Chapter 458 - Family Reunion Part II (2/2)

Berengar shook his head and merely chuckled in response to his wife's question.

”Nothing, I was just thinking that if Henrietta and I weren't related by blood, then I could marry her instead...”

Immediately everyone's expression sank as they heard this, especially Adela. Henrietta was the only person among their ranks who did not react gravely; unlike the others, she gazed upon her brother with a lovestruck appearance—as for Gisela, she responded by smacking her son across the back of his head before rebuking him for his inappropriate comment.

”Don't even joke like that! It is unbecoming for a man of your position!”

Berengar chuckled in response to this while Sieghard gazed upon his son and daughter with a complicated expression. Judging by his two kids' reactions, something was going on between them. However, immediately after thinking this, he shook his head and dismissed the thought. While Berengar may be a womanizer, there was no way he was that far gone.

As for Henrietta, he did not know his daughter well enough to predict her feelings on the matter accurately. However, he was not foolish enough to miss the intimate glances that the girl shared with her brother now and then.

Eventually, a frown appeared on the older man's face as he thought about what Berengar had said. It was indeed a damn shame that the two of them were related by blood because nobody was better for his daughter than a man like his son. Unfortunately, there was only one man like Berengar in this world, and he was the blood-related brother of Henrietta.

Thus he tried to shift his thoughts elsewhere, as his gaze landed on Linde, he was well aware of the difficulties between his wife and Berengar's second Queen. Though his opinion of the woman was initially bitter, he had come to see how beneficial she was to his son's life and Kingdom over the years. Thus, he began an attempt to bridge the gap between her and his wife as he brought up memories of the past.

”I must say, Linde, you have changed a lot over the years. I have known you since you were a small girl; after all, you were engaged to my second son at one point, and I must admit I was not fond of you at the time. However, now you seem to have grown into a fine young woman!”

Linde was shocked upon hearing her father-in-law's praise; she was well aware that her in-laws despised her almost as much as her own family did. To hear that at least one of them had pleasant views of her was something she greatly appreciated. As such, she put on the dignity of a Queen before addressing Sieghard's comments.

”Father, you have no idea how much that means to me. What remains of my own family views me as a traitor, and I know for a fact that your wife does not care for me either. To hear that someone besides Berengar views me in such a kind light is truly a great honor!”

Gisela did not respond well to this statement; calling her husband by the term ”father” implied that the temptress was indeed married to her son, and the old Baroness had never approved of Berengar's playboy nature or his legalization of Polygamy. In response to Linde's statement, Berengar's mother merely scoffed, letting everyone in the room know just what she thought about Linde and Berengar's other ”wives.”

The only woman among Berengar's harem to not care in the slightest about Gisela's opinion was Honoria; the only person whose opinion she cared about who was in this room was her husband and him alone. As for her rivals, her in-laws, or even her own family, they could shove their opinions where the sun doesn't shine. The Pirate Queen had been severely influenced by the Austrian King's ”to hell with the world, I do what I want!” attitude.

Thus, she merely watched her husband's and his family's engagements with a slight sense of interest. She enjoyed seeing Linde get a taste of her own medicine. While they had been intimate with one another during Berengar's absence, and the Byzantine Princess generally found Linde to be more agreeable than Adela; they were frenemies at best and outright rivals at the worst.

As for Berengar, he continued to eat his food and keep the conversation going in a healthy direction; after all the meal was far from over, soon they would move onto the desert, and there was much conflict to be resolved between Berengar's large family. He sighed in exhaustion as he could only imagine the difficult conversations he would be having in the future when his children were grown up and vying for power.

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