Chapter 203
Chapter 203
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 203
Chapter Title: Ember in the Furnace Remains Unchanged (1)
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While the kingdom's forces at the border were fiercely clashing with the imperial army, Maximilian tirelessly roamed beyond the palace day and night, sparing no effort to soothe the restless populace.
He visited villages large and small, consoling the families of soldiers at the front lines and doing his utmost to resolve their hardships.
With many men having left for the border, leaving labor short, he personally rolled up his sleeves to help, not minding the dirt and dust.
When not working, he was always among the people, listening attentively to their stories.
He matched the eye level of even the lowliest folk, carefully examining their circumstances one by one. Sometimes, he couldn't hold back his emotions at their detailed tales of woe, his eyes reddening.
At first, some dismissed it as mere show. They sneered that a highborn royal could never understand the lives of the lowly, calling it hypocrisy.
A few radicals even stirred unrest, claiming the war had befallen the kingdom because the royals had recklessly demanded independence unlike their imperial ties.
Then, it happened.
"What the hell does independence matter! If it weren't for the royals, my child's father would still be alive!"
A sharp shout rang out, followed by a stone hurtling through the air.
Swoosh.
Kals Yulihi swiftly stepped in front of Maximilian.
Clang.
The stone struck his iron armor with a loud noise and rolled across the ground.
The royal knights instantly surrounded the prince. Royal soldiers and cavalry encircled the gathered civilians in the open square.
"Who was it!"
Kals Yulihi bellowed in a voice like falling frost.
No answer came. The culprit who dared throw a stone at the prince had already melted into the crowd.
Innocent civilians trembled in fear at the sudden turn of events.
The royal knights scanned the people with sharper glares than ever. Any suspicious figure would be cut down on the spot.
"Stand down."
The prince stepped forward then.
"Your Highness, please remain where you are. We could not bear it if anything unfortunate occurred."
Maximilian shook his head at Kals Yulihi's words.
"Could a stone from powerless folk harm me?"
"It was a stone this time, but who knows what it might be next."
"Even that won't reach me with you here."
The knight pleaded repeatedly, but the prince stood firm.
"Stand down. I came here not to intimidate the people."
"Your Highness."
"I won't say it twice."
At his resolute tone, Kals Yulihi withdrew with a stiff expression.
The soldiers and knights encircling the people sheathed their spears and swords.
Step.
Maximilian took one step forward.
His deep eyes swept over the crowd. The people couldn't meet his gaze and hastily prostrated themselves on the ground.
"I am sorry."
He apologized to them.
"As a member of the royal family, I deeply regret and apologize that your lives have grown harsh due to our failings. I cannot but convey my sincerest remorse."
"Your Highness!"
Kals Yulihi was aghast at the unexpected apology.
In a situation where the royal dignity would suffer no matter how they punished the offender, to apologize instead...
Swoosh.
Maximilian raised his hand to stop the rigid royal knight from advancing again.
And he spoke.
"We only wished to make the kingdom a true kingdom. We wanted what belonged to the kingdom to remain solely ours. We simply hoped for no more losses."
He explained that this war was to protect the kingdom, growing ever more destitute under imperial exploitation.
"Thus, we hoped the royals and nobles would live solely for the kingdom and its people, that its precious resources would serve the kingdom and you, not the empire."
The prince looked at the people.
"You said you lost family. The royals have lost someone precious too."
No one in the kingdom was unaware that the queen had fought to the last to protect the capital's citizens.
"I understand that pain."
The prince confessed his fear that his father and brother, fighting at the front even now for the kingdom, might meet the same fate as the queen.
"Yet the royals will fight to the end."
Strength entered his voice.
"Not because we wish the kingdom to be stripped bare and starved any longer! Because we want the king to live for the kingdom, nobles to devote themselves to it, and the people to live as true kingdom folk!"
His voice, echoing across the square, softened again.
"Hate the royals if you must. But know one thing: we did not declare independence for selfish gain, nor defy the empire for empty honor. I beg you to understand at least that much."
With that, the prince regarded the people.
They showed no reaction, remaining prostrate and silent as before.
Maximilian sighed.
"It seems today is not the day. I must return."
His face, having expended much emotion in that short time, was clearly weary.
And so he turned away, leaving the people behind.
Not long after the prince departed, the prostrated folk slowly lifted their heads.
One by one, they began to chatter.
"Come to think of it, the empire's the real villains."
"They barge into our land causing chaos, and they're the ones who started the war first. If you think about it, the royals are victims too."
"Even us lowly folk get pissed seeing those imperial bastards strut around occasionally. How much worse for the royals? They're kings and nobles, after all."
