Chapter 59

It's been a while, but here's an update.

Alber is surrounded by people she can trust for the first time in a long while and is feeling at ease.

Anna had been trying hard not to worry her... and Anna had noticed.

Everything served was nostalgic in flavor, and in the gentle atmosphere, her fork and cup moved more than usual.

At her feet, Chapie was snoring oddly on the long-haired carpet.

It's incredibly cute, lying on its back with its belly exposed, but for some reason, Kishteria looks at it with a very subtle, exasperated gaze, and Julius looks at it as if it were trash. It's just like when you look at a cup to pour tea and notice the rim is dirty.

In other words, to Julius, Chapie is almost the same as tea stains?

No! Why is such a cute creature treated like that!

Chapie is not an ordinary animal, but it's cute and harmless to me. In fact, it's comforting. But it does occasionally disappear, as if it's a fairy or some other mysterious being.

Anna clears away the empty cup.

I ate too much. Ugh... Julius kept bringing things out at the perfect timing. I couldn't help but be greedy and want this and that.

Usually, he would say something harsh like "You'll get fat" or "You'll lose your only good point," but today he just smiled and kept bringing things out.

Did I eat too much? I'm getting sleepy, but I don't want to sleep after just meeting Kishteria and Julius again.

Come on, Alber. You have to stay awake with determination!

But apparently, everyone could tell I was sleepy.

My dizzy head was poked by the exasperated Julius, who said, "It's okay to sleep," and I was rolled onto the sofa.

Before I knew it, I was covered with a blanket he had brought, and I fell asleep.

A gentle hand stroked my head and hair. The scent of tea and sweet pastries, and a hint of Julius's perfume.

I could hear Anna's footsteps from a little distance away and Kishteria's voice faintly. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but Kishteria's voice was a bit lower and softer, and Anna's was calm and gentle.

Julius's perfume is similar to Father's. His footsteps are quiet but steady, like Sebastian's. Raven's are also quiet, but his are more like a supple wild animal's.

When I sleep, Julius is gentle. He doesn't say mean things and gently strokes my head. He straightens the sheets and blankets. Sometimes, he holds my hand and puts it under the covers.

It's my secret, known only to me.

"Good night, Lady Alber. Have sweet dreams."

The soft touch on my forehead.

I'll sleep well tonight. It was such a comfortable sleep.

...

"Frankly, it was impossible to have a conversation.

Father kept asking where he was and crying. If you wish to marry the Crown Princess, it would be safer to talk to the Duke of Latitche, her father, and have him persuade her.

It would be more convincing... I thought about bringing it up when she calms down, but I have to admit it's still too early to talk about joining the royal family.

If we recklessly stir up her anxiety, the barrier might become even stronger... In any case, she needs time to regain her composure."

Kishteria, with a lowered brow and a solemn expression, quietly reported.

He didn't reprimand the duke's son who was lying about it, nor the composed butler.

Kishteria had thoroughly enjoyed and pampered Alber, and when they left the palace of Vayu, he waved with a smile, saying, "I'll come back."

It was an unusual interaction for siblings, but the clumsy step-sister Alber also waved and saw him off, looking a bit sad.

Julius, on the other hand, had stayed by Alber's side the whole time while Kishteria was telling Anna about Alber's condition.

The beautiful and cunning young lady, even in her sleep, didn't let go of the hem of Julius's clothes. She had somehow grabbed it.

Anna was giving him a cold stare, and Kishteria was looking at him with a narrowed eye, thinking, "He really can't move, can he?"

Alber's special skill is to hold on to people so tightly that even the Duke of Latitche can't leave.

Anna, Sebastian, and Latine have also been victims of her demonic touch.

The powerful figures in the audience chamber, unaware of this interaction, were all serious.

King Lauses, Chancellor Darren, and the dignitaries of Sandis, including Duke Fortuna, all had heavy expressions.

Each had their own agenda, but they were all in the same boat, blocked by Alber's powerful barrier. They all wanted to make contact with Alber, at least to confirm her safety.

A new royal family member with the royal eyes, and at a marriageable age. Her lineage and status are impeccable. Her bloodline is such that it would be natural for the royal family's traits to appear, and she is a princess from a distinguished family.

The princes, who only have half-green eyes and are under house arrest, and the self-indulgent princess who lacks awareness as a royal. The timing is too perfect, with no current crown prince and the candidates being embroiled in scandals. Alber's existence is a person the royal family desperately needs.

"I see... If possible, I would like to welcome her as a royal with her consent.

The lack of successors in the royal family is the most painful problem of this generation... Alber must be exhausted both mentally and physically from being suddenly brought to the castle. It would be necessary to give her some time."

