Chapter 2: The Mistakes of the Warriors’ Party (4)
That evening.
A celebration was held in the capital to commemorate the defeat of the demon king.
A place where nobles, knights, and magicians all gathered from all over the empire.
Everyone laughed and congratulated the warrior party, but Calia couldn’t smile brightly.
“… Let go of your face. What are you going to do when other people see you?”
Because she had to be right here next to the prince.
Calia looked down at the prince and sighed.
The prince just turned 13. Even considering her age, she was about a head shorter than her, and her appearance seemed younger than her age.
He even has a humming voice because his voice hasn’t changed yet.
‘… It’s embarrassing.’
Calia bit her lip.
She felt like a babysitter.
No matter how much she wanted to become the empress, the moment she had to accompany the prince like this, she wanted to hide somewhere.
But Calia had to endure it with a forced smile. On a good day like this, if your expression is rotten, words can’t help but come out.
Above all, this position was a good opportunity to recruit other nobles. Therefore, she too had to suppress her emotions as much as she could.
And among them, there was one nobleman I had to meet.
Duke of Rossier.
A former hero and a close friend of the emperor.
The influence he has is so great that in fact, it is said that he will decide the next emperor.
Thus, Calia was the person who must be embraced now that things are going strangely.
‘It’s not that difficult.’
Wasn’t his daughter, Iris, at the hero’s party? Therefore, Calia had been friendly with Iris long ago and learned about Duke Rossier’s information in detail.
‘There it is.’
So I thought I would have a chance. Calia and the prince approached Duke Rossier, who was talking with other nobles.
A man with rose-red hair and green eyes saw Calia approaching and immediately greeted her.
“Ah, Duke Calia Varus!”
“Duke Rossier. Long time no see. Your face has improved a lot.”
“Ah, thank you. I heard that you finally defeated the demon lord. Congratulations Of course, if it were me, I would have killed him long ago.”
“… How can I catch up with Duke Rossier’s skills?”
Calia held back her anger and bowed her pride. Duke Rossier slightly laughed at Calia, who was trying hard to manage her expression, and turned her gaze to the prince.
“Ah, His Highness the Prince was there too. You will be happy. After all, my fiancé has finally defeated the Demon King.”
“I’m here to talk about something serious.”
“Ohhh, this is sudden. Serious talk at such a comfortable banquet….”
“Let me ask you. Who do you think should be the next emperor, me or the princess?”
“Isn’t that right, Your Highness the Prince? In the history of the Solus Empire, the Empress has never appeared.”
“Then why haven’t you officially declared your support for me yet?”
“Isn’t His Majesty still alive? There is no need to be in too much of a hurry.”
Duke Rossier smiles kindly. But Calia already knew his intentions.
‘He probably wants to hear both sides’ positions until the very end.’
According to the information Iris gave me, the princess had already presented various conditions to capture him.
I heard some of the details of the conditions.
Calia will have to make a more unconventional proposal than that.
“… You didn’t like the proposal I made earlier.”
“Let’s listen.”
“As the castle was occupied this time, an underground treasure store was also discovered. It’s still taking time to open it, but if it does, I’ll give you 10% of the treasures in the treasure house.”
“… You’re trying to buy my loyalty with money.”
“This is a reward for your dedication to the Empire as a warrior and lord of Roswell. If this is not enough, I can give you another treasure of your choice.”
“Thank you very much.”
First, I listened to what the prince suggested.
Duke Rossier had a pretty satisfied smile, but Calia knew that this was not enough.
Duke Rossier, who is already one of the richest nobles in the empire, can’t come to mind because of his few jewels.
I needed another, more powerful shot here.
“There is something else I would like to suggest. Duke Rossier still has a young son.”
“Yes. He’s a lovely son who doesn’t hurt even if you put him in his eyes.”
“Yes, shouldn’t there be a suitable match for such a wonderful son? So I suggest If a daughter comes out between me and His Highness the Prince later, how about marrying the son of Duke Rossier?”
The most important thing for the Duke of Rossier is to make his bloodline even greater.
It is a well-known story that he once tried to marry the emperor’s sister. Unfortunately, the emperor’s one and only sister passed away prematurely.
Therefore, the best move Calia came up with was to bring the Rosie family together with the imperial family.
“Heh heh heh heh heh!!!”
Hearing the proposal, Duke Rossier laughed out loud. He laughed so much that people around him stared at him.
Calia held her breath and waited for Duke Rossier’s reply. When the laughter finally stopped, Duke Rosie cleared his throat and said,
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“Isn’t it too soon? You speak as if you are already pregnant with His Highness’s child.”
“That….”
“Still, it was quite an ingenious proposal. It has been this old man’s long-held dream that the Rossier family become in-laws with the imperial family.”
Fortunately, the Duke’s reaction to Rossier was positive. A small smile appeared on Calia’s lips.
“Your Highness the Prince, it must be fun to have such a pleasant Duke of Varus by your side. Doesn’t a clown really suit you?”
“… What?”
“Instead, I dare to suggest. How about marrying my beautiful daughter instead of this man?”
“Now what….”
However, Calia froze at Duke Rossier’s explosive remarks.
“… No, you’re kidding too much, Duke Rossier.”
Calia tried to cope with her smile, but the Duke of Rossier rather approached Calia’s nose and whispered to her.
