The Debt Of Fate
Chapter 228: internal strife

Chapter 228: internal strife

Anastasia took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Many people thought her decision to divorce was wrong, but she no longer dared to stay in the palace. She feared for her life.

How could she continue to wear a crown and live on edge every day? She had watched her mother fall ill and die without Duke Thompson visiting her even once. She did not want to live the kind of life her mother had lived. Most importantly, she wanted to avoid the tragedy she kept seeing in her nightmares.

The ride lasted for two hours before the carriage finally came to a stop. The wheels slowed as cobblestones gave way to a dirt path lined with overgrown rosebushes and half-wilted lavender. A simple iron gate stood at the entrance, its hinges squeaking softly as it opened. The house beyond was modest by noble standards—a two-story stone cottage with ivy crawling along the west wall and a crooked chimney that still puffed faint smoke from the morning fire.

Anastasia stepped out of the carriage. The wind smelled of damp soil and old trees. For the first time in years, the air did not reek of incense, polished marble, or judgment.

Grater followed closely behind, her arms full of folded linens. "Your mother had hoped this would become your new home," she said, peering around.

Anastasia looked at Grater. This was her first time visiting the place. Since the king had taken Dorothy as a mistress, she had been quietly making a way of escape for herself.

Miss Magdalene had even advised her once to climb into the king’s bed and do whatever it took to get pregnant so she could secure her position—but she had refused.

She understood, more than any woman, what it meant not to be favored by her husband. She did not value the position of queen. She didn’t care if the king never visited her room; what she feared was the king denying her the respect she deserved as his wife and queen.

So, the moment the king threw a royal celebration and intended to name the son of a mistress as heir, she decided on divorce.

What child of a mistress becomes heir without being adopted by the wife? She knew then that her only way out was to leave.

Fortunately, she had been quietly saving money since she entered the palace. She never intended to return to her father, so she had not counted on the Duke’s support. She planned to buy a small courtyard when Grater told her that her mother already owned one.

"It’s so peaceful here. Mother and I should have left the Duke’s residence and lived here," Anastasia said as she looked around.

"My lady also had that plan. As a mistress, she could have moved out of the Duke’s house without much trouble. It’s just that she fell sick before the house was ready for move-in. She was worried that if she died, you’d be alone—and it might not be safe," Grater said. When she spoke of Lady Maureen, she could not help but cry. The mother and daughter had such good hearts, but heaven had not blessed their marriage.

"Let’s go in," Anastasia said, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall, then stepped forward.

They entered through the front door. Dust clung to the air despite the efforts of the caretakers sent ahead. Still, the hearth was lit, and fresh bread sat cooling on the kitchen table—a quiet welcome prepared by the few loyal servants who still remembered Lady Maureen.

Anastasia looked at the simple layout and didn’t feel the slightest pressure. Although she couldn’t tell what the future held, she finally felt relieved of her nightmare.

---

Old Lane Street

Lord Auraline sat across from the young seer. "Now that the divorce is done, can I make my move?" he asked, the eagerness in his eyes plain to see.

The young seer didn’t answer immediately. He chanted a few words in a low voice. He was surprised that Anastasia had divorced the king so easily. When he approached Dorothy with the temptation of becoming queen, he had assumed it would take at least five years to separate the king and queen.

After all, unlike the old religion, the worshipers of Christ did not believe in divorce—and it was not something taken lightly. He never expected that King Edward had never even laid with his wife.

"No wonder," he thought, rolling a few beads between his fingers. He hadn’t dared to harm Anastasia—he remembered how his master had failed to do so before.

The young seer frowned and looked at Lord Auraline. He had thought the king would destroy his wife to protect his mistress. He had even prepared a potion that would keep the king away from the queen, believing that the king would meet divine judgment just like his father had when he tried to harm Anastasia. He had not expected them to simply divorce.

The young seer sighed and tossed down the beads.