"Your Majesty! This is the rightful princess with the royal eyes! Such a leisurely approach...!

When the Duke of Latitche returns, he will surely take the princess back to his territory! A quick decision is needed! At the very least, the existence of Princess Alber should be made known within the country!"

An old man, dressed in luxurious clothing but looking like skin and bones, shouted in a hoarse voice.

Kishteria, maintaining a solemn expression, thought, "If he heats up and his blood vessels or heart burst and he collapses, that would be great," but his well-practiced, versatile poker face was in top form.

He knew the elders were obsessed with the royal eyes, but their appearance in the audience chamber, spitting out saliva and passionately arguing, made him think of the word "old harm."

"Alber is the 'daughter of the Duke of Latitche.' She should be integrated into the royal family, but it would be strange to ignore the wishes of the head of the Latitche family, one of the four great dukes."

"That man's obsession with his daughter is not normal! Such time is...!"

"You're missing the point. The first person to get permission from should be Grail.

Taking advantage of that man's moment of weakness and making her a royal in name only without her consent would be futile.

...What have you done, Duke Fortuna? This is unlike you. Why did you bring Alber so forcefully?"

"......I thought it was best to show her as soon as possible. I humbly submit this old bone. The previous king passed away, and Your Majesty's siblings also passed away one after another. My wife and daughter are also gone, and I even thought that there were no more people in the Sandis royal family with the same eye color as Your Majesty.

Our kingdom, not a great power, is the greatest pawn holding back the wars among the great powers like the Balenstein Empire, Goyul, and Wallace. As long as our country is protected, war can be avoided.

If we lack a successor and our defense weakens, the possibility of our country being ravaged by war is not small."

The Duke of Fortuna, who was usually reticent, spoke.

The commander-in-chief of the country is the Duke of Latitche, Grail, but the one who commands the knights is the Duke of Fortuna.

As a part of the Sandis Kingdom's military, the royal family's issues are deeply intertwined with national defense. Maintaining the successor of the royal family's barrier magic is one of the most important matters of national defense.

Bringing Alber forcefully was not a commendable act, but given the many grudges with the Latitche family, he must have been harboring a lot of resentment. His beloved daughter, Christina, had married into the Latitche family and passed away without much contact. To him, Grail was the man who took his daughter away in many ways.

This incident will likely increase the friction between these two great families, and Lauses inwardly rubbed his temples.

In Lauses's memory, Alber was a beautiful girl who looked like a living replica of Christina.

She spoke more gently than Christina, with a cheerful and youthful smile that was endearing.

At first sight, he understood why Gandalf was interested in her. If her hair and eye color were also like Christina's, it would be even more so.

Unable to enter the barrier and see her invisible form, Lauses knew he was quite disappointed.

He was an unskilled man, rough, stubborn, and straightforward—yet, in reality, a man full of love.

Alber, who clearly showed the bloodline of the two women he loved, must have delighted him with her appearance alone. He would have wanted to take her back to the Fortuna territory.

However, from what he heard, Alber seemed to be quite afraid of the Duke of Fortuna.

She had been crying a lot after being suddenly taken from her home by a stranger. Her pained appearance had apparently made her brother, Cliftof, advise Gandalf to reconsider. But he didn't listen.

He couldn't leave her in a place where young thieves could get in.

The forceful abduction, not only between Grail and Gandalf but also potentially creating a rift with his real granddaughter, Alber, was not out of the question. Grail would likely be overjoyed at the news. On the other hand, Cliftof's resentful gaze towards Gandalf was understandable.

Gandalf, who was still unaware that both his son and he were intensely disliked by Alber, had a lingering impression of her as a fluffy and adorable girl. She would be much easier to persuade than Grail—assuming he could meet her.

Grail was an incredibly difficult obstacle.

Lauses understood the positions and conflicts of the two families, as well as the feelings of the two men.

He had hoped that if the two families could reconcile, it would depend on Alber, but that hope had been dashed.

Gandalf had gone on a rampage, and he was aware that his actions were partly due to his age. His usual decisiveness was noticeably lacking.

"......The Duke of Latitche has a son, but allowing such a large number of thieves to invade shows his immaturity. I judged that he was not fit to be placed there."

"Allow me to say this. The thieves have been handed over? Those who resisted strongly had to be dealt with...

Well, it seems the ringleader escaped."

The ringleader was Renaria, the former Baroness of Dachess.

There was a warrant out for her, and although she was handed over to the kingdom, she escaped easily. It was a failure of the kingdom's military to let a captured criminal go.

Kishteria's blue eyes quietly flared with anger as he glared.

His dull, single eye gaze calmly returned the glare.

"The guards, the castle's security soldiers, and the knights have all been reselected.

