CH 242

The delegation stared at Crown Prince Voltaire with nervous eyes. The latter was staring into thin air with cold eyes while suppressing his anger.

After a long while…

“I can’t just lower my tail like this,” Crown Prince Voltaire muttered, then looked back at the head servant before continuing, “Give me a report about the nobles from other countries.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” the head servant answered.

The crown prince had just arrived in Maren today, but the eyes of the imperial family had arrived half a month ago to grasp the movements of Maren and the other nobles. The information had already been gathered, summarized, then passed on to the head servant, who could be considered the crown prince’s closest aide.

“…And that is about everything, Your Highness.”

“Good. Then I’ll be able to leave behind a proper present,” Crown Prince Voltaire said while nodding in satisfaction. The head servant had given a concise report of the major events, excluding unimportant information.

“Tell the nobles of Assir that I want to meet them. Call those from the Caylor Kingdom as well,” Crown Prince Voltaire ordered.

The head servant answered, “Yes, Your Highness. But isn’t the Kingdom of Caylor currently divided into three? Shall I call all three factions?”

“Hmm.”

Prince Voltaire thought for a minute, then continued giving orders, “Exclude WInslon, I just need the representative of the delegation with the most power. The one called Sir Hatres should be good. And get that ready.”

“By that, you mean…” the head servant asked.

“The Holy Light Seal,” Crown Prince Voltaire responded.

“…!”

The head servant quickly bowed as shock filled his eyes.

“I will obey your commands,” the head servant said before hastily moving away.

“I will admit it. I clearly made a mistake in our first meeting. However…” Crown Prince Voltaire muttered while exiting the back garden under the escort of his knights. The faded golden light in his eyes flared fiercely once more.

***

“…”

The living room used by Crown Prince Voltaire as a reception room was filled with anxious silence. There were four nobles in exotic clothing in the form of a wide skirt and cloth wrapped around their heads, and they appeared quite conscious of Count Hatres armed with plate armor even indoors.

However, Count Hatres was lost in thought without a care for the gazes of the foreign nobles. It was because he could not figure out why the Crown Prince of the Roman Empire wanted to see him.

“Why do you think His Highness called us here?”

“Huhu! He obviously intends to empower Assir.”

The Kingdom of Assir was one of the neighboring countries of the Roman Empire. The nobles talked among themselves while keeping an eye on Count Hatres. The people of Assir had been a race of nomads who lived as mercenaries of the Roman Empire for many generations. Then, they were recognized as an official nation more than a hundred years ago with the support of the Roman Empire. Although they were mocked as the hounds of the Roman Empire, they did not care. After all, there were other countries neighboring the Roman Empire in similar situations as them.

“Did you see the faces of the nobles of other kingdoms? They were all dying with envy. It felt as sweet as honey. Hahaha.”

“But why do you think he called that man? The rumors have it that the Kingdom of Caylor has been split into three. They’re basically in a state of civil war.”

“How would I know? I guess he’s the best out of the three.”

“Hmm. I heard that Winslon has the most influence in Caylor… Well.”

The foreign nobles had different agendas and reasons for visiting Maren, but there was one thing everyone wanted—to strengthen their relations with powerful nations such as the Roman Empire and the Holy Empire. In particular, if they could catch the eyes of Crown Prince Voltaire, they could solidify their positions in their respective countries. As such, everyone wanted to meet the crown prince.

Among the numerous nobles, however, Crown Prince Voltaire had called only the nobles of Assir and Count Hatres. But since there was no connection between the two parties, the nobles of Assir felt rather curious, although they were proud.

“His Highness the Crown Prince,” the head servant announced in a solemn voice. The nobles of Assir and Count Hatres immediately rose from their seats. Although they held respectable positions in their own right, they could not compare to the Crown Prince of the Roman Empire.

“I greet Your Highness the Crown Prince of the great empire.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Your Highness.”

“Well, it’s nice to see you all.” Crown Prince Voltaire exchanged a brief greeting before looking around with a smile. He then continued, “Thank you for accepting my invitation. I put in a little extra effort because I evaluated you, sirs, slightly higher than others. I hope it wasn’t rude of me.”

“Oh, no! Of course not! Far from being rude, it’s the greatest honor of my life.”

“I’m glad to see that you think so. Hahaha.”

