Chapter 85
A few days passed.
After that tumultuous night, two delegations from the Kingdom and the Republic arrived. The representatives of the two nations were bewildered by a situation utterly different from what they had anticipated.
“Grand Duchess Carla is safe…?”
“There was a battle with demon worshippers, but the ones who set them in motion were the Arcana Royalist Restorationists…?”
This was unexpected.
The negotiations they had envisioned would have to change now.
“….”
“….”
The negotiations they had originally anticipated were about ‘war.’ It was also the order they had received from their respective heads of state—the Speaker of the Council and the King.
Grand Duchess Carla’s abduction
The involvement of demon worshippers
Conflict between the Kingdom and the Republic
The incidents they had heard about before boarding their carriages were more than enough to sow the seeds of war. So they had set out with urgent matters, including a declaration of war, on the agenda.
But what they heard upon arrival were astonishing testimonies.
Two brothers from the Montreux family, one of the Kingdom’s most prestigious houses and a leading force among the nobility, testified side by side. As members of a family with a firm foothold within the Kingdom of Gallia, they could not be ignored.
In a quiet room where only people from the Kingdom had gathered.
Lucian spoke to the Kingdom’s representative.
“It is true that there was some friction between the Kingdom and Republic cadets over the student council president election. However, things never reached the brink of violence. In fact, we were on standby in preparation for news from outside.”
“Sir Lucian, were you the one who ordered them to remain on standby?”
“Some of the cadets were, but most stayed in their dormitories of their own accord.”
Dominic spoke up beside him.
“That’s right! The ones who attacked us as we kept our distance and watched the situation unfold were demon worshippers! We merely fought back against those wicked people! Her Highness Lydia de Gallia also fought bravely…!”
“Dominic.”
“Ah, uh… yes, brother.”
“Answer only what you’re asked. It is not the conduct of a noble to muddy the nature of an incident by adding your personal opinions.”
“Ah, understood.”
The Kingdom’s representative, a noble who had come to mediate the conflict, gave a quiet, troubled hum. He was the head of a prestigious family that had long handled Gallia’s diplomacy.
His name was Baron Cedric Valmont.
He was the Kingdom of Gallia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
‘I rushed here with only a few attendants, swept along by the ominous mood back home….’
So he had sensed that the matter was spiraling out of control—and in a direction even those who had orchestrated it hadn’t expected.
‘Back home, rumors said that the conflict which began at the academy was gradually spreading. But it turned out the academy itself was the quietest place.’
The ominous mood within the Kingdom remained unchanged. Even now, draft proclamations declaring the neutral academy the front line lay in his bag.
“….”
Was this the eye of the storm?
Or was it a lie manipulated from outside?
If it had been fabricated,
he would mediate toward the right course.
And there was one more thing he hadn’t anticipated….
‘To think Her Highness Lydia de Gallia was involved in this incident….’
Though she was somewhat removed from the center of the incident, she was ultimately a key figure who had moved the cadets and brought about this situation.
“….”
Baron Cedric stroked his elegant mustache as he pondered.
‘What’s certain is that the incident has unfolded completely differently from what those who directed it expected….’
With that in mind,
he looked toward the building across the way, where the people of the Republic were surely hearing the same testimony.
Just what….
How would they respond?
*
A room where only people from the Republic had gathered.
A quiet atmosphere filled that room as well. It wasn’t taut with tension, but rather marked by a somewhat bewildered silence. At its center sat Grand Duchess Carla.
Carla’s face was still haggard. The fatigue from being confined for so long and enduring demon worshippers’ attacks throughout the night would not fade easily.
But she declared in a dignified voice.
“I was rescued by my half-sister Morgan, a Gallian apprentice knight, the Hero, the Saintess of the Holy Kingdom, and Her Highness Lydia de Gallia. They did everything they could. They fought desperately right up until the Restorationists were about to hand me over to the demon worshippers.”
“….”
A half-sister with commoner blood
A Holy Sword wielder from a potential enemy nation
A Saintess of the One-God Church, whom the Republic despised
And finally, an apprentice knight and royalty from the Kingdom….
“….”
It could hardly have been more spectacular.
If they wrote up a report on the course of events as it stood,
it would include enough names to set the Republic’s parliament abuzz.
‘The factions from the Driach family in particular will make a fuss….’
The noble representative dispatched from the Republic was troubled.
He also wanted to find any ‘other helpers’ who might have been involved—at least someone whose name wouldn’t turn the parliament upside down the moment the report reached it.
He said,
“M-might any academy faculty or other cadets from the Department of Magic have helped? For instance, children from another noble house, or at the very least, someone affiliated with the academy….”
Carla shook her head.
“No. I know they also moved to look for me. But the only ones who pulled me out of the sewers that day and fought the demon worshippers were the people I mentioned.”
“….”
The Republic nobleman’s eyes wavered.
In truth, from his perspective,
he had no particular feelings toward those who had rescued the Grand Duchess and removed the seeds of war.
But this was an extremely unfavorable testimony for the Republic.
‘If I report it like this, I’ll be the one telling them that it was ultimately an internal political struggle in the Republic. The Kingdom of Gallia will try to threaten us using the aid of its royalty as leverage. And the Holy Kingdom might do the same with the aid of its Saintess and Hero….’
