Translator: Nox
(1) The Princess Who Wished to Die and the Cursed Grand Duke (1)
Imperial Era 1577, November.
Count Conte, visiting the Grand Duchy of Torkan, headed to the audience chamber with his chin raised arrogantly as always. The impudence that stemmed from being an envoy of the Gania Kingdom continued even as he stood before the master of Torkan in the audience chamber.
"Grand Duke Floyd Ratean, receive the royal decree sent by His Majesty, the most revered and noble King Joseph V of the Gania Kingdom!"
Adrian, who was guarding Floyd's side, clicked his tongue at his rude attitude, and Cain's hand moved towards the sword at his waist. However, Floyd Carlotte Ratean, the Grand Duke himself, raised a hand to stop his subordinates' movements and laughed cheerfully.
"When you live with cats, even rats think they're cats. Count Conte, you're just like that!"
Unlike his jovial tone, his words were meant to put down both Joseph V and Count Conte.
Joseph V was the cat, and Count Conte was the rat.
Count Conte, realizing the meaning, flushed red and glared, but Floyd was still laughing heartily as he looked down at Count Conte.
"How dare you be so impudent...!"
Count Conte, about to burst out, couldn't finish his sentence due to the heat that suddenly engulfed him. The heat, which suddenly surged, constricted Count Conte's neck with a tangible form, like a rope.
Chizzzz-
Count Conte didn't hear the sound of his flesh burning. He was too busy screaming and clawing at his neck to loosen the intangible rope of heat to be able to focus.
"Uwaaaaa! Aaaack! S, save me... save me...!"
Floyd ignored the piercing screams and turned to his subordinates, asking.
"Look at that, doesn't it seem better this time?"
Cain, who had been grinding his teeth at Count Conte's insolent attitude, lowered his hand, which had been twitching near the sword hilt, and said in a satisfied voice.
"Indeed, your accuracy has improved compared to before."
"Well. It might just be luck."
Adrian poured cold water on it, but Floyd didn't lose his cheerful expression.
Now, Count Conte was completely collapsed on the floor, writhing. His neck was covered in blood from his own fingernails, and it was sizzling from the heat.
"My lord. He is an envoy from the Gania Kingdom. We cannot send him back as a corpse."
If it weren't for Arsene's rational remark, no one would have paid any attention to Count Conte.
Floyd exclaimed, "Oops!" and reached out his hand.
The heat that Floyd had released returned accurately without leaving a single bit behind, but Count Conte was still rolling on the floor. He was too terrified to realize that the heat had disappeared.
"Count Conte."
Only when Floyd's heavy voice filled the audience chamber did Count Conte stop scratching his neck and blink his eyes.
The heat that had seemed to burn his whole body was gone, but the pain from the burns and the scratches from his fingernails remained. However, it wasn't enough pain to lose his mind.
Count Conte hurriedly got up and stood in his place. His posture was markedly different from when he had first entered the audience chamber.
Slightly lowered eyes, hunched shoulders, trembling fingers.
Floyd smirked at the sight and raised a finger, causing Count Conte to step back, exclaiming, "Uhhh!" before falling over with a thud. As Floyd and his subordinates laughed heartily, Count Conte's face flushed crimson.
"Why are you so frightened? I merely gestured for you to bring that royal decree."
Count Conte rose to his feet, his face red, and awkwardly walked over to present Joseph V's letter respectfully with both hands.
At Floyd's gesture, Arsene stepped forward and took the letter.
"Read it. Exclude any unnecessary flattery and updates."
At Floyd's command, Arsene read out the main contents of the letter in a low voice. As the content continued, the smile that had been on Floyd's face disappeared, and Count Conte's complexion also turned pale.
"So, the gist is."
Floyd stood up, took the letter from Arsene, and scanned it.
"Since the Kanta Kingdom now belongs to Gania, you want us to subjugate the monsters in that vicinity?"
He already knew the news that a few months ago, Prince Lucas Pelure of the Gania Kingdom had personally raised an army, attacked the Kanta Kingdom, and killed the entire family, including King Victian IV of Kanta.
The Franche Royal Family, who had ruled the Kanta Kingdom for a long time, had been tragically destroyed by Lucas's schemes.
But that had nothing to do with Floyd.
"Count Conte. What do you think of this royal decree?"
Count Conte looked up at Floyd, who was standing in front of him with a grin.
The pressure was considerable, with a giant who was two heads taller than others standing right in front of him, and when he realized that the giant's eyes weren't smiling, cold sweat ran down his back.
What possessed me to be so arrogant in front of this man? Even though I've heard all the rumors about him.
Count Conte's knees trembled as he realized his mistake.
Gulp.
Count Conte swallowed hard and barely opened his mouth.
"R, rather than a royal decree, it's more like a request..."
"Well, I didn't hear it that way. Didn't you clearly say to receive the royal decree? You're not trying to say there's something wrong with my hearing, are you?"
