Chapter 215
It was empty, but it was full (1)
From the day of the contest onward, the Teutons became utterly depressed. Duncan’s defeat was too hard for him to bear, so the knight who was their chief became a half-defeated man, locked away in his room.
In the midst of that, there was a person who struck out alone, however.
She was named Hestia Neumann Tudor, princess of Teuton. She had taken the opportunity offered by her Uncle’s absence, taking the power of the delegation leader unto herself. And she took her first action as undisputed representative of Teuton.
“The princess of Teuton has asked to meet with your Highness. Alone.”
It was another request to meet with her on my own, and I did not refuse.
And soon after that, the princess came to my palace.
“Your Highness, are you well?”
“Hello. I saw you only a few days ago, so I am still well,” I said.
“It might have been a few days for you, but for me, these few days felt like years,” came Hestia’s hurried reply. I looked at the princess for a moment. She no longer had the squint to her eyes, as if her facial muscles were cramping, nor did she show an uncomfortable, pretentious smile.
Hestia was still somewhat stiff, but her face was more human now. If she was pulling a different act than before, I decided to get rid of it right away.
So I smiled fiercely and asked her, “Why did you ask to see me?”
She responded as if having awaited the question.
“I want to resume the negotiations that were interrupted.”
“Good. I allow it.”
The princess widened her eyes to my immediate response. It seemed that her request had been for me to be part of the resumed negotiations personally, and I had no intention of doing that.
It wasn’t my job, but Montpellier and Siorin’s to gain something from the talks. And they had ability enough to do so.
No matter how much of a ‘thorny rose’ the princess was, her talents had just begun to bloom.
Compared to the monstrous Montpellier and the stubborn Siorin, she was just a single flower in a greenhouse. There was no reason for me to suffer through the pain of conducting diplomatic talks.
“What else do you want?”
The princess shook her head to my question.
“I don’t want anything right now.”
“Then we are done here-”
“But I have one question.”
After saying that, Hestia hesitated for a moment, then asked me, “What is the reason for you being so good to me?”
When I frowned at her outrageous words, she hurriedly explained.
“The exclusive right to trade in dwarven weapons.”
“I didn’t say I was giving it to you for free.”
It was a bargaining chip, and we had exclusive authority over the supply. I wasn’t about to make a deal with Teuton by getting nothing in return. When the princess heard my words, she shared her thoughts.
“I’m an outsider as far as weapons are concerned, so I don’t know how much dwarven armaments are truly worth and how much power there is to be gained in having authority over their trade. But I’m not foolish enough to miss a golden opportunity because of a lack of greed.”
“I’m glad you understand.”
“I’m not alone in this. Even if the Duke of Seymour were here, it would be the same. Even if someone else were here, the Kingdom of Leonberg would not be losing money on this deal.”
Hestia paused for a moment while staring at me and then spoke softly.
“But why me?”
Her eyes were shining with a strange light as if they held a great burden.
“Because you are the current representative of Teuton.”
Hestia tried to hide her worries after hearing my patient answer and asked again, “Is it just that?”
“You’re also a better talker than Duke Seymour.”
“If that’s the case, why give exclusive rights only to me?”
“If we are going to continue trading anyway, it would be convenient in many ways to keep trading with one person rather than having to go through multiple channels… Now, what can be more important than that?”
“It’s important for me to know,” came her decisive answer, and I replied with a sigh.
“If the Duke of Seymour had been there, he would not have offered that Leonberg becomes the leader of the alliance that Teuton has created. That’s why I have offered a benefit which matches the reward that you have suggested.”
“And that’s all?”
I was becoming offended because it felt like I was being questioned.
“I don’t know what answer you’re looking for. Even if there was another reason, I am under no obligation to explain it.”
Naturally, my tone became blunt. But, strangely, when the princess heard my blunt words, her expression became brighter.
“I see. There is a reason why you can’t tell me.”
“What does it sound like?”
“I promise. You will never regret choosing me as your trading partner,” the princess said with a stubborn face, changing the topic. Although she knew I was keeping things from her, her conclusion wasn’t too bad. I almost laughed at her words and finished our discussion there, but I decided to give her a friendly warning instead.
“It won’t be easy. Those who stand as representatives of Leonberg are tough customers.”
“Then let’s do it the hard way,” the princess replied with a confident smile.
I gave Hestia some words of sincere encouragement and immediately made her leave.
After the princess had left and I remained alone, I frowned. I was strangely tired.
I hadn’t talked that long with the princess, but it felt as if I had been talking all day long.
‘The Most Beautiful Rose’ was a gritty character to deal with, so I hoped that I would never meet her again. Fortunately, I didn’t think I would encounter her while the negotiations were in progress. Anyway, the proceedings had been left in the care of Montpellier and Siorin. If I met Hestia again, it would be after the positions of both sides had been properly determined. I definitely thought so – and was proved wrong.
It was after I had visited Adelia – who had barely regained consciousness – when I returned to my palace and found the princess waiting for me there.
“Your Highness.”
“Let’s go inside.”
I invited her inside the palace to see if she had anything to say.
“I can’t tell if he is a negotiator or if he is a fisherman who has set up a net.”
When we were alone, the princess started complaining without end. Her timid appearance, which had existed when she had first come to the palace, was nowhere to be found.
“How tragic is it that such an arrogant and nasty person exists in this world?”
I was surprised when Hestia started complaining, but the moment I heard her, I immediately knew who her complaints were directed at. The image of Montpellier swam clear in my mind; it looked like he had turned the princess inside out. It was natural.
Montpellier was inherently weak toward the strong and infinitely strong toward the weak.
In the eyes of such a man, Teuton was obviously weak after they had been crushed in the contest, and Leonberg, with its attractive offer of dwarven-forged armaments, was the stronger party.
