There was an eagle standing above the crescent moon behind Casselia's back.
It was the Scheringen family symbol embroidered on top of a huge tapestry hanging on the wall.
The eagle's sharp eyes were the first thing all those visiting Scheringen Palace would see at the entrance.
The eyes of the eagle, which rules the sky by day and strikes terror on the earth by night, were also sharp today.
The head of the Scheringen family also has a ring engraved with the same pattern as this eagle.
It was a ring used as the seal of a family head, and it had a ferocious effect like the sharp eyes of an eagle.
“Wasn’t that written in the will?
The person who owns the Eagle Ring is the rightful owner of the Shiringen.
Neither His Majesty the Emperor’s letter nor even the ancient laws of noble families have any influence over that ring.”
It was a symbol of the Scheringen family, a mark to identify the Marquis, and a treasure that was only passed from the previous family head to the next family head.
According to ancient family law, without the ring, the heir could not be recognized as the legitimate head of the family.
Even if the heir had a status recognized by his father and possessed the documents that the Emperor authorized him to take the title, he would only be able to complete the succession if he possessed that ancient piece of silver.
No knowledge, no money, and no honor could replace that ring, even though it was just a symbol blocking the way forward.
From Annette's point of view, this was completely unacceptable.
However, Annet, who became a Grand Duchess with the help of one of these symbols – the Emperor's Necklace – could not deny the value of the Scheringen ring.
Annette felt trapped in a corner, and secretly bit her lip, but looked at Casselia with a calm, unchanging expression.
“If you really want to be the head of this family, then bring that ring.
At that time, I myself will also recognize you as the head of this family and not just my little niece.”
Casselia looked at Annette with a certain look that she would never find him.
In fact, Annette had no idea where the ring was or even existed.
However, she couldn't show weakness in front of Casselia.
“In five days, gather the whole family at this palace.
There will be an opening party to welcome the new Marchioness of Scheringen.”
“I don't expect that.”
Annette and Casselia's eyes collided in the air, announcing the start of their challenge.
***
“I will kill her.”
The anger in Annette's voice was unusual.
Once she arrived at the Flores Palace, she jumped out of the carriage and ran around the palace.
She was putting all her strength into her steps to the point that she made the ground shake with her thin and weak body.
“How dare that woman insult me like that.”
Annette could not forget Casselia's provocative eyes.
“Why did you say that?
You don’t even have the seal ring.
Judging by Lady Casselia’s reaction, she might even have the ring.”
Hans looked at Annette with a somewhat uncomfortable look.
"Don't worry.
There won't be any problems with me getting the title.
And the subject of that ring won't be a big deal either."
“Do you have the family head’s ring?”
"not yet."
"So you know where it is!
Tell me where it is and I'll go get it for you.
It's somewhere I can go in five days, right?"
“We can go to it in five steps, not five days.”
“Excuse me?
But this is the office of His Highness the Grand Duke.
I couldn’t believe it when His Highness told me that you still don’t know this palace well, but it seems to be true.
I will be guiding you around from now on.”
“No.
Today I didn’t lose my way and came to the right place.”
Annette grabbed the office door with both arms and swung it open with violent force.
Theodore, who was sitting on the chair in front of the table, looked up from the papers in his hands and looked at the wide open door.
A gust of wind blew through a small crack in the window he had left slightly open, shaking the papers Theodore was reading.
“You must obtain permission to enter His Highness’s office...”
Hans urgently tried to stop her, but his reaction came after Annette had already stormed into the office.
The intrusion quickly turned into an attempted assault...
“You vile bastard...what do you think you are doing to me!”
It was an incredible sight.
Annette grabbed Theodore's collar with a violent grip.
Hans was extremely embarrassed and first closed the office door in order to avoid the servants seeing this scene, then he began to run with hesitant steps, trying to stop Annette.
However, Hans could not carelessly touch the Grand Duchess's body, so he just stood tensely next to the table.
"Get out."
“But...”
“Your work here is done, so you can go.”
Theodor, who was hanging by Annette's collar, raised his right hand to signal Hans to leave.
Hans bowed and stepped back.
With a worried mind, he combed his hair nervously and looked back again before leaving the room.
Theodore's shirt was wrinkled and his collar was clutched tightly in Annette's angry fist, but the corners of his mouth were smiling smoothly.
This was an expression that this unprecedented situation was amusing to him.
"Welcome to my office for the first time.
I don't think it's anything to celebrate, but let's hear what's causing this escalating anger and violent physical assault?"
Annette roughly pulled Maria's ring off her finger and threw it on the table.
There was a “clicking” sound when the hard wood came into contact with the solid jewel of the ring.
It was like the sound of two angry people colliding with each other.
The emerald was sparkling with a resonant glow while the dozens of diamonds surrounding it reflected the faint sunlight that was filtering through the window, so it looked like he was frightened and crying hard.
“I don’t want this useless thing, you should have given me the Shiringen Family Head’s ring instead!”
