Chapter 69
The next morning, Vieta sighed at the sight of the visitor who had come to her room.
“Hello, Vieta. Good morning.”
“…I'm sorry, but I plan to be alone today.”
Vieta replied curtly.
That was understandable; yesterday had been an especially exhausting day.
The term training fanatic might have been coined for Michelle. She kept demanding sparring matches from Vieta, and Vieta used those matches to point out Michelle's weaknesses.
On top of that, Vieta had spent the entire night on edge, talking with the goddess Aurea.
“Wait, wait. I didn't come alone today. My knight came with me.”
Despite her cold reception, Michelle did not mind at all. As Vieta stared at her in disbelief, the dark-blue-haired knight Vieta had met on the street the night before gave her a slight bow.
“I am Loras Sven. I serve Miss Michelle.”
Loras was wearing the snake-shaped bracer protecting his forearm again today.
“Why don't you teach Loras too while you're at it? It would be nice if you kept an eye on me as well.”
Michelle winked and tugged Vieta by the arm. As a mere commoner, Vieta could not dismiss Lady Michelle in front of Loras, so she had no choice but to follow Michelle.
*
“My lady, as I said yesterday, don't make your movements so large.”
Vieta held her sword horizontally and blocked the attack aimed at Michelle's neck with the guard, then counterthrust toward the left side of Michelle's neck.
“A seasoned knight can predict an opponent's attack just by looking at how they hold their sword and where their toes are pointing. That's why your attacks keep getting blocked, my lady.”
Even as she repeatedly blinked against the sweat trickling down her brow, Michelle listened intently to everything Vieta said.
“Could you take your stance once more?”
When Michelle assumed the stance, Vieta carefully adjusted the angle of her elbow and the rest of her posture.
“Remember this stance. If your elbows angle outward even a little, the force needed to swing your sword more than doubles. This stance suits men perfectly, but women have less strength, so you need to modify it a little.”
“Thank you, Vieta.”
The duchess repeatedly swung her sword while maintaining the angle Vieta had set. As Vieta watched to make sure her stance did not fall apart, Loras approached and spoke to her.
“You certainly work hard, don't you?”
Loras's face was covered in sweat as well. He, too, seemed to have practiced the stance Vieta had taught him after being thoroughly beaten by her.
“You must have your reasons.”
Vieta answered while recalling what Michelle had said the day before. Michelle had said she wanted to take Vieta with her so she could survive. Her efforts now were probably for a similar reason.
“Do you really have no intention of coming to the duchy, Lady Vieta?”
“Wouldn't it be enough for Sir Loras to protect the duchess in my place?”
Although Loras had lost to Vieta, he was stronger than the captain of the Imperial Knights.
“If that were possible, I would welcome it as well.”
Fear and determination were both evident on the knight's sweat-soaked face.
Vieta could not imagine what someone as strong as Loras had to fear, so she could not bring herself to speak carelessly. Nor did she want to involve herself in the duchy's affairs any further.
“If it wouldn't be a bother, may I ask you to spar with me once more? As you said, I'll keep my movements controlled, so I would appreciate it if you could watch me.”
“I see no harm in that.”
Vieta adjusted her grip on the sword. She did not want to hear that her students(?) had gone somewhere and gotten beaten up.
***
“What am I supposed to do?”
Disappointment flickered across Vieta's face as she sat on the gray, jutting parapet. Blanc's room, which she had finally worked up the courage to visit, already had a guest inside. Even though she knew she should not, Vieta listened with a mixture of regret and curiosity.
“Would you like something to drink? Though all I have is wine or weak tea.”
“I'm fine. The fact that you received me despite my coming to see you at this late hour is enough.”
Judging by the voice, the person who had come to see Blanc was Michelle. Unable to overcome her growing curiosity, Vieta pulled her black hood well down and peered through the window.
With only a single candle lit, Blanc and Michelle sat facing each other across a table. As though to prove that their meeting had not been planned, Blanc was dressed in a light shirt, while the duchess was wrapped in an old cloak, looking little different from Vieta at that moment.
