"A-as expected, I'm a little nervous…" (Marial)
Marial, who had been acting quite bold up until now, seemed to be becoming more timid as she approached the main gate of the royal palace.
After all, no matter how brave she was, she's still just a 14-year-old girl, not yet an adult, so it's understandable. I would like to encourage her here…
"It's okay! Roland-sama taught you a lot of things, right?" (Kaoru)
"Ye-yeah…" (Marial)
Since Marquis Cerdric was riding in the same carriage, I had to speak in a servant-like manner.
Marial blushed a little when she heard Roland's name.
Yes, Roland joined this journey under the pretext of being an escort, but that's only in name. The truth, he was introduced to Marial as "A guardian knight of the goddess Kaoru and a person of a certain noble status." Francette feels the same way.
Therefore, for Marial, Roland was a person of much higher status than herself.
…well, in fact, that's exactly the case.
And since it was pointlessly sparkling, Marial said "Po!" and someting like that, it couldn't be helped. …yes, it couldn't be helped. Even if Francette got a little grumpy because of that…
So, what Marial learned from Roland was, of course, a number of things like "how to treat the royal family", "how to take the word of royalty from the royal family", "what the royal family is planning in situations like this", and "secret techniques for decisive battles against the royal family."
Things like this were useless, but when would Rolands'presence be useful?
It's your only turn, so make sure you're useful!
When I said that and gave him encouragement, Roland was really impressed.
I wonder why. Even though I had high hopes for it…
Anyway, that's why preliminary education and Q&A simulation training were perfect. Roland, along with Emile, Belle, and Layette-chan, were away today as well, but when I said, "I'm sure Roland-sama is watching over me from behind the grass," Marial nods smugly, and her expression tightens.
…no, Roland wasn't dead, but since Marial didn't know how to say it in Japanese, she probably just took it as "watching over him from somewhere".
And then, we'd arrived at the royal palace!
The main gate was marked by a carriage bearing the family crest of the Marquis and the Marquis' family.
The coachman, who seemed to know him on his own, led the way, followed by the marquis, to the waiting room for the audience.
There were several other customers in the waiting room, and it seemed like we would be the last.
…well, I guess the others were going to finish it quickly and spend the rest of their time on Marial.
Today, Francette was dressed as a maid, just like me. The divine sword "Exgram" was in my item box.
Well, you couldn't bring an armed bodyguard with you when you had an audience with the king.
Well, one second was enough for me to take the sword out of the item box and hand it over to Francette. As expected, the situation would not change dramatically within one second.
…hey, Fran, you're playing the role of a maid now, so don't be so cautious and act so murderous!
Then, the audience with the others was over, and it was Marial's turn.
Marial and the Marquis lined up, Francette and I lined up a little behind them, looking down so as not to look at the King's face, and quietly…
Well, this was just a verbal exchange event, and the real talks would be held in a separate room after this.
…was it obvious? I couldn't imagine having such a lively conversation while kneeling on one knee on the podium with someone leaning back on a luxurious chair.
After a while, in a relatively small and calm room that didn't seem to be used for formal formal meetings, a real meeting began, rather than an exchange of fixed phrases.
We were ushered into the room first, and while we stood there waiting, the king and some people…ministers, I guess…entered the room and took their seats. The order of entering the room is reversed from the time of the audience, but was that normal? There was no way they would keep the king waiting.
"Thank you for coming…" (King)
After taking their seats, the king started to say something, but when he saw us…or rather, Francette and I standing behind Marial and the Marquis, he stopped speaking.
Yeah, I guess they were suspicious because there was someone they didn't expect.
…no wonder. There's no way a maid would follow me to a place like this. They usually wait in the waiting room.
Of course, the guards who guided us tried to guide Francette and I to a separate room.
However, when Marial refused and the guard insisted that it was no good, she turned on her heel tried to go home and said "Please report that we turned them away based on our judgment".
No, the line that makes people who work in such bureaucratic places panic the most is, "I guess you'll take the responsibility."
The guard who was told this to Marial's face panicked and turned to his colleague, but…his colleague was already a few meters away, pretending not to know him.
There was no way I would be able to go and consult the king or the minister about where to take my maid. However, even when I went to my boss for instructions, he said, "Think about that yourself!" just like that.
…yeah, you probably didn't want to take responsibility. If you said, "My subordinate did it on his own," you would be able to avoid responsibility. Well, I'm sure I'd get criticized a little for my subordinate's lack of education, but it's much better than having to shoulder all the responsibility.
…and in the end, the guard, who was at a loss, chose to "guide us all to our rooms as if nothing had happened".
We were guided so naturally that even the security guard in front of the room ignored us completely.
The kings, who were unaware of this situation, did not think much of it, thinking that the person in charge had already arranged it for some reason.