Annette suddenly entered and dared to disrespect the Empress's ring in front of her son.
As Theodore was the son of the owner of that ring, this was disrespectful and might even be insulting to him, but Theodore did not criticize her behavior or her sudden rude words.
This was because he knew why she was angry.
Instead of responding to her angry words, Theodore touched the wood under the desk drawer and opened a secret space hidden there.
Inside his fist that came out from under the table was an eagle standing above the crescent moon.
“Is this what you want?”
“This is what you should have given me from the beginning.”
Annette stared at Theodore with displeased eyes.
She was surprised when Casselia asked her to bring the ring.
She didn't even know what the family ring meant, but it was definitely an indispensable item for inheriting the title.
If it was truly something that a person could become head of the family just by possessing it, and if Cassilia or Bjorn had it, it was impossible for them to remain still without manifesting it and taking the position of head for themselves.
If Cassilia had held up the finger on which she was wearing the eagle ring and complained of a headache, everyone in society would have recognized her as the new Marchioness of Scheringen as the owner of the ring, and this without having to put Annette in a psychiatric hospital in a complicated and dangerous way.
However, if her finger is still empty now, it means she never had the ring in the first place.
Casselia must think Annette doesn't have the ring for the same reason.
So, who has the ring?
Annette, the evil woman who predicted her death and the current Annette's reincarnation in her body, would certainly have predicted what would happen in the future due to the Succession War.
The evil woman, Annette, must have stolen the ring before or at the moment of her father's death.
However, Theodore did not ask anything about that important ring.
This meant...
“You've had it from the beginning.”
This meant that Theodore already had the ring, so there was no need for him to look for it.
“You were the one who gave it to me.”
“You knew I was going to Shiringen Palace, and it could have been easily ended with just one damn ring, so why the hell did you hide it?”
"I even used the Emperor's Necklace to make you a Grand Duchess.
I completed all kinds of legal documents by ignoring the law and acquitted you of murder charges.
What more should I do?"
“I didn't know there was even a family ring!”
“You should have known.”
“How in hell could I know that?”
“Should I teach you to walk too?
You have to know somehow and be one step ahead of everyone.”
His heartless eyes were clearly visible today.
Those blue things were not human eyes, but cold, empty ice.
“Don’t misunderstand that just because we live together as a couple, I will truly become your husband.”
This was a dire warning.
Annette's heart was boiling with anger, but Theodore showed no signs of emotion.
He even felt bored when Annette's fist lost its strength.
Annette was stunned for a moment and almost lost her strength in her legs and collapsed to the ground.
“How long are you going to keep testing me like this?”
Her voice was hoarse and weak.
Annette couldn't fall to the ground, so she eased herself with the force of her voice instead of her legs.
Annette noticed that Theodore was trying to test her again.
To her, she couldn't help but think that this was a trick to check her ability to deal with problems that she might not find a solution to such as not finding the ring.
But she couldn't guess why.
Why would Theodore give up his pride for such trivial things?
Is he trying to make fun of her for silly things?
The burning momentum that had been inside her from the moment she opened the door had disappeared, leaving only emptiness behind which was reflected in her weak voice.
But instead of screaming loudly, her voice dropped even lower.
“How long are you going to keep playing such silly games with me?
It’s hard for me to walk in shoes that don’t fit me in the first place, so why are you walking with me and throwing obstacles in front of me?”
(M.M.: You mean that it is really difficult to live in a world different from hers...
That’s why he is standing beside her and instead of helping her, he increases the difficulties for her)
She was asking him because she was really curious.
"I said I would cooperate with you, but I didn't say I would be your servant.
I'm not asking you to do something as difficult as loving me, nor do I want something as mundane as friendship from you.
Is it really that difficult to ask you to treat me with work ethics as a business partner?"
Annette asked in a quietly tired voice.
Why are you torturing me?
Why do you have tests that you don't have to take?
Annette had not raised her voice yet, so her tone was low and full of fatigue, but Theodore had no intention of accepting this tragic scene of this exhausted woman.
“You're not going to cry now, are you?”
The moment Annette saw the sarcastic expression on Theodore's face, her mind went back to work.
Coming back to her senses, she straightened her body, which was leaning on the desk tiredly.
“You don't deserve to see something so precious as my tears.”
Her voice gained strength again.
“I was wrong.
Now that I think about it, Your Highness has no reason to do me any favors.
But you are as wrong as I am.
Just because you sit on a big chair and boast a higher status than me, this seat will never turn into a throne.
Unless I cooperate with you.
You are nothing.”
Annette finished her speech with a long thought.
“I'm fed up with your damned tests.
This is the last test I'll take.”
“Is that all you have to say?”
“Yes, I will leave this place.”
Annette smiled slyly and turned her back arrogantly.
As she walked away without hearing a word of farewell from Theodore, she grabbed the doorknob, paused, and opened her mouth to say something to him one last time.