Chapter 29

Chapter 29 : Of Traitors and Sorcerers, and Troublemakers (4)

The culprit who should have been interrogated was dead, and the Emperor’s assassination attempt was ultimately buried by time, as if it had never happened. It was a good thing for Legina, but for those responsible for the safety of the Imperial Family, it was cause for tearing one’s hair out.

“No, what am I supposed to do now that that bastard’s dead?! You want me to send a letter of protest to the Ducal House of Slyveig? Really send it? Like, ‘thanks to your esteemed son, the tail of the group trying to assassinate His Imperial Majesty was cut off, so take responsibility!’”

Albert, the Captain of the Imperial Guard responsible for the Emperor’s safety, was a man who preferred physical labor to mental exertion. Such a man became the Emperor’s escort knight when he was still a prince, and naturally rose to the position of Captain of the Imperial Guard when that prince became Emperor. If his skills had been poor, he would have handed the position over to someone more capable and lived his life swinging his sword as he pleased, but unfortunately, his skills were too good, leaving him stuck as Captain of the Imperial Guard.

“No, why did that Slyveig bastard have to cut him there, making it impossible to stop the bleeding?!”

“I heard he did it to save Her Highness Legina?”

“Saving our Princess was good! It was good! But killing that guy was bad! It was bad!”

To some, it might have sounded like the ravings of a madman, but Gibson, the Vice-Captain of the Imperial Guard, understood him. If he were in Albert’s position, he would have reacted exactly the same way.

But I’m the Vice-Captain, and I don’t need to tear my hair out worrying like the Captain!

Gibson, recalling Albert’s past attempts to hand over the Captaincy to him, watched Albert suddenly slam his desk and jump to his feet.

“Captain?”

“This is not a problem I can solve.”

“What?”

“I’m going to His Majesty.”

“And what will you do there?”

“I must inform him of my incompetence and state that I will take responsibility and step down from this position!”

“Wow. When it comes to this, your mind really works well, doesn’t it?”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing. Let’s go.”

To think he could even use a crisis like this as a stepping stone for his early retirement. He was truly a respectable man. Gibson admired him, opening the Captain of the Guard’s office door without a hint of apprehension. He knew that if Albert retired, he would inherit the Captaincy, but he felt no sense of crisis whatsoever from him.

“Yes, is that so?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. This humble subject is inadequate… In that sense, I will take responsibility and…!”

“No, that is enough. You may withdraw.”

“Retirement… Your Majesty?”

“His mouth is dead; unless you are a god, obtaining information is impossible. However, conduct a thorough investigation into what route that person used to enter the banquet.”

“…I receive your command.”

Watching Albert leave the Emperor’s audience chamber with slumped shoulders, Gibson realized that today, too, his beautiful dream of retirement had been shattered. It seemed only Albert didn’t know that the Emperor would never let go of such a capable individual who, despite complaining, always got the job done.

“I’ll buy you a beer today.”

“…Should I go back in right now and…!”

“What would you say?”

“Would the nobles truly trust such an incompetent Captain of the Guard? Using that as an excuse…!”

“An excuse, you say… So you’re not even trying to hide it anymore? Well, even if you did, it wouldn’t work. The nobles in the capital are preoccupied with other matters; they don’t care a bit about you, Captain.”

“Huh?”

“Her Highness Legina caused quite a stir at the banquet, didn’t she?”

“…Ah… that?”

Although close protection was impossible at that banquet, Albert had participated. He wanted to just swing his sword in the training ground, but Gibson, standing next to him, nagged him so much about the Captain of the Guard needing to be present that he attended. It turned out to be a good decision, but… Anyway! Albert clearly remembered the moment the princess, who had taken down the assassin with a swift swing of a chair, declared the annulment.

“How much must our kind princess have hated it to do something like that?”

“Yes, but His Majesty is opposing it.”

“I heard that Slyveig bastard has another woman, too.”

“The rumors are rampant.”

“Oh dear, what a pity for our princess! Should I just go and turn Slyveig upside down while I’m at it?”

“As an excuse to retire?”

“…You know too much about me.”

“But you wouldn’t kill me, would you?”

That was right. The Imperial Palace and the nobles in the capital all sympathized with Legina. Unaware that she had regressed and even less aware that she had vowed to become a troublemaker, they still saw Legina as a kind, gentle, and intelligent but pitiable princess who was hated by the Emperor. When she announced the annulment, what people thought was, ‘How unbearable must it have been for our kind, beautiful, and pitiable princess!’ This was because the rumors about Hermann having another woman had already been spreading, and everyone knew that she lived a difficult life every day between an indifferent, heartless Emperor and a troublemaker brother. No one now remembered that she had struck the assassin with a chair before making that declaration.

