Volume 3 Chapter 10.4

Volume 3 Chapter 10.4

Translator: Reflet

Editor: Weasalopes

「Aye. I am Doul Aura, working as a merchant from Farlane.」

「I have a letter for you from Her Majesty and the High Priest.」

「Hm?」

「There wasn’t anything suspicious about your luggage, so you may pass.」

「Thanks for your time.」

Tipping the security guard for the handling charge, they went through the gates. The attention finally off them, Aearis opened the letter.

「……Grandfather.」

「What is it?」

「After we go greet people at the Igreos Temple, let’s head straight for the palace.」

「……Have any issues come up?」

「Not in particular, but it appears there’s a slight problem with us taking a regular inn.」

「Hm, alright. Then let us go straight to the temple. Thankfully, the road does not seem to have changed much since I last came.」

Listening to Aearis’ request, Douga went straight to Igreos Temple. Had he arrived an hour sooner, he would have been able to meet Hiroshi’s group at the temple, but destiny seemed to have other plans. The princess and her consorts ended up having not enough time to find where the group was, instead spending a night in the palace.

「This princess from Farlane is truly an amazing girl.」

「……Please don’t touch her. It could lead to an international issue.」

「What do you think me to be? I have not fallen so low as to lay my hands on such a young girl.」

「And I’m asking you not to precisely because I do not trust that statement.」

As per usual, the queen and her retainer were having a two-man comedy routine over the princess and her procession.

「Further, could you please refrain from touching that elven priestess?」

「I am already accustomed to fondling such breasts, so as long as I do not go too far it should not be an issue, no?」

「No, it’s a big issue……」

Sergio was at his wit’s end with this queen, who spoke rather freely as a potential result of her slightly deprived lifestyle. Seriously, he did not want to deal with the aftermath of letting this woman play around with these priestesses, who were favorites of the gods. Aranwen was an advocate of laissez faire, so maybe not him, but Alfemina was apparently very protective of her priestess. Also, Alfemina’s priestesses tended to be unmarried Farlane royalty, and had yet to experience their time of the month. There were too many problems with touching such a girl to count.

「Still, I cannot tell if this was bad or good timing.」

「Yes, it’s a little difficult to figure out.」

「Just checking. How is the princess priestess being treated?」

「We’re treating them as merchant ambassadors from Farlane to Darl. They’re changing their appearance with magic tools, so even if someone recognizes Sir Douga to be a man of the military, there will be no one who recognizes the priestess princess.」

「Then again, when you think of the princess priestess’s demeanor and atmosphere, I do not think most people would be able to see her as a mere merchant’s daughter.」

「We can’t do much about that.」

Recalling the unbelievable demeanor and movement of the twelve year old Aearis, the queen marveled at her behavior. There were not many people who could behave on a daily basis like the princess did. Every single movement of hers was considerate of her surroundings, so beautiful that you had to marvel at it every time you remembered. The queen and retainer included, it was doubtful any nobility in all of Darl could compete in elegance.

「Honestly, how on earth do you raise a girl of that age to be so ladylike? What is their secret?」

「Even if they told you, I don’t think it would be very easy to enact it……」

「Probably not. Also, considering the risk factor in disposing of Barold and Katarina and their faction, the advice might not even be reliable.」

「The country only held out because it was Farlane. Try the same thing in Darl and it would go right into a quandary of a civil war.」

「Of course. Had their hands and feet tied, yet the royal house still managed to maintain their influence. I do not see any other country managing that.」

Darl would not allow such freedom. If it were rumored that the queen of Darl were incompetent, selfish, and cruel, that could mean the dismantling of the entire royal house. And unlike Farlane, you only had to have a certain amount of royal blood in you to continue magic in the family line, so relieving the current family for causing problems through their tough measures would not cause much of a ruckus other than the ruler changing.

In addition, Darl had no posts that could be attained by specific innate abilities or strength alone, unlike Alfemina’s princess priestess, which simply required authority in relation to the royal family but did not require political influence. In other words, once a leader in Darl was seen as problematic, there was no system in place to guarantee their life or livelihood.

