<h4>Chapter 259: Fourteenth Birthday I</h4>


    Weeks had passed, and finally, Ad''s birthday was nearing the corner as such Berengar had already left the Castle in Kufstein. Much to his surprise, Linde was invited toe with him; he supposed his two women were beginning to get along, which was a good sign.


    He had no idea that the reason for this was because the two women had conspired behind his back to meet up and convince him together to end his newly formed rtionship with Honoria. As such, he was in a good mood as he sat in his carriage, which drew him closer to Graz, with his arm wrapped around his lover, holding her tightly.


    Linde was frowning heavily at the moment; despite the affection Berengar was showing her, there was an unwanted person in this carriage, and it was not Henrietta. Though the little girl was also present, the person who had so thoroughly ruined the mood was none other than Honoria.


    To be Frank, Berengar did not trust the girl by her lonesome; she was a spoiled, entitled brat, and though he was beginning to take measures to correct this behavior, he had ultimately decided to take her with him to Ad''s birthday, rather than allow her to cause trouble in Kufstein while he was absent.


    Even though Honoria had apologized for her rude behavior, Linde was still unhappy with the girl''s presence. Though she was aware that Berengar''s intentions for the girl mainly were political at this point, she was still worried that Berengar might fall for the young, naive princess.


    Thus there was an awkward silence in the carriage as Berengar, and hispanions waited to arrive in Graz. After most of the day had passed, the caravan finally arrived in Graz, and they were not the only visitors.


    Count Otto held an esteemed position in Berengar''s government; he was on the Duke''s Council and, as Count, was the de facto governor of Steiermark. This was thanks to his daughter, Ad, who was Berengar''s fiancee. However, Otto had made a name for himself in Berengar''s campaign against the Bavarian upation and, as such, was held in high esteem by the other Counts.


    As Berengar and his carriage entered the Castle''s courtyard, they were greeted by Count Otto and his family. Berengar was the first to step out of the carriage, followed by Linde, then Henrietta, and finally Honoria.


    Ad needed one nce to tell that this beautiful young girl was herpetition and highly likely to be Princess Honoria. Ava, who was well aware of Ad''s grievance, had a wide smirk on her face; she could tell instantly that the girl harbored feelings for Berengar by the way she nced at him.


    Count Otto also noticed this and felt slighted; Berengar had not just brought his lover but another young woman to his fiancee''s birthday celebration. Regardless of this, Bernegar approached the Count and greeted him.


    "Uncle! It is good to see that you are still in such good health."


    Count Otto merely nodded, his gaze never shifting from Honoria''s presence. Henrietta, on the other hand, sheepishly greeted her uncle.


    "Uncle..."


    The little girl hid behind Berengar as she said this; she was shy by nature, and though she had begun to make friends, often at the expense of her brother''s reputation. She was still nervous around unfamiliar people; after all, Count Otto was seldom a part of her life.? Finally, Count Otto could not contain his curiosity and asked the question on his mind.


    "Who might this beautiful young woman be?"


    To this, Berengar nced over at Honoria before returning his gaze to his uncle. He smiled while answering his question.


    "This is Lady Valeria; she is from the Byzantine Empire and is a guest at my court for the time being. I did not trust her to behave herself by her lonesome in Kufstein, so I brought her along with me."


    This was the truth of the matter, but for some reason, Count Otto expected there to be more to their rtionship than this. As for Honoria, she pouted when she heard this; she was not necessarily a troublemaker, aside from getting on Linde''s nerves for the fun of it.


    However, after being threatened with removal from Berengar''s court, she had halted such actions in fear that Berengar would go through with his threat and ship her back to the Byzantine Empire. As such, she had been behaving herself for thest few days. Honoria greeted Count Otto by bowing respectfully.


    "I thank you for your hospitality, Count Otto."


    To this, Otto merely nodded before shifting his attention back to Berengar


    "Wee to my home, your Grace; I trust that my daughter''s birthday celebration will be to your liking!"


    Berengar nodded when he heard this and followed Count Otto and his family inside. While doing so, he approached his little fiancee and grabbed ahold of her hand. However, to this, she merely ripped it away from his grasp and pouted.


    She was already displeased that Berengar had taken a liking to yet another girl, yet he had the gall to bring her to her birthday celebration? To this, Ad felt insulted. Seeing that his fiancee was upset, Berengar sighed heavily before expressing the thoughts on his mind.


    "You look beautiful, Ad; it has been some time since west met. Did you miss me?"


    Ad pouted in silence, not bothering to speak with Berengar. After seeing both Linde and Honoria clinging onto her fiance, Ad had grown quite self-conscious. Not only in regards to her position in Berengar''s life but also in terms of her appearance.


    Though she was still growing, she felt as if her charm did not match that of an exotic princess from the East like Honoria, nor did it match the sex appeal of a buxom beauty like Linde. As such, she simply sulked for the time being.


    Eventually, Berengar was led to his quarters, where Linde was separated and given her room. It would be disrespectful to Count Otto and his daughter for Berengar to have carnal rtions with his lover while under their roof.


    After a while, Linde regrouped with Ad and hugged the girl before stuffing her into her bust, nearly suffocating the girl in the process as she stroked Ad''s golden hair.


    "Oh sweet little Ad, I understand how you feel; if you need to cry, let it all out. I am here for you!"


    An unlikely alliance had formed between Linde and Ad, who were usually at each other''s throats. For the time being, they were united against Honoria in this awkward trio that had been formed around the man they loved.


    As women, they naturally neededfort when they were upset. Thus they provided it for one another. Ad began to break down in tears as she tried to break free of Linde''srge bust and sobbed heavily while expressing her thoughts.


    "I didn''t expect him to bring the girl here! I am so envious!"


    To this, Linde sighed as she tried tofort Ad


    "Berengar doesn''t love the girl, at least not yet. He sees her as a political tool to be used against those he deems his enemies. For whatever reason, he is confident he will be fighting France in the future and wants to do everything in his power to break the alliance between them and the Byzantine Empire.


    Besides, now more than ever, he needs a powerful ally, and as such, he will likely enact Polygamy to marry the three of us. Despite this, he wants to make you Empress, so that should show you how much he cares for you and your position as first among his future wives!"


    Upon hearing this Ad began to wipe the tears from her eyes as she slowly sniffled. After she had calmed herself down, she questioned the legitimacy of what Linde had just said.


    "Really?"


    Ad did not know how to feel about this, her worries about her spot as the wife being taken had be realized, in the sense that Berengar intended to be a Polygamous Monarch, but she still held the position of his Empress, and first wife, which meant that Berengar still had feelings for her.


    Linde nodded her head and smiled as she stroked Ad''s hair. To this, Ad replied with a bitter smile as she came to a sudden realization.


    "There''s no convincing him otherwise, is there?"


    Upon hearing this, Linde''s smile also turned bitter as she shook her head. Though the two had initially conspired to bring an end to Berengar''s budding rtionship with Honoria, Linde had realized during the time since then that Berengar would not be dissuaded because he knew that neither Linde nor Ad were willing to leave him over such an issue.


    Thus, instead of convincing Berengar otherwise, Linde decided to convince Ad that it was simply not worth the effort and that Berengar still considered her first among his women. After all, Linde had gotten what she wanted in all of this, she would one day be an official wife of Berengar, and that was enough for her.


    Seeing the look on Linde''s face, Ad sighed before she broke away from Linde''s grasp and expressed her eptance of the predicament she found herself in.


    "Fine... I ept it, but that does not mean I will not fight for his affection!"