Translator: Nox

Chapter 110

#110. A Strange Negotiation with Heferti (2)

“Grand Duke,”

“When I visited Heferti, almost all the infrastructure was in ruins.”

Grand Duke Bikander cut off Duke Elkin, who was calling him urgently. Continuing dryly, the Grand Duke looked at Duke Kiwel.

In a fleeting moment, the atmosphere shifted to Heferti, and the Grand Duke asked casually.

“Considering that it was wartime then, to what extent has it been restored now?”

“…It remains the same. Even basic medical facilities have not yet been repaired, and the people are barely surviving on rotten turnips.”

“The restoration is slower than I thought, Duke.”

“Well… as you heard, the amount of reparations demanded by the Empire is quite large.”

The two men were excessively honest with each other. At the same time, they were strangely friendly.

No one could believe that this was the table where reparations negotiations were taking place between the victor and the defeated.

As if unable to bear this atmosphere any longer, several nobles coughed. Duke Elkin hurriedly looked at His Majesty the Emperor.

The Emperor, who was looking at the Grand Duke with displeasure, nodded. With anger-filled eyes as if telling him to end this situation quickly, Duke Elkin hurriedly continued the Grand Duke's words.

“So, according to what His Highness just said,”

Even if he was a war hero, Duke Elkin was much more advantageous in the political arena. It was his specialty to subtly twist words and get what he wanted.

“You’re lucky, Duke.”

However, Duke Elkin paused to consider the context of the Grand Duke's sudden interjection. Lucky, huh? It was a strange word to appear in this situation. Duke Elkin skillfully moved out of the Grand Duke's line of sight and said.

“…Haha. Surely you’re not saying that I’m lucky.”

There were three Dukes in the main conference hall.

Duke Kiwel of Heferti, and Duke Elkin and Duke Madeleine of the Franz Empire.

The Grand Duke smiled loosely and slowly looked at the three Dukes, and then at the Crown Prince, who was watching him, and the Emperor, who was glaring at him. Then, he raised the corners of his handsome mouth and smiled.

“The Dukes are also lucky. I have no intention of demanding a large amount of reparations from Heferti in this negotiation. Thanks to that, today’s negotiation will be concluded smoothly.”

“Your Highness the Grand Duke!”

The nobles at the negotiation table were agitated.

“Your Highness, this is not the time to say such things…!”

Duke Elkin raised his voice once more.

“These are the words of Grand Duke Bikander, a war hero. Does the Empire dare to dismiss the words of a war hero in such a way?”

However, the Heferti Delegation protested, veins popping out of their necks, at the mention of reducing the amount of reparations.

The nobles of the Empire, whose interests were tied to the outcome of the reparations negotiations, had dry mouths.

They looked at Duke Madeleine with pleading eyes. Until the Emperor stepped in, the most diplomatically powerful person was Duke Madeleine.

However.

Despite the fact that his aide whispered in Duke Madeleine's ear amidst the pouring gazes, the Duke did not open his tightly closed lips.

Instead, it was Duke Kiwel of Heferti who opened his mouth.

“Are you, serious?”

Beyond his monocle, Duke Kiwel’s eyes shook greatly.

He couldn’t believe it. Was it really true that the Grand Duke's words at the last banquet, that he would subtly take his side, were true? Even to this extent?

Despite his bewildered voice, the Grand Duke simply smiled.

“…Would I be serious, Duke?”

His voice, echoing widely, suppressed the atmosphere of the main conference hall at once. The Emperor rose from his seat, pretending to laugh casually.

He could no longer tolerate the atmosphere that the Grand Duke had disrupted by acting as he pleased.

A sharp gaze swept over the assembly.

The Crown Prince and Duke Madeleine, who did not say a word. And the nobles, who had forgotten their dignity and were raising their voices at each other.

And the Grand Duke, who was holding the weapon of reparations and looking at him as if provoking him.

“Haha. The Grand Duke has only been on the battlefield, so he must have said something clumsy in the negotiations. He’s not serious.”

“There’s no way I wouldn’t be serious, Your Majesty.”

“Grand Duke…!”

