Confiscation It Shall Be!
A few days later, a letter arrived from the Greighton family. It was the kind of message that basically groveled on its belly: “What an honor it is that Her Highness the Princess will be visiting us!”
They must be grinning ear to ear thinking I’m coming for a friendly visit. Too bad for them. I’m actually coming to confiscate Gray Garden. I almost feel sorry for Lord Greighton, who’s probably still smiling like an idiot right now.
The moment Kallean received the reply saying I was welcome to visit, he prepared a carriage. This one was even larger and more luxurious than the last—an eight-horse carriage. In modern terms, it was a super-super-car worth tens of billions. I climbed aboard with my newly appointed retainers Kal, Dias, Jack, and Liana, along with my exclusive escort knight, Loclaire.
Since it was an eight-horse carriage, even with six people inside there was more than enough room—practically too much. This is what they mean by imperial class.
Not long after the carriage set off, boredom began to creep in. Should I tease Loclaire again like last time, or make some light conversation? After a moment’s thought, I opened my mouth.
“Loclaire, how has Liana’s training been progressing?”
“Hiccup….”
I went straight for asking about Liana’s results. At my words, Liana flinched in surprise. Loclaire looked at her with a warm, satisfied smile.
“She certainly has talent. Lady Liana grows stronger by the day.”
“That’s right! She even claims she can match me in a fight now?!”
Kal and the others were all expert-level knights by default. Among them, Jack had the lowest martial prowess. And yet here was Jack, boldly declaring that Liana could fight him on equal footing.
“You didn’t go easy on her, did you?”
At my low, quiet voice, Jack slowly shook his head.
“Not at all… Honestly, I’m the one who’s curious. She hasn’t even manifested her aura yet, but she’s sparring evenly with me while I use mine?”
“What?! Is that true, Jack?!”
It seemed he hadn’t sparred with Loclaire, or perhaps Loclaire hadn’t used his aura. After that, Loclaire let out a hollow laugh.
“Haha… Your Highness, it appears Lady Liana possesses the qualities of a Grand Sword Master.”
Grand Sword Master. Even in typical fantasy novels, it wasn’t a rank that appeared often, but when it did, it was on another level entirely. If a regular Sword Master was a tactical missile, a Grand Sword Master was a tactical nuclear missile. The difference was that extreme.
And our adorable Liana had the potential to become one?
“Liana, even after you become a Grand Sword Master, I hope you never forget the grace with which I have looked after you.”
Liana’s face turned bright red as she waved her hands frantically.
“N-no, that’s not it…! I swore I would become a sword only for Your Highness…! This heart of mine will never change, not until the day I die!”
She really does say the prettiest things, my lovely Liana! I barely managed to stop myself from impulsively kissing her, and my cheeks grew hot for no reason.
“Loclaire, how many days has it been since Liana first took up the sword?”
“Ah, it hasn’t even been two weeks yet. Even I, who was once called a genius, look like nothing more than an ordinary talent in front of Lady Liana…”
Not even two weeks, and she was already fighting on equal terms with an expert-level knight.
In a few years, she’ll probably eat Loclaire for breakfast.
“Liana, continue to train diligently for my sake. After all, you are my very first retainer.”
“Y-Your Highness…!”
I would raise my precious children into the empire’s greatest weapons! I would survive this damned abyssal novel with style.
Chatting away pleasantly like that, we arrived at Lord Greighton’s castle in the blink of an eye. As I stepped down from the carriage with Loclaire’s escort, a line of servants stood waiting, centered around a middle-aged man who carried an air of nobility.
The middle-aged man approached me and bowed deeply at the waist.
“Welcome! Ah, my name is Crimson Greighton. I am the lord of Greighton.”
“It is good to meet you. The people behind me are all my retainers, so I would appreciate it if you treated them with the same respect you show me.”
When I glanced behind me, Loclaire and my retainers all gave Crimson a polite bow.
“Haha! Of course, of course. Please, come inside. It is cold out here.”
On the way here, I had heard enough from Loclaire to have some prior knowledge of the Greighton family. Crimson Greighton was a marquis, collected more taxes than even the imperial capital, and was apparently quite the lecher.
Well, if he feels lust toward someone as flat as me, that just makes him a disgusting pervert and a waste of a human being.
I glanced back and forth between Loclaire and Liana. They both had the kind of appearance that Crimson would likely covet.
“You two, be careful. There’s no telling what Crimson might try.”
“Yes, Your Highness. The only person allowed to lay a hand on me is Your Highness alone!”
Loclaire was saying weird things again. Following Crimson inside, we soon reached what appeared to be a banquet hall.
“To help you shake off the fatigue of your journey, I have prepared a modest meal.”
I wasn’t particularly hungry… but it seemed everyone else was quite famished.
Gurgle…
“Hiccup…”
Loclaire was the loudest of all.
“There’s no helping it. Show us to our seats. It seems our children are quite hungry.”
“I apologize for such an unsightly display…”
It was only natural for a person’s stomach to rumble when they were hungry.
“It is fine. Let us eat quickly.”
The food was merely passable. It was certainly tasty enough, but…
After eating imperial palace cuisine, this just feels average.