I bet that Montpellier was relieving himself of all the stress of losing his estates and being forced to settle in Leonberg by being harsh on Teuton.
I understood the princess’s feelings, but…
“I don’t know why the hell you’re coming to me to and saying all these things.”
I didn’t understand the reason for Hestia to come and complain so much in front of me, I who wasn’t even a member of her country.
“I hope you don’t forget that the person who you are cursing about now is my subordinate, the man I have personally appointed to be in charge of negotiations.”
When I told Hestia that she shouldn’t complain to me but to her fellow Teutons, her reply was spoken with a shameless face.
“They know me as a meek and good princess. I can’t act like this in front of them. If I do, they won’t take my complaints seriously, but rather believe they are listening to someone nagging.”
“No matter how things are-”
“And it’s okay to talk openly in front of you about these things, as you are the Crown Prince.”
“I don’t think you know what you’re saying.”
The princess didn’t even pretend to listen to me.
“Woo. Your Highness, thanks to this, my heart has become more comfortable.”
Princess Hestia spoke alone and expressed gratitude alone. She then bowed her head to me in goodbye and departed. The next day, I found her at my palace again, and on the day after that, and also on the next. At times, she gossiped about Montpellier, while on other occasions, she complained that Siorin was acting too strict.
As the days went by, her chattering became worse, and my head started to hurt.
I could eventually stand it no longer and ordered that the entrance to my palace be locked.
The princess’s messenger then came from time to time to request meetings, but he was completely barred from entry by the palace knights.
“I have done the right thing.”
But my peace didn’t last long.
“There are rumors in the palace. It is being said that Princess Hestia Neumann Tudor has visited the first prince’s palace to the point where she has become exhausted. These days, instead of coming in person, they say that she sends a messenger every day.”
This time, it was the smirking Bielefeld’s turn to pay me a visit.
“Who the hell says these things!”
“Well, it’s not gossip without reason. It doesn’t seem like a mere rumor that the princess often visited the first prince’s palace.”
The marquis volunteered to be the man to pull a bottle of liquor from my showcase, poured himself a glass, and grunted in satisfaction after the first sip. I wanted to say something about this, but Bielefeld’s face had become serious.
“It is said that his Majesty and the Eastern Fleet are four days away from port.”
When he said this, my eyes widened.
“And the messenger reported that this news was two weeks old and that he had come here immediately after hearing it. So by now, his Majesty must have made port and is heading to the capital by land.”
My heart tickled, and I felt something that couldn’t be described.
“The negotiations with Teuton are hectic, but it looks like they will become more so while we prepare a welcoming ceremony,” were the words I finally said after searching long for an answer, and the words sounded awkward to me.
“Do not worry, Your Highness. I have already prepared everything,” the marquis said with a laugh as he looked at me.
“If the time comes, your Highness just needs to go to the front of the city gate and greet his Majesty and the Eastern Legion,” Bielefeld said. I nodded, so he added, “Then I have told your Highness everything I wanted to say, so let me get up.”
The marquis emptied the drink from his glass in one go and left.
I looked at the closed door for a long time before speaking to myself.
“Is he finally coming?”
Suddenly, my head bowed as I grabbed my face with both my hands.
Somehow, the corners of my mouth seemed to be slightly raised.
* * *
Negotiations, which had been sluggish for a while, were nearing their end.
Once detailed conditions had been established, and diplomatic treaties were signed between the two countries, negotiations with Teuton would be complete – at least officially.
The deal between the princess and me was a matter to be handled as a secret agreement, not in the official treaty. And finally, all official negotiations were over.
All that had to be done was for the representatives of both sides to sign and then stamp down their royal families’ seals.
“The name I will write on this agreement is yours, not mine.”
I decided to honor the king with the treaty. It was an achievement that could never be said to be a minor one, and one I hoped would remain intact for future generations to profit from.
“I can only admire the words from your Highness’s heart,” Bielefeld said with a happy smile as he looked at me. Maximilian and others also looked at me with faces similar to Bielefeld’s. The only person who did not smile was Teuton’s princess. She then told us that Duke Seymour’s condition has been improving rapidly during recent days. Instead of listening to her complaints, I decided to remind her of something.
“Your delegation’s leader is finishing negotiations, so what does it matter if the duke starts asking questions? You have gained exclusive trading rights in the dwarven weapons, so why be afraid?”
The princess started blushing at my words, realizing that she had been acting overly fussy.
“I looked ugly again,” she sighed, barely managing to shake off her anxiety. It seemed that the most beautiful rose was suffering through a spell of hardship, despite her virtues.
However, the hardships she now faced would only earn her greater rewards soon, and there was no reason why I couldn’t remind her of this.
Meanwhile, a messenger came to announce that the king had arrived near the capital. Early in the morning, I headed out of the city gates and started to wait for the king.
“His Majesty and the Easter Legion!”
And finally, the king appeared on the plains. His now completely white hair was fluttering in the wind like a white lion’s mane, and behind him, he had the kingdom’s knights and champions.
No matter how majestic he looked, my heart continued pounding for no apparent reason.
I stood silently and waited for the king to arrive. And finally, the king and the Eastern Legion came before the city gate.
‘chuck~’
The Eastern Legion halted at once. The capital’s guards and knights who had been marching to meet them also stopped in place. In that world where everyone had stopped, only the king and I walked toward each other.
‘dup~ dup~ dup~’
Twenty yards; fifteen; ten; five- now three yards remained between us.
I then stopped walking.
However, the king did not stop, but the remaining three yards closed between us at a crawling pace even then.
And: ‘Warak,’ he embraced me.
Feeling that sudden warmth…
“Uh?” I could only voice out a stupid sound.
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