255. Examination of the husband (1)
The day after Leah blushed like that.
As if she had never done so before, she rode on a white horse again as the charismatic first princess.
Afterwards, she took full command of the diplomatic corps and entered Bel Eire, a city in the Hawthorne Kingdom.
Unlike the city ruled by Rosetta, the road to entering Belair was very bleak.
An atmosphere of hostility toward the empire was still rampant, and the people all looked at us with frightened expressions.
“Welcome, Your Highness Leah. “I am Chancellor Müller of Hawthorne.”
As we passed through the castle, a man dressed in black priestly clothing greeted us.
As expected of a prime minister, he looked old and was accompanied only by a very small number of guards.
“Nice to meet you, Chancellor Mueller.”
“If you give permission, I will guide you to the official residence. “Archduke Luke is in the conference room.”
Archduke Luke.
He is the bastard son of King Hodrian, whom I mentioned yesterday.
We headed to the tall mansion to see him handling all the military might of the Confederacy.
The moment you arrive at the entrance.
The scene was filled with gorgeous carriages, as if big names from all over the South had gathered in advance.
“It looks like there are a lot of people participating in the meeting.”
Leah answered the question I wanted to ask the Prime Minister on my behalf.
As I was disguised as an ordinary escort, I stayed by her side as silently as possible.
“Yes, as you wanted, we have gathered as many important figures from the Hawthorne Kingdom as possible.”
‘As you wish… ?’
What this means is that Leah called all the kings of the south here.
In front of them, Hawthorne is an ally of the Empire, so I’m going to warn them not to climb on him.
‘As expected, she has the energy of Leah.’
I suppressed the corners of my mouth from rising and did my best to maintain a blank expression.
Only Margo, who accompanied him, looked very nervous.
Well, I usually only take care of children at an orphanage, but now that I’m here in a place like this, I can’t help but feel nervous.
When she was nervous, I closed one eye and secretly sent her a signal telling her not to worry.
The sensible witch noticed this and silently nodded her head.
“Please go up, Archduke Luke is very much waiting for you.”
Following the Prime Minister, Leah leisurely headed to the entrance of the official residence.
When Mago and I tried to go along, the guards stopped us for a moment.
“By any chance, what is your position?”
“He’s my escort knight.”
Leah answered in an indifferent and cold voice.
The guards swallowed deeply at the sight of her blue eyes without even realizing it.
“Well, then this is…” .”
They pointed at Mago, who did not look like a knight at first glance.
In response, she held her staff tightly with both hands and looked up at Leah.
“Hmm….”
The first princess of the empire looked down at the petite woman with pigtails.
Then, she slowly closed her eyes and said.
“Same goes for that one. “A powerful shaman of the empire.”
“I understand.”
Leah motioned for Margo to follow.
At this, she nodded her head with big, round eyes like a cat.
And then, Dodo chased after him and joined the procession.
“You can just go inside.”
The Prime Minister climbed the stairs and pointed to a huge wooden door.
He personally opened the door and introduced the conference room.
――――――.
「Her Highness Leah Andalusia, the first princess of the Leon Empire, is entering.」
Prime Minister Hawthorne’s voice, no less than Mosian’s, echoes in the vast conference room.
Then, the lords of each city-state who were sitting in a row at the long desk stood up from their seats.
―――――.
Applause is heard.
Following the sound, Leah stopped at the edge and center of the long desk.
Standing on either side of her are Dyke, the lord of this city, and Prince Luke, the Crown Prince of the Hawthorne Kingdom.
“Welcome to Hawthorne, Your Highness Leah.”
She was a man with black hair like me, but with cool slicked back forehead.
With sharp eyes like those of a young eagle, he welcomed Leah with loud applause.
The princess responded by shaking his hand.
“I have heard of your reputation, Archduke Luke. “Nice to meet you.”
“I am truly honored. “Aren’t you the most influential person in the empire?”
The Grand Duke shook hands with Leah and gave her a sad smile.
Afterwards, he motioned to the lords of each city and invited them to sit back down.
Margo and I stayed near the entrance to the conference room and silently watched the meeting between the two countries.
My childhood friend maintained an upright posture to the point where even her pigtails stiffened.
I was amazed at that sight and watched Leah together, laughing to myself.
The majesty of the imperial family that has taken charge of all meetings in the empire since the emperor.
“Everyone’s expressions are heavy, contrary to when they welcomed us.”
No, it is Leah who disciplines the lords from the beginning.
The eyes of a wild beast flashed in her face, shadowed beneath the uniform hat.
