Chapter 43

"Haha, homeland!? This country is your homeland!?"

"Prince Randolph. The Holy Maiden is probably using a metaphor to express her deep attachment to this country..."

"I take back my words. How presumptuous of you, Holy Maiden Charlotte! Do you think that just because you've been pampered a little, you have a place in this country?"

Randolph said, with a twisted smile on his face.

"You are, after all, just a person from another country. A pitiful child offered by another country when His Majesty won the war. You should realize that you are not a person but a trophy."

"The Holy Maiden herself must be well aware of that. Please, stop speaking any further."

"Father may be cold, but he was kind enough to give a slave a status! A being that should have been discarded was able to grow up being pampered as 'Holy Maiden, Holy Maiden.'"

"Your Highness!"

Oswald, who had maintained a calm expression until now, frowned.

"...Even so, Charlotte has devoted herself to this country. That is a fact."

But Randolph's smile only deepened.

"Haha, of course! The Holy Maiden has no choice but to obey."

Randolph's finger pointed straight at Charlotte.

"After all, the Holy Maiden is bound by a contract magic with Father."

"......!"

Charlotte was very surprised by those words.

But she did not show it on her face. Instead, it was Oswald who widened his eyes.

"Contract magic...?"

"Oh! Oswald, you didn't know about this. ...But of course! This is a fact known only to the Holy Maiden Charlotte and the royal family."

Charlotte remembered the contract magic.

(It is a coercive magic used for contracts with slaves. It is linked to the soul of the target, and the command given is only one.)

Charlotte placed her hand on her left chest.

(But, that command is something you can never disobey. Right? My former self.)

Even if she asked, there would be no answer.

And Randolph seemed genuinely delighted that Oswald did not know about the contract magic.

"Should I tell you more? Oswald. The command engraved in the Holy Maiden's soul is to 'serve the royal family of this country until death.'"

"...The command that can be given by contract magic is supposed to be only one."

"That's right. But if you command obedience with that one, you can make them follow orders to a certain extent."

Oswald's frown deepened.

"Then, the Holy Maiden agreeing to the seal of divine power and becoming my wife was...?"

"Of course, because it was Father's command! ...But, the Holy Maiden resisted quite a bit. Oswald, the magical soldiers had a hard time until you, the groom, went to fetch her and restrained her with magic."

"......"

"According to Father, 'If the command is abstract, it can be applied in various ways, but it takes time and effort to make them obey.' The stubborn Holy Maiden was a problem, but there was no way to escape the contract magic."

(―――!)

Hearing this, she was startled. She realized something, but did not show it on her face.

"Should I try giving the Holy Maiden an interesting command? Hmm..."

At that moment, Randolph laughed.

"......Prince Randolph"

"!!"

The air in the courtyard suddenly turned cold at Oswald's voice.

(This is...!)

The temperature inside the castle was regulated by magic, and it shouldn't have been cold in the courtyard.

Yet now, the tension was so thick that Charlotte's skin tingled.

"Permit me to advise you once more, though it may be presumptuous."

Oswald dominated this courtyard.

"Please, stop this nonsense."

"Oswald...!!"

A hateful, cracked voice escaped from Randolph.

"Do you not understand your position!? If you defy me, you will lose everything, more so than the Holy Maiden!?"

"It is the duty of a subject to advise the foolish actions of those they serve. ...Sometimes, even to the point of being willing to lose everything."

"Wh...!!"

Randolph paled, sensing Oswald's seriousness.

The air around Oswald was so cold.

In the dimly lit courtyard under the moonlight, his red eyes, like flames, shone brightly.

"J-Just back off..."

But this couldn't go on.

"Lord Oswald"

When Charlotte called his name, Oswald looked at her with his eyes alone.

"Please stop. I have something to say to Prince Randolph."

"..."

Oswald was clearly angry on Charlotte's behalf.

But if this continued, Oswald's position would worsen. Even if he was prepared to face the consequences, she did not want to burden him.

(Lord Oswald doesn't need to protect me. ...Of course, there were circumstances surrounding this 'me')

But she thought,

(Still, what I did was a sin.)

She remembered the scene shown in the diary.

(―And I am a wicked person. No matter what the circumstances, it is an unchangeable, unforgivable fact.)

Even if she had been forced.

Even if her memories from that time were erased.

Because of this, Charlotte had kept her memory loss a secret.

(The responsibility for what 'I' did should be borne by me, not Lord Oswald.)

So, she smiled.

"Prince Randolph"

Following what she had learned from Haidemarie, she gave the most beautiful smile she could manage.

As if it were nothing, calmly.

"...I am the Holy Maiden who has committed every atrocity, you know?"

"―――..."

Seeing her smile, Randolph's eyes widened in surprise.