275. The Council (1)
Some might call it the calm before the storm, while others might call it the peace that finally arrived. Lazy days were passing by, peaceful for everyone except for a very few who never saw the light of day.
Among those enjoying this peace was Rene Philippa de Carvelier. Now, even the nobles, referred to as King Carvelier or the Elector of Ribue, were included.
“Boring!”
“Your Highness, how about a walk?”
“Even a walk is boring!”
Having completely secured the loyalty of the Greatsword Nobles and firmly established her position as the next king within the ranks, she couldn’t get used to these weeks of peace.
Every moment since she left Ribue, she had been on the battlefield. Blood and flesh surely leave trauma, but on the other hand, events traumatic enough to leave scars also raise the threshold for stimulation.
Thus, she was suffering from unprecedented boredom.
She would occasionally strap on a sword and test her martial skills…
“Perfect swordsmanship, Your Highness!”
“Oooh! Truly a knight… no! A knight princess!”
“…Isn’t ‘knight princess’ a bit odd?”
“Knight Duke! Yes, you are a Knight Duke! The epitome of a knight!!”
Since her inauguration, her vassals had become more like followers than vassals. The anxiety in their hearts was about serving a lord inferior to Erbe and tarnishing their own honor.
They readily acknowledged their shortcomings but were nonetheless captivated by the unyielding charisma of their new sovereign.
“Enough! Does this look like proper swordsmanship to you?”
“Even if Sir Shrike himself appeared, you’d be evenly matched! No… three moves ahead!”
“The Empire’s finest sword!!”
She was sick of slashing straw dummies with wooden swords. Yet, she didn’t want to spar either. She was well aware of her position and thus avoided proper duels with knights. After all, her weapon wasn’t the sword.
Except for the basic qualities required as the eldest daughter of a martial family, she was more skilled with the pen and her tongue than the sword.
Having poured all her talents into eloquence and political acumen, the current days, devoid of opportunities to use them, were unbearably dull.
“Where is Sir Pernin?”
“Uh… well… Your Highness?”
“Why?”
“Directly seeking out Sir Pernin might… be something to reconsider…”
The vassals tried to dissuade Rene with awkward expressions. As Rene slightly frowned, they quickly continued.
“Well… Sir Pernin is busy.”
“Ah, so we have a busy noble in our mansion! Truly astonishing. Why aren’t you all busy? Huh?”
“Um… Sir Pernin told us not to do anything…”
“Since when have you all become Sir Pernin’s limbs!”
“Well… um… Sir Pernin and Your Highness are soon to be wed… so in a way, he’s becoming the lord of Carvelier… um. It’s not entirely unfitting…”
The knight struggled to explain. Rene struggled to suppress a twitching smile. Marriage. Yes, it was almost a certainty.
The day the Elector’s Council ended and the Pope came to the capital to bless the coronation would soon be her wedding day.
Fernandez taking control of her vassals? Even better. Since they were now a community of fate. If both were solidifying the support of the vassals, it would positively impact her influence as well.
And his authority was naturally to be acknowledged. In the absence of the former king, he rallied the vassals to seize Paltennoia, swallowed Bülrang with almost no damage, and even succeeded in assassinating the Emperor.
Seen narrowly, an assassin; broadly, a savior. He avenged the former king and protected the capital from the clutches of demons.
“Huh. Huhuhu. Yes, that’s right. Fine. But guide me!”
“Huh?”
“How can a couple not see each other for so long? Come on, let’s go to Sir Pernin’s office!”
Without giving the knights a chance to stop her, Rene strode out of the courtyard. The knights, with panicked expressions, hurried after her.
* * *
At that moment, one of the very few in the capital not enjoying peaceful days. Fernandez Sernerd was buried under reports.
-Damn it. Why did you sign there!
‘Ah, sleepy. A mistake. I’ll rewrite it.’
Forcing his half-closed eyes open, Fernandez destroyed the document he had just stamped. With a wave, the document neatly burned to ashes, scattering into the air.
-It wasn’t to send that Archangel woman. At a time when every hand is needed…
‘No. Everiz needs to bond with Zephis.’
-No matter how much that woman tries, would Diemonica ever be tempted?
‘Effort is what matters most. We weren’t Grand Magicians from the start.’
-Since when did you become so understanding, Fernandez?
Ignoring Faijashi’s teasing, he was flipping through documents when the office door slammed open. The sound of footsteps, stride, and presence. Thanks to Diemonica’s senses and his own level, he deduced the visitor without turning around.
“Duke Carvelier. Knocking is a noble’s courtesy.”
“Isn’t it a bit much to stand on etiquette between family?”
“The closer the family, the more precious the etiquette and manners. You lose points.”
“With about three thousand points scored, a few deductions are within the margin of error, right?”
Rene smirked, deftly avoiding the towering stacks of reports, and sat across from him. Fernandez put down his pen and rubbed his eyes.
“When was your last sleep?”
“Six days ago.”
“Six days…?! How are you still alive?”
“Perhaps it’s because of Diemonica. Honestly, I’m not even sure if I’m alive.”
He picked up the teacup and took a sip of the now cold tea. Rene took a cup from the cabinet and tilted Fernandez’s teapot. As soon as she took a sip of the cold tea, she immediately started coughing.
“What is this…?!”
