The Devil's Betrothed novel Chapter 593

Chapter 593: Possessive Cromwells

Oriana chuckled softly and sat back in her place. "Lady Grace, just a while ago, you expressed your desire to see me exhibit the mannerisms befitting a Queen of this kingdom. I hope I have not disappointed you."

Puzzled, Grace looked at her, only to see Oriana smile, her eyes clearly mocking. "Did I just scare you, Lady Grace?"

Grace, feeling intimidated, didn’t know what to say. ’Was this Crown Princess toying with me?’

Ignoring her, Oriana turned to Julien. "Mother, it seems you need to reward my teacher for teaching me so well."

"I certainly will," Julien answered.

Baffled, Grace looked to her father for support.

"Lady Grace," Oriana spoke again, "I don’t mind accepting that present of yours, considering you have brought it with so much effort."

Grace could only nod. She closed the box and offered it to Oriana, which a servant accepted on her behalf. She then turned to Arlan and said, "Your Highness, I will get a more suitable gift for you," before returning to her seat, relieved that she was spared from this awkward situation.

Luis felt the need to salvage the situation, as the way his daughter had been embarrassed by Oriana was not the proper way to end this visit.

He turned to Oriana, "Your Highness, you seem to have knowledge about such customs that even I was not aware of, despite them being from my own territory. Young people these days create such useless gimmicks," he laughed a little, trying to lighten the mood.

Oriana smiled politely. "Knowledge is a powerful tool, Marquis Luis. It’s always good to be aware of the traditions and customs, no matter how obscure they might seem. They often carry deeper meanings and connections." Her gaze then turned a little serious as she added, "Few years back, I lived in the northeast territory with my grandfather," her eyes fixed on Luis, waiting to see his reaction.

As expected, the man was surprised—more like shocked. "You did?"

"Yes," Oriana replied firmly. "But after just a few days, my grandfather returned home one day as if he had seen a ghost. He made me pack everything we could, and that same night, we fled for another part of the kingdom."

Everyone listened intently, while Luis appeared at a loss for words. ’By chance, did Philip happen to see me there?’

Oriana continued, "Though we were always on the run, my grandfather never reacted this way before. I’m not sure what in your territory terrified him so much. All I remember him saying was, ’We are never to step into the northeast territory ever again’."

This statement from her, confirmed Luis’ doubt. ’So he really saw me there and fled.’

Arlan, who had been quietly observing, his sharp blue eyes focussed on Luis. Despite the man’s attempt to remain calm on the surface, it was clear Luis was anxious, as if Oriana had said something she should not have.

Oriana sensed this too. After Luis mentioned her grandfather, she had a hunch and decided to probe. Clearly, it worked.

Luis laughed lightly to mask his unease. "You truly jest, Your Highness. I don’t believe there are any ghosts in my territory to scare people away. Perhaps Lord Philip encountered something that made him want to leave. After all, life in hiding is not easy. But let’s not dwell on it. There’s no need to bring up why Lord Philip ran away from King’s side. Let’s let the past stay buried."

Before Oriana could respond, Luis turned to the King. "What do you say, Your Majesty?"

"Of course, let the past be left behind," the King said. "Despite anything, it doesn’t change that Philip was one of my closest confidant. Though he is not alive, his only family is a part of my family, and I consider her my daughter." The King’s gaze turned to Oriana. "I will protect her as any father would protect his daughter."

Oriana felt the weight and seniority behind Ailwin’s words and smiled lightly in response.

Luis smiled, though it was clear he didn’t like what the King said. The Royal family was emphasizing how important the Verner family and Oriana were to them.

"I believe Lord Verner would be at peace seeing all this," he forced out the words, maintaining a fake pleasant expression.

"I believe he is," the King added.

It was time for the guests to leave.

"Luis, feel free to visit the city. If there is any need, let us know," the King offered.

"Thank you for the generous offer, Your Majesty," Luis replied. "As I am here, I have received invitations from various noble families in the capital inviting me as their guest. I guess I would be enjoying their hospitality as I meet some of my friends."

Oriana realized she was still being held closely by her mother-in-law, but how could she refuse this motherly affection when the Queen had always been so kind to her?

Ailwin’s gaze turned serious as he spoke to his wife. "That should be enough. Do not make our son look down on me, by letting him think you have lost interest in me."

Julien almost rolled her eyes at the reactions of the father and son and let go of Oriana. "Just remember, the men of the Cromwell family have grown up inhaling jealousy rather than air."

Oriana suppressed her laughter and stepped away from her mother-in-law, only to hear her say, "We will meet when these two are not with us."

Before Oriana could nod, Arlan held her hand and answered his mother, "She is not free."

Before Julien could retort, Ailwin came to stand in front of her. "If you have a lot of free time, you can spend it with me," he said, holding her hand and walking away, not minding the presence of his son and daughter-in-law.

While being dragged away, Julien glanced at Oriana to say her goodbye while Oriana was being led away by Arlan as well and gestured back to the older woman.

Oriana shook her head, thinking, ’I thought only Arlan was like that. Now I know where he inherited these traits of jealousy and possessiveness. Like father, like son.’

"Mother, has she displeased father?" Oriana could not help but ask, while being led outside by Arlan.

"You should worry about yourself, rather than her," Arlan shot back coldly.

Oriana dropped the topic and asked, "Do you think I have crossed the boundary with the guests and I have disappointed your parents?"

"Don’t worry, you have fulfilled the purpose of you being invited there," Arlan replied, "You should understand it from the way mother was so happy. You turned their boring day onto entertaining one."

"Huh?" Oriana thought about it. "So, they were expecting this from me already. They..." Oriana could not believe it.

Her in-laws expected her to be bold and blatant, instead of disciplining her to not upset the guests? What kind of family, no, a royal family she was living in?