Count Conte swallowed hard again.
"Grand Duke, this is just..."
Thwack-!
Before Count Conte could finish speaking, Floyd kicked Count Conte in the chest. Pushed by the strong force, Count Conte couldn't even scream as he was sent flying.
Count Conte lay on the floor, watching in dismay as the giant man strode towards him.
Floyd's foot stomped on Count Conte's chest.
"Cough, cough."
Count Conte coughed shrilly, but Floyd didn't release the pressure from his leg and glared at him.
"You're very brazen, your master is. Did you think this shameless trick would work?"
"G, Grand Duke..."
"Do I still look like the pathetic wretch who groveled and trembled for his life in that household? Does your master think that this Torkan is still in his grasp?"
Floyd grabbed Count Conte by the collar and lifted him up with ease. Floyd, who had brought Count Conte to his eye level, glared at him before throwing him away and growling.
"Go back and tell him, Count. Torkan does not belong to the Gania Kingdom, and I am no longer Pelure's dog."
+++
Imperial Era 1577, April.
Roxana, who had come out of the Great Temple after a month, looked up at the clear spring sky. Her platinum blonde hair fluttered gently.
The chilly weather when she entered the Great Temple had now turned into full-blown spring. The sky was clear and clean, and the wind carried the scent of flowers.
'It's really spring now.'
Spring comes every year, but the spring of her 20th year had great significance for Roxana.
For a long time, Roxana had been scheduled to marry Lucas Pelure, the Crown Prince of the Gania Kingdom, in the year she turned 20.
There was a custom that women from various royal and noble families on the continent had to pray at the Great Temple in the Empire and receive the blessing of the priests before marriage. In particular, women of the royal family had a mandatory period of prayer.
After the wedding date was set around this time last year, Roxana was busy preparing for the wedding and preparing to head to the Great Temple.
And finally, she successfully completed the biggest task to be done before the wedding, a month-long period of prayer.
'When I go back this time, it's farewell to the Kanta Kingdom.'
As per custom, Roxana and Lucas's wedding would be held in the bride's country, the Kanta Kingdom. After a week of weddings and parties, she would leave for the Gania Kingdom.
That way, Roxana would go from being a princess of the Kanta Kingdom to the Crown Princess of the Gania Kingdom.
Crown Princess of the Gania Kingdom.
She had known that she would become that someday since she was young, but now that it was right in front of her, she felt strange.
"Princess!"
At the welcome voice, Roxana snapped out of her thoughts.
Before she knew it, the carriage of the Franche Royal Family of the Kanta Kingdom was in front of Roxana, and Lasha, one of Roxana's maids, was smiling brightly in front of the carriage.
"Did you wait long? I hurried as much as I could, but I was still late."
Lasha had come with Roxana when she headed to the Great Temple and had stayed in a city near the Great Temple for a month, waiting for Roxana's prayer to end.
This was because no matter how noble one's status was, one could not bring a servant when offering pre-marital prayers at the Great Temple.
"No, I came out in a hurry. It must have been hard living in an unfamiliar place, are you not feeling well anywhere?"
"Of course. I ate well and lived well. I'm more worried about the princess. I heard that the meals coming out of the Great Temple are terrible, look how thin you've become."
Roxana smiled a little.
The meals at the Great Temple were terrible, but as she ate them, they weren't inedible. Sometimes meat came out, and sometimes pickled fish came out.
"Ah, please get in the carriage quickly, Princess. Everyone will be waiting."
Roxana got into the carriage, thinking of her affectionate father, mother, brothers, and sisters.
She would meet her family after a journey of about 10 days. She had never been away from her family for so long, so she missed them very much.
After entering the Great Temple, she had sobbed for several nights thinking about her family.
I shouldn't tell anyone about this. If my brothers find out, they'll tease me all day long.
"I feel strange. This is the last time I'm meeting my family."
"Oh my, Princess. Last time, what are you saying so sadly? Gania and Kanta are not far away, and there are trains, so you can see them often. Lucas is also a very kind person, so he will send you whenever you miss your family."
Roxana thought of Lucas.
As Lasha said, he was a kind man. He was only slightly taller than Roxana, but he was a handsome man with gorgeous blonde hair that suited him very well, and many women admired him.
Elise, Roxana's oldest friend, would say enviously.
-"Princess, you must be happy. To have such a wonderful person as your fiancé."
Certainly, he was a very handsome and wonderful man, but.
'I don't know.'
Roxana looked down at her hand.
'Do I love Lucas?'
Lucas had been Roxana's fiancé since before she was even old enough to understand.
Even though they were from different countries, they didn't meet often, but they met four or five times a year for dates. They would take walks along the river, go to the opera together, and share kisses when they parted.
Roxana had her first kiss with Lucas when she was 16 years old.
She realized that he was going to kiss her only after seeing his face slowly approaching, and she squeezed her eyes shut.
