78 – Climbing-13
White hair, doll-like face, strangely tough body.
At a glance, she was noble and beautiful enough to be able to recognize that she was a northern princess.
“Ha…”
However, I couldn’t raise my head.
It was a sleepover. A ridiculous and clumsy joke that makes it difficult to blame the opponent.
As soon as we met, I wanted to come up with an excuse that started with ‘It’s not like we originally fought like this…’, But I endured it because it seemed to make me, who had already become ugly once, even more ugly.
“Hello?”
“Nice to meet you!”
Oksana, the princess from her brother’s side, jumped out of her like a thunderbolt and took my hand. It’s small and soft, but what can I say. A bit bored
No, after holding it closely, it wasn’t even that soft. In a positive sense, it could be said to be a warrior’s hand.
“Hey…”
As her face turned red, I realized that I had been holding her for too long.
“Excuse me! Oksana. Sa, I have to apologize…”
“Why?”
“Why?”
Oksana and I opened our eyes wide and looked at Alexandra at the same time.
She and I laughed a little at the same time.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. I had a hard time coming a long way.”
“…Thank you.”
Alexandra politely bowed her head. Meanwhile, Oksana was looking up at my face and smiling brightly.
“Hmm?”
Looking around for a while, the maid was busy moving.
Following their gaze, I saw Iris approaching with graceful steps.
“Sorry I’m late. Excuse me.”
“It’s okay. I am deeply grateful for arranging a meeting with a good person.”
It was Alexandra who answered her words. On top of her head, her white hair, which you wouldn’t have noticed if her eyes fell, was swaying beautifully.
“Please sit down. This is the imperial cuisine you have tasted once, so you will surely enjoy it more.”
“It’s okay.”
Strangely, Iris didn’t look at me, but she quickly sat down.
Well, it would be an ambassador between countries, just like a celebrity.
Still, I couldn’t help but be curious. I tried to listen a bit, but unfortunately I didn’t have a chance to do that.
“You know, sword. Where did you learn it?”
Oksana, who pressed her face uncomfortably, asked me a question.
“Other gladiators. Until recently, I hadn’t encountered anything like this… They helped me a lot.”
However, it was not really burdensome. Oksana’s face was too small to elicit negative emotions from her.
“How long ago… By any chance, at what age did you start learning? 8 Years old? 9 Years old?”
“Oksana, don’t ask questions that are too personal.”
“That’s what I asked Evan. Unni, don’t interfere!”
Surprisingly, I looked at Alexandra’s eyes, but she, on the contrary, was looking at mine.
Since they are sisters, it seems that these words come and go.
“It’s really good. Black… I’ve been learning it for less than a year.”
“Really?”
Perhaps taken aback by that statement, Oksana exaggeratedly covered her mouth.
“That’s amazing. When I first grabbed the sword, I was running away from the wolf all day!”
“…By any chance, how old were you then?”
“Six years old!”
I looked around as if it was absurd.
Seeing that some of the standing maids were also making ridiculous faces, it seemed that I hadn’t misunderstood Oksana’s story.
From noble mtl dot com
Let the princess with the right of succession hold the sword for the first time at the age of six, then release it along with the wolf. All day.
Seeing Alexandra smiling happily, it might be normal in the North.
From my point of view, it is a situation that requires immediate deprivation of child custody and punishment of the parents for child abuse.
“Still, I’m sorry. I’ve come a long way, but I didn’t show you anything interesting…”
I was a gladiator. At least, a real gladiator with a few fights.
She had eyes that could tell which fights were bad and which fights were worthwhile. This fight was such that she had to apologize to her.
“…Don’t be too discouraged, brother.”
“Hmm…”
Feeling the distance suddenly narrowed, I swallowed saliva without realizing it.
How to say, he was like a cat. It looked as if he would come up on her lap and act cute if he was just a little bit off guard.
I looked away to see if this was okay, but Iris and Alexandra seemed to be talking about something important.
“Your brother worked hard, right? I’ve never seen a strong man like him. He was so cool…”
“Is that it?”
I felt like a child being praised for walking hard on my own two feet.
