20 – 6. Banquet (2)
“Do you know what the first thought was when you heard the news?”
Taking a leisurely step, the emperor asked.
“I do not know.”
Adele answered without thinking for a second.
From nob le mt l. co m
Maybe if other nobles saw this scene.
Disrespectful, what dare you do in front of the emperor?
He must have risen, wondering if he was blaspheming the imperial family.
However, the emperor burst out laughing once.
He just said it with a smile on his lips.
“Why are you in Lichtenau, that was the question.”
“… .”
“I will ask. Why were you there?”
“Somehow, I ended up heading there.”
“Because I don’t like to fight. Exhausted. Wasn’t that why you left? But nothing seems to have changed.”
“Rather than hating it. rather than tired. It was just because I got lost.”
“I lost my way.”
Since the last colleague retired.
Adele was the only one left in Wolfhedin.
No matter how strong you are, being alone is dangerous in the end.
In addition, it is not an empire of wind lanterns like before.
Now is the time to kill the Witchbeast without difficulty.
Adele didn’t need to be a wolf anymore.
Even the emperor had no reason to hold him anymore.
That’s why he left, and that’s why he let go.
“If so, is that new path, that woman?”
“… .”
“There is no answer.”
“… For now, I’ll let that happen.”
For now, at the word, the emperor sighed and said huh.
When did the Adele she knew ever give an answer like that?
I was a little surprised by that, so I ask again.
“Are you looking at a woman as a man?”
“… yes?”
Adele’s voice cracks slightly at the end.
Perhaps realizing that, the corner of the emperor’s mouth went up.
“Is it the crush you have as a member of the opposite s*x?”
Then, Adele’s impression becomes strangely distorted.
The emperor said that Adele’s expression was not angry.
I know very well that it is the expression you make when you are very embarrassed.
So I decided to just wait for Adele’s answer.
“… .”
“Is that correct?”
“no.”
“Did you say no? What if?”
“… .”
Come to think of it, I could have turned down the offer from start to finish.
There was no reason to stay in Lichtenau.
A person you can’t hold on to even if you leave.
To Lichtenauer and Shien, he was such a being.
But why did he stay there, by Shien’s side?
Why couldn’t he reject her offer?
“… It glowed.”
“Did it light up?”
“yes.”
At Adele’s answer, the Emperor looked at him.
Every single glance, every gesture.
However, there was no energy to tell lies anywhere.
“Are you serious?”
“That’s right.”
“It shines. so stay Wasn’t that a burden?”
“Your Majesty is already a very splendid person.”
Then the emperor laughed.
It sounds so obvious flattery.
The reason was that when Adele spoke, it did not sound like flattery.
“If not, the princess.”
“… .”
“That child must have been shining too. how did you leave If you were curious about the shining one. There must have been a princess, so why not?”
“The reason is the same as Your Majesty.”
“Are you saying it was already shining brilliantly?”
Adele nodded silently.
At that gesture, the emperor smiled slightly.
In any case, he is also a father after all.
Whether it be beggars or emperors, the job of raising children in front of their parents.
Of course, it is bound to make you feel good.
“Then you mean, a woman who has just begun to shine. I was curious about her. Is this what you mean?”
“… To put it bluntly, I think so.”
“What a strange answer. It’s not like you.”
“I think so too.”
Without the slightest hesitation, I admit my strangeness.
At that point, the Emperor burst into laughter again.
Adele doesn’t even understand herself.
It was a very strong feeling.
She is quite different from the Adele she knew.
But it’s not weird or bad either.
The emperor laughed and laughed for a long time.
Then, after that smile, in a very serious voice.
Staring at Adele, he asked a question.
“Really, don’t you have any romantic feelings?”
“… .”
“It is beautiful. If it’s a young man, it’s enough to fall in love with.”
“… .”
“There is no need to be ashamed. It is a natural thing for humans.”
“I cannot be called human.”
The Emperor’s face hardened at Adele’s answer.
As if you heard a very unpleasant sound.
“You are a person. No matter what anyone says, no matter what you think. a person.”
“… .”
“Being human, you are tired of your life. Because I am a person, I draw something different. Being a human being, Jim let go. However, it is a pity that you do not consider yourself human.”
Adele didn’t answer.
He just kept his head down and looked straight ahead.
“From what I heard, there is a financial problem.”
Then Adele turns her head.
At that meaning of how did you know, the emperor laughed.
“It is a place where you can know everything if you put your mind to it. Even if Lichtenau is far away, I don’t hear the news from there faintly. If you want, you can hear it all right in front of you.”
“… .”
Why did the emperor suddenly mention that part?
Adele didn’t know anything yet.
“Do you remember? what I was trying to bring down on you. The things I tried to give away when I liquidated my life and started anew.”
“… I remember.”
“I’m glad you remember. If so, do you know what happened to them?”
“You said that if you don’t accept it, the entire amount will be returned to the national treasury. Honey, I think it has already been properly written for the other people of the Empire.”
“It did. But, unfortunately, it was wrong. In fact, I still leave it there.”
“If not… .”
“It is, of course, something you should take. However, if you don’t like it, you can tailor the assortment and deliver it to Lichtenauer. how is it Will you do that?”