“Manville herbal tea. Hmm… it’s more like a concentrated herbal extract than tea. It has an excellent awakening effect, so you won’t be sleeping tonight.”
“Is that a banned substance?”
“According to the Imperial Food Code, no.”
“If I become the Emperor, I’ll ban it. It’s truly horrifying.”
It wasn’t the awakening effect of the herb that chased away sleep, but the horrifying taste that woke her up. Rene stuck out her tongue and looked at Fernandez. He sipped his tea without a change in expression and picked up the report again.
“So, I’m still busy. What is it?”
“You won’t get mad, right?”
“My anger is functional.”
Rene pondered Fernandez’s words with a blank expression. Is he angry or not?
Noticing her expression, Fernandez chuckled and said, “I must have been talking nonsense in my sleep. Go ahead. I don’t get angry when it’s unnecessary.”
“Uh… um. Shall we go out?”
“I’ll pass.”
Fernandez cut her off bluntly and picked up his pen again. Rene, who had been preparing answers expecting ‘why’ or ‘where,’ was taken aback and said, “Don’t you have anything else to ask? Why are you suddenly like this, can’t you see I’m busy? Where and what do you plan to do… This was kind of a date proposal.”
“Why? Because I’m bored. You can see I’m busy, right? That’s why I asked so carefully. Where and what? Given your situation, you can’t leave Paltennoia, so the only place you can go is the capital city, but walking around the city doesn’t help me at all.”
Unless it’s to sleep, perhaps. Fernandez spoke decisively. Rene made a flustered expression but soon laughed playfully.
“Haha, you got one thing wrong! It’s not Paltennoia city!”
“Then I won’t refuse, but I’ll oppose. You must not step outside the capital gates.”
“No! I have to leave the gates… but there’s a possible reason!”
“…?”
“The High Council of Aseas has come! Wow! Wow! Aren’t you curious?”
Fernandez put down his pen and looked at Rene. The High Council of Aseas? Why would they come to Paltennoia at this time?
-Is it because of the Emperor’s death? That’s more of a magical issue than a political one.
‘If that’s the reason, it means they tracked the residual magic I used, but that’s impossible.’
-Whatever it is, aren’t you curious? Let’s go.
‘I’m busy.’
-You’re no longer a mage or anything. How can you miss the golden age of the High Council of Aseas? I can’t forgive such a tragedy.
By the time Faijashi was active, the High Council of Aseas had long been destroyed. Roughly estimating, it would be about twenty to thirty years from now.
Therefore, Faijashi had never seen the aerial tower of the High Council of Aseas. He had only examined their fragmented relics and ruins, but those were mere glimpses of their glorious era.
What a pity. Considering that a mage who only learned a small fragment of Aseas’s vision later became the head of the Bronze Scales and a terror to the Eastern Kingdom Alliance, it’s even more regrettable.
“Hmm…”
“Curious, right? Want to go, huh?”
“Fine. Not bad.”
Of course, he couldn’t act solely out of curiosity. Fernandez quickly finished his report and closed the book. He looked at Rene, whose eyes were sparkling.
‘A politically neutral mage group wandering the nation and a leading candidate for the next Emperor who has remained silent until now… Depending on the rumors, this could be very useful.’
-And you can meet the esteemed members of the High Council in person. Two birds with one stone.
‘Faijashi. Speaking of which, you said something back then.’
After killing the Emperor, when he was half-dead and bedridden for a while, Fernandez had asked Faijashi something.
What level have I reached now?
* * *
‘Excluding blessings and magic, how far have I reached by past standards? Just in martial arts.’
-Phaern’s Griffin Master Lyon, Dane’s Vicente II, the Black Erik, Grand Kagan Karadskar, Kirzat’s Al’Hashir, Chieftain Hearttaker, Sky’s Patrick, Blason’s Zigismund, the Order of St. John’s Pilgrim Knights…
‘You think I’m at that level?’
Each of the figures Faijashi mentioned was a hero of humanity on the brink of the end. In other words, they were the great heroes of a time when human civilization’s potential had reached its peak and was burning its last flames.
Naturally, they were at least one and a half steps stronger than the heroes of this era.
-No. You should listen to the end. I think you could handle those below that level.
‘What if I use blessings and relics?’
-Then you could handle those guys too.
‘What if I use magic?’
-Your magic is unstable. To reach our peak, you’d have to give up most of your physical functions. But if you focus on combat support and use it carefully…
Based on historical records and remaining research data, the last Grand Chancellor of Aseas, Askanio Zuplinburg.
-That level, or a great warrior directly blessed by a great demon, you could handle.
‘What about Daryan?’
-Daryan Schryke? Daryan Schryke in his prime? Haha. That’s a funny joke. He’s off the charts. If he’s fully blessed by a great demon, his magic fully restored, and wielding a sword, then you might stand a chance.
* * *
Recalling Faijashi’s chuckling, Fernandez snapped out of his thoughts. He felt a strange, unsettling emotion.
‘Oh, Faijashi. Look at this.’
-What?
‘I think I’ve really drifted away from being a mage. I’m feeling a very irrational emotion.’
-…It’s sudden, but what is it?
‘Competitiveness.’
The High Council of Aseas. Their last Grand Chancellor… Fernandez smiled deeply and clasped his hands.
“Let’s go for a walk together.”
“Okay!”
Whatever it meant, Rene laughed cheerfully and ran out of the room.
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