There was too much I had said to Yulia for me to pretend I didn’t know what was going on. Casually fiddling with my sword, I slowly looked up at Yulia. She was gazing at me, her signature shiny blonde hair neatly tied up. It’s kinda ridiculous for her to give me that serious look when she usually just spouts idealistic nonsense. I took a moment to choose my words, but no suitable excuse came to mind, so I let out a small sigh.
“The Young Lady said you should do it.”
“Lilian?”
Yulia plopped down beside me. Her familiar floral scent suddenly hit my nose. We had both been sweating, yet somehow she smelled good while I was stuck smelling like a wet sock. I wondered about this but kept my mouth shut.
“Yeah. Even though we’re in the same faction, the House of Bronwey is the second biggest rival to the House of Portus.”
“Ah, so it’s political reasons.”
“Yep. There’s not much overlap between you and the Lady Bronwey.”
If the primary rival of the House of Portus is the House of Elpeltain, then the second is definitely the House of Bronwey. This is because the House of Bronwey often clashes with the Emperor’s faction as well. While the Marquis of Portus was an able and flexible minister, the Count of Bronwey was a steadfast statesman who thoroughly considered the needs of the people.
Ever since the parliament was formed twenty years ago, he had been quite the skilled political player, even doubling as the meeting hall leader, making him more of an inconvenient travel companion for the House of Portus. If thoughts aligned, he could be a powerful ally, but since the Count always interjected on every single issue the Marquis was dealing with, he could be seen as more bothersome than the Duke of Elpeltain.
At least the Duke of Elpeltain would sit quietly as long as his own interests weren’t threatened. He knew that staying silent strengthened his voice. If he meddled with every issue, the nobles wouldn’t be too fond of him since it was deemed unbecoming. But the Count of Bronwey didn’t care about that kind of refinement.
He had a personality that stood in stark contrast to the always noble spirit of the House of Portus. It was hard to believe these two houses belonged to the same faction.
But when you really think about it, it’s a pretty simple reason. Despite all the opposition, the House of Portus was still a ministerial family that cared about the people’s well-being. Especially after the current Emperor shifted his attitude to be more friendly towards commoners, it was even more so.
“So, that means you bump heads with the Count of Bronwey less, right?”
“Even so, we still clash. The Count of Bronwey has a pretty strong voice.”
Recently, discussions about the Count of Bronwey’s elevation might have been a burden for the Marquis of Portus. It would be even more so for the Duke of Elpeltain. After all, there were already five marquises in the Empire, and to add more felt like a hit to their status.
Of course, the elevation of the Count of Bronwey wouldn’t be canceled if my daughter had some flaws, but there would be some political damage—at least that’s how the Young Lady seemed to think. For me, I really didn’t have any thoughts about it. I’m just doing what the Young Lady wants.
“Hmm… I heard Karim Elpeltain is going to cause some trouble together?”
“Yep.”
“You should be careful. He pretends to be a lion, but he’s really a snake.”
“…Yulia, have you met the Prince Karim?”
As far as I knew, Yulia hadn’t faced Karim Elpeltain before. I voiced my question, and Yulia nodded, a bit flustered.
“Uh, yeah! A long time ago. Yeah, a long time ago.”
“Hmm, I see.”
It’s a bit suspicious, but well, he’s not someone we should be wary of, plus he’s the biggest rival of the House of Portus, so I should be cautious. Nodding my head, Yulia smiled brightly.
“Shall we call it a day then?”
“Are you already tired?”
“…No, I could go all day!”
Seeing Yulia striking a pose, I slowly drew my sword. At that, Yulia hung her head.
“My apologies. That was just bravado. I can’t even move my arms….”
“Alright. Then let’s call it a day.”
I wanted to flash a smile, but I just rubbed at my mouth, which didn’t budge an inch. Letting out a small sigh, I sheathed my sword. It feels like Yulia’s swordsmanship is improving more than mine.
“Well, that’s because the level difference between me and Catherine is just too large.”
“True, Yulia didn’t really need to learn swordsmanship. When you think about it, you’re doing well enough as it is…”
“Right? Catherine needs to praise me more.”
“….”
Somehow, after hearing her say that, the compliments I had planned faded away. When I shut my mouth, Yulia playfully started patting my back.
“Oh, looks like it’s time for my meeting with Prince Karim. I’ll take my leave.”
“Yep. See you later.”
Waving my hand back to Yulia, who was smiling and shaking her hand energetically, I left the training area to head to my meeting spot.
#
“So, what have you decided?”
The heir to the House of Elpeltain and the First Prince, Karim Elpeltain, was feeling the pressure. The heir of the lion family, wielding unfettered power, could remain calm even before the Emperor but couldn’t help but feel tense facing the woman before him.
She was a truly fearsome presence. Her expressionless face showed no emotions, and although her physique was small, a strange pressure radiated off her. If you didn’t feel at least a little tense against someone who could take on the Royal Knights single-handedly, that person would have to be crazy.
People often described her as having blood-red eyes that seemed ominous, and hair as dark as the old demon race, which just added to the aura of fear. Of course, even that was somewhat breathtakingly beautiful, but since Karim Elpeltain wasn’t one to indulge in the pleasures of color, that didn’t hold much value.
Swallowing his tension and wrapping it in elegance, Karim Elpeltain managed to treat Catherine just like he usually would.
“The Young Lady has accepted your proposal.”
“Great.”
With that, his most dangerous and powerful enemy would not interfere with their grand scheme. All that remained was to deal with the princess. While reflecting on that thought, Karim suddenly had a brilliant idea.
“You have a friendly relationship with the princess, don’t you?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“Then on this day, would you be able to take the princess out into the streets?”
“It’s not impossible, but may I ask what the reason is?”
“The princess could disrupt our grand scheme. As you know, we only want to remove Elia Bronwey; we have no intention of touching anyone else.”
Of course, if Elia Bronwey were to fall, the others would likely follow suit, but Karim Elpeltain kept that unsaid as he gazed at the maid before him. The maid, adorned with a hairpiece typical of her kind, thought for a moment before nodding her head.
“It’s not a hard task. So, do I just have to lure the princess?”
“Right. We’re not lacking in force, so you only need to do that.”
“Understood.”
As the maid obediently nodded, Karim felt a sigh escape him inwardly. What if she suddenly didn’t like how things were going and decided to smash everything? Honestly, that was the scariest thought. In the middle of their grand scheme, suddenly to have a maid pop up and go “Maid Death!” while wiping them out, wasn’t that a possible scenario?
It was a ridiculous thought, but Karim was someone who meticulously planned every possible outcome, so even if he received this answer, he couldn’t feel fully at ease. This paranoia had always served him well during his successful endeavors, so he didn’t think he was mistaken this time either.
“I’ll leave the method to you, so please do your best.”
“Understood.”
“Well, let’s head back now.”
Checking his wristwatch, Karim Elpeltain promptly made his leave. He had a meeting coming up after this. The maid watched him quietly as he left. Feeling a slight chill at the soundless departure of the maid, Karim forcibly ignored it and moved toward the meeting room. He was eager to share this joyous news with his colleagues.
Since time had consumed more than he expected, he picked up the pace. Pulling out the Lion Mask from his cloak, Karim Elpeltain adjusted his appearance slightly and stood before the meeting room door.
“A true lion indeed. Managing to entice that maid.”
“Indeed! Hahaha!”
Expecting such flattery, Karim Elpeltain slowly opened the door to the meeting room wearing the Lion Mask. Immediately, he was left in shock. An unexpected figure was already inside the meeting room.
