Chapter 93 Responding To The King In The Royal Capital And Dealing With The Crown Prince
Marquis Grandchester was hurrying to get ready to head to the royal palace. The moment his attendant held up the dressing box with cuff links, a cat's paw with a meatball-like hand stretched out from above.
"Whoa!"
"Wow!"
Marquis and his attendant let out simultaneous cries of surprise.
"Oh, I'm so sorry to have startled you."
Suddenly, a 3-colored cat appeared out of thin air.
"Perhaps you're a friend of Sara's?"
"That's right!"
Mike did a flip on top of the cuff links.
"What do you want from me?"
"I've brought a letter from Sara. It's extremely urgent, you see."
As Mike wagged his tail, a letter floated down from mid-air and landed in Marquis's hand.
"Thank you for going to the trouble."
"Don't mention it! If there's a reply, I'll take care of it."
"I understand. By the way, I'd like to offer my gratitude to the fairy, but is there anything you'd like?"
"It's not that I want something in return, but I'd be delighted if you had some delicious liquor."
"Hmm, does the fairy palace have a refined palate?"
"I wonder. I just like it, that's all."
"Then, please drink to your heart's content. You can even drain the wine cellar if you like."
"Hehe, thank you."
Mike landed on the nearby sofa with a thud and sat down elegantly.
"Bring me the liquor. I'll read the secret letter and satisfy the fairy's taste and nose with the finest drink. I'll take care of it."
"Understood."
After the attendant left the room, Marquis opened the letter that had arrived.
"Hmm...it's likely that Roisen didn't orchestrate this, I suppose."
"Sara said the same thing. The situation feels unnatural and unsettling."
"I see. It's good that I read this secret letter before meeting with His Majesty. It seems I'll need to change the content of my report to His Majesty. Sara has certainly found an excellent friend."
Mike puffed out his chest proudly, his whiskers twitching with excitement. He was completely full of himself.
'I see, cats...or rather, fairies can make faces like that too...'
The Marquis thought to himself with a wry smile, but didn't dare to say it out loud.
The attendant returned with several bottles, plates, and glasses.
"Respected Fairy, how would you like your liquor prepared? Shall I pour it into the glasses for you?"
"Hmm, just a minute."
Mike did a backflip on the chair and transformed into a beautiful woman about 1 meter (� 3.28 feet) tall. Although she was short, she didn't look like a child, but rather an alluring beauty. Her long hair, a mix of 3 colors, was tied in a loose 3-braided style, hanging down from one shoulder.
"This is amazing!"
"Indeed, you're incredibly beautiful."
"Thank you. I think I'll enjoy my drink more in this form."
With that, Mike giggled and downed the wine in her glass in one gulp.
"Delicious!"
"I'm glad you're enjoying it. Unfortunately, I have to head to the palace. You can stay here and enjoy your drink at your leisure."
"I'll do that. Thank you."
* * *
When the Marquis arrived at the palace, he was led to one of the private reception rooms in the king's personal quarters.
"I have been summoned."
"It's been a while since the last ball, hasn't it, Marquis Grandchester?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The Marquis sat down on the sofa as the king gestured for him to do so.
"I've read the confidential letter that arrived earlier. If this is true, I'll have to make a formal report in a proper setting, but..."
The king hesitated.
"Are you going to make this public? You might be accused of covering up the embezzlement scandal."
"It's the truth, so I'm willing to take the responsibility."
"I see. You're as honest as ever. But can I really trust a lord as honest as you to govern the vast territory of Grandchester?"
"As you wish, Your Majesty."
"Hmph. You're still as cunning as ever. If it weren't for this incident, you wouldn't have reported the embezzlement at all, would you?"
"I don't think that's the case, Your Majesty."
The Marquis received the king's rebuke with a cool expression.
"Well, that's fine. By the way, which country do you mean by 'enemy nation'? I'm not quite sure."
"That's something we're still trying to figure out ourselves."
"Hmm."
"The leader of the mercenary group, who was lying in wait as a hunting ground, was a knight from Roisen who had fallen from grace. With just a little prodding, he readily confessed that his employer was a noble from Roisen."
"Roisen's fallen knight, you say...? By the way, are all the prisoners mercenaries? Are there no regular soldiers among them?"
"At the very least, we haven't caught anyone like that. That's why it's hard to believe they're working under Roisen's orders."
"What do you mean?"
"Would Your Majesty use fallen knights as mercenaries in the first battle against another country?"
"...I doubt it. The uncertainty is too great, and it's hard to predict how things will turn out. So, you think there's someone who wants to frame Roisen for a crime, huh?"
"As you wish. Not only that, but I also think they intended to burn our wheat and worsen Avalon's food situation. If they just wanted to worsen relations between our countries, there's no need to hire 500 mercenaries."
"Hmm, that's not a cheap deal... If that's the case, I'll hear what others have to say."
The king rang the bell and called for his aide, who was waiting outside, to bring in the person in this room. However, the moment he heard the name, Marquis's back stiffened. Why was that man here?