“I guess the meeting with our empire was such an embarrassment?”
It’s hard to believe he’s 22 years old.
At this, the lords looked at each other and observed each other.
Then, the person who stepped in as a relief pitcher was Archduke Luke, who replaced the King of Hawthorne.
“Honestly, I was skeptical at first.”
He, who was the same age as Leah, smiled brightly.
And he spoke leisurely, as if showing off his relaxedness as a royal.
“Currently, an empire that was maintaining a close Cold War relationship with us has suddenly proposed an alliance.”
Alliance.
In fact, the alliance agenda between Hawthorne and Leon was information that only the two countries knew.
But to say this directly at the first meeting?
Grand Duke Luke was hoping that the Empire would promise to help Hawthorne in front of everyone.
“Could you please explain the reason as a representative of the empire?”
Leah made no reply to his bold request for a moment.
Thanks to this, there was a cold silence in the conference room.
“….”
The Grand Duke also proudly faced the lioness’s murderous gaze.
Like a young eagle.
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If the lion was the king of the earth, he was full of confidence, as if he were the king of the sky.
However, even so, Leah did not continue speaking immediately.
Thanks to this, the breathtaking silence in the conference room deepened even further.
In the end, it was Dyke, the lord of the city bordering the empire, who spoke first.
He ended up adding a word because he was the one who would suffer the most if the relationship between the two countries broke down.
“That’s right, they might be trying to devour our Hawthorn Kingdom.”
However, he soon regretted his actions.
The moment I tried to tap the lion’s back with my claws.
The king of beasts, who had been waiting for so long, caught his prey with a skillful swing of his foot.
“You mean our empire is ‘barely’ Hawthorne?”
The first princess of the empire laughed at Luke’s question.
And then, she said with a cold expression.
“This southern land is nothing to our empire.”
The faces of the lords of each city turned white at Leah’s cynical words.
Margot’s eyes widened as she listened, like a startled cat.
“….”
Archduke Luke had a relatively calm expression.
However, the person who was most surprised here was Dyke, the lord of Belair, a city on the border.
He must have been so startled that his black pupils trembled.
“Ji, are you ignoring our union now?”
Some of the lords who were listening refuted loudly.
They began to question basic etiquette, wondering if Leah’s words sounded rude.
However, that was exactly what Leah wanted.
Basic courtesy.
Because it was the Confederacy that violated it first.
“You said something well.”
Leah crossed her large thighs covered in black stockings.
And then, he spoke to them with a more brutal expression than when they first saw him.
“Is it southern etiquette to dare to unleash a witch doctor and hypnotize the crown prince of our empire?”
“… !”
The lords were at a loss for words at the princess’s question.
No matter how much of a royal family she was, I thought that since she was a woman, she would be able to win if she pushed with momentum.
So, numerous lords gathered at this long desk, showing off their respective strengths.
Leah actually started to overwhelm them by calling them all together.
“I think I’m misunderstanding something….”
The First Princess of the Empire took out her handkerchief from the pocket of her own taut uniform.
Then, she wiped her pretty hands and spoke to her allies with an indifferent expression.
“If you had followed your favorite manners, this city would have been a sea of fire right now.”
Leah wiped his fingers as if viewing the city as something worse than his handkerchief.
Gently between the words.
“Still, there is only one reason why we are giving you a chance.”
1 The princess stared at Luke’s now serious face.
And, she spoke with emotionless eyes.
“Because the Kingdom of Hawthorne valued his ability to command these rude cities.”
Leah waved her cleaned handkerchief in the air.
As if responding to this, I took it and kept it in her back pocket.
“Your value is nothing more or less than that, so it would be better not to offend us any more.”
Leah spoke in a cold voice as if she could lead the army right now and destroy this place.
It seemed as if the afterimage of Emperor Leonhard was reflected behind him.
“Your Highness, it’s so scary….”
Margot muttered in a low voice.
It seems strange that a person who was blushing in the market until yesterday looks completely different in this area.
“Right?”
I also agreed.
However, in a slightly different sense….
He’s usually so charismatic, but under the desk….
Just thinking about that time made me feel like my mouth was watering.
“….”
The lords of the alliance also swallowed deeply.
They only stare at Luke, who can match the lioness’s power.
“I understand what you said, Your Majesty.”
Reluctantly, the Archduke opened his mouth.
She still smiled and spoke in a calm tone again, probably because she respected Leah.
“However, considering you came to propose an alliance, your words and actions feel a bit extreme.”
“Because I am confident.”
The princess answered straight away, probably anticipating the archduke’s answer.
