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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: The Unexpected Proposal
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The Grand Plaza.
A crowd of nobles supporting Leonhart had gathered in front of the barracks.
They were waiting for Adrian, their eyes fixed on the plaza entrance.
“Oh, there she is. I’m surprised she made it on time.”
“She looks as radiant as ever. But do you think she actually brought a proposal?”
“She’s too proud to show up empty-handed. Though, I’m sure it’ll be nothing more than an Academy-level assignment.”
“I wonder if the Duchess even wrote it herself. I have my doubts about that, to begin with.”
“She might have paid an Academy student to do it. It’s not like she’s short on money.”
“Haha, that seems more likely.”
The nobles whispered among themselves as they watched Adrian alight from her carriage.
Rumors that Adrian was preparing a proposal had already spread among the aristocracy.
Even the Emperor had shown interest in the Duchess’s plan, so it was safe to assume everyone knew.
Of course, no one had high expectations.
Adrian had no history of drafting such proposals.
She simply gave orders; she never had to persuade others with a written plan.
For someone like her to complete a plausible proposal in just five days was next to impossible.
Everyone expected Adrian’s proposal to be worse than a school project. Or that she would pass off someone else’s work as her own.
Adrian walked over gracefully and stopped before the nobles. Their gazes were drawn to the leather binder in her hand.
“What are you all doing, gathered here?”
“Ah, w-we are here to assist His Highness and ensure the construction proceeds smoothly—”
“Has the construction already begun?”
“W-well, no.”
“Then I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Her piercing blue eyes swept over the nobles arrogantly.
The nobles, who had been mocking Adrian moments ago, couldn’t even open their mouths.
Adrian was the kind of person who could command obedience with a single glance.
Though she was less than half their average age, the pressure she exuded was on another level.
“And His Highness?”
“I-Inside the barracks.”
Adrian entered the barracks and came back out a short while later.
They had expected her to subtly provoke Leonhart, but it seemed she had simply handed over the proposal without any fuss.
That alone was surprising, but then Adrian added a strange remark.
“The inside of that barracks is rather shabby.”
“Pardon?”
“You claim to be here to assist His Highness, yet you do nothing.”
“...Pardon?”
Someone asked again, but she simply turned and left, leaving behind a cold gaze as if they weren’t even worth a reply.
The nobles could only stare at each other with dumbfounded expressions.
“Wh-what was that? Do any of you understand what the Duchess meant by that?”
“Wasn’t that a warning to us? We are, after all, nobles who support the Third Prince.”
“Ah! Of course. It was a warning that our support for His Highness will ultimately be useless.”
“True, she isn’t one to leave without making a point....”
It was then.
*Shhhhk!*
A loud noise came from inside the barracks. Startled, the nobles hurried inside.
The inside of the barracks was a mess. Papers were scattered all over the floor.
Seeing the open leather binder lying on the ground, they realized it must be the proposal Adrian had brought.
The nobles covered their mouths and whispered.
‘It seems His Highness threw the proposal.’
‘So it seems.’
Leonhart stood with his back to them, so they couldn’t see his expression, but the atmosphere was tense.
Essir seemed to be calmly trying to soothe him, but the tension in the air wouldn't dissipate.
Anger radiated from Leonhart’s broad back.
The nobles glanced warily at Leonhart before carefully gathering the papers to read them.
“...M-my, how could she think of something like this!”
“Oh, isn’t this a truly groundbreaking proposal?”
“If we follow this plan, it won’t just commemorate His Majesty’s birth—it will be of great benefit to the Empire for years to come! This is truly incredible!”
“Wouldn’t following this plan be far more beneficial than simply erecting a statue of a hero? I believe His Majesty would be more pleased as well.”
“I thought this was just some cheap trick thrown together to obstruct His Highness, but what is this?”
“How could we possibly fathom the Duchess’s intentions? However, this certainly puts His Highness in a difficult position.”
“Indeed. His Majesty will surely ask about it, and anyone can see that the Duchess’s proposal is superior....”
“Ahem! H-let’s be quiet. His Highness is contemplating.”
The first noble to come to his senses shot the others a look, signaling them to read the room.
