CH 153

Half a month after Raidorl became regent and the death of the prime minister, Lockwood Marcell, was announced.

The main nobles of the kingdom of Zain are gathered in the royal palace, where the scars of the last battle have been repaired.

This was the first time that a large gathering had been held since the current king, Granard, had gone into hiding due to illness and Raidorl had taken centre stage in the affairs of state.

The faces of the nobles lined up in front of the throne were more anxious than expectant.

“His Majesty the King is ill and Lord Marcell is dead. ……What will become of this country?”

“His Royal Highness Raidorl is a hero chosen by the Holy Sword……but can a man who has spent all his life on the frontier rebuild his country?”

“Who, moreover, is to succeed Lord Marcell? Are we gathered here to discuss that, by any chance?”

With no sign of Raidorl in the throne room.

The noblemen, taking advantage of the absence of their lord’s eyes, were saying what they wanted.

“Hmm, it is a pity that Lord Marcell has had such misfortune. But……it is at times like this that we must unite.”

“You are …… the Marquis Rhodis!”

It was a big, burly man of mature years who beamed with pride at the anxious nobles.

He was dressed in the most extravagant attire of all the noblemen, and wore a carefully groomed wig of curly hair on his head.

The man’s name is the Marquis Crowley Rhodis

He is a great nobleman who has a fiefdom in the northern part of the Kingdom of Zain – the coastal area facing the North Sea.

The Marquesses of Rhodis, who own the port town, control the largest trading port in the Kingdom of Zain, “Raddockhorn”

They have built up an enormous fortune through trade with the Kingdom of Aterna in the west and the God Emperor’s Kingdom in the north, and their financial strength is something that even the royal family could not ignore.

“Lockwood Marcell was, without doubt, a great Prime Minister. For the sake of that man who sacrificed his life for the survival of the nation, we must support the reign of His Highness Prince Raidorl!”

“…………”

The noblemen around him wince at Rhodis’s boastful words.

On the face of it, Rhodis was acting as if he was mourning Lockwood’s death, but everyone present knew that this was only a formality.

Rhodis had once tried to deprive Lockwood of the office of Prime Minister and had even attempted to assassinate him.

Although he was never caught for lack of evidence, it is an open secret that he resented Lockwood for the failed assassination attempt which led to his removal from his position at court.

There was no sadness in Rhodis’s face as he grieved over Lockwood’s death.

He was smiling, as if the chance he had been waiting for had finally come.

“I wonder who will succeed him as Prime Minister …….How many of the noblemen in this country have the power and insight to do so?”

Rhodis smiles happily.

The man does not doubt that he will be the heir to the position of Prime Minister.

In fact, of all the noblemen gathered here, Rhodis is the most powerful.

Whether he had the character to take up a responsible position was highly questionable, but he could silence most of them with a few bribes, using the wealth he had amassed through trade.

“Spring has finally come!　Marcell, you’re finally dead!”

Rhodis cheered from the pit of his stomach, bobbing his flabby body up and down.

“His Royal Highness Raydor is a hero without equal. But……he’s just a boar warrior from the countryside. He can’t run a country!　A chosen and noble man like me should be the ruler and run the country instead!”

As a great aristocrat, Rhodis had an inflated sense of self-worth and a lust for power.

Whereas Lockwood was a loyal aristocrat, Rhodis was all about power and lining his own pockets. He had no respect or loyalty to the House of Zain.

His bottomless appetite had grown to such a monstrous size that he could no longer be satisfied with the position of ‘Marquess’.

“This time, I will take the position of Prime Minister!　And with His Highness Reidol as the puppet regent, I will be the one to stand on top of the Kingdom of Zain!”

“His Highness Prince Raidorl is here!　Kneel down, all of you!”

“…..!”

At the entrance to the throne room, the knight raised his voice.

All the nobles in the procession fell to their knees and bowed their heads. Rhodis followed suit.

The door is thrown wide open and a young man dashes in.

The man in the regal attire was the regent and brother of the King of Zain, Raidorl Zain. Accompanied by several attendants, he walked through the centre of the throne room, his shoulders slapping the wind.

His regal bearing is a dignity befitting a monarch.

“Muu … this is …”

Rhodis frowned inwardly as he sneaked a glance at Raidorl, who strode majestically through the room.

Since the beginning of the war with the Empire, Rhodis has been holed up in his domain for his own protection,dodging requests for reinforcements and funds from the Crown and working in the dark to ensure his own survival.

So this was the first time he had seen Raidorl return from the frontier city.

After spending five years in the frontier city, Raidorl had grown stronger and more imposing than Rhodis had imagined.

“This can be a bit tricky to be…..puppet.Well, …… there are plenty of ways to do it.”

No matter how proud Raidorl is, no matter how innocent he is. There is no such thing as a man without desires in this world.

More than any other man, Rhodis knew how to stimulate the desires of others and deprive them of reason.

He had a lot of ideas about how to win over the young Raidorl: alcohol, beautiful women, gold, silver and treasure.

“And … in case of emergency, I can use [Hiasa Hima]”

(TL: Scarlet hemp)

Scarlet hemp is a delicacy cultivated in western countries, and is a medicinal herb with jagged red leaves.

When dried and burned as incense, it has a stimulating and euphoric effect, and was widely used in the west of the continent by both nobility and commoners.

Because of its highly addictive and thought-paralyzing side effects, it has been banned as an illegal drug in some countries……,but in the Kingdom of Zain, it was not yet known.

“Once I have offered it to him, he will be captivated by it, and he will no longer be able to resist me!　I am the only one who has access to scarlet hemp, because I am the only one who has access to the countries of the West!”

He would offer the scarlet hemp to Raidorl and induce him to use it regularly.

This way, the addicted Raidorl would be forced to seek out more scarlet hemp and use it heavily.

Then when he became Prime Minister, Rhodis will take control of the court and replaced Raidorl, who had lost his ability to think due to the side effects of scarlet marijuana, and became the leader of the kingdom of Zain in both name and reality.

In Rhodes’s mind he had a picture of the future.

“Lift up your faces, all of you!”

Raidorl, standing beside the throne, gave a short command.

Rhodis put a sly smile on his face to hide the ambition simmering in his belly, and slowly raised his head.