I've Suffered for Five Years, Now It's Your Turn. ~The Crown Princess Has No Intention of Forgiving~ - Episode 26

“You mean to say you knew the truth and chose to stay silent? What nonsense! On what grounds do you say such a thing?”

King Harvin shot Luans a sharp look.
Though his tone was calm, his clenched fists betrayed his discomfort.

“Father, the fact that you came here tonight has only confirmed my suspicions.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The only people who knew we’d be meeting in the garden tonight were those who were in the Queen’s chambers during the day. The only way someone else could have known is if they were monitoring that room.”

“I came here by coincidence.”

“You’re supposed to be in your study at this hour. And yet, here you are, meeting Princess Filia before our scheduled meeting. What a convenient coincidence.”

“Stop this nonsense, Luans. You’re my son and the only one I trust to be my successor. I want you to be a great king. Don’t create turmoil in the royal family over something like this.”

Luans must’ve caused that disturbance in the Queen’s chambers on purpose—to flush out whoever was spying on the place.
Thanks to that, I was also able to identify the person I had long wondered about.

“King Harvin, you say these accusations are nonsense, but your earlier words confirmed something for me too.”

“What are you talking about…?”

“I started preparing for this a year ago. I never told anyone about that. So how did you know?”

I repeated the exact phrase the king had let slip earlier.
His eyes flickered with confusion.

“Y-you’re not making any sense!”

“I still don’t understand your motive. Why, from your position, would you go to such lengths to secretly reveal the truth to me?”

If King Harvin had known everything all along and had been feeding me information in secret…
What was his reason? Why go about it this way?
I didn’t have a clear answer, but based on what we’ve learned so far, I had one possible theory.

“Your reason for hiding while revealing the truth might be explained by what Camilla and the others said.”

“Ridiculous. I have no time for these fairy tales. Enough of this—I’m returning to my room—”

“Wasn’t your real intention to make Luans crown prince without ever revealing to the people that he was born to a concubine?”

The king’s steps stopped.
Luans’ eyes widened, and both men stared at me, waiting for what I would say next.

“You loved the concubine, didn’t you? And you wanted to cherish her child too. But to Queen Camilla, Luans’ rise was something she could never allow.”

“……”

“So didn’t she threaten to expose the truth? That if Luans were named crown prince, she would reveal he’s the son of a concubine?”

This was just my theory.
But the fact that King Harvin had frozen in place and was silently listening gave it weight.

“That’s why you wanted to bring down Queen Camilla and Erik. Without revealing the truth about the concubine—”

“……”

“And I was the perfect tool, wasn’t I? If I accused Erik and the others of the schemes they planned against me a year ago, it would be the perfect opportunity to strip them of their positions—without exposing your secret.”

“Enough of this madness. I know nothing.”

“You went this far just to keep the concubine’s existence—and the fact that Luans is her child—hidden, didn’t you?”

“……”

“But your biggest miscalculation was that I didn’t just accuse them behind closed doors. After a year of preparation, I made everything public. Your plan to keep this a quiet, internal matter within the royal family fell apart.”

King Harvin sighed deeply at my words.
He turned to face us again, resignation in his eyes.

“You’re right. I wanted to hand over everything to Luans… while keeping the concubine’s existence hidden.”

“…!”

“Princess Filia, you should have made your accusations a year ago. That would have been easier to manage. I never expected you to reveal the truth to the public so quickly.”

He continued.

“A year ago, I gave you a chance to learn the truth.”

“You were waiting for me to accuse them then?”

“I assumed a mere princess could only offer a teary-eyed plea. I planned to use that as a chance to protect Camilla and the others—and gain leverage over them.”

“You insisted on letting things go during that royal audience… was that to earn Camilla’s gratitude?”

“Exactly. If I had punished her in response to your accusation, she might have retaliated by exposing what I wanted kept hidden.”

“……”

“But if I protected her instead, I could demand something in return—naming Luans as crown prince and keeping the concubine a secret until my death.”

That royal audience… his true goal was to smooth the way for negotiating Luans’ succession—by positioning himself as Camilla’s savior.

“But it was all ruined. You moved faster than I ever imagined, Princess Filia. You made the scandal public—too public for even the royal family to cover it up.”

“If Camilla is questioned during a formal hearing, her only option may be to confess the truth about the concubine.”

“Yes. That’s the part I didn’t foresee. You were far more determined than I expected, Princess Filia.”

He had admitted to everything.
And now that he had, King Harvin made one final, heartfelt plea.

“Princess Filia, now that you know the whole truth—and I’ve confessed everything—please, I beg you.”

He dropped to his knees and looked up at me.
The sight of a king, the ruler of a nation, bowing so low made me question my eyes.

“Everything I did… it was all for the son I love. Luans, the child of the woman I loved and lost. This was my way of atoning for my past.”

“……”

“If the hearing is held, Camilla will be forced to speak the truth. And when that happens… Luans’ future will be destroyed.”

“It was all to protect Luans.”
That was King Harvin’s plea.

“Please… for his sake, give me the evidence. We can’t let the hearing take place.”

“Father… all of this… was for me?”

Hearing those words, Luans looked stunned.
Then he turned to face me.

“……Princess Filia. I have a request of my own.”

From his voice, I could sense where his heart now stood.
And with his next words, everything became clear.

“Please… refuse my father’s request. Because that is what’s truly best for the Kingdom of Harvin.”