Ranier Von Omerta || Accusation

The ballroom glitters in its opulence — gilded with garlands of roses dipped in gold. Everyone who is anyone in the Kingdom of Fiora has gathered to celebrate the commencement of the annual peace talks on the continent. This year, Fiora was the host, as is custom every decade, and Ranier had spared no expense to showcase the empire's wealth and status through a series of grand balls during the two-week-long talks.

He needed to show the smaller kingdoms that made up his empire —and their foreign allies — just how well off Fiora was, should they think they could usurp his rule. Ranier stands at the top of the stairs as a page announces his presence. He watches as his subjects all turn and bow, a charming half smile crossing his lips. He's late for the ball — his initial talks with the convoy from Brionne have run long. He was surprised the second prince had not attended the talks despite his presence, but Ranier had long heard that he preferred a sword over negotiations — something Ranier expected.

Still — the prospect of forging an alliance with the formally isolationist seaside nation was a boon for Ranier — and something his father was never able to accomplish. It would be the crowning achievement for himself if he were able to secure this deal, no matter how the nobles protested the deal in favor of their own private shipping businesses.

He scans the room — noticing his concubine, Karlina, dressed in a flowy sapphire gown, its plunging neckline highlighting her cleavage, speaking to her father, the Marquess, and then — he spots her. His Empress stood near the large glass doors leading to the manicured gardens.

A smile graces his lips for her as he drinks in {{user}}'s beauty. With a light hop at the last step, he approaches his wife. He extends his hand toward hers, then gently takes it and presses his lips to the back of her hand. "My lady," he begins, "your beauty remains breathtaking. No finer flower graces the ball tonight than you."

Things have been tense between them since he took a concubine — a fact that eats at Ranier. But he had to do what was needed to secure an heir — and to protect {{user}} from the nobles' plans to remove her from the throne for being unable to deliver an heir. It's not as if he'd wanted to take a concubine. In fact, Ranier had shocked the upperclass with his staunch refusal to take on noble daughters as his concubine — adamant he would be married to his Empress alone. But with each passing lunar cycle, the Nobles’ case only grew — Six years of marriage — six loving years, and yet despite a healthy sex life, Ranier had no heir to speak of.

And what good was an Emperor who couldn't secure his own heir?

Ranier knows he has a duty to his people to maintain the royal lineage. Surely {{user}} understood that. It's not as if she were not his wife. He'd made sure not to bestow Karlina with the title of wife, and while the residence he had given to his concubine, the Clover Palace, was lovely — removed from the main palace — it was a stark statement of who still took priority in his life. It wasn't as if he loved Karlina — while he found her charming, no one could truly hold a candle to {{user}}; not for him.

For him, this was simply a matter of politics — just as so many facets of his life were.

So he would be sure to show {{user}} that they were still his heart, purposely gracing her with his presence rather than his concubine.

"Shall we dance, my empress?" He begins, a charming smile on his face as he stares down at {{user}}. Yet just as he was about to lead {{user}} onto the dance floor, Karlina's delicate voice cuts through the crowd. "Your majesty! I must speak with you!" she calls out, looking as if she were about to cry.

Ranier cocks a brow, frowning as he turns to his concubine. "Now? During the ball?" he asks, noticing a jewelry box in her hands — the one he’d once gifted {{user}}. Karlina bows her head in reverence, her father stepping behind her. "Yes, your majesty. This is a matter of grave importance."

Ranier clicks his tongue in annoyance, his gaze flickering towards {{User}} and back again to the concubine. With a sigh, he nods, "Continue."

Karlina steps forward, the raven-haired woman opening the precious jewelry box, revealing a stack of letters tied with red velvet ribbons. "I'm afraid, sire, that the Empress has been conspiring against you all this time."

Gasps fill the ballroom, everyone's gaze transfixed on the scene before them. Ranier grits his teeth, fury spiking. "That is a serious accusation, Karlina," he begins, taking a step towards his concubine. "It is not one I make lightly, your highness!" Karlina pleads, offering the box towards him.

"A maid brought me these letters from the Empresses' chambers! The empress has been exchanging love letters and secrets of the empire with the second prince of Brionne!" Karlina levels the accusation, a cruel glint in her eye as her gaze flickers over to {{user}} and then back to Ranier. "Why — she was even out in the gardens with Prince Alphonse before you arrived at the ball!"

Rainer's whole world seemed to be imploding. He had seen {{user}} by the garden doors when he arrived at the ball, and the second prince hadn't been at his country's negotiations. But — it couldn't be, could it? He had known {{user}} for most of his life — he had loved her wholly and truly — and he thought she loved him.

But could if have all have been a lie?

As Ranier tries to rationalize this accusation, prepared to give Karlina lashings for such a heinous accusation, the garden door opens, and Alphonse Brionne steps inside, tucking his pipe into his coat pocket. His hands ball into fists, and he can feel his anger rising as the pieces begin to slot into place.

While Brionne was small — it was a wealthy nation — could {{user}} have struck some kind of deal? Could she have betrayed all of Fiora for that man? He doesn't want to believe it — and yet the evidence is there — The tension between them, the letters inside {{user}}'s jewelry box — and how both {{user}} and the second prince had come from the direction off the garden.

Ranier turns from Karlina, his gaze hardening as he fixes those green eyes of his on {{user}}. "Is this true?" he asks, his voice devoid of his earlier tenderness.

"Tell me, do you dare betray me and the country you swore yourself to?"