“Are you serious?”
“Didn’t you tell me? yes it’s yours However, it would be difficult for you to give it yourself, so Jim wants to deliver it himself. Anyway, there are many assortments. You could say it was consolation for the honorable death of the previous head of the family. The former head of Lichtenau. He was strong and upright. It’s a pity we lost him.”
After the emperor’s words, Adele bowed her head in gratitude.
Then the emperor waved his hand as if he had become.
“one more. I have something to tell you.”
“What is.”
“I used the princess to talk to you. I told him to take out some of Lichtenau’s family heads. Thanks to that, the people gathered at the banquet saw her differently.”
“Thank you for that too.”
“Listen to the end. This isn’t just a good thing. Conversely, I became even more wary of your master. Right now, someone might try to cut Lichtenauer’s face right here today.”
For a moment, a woman’s face appeared in Adele’s mind.
Etria, the daughter of the Fiore family, whom I met a few days ago.
“I think I know roughly who it is.”
“We will not go out directly, but we will set up an agent instead. Looking at the atmosphere right now, it fits perfectly. I guarantee you, Jim, that when you and your master are gone in a little while, they will definitely step in and try to make things happen.”
“Is His Majesty stopping you?”
“Why are you drying your luggage? There is no justification, and I don’t want to.”
I’ll leave it as long as it doesn’t go against the imperial family.
It is a law that nobles must check and be checked against each other.
Only then will it be balanced and not biased towards either side.
In the meantime, the imperial family coordinated appropriately.
Let no aristocrat dare to precede the imperial family.
That’s all, don’t meddle in their play.
“Originally, I would do it properly, but I would. My mind has changed.”
“… .”
“Because it’s your guy, don’t let it pass.”
“You pass over. What do you mean?”
“What do you mean? Are you asking me knowing everything?”
Tapping Adele on the shoulder a few times.
The Emperor quietly muttered the following words.
“Seeing blood in the imperial palace is definitely a serious crime. Still, you were mine. It means going over once. Adele.”
“… .”
“Don’t fight, but don’t avoid a fight that comes your way. If you want to watch that little light beside you, you will have to do as your heart tells you.”
* * *
Shien was still in a bewildered mood.
Why was Princess Ekaterina so interested?
He had no face-to-face, and he was also of mixed blood with the demons.
Although the Liechtenauer is a prestigious aristocratic family.
It’s also a situation where you don’t know when and how it will shake.
The princess was treating herself with a very polite expression.
“Ah, it seems you’ve been holding on too long. Come to Lichtenau.”
“No, Her Highness the Princess. Not at all.”
“Go back and enjoy the banquet. And, once again, I convey my condolences.”
Seeing sincere consolation, Shien quietly bowed her head.
Afterwards, she said she had other business, and the princess left first.
Shien looked at the princess for a while and then went back the way she came.
“Shin-nim.”
Just like when I was away for a while there.
Adele stood still, waiting for Shien.
“Am I too late?”
“Not at all.”
“Sorry for leaving you alone. It must have been very embarrassing.”
At Shien’s words, Adele shook her head as if it was nothing.
Eventually, when Xian and Adele entered the banquet hall again.
“Lord Liechtenauer.”
“You are back.”
Unlike before, several nobles greeted her with a smile.
Someone couldn’t approach it because of the Fiore family.
Someone else noticed and now pretends to be friendly.
“I was really surprised. To think that Her Highness, the princess, approached first.”
“What kind of conversation did you have with the princess?”
He openly even asks what happened with the princess.
In my heart, I want to get rid of those who are clearly visible.
But you can’t get through this political world that way.
Shien was well aware of that, so he hid his feelings with a smile.
“His Highness gave me words of comfort.”
“Ahh… You see.”
“We also convey our deepest consolation, Lord Lichtenauer.”
Regarding the tragic end of the former family head.
The surrounding nobles were just praying for their souls.
at that time.
“I heard the news too.”
Etria, who had been quietly observing the situation until now, finally stepped out.
“The former head of Lichtenau and his successor died in the war. Hearing the news, all the knights of the empire must have been sad. It’s because the family that used to be known as a swordsman’s family has been shaken.”
“… .”
“Hmmm. Etria Soga. that… .”
“I am also worried. Doesn’t that mean that those evil beasts have become strong enough to threaten even Lichtenauer, who is now known as a master of swordsmanship? It is truly terrifying.”
Those who were quick-witted immediately recognized her intentions.
That a place known for swordsmanship had been humiliated by the Witchbeast.
Do you think you have to give up even being a famous family?
He was provoking Lichtenauer in a subtle tone.
“… .”
Shien tried to control his stomach once again.
I don’t want that annoying woman to be dragged around as she pleases.
I came here with good intentions, so I want it to end well.
But Etria did not let Shien go.
“How are you, Lord Lichtenau? Don’t you want to dispel everyone’s worries?”
“… What do you mean? Etria Sogaju.”
“It is a light duel. If it was that ‘Lichtenauer’, he would be able to win. If so, wouldn’t all the other nobles be relieved that Lichtenauer is still alive?”
Etria’s eyes, saying that, were directed at Adele.