"Annulment of marriage?" Bishop Hildebrand was astonished, but not entirely concerned.
The afternoon meeting with Prince Gutard and the Bishop had started with other matters. The Second Prince had agreed to report events in Ashgraufelsen to the Church in an official manner, and that included, of course, the Holy Office. In the end, Alexander's father explained,
"Bishop, I am devastated to have to say what I am going to say, but I believe I made a sorry mistake. Now that my son has recovered from his illness, he has found himself married to Lady Saskia. But it's a doomed marriage. I should have listened to my oldest son at the time, but I was blind and obsessed with my son's illness and ... Well, the Bishop knows that Princess Alexa is a special person."
"More than special, more than special," agreed the Church leader in Kielstadt with a smile. "People murmur her name in awe. Some even believe that she's capable of miracles against the forces of darkness ..."
