CH 56

"Lady Fara, you look very beautiful."

"Thank you, Asuna. "

Fara was wearing the dress based on the white color that Eltia had delivered to her yesterday.

It was paired with the brown skin that is a characteristic of dark elves, which makes Fara's presence even stronger.

And the design was a bit more mature, giving her a more grown-up appearance than her actual age.

"Would the candidate like this?"

"Yes, I think so. I am sure they will like it."

Asuna answered with a sincere smile.

This was conveyed to her, and Fara's face was a little red.

Then there was a knock at the door. As soon as she answered, the person who entered the room was Eltia, Fara's mother.

Eltia is a dark elf with dark blue hair and vermillion red eyes just like Fara.

Upon seeing her, they immediately bowed.

Eltia, who had been watching them, looked at Fara and stared at her.

"Hm. It seems that she has put on the dress I sent her."

"Yes. , mother. Thank you for giving me such a dress."

Eltia's words were cold and dismissive.

Fara replied without being moved by her words.

This was their usual communication.

Eltia always speaks to Farah in a cold and dismissive manner.

And Farah would respond in a calm and unaffected manner.

This communication was not flattering to a close parent and child.

When Eltia looked at Farah, who responded, she coldly said,

The candidate this time is the son of a frontier count and not a member of the royal family. But he must not be a humiliation to Renalute. It is not yet decided. If you show your ability, it may lead to an offer with the royal family. Do you understand?

"Lady Fara, you look very beautiful."

"Thank you, Asuna. "

Fara was wearing the dress based on the white color that Eltia had delivered to her yesterday.

It was paired with the brown skin that is a characteristic of dark elves, which makes Fara's presence even stronger.

And the design was a bit more mature, giving her a more grown-up appearance than her actual age.

"Would the candidate like this?"

"Yes, I think so. I am sure they will like it."

Asuna answered with a sincere smile.

This was conveyed to her, and Fara's face was a little red.

Then there was a knock at the door. As soon as she answered, the person who entered the room was Eltia, Fara's mother.

Eltia is a dark elf with dark blue hair and vermillion red eyes just like Fara.

Upon seeing her, they immediately bowed.

Eltia, who had been watching them, looked at Fara and stared at her.

"Hm. It seems that she has put on the dress I sent her."

"Yes. , mother. Thank you for giving me such a dress."

Eltia's words were cold and dismissive.

Fara replied without being moved by her words.

This was their usual communication.

Eltia always speaks to Farah in a cold and dismissive manner.

And Farah would respond in a calm and unaffected manner.

This communication was not flattering to a close parent and child.

When Eltia looked at Farah, who responded, she coldly said,

The candidate this time is the son of a frontier count and not a member of the royal family. But he must not be a humiliation to Renalute. It is not yet decided. If you show your ability, it may lead to an offer with the royal family. Do you understand?

"Yes, Mother. ".

"The man you should marry is a member of the Magnolia royal family. You must never give your love to the son of a frontier count. Is that clear?"

'I understand ..... Mother."

"Yes. That is all right. Then I will go ahead and join King Elias."

Eltia told what she wanted to say and immediately left the room.

Asuna called out to Farah, looking worried.

"Lady Fara, are you all right?"

'Yes, Mother's appearance like that is usual. But I'd like to decide for myself if I'm going to let my feelings go ......."

With sad eyes, Fara replied to Asuna.

Fara rarely made any decisions on her own.

What she should do, what clothes to wear, what to eat, and so on, were all decided by Eltia on her own.

Fara would do what she was told to do without hesitation.

At first, she hated it.

But when she realized that no matter how hard she tried, her mother would never approve of her, she thought, "Then I should just do what she tells me to do."

With that in mind, she began to do what her mother told her to do without hesitation after that.

Asuna said encouragingly in response to Farah's sadly uttered words.

"I don't know what kind of person this candidate is. But even if he is a candidate for Fara's marriage, . I am sure that someone with some potential will come. Whether or not you will be open to him is for you to decide."

'Thank you ....... Asuna.»

She had heard that " Dark Elves are targeted outside of the country."

So She felt sorry for them, but she thought they were quite scared of her.

As for the ears, she hid them so nobody would know she was a dark elf.

There were some adults around the boy, so he was probably a child in the territory.

(I wondered if they were still in Bardia?　)

Suddenly, Asuna asked Fara, who was lost in these thoughts, with a dubious look on her face.

"Lady Fara, is something wrong?"

"What?　I was just remembering that I visited the Bardia territory before."

Asuna's dubious expression turned into a smile when she heard that she remembered about the trip to the Bardia territory.

"Oh, I was really worried about you at that time. Please don't do anything like that again, okay?"

'...... I know.'

The boy and his men saved the day, but then Asuna gave her a hard scolding.

"I'm afraid of Asuna when she's angry. ......"

"Lady Farah, it's time for us to go."

"yes'

The first thing to do is to get a good look at the newest version of the newest version.

Fara replied to Asuna's words and left her room for the audience hall.

◇

"Master Rid. It's time to go."

"Yes. Is there anything wrong?"

I am wondering if I am dressed properly while being hurried by Deanna.

Moreover, there are so many enemy forces in the situation that even the slightest mistake will surely cause them to fry.

There is nothing bad about being extra cautious in preparation.

But Deanna let out a light sigh and said,

:How many times have you done the same thing since this morning?　You look like a young girl who is going to meet a prince to be admired by him, don't you?"

"Here, Lady, ......."

I see, so this is how the daughter feels.

No, this may just be her true self.

I decided to think that she has forgiven me.

Deanna stared at my face and then said as if warning me.

'Master Rid has a lovely face, but you are a boy. If you are a boy, no matter who sees you or what you are told, you should keep up your chest and correct your posture. On the other hand, if you don't stand up straight and act timid, you will be underestimated. The clothes you wear on your will are just for decoration, and the great ones don't understand that."