The penalty he’d face the moment he delivered the news.
And when combined with Carla’s statement acknowledging her ‘commoner-born younger sister,’ he couldn’t even imagine what a dreadful mess he’d find himself in.
If bad news got out,
the person who brought it was the one to blame.
There had been more than a few noble representatives removed from the political scene by that logic. So the Republic envoy silently looked at the teacup before him, his eyes trembling.
“….”
“….”
Watching him,
Carla sighed inwardly.
‘Honestly, I’d like to insist on Morgan’s restoration to the direct line of the family, too.’
“….”
“….”
After a long silence,
the Republic representative nodded gravely.
“…I understand. Thank you, Grand Duchess, for cooperating with the testimony for so long despite your poor health.”
In two rooms some distance apart,
alongside the separate testimonies about the incident, the representatives of the Kingdom and the Republic also conducted private inquiries. They questioned Western Merchant Guild merchants who had arrived nearby, as well as academy faculty.
The taciturn head of security for the Western Merchant Guild said,
-Merchants from the Republic said they’d be joining us that day.
The devout old priest from the Holy Kingdom said,
-After examining the remaining traces, I can confirm that the power of the Dark Realm lurked along every step of the way, from the Grand Duchess’s abduction to the battle in the dead of night. I swear this is true before the Sun God.
Every piece of evidence indicated that the Grand Duchess’s testimony was true.
And so, they decided to reserve judgment.
-It seems difficult to proceed with negotiations rashly in the current situation. If we make this news official without care, we may end up unable to negotiate at all.
-Yes. We should convey the news from here to our respective homelands unofficially.
They stayed at the academy for a while, negotiating again and again in an effort to resolve the situation as much as possible. Even as they did so, their letters quickly made their way to their respective homelands.
The process was peaceful,
but it was all in preparation for the repercussions to come.
*
Around the same time.
Lydia was sitting in the living room of her dormitory.
As she drank the tea her maid Mirian brought her, she thought about what had happened. But those thoughts didn’t last long. A welcome face sitting across from her spoke up.
Lydia’s older brother, Leonard, said,
“Looks like you’ve been doing well.”
“….”
Lydia looked at him and said,
“You’re not asking?”
“No.”
Leonard took a sip of tea and gazed out the open window at the academy. The curtains shifted this way and that in the breeze.
He said,
“Whenever something’s happened, you’d lower your eyes primly and pretend nothing was wrong. Like when you secretly went outside.”
“….”
Lydia gave a wry smile.
‘Well… I thought he didn’t know, but he knew and just let it go? If we’d enrolled at the academy together, he would’ve found out everything before I even made it through the Hero Exam.’
Her older brother, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.
A living witness to the altered timeline.
Leonard de Gallia.
He never appeared in the ‘library of memories’ that sometimes showed up in Lydia’s dreams. That was because, in the original story, he was already dead by the time the narration began.
So whenever he showed an unexpected side like this, she couldn’t help being genuinely surprised.
“….”
‘These days, Arti, Aria, Mave, and even Morgan keep growing stronger at an incredible pace and surprising me….’
Thinking that,
she spoke to Leonard.
“Have things been going well with your work at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?”
“Well….”
He let his words trail off,
and smiled uncertainly.
“More or less. I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t yet have much support as a member of the royal family, but personally, I’ve done well enough to become the head of the Republic’s Negotiation Bureau. I’d say that’s not a bad result.”
“….”
“Thanks to that, I was able to accompany Minister Cedric and see my little sister again.”
Even if he put it that way, the mere fact that a boy the same age as Lydia could get involved in an important affair of the Kingdom proved his ability.
Since he was a royal with little claim to the throne, he had to tread carefully around the royal family to become involved in official duties. And yet he was capable enough that they had to include him in the delegation.
Lydia found that explanation convincing.
“….”
‘His habit of leading with humility whenever he’s accomplished something he himself thinks is rather impressive hasn’t changed.’
Well….
It had only been a year, after all.
A lot had happened,
but it wasn’t enough time for his nature to change.
Just as she was thinking that,
Leonard smiled as Mirian poured him tea.
“Thank you. Mirian, you must have worked hard looking after Lydia, too.”
“Not at all. It is my duty to serve both of Your Highnesses.”
“Hahaha…. It’s nice to hear that again after so long.”
He took another sip of tea and spoke again. But for some reason, he wore a slightly mischievous smile.
“By the way, Lydia.”
“?”
“There’s something at the entrance to the annex of this dormitory that doesn’t seem like your taste. Looks like someone besides you and Mirian is living here, too. Is that person a secret?”
“….”
‘He’s observant, too.’
Lydia replied,
“A friend. I’m living with a friend.”
“Hee…. Lydia’s friend.”
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“No, well….”
Leonard’s words trailed off.
“I thought you didn’t have any friends.”
“….”
“So where is that person right now?”
“….”
*
Morgan looked at Carla, who was sitting across from her. Carla’s complexion was still far from good. Even so, she hadn’t lost the dignified bearing of a highborn noble’s daughter.
She said,
“Morgan.”
“….”
“Let’s return to the family. I’ll speak to the head of the house. I’ll ask him to restore you to the direct line.”