A murderous intent flashed in the Emperor’s eyes. The Emperor shook his head at the Grand Duke. The clear expression of his intention not to speak any further was ridiculous.

“I, who will take a huge amount of reparations from this agreement, don’t really need the reparations that much.”

Until now, the Grand Duke had never claimed his share of the post-war reparations. Could it really be that what the Grand Duke said at the last Nobility Council was becoming a reality?

At the moment when the nobles, stunned by the shock, looked at each other’s faces, the Grand Duke looked at the Emperor and smiled. It was a clear mockery.

In an instant, the hall became quiet again.

“His Majesty the Emperor will be satisfied enough with the spoils of war and reparations that I have given him so far. And the nobles here, well…”

His languid voice swept over the nobles.

Each time a sharp gaze was fixed on them, the nobles of the Empire were busy recalling the reparations they had taken and avoiding his gaze.

A chilling sound of ridicule passed by. The Grand Duke shrugged.

“…I no longer need or have any reason to offer huge tributes to Your Majesty.”

At those words, the nobles all looked at the Emperor.

Those obvious eyes, looking at him as if asking what on earth was going on, as if demanding that he, who had always enjoyed a splendid life using the dignity of a noble as a weapon, provide an answer to how the situation had come to this.

Imperial authority was collapsing.

The Emperor glared at the nobles with fierce eyes. Only then did the nobles realize their mistake and lower their heads. But the gazes of the nobles that he had seen once would never disappear from the Emperor’s memory.

The Emperor gritted his teeth. And he gripped the armrest of the throne tightly. The memory of that day, when something disappeared like grains of sand through his fingers, was being replayed.

The Grand Duke, his red eyes shining eerily, smiled.

“But why would I need to squeeze Heferti and continue this negotiation?”

* * *

“…What does the Grand Duke think negotiations are? What were you thinking when you attended the negotiations?”

The main conference hall after the delegation and nobles had left.

Edwin glanced to the side. The Crown Prince, who would normally have left, stood by the Emperor’s side today.

It was a face that stubbornly guarded the throne and looked exactly like the Emperor.

Edwin chuckled and looked at the Emperor. As if that smile had further fueled the Emperor’s anger, the Emperor raised his voice.

“Are you trying to show the division of the Empire in front of the defeated country?”

“I intended that as well.”

“What?”

“Everyone needs to know. That I no longer need to bow my head in front of Your Majesty. That Vikander has recovered the treasure of Lowell that Your Majesty took away.”

The Emperor’s taut momentum faltered. A dazed light flashed across his pale face.

“…Then…”

The Emperor moved his lips. His mind went blank. Was it really true that his glory would never return?

“…Your Majesty.”

Breaking the heavy atmosphere, Leopold opened his mouth. The Emperor, who seemed to have aged 10 years in this moment, slowly looked at the Crown Prince.

“May I speak with the Grand Duke for a moment?”

“That’s good timing. I also have something to say to His Highness the Crown Prince.”

“…Do so.”

The Emperor rose from his seat at the same time as giving his permission. Step by step, the Emperor’s steps as he walked towards the door were slow.

The Emperor, who was always dignified, looked shabby today.

“…What do you want, Grand Duke?”

“There are two things. To put it one by one, starting with the adjustment of the tax rate on the minerals that Vikander offers…”

“Forget the superficial things. Get to the point, Grand Duke. What do you want that you took the White Crystal Mine and Olivia, …took her away?”

Olivia. He didn’t know that the name of those four letters would tighten his heart so much. Leopold’s lips were parched just by pronouncing it.

Suppressing his anxiety, Leopold recalled the rough story he had heard from his father, the Emperor.

That the Abandoned Mine, which was owned by the Princess, had been transferred to Olivia, and the order to somehow bring Olivia back to his side.

That was something Leopold also desperately wanted.

If there was something the Grand Duke wanted, he had the generosity to grant it to some extent.

If he wanted to take only the Abandoned Mine, it would have been easier for Leopold.

But unlike Leopold, who was waiting for an answer with an aching heart, the Grand Duke’s expression was subtle. Leopold spoke again as if trying to appease him.

