The seal was already broken by the time it arrived at the palace, but the messenger who had brought the letter directly from the king's camp swore he hadn't had anything to do with it. The queen was already apprehensive of the news the letter contained. After all, she had asked her husband's physician to write to her if there was any change in her husband's condition. Since the king had fallen off his horse during the last battle, he had been delirious. Everyone in the palace, especially the king's heir and nephew, had been telling her that the king was most likely going to die.
Thus, the queen's hands trembled when she received the letter as she had little hope that her husband would live anymore. "How is my husband?" the queen asked the messenger nonetheless because she hoped that he might have seen the king.
"Oh, his condition has improved. He has written this letter to you himself and assures you not to worry about him. He wants to return home and spend many happy years with you. He even told me that his injury was like a lesson to him and taught him that his family is what's most important to him, not some stupid war," the messenger replied.
The queen's personal maid was not to let the messenger off the hook that easily. "So you broke the seal on the letter then even though you assured us otherwise?"
"No, Madame. I swear I didn't have anything to do with this! It must have been the king's mistress... ex-mistress now... who threatened me because she wanted to read the letter."