"I was summoned, I presume?"
The one who entered the room was Crown Prince Gerhart of Roisen. Marquis hastily stood up and bowed to the royal.
Gerhart was not the son of the king of Roisen. The king of Roisen had 3 princes, but the third prince had abandoned his right to the throne after killing his 2 older brothers, and the king's younger brother's son had become the crown prince. He was still a young man in his twenties.
"I apologize for summoning you. It seems that a group of thugs pretending to be Roisen's agents has appeared in our country."
"What!?"
The king of Avalon looked at Marquis and urged him to explain the situation. Marquis, while fearful of being misunderstood as criticizing Roisen, explained the series of events that had started with the border invasion to Gerhart.
"I see. However, the mastermind behind the incident is not from my country. Of course, it's possible that our nobles are involved, but at the very least, I, the king, am not thinking of such an invasion."
Gerhart declared.
"Hmm, I think so too. If a country with excellent military power like Roisen were to commit such a crime, it would be too sloppy."
"But perhaps the intention behind the attack on my territory was to worsen the relationship between our 2 countries?"
"That might be the case."
Gerhart let out a deep sigh and gazed into the distance.
"My country is still reeling from the purge 10 years ago. Prince Adolf's power was immense, and his influence was significant as well."
"But wasn't it your king who decided to carry out the purge?"
"Actually, Prince Adolf was secretly planning to invade neighboring countries. He even intended to invade Lady Rebecca's home country, which was supposed to be a vassal state."
"In other words, he was planning to wage a war of invasion against Avalon as well?"
The king's eyes widened in surprise, and he sat up straight.
"Yes. The king proposed a tax increase to expand the military, and that's when he decided to purge Prince Adolf. The king repeatedly warned Prince Adolf that 'even if you impose heavy taxes and start a war, you won't gain the people's support.' But Prince Adolf retorted, 'Those who don't swear loyalty to the royal family are not citizens of Roisen,' and pressured the king to punish those who didn't pay taxes and the nobles who didn't support him."
"I see. I thought we had a good relationship with Roisen, but this is quite surprising."
"If the king loses the support of his subjects and nobles, he can't maintain his power. My king knows better than anyone that the royal bloodline isn't the most important thing in ruling a country."
"Hmm... that's a painful truth to hear."
"I apologize if my words were impolite."
"No need to apologize. It's the truth, after all."
The king sat back deeply into the sofa and closed his eyes.
"The king made the difficult decision to purge Prince Adolf, but the cost was too high..."
"If it's seen as a purge of his own son, he won't be viewed favorably by other countries either."
"That's true, but the fact that many noble families went bankrupt had an impact on all aspects of agriculture, industry, and commerce. If he suddenly give a territory to another noble family, it's not like they can manage it right away."
"Yeah, that's definitely true."
"The commercial sector was the most devastated. With agriculture and industry not doing well, many noble families were struggling financially and became targets for cunning merchants. Even specialty products were bought out from under their feet."
"There are always people who take advantage of others."
"That's right. However, this led to various conflicts both domestically and internationally, and we still haven't recovered our national power."
If Sara had been listening to this conversation from the side, she might have laughed at the naivety of the royal family. It's only natural for merchants to make money. The people of Roisen are just being blamed for the royal family's failure in raising their children, and that's all.
"King Avalon, I beg of you. Please clearly state that this incident was a crime that tarnished Roisen's name."
Gerhart knelt before King Avalon and pleaded with him.
"There's no need to do that, I don't intend to blame Roisen. Please, stand up."
"Yes... I'm truly grateful."
The king turned to face Marquis Grandchester.
"Marquis Grandchester, it's enough to report that the thugs who tried to plunder Grandchester territory were caught. There's no need to report the embezzlement."
"But with many prisoners, it's possible that other families might find out."
"I've already received a report from you about the conspiracy that started with embezzlement, and I had the culprits caught to prevent the plundering. If I made it public, the culprits might have escaped, so it couldn't be helped."
"I understand your will."
Marquis Grandchester stood up from the sofa and knelt before the king.
"Hmm. Marquis Grandchester, you even burned your hunting grounds to catch those scoundrels. Well done."
"I'm deeply grateful for this good fortune."
Gerhart also approached Marquis Grandchester.
"I'd like to express my gratitude to Marquis Grandchester as well. Thank you for stopping the crime before suspicions fell on our country."
"It's too kind of you to say so."
The king then spoke to Marquis with a sly smile.
"But, Marquis Grandchester, be sure to correct the misappropriation reports from that time period as soon as possible. Even I couldn't cover it up."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Thanks to the king's quick thinking, the crisis for Grandchester was averted for the time being. However, when considering the aftermath, the headache-inducing problems piled up.
'Why did His Excellency Gerhart visit at this time incognito?'
Marquis wondered, but he couldn't ask such an impolite question to a royal guest, and so he took his leave from the king's presence.
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