Chapter 449 - The French Prince Arrives (1/2)

Berengar was within his study, smoking a hemp cigarette as he gazed upon the documents in his hands. Although he had spent a few days reacquainting himself with his wives upon returning from war, the work of a ruler was never truly fulfilled. Thus once more, he had thrust himself into the endless throes of paperwork.

After exhaling a large puff of smoke, the young monarch heard a knock on the door. Refusing to put out the cigarette, Berengar responded before taking another hit.

”It is open...”

Upon saying this, the door crept open to reveal his first wife Adela, who was dressed in a sapphire gown. Upon seeing his lovely wife enter his room, Berengar assumed that she was here to make amends. However, the sentence she spoke was anything but.

”There is a visitor here for you; they claim to be a part of the French Royal Family...”

There was a look of utter disgust on the young woman's face as she said this. Berengar was quite surprised to hear this; the French Prince had arrived quicker than he had estimated. Thus he decided to put out his cigarette in his ashtray before standing up and approaching his young wife.

”Lead the way!”

Adela rolled her eyes before departing from the Office with her husband in hand; before long, they arrived in the Great Hall, where Berengar gazed upon a small host of visitors. He searched for the French Prince but could not find him. However, his eyes fell upon a beautiful young woman who was exceptionally petite; this woman had honey blonde hair and emerald green eyes and was dressed in the current fashion trends of Austria.

Berengar mistakenly assumed this person's identity to be Princess Sibilia. Thus, he approached her and bowed before introducing himself. The stunning French woman held out her hand with a pretty smile upon seeing this, and Berengar placed his lips upon it. After doing so, he made his introduction.

”Princess Sibilia, I must say you are as beautiful as the rumors have claimed. However, I am a bit confused. I was led to believe that Prince Aubry would be the one to visit?”

The woman presumed to be Princess Sibilla immediately giggled in an effeminate manner before covering her mouth. After doing so, she spoke in a high-pitched voice that matched a woman's.

”Your Majesty, you are not mistaken. I am Prince Aubry de Valois, and I must say you are as handsome as the rumors say!”

Berengar immediately felt his mind shatter as he heard these words and struggled to mask his disgust in his actions. Did he seriously kiss the hand of a man? Meanwhile, Adela was in the corner smirking at his actions, thinking to herself.

It serves you right for being a playboy.

Of course, Berengar had no way of knowing what his wife was thinking and instead began to pull away from the effeminate French Prince awkwardly.

”I apologize for my actions; I assumed you were your sister... Tell me, Prince Aubry, why are you here in Kufstein, and why are you dressed like that?”

Prince Aubry continued to smile as he placed one of his dainty hands on his cheek; after doing so, he twirled around in his dress before leaning in close to Berengar.

”What's the matter? You don't like my appearance?”

The young Austrian King was immediately put in a difficult spot, this was, in fact, the Prince of a neighboring Kingdom, and he had to, for the time being, maintain diplomatic ties with them. After all, his plan for fracturing the French Kingdom relied on putting on the facade of friendly relations with his eventual neighbor to the West.

Despite this, he immediately tried to distance himself from the effeminate Prince. However, the moment he did so, Aubry followed him and latched onto his arm with a sultry smile before asking the question on his mind.

”We can discuss business later; why don't you show me around this wonderful Palace of yours?”

Berengar had a distressed expression on his face as he looked over at his wife with a pleading gaze in his eyes. However, despite this anxiety, Adela merely scoffed before walking off. She knew Berengar would never sleep with a member of the same sex, and thus this was her punishment for him bringing home another wife without notice.

Thus Berengar was forced to endure being a tour guide for the Prince of France. The first action that the young monarch took was to introduce the current location to his guest.