The Sweet Weekend #1
It was a Saturday morning, the most delightful time of the week for everyone.
Before entering the palace, Wigna Kant von Crescent took a moment to calm his breathing.
As the sole master who enjoyed unparalleled power in his own domain, he was, in the end, merely one of the people living within Lebechia.
Now he stepped into the territory governed by the Palasia royal family.
One wrong word could brand him as a traitor, even if he were merely a count.
While that was unlikely, such an event remained possible at any moment, so he had to stay cautious, and cautious again.
Even though his cousin was the third wife of the current king, a king was a king and a subject was a subject.
“Wigna Kant von Crescent, Count, is here to pay respects to Your Majesty the King.”
He knelt before the man seated on the throne, head bowed low.
Seor Heinrich hal Palasia, the current King of Lebechia and the head of the Palasia lineage, raised a hand.
“You may rise, Count Crescent. I am sorry to summon you again like this, after our last meeting.”
“There is no cause for apology, Your Majesty. If it were your command, anyone in the kingdom would abandon their duties to obey. That you would apologize to me is unthinkable.”
The count’s seat was far from light, and his cousin being the king’s third wife made the Crescent family’s influence quite substantial.
Yet the head of the Crescent lineage pressed his body close to the throne.
Why had the Palasia royal family that ruled Lebechia become untouchable?
Because they had devoted themselves passionately to the nation and demonstrated exceptional ruling skill.
As a result, ordinary people loved the royal family and always expressed gratitude wherever the king was present.
However, a good lord to the common people did not necessarily mean the same for the nobles.
Still, those nobles remained silent and prostrate, unable to utter a word.
That was due to the Blood Purge of the previous era.
The king then on the throne was the current king’s grandfather, Ruhart Edan hal Palasia.
Though born the fifth son, he far surpassed his brothers in every aspect.
Yet his father gave the throne to none of his older sons, nor to Ruhart himself.
He chose instead the youngest son born of his second wife.
Despite having five adult sons, he ignored them all and enforced his own will.
Everyone reacted with anger and incomprehension, but Ruhart alone felt no such fury.
He had outshone his brothers in every contribution to Lebechia.
Yet tradition demanded primogeniture, so he remained silent, silent.
The successor was only a thirteen-year-old boy, how could he have maintained composure?
Upon deeper investigation, it emerged that several nobles had indeed intervened quite deeply.
They feared their own power would dwindle as the royal family grew too mighty.
Thus, they had plotted to shake the young heir and strengthen their own authority.
Ruhart could endure no more and finally rose, and the next day the Blood Purge began.
Seven families that had dared to insult the royal family vanished without a trace, and among them perished even his own full brother, eradicating the seeds of discord forever.
How terrifying his might had been—his older brothers reportedly trembled in fear.
Had he been mistaken for a traitor, yet because of the countless deeds accomplished by the prince Ruhart, both nobles and common people remained silent.
Once again, Ruhart imprinted the Palasia family’s unyielding power and terror upon the kingdom.
He then ruled splendidly for more than a decade before passing the throne to his son Seor.
And he himself was now enjoying his leisurely retirement.
“Hahaha. Hearing you say that makes me all the more sorry. Very well, rise and be seated, Count Crescent.”
Compared to the late King Ruhart, the current King Seor could be called gentle.
His ruling skill did not fall behind his father’s, yet the manner differed.
Where the late king had dominated through charisma, King Seor guided others through gentleness.
Still, no noble, including the Crescent family, dared to relax.
“Sons resemble their fathers,” it was said.
King Seor might be hiding some ferocious side.
Furthermore, the late King Ruhart still walked among the living, watching from behind.
If he sensed any attempt to insult the royal family, he would have to bear the wrath of both father and son.
“What I summoned you for is a somewhat unfortunate piece of news.”
“Unfortunate news, you say….”
“The matter you requested of me earlier… I fear it may have to be set aside as if it never happened.”
The previous request had concerned bridging ties with the Hanyel family.
Precisely, it had been arranging an engagement between his son and the daughter of Marquis Hanyel.
Since the royal family had already linked arms with them, only a blood alliance with another prestigious house was needed, and the Crescent family could soar to great heights, the count had thought.
So he had secretly contacted his cousin, the king’s third wife, to sow discord.
They both seemed to harbor feelings for each other, he had whispered, so the father and head of the family should perhaps step in.
She had naturally refused, but under the persuasion that it was for the family’s stability, she had agreed.
She was the one currently favored by the king, so such a small matter should be no problem, and the count had expected.
As predicted, King Seor summoned Marquis Hanyel and spoke something casually.
After the engagement proposal reached the Hanyel family, they had pondered and promised to answer, and things had seemed to progress smoothly.
“I was shortsighted. An adult intervening in the affairs of children. Their matters should be decided by them themselves. Even more so if it concerns a man and a woman; the parties themselves should resolve it.”
“Hahaha! I thought exactly the same. It seems I burdened Your Majesty with an unreasonable request….”
“You may be disappointed, but if you maintain good relations with the Hanyel family, can you not see hope? That is why I summoned you. Sending just a letter would be no pleasure for you, I thought.”