“Grand Duke, speak. Even if you don’t know much and are weak at negotiations, I plan to grant you almost anything if I just get a promise that you’ll return Olivia to me.”

“Oh, Crown Prince…”

Leopold slowly swallowed his breath at the slowly opened words. Whatever words came out of that mouth, he was confident that he would gladly hand them over.

“As you’ve heard, you have no manners.”

“…What?”

It felt like he had been hit in the back of the head. At the same time, a firm voice came to mind.

“You didn’t keep your manners with me either, Your Highness, by bringing Lady Etel into my palace without my permission.”

The words that he had no manners. Those words mixed with a subtle smile reminded him of what Olivia had said.

In an instant, Leopold’s expression hardened. Was he daring to flaunt his relationship with Olivia in front of him?

The Grand Duke, who had been quietly looking at Leopold, said expressionlessly.

“You are despicable and ugly, Leopold Franz.”

“What!”

“That’s the first thing I’ve been holding back, Your Highness. Without the morality of a knight or the dignity of a royal, you dare to extend your murderous intent to someone you don’t even know who to extend it to.”

“How dare you…!”

Sparks flew from his eyes at the dry words that followed. Leopold grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar at once.

It was a good thing, since he had wanted to punch that slender face anyway. He could feel a firm body beyond the clothes he grabbed, but Leopold was also a skilled knight.

But this noble and arrogant Crown Prince did not know.

That the Grand Duke, who had suppressed his murderous intent, had deliberately allowed himself to be caught.

He had clearly reached out his arm, but at some point, he saw the empty air. Pain belatedly surged in his back. Leopold’s eyes widened.

“My lady’s wrist was bruised.”

There was no emotion whatsoever in the red eyes looking down at him. Leopold thoroughly searched his fading memories. And ah, he stupidly spat out a plosive sound.

Come to think of it, at the end with her…

“Keep in mind that the reason I’m leaving the Crown Prince intact right now is because repaying the bruise on my lady’s wrist is not my responsibility.”

The Grand Duke’s words scattered in his ears. Leopold closed his eyes for a moment. With his murderous intent and momentum gone, he faintly heard the sound of the door closing.

In front of the main conference hall.

Edwin, who was diligently shaking his hands as if he had touched something dirty, sighed lightly. Following the Emperor and the Crown Prince, even Duke Madeleine. It seemed like today was some kind of special day.

“…I heard that that child went to the Territory of Vikander.”

Duke Madeleine’s voice, which had been silent today, was low and subdued. But Edwin didn’t care at all and clicked his tongue.

“I don’t know who you’re talking about. There’s no way there would be any common ground between us.”

Edwin moved his steps so that he couldn’t attach any more words. Duke Madeleine, whom he glanced at, was looking at him until the end.

That’s why. He seemed to know why Olivia had looked so unstable.

Winster, who had been following him, had also noticed the sign.

“The stickiness is top-notch. Trying to shake a tender-hearted lady.”

The face of Olivia, who had been troubled on the night of the banquet, came to mind. Was she really shaken because of this? Or…

Edwin shook his head because he couldn’t dare to guess what was contained inside. Instead, he smiled and said to Winster.

“Did my letter arrive?”

“Yes. I think it should have arrived by now.”

It wouldn’t have been difficult for the knight, who had diligently ridden his horse since morning, to catch up with the lady’s slowly moving carriage procession.

* * *

At the same time.

“Devil’s Valley? You went to such a dangerous place?”

Under the shade of a tree where brilliant sunlight was shining.

Olivia said mischievously, as if deliberately surprised. Oops. Dian blamed her mouth and made excuses.

“Well, the official name is originally Valley of Senua. I really, really, really accidentally found out the way!”

Even while emphasizing it several times, Dian couldn’t stop the cold sweat flowing down her back.

Curiosity had already begun to form in the lady’s green eyes. Dian held her breath and lamented inwardly.

Why on earth did I bring up this story?

Her obviously readable eyes were interesting. Olivia looked into the distance for a moment.

The beginning was none other than the wheat field, which was beginning to be dyed golden.