Seeing them admit their guilt so readily, it was clear they knew the matter couldn’t be hidden. This only made Her Majesty the Queen angrier. She slapped the armrest of her throne. "Since you both know you were wrong, tell me exactly where you erred. Tell me everything you did. Out with it all. If you dare to hide a single thing, you’ll see just how I’ll punish you!"

Victoria and Lady Dain looked ghastly pale. Kneeling on the floor, they recounted the incident in full detail, including that their motive was to get revenge on Lu Xia.

Hearing the full story, Lu Xia noted it was no different from what she had already guessed. Her expression remained unchanged; she sat there looking as gentle and weak as ever, the very picture of docility.

When they finished, Her Majesty the Queen’s face was grim. "Bring in the waiter."

Evidently, Her Majesty the Queen did not trust the words of Victoria and Lady Dain and wanted to hear the waiter’s testimony for herself.

Hearing this, Lady Dain and Victoria felt a sliver of relief that they had not lied. Otherwise, their fate would have been even worse.

They stole a glance at Lu Xia, then at Lady Daina, their eyes filled with resentment.

Lady Dain simply couldn’t understand. ’Lady Daina is my own sister, the one closest to me. Why would she side with Duke Lu Xia?’

As if she hadn’t seen the resentment in Lady Dain’s glare, Lady Daina leisurely lifted her teacup and took a sip. She even found a moment to pat Lu Xia’s hand reassuringly. This absolutely infuriated the kneeling Lady Dain. ’If this weren’t such a formal occasion,’ she fumed internally, ’I would demand to know how I’ve wronged my own sister! Why is she helping an outsider to hurt me like this?!’

The waiter was quickly brought in. Upon seeing Her Majesty the Queen, he became a flustered mess. ’I never thought I’d see Her Majesty the Queen in my entire life!’ He knelt on the floor, trembling uncontrollably, and it took him a long moment to compose himself.

"G-Greetings, Your Majesty," he stammered. But Her Majesty the Queen had no patience. "Recount what happened that day," she commanded. "And do not lie."

The waiter kept his head bowed, prostrating himself on the floor. At her command, he recounted the events of that day. How could he dare hide anything? Even with Lady Dain and Victoria right there, he would never dare deceive Her Majesty the Queen. After all, she was the supreme ruler of the Empire. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

After listening to the waiter’s account, Her Majesty the Queen glanced at the kneeling Lady Dain and Victoria. Seeing they had been clever enough not to lie, she waved a hand, gesturing for an attendant to lead the waiter away.

Once the waiter was gone, Her Majesty the Queen turned to Lady Dain and Victoria. "Last time, I was the one who ordered you to compensate and formally apologize to Duke Lu Xia. Do you resent me for that? If so, why didn’t you try to get revenge on me?"

Kneeling with their heads bowed, Victoria and Lady Dain pleaded repeatedly, "Your Majesty, we were wrong! We’ll never dare again! We are willing to apologize to Duke Lu Xia, and we’re willing to pay compensation. We truly won’t dare to do anything like this again, Your Majesty. Please, we beg you, forgive us this one time."

"Forgive you again? Did I not forgive you last time? You have brought nothing but shame upon the Imperial Family! I’ve heard that you also drugged the guests who attended Victoria’s public banquet. Is this true or not?"

Lady Dain was stunned that Her Majesty the Queen knew about that as well. She answered timidly, "I only did it because I didn’t want them to go around spreading rumors. I just used a little bit of the seductive fragrance. It won’t really affect them at all, Your Majesty, please believe us."

"Hmph. After pulling a stunt like this, how can you expect me to believe you? Lady Dain, you have disappointed me greatly. Not only have you raised a willful and reckless child like Victoria, but you yourself are just as disgraceful. If I let you continue, the good name and honor of the Imperial Family will be utterly destroyed by you both. Tomorrow, you and Victoria are to leave the Imperial Star. Go to your own fiefdom. You can cause all the trouble you want there."

At these words, Lady Dain burst into tears. "No, Your Majesty! How could we possibly leave you? We were truly wrong! Please, give us one more chance!"

They had their own fiefdom, but it was nothing compared to the bustling prosperity of the Imperial Star. Having lived on the Imperial Star for decades, they were completely unaccustomed to life in the outer territories. If they were truly sent there, their quality of life would plummet. How could they possibly bear it? The moment Lady Dain imagined spending the rest of her days in such a desolate place, she felt utterly miserable.

Victoria’s face fell as well. They had, of course, visited their fiefdom before. It was precisely because they had witnessed its desolation firsthand that they understood the true severity of this punishment. Her Majesty the Queen was clearly not going to be lenient.

Her Majesty the Queen watched the mother and daughter weeping in each other’s arms, her own expression unmoved. "What good is crying now? Why didn’t you think of this sooner? So now you find this unacceptable? When you were committing such a disgraceful act, did you not stop to consider the consequences? This matter is settled. You have until morning to return and pack your belongings. If you fail to do so, I will have people do it for you. You must leave first thing tomorrow morning!"

Her Majesty the Queen’s mind was made up; there was no room for discussion. Lady Dain and Victoria collapsed onto the floor, their faces ashen with defeat. All their previous arrogance was gone.

After making her pronouncement, Her Majesty the Queen turned to Lu Xia. "Duke, are you satisfied with this punishment?"

Lu Xia acted startled, quickly rising to her feet. "Your Majesty, isn’t this punishment too severe for Lady Dain and Lady Victoria? I wasn’t actually harmed... so maybe... maybe we could just let the matter drop?"

The more magnanimous Lu Xia appeared, the less likely Her Majesty the Queen was to relent. "They bullied you so, yet you still plead on their behalf? You are far too kind. I cannot allow you to be wronged like this. Whether you were actually harmed or not is irrelevant. Their actions were atrocious, and they must be punished. Do not plead for them. They must go to their fiefdom and reflect on what they’ve done, to prevent them from causing more trouble on the Imperial Star."

Clearly, Lu Xia’s intercession had not won a reprieve for Lady Dain and Victoria; it had only made Her Majesty the Queen even angrier.

Lady Daina, who had remained silent at the side, glanced at Lu Xia without a word. She was, in fact, quite pleased with Lu Xia’s performance. ’I’ve always known,’ she thought, ’that Duke Lu Xia is a very clever person.’

Lady Dain couldn’t stop herself from looking at Lady Daina, crying, "Sister, aren’t you going to say anything? Can’t you help your own little sister at a time like this?"

At this, Lady Daina looked at Lady Dain, whose eyes were red and swollen from weeping. "So *now* you remember I’m your sister?" she said coldly. "Where was that sentiment when you were using me to get your revenge on Duke Lu Xia? Her Majesty has already decreed that you are to go to your fiefdom and reflect. What could I possibly say to change her mind? Am I supposed to throw away my own dignity for you?"

Her Majesty the Queen was quite satisfied with Lady Daina’s response. "You two are sisters. Lady Dain, if you had but a fraction of Lady Daina’s reason and magnanimity, you wouldn’t have committed such a flagrantly shameful act today. Nor would you have raised Victoria to be this way. It is too late for regrets. As for Victoria’s marriage to the male from the Daferno family, consider it null and void. I heard the boy is still in critical condition. I didn’t understand why before, but now I see. You are the ones who harmed him!"