It seemed my palate had changed along with everything else. Back when I would even eat newspaper and find everything delicious…
I lightly dabbed at the food around my mouth with a handkerchief, then looked directly at Crimson.
“Now that the meal is finished, I shall explain the reason I have come here.”
“Haha! How straightforward of Your Highness! Very well! Please, follow me this way!”
The place we arrived at appeared to be Crimson’s office. Unlike Kallean’s office, it had a table prepared for guests. Once I sat down, Loclaire and my retainers lined up neatly behind me. It was incredibly burdensome, so I told them to sit, but—
“Thank you for your consideration, but we are fine as we are.”
They all had a real talent for making people feel awkward. Because they all refused my offer, I ended up in a position where I had to speak with Crimson alone.
Crimson was the first to speak.
“So… what is it you wished to say?”
It seemed he had a vague idea. At the very least, he knew something unusual was about to happen.
“I greatly dislike lengthy preambles. Therefore, I shall be brief. The imperial family intends to confiscate the Greighton territory’s ‘Gray Garden.’”
Crimson struck the table hard.
“Does Your Highness even understand what you are saying?! A gold mine has been discovered, and you wish to steal it?! What kind of nonsense is this?!”
“How rude. Watch your tongue.”
At some point Loclaire had drawn his blade, and its edge was now pointed directly at Crimson’s throat. Realizing that Loclaire was a Sword Master, Crimson let out a deep sigh and leaned back in his chair.
“That gold mine was discovered by me. Of course, there must be a reason for the confiscation. You have been negligent in managing Gray Garden, have you not? The reason for confiscation is dereliction of duty. Failing to care for the empire’s citizens is a serious crime.”
I gave Crimson a cold, mocking smile.
What are you going to do about it? Report me? Go ahead. That was the feeling I gave off.
I continued speaking to Crimson.
“Since it is still your territory for now, I shall give you two choices. The first is to receive punishment for dereliction of duty, including the stripping of your title and the confiscation of your assets.”
“H-how can you—!”
I glared at Crimson with eyes full of killing intent.
“How rude, interrupting me before I have finished speaking. Tell me what the problem is. Sir Loclaire will cleanly cut it off for you.”
Crimson’s gaze naturally shifted to Loclaire. Loclaire stared back at him with a look that seemed to say, Killing a worm like you would be nothing.
“…My apologies. What is the second option?”
“The main point I mentioned earlier is the second option.”
“Confiscating ‘Gray Garden’…”
Crimson’s face showed he was deep in thought. He probably wasn’t weighing the pros and cons. After all, the second option was practically a slap on the wrist compared to the first.
Think about it all you want, buddy. We’ll be enjoying Gray Garden nicely.
Having apparently made up his mind, Crimson looked at me.
“I will give up ‘Gray Garden’…”
“I do not trust verbal agreements.”
At my gesture, Loclaire produced an already-prepared official document.
“You need only sign here. Since I personally wrote this document with great care, I would appreciate it if you stamped it with sincerity.”
At my perfect preparation, Crimson stared back and forth between the document and my face with a dazed expression, as if he couldn’t process what was happening.
“Why do you look like that? If it is because my face is too beautiful, I can understand.”
“N-no, that’s not…”
“H-hic…!”
Loclaire and the retainers all drew their swords at once. Even Liana…
I had hoped at least you would grow up normally.
It seemed that training with Loclaire and Kallean had influenced her quite a bit. I pretended to yawn. It was definitely not because I was sleepy.
“How long must I wait? If necessary, I can stamp it for you myself.”
“N-no, that won’t be necessary… I will bring my seal right away…”
And so, Gray Garden became the property of the imperial family.
As we rose from our seats to return to the carriage, Crimson spoke up.
“The night has grown late. Would you not consider staying the night?”
I found his suggestion strange.
Why bother?
It almost felt like he was trying to keep me here—perhaps to poison or assassinate me. But Crimson didn’t seem bold enough to attempt something like that. Besides, I was still in my growth phase and felt drowsy. My eyes kept closing on their own.
If anything dangerous happens, Liana or Loclaire will protect me.
“Then I shall trouble you for the night.”
“Ah, we have plenty of rooms, so you may have one all to yourself!”
Hey, saying it like that only makes it more suspicious. Though I felt uneasy, I agreed for now. Afterward, Crimson showed Loclaire, Kal, Dias, Jack, and Liana to their rooms in that order. Once Liana’s room was assigned, only Crimson and I remained.
“Please rest comfortably. If you feel uneasy, this door can be locked from the inside, so feel free to do so.”
After wishing me a good night, Crimson closed the door and left.
“Just in case, I should lock it and sleep.”
The sound of a click suggested he hadn’t been lying. It was somewhat reassuring, but…
“Is there not even a doll prepared for me here…!”
If there wasn’t one, then… I suppose I would have to roll up the blanket and hug it instead. I hugged the blanket like a doll and closed my eyes.
“I will sleep early and grow tall…”
In the dead of night.
With a soft rattle, the door opened. In the man’s hand were a rope and a dagger. He moved silently toward the girl’s location, careful not to make a sound with his footsteps.
After taking a short, deep breath, the man muttered.
“Please don’t hate me for this. You innocent little thing.”
He tied Iris up with the rope.