Chapter 31 - The Princess's Repayment
Chapter 31 - The Princess's Repayment
After the pleasant(?) conversation in the parlor, I continued to receive treatment from Azelia.
Under Natalia-nim's supervision, the blessing treatment continued, and the scars on my side and shoulder visibly faded.
So this is the power of divine blessings, distinct from recovery magic.
I don't really believe in religion, but I had to admit this was impressive.
"Edric-nim, the evil mana should all be gone now. You've worked hard."
"Thank you, Azelia."
Her treatment finished, Azelia prepared to return.
I went out to see off Natalia and Azelia.
"Then, please take care of yourself. Edric-nim, Natalia-nim."
"Are you heading back to the Papal See like this?"
"Normally, I should, but... I was a bit stubborn and decided to stay and watch Edric-nim's medal ceremony."
"My medal ceremony!?"
"Yes... Am I a bother?"
I was surprised by Azelia's words that she would come to my ceremony.
It's obviously good that Azelia is coming.
The problem is... the Prince is coming too.
Will it be okay? Letting the two of them meet...
Eh, well, it'll work out somehow!
"Of course not. Please, do come, Azelia."
"Yes! Then I'll see you then, Natalia-nim."
"Yes, see you then, Azelia."
I said goodbye to Azelia and the nun Cale who protects her side.
Once Azelia left and we were left alone, Natalia stared at me and asked.
"Edric, there is something I want to ask."
"Something you want to ask? What is it?"
"Do you... like the Saintess... do you like Azelia?"
Natalia's gaze was serious.
My gut warned me that if I lied here, I'd be fucked, so I just honestly stated my feelings.
"If I had to choose... I think I'm on the side that likes her."
"I thought so."
"Are... aren't you angry?"
At the news that her man had feelings for another woman, Natalia surprisingly didn't get angry.
Rather, she looked relieved.
"Edric, didn't I tell you? Women of the North have broad hearts. And for a woman of the North, it is actually an honor for her man to be popular."
"I-is that so?"
"That is so."
That it's an honor for her man to be popular?
What kind of place is the North, exactly?
As all sorts of thoughts crossed my mind, Natalia grabbed both my cheeks, looked into my eyes, and said.
"However... if there is a woman you like, don't hide it and tell me. As long as you don't lie, I can accept everything."
"Okay... I understand."
As she said that, Natalia linked her arm with mine very naturally.
I could feel her soft chest against my arm.
Wow... just how messed up was the Prince in the original work?
He abandoned a Natalia like this so cruelly?
I couldn't understand the Prince from the original work.
"By the way, Natalia, have you decided on lodging?"
"What are you talking about? Isn't it natural to stay at my husband's house?"
"T-that may be true, but..."
Natalia's words were logical.
But I was reminded of the Northern Duke behind her.
I still remember it.
The Northern Duke who looked at me with eyes that said, 'If you cross the line before marriage, I'll turn you into a signpost for the snowy mountains.'
As if she knew my heart, Natalia smiled and said.
"Don't worry. I already got permission from Father, and I've already picked out a room."
Natalia dragged me, who was flustered, and walked confidently into the mansion.
As I was led by her hand, I had a premonition of the chaotic mess that would unfold in my daily life from now on.
At that time, in the secret reception room of Emperor Theodore of the Minerva Empire.
The Emperor was talking to his daughter, Camilla, for the first time in a while.
However, the atmosphere of their conversation was not very bright.
Princess Camilla reported to her father, the Emperor, for the first time about the corruption regarding Court Count Albert Noel that she had been secretly collecting.
The Emperor, who examined the details she had investigated one by one, sighed with a dark and heavy expression.
His usually sturdy eyes trembled thinly with distress.
"Albert... so he finally crossed the line."
"Yes, that is correct, Father."
To the Emperor, Albert Noel was not just a mere subject.
In his youth, the Emperor had engaged in a fierce power struggle with his half-brother.
He had faced countless assassination attempts, and it was Albert Noel who helped him through them.
The Emperor felt as if he had been struck in the head with a heavy hammer by the information that the very man who had supported him and been a sturdy pillar of strength during those power struggles had supported monster terrorism in the North for his own gain.
"I still need a bit more concrete evidence, but if you give me time..."
"It is fine, Camilla... If there is this much circumstantial evidence, there is no need to investigate further."
"Father..."
The Emperor had turned a blind eye to some level of kickbacks or abuse of power by his subjects, thinking of it as a 'reward for loyalty,' and he had intended to continue doing so.
But this matter was on a different level.
The suspicion of conspiring in the Southern civil unrest and the Northern monster terrorism...
Both were serious crimes that shook the very foundation of the Empire, and it wouldn't be strange if he were sentenced to death just for being involved.
Besides that, the data Camilla had investigated over the past few years told him that Albert Noel had firmly crossed the line.