Of course. Who would think that a noble girl would threaten the guards and forcibly take her maid during a meeting with the king without any prior planning?
Anyway, the Marquis and Marial were asked to take a seat, and they did so. Naturally, Francette and I are standing behind Marial.
Francette seemed to be thinking, "If I sat down, I'd be one tempo slower when I pulled out my sword and attack." …no, I wouldn't do that! If you attacked the king, you'd be on the wanted list…
To begin with, the sword was in my item box.
"…I'm sorry for your parents and older brother. They were noble and honorable people…" (King)
The King was saying some random things, but I heard from Count Maslius, his patron, that the previous Viscount Reifel was barely acquainted with the King.
I'm sure they'd met each other at some point, such as when they exchanged greetings or at a big ceremony, but it's doubtful that they even remember the local lower-ranking nobles faces.
But, well, I didn't feel bad about praising my parents. Even though I know it's just a random compliment.
Marial bows her head with a mysterious look on her face.
After a while of casual conversation, the king finally broached the subject.
"Despite being a young woman, your determination to carry on your father's legacy and protect the territory and its people is admirable…. However, the burden on you right now is a bit heavy. Isn't that right? So, why don't I become your guardian and protect you and Viscount Reifel's family from the most incomparable people!" (King)
It’s come, it’s come…
However, the Viscount Reifel family belonged to the faction led by Marquis Cerdric, along with their parent, the Count Maslius family, which meant that they were a faction that was more pro-merchant than the royal faction or the temple faction.
…in other words, this king was brazenly poaching him right in front of the head of the faction to which Viscount Rayfel's family currently belonged.
Did he think that a young girl who was not yet familiar with politics was weak against the authority of the King? And that if she could get the King's backing, would she jump at it?
But that much was expected. So, Marial's reply was…
"Thank you very much for your kind words… However, I would like to decline the matter. I will ask the Count Maslius family, who has served as the guardian of my Viscount Reifel family for generations, to act as my guardian. That’s why I’m here…" (Marial)
No wonder. Regardless of Marquis Cerdric, there was no way Marial could betray Count Maslius.
However, even if the king didn't know about the relationship between Marial and Count Maslius, he might have thought that he might not betray his relatives and factions so easily. The next attack came without a moment's delay.
"So, how about getting engaged to my son?" (King)
…he hadn't listened to Marial at all… Or rather, he's probably trying to ignore Marial's wishes and force his own wishes on him. He looked down on her as a lass of a lower class nobleman. And, no matter how weak, he completely ignored the existence of Marquis Cerdric, the head of a faction and the head of the Marquis family…
"Your Majesty, Viscount Reifel has just lost his family…" (Marquis)
As expected, even though it was His Majesty the King, the Marquis seemed to be annoyed by how forceful and outrageous he was, so he interjected, but the King completely ignored the Marquis' words. Then he tried to continue talking, but…
"Speaking of His Majesty's sons, I'm sure they are His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who is 48 years old, and his younger brother, His Royal Highness the Second Prince, who is 45 years old. Are they both already married? and….
Is it an invitation to become a mistress or something?"
Marial smiled and replied.
Yes, of course, she had investigated the king's relatives.
Speaking of princes, if the king lived a long time, there would also be middle-aged or old princes.
When it came to princes, not all of them were young and cool, right? There's also a middle-aged prince who was bald and has a protruding belly…
And Marial's right index finger was bent tightly.
Wooa, she's angry, she's angry! I felt like I could see blue streaks on her forehead…
So, were you going to do it?
No, as expected, it would be bad to explode against the king here.
Would it become a coup?
Author's Note
“Wonder Festival 2019 Winter” has ended.
Five Kaoru figures (prototypes made using 3D printers for market research) were sold out within eight minutes of opening.
15 Mile figures (total from last time, 16th to 30th), 2 left.
Thank you everyone!
Mile: "If it's 87%, it's as good as sold out! 30% is total annihilation, 50% is destruction!"
Kaoru: "It’s different from the attrition rate of combat troops, right?"
Miles: "So noisy! Even though it’s one-sixth the price of one of mine!"
Kaoru: "W-What?"
Mitsuha: "Well, both of you, calm down…"
Ma-Ka: "If you made a figure and didn't get one, stay away!!"
Mitsuha: "S-sasa.. summer festival! At the summer festival!! Ooohhh!!"
Then, on February 10th, "I Shall Survive Using Potions!" Volume 1 English version is now on sale! (^^)/
『I Shall Survive Using Potions!』
At Amazon in the US,
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,375 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
#1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Comics, Manga & Graphic Novels > Manga > Fantasy
#4 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Manga > Fantasy
Ooooh! It feels pretty good. (^^ゞ