It is true that clothing is important, but at the end of the day, it depends on a person's will and mind.

However, as a man, I felt that it was not right to be told that I had a lovely face.

"I understood. Thank you, Deanna. But you don't have a pretty face, do you?"

"No .If Master Rid were a girl, you would still have a face so pretty that you would receive offers of marriage."

Deanna answered with a big smile on her face to my words.

But it's better than being told you're not lovely.

After thinking this, I let out a sigh and replied.

"I'm not happy about it, but I'll take it as a compliment."

I was a little miffed at her words, as if she was teasing me.

But that's what made Deanna look so cute and she was smiling with a smile on her face.

Then there is a knock at the door.

Deanna's expression quickly returned to a straight face and she straightened her posture.

I answered and it was Zack who came in.

"Master Rid, it's time to go. Master Rainer is waiting for you already."

"Yes, I'll be right there'

Zack urged me to go to the entrance of the guest house

I stopped for a moment as Zack approached me on my way to the entrance.

'Master Rid, I have been told by some of my friends that the head of the opposing faction among the Hua family is an elderly dark elf named Norris. I also hear that Prince Lacis is also under his influence, so please be careful."

I rolled my eyes at Zack's words.

He had said he would support me if I fell in love at first sight with Princess Fara yesterday, but I didn't expect him to give me the information so soon.

I changed my expression from surprise to a smile before thanking him and asking him a question.

"Thanks for the valuable information, Zack. By the way, what do you think of Lady Eltia?"

Zack didn't expect to be asked a question, so he looked a little thoughtful and then said,

"I think that Miss Eltia would like to see Lady Fara marry a member of the royal family. Just ......?"

"Just ......?"

'I think that purpose is probably different from that of Master Norris. I don't know what his intentions are, but ......"

I see.

Miss Eltia is not an enemy either.

I guess that means she is neutral.

The problem is Lacis.

I didn't think that he was under the influence of someone called Norris, who is an enemy of mine.

This may be the most difficult thing.

While I was having a bit of trouble there, Diana called out to me.

" Master Rid, Master Reiner is waiting for you."

"Oh, sorry. Oh, I'm sorry. But can I ask Zack one more question?"

'Yes, . What is it?"

I ask Zack a question in a hurry, or maybe I should say I throw it out.

'You said Prince Lacis was influenced by . Norris, right?　How can I get hiss support me and Princess Fara?　Since we might be relatives now, I was hoping you would support me if you could."

It must have been an unexpected question for Zack.

He was also troubled with a thoughtful look on his face.

And it just so happens that the person to whom Rid asked the question was appropriate.

Unbeknownst to Rid, he is the head of an intelligence agency.

Zack was astonished by Rid's innate behavior, but inwardly, he was gloating.

(This kid really amuses me.)

Then he replied to Rid.

'Once then. I think it would be better to break Prince Lacis's heart.'

"Break his heart?

I don't know what to tell him, but the words that came out of Zack's mouth were terrifying.

What kind of a thing to ask a child to break the heart of another child.

I was disgusted by his words and turned a stern face to Zack.

Zack bowed and continued his explanation.

"I apologize for my language, I don't mean to break his heart, but to make him a cripple. Prince Lacis is now infatuated by Norris."

Drunkenness, or is that the extent to which Norris has influenced Laicis?

But why was I so fascinated?

I had my doubts, but I kept my mouth shut and listened to Zack's explanation.

'He was originally an intelligent and wise prince who cared about his country, but suddenly he became infatuated with him, and his words and actions became contradictory to that of a prince. I would like to ask you to destroy that infatuation. You may think of this as a request from a nobleman who cares for Renalute. Please leave the rest to me."

...... Oh my God.

I thought I had thrown the problem to him, but the problem became bigger and came back as a favor from the Renalute's noble family.

But if I could solve this, it might be an opportunity to make my presence bigger in Renalute.

Besides, I heard that Zack would take care of the cleanup, which would be the hardest part.

I thought about it and asked the question again.

"I understood. So you want me to change his mind, right?　But I can't make any promises.　This time, the issue is about Princess Fara, and I don't think I'll have time to talk to Prince Lacis that much."

Hearing my words, Zack smiled and said, "Thank you."

But in addition to the fact that his eyes were not smiling, I think it was a bit of a nasty smile.

I think it was just my imagination.

As expected, we stood there talking for a long time, and I walked quickly to my father's place.

As we walked, I asked Zack one more question.

"What was the cause of Prince Lacis' infatuation toward Norris?"

But on this subject, Zack said, "I am sorry. I am not in a position to tell you that," and he closed his mouth .

"How can you say that you want the prince's heart to be broken, but you can't tell me what caused it?"

But I didn't ask any more questions either.

There was really no time left.

When I arrived at the entrance of the guest house, I was told by my father that I was late .

Deanna was nearby, sighing in exasperation when she saw his anger at me.

Unfortunately, Zack was not going to be there for the audience.

What did Zack mean when he said to me as we were leaving the guest house, "I look forward to seeing you today.　"

Soon after that, we started moving toward the castle.

The castle is a large place, so we took a horse-drawn carriage to get there.

As expected, the roads inside the castle were well-maintained, and since it was a short ride, I did not get sick.

In the carriage, I briefly explained to my father about my conversation with Zack.

Then my father's grim face turned even grimmer and he spat at me.

"...... Zack. Rid, you too must learn to hide your fingernails."

."But I don't have any fingernails,......"

Father shook his head helplessly in dismay when he heard my response.

"I've had enough ....... Do what you want."

I just nodded my head at him.

Regardless of the exchange between us , the carriage was moving toward the castle, where various thoughts were swirling around.