Chapter 37

Unsettling rumors had quietly disappeared (or rather, the nobles from other countries, who had been forced to listen to the empress's love stories endlessly, continued to speak of their terror with tears even after returning to their home countries), and the court of Ancheize was peaceful.

However, politics around Alek did not stagnate but continued to move.

In the early morning office, Gruuk, Luitas, and Amon were already gathered, discussing with the emperor.

"A report just came from the palace guard," Alek began, as the long-awaited news had finally arrived.

"They say they have killed the leader and deputy leader of the Taisuru Canyon bandits."

Incidentally, the palace guard of the Ancheize Empire is distinct from the palace guards of other countries.

The palace guards of other countries are all of noble birth and are the elite of the military, but the palace guard of Ancheize, in addition to protecting the emperor, is responsible for assassination, purges, and intelligence.

The number and form of the palace guard are not even known in detail by the emperor, Alek, and the guard carries out all kinds of dirty work at the command of the current emperor.

Six months ago, Alek ordered the palace guard to assassinate the leaders of the bandits.

After two years of weakening the organization, he judged that a direct attack would cause significant damage to the knightly order.

Alek's words tightened the faces of the three men.

"Then it's finally time. It took longer than I thought."

"Is the Toua Knightly Order ready?" Alek asked, and Amon nodded.

"We have informed them that the Immovable Demons will move at some point. We have prepared them to be ready to deploy at any time."

The Taisuru Canyon, which forms the southernmost border of Ancheize and the border with Misha, is notorious for its poor security and the rampant presence of the Immovable Demons, a notorious bandit group.

Although the people had been petitioning for action since the time of Palesis, it had been neglected for a long time, and Alek, busy consolidating his rule, had not been able to address the problems in the southern border.

The decisive move to eliminate the bandits began two and a half years ago, when the empress spoke to Alek and others about the canyon.

When Alek learned that his beloved empress had narrowly escaped being killed in the canyon, he immediately began to take action to eliminate the bandits.

The Immovable Demons, with their organizational strength and numbers, were feared to be equivalent to a single knightly order. Therefore, Alek and his team first decided to cut off their source of funds.

They carefully traced the flow of money and imprisoned the merchants who were the source of funds, one after another, to prevent the money from reaching the Immovable Demons.

More than two years have passed since then, and the Immovable Demons have gradually weakened. At this stage, Alek first moved the palace guard.

"The leader and deputy leader have been assassinated in quick succession, and suspicion and distrust have spread among the Immovable Demons. It is the best time to send in the extermination force."

Of course, the palace guard, with the skill to assassinate the leader, could have killed the members of the Immovable Demons one by one over time.

However, that would be meaningless. The Immovable Demons must be eliminated in the name of the emperor.

"A private knightly order that has sworn loyalty to the royal family will advance for the people. It will be a good opportunity for the people to know that they are protected by the emperor."

"Which knightly order will be dispatched?"

In response to Luitas's question, Alek smiled.

"Reiato."

"It will be a good opportunity to see how much Guido has taken control of Reiato."

When Emperor Palesis died, the Reiato Knightly Order, in alliance with Lord Sezon, who had installed the third prince, who was less than a month old, put Alek in a difficult position.

If the Antore Knightly Order, led by Amon, had arrived a step later, Alek would have been killed on the spot, and his younger brother Romaris would have become emperor.

The only thing that could be evaluated positively about that political change was that the number of deaths was kept to a minimum.

The only ones who lost their lives were Lord Sezon and his relatives, the guards of the treasury, and a few of the Reiato knights who barricaded themselves.

Romaris, the prince, and his mother, Mya, the secondary empress, were confined to the Red Jade Palace, and both managed to survive.

The Reiato, who had rebelled against the current emperor, was guaranteed to continue to exist according to the royal family's code of conduct, and the head of the house, who had participated in the conspiracy, was confined to the Red Jade Palace. The leaders were all deposed, and Guido, the second son of the former head's younger brother, became the leader of the Reiato Knightly Order.

The head of the house was not the eldest son but an unknown nephew, to weaken the power of the Reiato, who had defied Alek.

However, it would be a problem if the private knightly order of the empire did not function for a long time. Five years have passed since then, and Alek wanted to test how much the young Guido could control the Reiato.

"By the way, I picked up a rumor from the Toua Knightly Order."

Luitas said, as if he had just remembered.

"Five years ago, there was someone who remembered the incident when the empress was attacked.

The Centelle caravan was attacked, and the caravan survived with the protection of the guard, but the combined carriages that were traveling with them were almost all destroyed.

When the bodies were being collected, a young woman who had fainted was rescued and taken to an inn by the knights."

The empress is a very beautiful woman. Even in shabby clothes, her appearance attracted attention.

"One of the knights became completely infatuated and visited the inn every day.

The woman, having just experienced a terrible ordeal, hardly spoke and remained in her room, but the innkeeper remembered the knight well because he visited every day."

If the knight had known that the woman was the emperor's beloved, he would not have done such a terrible thing, Luitas thought, and found it a bit amusing.

The knight took good care of the woman, and when she finally began to speak, she left a note and some money with the knight and disappeared.

"Approaching Vea with ulterior motives is unpleasant."