In Farlane’s case, the bloodline wouldn’t continue without a royal boy or priestess princess or their offspring, making it difficult to just dissolve the family. That was the greatest reason why the country did not plunge into a chaotic civil war. Sure, there was an aspect to it where some nobles would scoff at the royal family for not being able to force their way past the law or emotions regarding their nation, but because they maintained the support and allegiance of the greater nobles, it didn’t become a big issue (though it sure was close). In other countries, the country would have probably fallen before Katarina even began her revolt.

「At any rate, Farlane will probably become even more of a tenacious country.」

「I suppose you could say that the people of the next era will save the kingdom by being moderates in foreign affairs.」

「It is doubtful that the princess priestess would even allow foreign campaigns.」

Aearis had gathered an unbelievable amount of popularity in half a year. Even if she were a priestess princess with no real authority, the nobles did not have enough of a support base to deny her what she wanted. In addition, foreign campaigns yielding hardly any results was the same in Farlane as it was in Darl or Forre. It was much more profitable to increase the extermination of monsters, both in terms of material and public safety.

There didn’t seem to be any concern that the western regions would get into any large scale battles for the time being.

「Alright, now let us discuss tomorrow.」

「Yes.」

「They have known the priestess princess and her group for quite some time, so I think it best that we welcome them with open arms and have them seated together. In that sense, it was excellent timing for them to arrive today. I apologize for the sudden changes, but I ask that you adjust accordingly.」

「At your will.」

Bowing once at the queen’s words, Sergio left the room to adjust tomorrow’s schedule. Although the changes would overlap, as the queen said, it was a godsend. Now they wouldn’t have to worry about how much of a welcome the guests received.

「Alright, I am excited to see what happens tomorrow.」

The queen smiled from the bottom of her heart, despite how much of a disturbance the situation might cause. At last, the story in Darl was beginning to meet its turning point.

「Oh? Hiroshi-sama?」

「……Elle?」

「Yes. What a coincidence it is, meeting in a place like this.」

「Yeah, although I get the strangest feelin’ that somethin’ was set up here.」

Ten o’clock the next day. Finishing breakfast in the workshop, they rode in a carriage to the castle, looking around the premises until the queen felt hungry when they ran into Aearis’ team, who was also looking around. The Norton sisters had some sort of important errand with the priest, who had called them over to his area.

「So what kind of people are you guys posing as?」

Checking to see that no one was around, Tatsuya asked their party what position they were in in a low voice.

「I be Farlane’s purveyor, Doul Aura.」

「And his granddaughter, Elle Aura.」

「And I am Artiem, their personal attendant.」

「I see.」

Hearing their character names, Tatsuya quickly accepted it. They were probably residing in this country under the pretext of a department-restricted negotiation.

「Elle-chan, Doul.」

「What is it, young lass?」

「Was it really necessary to go undercover like this?」

Aearis and Douga grimaced at Haruna’s simple question. Usually, Aearis should be treated as an honored guest in other countries, and there was no reason to make up names and sneak around to meet with royalty. There wasn’t any reason at present to hide Aearis’s identity, considering Farlane’s current situation.

「Not usually, no, but there were many of the opinion that my traveling was premature for my position. Additionally, there are circumstances that would not allow me to move around freely if I were to be treated like a guest.」

「I would think that someone needs to have a serious discussion with those elders about their idea of going off on a pleasure jaunt.」

「That isn’t the case. It’s just that it’s a bit problematic to appear in broad daylight when I go to visit priestesses from any region. Besides, some may not take kindly to my interactions with those priestesses, so being an honored guest at this time is rather problematic as a priestess.」

「Sounds pretty complicated.」

「Yes. It is a bit complicated. Right, Artiem-san?」

「It truly is a complicated situation, yes……」

Aearis threw the conversation to Artiem, who helplessly agreed with an uneasy expression on her face for what lay ahead. In years, she wasn’t all that different from Douga, but in terms of experience, she didn’t even come close to Aearis, the youngest here. In a situation like this where you needed a certain type of experience, it was only natural for her to feel that way.

「Wait, was it even okay to take Artiem away from Wulls?」

「I think it’s already a bit unreasonable to have an elf become a maid.」