The Queen Maker (1)
“Please, have a seat.”
Luen sat down. She looked far calmer than before, as though she had already reached her decision.
“I accept.”
She spoke briefly, without any flourishes.
“Very well.”
“However, I have two conditions.”
Now it felt like a true negotiation.
“Please, speak.”
“I will accept the throne. But I will not sit upon it as a puppet.”
I slowly set my teacup down.
“A puppet, you say.”
“I can guess why you wish to place me there. You want someone easy to control on the throne.”
She fixed me with a clear, unwavering gaze.
“I have no intention of living the rest of my life as someone else’s puppet while seated in that position.”
I gave a short laugh at her declaration.
“Your Highness.”
“Yes.”
“Do you remember what I told you a few days ago?”
Her eyes wavered slightly.
“A tool has no will of its own, yet you do. To suppress that will and use you merely as a tool would be to waste your value.”
“……I remember.”
“Those words were not a joke. They remain true now.”
“Can I believe them?”
“In your judgment, am I the sort of man who would desire a puppet emperor?”
She paused, considering.
“What you want is an emperor capable of sustaining the empire. But I lack the talent for that……”
“You need none. So long as you do not rely on others for your judgments the way the current crown prince does.”
She drew a steady breath.
“Understood. I will believe you.”
“Then tell me your other condition.”
“There is only one other. I entrust my brother’s treatment to you, General. With the single stipulation that he must remain alive.”
This was unexpected.
“Your Highness could decide that matter yourself. I would grant you that consideration.”
“That is precisely why I am entrusting it to you.”
Her fingers stilled briefly upon the book.
“Leon is my brother. If I decide his fate, emotion will cloud my judgment. Therefore, it is only right to leave the matter in your hands, General.”
Interesting. Truly interesting. I had not expected such sincerity from her.
“Very well.”
I summarized her words.
“The crown prince will be spared. However, he will step down from the throne. As for his treatment thereafter, I will choose the most efficient path.”
Luen nodded.
“That path may prove somewhat drastic.”
“I am prepared.”
Her answer was brief, yet it carried the weight of days of deliberation.
“Then we shall discuss the details in due course.”
“Yes. Please keep your word.”
“Naturally.”
The negotiation was concluded. Luen rose from her seat.
“Marshal Berhardt.”
“Yes.”
“This agreement will require some time to come to fruition.”
“It will.”
“What should I do until then?”
“Live as you always have.”
“……You mean the library.”
“Correct. Any sudden change in behavior will arouse Perlin Claire’s suspicion. Maintain your usual routine and wait for my signal.”
A faint smile touched her lips.
“It is what I have done all my life.”
“Indeed.”
She bowed her head and left the office.
I sipped the now-cold tea, turning our conversation over in my mind.
“Hmm……”
The more I observed her, the more intriguing the princess became. She might yet exceed my expectations. Such a person would never make for an easily manipulated emperor—but that was no disqualification. An emperor who remained nothing more than a puppet could never save the empire anyway.
“I must make the next move.”
The deal with the princess was settled, yet it was not enough. I still had to separate Perlin Claire from the crown prince, remove him from the throne, and ensure the empire did not waver in the process. All three tasks had to be accomplished at once. To do so, I had to act before Claire made her next move.
For the past several days she had remained silent. In that time, cracks had surely begun to form in her confidence. Robento had refused her request, and the crown prince might well have fallen into anxiety. Such thoughts must now fill her mind. In this situation, she would prepare her next move. The desperate always resort to reckless plays. I was ready to meet them.
“Adjutant Raylin.”
The adjutant entered. I picked up a pen, wrote a brief request, and handed it to her.
“Deliver this request to His Highness the Crown Prince. I wish to meet him in his office at three o’clock this afternoon.”
She accepted the document and bowed.
“And if he refuses?”
I smiled.
“He will not refuse.”
Doubt and fear must already be flooding his thoughts.
#
Three o’clock in the afternoon.
I arrived at the crown prince’s office. Leon sat at his desk. Perlin Claire was nowhere to be seen.
Until now, she had always been at his side—in meetings, in private audiences, her presence had been constant. Today was different. Though I had requested the meeting, it was Leon himself who had chosen to exclude her when accepting it. Proof that suspicion had already taken root.
“Sir Arsens.”
“My apologies for the sudden visit, Your Highness.”
I bowed briefly.
“Sit.”
He gestured to the chair across from him. I took the seat.
“So, what brings you here?”
Leon spoke first, his tone laced with wariness.
“I have several matters to report.”
“A report?”
“Yes. Concerning the currents within the imperial family.”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“That is a matter for the council.”
“It is not a matter that can be discussed in council.”
“……”
“It concerns someone close to Your Highness.”
Leon fell silent. No explanation was needed as to whom I meant.
“……Perlin, you mean?”
“Yes.”
He stopped his hand as he reached for his teacup.
“Sir Arsens. Let me be direct. If you intend to drive a wedge between Perlin and me, I will not listen.”
“I have no such intention.”
“Then?”
“I merely wish to convey the information I possess. Whether you accept it or not remains Your Highness’s judgment.”
He regarded me for a moment.
“I will listen.”
“A few days ago, Perlin Claire made a request of the Hero.”
“A request……”
Leon’s pupils wavered.
“She asked him to keep me in check.”
“……How do you know this?”
“The Hero told me himself.”
“He informed you of the request’s contents?”
“Yes. Because he refused it.”
Leon’s expression hardened. Refusal. I could well imagine what that word meant to him. The Hero had been one of the pillars of Perlin’s displayed confidence. She must have assured him that the Hero stood with them—and he had believed her. Now that assurance lay exposed as a lie.
“……Is this certain?”
“The Hero met me alone a few days ago. He stated it plainly then: he would side with no one.”
Leon remained silent for a long while. His hands slowly clenched and unclenched upon the desk.
“Sir Arsens.”
Having finished his deliberation, he spoke.
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“Precisely what I have told you. How you interpret it is Your Highness’s judgment.”
“……”
“However, I will add one final point.”
I loosened my uniform tie slightly. Then, in a low voice, I delivered the warning.
“Your Highness has crossed the line.”
His body flinched.
“To be swayed by a lover’s words and invite foreign powers into the empire—without any consent.”
“That is……”
I cut off his protest.
“To keep me in check, I presume. Because I am a threat. I understand the judgment. But was that judgment truly your own?”
“……”
“In the end, it was Perlin Claire’s judgment.”
I rose slowly from my seat. Leon’s body went rigid.
“To entrust even such decisions to your lover…… Is someone like that truly qualified to sit upon the throne?”