Legina, unaware of these facts, held the expectation that bad rumors about her had finally begun to spread. After all, she had undignifiedly swung a chair, scolded Theore, and so ungracefully declared an unagreed-upon annulment in front of the Emperor! Of course, she didn’t expect a grand rumor to spread already, as it was just the beginning. She would be satisfied even if it was just spiced with, ‘The Imperial Princess has changed! And for the worse! She’s clearly going to become strange like His Highness Theore!’

“So, Una. How are the rumors about me?”

“Ah… um… well…”

Una, who had been given the special task of finding out how rumors about Legina were spreading throughout the Imperial Palace and the capital, looked nervously at Selma. This was because Selma had explicitly told her never to relay the rumors exactly as they were. Legina understood why Selma had said that. If Una told her the rumors exactly as they were, Legina, who was determined to prove herself a troublemaker, might act in unpredictable ways, causing Selma great anxiety. However, telling a lie, no matter how well-intentioned, was deceiving Legina.

“Una?”

“W-Well, um… there aren’t any major rumors yet, Your Highness.”

So Una gave an answer that her conscience allowed, one that wouldn’t disappoint Legina while also reassuring Selma. It wasn’t a complete lie. Her rumors truly were still insignificant. Legina puffed out her cheeks and set down her teacup, unaware that Selma, standing behind her, was quietly sighing in relief. Indeed, since she hadn’t yet shown the full extent of her troublemaking, it was greedy to expect major rumors already.

“I need to try harder.”

She made a resolution that would make Selma gasp if she heard it, and turned her gaze towards the firmly closed door. Johan and Hermann would be standing beyond that door. She felt sorry for Johan, but Legina had not allowed her escorts into the room even for a moment since the close escort began, as she did not wish to face Hermann.

“I think I just need to endure a little longer… Selma.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“How is the investigation progressing?”

“It seems they haven’t found anything special.”

The dead assassin must have become the sorceress’s hound without realizing it. He wasn’t trained as an assassin or hidden in the Imperial Palace with a specific purpose; he was just an ordinary attendant who unfortunately fell victim to the sorceress. She had hoped that the investigation might reveal some connection to the sorceress, but it seemed they found nothing.

“And His Majesty? No other words about my annulment?”

“…No.”

“If I go to the Ducal House of Slyveig and throw a chair, do you think they’ll come out and agree to the annulment?”

“If you wish to see me bite my tongue and die, then do so.”

“Selma, you seem to have become a bit aggressive lately.”

“I’m trying to hold back from showing you what truly aggressive looks like.”

For a while, Selma had struggled to adapt to Legina’s unpredictable actions, often seeming overwhelmed. However, Legina looked at Selma, who was admirably adapting day by day and returning to her original character, with eyes full of affection.

“Selma.”

“Yes.”

“I truly cherish you very much.”

“…What are you planning to do now?”

“Would you tell His Majesty that I wish to see him?”

“May I ask why?”

“Because I thought if I threw a chair at His Majesty, he might accept it.”

“Your Highness!”

“It’s a joke.”

It must have been sincere. Selma looked at Legina, who was elegantly raising her teacup again, and wiped the cold sweat from her palms on the hem of her dress. Throwing a chair at the Emperor! For Selma, who had witnessed Legina defeat the assassin with a remarkably swift swing of a chair at the banquet, it was not something to laugh at, even if it was a joke. Moreover, if it was sincere… It was even more terrifying, as it seemed entirely possible for the current Legina.

Knock-knock.

At the sound of a soft knock, Selma flinched, startled, and listened to the sound from outside the door.

“His Imperial Majesty sent us.”

“Let them in.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Una, nodding at Legina’s words, quickly moved to open the door. Following the Emperor’s attendant, Johan and Hermann entered the room together and naturally took their places on either side of her.

“Why did His Majesty send you?”

“He wishes to have dinner with you.”

“Just me and him?”

“His Highness Theore and the two ducal lords will also be present.”

Legina’s gaze landed on Hermann. In addition to the Emperor, she had to eat while looking at that face too? She sighed deeply. She probably needed a digestive aid for dinner tonight.

– Mochinuna.