“Is the only thing you know how to do is arranged marriage?”
“… ….”
“Know your subject.”
Calia’s expression crumpled when she heard Duke Rosie’s vitriol. Conversely, Duke Rossier smiled kindly and waited for the prince’s reply.
“… That’s an interesting suggestion. I’ll think about it.”
At the unexpected reply, Calia glared at the prince with a murderous expression.
Duke Rossier chuckled with a satisfied expression.
“Thank you. Well then, I hope you have a good night.”
After the Duke of Rossier left, Calia grabbed the prince’s arm and moved to her secluded place.
“Ah! Sick! What are you doing!”
“Aren’t you seriously thinking about it?”
“What are you talking about? Even Duke Rossier said that just for a laugh. Because it sounds so strange.”
“… ….”
Calia finally came to her senses and let go of her prince’s arm.
How did it end up like this?
She clearly thought that she had captured what the Duke wanted in Rossier, but instead, her own position was shaken even more.
“Iris… ….”
Her anger was directed at Iris.
That year. The situation came to Ji-kyung Lee because that b*tch gave me strange information.
“Wait! Where are you going?”
Concluding this, Calia left the prince alone and set out to find Iris.
Not long after, Calia found Iris drinking with other nobles.
“Iris! What the hell happened?”
As soon as Calia sees Iris, she immediately grabs her by the hair.
“Oops, it looks like our hero is drunk a lot! I’m going to calm you down a bit.”
Iris looked at the other nobles and looked around. She did and she quietly followed Calia.
“What the hell is going on?”
“Why is Duke Rossier asking you to marry his highness?”
“What? Did you say something like that?”
Iris was startled.
She said, judging by her reaction, she had no idea.
“Explain. What is this?”
“You, you explain. What is this all of a sudden? Why me? Am I going to be the head of the household?”
She said, “She told me to make in-laws with the Hwang family and the Rosie family. Then he laughed and made that offer.”
“No you crazy b*tch!!!”
Iris shouted while grabbing Calia by the collar. But when she sensed the attention of the people around her, she cleared her throat and cleared her mind.
“Why on earth did you make such a ridiculous proposal? You’re already thinking about having a baby with that kid… Your Highness? My position as head of the family is going to be lost because of you! How are you going to take responsibility?”
I was conscious of her gaze and lowered my voice as much as possible, but Iris, unlike usual, couldn’t hide her excitement.
Calia is about to run out of patience.
However, Iris soon took a deep breath and cleared her mind.
“Hyuyu…. First of all, don’t say anything to the Duke. I’ll try to talk to the Duke. Okay?”
“…Okay.”
Calia staring at Iris with her unreliable face. As she left, Iris thought as she bit her nails.
‘It’s ruined. What should I do now?’
Even so, Iris has failed in the mission entrusted to her by the Duke of Rosie. Calia was talking nonsense here, so the Duke of Rosie was able to issue a strange order.
After all, I have to face the Duke of Rossier somehow tomorrow, so I don’t know what to say to him. I was already afraid of what he would say.
***
“… I am somewhat prepared.”
Meanwhile, after reaching an agreement with Swann, I outlined our future plans.
“The best we can do right now is to prepare for war. If it’s Calia, if possible, she’ll try to hit this place while she still has the holy sword.”
After defeating the demon king, the holy sword disappears after a certain amount of time. Usually that time is about a month, so the battle will take place within a month at the latest.
So, I told Swann to prepare the people of Speth for emergencies. He also made regular patrols in the White Forest.
“I can see what’s going on in Sordon.”
Rafaela volunteered to send a summoned beast to Sordon to hear the news of the empire.
As such, preparations for future attacks were fully prepared. So, the only thing left is to recover from the injury.
“Other wounds heal quickly, so they will get better soon. The problem is the poison that has spread to my left arm, and I’m still looking for an antidote. For the time being, it is best to keep the poison from spreading.”
I think it will take a little longer, but thanks to the recovery ability unique to aliens, I have noticeably improved.
Now that night has come, I can stand up and walk lightly.
If only the poison could be removed somehow, it would be perfect.
“Thank you as always, Raphaella-sama.”
“Oh, you can stop talking to me. Rather, I think that would be comfortable, hehehe.”
Raphaella smiles kindly. He has been my most trusted ally to me.
That’s why I wanted to be a little more certain.
“Then, Rafaela. There is something I want to ask you.”
“Yes, please.”
“By any chance, how did you come to Speth? Surely you didn’t return to the Empire safely?”
It’s not that I don’t trust her. However, the back of the head tingles after being hit by the warrior party, so I want to solve at least a little bit of anxiety.
“… Would you like to know?”
Raphaella makes a troubled expression this time. When I nodded her head, she suggested.
“Okay. Instead, please tell me Edmund’s story.”
I hesitated this time. Will she believe me like before even if she knows that I have been abandoned by the goddess Etoir?
But even after she avenged her revenge on Calia, if I wanted to keep Raphaella as my ally, it was a matter that she had to reveal at least once.
“… Good.”
“Oh, and one more thing. We must tell each other only the truth. You know what I mean?”
Rafaela said, summoning her white orb in her right hand. I nodded.
She was suggesting a magic truth game. I also summoned a white sphere.
“Okay, then I’ll ask you first.”
