Chapter 228 - Ren Wanted To Step Down

"What ... what did you say? Amelia did what? Why didn't you tell us about it?" asked Queen Elena. Her face looked very shaken. "Good God..."

"Grandma ... it's all over. I decided to go alone with my wife to calm down. We were devastated and needed to mourn in private," said Ren in a tired voice. "I didn't expect anyone to leak our pictures."

"We are very worried because you disappeared without a word. You act rashly as if you have no responsibility to the country," said Queen Elena. 

This time her voice was soft and understanding.

After she heard from Ren about the tragedy that happened to his family, Queen Elena became more lenient. She didn't want to press on Ren about his decision to disappear for a few months, which made the whole palace panic.

"We need time to grieve. I hope Grandma will understand," said Ren. "Palace publicists did a good job after all. They said I was sick and needed to rest, so I didn't have to appear in public for some time."

"Of course. We cannot possibly tell the public that the Crown Prince has disappeared from the palace, and no one knows where he has gone ... We have to save face," said Queen Elena. She cleared her throat and then pulled Ren's hand to her lap. "You said you got married secretly. Why didn't you bring her to us so we could meet her? Are you going to punish us for not accepting your mother's marriage to your father in the past?"

Ren was silent at his grandmother's question. He just stared at his hand that Queen Elena was holding tightly. He remembered how much he hated his grandparents because they did not approve of his mother's relationship with his father, who was a commoner.

Until Princess Hannah, Ren's mother, died, the palace still did not acknowledge the marriage and Ren's existence in this world. That was why Ren was determined to seize the Moravian throne for himself as a form of his revenge.

After her cousin died and the palace had no other male heir left, they finally called Ren back to Moravia. From then on, Queen Elena and King Gustave treated Ren well. Even recently, they expressed regret for their past actions.

This caused conflict within Ren's heart.

"That's what I took into consideration," said Ren at last. His voice sounded cold as he spoke and stared hard at Queen Elena's face. "I needed some time to think and finally decided to leave the position of the crown prince. I prefer my non-aristocratic wife to the Moravian throne. I know the palace will not be able to accept a commoner as my wife."

"Oh, Ren ... you still remember that ..." sighed Queen Elena regretfully. 

"The past and present are very different. 30 years ago, the world was still quite conservative, and the royal family needed to maintain our reputation ... We already regret not accepting your father."

"If you regret that incident, you will acknowledge my father and put his name in the royal family official records," said Ren. He pulled his hand from Queen Elena's grasp. 

Over the years, his chest had been filled with grudges for the injustices his parents had endured. At that time, he only wanted to forcefully take the throne of Moravia and then enter his father's name into the royal family official records.

But now all that was gone. Ren no longer had such desire, and he didn't lust for power anymore. Queen Elena looked devastated to learn that Ren intended to resign from his position as the crown prince.

Then who would continue the tradition and hold power in Moravia from the royal family? Many opposition parties had pressed their desire to end the Moravian royal dynasty and turned their country into a republic.

If the public knew that the royal family had absolutely no successors, this urge would blow even louder. Their hopes now rested on Ren because apart from being a male descendant, he was also known as a genius, charismatic, and was very popular with the people.

Princess Caroline, his cousin, did not get as much support as Ren because she was a woman. The doctor also recently declared that she was pregnant with a baby girl. Then, what would happen to the royal family if Ren decided to resign ???

King Gustave was already 76 years old. He couldn't wait for Caroline to get pregnant again and try to get a son. By the time the child grew up, it was already too late.

They had to persuade Ren to abandon his intention to step down.

"Renald. You cannot carelessly make such a big decision," said King Gustave. Now he was the one who decided to speak, and his voice sounded firmly authoritative. "When we called you home and appointed you as Heinrich's successor, we entrusted you with a very large responsibility, namely the responsibility to lead our Kingdom, Moravia, passing on responsibility from generation to generation since the tenth century. Our family has survived through the centuries, from the beginning until it entered the modern era like now."

Ren looked at King Gustave intently, but his eyes remained cold. 

"When you agreed to accept the post, you were bound by your responsibility to do your best for Moravia. You can't just step back. You are not a gentleman if you want to take back your promise," King Gustave retorted. "If you use the excuse that you have married an ordinary woman, we can accept that woman as your wife. I think the people of Moravia can now accept ordinary women as members of the royal family. You cannot use your wife as an excuse to resign."

"So, you were saying, even though that woman is a poor orphan from the village, you will accept her as the wife of the crown prince?" asked Ren with a mocking smile. "I do not believe you."

Queen Elena's forehead throbbed as she heard Ren's words about the poor orphan girl from the village. She had heard various gossip on the internet that the girl pictured with Ren going on a vacation in Bali was Fae Muller. She was a girl from the countryside and worked in Almstad as a cafe waiter.

"So .. the rumors are true?" asked Queen Elena in a choked voice. She took a deep breath and exchanged glances with her husband. "Gustave .. what do you think?"

"It would be difficult ..." complained King Gustave. He was deep in thought. "Renald, you can marry an ordinary person, a non-aristocratic woman. But if that woman came from the lower class, the nobles in Moravia, as well as the neighboring kingdoms and our own people will probably look down on her ...."

Queen Elena nodded in agreement. "That's right. If she is at least a professional, for example, she works in a good company, has a higher education, then she is still acceptable. I mean ... your father was also an ordinary person, but at least he was a genius and highly educated. If possible, your wife should be better than him. She shouldn't embarrass us if you are going to take her to meet the nobles and state guests from other countries."

Ren smiled coldly at his grandparents' doubts. He was sure, if they heard who Vega really was, King Gustave and Queen Elena would not think twice about accepting her. However, since they thought the girl was really a lower class girl, they obviously didn't want to accept her.

"If you can't accept Vega for who she is, then I can't continue to be the crown prince of Moravia. You have to find someone else," Ren said in a flat voice.

He didn't care what King Gustave and Queen Elena wanted. Because, if he decided to drink the immortality potion and stayed with Vega forever, he would also have to resign from the public.

Maybe ten years from now he should fake his death as Renald Hanenberg and live as a new person. When that time came, Moravia's throne would be meaningless to him.

"No... that's not what I mean .. Ah .." Queen Elena looked upset. She was still thinking about the public's criticism of the girl if the palace confirmed that Ren had indeed married a commoner girl. "I am just worried about your wife. Outsiders are still very shortsighted."

Ren lifted his face and looked at Queen Elena with a slightly surprised expression. "Hmm ... Grandma is worried about Vega? Not because you don't want to accept girls from the lower classes as my wife?"

Queen Elena shook her head. "Is her name Vega? What a beautiful name."

Ren smiled at his grandmother's words and nodded. "She is much more beautiful than her name."

Queen Elena and King Gustave looked at each other and both of them sighed together.

"Where is your wife now? Why isn't she here to accompany you while you are being treated?" asked King Gustave in amazement.

"She is with her family. I don't want her to worry about my condition, so I intentionally hide the incident from her," said Ren. "When things settle down, I'll see her."

"Family?" Queen Elena frowned in surprise. "Didn't people say that she is a country bumpkin and an orphan?"

Ren shook his head. "Actually, she's not a girl from the village, like many people are gossiping about. In fact .... I'm afraid, even our family doesn't deserve her."