However, since he was still his loyal subject and close friend, the Emperor did not want to impose a heavy punishment, and the Princess, sensing her father's inner thoughts, opened her mouth.
"Father... surely Count Albert must have had loyalty toward the Empire as well. That must be why a loyal subject like Sir Edric could emerge from that family."
"Yes... I suppose so..."
At Camilla's words, the Emperor nodded with difficulty.
Camilla summarized the situation.
Her father did not want to impose a heavy crime on Albert.
And that was the same for her.
His crimes were heavy, but if he were to be punished severely, it could eventually harm Edric as well.
For Edric to fully become the wings of her brother, Leopold, and support the Empire, the only measure that should be taken was to liberate Edric from the old nest that was Albert.
"Father... I think this is how we should handle the punishment for Albert Noel."
"... Very well, Camilla, tell me what you are thinking."
Camilla stared at her father, the Emperor, with cold eyes and whispered an 'elegant plan' to politically euthanize Albert Noel.
And one week later, the day of the medal ceremony dawned.
This event was not simply a place to praise Edric's achievements.
It was a place of harmony where the Church, which had lost face due to the Dead King worshiper incident, and the Imperial Family joined hands to declare to the outside world, 'We are still going strong.'
Arriving at the Imperial Grand Banquet Hall, I swallowed hard once more as I looked at the woman standing beside me.
"Edric, your attire is disheveled."
Natalia had set aside the rough spirit of the North for a moment and was wearing a deep navy silk dress that looked like it was embroidered with the night sky.
The sapphire necklace of the Grand Duke's family shone above the dress, which daringly revealed her shoulder line, and her silver-blue hair was elegantly tied up.
Her usual knight's uniform was cool, but in a dress, she was truly worthy of being called the 'Jewel of the North.'
And there was Azelia, who had already arrived and was waiting for us.
"Edric-nim, Natalia-nim! Welcome."
Instead of her usual plain nun's habit, Azelia was wearing a pure white dress specially made for the Saintess by the Papal See.
The sun emblem was embroidered in gold thread on her chest, and the thin silk sleeves shone transparently like an angel's wings.
All eyes in the banquet hall were drawn to her innocent yet holy appearance.
Under those flashy lights, a man approached us.
It was my biological father and the mastermind, Albert Noel.
"Lady Natalia, you have had a long journey. The flower of the North lighting up the capital makes the banquet hall shine."
"Thank you, Albert-nim."
Albert greeted Natalia with a sly, benevolent smile.
Then he glanced at me and added coldly.
"... You're dressed reasonably well. Act in a way that doesn't bring shame to the eldest son of the Noel family."
Saying that, he moved away from us.
I wasn't kicked out; I was independent.
On top of that, I had Natalia, the daughter of the Northern Duke, by my side, and I myself had a very close relationship with the Prince.
In other words, if he wronged me, he could turn the Northern Duke and the Prince into his enemies at the same time.
He must know that, which is why he's reacting like this, I clicked my tongue inwardly.
And as time passed, the ceremony began with the sound of trumpets.
I walked past the red carpet, went before the Emperor, and knelt on one knee.
The Emperor spoke solemnly.
"Edric Noel. With indomitable courage and wisdom, you have defeated the evil heresy and protected the peace of the Imperial Family. Therefore, I bestow upon you the 『Order of the Iron-Blooded Lion』."
The Emperor pinned the medal, which depicted a steel lion, onto my chest.
I knelt and received the medal, saying.
"I shall dedicate this body to the glory of the Empire."
Clap-! Clap-! Clap-!
The banquet hall was filled with applause.
Is it over now? Just as I was thinking that and about to stand up... the Emperor, who had pinned the medal, placed his hand on my shoulder and declared.
"Furthermore, as a reward for your meritorious service, I bestow upon you, Edric Noel, the fertile lands of the Livia territory in the South."
"... What!?"
In an instant, the banquet hall became as quiet as if cold water had been poured over it.
The nobles' eyes widened, and it began to get noisy.
"He's bestowing a territory to Edric Noel?"
"Is that allowed?"
The reason it was so noisy was that, by custom, the bestowal of territory was meant for a 'family.'
The current head of the Noel family is Albert.
While he is alive and well, he bestowed the territory directly to his son.
This meant only one thing.
It meant that the Imperial Family had bypassed Albert and officially recognized Edric as the 'actual owner of the Noel family.'
This was news to me too, so I was flustered and turned my head to look back.
Princess Camilla was clapping and smiling as she looked at me.
She quietly said to me with her lips.
"Con.gra.tu.la.tions. Ed.ric."
Her expression showed triumph that her plan had succeeded.
And I made eye contact with Albert Noel, who was standing a little further away.
Albert's face was trembling as if he were having a seizure.
He seemed convinced that I had used my influence to stab him in the back.
His eyes, burning black with rage, felt like they were strangling my neck.
'No... I really didn't do this...'
That day, I was forcibly declared war upon by my father, Albert Noel.
This is truly unfair.