“So, what did you come to see me about?”
“…You already know, don't you?”
“I think I could trust you more if you told me yourself.”
At Blanc's wary words, Michelle placed her tightly clenched fists on her knees as though tense, then began to speak.
“The mage must have already completed his investigation into me, so I won't burden you with unnecessary details. Prince Roen, please lend me your support so that I can become duke.”
“Become duke, you say.... I don't see any reason for an imperial prince to meddle in the affairs of an independent duchy just to help you commit treason.”
“No. You must help me. Only then will you remain safe as well.”
At the sudden shift in the gravity of their conversation, Vieta gripped the edge of her hood tightly.
“The empress, Verphin, will soon flee to the duchy. If she safely escapes the Empire, the Duchy of Sijak plans to declare war on the Empire, using Crown Prince Gabin's death as a pretext.”
“The empress fleeing is unexpected, but what does that have to do with my safety? Her escape won't stop me from becoming crown prince. No, with my political rival gone, it should actually work in my favor. And I don't think the duchy can defeat the Empire.”
As Blanc sank deeper into his chair and replied indifferently, Michelle's voice rose slightly.
“You need to look farther ahead, Prince. The moment the Duchy of Sijak turns its back on the Empire, the Empire will have enemies to both the west and north at the same time. Even the mighty Empire would find it burdensome to face enemies on two fronts.”
“If I go by what the duchess says, that unfortunately means the Kingdom of Madak is also an enemy of the Empire. Are you prepared to take responsibility for what you're saying?"
"…I am."
"All right, then how can I help you? As you know, I don't have the power to freely mobilize the Empire's forces.”
Michelle, who had spoken without hesitation until then, fell silent and rubbed the tip of her chin. Her short fingernails glinted in the faint candlelight.
“The old nobles of the duchy will oppose me, the second daughter, becoming duke. So when that happens, lend me your support.”
“Will that really be enough? Without the Empire's help, are you confident you can defeat the duchy's knight order?”
“To be honest, I intended to borrow the Grand Mage. But now it seems I'll have to borrow someone else. No, I'm not sure whether borrow is the right word. Vieta isn't a member of the imperial household, after all. I will take Vieta with me and seize the ducal seat. Once everything has stabilized, I will knight Vieta and have her lead the duchy's honorable order of knights.”
Michelle's tenacious fixation gave Vieta a headache.
"Vieta…."
At the same time, Blanc's voice grew gloomy.
***
Shalinkrte, the empress's palace in the eastern part of the Imperial Palace. The Roseville the empress had cherished lay battered and abandoned, and Shalinkrte itself had long since been deserted.
That was only natural, since the empress had shut the palace gates roughly two months earlier and ceased all public appearances.
Seeing how suddenly the empress had changed, people pitied her, saying she must have developed a mental illness. The imperial physician's examination had likewise concluded that Verphin was suffering from a psychological problem resembling depression.
“Your Majesty, a letter.”
The maid Harowa held out an envelope sealed with colorless wax. Dressed in a lightweight white dress, the empress read the letter with trembling eyes.
Ever since her role in hiring Cardu had been exposed, Prince Roen had placed an invisible leash around the empress's neck and made her dance to his tune.
His orders were perfectly ordinary, but the empress, forced to kneel before her mortal enemy's son, had to endure endless humiliation.
To avoid angering Prince Roen, the empress kept herself as submissive as possible while secretly exchanging messages with the Duchy of Sijak.
The duke was belligerent and greedy. The only reason he had shown even nominal loyalty to the Empire until now was his sister, the empress. Once she decided to betray the Empire, nothing could restrain the duke's ambition.
“It seems the preparations are complete.”
The empress committed the date written in the letter to memory again and again. It was seven days from now.
In seven days, everyone who had turned a blind eye to Gabin's unjust death, along with those who had killed him, would kneel before her.
“See that everything is prepared thoroughly.”
The empress held up the candle and set the letter ablaze.