Chapter 100
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: Ireland (3)
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Upon reaching the second floor, Victoria confidently opened the door to the private room and stepped inside.
She plopped down on the sofa in the center of the spacious, empty room and let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew… I can finally breathe. With all the official events in Ireland concluded, I think I’ll rest here for a bit and head down when things are wrapping up.”
“You’ve worked hard, Your Majesty. We couldn’t have concluded the schedule so successfully without your efforts.”
“And yet, I wonder who it was that left me to work so hard, only to be found downstairs laughing heartily and discussing beer?”
“My apologies. I discovered an aspect of the immigration plan I had overlooked and became so engrossed in pursuing it that I lost track of time.”
He had told me beforehand that he would stay by my side after completing the essential formalities of the banquet. Still, I hadn't expected him to finish so quickly.
“I waited and waited, but the Minister never came up. I grew worried and went down to check, and what do I find? You, drinking beer and merrily chatting with someone else. Was drinking beer the part of the immigration plan you’d overlooked?”
“I should have finished sooner and come up. My apologies. But I wasn’t lying. We were discussing building that same brewery in Canada to help Irish immigrants settle more easily.”
Wondering if she was genuinely upset, I cautiously glanced at her. Fortunately, Victoria didn’t seem truly angry.
“That beer was a bit bitter, but it was quite good. Now that I’ve praised it so highly, it should add some momentum to your plans, shouldn’t it?”
“Of course. People will hear, ‘This is the beer Her Majesty, the Queen of the British Empire, praised so highly?’ and they will scramble to taste it. This will be especially true in places far from the homeland, like Canada.”
If played right, it could even become a huge success in the United States, marketed with the slogan "The Queen's Beer."
It wasn't a time of particularly good relations between Britain and the United States, but America had always harbored a kind of love-hate admiration for the British royal family.
And if the ever-so-noble Queen herself deemed a beer "quite good," wouldn't that pique their curiosity about its taste?
“Then, Killian, you owe me one more favor, don’t you?”
“Hahaha… I live every day feeling indebted to you, Your Majesty.”
“Don’t try to brush it off like that. This time, I believe I’m entitled to collect. What do you say? If you have any objections, speak up. I’ll hear you out.”
How could I possibly object?
Faced with her beaming smile, I could only respond with an awkward laugh.
“You wanted to oust the Tory elders involved with the opium merchants, so you asked me to create a diversion with opium. You needed to prevent the Great Famine in Ireland, so you asked me to accompany you to soothe the public. You needed to promote a substitute for potatoes, so you asked me to be seen eating rutabaga. The first two weren’t so difficult, but that last one was honestly a bit tough, you know?”
“But… I distinctly told you it wouldn’t taste good and that you should have it cooked or served with a sauce…”
“But my method was the most effective, wasn't it? Thanks to me, things went much more smoothly, didn’t they?”
“...”
“Answer me.”
“Yes, Your Majesty is correct.”
Hearing it all laid out like this, I really had worked her hard under the guise of affection.
This was exploitation fueled by affection, plain and simple.
“And on top of that, thanks to my brilliant insight, that business of yours—the ‘emotional comfort’ or whatever it was you forgot—is also going much more smoothly. I think any decent person would express their gratitude for that. What do you think?”
“Your Majesty is unequivocally right.”
Well, as long as she didn't demand we announce our marriage right now, I had gone into this prepared to grant any unreasonable request she might have.
In fact, since Victoria had done so much for me, I was more than willing to reciprocate in kind, so I didn't feel particularly burdened.
She was a wise person; she wouldn't make a demand I could never fulfill.
“So, Killian, you now owe me four debts. Let’s cancel them out by you granting me four favors.”
“…That seems fair. Then, what would you have me do…”
“I haven’t thought of the specifics yet, but I’ll start considering them now. Oh, but I have decided on the first one. It’s something you can do right here, right now. Simple, isn’t it?”
“The way you say that makes me feel it will be anything but simple…”
“It’s simple. I’m going to ask you a few questions, and you just have to answer them with complete honesty.”
Was she suggesting a game of truth?
It felt refreshingly innocent for a woman her age, and since her questions were predictable, I nodded without much apprehension.
“I have never lied in response to your questions, Your Majesty, but if you wish to proceed in this formal manner, then let us do so. I will answer anything.”
“Good. Then… um, are there… are there any families proposing marriage or making advances toward you right now?”
“There have been a few, but I’ve declined them all, stating that I have no such intentions at the moment.”
“Then have you ever been in a relationship with a woman?”
“Not really. I haven’t had the time.”
If I included my past life, then yes, but it wouldn't be a lie to not count that, right?
“Hmm… Then, to rephrase the question slightly, there are quite a few women who fancy you, aren’t there?”
“There weren’t many before, but the number seems to have grown recently. Perhaps they are attracted to my elevated station?”
“It’s not that. Before, your status was an issue, but now that that uncertainty is resolved, they’re all flocking to you. Tsk, so worldly, these high-society ladies. For your information, from the moment I first met you, Killian, I saw at a glance that you were an extraordinary talent. I’m fundamentally different from those frivolous women.”
That was only because I intentionally showed her an extraordinary side of myself, but for now, I decided to just nod without saying a word.
