Chapter 176.1
A quiet gasp came from Marquis Schramm when he saw Lily getting out of the carriage with my help. I knew how it felt. Even if it was a borrowed dress, the person wearing it had a good figure, and she looked more beautiful than most noble young ladies. I also couldnt help but admire her when I first saw her.
As Lily was a guest of Zeavert house, a Count family, Zeavert houses carriage, which was also used by Mother, was now being used by Lily when she was invited by the Marquis family.
If we had used a rented carriage, other aristocrats would have thought less of Zeavert house, saying that we could not even provide a carriage for a guest who was invited to a tea party by a Marquis. Appearances were an important matter for aristocrats.
I would simply drop the fact that the real purpose of using the carriage was to safeguard against unexpected situations and also to follow up on the etiquette lessons provided by mother. I didnt think that the first use of the prototype paper would be as a memo of social manners and etiquette.
Incidentally, the maid accompanying Lily today was a trusted veteran of my mothers. She was going to chaperone Lily. She would also be reporting back to mother on what kind of interactions took place during the tea party.
Ill pick you up around the end of the day.
Yes.
As I sent Lily off, I searched for signs and made a quick check to see if there were any suspicious people around. I bowed to the butler of the Marquis house at the gate, returned the carriage, and left for the Royal Palace, riding on (Brave) Disbelt.
If this were my father or mother, the carriage would have been entrusted to the Marquis, but Lily would have to return the carriage because she was currently a guest of the Zeavert house. However, I would not be able to use it to go to the Royal Palace as it was built for women. It would also be out of place for me to go to the palace on foot.
Neurath and Schunzel were keeping a watchful eye on the area at a bit of a distance from the mansion, and they came up to me when I went near them. I would be reporting to the royal palace, but since we didnt have much time, they came along with me to give their report of the surroundings as we headed to the palace.
There doesnt seem to be any problem, right?
Its unlikely that the Marquis will do anything or mess up in any way that could harm Lily as a guest. They are more afraid of retaliation coming from Mazell than from the Zeaverts.
In addition, they were also afraid of the upper echelon of the country that started openly defending Mazell. It would take a lot of strength and time to win a head-to-head battle with the country. Even if it was somewhat rotten inside, the Kingdom of Bain was still, to be fair, a fairly solid nation.
Of course, there would be a certain number of outliers, which was inevitable in any organization. You could say that I was also an outlier from the viewpoint of the Bain Kingdom, just from a different angle.
In that case, it would be a good idea to keep a vigilant eye on the return trip.
Yes!
When I was about to move out, a familiar Scout arrived, likely the one Feli recommended when Id asked him for someone who could help, whose name I had forgotten. I received the demon parchment he provided and paid him the price for the delivery with an extra tip for the job.
After the deal, I asked him about another matter, but he said it would take a lot of time and money. I decided to give him an additional deposit and leave the rest for a later date. Speaking of which, I should go and thank the old man for his hospitality to Bert. It was important to meet him in person.
Youve been working in the shadows, havent you?
Whatever might you be saying?
I couldnt help but chuckle at Schunzels way of putting it. I couldnt argue with that, but while there were things that could only be seen from an aristocratic perspective, and there were also things that could only be seen from a citizens perspective.
I would really like to gather information myself while drinking and eating at the bars in the capital, but that was difficult to do these days. When I became a viscount, I could afford to spend more money, but I lost my freedom. Someday, I might actually be tempted to make jokes about the death of my freedom.
With a sigh, this time, we departed for the royal palace. When we reached the gate, we dismounted our horses and brought them over to the palaces stable, where I received a message, or rather, a call, addressed to me.
Seriously, please send messages like that ahead of time. I responded to the messenger with my face pale enough for those around me to be conscious of my expression.
Im going to go ahead right now. Neurath and Schunzel, Im sorry, and you two, wait for me at my office.
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.
Inwardly cursing about the spaciousness of the palace, I reached the room I was looking for.
Youre finally here.
Sorry to keep you waiting.
No problem. No need to be polite. Im sorry for making you hurry.
I dont mind, Your Highness, rather it should have been expected.
There was no way that I would let His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Hubert be waiting for me in the basement storeroom. I was too tired in many ways from running down the spiral staircase. There was one knight I recognized in front of the storeroom and one inside the storeroom, which was really a few guards considering who they were guarding.
First of all, Id like to thank you for all the trouble you and your colleagues went through during the Duel Trial.
No, you didnt have to.
I had priorities that I couldnt change, but it is an undeniable fact that it resulted in a burden on you.
I was about to sigh. So thats why I was suddenly called. The reason why His Highness decided to find a location where no one was around instead of calling me in his office was because he wanted to talk about the duel, and as I had expected, that duel was staged and worked as they had wanted.
For the country, defeating the Demon King was the top priority. If the Demon King was not defeated, the demons activity would not subside, causing a lot of human and material damage. For this reason, the first priority was to avoid anything that could stop Mazell the Hero.
In order to manage the situation, they staged a duel to isolate the Marquis Coltrezis. But at the same time, it was also a way to show off Lily, Mazells sister, but since they wanted to be careful about her situation, they made sure that things didnt go out of hand.
As I was a nobleman and a vassal, his Highness might have been concerned about how Lily thought about my situation, who was close to her. However, being Royalty, his position would not allow him to apologize so easily, so he arranged this indirect response. I guess another aspect of this was that he was also concerned about Mazells and Lauras reactions.
Was it my imagination that Laura was somehow more frightening than Mazell? I think she would be angry while showing only a smile on her face. I got chills down my spine just by imagining it.
It is a natural thing for a vassal to do.
When I replied like that, his highness nodded with a light wry smile on his face. It was an exchange that I thought was typical of an aristocrat.
In this case, if I had said, As His Highness wishes, it would have meant, I am simply doing it as a subordinate, though my response was meant more like, I did what you ordered me to do, even if it was hard work.
More importantly, it was also a warning to not be asked to do it again if possible as I may refuse to comply. From what I could read from His Highness face, I was sure that my intentions were clearly conveyed.
I would like you to inform Lily as well.
Yes, sir.
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