Chapter 58

"Without prior notice, I apologize for my sudden visit. I am at a loss for words to express my gratitude for Your Majesty Zenjiro's kind acceptance of my whims."

The first words out of Princess Bona's mouth were, as Zenjiro had expected, an apology.

Indeed, a visit without prior notice was not considered polite. Especially since Zenjiro, who was currently in the palace, was in a public position, and Zenjiro and Princess Bona were not close enough to ignore such unwritten rules.

However, Zenjiro, who understood Princess Bona's position as an inspector, would not nitpick over such a trivial matter.

"No, it's fine. Of course, there are times when it's not convenient for us, but today, there's no reason to refuse Princess Bona's visit."

While lightly setting the record straight, he showed that he welcomed Princess Bona's actions.

'When I say 'today,' it goes without saying that I'm referring to the current situation where Prince Francesco, without informing Inspector Bona, attempted to meet with me alone.'

In other words, Zenjiro was indirectly saying, "If something like this happens again, don't worry about prior notice or reservations; just join us later."

It seems that his intention was correctly conveyed.

"Oh, thank you!"

Princess Bona bowed deeply, as if she had been given a second chance at life.

"Yeah, I don't understand it, but I'm glad, Bona."

"…Yes, Prince Francesco."

Princess Bona, who was about to say something to the source of her troubles, the carefree Prince Francesco, seemed to realize that it wasn't appropriate to speak in this situation and swallowed her words at the last moment.

This atmosphere needed to be changed. Sensing this, Zenjiro suggested in a tone as if he had just thought of it,

"By the way, it's about time for tea. What do you think? Shall we move to the pavilion in the garden for the rest of the conversation?"

There was no particular reason for the prince and princess to refuse this suggestion.

"Yes, that sounds good. I was just starting to feel thirsty."

"Yes, thank you. I'll have some."

Both of them responded affirmatively.

The pavilion in the garden, with no walls and a wooden roof supported by four pillars, was planted so that the wind from the nearby fountain blew through, making it much cooler than inside the palace.

Therefore, suggesting to spend the hot midday in the pavilion of the central garden was a natural idea. However, Zenjiro's main purpose in moving to the pavilion was not to cool off.

Next to the fountain, the constant sound of water meant that conversations inside would not be heard by the secretaries or guards standing outside unless spoken loudly.

Zenjiro had moved the conversation to this place to report and confirm with Princess Bona about Prince Francesco's 'slip of the tongue' earlier, showing his utmost consideration.

"Then, could you bring me some cold tea?"

Sitting in a tropical-style chair made of wood and vines, Zenjiro, facing forward, called out to the person standing behind him in a normal tone of voice.

In response,

"Yes, Your Majesty Zenjiro? Did you say something just now?"

Secretary Fabio asked in a deliberately exaggerated manner,

"Yes, you didn't hear it? I said to bring me some cold tea."

All of this was pre-arranged.

This way, he was telling Prince Francesco and Princess Bona, "You can speak normally here; the people around us won't hear."

Whether this intention was conveyed or not could only be judged from their expressions.

"I'll have some cold tea, too. They say you should drink something hot on a hot day to make you sweat, but when it's hot, you really want something cold, don't you?"

Prince Francesco's unreadable expression, smiling and nodding, was something Zenjiro had anticipated.

The problem was with Princess Bona, but her reaction was very clear.

"Huh? Ah! Uh? Oh! ...I'll have some cold tea, too..."

Her expression changed from 'question' to 'understanding,' then back to 'question,' and finally to 'sorrow.'

In other words, she was initially confused and then realized Zenjiro's hidden meaning, smiling and nodding, but immediately began to think, "Why do we need such a private setting?" and concluded that it was because Prince Francesco had shared confidential information with Zenjiro before she arrived, leading to her despair.

Zenjiro felt sympathy for her but, given his position, could not act on it. Rather, he needed to take advantage of this slip to benefit his side.

(Still, if I overdo it, I might incur the resentment of the twin kingdom, and considering my position, I shouldn't make any strange achievements... It's a bit complicated.)

While Zenjiro was thinking this, a maid, following Secretary Fabio's instructions, had finished setting a wooden tray with silver cups of drinks and pastries on the table.

The silver cups and the wooden tray, made of high-quality wood with intricate patterns carved into it, were exquisite.

Taking a sip from the silver cup to moisten his throat, Zenjiro, looking evenly at the golden-haired prince and the chestnut-haired princess sitting opposite him, opened his mouth.

"Prince Francesco, what did you mean earlier when you said that the 'transparent gemstone' could solve the time problem in creating magical artifacts? Could you explain the specific method?"

He decided to be straightforward, but his words triggered a dramatic reaction from Princess Bona.

"Wha!?"

Princess Bona, without any attempt to hide her reaction, burst out in shock, showing her astonishment with her entire body. Fortunately, she hadn't taken a sip of her drink.

Of course, Zenjiro had waited for her to swallow her cold tea before speaking, and his consideration paid off. However, it offered little comfort to her.

For Princess Bona, the more important issue was not the unbecoming reaction she had shown in front of a foreign royal, but the pursuit of the bombshell statement that had caused it.

"Prince Francesco, did you really say it!?"

Her voice was as controlled as usual, a sign of the last bit of rationality she had managed to retain. However, her face was pale, and the voice that came from her blue-tinged lips was more like a death rattle than a scream.

But, as if unaware of the princess's state,

"Yeah, I might have said it earlier. It was a pretty quiet voice, but Your Majesty Zenjiro heard it. Ahaha."

"…This isn't something to laugh about, Prince Francesco. That's a secret of the Charrow royal family!"

"Oh, right, that's true. Your Majesty Zenjiro, please keep this a secret."