The crown prince exchanged pleasantries with the nobles of Assir in a friendly atmosphere. However, Count Hatres wore a stiff expression. He still could not figure out why Crown Prince Voltaire wanted to see him in particular.

“You must not be happy about my invitation, Sir Hatres,” Crown Prince Voltaire said.

Count Hatres responded, “How could that be? I’m only wondering why you wanted to meet me, as you must know the current situation of my country.”

“Hooh. I heard that you were the bravest warrior in Caylor. It appeared the rumors were true. You are straightforward, just as a knight should be,” Crown Prince Voltaire complimented.

“I’m flattered.”

Crown Prince Voltaire stared at Count Hatres with a meaningful gaze, then turned his head toward the head servant.

“Bring the thing,” he said.

The head servant carefully placed down the silver tray that had been prepared earlier. The eyes of the Assir nobles and Count Hatres widened slightly with surprise when they saw the object on top of the silver tray.

“This is…”

“An extraordinary ring!”

Though they were strangers to magic, it was impossible to deny the feeling of awe and mystery they felt from the pair of deep silver rings.

“This is called the Holy Light Seal. It is one of the magic tools created by the imperial wizards and dwarven craftsmen,” Crown Prince Voltaire explained.

“…!!!’

Everyone was struck with shock. All wizards were extraordinary, but the imperial wizards of the Roman Empire were powerhouses fit to be called ‘Magic Masters.’ If the rings were made by such masters in collaboration with dwarven craftsmen belonging to the royal family, they would be of immense value. Their guesses were exactly right.

“The Holy Light Seal is a magical tool that completely destroys any and all kinds of mysteries,” Crown Prince Voltaire continued.

“W-why would such a precious item—”

The nobles of Assir could not hide the greed in their eyes. Crown Prince Voltaire responded with a good-natured smile, “Obviously, it’s a gift for you, sirs. Consider it a gift of friendship.”

“Ohh!” the Assir nobles exclaimed.

Meanwhile, Count Hatres still wore a stiff expression with a doubtful gaze. There was no such thing as a free lunch. Why would the Crown Prince of the Roman Empire, whom he was meeting for the first time today, give him such a precious magical tool?

“Sir Hatres must be a cautious knight, as much as you are a brave warrior,” Crown Prince Voltaire said.

“…With all due respect, I am not brazen enough to take an unrequited favor,” Hatres responded.

“Ehem!” The thick-skinned, brazen nobles of Assir coughed before slowly placing the ring back on the tray.

“Haha! You are truly honorable, sir. That’s right. Although they are gifts for you, sirs, I would be lying if I said I was expecting nothing in response,” Crown Prince Voltaire responded.

“…?” The expressions of the Assir nobles turned serious after hearing that Crown Prince Voltaire had a plan.

Crown Prince Voltaire then continued, “I heard that you, sirs, and some nobles from other nations had devised a very interesting plan. You are trying to get a certain someone to participate in the upcoming knight competition, right?”

“Uh… T-that’s…” the Assir nobles stuttered with surprise.

Crown Prince Voltaire shook his head with a smile. “No need to worry. I have no intention of blaming you, sirs. I also happened to have a similar thought as well. I know that he’s an exceptional knight, but I couldn’t help but think that some of the rumors are a tad bit exaggerated.”

“Ah! Your Highness thought so as well?” The expressions of the Assir nobles relaxed.

However, Count Hatres was taken aback when he realized that the ‘someone’ Crown Prince Voltaire had mentioned was Jan Eugene.

“If you are talking about the King of Maren, I would like to tell you that almost all the stories about him are true,” Count Hatres said.

“Of course, that’s possible. But if it’s all true, isn’t it just as worrying? Especially for the Kingdom of Caylor, or for yourself, Sir Hatres,” Crown Prince Voltaire responded.

“What…?”

“The king of a nation neighboring the Caylor Kingdom might be a powerful being beyond reason. Moreover, he might ally himself with the nobles of Caylor who want to walk a different path from yourself at any time,” Crown Prince Voltaire continued.

“…!!!” Count Hatres’ eyes widened. The crown prince had accurately pointed out his biggest worry. In the first place, he had personally come to Maren because he had been worried that Jan Eugene might build a partnership with the royal nobles or with the Winslon County.

“What do you think? Wouldn’t you agree that there is a need for someone to suppress his momentum at least once? Of course, I promise to provide support for whoever one of you succeeds. No, rather, I guarantee the support of the empire,” Voltaire said.