It seems that while the usual demon with sharp eyes was away, some fools snuck in extra people."

"That's quite busy of you."

Kishteria smiled, but his eyes were cold.

He wanted to scold them loudly, "How many times have you let her escape? Are your eyes blind?"

Gandalf, who should have picked up on the subtle sarcasm, remained silent.

The decline in awareness among the nobles, knights, and soldiers over the past few years was evident. The quality had dropped. The previous kings indulged in pleasure, and the Megil flu had decimated not only the heirs of prominent noble families but also the royal succession. The throne had fallen to Lauses by default.

Fortunately, Grail, who was excellent but had too many character flaws, was unexpectedly loyal to Lauses. He had solved problems one after another with his sharp skills, but there were always those who tried to take advantage of the changing situation to taste the sweet fruits of power. Such people never disappeared in any era.

Currently, many of the nobles who have inherited titles were second sons or younger, who were not originally intended to inherit. Many noble families, lacking funds, did not provide successor education to anyone but the eldest son.

Lauses had been ruling steadily, but the nobles who should have supported him were unreliable.

Corruption and collusion were often due to the lax standards of many nobles.

Grail's stance was that if such mediocre people were given positions, it would be better to choose based on ability rather than bloodline. Unlike the royal family, there was almost no bloodline inheritance magic for nobles. As a result, there were reportedly some promising new nobles among the emerging nobility.

Speaking of which, the butler Kishteria often brought with him had also obtained a viscount's position.

He handled the Rose Trading Company and had a wide range of businesses. An emerging noble without a territory, but his influence was not to be underestimated. The Rose brand was at the forefront of fashion and technological innovation, and its influence was considerable.

The conversation, cold and slightly chilling, with a double-voiced quality, continued.

Many nobles, trying to remain inconspicuous, were secretly observing the muscular bear duke and the young son of the devil duke. The Duke of Flings was one of them.

Although they were called the four great dukes, the Latitche family's power was far superior, and the second most powerful, the Fortuna family, was clashing with them.

Lebrant von Flings, each time, tried to remain inconspicuous and observe the situation.

Grail von Latitche, the Duke of Devils, possessed immense magical power and unparalleled beauty.

Gandalf von Fortuna, the Duke of Knights, was an extraordinary general and a duke.

Although they were complete opposites in every way, both were impressive.

The conversation was usually cold, and the air was tense, but Duke Flings's heart was bristling with hair.

After these two had a fierce argument, they would take out their frustrations on their work or training.

Surrounded by their murderous aura, everyone worked hard to avoid being hit by the sparks, and the work speed in the castle increased by at least thirty percent.

The ministers, holding their stomachs, nodded in agreement.

He wanted to show his daughter this intense, no-holds-barred conflict between men.

Unfortunately, his daughter, Catherine, was quiet and plain-looking, like her ordinary father, Lebrant. When he said he wanted her to look like her beautiful mother, she coldly replied, "No, I don't want to. I want to blend in with the crowd."

His daughter, who shared his hobby of people-watching, was engaged to Leold but showed little interest in power. Prioritizing her hobby over her fiancé's favor was admirable, even to him.

He observed the young successor of the Latitche family, who didn't back down against the great bear duke.

Cliftof had called him a detestable pretty boy, but he had a strong character. There were few in his generation who could withstand the Duke of Fortuna's glare.

...Allowing rats to invade the castle's prison. The corruption has spread that far. The big fish were caught when the Duke of Latitche wielded the great axe, but there are still many remnants lying low.

No, they were hiding because they were cunning and waited for the Duke of Latitche to be away.

Ah, they are so cunning and annoying. How many businesses have been thwarted because of their schemes? If the Duke of Latitche is not around, they will start conspiring.

The only ones who can be caught now are the impatient small fry.

Hmm, the current Duke of Latitche's son and Lord Gandalf are quite agitated. Maybe I should take care of it? Chancellor Darren also seems a bit suspicious...

The best is to wait for someone else to do the dirty work and then take a small, natural cut.

Lebrant was not suited to wielding the great axe, but he was good at quietly securing his own interests in the shadows. The Duke of Latitche, as long as it didn't harm him, didn't mind much. He was a man without much personal desire. As long as his important things were not touched, he could be quite lenient. Lebrant also gradually returned the favors he received in various forms to the Latitche family.

Duke Armandine looked stern.

He must have been hit hard by the fall of Lucas, just like Queen Mezarin.

His daughter, Vivian, had been tainted by Lucas's poor behavior, even though she had done nothing wrong. If he were to arrange a new engagement now, Queen Mezarin, who didn't want to lose more of her influence, would be hesitant.

The engagement of the Armandine