At Edward's words, Frederick III's expression softened.
A variety of emotions, from relief to sadness, appeared on his face and disappeared in an instant.
Frederick III turned his back to Edward, who kept his head bowed, and went to his throne.
Then, from the height of the throne, he proclaimed.
"Edward has chosen true love. Since royalty is not allowed to marry commoners, I strip Edward of his right to the throne."
At these words, Edward's grip on Annette tightened.
Edward's hand tightened around Annette's, for although he had prepared himself for this, he could no longer reverse his decision now that it had actually been announced.
Annette looked at Edward anxiously from the side.
She caught a glimpse of Edward's pale face.
"Cedric, son of my late brother Elliot, will be the new crown prince. Any objections may be raised here."
The subjects gathered in the hall approved with silence.
"Good. Cedric is now the new crown prince. And to secure his position as the next king, I order Cedric's betrothal to Princess Charlotte."
Princess Charlotte is the younger sister of Edward, who is seven years old, and is the right age for Cedric.
"Understood."
Had he anticipated that this would happen? Cedric was not upset.
"Now, Edward, raise your head."
"Yes, sir."
Edward was no longer royalty.
So in public, he could no longer even raise his head without the permission of Frederick III, the king.
Edward no longer climbed the marble staircase in front of him. The golden throne that had been promised to him was now forever out of reach.
"I will give you Danzel's territory, but I will not give you the right to trade with the Republic. You must govern it in some other way. And also, I'll give you the title of Grand Duke for one generation only... that title will protect you."
Danzel's territory in the north was originally a poor area where crops did not grow.
It was a window for trade with the central countries, but trade with the smaller countries was not very profitable.
It was only after a single road was built from the Republic of Morvia in the west, straddling the central countries and connecting it to the kingdom in the east, that the land became rich from trade with the republics.
It was a matter of life and death for the Duke of Danzel to be prohibited from trading with the Republic, which was the largest source of profit in his territory.
Even if Duke Danzel was executed for treason against the nation, his own life was more important to the people.
If the people, who had once enjoyed a prosperous life, were to be reduced to a life of poverty again, their resentment would grow.
This is where the prince, who was disinherited as a lord, would go.
The accumulated resentment would surely be directed toward Edward.
That is why the king gave him the title of Grand Duke, at least out of a sense of parental love.
"I have also decided that he and Annette will not be officially married until after Cedric ascends to the throne. And any children born after the marriage would be entitled to the title only by their own power. I will not accept any objection to this."
In the first place, the Grand Duke title of a kingdom is a one-time title given to a son in the direct line of royalty who does not succeed to the throne, but whose son is usually given the title of a severed noble family.
In the current kingdom, there are many titles that can be inherited because there are many families that were severed by the plague ten years ago.
So if a child is born after a formal marriage, he or she has a noble family registry and can obtain a title on his or her own.
It is very difficult to obtain a baron or other noble title, but it is relatively easy to obtain a knighthood for a single generation.
However, a child born before that time is treated as a child of a concubine and becomes a commoner without noble status.
The world would not allow two people united by true love to have such a child.
In other words, if they wanted a child, they would have to wait for Cedric's accession to the throne.
It would be ten years at the earliest before Cedric, who was only eleven years old, would be able to ascend to the throne.
In some cases, he would have to wait even longer.
He would rule a territory that would be in shambles and spend the rest of his life with a woman with whom he did not know when he would be married.
That was the punishment that Frederick III gave Edward.
"Edward's aides should also help him until Cedric's accession to the throne. You are hereby commanded to do so."
The aides turned pale at the king's sudden order.
They could not understand why they had suddenly been relegated from the aides of the honourable next king to the northern part of the country.
Only Percy Coleridge, the prime minister's son, looked determined and bowed his head.
He was the only one who had tried to admonish Edward, but as a result, he deeply accepted the fact that he could not stop it.
"I... I hate it. I don't want to go."
And there were those who complained about the order.
"I beg you, Your Majesty. Since it is because of me that you found out that the Black Death Wheat was responsible for the death of the Queen Mother ten years ago, then give me a reward. I don't want to go to the North. I want to stay by Lady Mariabelle's side. I beg you. Please let me go to the empire as Mariabelle's attendant!"
Simon Lent, Edward's stepbrother, exclaimed.