"What’s the matter?" Lord Auraline asked, seeing the seer’s frown deepen. He had come straight from the palace.

"The king is doomed to fail... It’s just that..." The seer stopped speaking.

His master had declared Lord Auraline as the king chosen by the old gods. The seer had believed that once King Edward was defeated, Auraline would take the throne. But now, he could not see the star of a king over Auraline’s head—and that troubled him.

"It’s nothing. But we must not make the first move. For now, focus on gathering supporters. Look for brave generals who are dissatisfied with the king. The news about the king destroying his marriage for a mistress must spread," the seer said. Although he could no longer see the star of a king on Auraline’s head, he still believed that if they acted quickly, Auraline could take the throne.

"Thank you, great one," Lord Auraline said with satisfaction. He rose and left Old Lane without delay.

...

The golden banners bearing King Edward’s sigil fluttered atop the palace towers, but the streets below were not rejoicing. Whispers, sharp as thorns, crept through taverns, temples, and noble halls. The news had spread faster than wildfire "the High Priest’s Council had granted the Queen a royal divorce, and King Edward had agreed."

"The king let her go without protest?" one Lord found the situation had to believe. A queen has been disposed of by the king and royal council, Anastasia was the first to be granted a royal divorce with such dignity.

"She asked for justice before the priests. The speaker lowered his voice "she feared for her life."

"A queen who leaves her crown in full dignity? Saints preserve us..." The Lord still found the news hard to believe.

The court was shaken. In the absence of an heir born of marriage, and with his mistress now under scrutiny, King Edward’s authority began to unravel. Nobles who had once fawned over him grew silent. Some left the court altogether under the pretense of illness or distant estate affairs.

In the heart of the capital, temple priests who had once held their tongues now began to preach against the moral decay at the palace.

"It is one man and one wife, a man should love his wife as Christ loves the church. Did you not read in Genesis how Abraham sent away his mistress when she looked down on his wife? Why then most the child of a mistress be made heir?" One priest said during his sermon on Sunday. Although he had not mentioned any names, all the nobles present knew he was pointing at the king.

The High Priest himself, usually restrained in word, refused to meet the king in private. He guess the king wanted the church to stop preaching about marriage but how could he? This is the commandment of the Almighty God. So he went into seclusion, praying and fasting just to avoid meeting the king.

In the Royal Council, one voice dared to speak aloud what others feared to whisper.

"A man who cannot rule his own household, cannot rule a kingdom."

Lord Halden, former ally of the late king said.

"This are all just rumors," head Chancellor argued. He was worried that the kingdom would fall into internal strife when this happened.

"Rumors? Was it also a rumor that he wanted to name the son of his mistress the heir? I do not question his majesty for loving his mistress, but lady Anastasia is the wife he wedded before God and the enire Kingdom. Why has he not fulfilled his duty to her once? " Lord Halden question.

The council all fell quite, but many nodded in agreement with Lord Halden feeling that king Edward was indeed not fit for the throne.

---

Lord Auraline sat in his estate’s war room, the flickering torches casting jagged shadows across the maps spread before him. A few trusted nobles surrounded himmen with worn faces and quiet tempers, veterans of King George’s wars.

"The people are restless," said Sir Elric, a sharp-eyed knight who had once sworn loyalty to the old king. "Many are disappointed. The divorce weakened Edward’s legitimacy, and his attempt to name a mistress’s son as heir only deepens the insult."

Lord Auraline nodded. "Then we begin. Quietly. We reach out to generals, city governors, those who still love Queen Anastasia and those who dread Edward’s rise." he paused and looked at everyone in the room.

" The high priest’s silence is all the permission we need."

Letters were written, coded in old dialects, sent with seal-less wax. Within weeks, Auraline’s influence reached the northern borders, the merchants of the east, and even the temple knights sworn to neutrality.

But in the shadows, a new player emerged—one that even Auraline hadn’t anticipated.