With a finger to his lips and a lowered voice, Prince Francesco, who seemed to have just realized, was scolded by Princess Bona.

"What are you going to do by asking Your Majesty Zenjiro to keep it a secret! It's over once His Majesty knows!"

"Princess Bona, please calm down. While it's not my place to say this, Prince Francesco's whisper was so quiet that no one but me, sitting opposite, could have heard it.

Let's move on to a more constructive conversation."

While calming her down, Zenjiro inwardly chuckled, "You're still young." If his initial words had been a bluff, then Princess Bona's reaction itself would have been a source of critical information, though she didn't realize it.

Still, Princess Bona was only sixteen, the age of a high school student in Japan. Even for a royal, it was unrealistic to expect a poker face and advanced negotiation skills at this age.

"I'm sorry. I must have looked foolish..."

Reflecting on her actions, Princess Bona, now blushing, bowed repeatedly.

"Right. What's done is done, and we should try to make the best of it.

How about this, Your Majesty Zenjiro. If you could hand over the gemstone you mentioned, it would significantly reduce the time needed to create magical artifacts."

Prince Francesco, with a thick smile, as if it had been his plan all along, made this request.

(Ah, this... He's not just a fool, is he?)

"I see, I understand the general situation. However, I don't understand why a marble—why that gemstone is necessary. I've heard that the twin kingdom has the best gemstone polishing techniques in the southern continent.

Wouldn't a crystal polished into a sphere be sufficient?"

Trying to keep his rising suspicion from showing, Zenjiro asked in as casual a tone as possible.

"Absolutely not. You're overestimating our gemstone polishing techniques.

While our country has one of the best gemstone polishing techniques on the continent, it's impossible to polish a transparent material into such a perfect sphere. Right, Bona?"

Princess Bona, who had been in a dilemma for a moment, sighed deeply and began to speak.

"Yes, to be precise, there is currently no craftsman in the twin kingdom who can achieve this. Gemstone polishing depends on the skill of the craftsman, and in the past, there were craftsmen who could polish crystal into a practical sphere.

However, even the most skilled craftsmen had very few successful cases, and it took a lot of time, so they could only produce three or four in their lifetime. And such skilled craftsmen wouldn't dedicate their entire careers to making perfect spheres."

"I see."

Zenjiro nodded in admiration.

Indeed, in Earth's history, the ability to polish hard minerals into perfect spheres only became possible much later.

Zenjiro didn't know, but polishing minerals into perfect spheres requires a high level of skill.

In comparison, making a perfect sphere of a marble is much easier. Unlike crystal, it's not about polishing but about creating a perfect sphere from the start.

In simple terms, if you cut a high-viscosity liquid glass into the right amount and roll it down a spiral ramp like a water slide, it will cool and form a perfect sphere by the time it hits the bottom.

Of course, most of them will be imperfect, but you can compensate with numbers and select the successful ones.

While vaguely recalling the 'marble-making process' he had seen at a glass museum during a school trip in high school, Zenjiro nodded and continued the conversation.

"That is indeed a valuable item. However, how effective is it when actually used?"

"That's..."

Still resistant to full disclosure, Princess Bona hesitated, but the golden-haired prince sitting next to her had no such qualms.

"Yes, it's completely different. If we use the gemstone that Lady Isabella gave us, the enchantment of the four major magics can be completed in a day. The important factors for enchanting are 'color' and 'shape.'

Right, Bona? Isn't that right?"

How much more was he going to talk? Completely oblivious to the tension, Prince Francesco's endless chatter made Princess Bona's expression visibly tense.

At this point, the only way to get Prince Francesco to stop talking was to have the guards physically intervene.

Realizing this, Princess Bona made a decision. Given the situation, it was better to take the initiative and explain herself, trying to shift the conversation from a one-sided information exchange to a more balanced give-and-take.

With this resolve, Princess Bona met Zenjiro's gaze and nodded with a deliberately composed expression.

"Yes. The closer the color is to transparent, the better the magic flows during enchantment. Even if it's not completely transparent, a highly transparent material is better than a less transparent one. This is why gemstones are valued as enchantment targets.

And the shape... I'm sorry. I got carried away and started talking by myself.

Are you interested in this topic, Your Majesty Zenjiro?"

After revealing some information, the chestnut-haired girl deliberately cut off her words.

Zenjiro immediately understood what she was implying.

(Ah, I see. She wants me to say I'm interested. If I give her that, she can at least say that the conversation was initiated because I showed interest, rather than because Prince Francesco spoke out of turn.)

Since he had recognized her intention, there was no need to play along.

However, if he pushed too hard, it could damage the relationship with the twin kingdom of Charrow and Gilbert.

After a quick thought, Zenjiro laughed a bit exaggeratedly and answered.

"No, it's a very interesting topic. However, because of that, I'm a bit afraid to hear it. To be honest, I'm quite inexperienced with magic, having only recently awakened to the ability to see magic, so I might say something silly and disappoint you both.

Queen Aura wouldn't have that problem, though."

In other words, he was saying, "Given my position, I can't promise any compensation for more information. If you want to discuss this further, you should talk to Queen Aura."

Because it was a spur-of-the-moment statement, the metaphor wasn't too obscure, and the chestnut-haired girl, correctly interpreting Zenjiro's words, smiled more deeply, as if relieved.

"I see. In that case, would it be alright to continue this conversation another day, with Queen Aura included?"

"Yes, I'll inform Her Majesty."

The conversation was finally settled. Zenjiro, maintaining a poker face despite the tension and pressure, was as nervous as the girl in front of him, but he managed to hide it better due to his slightly more experience.

"..."

On the other hand, Prince Francesco, who had been talking nonstop, suddenly became well-mannered and didn't say a word, watching the conversation between Zenjiro and Princess Bona with a carefree smile.