“Our Leon Empire is currently the strongest nation on the continent. “That place has personally extended an ally to the Hawthorne Kingdom, so if you just raise suspicions like this, I can’t help but be displeased.”
Leah took off her uniform hat.
And then, her beautiful golden hair fell over her forehead, showing off her true face.
“What better respect for the kingdom than forgiving its sins and forming an alliance?”
Leah’s voice gained strength.
She raised her finger and spoke confidently.
“But your words and actions are so extreme, and you’re only complaining about things like that.”
Leia’s finger soon pointed to Archduke Luke.
And then, she declared with eyes sparkling like a cluster of lights in the sea.
“An empire does not abandon its allies.”
After Leonhard formed the empire, he did not absorb any countries.
And, judging from the fact that the era of peace was continuing, the relationship with the allies was good and their export products were purchased at a high price.
A representative example is the Samad Kingdom.
“It is a sign of respect for the kingdom.”
The Grand Duke pursed his lips for a moment after listening to Leah.
Then, the princess’s unconventional words made her eyes sparkle.
“If the Hawthorne Kingdom signs an alliance with the Empire here, I promise you a strong friendship that no other ‘foreign country’ can surpass.”
A foreign country.
In other words, it refers to the numerous city-states gathered here.
I promise Hawthorne a strong ally in front of them that they will not be able to overcome.
The kingdom’s Grand Duke Luke, who was listening to this, covered his lips with his palm as if he was moved.
“….”
However, contrary to the Crown Prince, the lords who were listening were dying.
Some looked devastated, perhaps dreaming of breaking away from the Union and going to war.
At this, Luke had a hard time hiding his smirk.
“I understand. I hope you will forgive us for not recognizing that the empire regards our kingdom so highly.”
“Please forgive me.”
Dike, who was listening, also added in a desperate voice, as if he was in a trance.
And then, he bowed his head and expressed his gratitude.
The representatives of both kingdoms looked excited and ordered the ministers to bring the contract.
And, they smiled brightly as they went through the verbal formalities of signing the alliance together.
The meeting proceeded smoothly and quickly, as befits Leah’s cool personality.
「――――――」
After the meeting ended.
The dejected lords each went out into the hallway and returned to the city.
Some of them are still in a verbal agreement, but they have already begun to obey again, probably thinking that the Empire and Hawthorne are allies.
How much time has passed?
When everyone left the conference room, only Archduke Luke, Leah, and I and Margot remained.
We tried to go back to Bansk, but Luke stopped Leah for a moment.
“I… Her Majesty Leah. Would you mind taking a moment?”
“Speak here.”
Leah spoke alone in her conference room with her arms crossed.
At this, Luke glanced at me and Margo and swallowed deeply.
“There’s something I’d like to discuss a little more about that alliance.”
“Oh, don’t worry. Even if it is a verbal agreement, it is virtually confirmed because His Majesty the Emperor has agreed to it.”
The princess gestured with an indifferent expression.
However, Luke shook his head and said that was not the case.
“It’s a different story.”
The Grand Duke looked at Leah with serious black eyes.
And then, he spoke to her carefully.
“Naturally, countries maintain close relationships to form stronger alliances.”
The princess tilted her head upon hearing his words.
Her rich golden hair danced lightly.
“So, I would like to ask you what you think about ‘arranged marriages.'”
Arranged marriage.
Leah’s eyebrows twitched at those words.
I also thought it wasn’t a very pleasant thing to say, so I looked at it with a straight face.
“I heard that Your Highness has been staying away from her man…. If you don’t mind, would you be interested in working with us?”
He didn’t point out himself, but it was actually close to a confession.
When I think about it, Luke had been looking at Leah very closely from the beginning of the meeting.
However, Leah chuckled after hearing the Grand Duke’s words.
And….
Leaving Luke behind, he approached me leisurely.
The curves of her beautiful body flutter every time she walks.
She certainly looked like a stiff soldier until she entered the conference room.
As she approached me, Leah gently wrapped her arms around me.
And, she easily broke the disguise of an ordinary escort knight that she had first suggested.
“That is difficult, Archduke.”
Leah’s voluptuous breasts gently touched my arm.
Afterwards, the princess slowly placed her face on my shoulder and smiled brightly, something she had never shown to other men before.
“I already have a child who will become my wife.”
Luke looked at the scene clearly and his face turned pale.
It was as if he had turned into a stone statue, unable to even move.
However, it was not only the Archduke who froze.
The same goes for Margot, who was watching closely from the side.
Her eyes widened when she heard that her childhood friend would become the next emperor.