Isolde let out a cold laugh. "Perfect. Since you won’t leave, I’ll give you a piece of my mind."

She walked over. As August rose and cupped his hands in greeting, he spoke before she could: “When I stepped out earlier and saw your maid, I knew you must be inside. So I waited here for you.”

Isolde cast him an icy glance. Demanding answers could wait. Let’s hear what he had to say first.

“Take a seat, Mr. Felton,” she said coolly before sitting down herself.

August thanked her with a bow and sat as well. His gaze shifted to Hattie. “Might you excuse us for a moment?”

“No need,” Isolde replied flatly. “There’s nothing she can’t hear. If it’s unfit for her ears, then I don’t need to hear it either.”

Her tone was sharp, bordering on outright hostility.

August gave an awkward chuckle. “Do you still hold a grudge? I apologize for the offense caused. My son acted foolishly in submitting that petition… He never imagined it would lead to such consequences.”

Isolde’s voice remained frigid. “His mistakes are his own to atone for. You, however, I never took you for such a hypocrite.”

August stiffened, confusion flickering in his eyes. “What do you mean by that?”

“You know exactly what you’ve done. If you’re here to apologize on Arthur’s behalf, save your breath.” Her disdain was palpable.

When August had first spotted Hattie outside, he’d guessed Isolde was inside. He’d waited, intending to either apologize or plead for leniency. But now, seeing that even an apology would be futile, he could only rise with a resigned sigh.

He said, “My apologies for disturbing your peace. I’ll take my leave.”

As he turned to go, Isolde’s eyes darkened. She motioned to Hattie. “Settle the bill and catch up later. I need a word with him.”

“Yes, my lady,” Hattie replied.

Isolde chased after him and blocked August’s path. “Wait!”

August regarded Isolde with calm composure. “Do you have further business with me?”

Flames of fury burned in Isolde’s eyes as she spoke coldly, “I overheard everything you said to Penny in the private room. I thought you were a gentleman, but it turns out you’re nothing but a hypocrite! You’ve brought Penny nothing but suffering!”

August was taken aback. “Princess Isolde, what do you mean? How have I caused Penny suffering?”

“You made promises to Penny, then broke them. She bore you a son, yet you allowed your wife to take the child from her and forced her to flee to Windermount. Do you have any idea how hard her life has been there? If you were loyal to your wife, you should never have approached Penny in the first place. But once you made a vow, you should have kept it. She was willing to be your concubine, yet you showed no responsibility whatsoever. You are despicable!”

August’s gaze darkened as he looked at her. “Penny told me she was well in Windermount, yet you claim she suffered. Did she… truly have a difficult life?”

“Longing for her son but unable to see him… What greater pain is there than being torn from one’s own child? Do you call that not suffering?” Isolde demanded.

August sighed softly. “There was nothing to be done. It was her own choice to leave. Who could have stopped her? After giving birth to Arthur, she didn’t leave Argentum immediately. She stayed for five years. During that time, I brought Arthur to see her once every year. Later, she said that Arthur was bright for his age and, at five years old, might start noticing things. So she asked me not to bring him anymore. Truthfully, I didn’t even know she had left Argentum until she wrote to me from Windermount. Every year after that, I sent her letters updating her on Arthur’s life.”

His words carried only resignation, not a trace of remorse, which infuriated Isolde even more. “Her tragedy could have been avoided. As Arthur’s mother, she should have remained by his side. This is all your fault, your weakness.”

August said solemnly, “You’re right. It is my weakness.”

Isolde fumed, “Someone from the Valen family mentioned that Cristina once said Arthur’s mother was a prostitute. Why didn’t you defend her? Was she really a prostitute? How could you let others slander her like that?”

“What? Cristina said that?” August was stunned, then visibly angered.

“I refuse to believe she made it up. Even Arthur believes it. Don’t tell me you’ve never explained his origins to him?” Isolde said.

“He knows we’re not his birth parents. As for the rest… he never asked, and I didn’t know how to bring it up…”

Isolde was shocked. “What did you say? You’re not his birth parents? Aren’t you Arthur’s real father?”

August looked bewildered. “Didn’t you hear my conversation with Penny? Of course I’m not Arthur’s father. How could I be?”

Isolde was utterly confused. “What’s going on here?”

August seemed torn between laughter and exasperation. “So you misunderstood?”

Flushing, Isolde quickly apologized. “My apologies for the misunderstanding. Shall we go inside and clarify everything?”

“Very well,” August agreed.

Hattie, who had just settled the bill and come looking for Isolde, gaped as she saw Isolde leading August back into the café straight to a private room.

What on earth is happening? Hattie wondered.

Once seated, August began recounting the story, “Back then, I was just a poor scholar. Thanks to Mr. Gardner’s favor, I taught at the Gardner family’s school for their young masters and ladies. That’s how I met Penny. You could say I was kind of her teacher. She was betrothed to the heir of the Grant family, a perfect match.

“But during the wedding preparations, disaster struck the Gardner family. Their clan was vast, and the fallout was widespread. Dozens of their officials were demoted, dismissed, or exiled. The family fell from grace overnight, the school closed, and I left. Months later, Penny came to me pregnant, begging for help. When I asked who the father was, she refused to say. I mentioned the Grant heir, and her bitter hatred made it clear. They’d broken off the engagement, likely due to her family’s downfall.

“I urged her to terminate the pregnancy, but she adamantly refused, insisting the child was innocent and she’d endure any hardship to keep it. Seeing her determination, I proposed taking her in as my concubine to protect her. But my wife vehemently opposed it, and you know how gossipy she is, Princess Isolde, so I can’t explain it to her. Had she learned Penny was carrying another man’s child, all of Argentum would’ve known by morning. As a last resort, I rented an outside residence where Penny could give birth while I tried persuading my wife.”

Noticing his hoarse voice, Isolde poured him coffee. “Rest your voice first, Mr. Felton.”

After thanking her and taking a sip, August sighed. “Penny was stubborn. Had she not kept that child, she might have remarried and avoided this lifelong regret.”

“Yes, Penny is stubborn,” Isolde agreed, watching him intently. “Then what happened? How did things unfold afterward?”