“Your Majesty has gone to such lengths for me, I am overwhelmed with gratitude.”
On the surface, that was what he said, yet Count Wigna could only vent inwardly.
Without the king intervening, the Hanyel family would surely reject the engagement.
“Like a porcupine’s quills, they prick their own kind,” yet the count knew all too well that his own son Forbes had not measured up to the Hanyel family’s young lady, Rie.
Thus the king’s help had been necessary, yet he had withdrawn secretly.
At first he could have simply said it was impossible and moved on, but acting as though the matter was proceeding only to suddenly withdraw left him even more frustrated.
“Since you are here, would you care for another cup of tea before you go?”
“No, Your Majesty. It is already an honor that Your Majesty has summoned me. I would not dare take up any more of Your Majesty’s time.”
“I am a man who is busy even on weekends, you know. Then I shall rise first. Please have some tea before you leave.”
King Seor rose without hesitation from his seat and left the rear courtyard.
Husbandsmen and ladies-in-waiting followed, escorting their monarch.
Then, for a brief moment, King Seor halted, clicked his tongue, and continued.
For even a short while he had let himself be charmed by a woman’s beauty and committed such a foolish act.
It was the law of precedent that a king should not interfere in the private affairs of others, yet what had he been thinking?
He had nearly committed a grave offense toward Marquis Hanyel.
“…No. The offense has already been committed. I shall have to summon him again in private later.”
If his grandfather, King Ruhart, had not quietly hinted that the affairs of children should be decided by the children themselves, the Marquis Hanyel would have been deeply displeased, and the Crescent family would certainly attempt the same foolish act again in the future.
Originally, when he had passed the throne to Seor, the late King Ruhart had left the palace.
There was no need for him to remain here; more eyes would scrutinize uselessly, and the current king might be disturbed in his rule.
So he lived quietly in a hidden place.
Yet one month earlier, after completing a journey, he had come to the palace to see his grandchildren for a short time.
Then, several days ago, he had suddenly summoned him for advice.
“I have said nothing about the women around His Majesty. That is a matter between a man and a woman, so it is set aside. But if something else intervenes between them, and the matter of a man and a woman is no longer applicable, I will be disappointed. Can you understand this old man’s worry?”
At that moment, he realized he had acted too rashly.
He had spoken words that a king should not have spoken, out of love for the woman.
“Still the son who cannot meet his grandfather’s expectations. One must not shake the country his predecessor labored so hard to build. Come to your senses. Do not waver.”
A man who corrected the country even with the blood of many others, who had finished the war with Pirot in his own hands, who worked to leave peace to his son—such a man could not be shaken.
King Seor had chastised himself for his momentary foolishness and decided he would have to maintain a suitable distance from his third wife for a while.
***
“Whoa! That is not how it is done! No, how can you not do it like that?!”
“This person keeps on. It is the first time I am doing it, how could I possibly be good at it?”
“You are the one who is always good at things you have never done before, so that is why you are getting impatient! How many fish have you already missed?! The bait is wasted!”
Two old men sat by the lakeside, fishing with great enthusiasm.
One scolded fiercely, while the other grumbled in response.
If one merely saw them, they might seem like two old friends in their declining years still bickering like village neighbors.
But seeing the dignified troops standing neatly behind them and the knights and Edwinn in front, one would know at once that the two old fishermen were no ordinary men.
From the knights down to the lowest soldier, each exuded a mighty presence.
They were nothing like the common soldiers of a noble’s estate.
“It is strange to hear you say you broke a promise to me because of your son’s matters. You swore you would no longer concern yourself with them!”
“Indeed. If I had seen clearly, I would have seen only the sharp light of an outsider rising again. Had I not intervened, I would have done so even more sternly.”
Upon hearing this, the old man cleared his throat with a hollow sound.
In truth, he had worried upon learning that his son had become overly attached to the third daughter-in-law.
Memories of the past had stirred unease when the faithful retainer and friend appeared like a ghost.
Even now he could serve in the active duty, yet he regretted retiring.
“I find myself curious. What kind of man is this youth about whom you are so concerned? I know that the Deodor family has made a name for itself through diplomacy. But Cloud, I have never heard that you would care so deeply for someone so outstanding.”
“If you see him, you may be disappointed. He is, after all, a youth of extremely ordinary thoughts. He has no great ambition, nor any lofty ideals.”
At this reply, the old man’s face wrinkled.
He had thought he was some great man, but if he was so plain, then what?
Just an ordinary noble youth, why was he so troubled?
“Building a magnificent and grand palace is not the only skill. Making even one small piece of furniture that will go inside it is extremely important. Those pieces piled one by one become the palace.”
“Is that youth the kind of man who will be needed in the kingdom’s fine details?”
“I believe so.”
The old man, who had been lost in thought for a moment, no, the most outstanding and terrifying ruler in Lebechia’s history—Ruhart Edan hal Palasia—shrugging his shoulders once.
“Well, if you say so, then it must be so. You have made me want to meet him once. A man receiving the attention of the kingdom’s famous prime minister, Ju Cloud Low Dragonschultz. Even more so when he said he was drawn not by something great, but by his ordinary nature.”