After posing a few more trivial questions, she took a deep breath as if to finally say what she really wanted to, and met my eyes.
“So, to sum up our conversation so far, the conclusion is that you, Killian, have never paid a fair price for my devotion. That’s what it comes down to. So I feel I must receive a minimal fee for my troubles, and perhaps… that is…”
Her voice, which had been flowing so well, suddenly trailed off. Her face began to flush, and she fidgeted with her fingers, avoiding my gaze.
“So… as for that fair price, what would be an appropriate minimal expression of affection… I’d like to hear your thoughts, Killian…”
“To touch Your Majesty’s person without permission is an act of high treason, unforgivable even for a nobleman. I am not in a position to dare suggest what might be appropriate.”
“No, it’s just the two of us here, so who’s going to talk about treason… Ahem, I mean, since we are not formally courting, and certainly not married, we shouldn’t engage in any improper conduct, of course. But still, I worked so very hard this time, so at the very least…”
This would go on forever if I let it.
I approached her, knelt on one knee, and met her gaze.
“Your Majesty. Forgive my forwardness.”
“...?”
I slowly took Victoria's hand and brought my lips to her forehead. A faint tremor ran through her body, a vibration I could feel through her hand.
I had considered a kiss on the lips, but this was a deeply conservative era, and Victoria's own disposition leaned toward the traditional. As such, even this was an incredibly intimate gesture.
Indeed, her reaction—her face turning beet red as she became flustered—proved my choice had been the right one.
“Th-this is, I mean…”
“If I have made you uncomfortable…”
“No, no, not at all. It’s not that. It’s just… we haven’t even formally promised to marry, so I thought this might be too soon, but… It’s not that I dislike it.”
Her blush spread from her face down to her neck as she whipped her head around, avoiding my gaze.
“A-anyway, with this, the first debt is cleared… I need a moment alone to compose myself.”
“Shall I leave you, then?”
“I’m sorry. If you stay here, Minister, I think my heart might actually burst.”
I hadn’t expected such a strong reaction to a simple kiss on the forehead, but perhaps this was the inevitable difference in sensibilities between the Victorian era and the modern age.
I bowed to Victoria, who still couldn't meet my eyes, and rose to my feet.
Before leaving, I glanced back and saw her peeking at me, only to startle and quickly look away again.
Was this truly the same person as the dignified Queen from moments ago?
Hmm. To be honest, she looked a little... no, very cute. Fearing a smile might escape, I quickly opened the door and stepped out.
* * *
Returning to the first floor, I navigated through the crowd, found the person I had planned to speak with last, and brought him back up to the second floor.
Thanks to his conspicuously colorful attire, which stood out most in the banquet hall, I wasted no time finding him.
“Oh? Minister, you said you were speaking with Her Majesty. Are you finished?”
“Yes. Her Majesty is resting now. So, shall we get down to business?”
“Business…?”
“Unlike the first floor, there’s no one here to overhear us, so please speak freely. Why did you suddenly come all the way from London to Ireland?”
Disraeli, who just moments before had been laughing and carousing like a man obsessed with parties, instantly hardened his expression and scanned the surroundings.
“You saw right through it, as expected. I was just waiting for the right moment to bring it up.”
“It just didn’t make sense. If there was something you needed to help with, you could have just sent someone. There was no reason for you, Mr. Disraeli, to come in person. Which means there must have been a reason compelling enough to bring you from London. What is it?”
“I’m not sure whether to say our fears have been realized or our plans have come to fruition, but to put it simply, the matter you mentioned last time is slowly becoming a reality.”
“I’ve mentioned more than one matter…”
“Ah, true. Shortly after you left, Minister, the Prime Minister and Mr. Wellesley had a major clash in Parliament. It seems that if left unchecked, it could lead to a serious schism within the Tory Party. I came in person to seek your opinion on the matter.”
With a significant number of the Tory elders who had sought to check me now gone due to their involvement with opium merchants, had the other senior members begun to feel a sense of crisis?
Or had the emboldened younger MPs, sensing their time had come, started demanding the old guard step aside?
Whatever the case, it was clear this was bound to happen sooner or later.
“What was the topic that caused the conflict?”
“A difference of opinion regarding the Canada Immigration Act. The Prime Minister is skeptical about sending immigrants to the west…”
“He must believe it could create conflict with the United States.”
Those people are always spouting nonsense about Manifest Destiny, so of course they'd throw a fit if Canada expanded westward. But we have our own plans in place. His worries are excessive.
“What would you have us do? Shall I tell Mr. Wellesley to seek a compromise?”
“No. The timing is perfect, actually. Not long ago, Mr. O’Connell informed me that he would dissolve the Repeal Association before the next election and have all its members join the Tory Party, fully aligning with us.”
“Is that true? In that case…”
When you add the seats from the Repeal Association, who will now follow me, to the strength of Wellesley's faction, our power within the Tory Party is now substantial, if not superior.
“Yes. Since it has come to this, let’s just go ahead and take it. The leadership of the Tory Party.”
If they still delude themselves into thinking they have a choice in the matter, it's time we made it clear to them.
The era of those old men came to an end long ago.