The nobles who had been praising Adrian’s proposal fell silent all at once.
Breaking out in a cold sweat, they began to compete with one another to belittle the proposal.
“...C-cough! I-it’s decent, but if you look closely, it’s full of holes.”
“Y-yes, that’s right. For a proposal from Duchess Ivrante, it’s quite... no, it’s only slightly plausible.”
“Groundbreaking... is definitely not the word. It shows a hint of thought, I suppose. But it’s a far cry from His Highness’s plan to build a statue. Yes, that’s right.”
“...”
The barracks fell silent.
The frightened nobles stealthily slipped out of the barracks.
Only then did Leonhart turn around and glare at the proposal the nobles had left abandoned on the floor.
Essir sighed as he gathered the documents.
He was genuinely surprised by how brilliant Adrian’s proposal was.
He had even wondered for a moment if the Duchess had decided to support Leonhart.
After all, if this plan were to be implemented, the person who stood to gain the most was Leonhart.
“Your Highness, what will you do? It seems a waste to simply bury this proposal.”
Leonhart knew it too.
He knew he ought to revise the Grand Plaza construction according to Adrian’s proposal.
And that was why he was angry.
Not because her plan was better than his.
But because he was disappointed in himself for falling so neatly into her scheme.
‘I wanted to build a statue of Adel... so that everyone could remember her.’
Leonhart squeezed his eyes shut, suppressing his anger.
“Bring me Luspell and Owen.”
***
A short while later, Luspell and Owen gathered in the barracks.
Unlike Owen, who sat down calmly, Luspell hesitated.
Looking guilty, he avoided Leonhart’s gaze.
Leonhart spoke.
“Luspell.”
“...Huh?”
“Did you do it on purpose?”
“What...”
“Giving that woman a proposal like this. Explain to me what you were thinking.”
Owen looked at Luspell in surprise.
“Luspell, you wrote a proposal for our fallen sister?”
Luspell, who had guessed the situation the moment Leonhart summoned him, answered in a barely audible voice.
“That... the Duchess did it all....”
“What?”
“She did it all by herself.”
As Leonhart was at a loss for words, Owen asked.
“But I heard you were going to help her, Luspell?”
“I just told her about the magic that would go into the plan....”
“Just the magic? Is that all?”
“Yeah....”
Tilting his head, Owen read the proposal.
With every page he turned, the admiration on his face deepened.
“Our fallen sister came up with this all on her own? That’s truly amazing.”
“Right? I was surprised too.”
“But if you hadn’t told her about the magic, this proposal wouldn’t have been possible.”
“Even if it wasn’t me, some other mage would have told her eventually.”
At first, I got greedy because the proposal was so good.
What mage could stand by and do nothing, knowing it could be so much better with just a little help?
But there was another, real reason.
The moment she burst into tears, my mind went blank.
To think there was someone other than Adel who would cry so sorrowfully, thinking Luspell was about to die.
It felt like I had found a lost treasure.
When she spoke to me so casually, I felt special, and it made my shoulders straighten with pride.
I did things she didn’t ask for, wracking my brain for every scrap of knowledge I had.
I even cut back on eating and sleeping to work on the proposal.
‘Even though there was no need to....’
It had nothing to do with the quality of the proposal.
Up until that point, I was doing it all just for Adrian.
But on the second day, the moment I heard those words, something changed.
“That’s why your face looks like that. You won’t turn into a cow just from eating vegetables, so eat a balanced diet. You need the stamina if you want to do all those magic experiments your professor loves.”
I can’t tell you how surprised I was.
I never imagined I would hear those words from someone other than Adel.
“I told you I’m not eating it! Are you going to take responsibility if I turn into a cow?”
“...Are you even a mage? Anyone would think I’m trying to poison you. It’s lettuce, you idiot! I’m not telling you to just eat it, I’m telling you to wrap your meat in it!”
“I don’t want to!!!”
“You have to eat a balanced diet to build your strength! Do you want to collapse during an experiment again?”
The scene was still so vivid.
It was a memory with Adel that always made me smile.
‘How did she know? That’s not something she would have heard from the other expedition members....’