“I must be sorry. He really could have fought better…”
When did you see me, honey was dripping from your eyes.
“You know. If, by any chance, Hoo-O-O-O-O-sister will allow it…”
Then, she brought up her interesting suggestion.
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“Northern wolf fur. I heard that production has increased a lot…”
Alexandra was listening to Iris’s words with great tension.
She pretends to be friendly, but in the end she is the princess of the empire. Regardless of how good a person she is, she prioritizes the interests of her empire.
“Even if it is an empire, it will be difficult to get all of that quantity at cost.”
“Is that so?
“There is a limit to the amount we can handle, and if too many items spread across the continent, their rarity may decrease.”
“Hmm.”
“So… Maybe, I might have to lower the price a bit.”
Just like when Alexandra falsely framed Logan, she kept her mouth shut and condoned his tyranny.
Don’t be careless. That gladiator’s eyes look very innocent, but there must be a deeper heart hidden in the princess’s head.
“Where did you hear that…”
“I heard this ‘animal frenzy’ happened to wolves.”
An abnormal phenomenon in which wild animals become ferocious, move in groups, and attack humans indiscriminately.
If it happened in an ordinary kingdom, it would have been a bad thing that would have devastated the area, but in the north, just building a wooden fence and waiting was no different from a festival where prey rolled in.
“You are well informed.”
“The northern kingdom, isn’t it the best friend of the empire? If we don’t exchange news like this, the imperial family won’t stand tall.”
It’s not such a big deal, nor is it information that the northern kingdom wants to hide.
However, just by reminding her that ‘there is at least this much interest’, you can make Alexandra stop having false hopes.
“I can’t help but thank you for showing interest in this humble place.”
Drawing the line as an information collection in the sense of putting importance on relationships, rather than information collection for containment, was also to prevent Alexandra from counterattacking.
Thinking that it was not an easy opponent, the princess of the north prepared her next move.
“Of course, it’s true. There will be quite a few furs in the next contract.”
“Then…”
“But now, it may not be easy to sell northern wolf pelts for the time being. At least for half a year, it will be difficult to find wolves by hunting.”
Beasts caught in ‘Animal Frenzy’ rapidly multiply and then sweep the surroundings rapidly.
However, the population did not recover instantly. The slain beasts used to disappear from the land of the north for a while.
“Hmm…”
“Even in the Northern Kingdom, opinions are coming out little by little that the number of furs taken out should be controlled…”
The fur trade was a profitable trade for both sides.
Not only Selam’s men, but thanks to its beautiful color and warmth, it was a popular item outside the empire.
However, it was the northern kingdom that could last longer.
Since it was natural for them to lead a frugal life, there was no reason to suddenly be shaken just because they couldn’t earn more money.
But it wasn’t Iris. Her enemies didn’t forget what Logan had done.
It was obvious that the decrease in trade with the northern kingdom would be blamed on Iris. Even though the empire could endure it, she couldn’t.
“Besides, since the sea route has been opened recently… Northerners are increasing one by one saying that there is no need to insist on dealing only with the Empire.”
“That’s… I’m so sorry.”
Alexandra felt a strange sense of incongruity.
Iris is a sharper person. She is a more manipulative, colder person.
She is a real monster who occupied the position of Crown Princess in the political arena of the empire.
Even if she got a few good news, she is not the opponent who can look her in the eyes and push her.
“Isn’t it? Of course, I believe that there is no place like the Empire as a trading partner. But, I can’t block the dissatisfaction of the northerners by myself…”
However, no matter how much she looked back on the current situation, it didn’t feel like she was going the way Iris intended.
Even so, Iris didn’t seem nervous or anxious.
After thinking for a moment, Alexandra realized the cause of the discomfort.
I am not concentrating.
Just as a reflex, Iris just spits out an answer to the words she prepared and Alexandra’s words.
It was Alexandra’s illusion that she was fighting with all her heart.
Iris’s eyes were looking at her, but her mind was looking elsewhere.
The crown prince’s fingertips were stretched out towards Evan and Oksana very secretly.