The Princess and the Servant
The capital of the Yura Kingdom. Yulibe.
Back to her regular duties, Limia wore her uniform and let out a long, languid yawn.
"You look rather sleepy yourself."
When the gentle-looking young man noticed and spoke with a smile, Limia scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed expression.
"My apologies, Your Majesty."
To show such disgrace before the king... Even she found it mortifying, so she immediately apologized. At her words, the young man—no, Ain de Laboa Yura, the King of Yura—shook his head.
"More importantly, I hear that Maxim boy reported his friend. It seems his fiancée has caused trouble again."
Walking through the streets with Limia at his side, Ain muttered with a troubled face. He was not pleased with the current situation. In truth, this marriage arrangement was important to him as well. Using Maxim to maintain some connection with York... that mattered a great deal to him.
Having ascended the throne so suddenly after that incident, Ain's royal authority was not particularly strong. In such circumstances, what had caught his eye was the problematic princess of the York Kingdom. She was notorious for constantly seducing servants and other men, forming promiscuous relationships. She was a headache for York as well, and Ain had hoped to secure the powerful backing of the York royal family by having Maxim deal with her.
In reality, the arrangement had nearly come to fruition.
But...
'With problems like this constantly erupting...'
The issue was that the princess still habitually toyed with servants and lived a debauched daily life. If it had remained hidden from the public eye, perhaps it could have been overlooked, but her behavior was so flagrant that word had even reached this far. It was difficult to ignore.
Above all, Maxim found it hard to accept her actions as anything but a dismissal of him. To share intimacy with other men despite having a promised betrothed... it must have been truly difficult for the boy to swallow.
Ain understood that. Yet even so, he wanted to proceed with the marriage as planned.
"What do you think, Sir Limia? If your betrothed were to sleep with another woman..."
Harboring such concerns, Ain posed the question to her. Limia, who had been walking alongside him, pondered for a moment before answering.
"Hmm... I don't think I'd feel very good about it."
At the question, Limia immediately pictured that man's face. Of course, she had only shared her body with him once and they were hardly in any sort of relationship, but... if he were her betrothed and casually slept around with other women, she imagined she would be furious.
"Well, it would be hard to find a woman better than me anyway. So that would never happen."
"...Haha! That confidence of yours is quite refreshing to see."
Hearing her words, Ain laughed heartily and nodded. Indeed, whether in strength, wealth, or appearance, she was a woman who fell short in nothing. It was understandable that such confidence would arise.
"In any case, the real problem is that man. How should we handle him, I wonder?"
As expected, the core issue was the priest whom Maxim had reported. Jenkinson Beckett. To Ain himself, the man was something of a benefactor. If that priest had not burned his father at the stake, then without a doubt... he himself would have ended up on the gallows in the not-too-distant future.
Ain knew this well, which was why he held a certain fondness for the man.
However... the problem was that the man's punishments did not discriminate by status. If things continued this way, she would be punished and the engagement would be canceled. Which meant Ain would have to find a new marriage prospect.
It was a headache. In this situation, finding a spouse who could serve as a reliable backer was no easy task.
Therefore, he earnestly hoped...
"I hope the punishment isn't too severe."
Ain wished for it. He hoped that the punishment would be something that could be quietly swept under the rug.
"Is that the man?"
Completely unaware of his wishes, the problem child of the York Kingdom, Princess Karin, watched the priest in black robes stride confidently through the palace gates and let out a small gasp of admiration.
"Better than I expected? It's rare to find even a high-class male prostitute this handsome..."
She had imagined a priest with a rather frightening face. But the priest who actually arrived was so strikingly beautiful that one might mistake him for a courtesan rather than a man of the cloth.
"...A male prostitute? What kind of vulgar remark is that?"
Aireleos was horrified by her words. What an utterly outrageous and insulting thing to say. If that priest were to hear such words, it would spell serious trouble...
Suddenly, the priest turned exactly in their direction and smiled.