“Hmm!”

The hesitation in Count Hatres’ heart immediately disappeared at the sweet, irresistible suggestion.

***

Maren was thrown into turmoil by Crown Prince Voltaire’s declaration to return home. The delegation had come to celebrate the founding of the country, but the crown prince had stated he would leave without even attending the coronation ceremony a day after arriving. His actions were akin to a huge diplomatic discourtesy of disregarding Maren.

“He’s really trying to punch them in the face, isn’t he? Doesn’t that mean he came all this way just to do this?”

“That’s right. He’s saying that he won’t recognize Maren as an official nation.”

“You could say that the relationship between Maren and the Roman Empire ended before it ever even began.”

It was only natural for the foreign nobles to excitedly discuss the matter when they gathered. However, they were forced to shut up when the Roman Empire’s delegation delivered gifts and congratulatory words to celebrate Maren’s founding. In addition to gifting Maren thousands of imperial gold coins to celebrate the expected friendship between the two nations in the future, the dukedom was also presented with a shield engraved with the seal of the empire’s imperial family and the seal of Maren. It signified that the Roman Empire had clearly recognized Maren as an official state.

It was only after personally seeing the “shield of friendship” proudly hanging in the conference room of the Maren Parliament that the foreign nobles came to a decision on their attitude toward Maren.

An official state…

Now that the Roman Empire had recognized Maren, it didn’t matter if other nations tried to keep Maren in check or objected to it. Of course, it was entirely possible for the Holy Empire to put brakes on it, but they tended to align their will with the Roman Empire. Moreover, it was already known that Maren had sent a huge tribute to the Holy Empire, and the Holy Empire wasn’t so shameless and rude as to disregard it. In any case, the disturbance created by the crown prince’s sudden announcement of his departure for a questionable reason, such as the sudden decline of his health, quickly subsided.

No one raised any objections, except for one person.

***

“My brother is returning? Why? What happened?” Prince Localope asked.

“You might choke unless you calm down. Why don’t you take a seat first?” Eugene answered. Prince Localope had been waiting anxiously for Eugene with the governor after hearing the news of the crown prince’s return.

“D-did something really happen? D-did you offend my brother?” Prince Localope asked. Judging by the way the prince’s buttocks moved up and down in his chair, it appeared he was quite concerned about the crown prince. No, rather, it seemed he was afraid.

‘Well, it’s understandable if he’s been subject to that strange mystery ever since he was young.’

Eugene recalled Crown Prince Voltaire’s unique energy. It was indescribable.

“He should be offended because I told him that I would kill him if he tried anything,” Eugene said.

“What…?” Prince Localope stopped breathing. His face quickly turned ghastly.

“K-king, have you gone mad? You threatened to kill my brother, the next emperor of the Roman Empire?” Prince Localope muttered.

“The Crown Prince crossed the line first. Well, he probably never imagined that I would react like that,” Eugene replied.

“Crossed the line? What line did my brother—”

“He kidnapped my wizard,” Eugene interrupted.

“…!”

“And he proudly declared it. Should I have tolerated it?” Eugene continued.

“…..”

Prince Localope was forced to shut up. A subordinate wizard was akin to a sworn-in knight for a noble. The wizard was also their vassal. Aside from kidnapping Eugene’s wizard, Crown Prince Voltaire had even attempted to threaten Eugene with the wizard as a hostage. Knowing Eugene’s personality, it would have been strange if he had reacted in a different way.

“Even so, you didn’t have to threaten to kill him… My brother would have understood even if you said it nicely,” Prince Localope said in a regretful voice, assuming that Eugene had simply threatened Voltaire. He truly liked Eugene. He considered Eugene a friend—not just someone he had a contract with. As such, he didn’t want the relationship between his favorite knight and the empire to fall apart.

“There was no need to say it nicely. I meant it,” Eugene said.

“…?!”

“Why are you acting so surprised? Do you think I would joke about killing the Crown Prince?” Eugene asked.

Eugene’s calm expression completely convinced Prince Localope—the vampire king was truly insane.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!” Suddenly, Madrica and Edmund entered the room while shouting urgently.

“What’s going on?” Eugene asked.

“Some of the knights entering the knight competition have issued a challenge to Your Majesty!”

“One of them is Count Hatres. The strongest sword of the Caylor Kingdom has insisted on Your Majesty’s participation.”