking Olivia about everything that happened there.
The classes.
The students.
The teachers.
The rules.
Life inside the academy.
At first, it was simple curiosity.
Then he started noticing strange things.
Then he started complaining to me.
And the more I listened, the less I liked the entire system.
“Your Majesty, Olivia already had a difficult life there.”
“Because of her background?”
“Exactly.”
I nodded.
“She’s a commoner.”
“...”
“No title.”
“...”
“No influential family.”
“...”
“No support among the nobility.”
I crossed my arms.
“Most students already looked down on her simply because of the circumstances of her birth.”
“...”
“She had to work harder than everyone else.”
“...”
“She constantly had to prove her worth.”
“...”
“And she knew that any mistake she made would be remembered far longer than the mistakes of a noble.”
I remembered Olivia’s own stories.
She almost never complained.
That was exactly why her situation seemed even sadder.
“And then Julius and his entourage appeared.”
Mylene closed her eyes.
“And instead of making her life easier, they made it even harder.”
“...”
“Because of them, she became a target for half the academy.”
“...”
“Because of them, other students were afraid to approach her.”
“...”
“Because of them, she effectively lost the opportunity to build normal relationships.”
I let out a heavy breath.
“Your Majesty, the academy does not exist solely for education.”
“I know.”
“It is also a place where people find future husbands and wives.”
“Yes.”
“Now think about Olivia’s position.”
The Queen remained silent.
“A commoner already had a difficult time finding a good match among the nobility.”
“...”
“And after the incident with Julius, the situation became even worse.”
“...”
“At best, she might have married a knight or a young baron.”
“...”
“And even that possibility was effectively taken away from her.”
I looked directly at the Queen.
“The most frightening part is that your son still does not understand what he actually did.”