Seeing it, Karin blushed with delight, but Aireleos broke into a cold sweat. He had realized that smile was by no means friendly.
"Maybe this will resolve nicely after all."
Watching his daughter spout such oblivious words, Aireleos prayed that the priest's anger would not be too great. She might not know it, but... the Holy Kingdom's war forces had already arrived here. And the Kingdom of York had no military capable of handling that man.
A male prostitute, huh...
Upon hearing the woman's words, I turned toward her and offered a smile. The woman presumed to be the princess here blushed at my smile, but I paid it no mind.
"For now, I'll have to take that rude remark into account when deciding on the punishment."
Rude behavior was something that could be factored into the punishment, after all.
"...?"
Asa wore a puzzled expression, apparently having heard none of the woman's words. I sighed and wiped the bit of meat from the corner of her mouth. Even in a situation like this, she remained so oblivious... Honestly, it worried me.
"Think of this as enemy territory now. Don't let your guard down."
When I offered the warning in a concerned tone, Asa answered with a face full of confidence.
"Yes!"
Her reply was energetic, but... her actions were far from reassuring. I entered the building, still worried about her complete lack of tension.
"Priest Jenkinson. Thank you for coming such a long way. His Majesty is waiting inside, so I will escort you immediately."
The moment we stepped into the detached palace, a butler greeted us. It seemed things might proceed faster than expected. With that thought, I nodded, and as Asa followed the butler, she muttered,
"Somehow... they're being very friendly."
Friendly, she said. On the surface, yes, they appeared extremely cooperative and welcoming. But in reality...
"You still have a long way to go."
Watching Asa relax so completely, I let out a sigh. Could she really not sense it? The presence of the soldiers they had hidden, already watching us warily?
'Roughly... ten of them?'
Just in this corridor alone, there were ten. Honestly, the number itself wasn't a big issue. Not now that I knew their positions. Only ten men. Hiding them didn't make them much of a threat.
But...
"We have been waiting for you, Priest Jenkinson."
Was this crossing the line a bit? The moment I entered the reception room, I felt the hidden presences. I returned Aireleos's fake welcoming smile with one equally artificial.
"A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty Aireleos. I am quite overwhelmed by how lavishly Your Majesty has received this guest."
Truly an exceptionally lavish reception for a visitor. Thinking so, I moved my hand.
Bang!
Hiding soldiers like this—what a truly splendid welcome. With that thought, I dragged one of the hidden soldiers out with my magic power and slammed him into the desk, smiling all the while.
"And so, in my own inadequate way, I have returned the courtesy. I hope it meets with your approval?"
No matter what, greeting a guest while concealing soldiers was hardly good manners. I smiled at the man before me and issued a warning.
"If you wish, I can offer an even more thorough response."
In other words, if he did not withdraw the soldiers, I would show him something far worse. I made the implication clear.
"...No, that will not be necessary. We desire nothing more."
At my warning, Aireleos spoke with a face gone deathly pale. At that moment, I sensed the soldiers retreating. I released the soldier I had been holding, and he fled the room as if escaping.
'They've hidden the princess, have they?'
Now that the princess's presence had vanished, I let out a small internal sigh. Well, I hadn't expected them to show her right away. This man would not want her crimes proven and punishment carried out.
Which meant...
'He doesn't want to fight me, but he also doesn't want her punished?'
What a ridiculous notion. I found it absurd, but whether he knew my thoughts or not, Aireleos spoke with oily smoothness.
"Shall we have some tea and talk for a while?"
At Aireleos's suggestion, I lightly tapped the table with my finger and fell into thought. A talk... a talk, huh...
Watching Asa sitting beside me grow tense, and Aireleos breaking into a cold sweat as he observed my actions, I eventually made my decision.
"I hope it proves constructive."
Yes, there would be no harm in hearing what he had to say this once. After all, there was plenty of time. Therefore...
I decided to listen to the excuses this man had prepared. I was honestly a little curious what card he had readied to try and keep me here.