Luitas couldn't help but suppress a laugh, thinking that Alek was more concerned about this than Vea's illness, but Gruuk seemed to feel the same way.

"I think the one who has the most ulterior motives for the empress is His Majesty."

"What's wrong with having ulterior motives for one's own empress?"

Alek said boldly.

"You're right, Your Majesty."

Here, the serious Amon interjected.

"In the future, I hope you will continue to have ulterior motives and that Her Majesty the Empress will bear another prince."

The three around him fell silent, unable to say anything. It was clear that Amon was serious, which made them even more speechless.

Alek sighed and groaned.

"Talking about breeding horses makes me feel like one. Please don't use such blunt words."

While joking, the four of them busily went through documents and petitions. Then, Gruuk stopped at one of them, checked it quickly, and handed the document to Alek.

"The design for the Taisuru fort has arrived. Can you take a look?"

Even if the Immovable Demons were eliminated, the bandits and night thieves would not disappear. Therefore, they planned to build a medium-sized fort in the canyon and station troops there.

In connection with the construction of the fort, they would also need to secure a budget and labor.

The knights to be stationed at the fort were to be recruited from the mercenaries who had previously served as guards. They were concerned that the mercenaries, who had lost their livelihood, would become bandits, and it would be a good opportunity for the mercenaries to get jobs.

They also planned to charge a toll to those passing through the canyon. The merchant caravans had been paying a considerable amount of money to the guards, and the combined carriages that joined the caravans had been paying a fee to the caravans. The toll would be collected from the money saved by not having to pay for guards.

They considered making it free, but if they did, all the merchants and travelers would go through the canyon, and the towns and carriage owners along the bypass would suffer economically.

Tanto and Shank were also important territories of Ancheize that needed to be protected.

"It's going to be busy."

In response to Alek's words, the three nodded with a gentle smile.

Five days after the order to exterminate was issued, the Reiato Knightly Order set off for Toua amidst the loud cheers of the people.

Vea, as empress, attended the send-off ceremony and encouraged the knightly order heading to Toua.

While watching the procession, Vea thought that the people and merchant caravans around Toua would be happy. The bandits were not on a scale that could be handled by the local lord alone.

A lot of blood had been shed, and the country had finally taken action.

"The people are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Reiato Knightly Order. However, even the powerful Reiato will not come out unscathed this time. It's a complex feeling to send them off."

While walking with Camie, Vea spoke to her. Camie smiled a little at Vea's words.

"Knights are prepared to give their lives for their sovereign. Besides, this time they are setting out with the noble cause of protecting the people.

The knights of Reiato must be happy."

And Camie, after saying that she might not understand, continued.

"This is also a favor from His Majesty."

"Favor?"

"Yes. Since the political change five years ago, Reiato has been eating cold rice. Of course, since they were about to assassinate the current emperor, it can be said that they brought it upon themselves.

However, for knights who value honor, it is very painful.

This time, Reiato will restore its honor. They will be able to fight for the empire and the people amidst the cheers of the people.

In fact, many in Antore were envious. Rofman was probably the same."

"Knights are strong."

When Vea dropped these words, Camie raised an eyebrow skillfully.

"To me, Her Majesty the Empress is also very strong."

"Really?"

"Yes. You are leading the Ancheize nobility, who are full of quirks. You are creating followers everywhere, gathering information, and taking action.

I am truly impressed by how you can continue to wear a mask for so long."

Vea glared at Camie lightly.

"This cat is officially recognized by the emperor. I'm thinking of teaching it to Myra and Aveya."

"Princess Myra already shows some signs of it."

"Really?"

"While giving a perfect, ladylike greeting, she said, 'It's growing,' without speaking, while looking at her father's bowed head."

Vea laughed.

"You noticed that too, Camie?"

"I almost died laughing."

While talking, they had somehow arrived in front of the treasury, and a guard who noticed the empress's presence saluted.

"I have received the emperor's permission."

When Vea said this, the guard replied, "I understand, Your Majesty," and allowed the guard who followed to unlock the door.

The treasury belongs to the emperor alone. Even the empress cannot enter without the emperor's permission.

Vea entered the library with only Camie, leaving the other guards outside the door.

This was the place where the Reiato knights had barricaded themselves and had not been conquered. It was strong against attacks from the outside, and Camie alone was enough as a guard.

"To be honest, this place is a bit scary."

When Vea said this as she stepped inside, Camie tilted her head and said, "Is it?"

The interior of the library has windows for reading books, tables, and chairs, and is a comfortable space.

It was built about two hundred years ago by Emperor Amarius, who, during the wars with other countries, built this sturdy stone treasury to protect priceless jewels and valuable books from unforeseen events.

"This place reminds me of the political change five years ago. The Reiato knights died here, didn't they?"

The barricaded knights, without receiving food support, were surrounded and starved to death. Of the twelve knights at the time, only five survived.

"They barricaded themselves. The emperor never punished the knights who surrendered and came out, did he?"

"Yes."

Vea forced a smile.

Her heart was terribly restless, and she felt an urgent desire to leave this place as soon as possible.

Vea took a small breath to calm her heart and told herself that there was no need to be afraid.