"You're right. Those rotten imperial lapdogs squeezed us dry while fawning over the empire—everyone forgets that? At least the royals' envoys don't torment us like they did."
They recalled how those indistinguishable imperial or kingdom nobles had tormented them. And who had dealt with them.
"They hung Queen Margarita's body on the walls. No, where in the world do such scum treat a nation's queen like that!"
The murmurs turned to anger.
They finally remembered the queen who had sacrificed herself for the capital's citizens, refusing a path to safety.
Hmm.
Amid the crowd cursing the empire and pitying the royals, one woman remained silent to the end.
She was the wife of a soldier conscripted and killed by imperial forces at the border.
She stood dazed, listening mutely to the chatter.
Her face bore an indescribable mix of emotions.
It was lingering resentment and rage despite having nowhere to direct it, mingled with emptiness and self-loathing. And profound grief.
"Mom..."
Her child, watching her, reached out a tiny hand and tugged her sleeve. The woman snapped out of her daze, knelt, and scooped up the child.
Then quietly slipped away.
From afar, some watched her.
Kals Yulihi and the royal knights.
The knights glanced at Kals, asking what to do.
"Too many people—impossible to tell who threw the stone."
His tone was a bit awkward, but no one pointed it out.
Maximilian continued visiting villages across the kingdom, consoling war-weary folk.
No more accusations of hypocrisy followed him.
His sincerity was too consistent for that.
By then, resentment toward the royals—lingering even after the queen's sacrifice—had mostly faded.
Thanks to rumors from those few incidents and their resolutions.
Of course, a few words couldn't erase the loss and grief of those who'd lost family and livelihood. But they could at least direct that anger and resentment toward the right target.
As scattered sentiments converged, praise for the 2nd Prince overflowed the kingdom.
The people extolled his benevolent nature and good deeds, worrying his health might suffer from overwork.
Indeed, Maximilian was utterly exhausted from traversing the kingdom.
His body was gaunt like a fasting monk's, cheeks and eyes sunken like an ascetic's.
Yet he never lost his smile.
His gaze was so gentle and kind.
Even his haggard form seemed reverent and noble.
Some even called him a saint.
But Maximilian paid no heed to such titles.
He focused solely on stabilizing the rear and caring for the people's livelihoods, wandering tirelessly.
Unaware his health was crumbling from harsh winds and relentless schedule.
"Your Highness, please return to the palace now."
Kals Yulihi earnestly pleaded.
He ignored it.
"Countless soldiers and knights fight for the kingdom at the front. My brother and His Majesty risk their lives against the vile imperial army without rest. What I do is nothing compared."
He only berated himself that this was all he could do.
Kals Yulihi sighed in pity.
He knew the roots of the prince's guilt.
Revulsion at fleeing the capital leaving the queen behind. Doubt at lingering in the rear while kin fought at the front.
Kals understood fully.
He too had abandoned the queen to flee, and remained in the rear while his lord battled.
He wasn't free of guilt either.
Thus his pity deepened; he couldn't leave the 2nd Prince be.
The Leonberger royals never cared for themselves.
Kals Yulihi began subtly adjusting the schedule.
Shortening daily travel, increasing rests. If questioned, he blamed weary soldiers.
When needed, he'd sabotage supply cart wheels to delay.
Yet the prince's routine remained grueling.
Crossing barren winter plains was no easy feat.
Had the war not ended abruptly, the 2nd Prince would likely have collapsed en route.
"The imperial forces at the border have fully withdrawn!"
Indeed, when the armistice news arrived from the border, the 2nd Prince was at his limit.
"The empire signed a humiliating armistice, agreeing to massive reparations! They've also ceded over a dozen border fortresses and outposts, abandoning all claims to the area!"
The herald shouted excitedly.
"The kingdom has triumphed over the empire!"
The 2nd Prince staggered.
"Your Highness!"
The royal knights rushed to support him.
Steadying himself with their aid, he asked the herald,
"Is His Majesty and my brother safe?"
"Both are unharmed!"
"Ah..."
The 2nd Prince finally exhaled in relief.
"His Majesty returns with the fleet, and Crown Prince Your Highness will head to the palace once front-line cleanup finishes!"
At the herald's words, the prince breathed deeply again.
"I commend your tireless ride to bring this news. Well done."
"Joy made the journey effortless."
The smiling herald rose, citing more places to inform.
"The kingdom won!"
"I knew Crown Prince would do it!"
Knights and soldiers cheered belatedly.
Their faces brighter than ever.
Kals Yulihi grinned, cheering the victory.
But quickly recomposed, saying to the 2nd Prince,
"Let us return to the palace."
The 2nd Prince no longer refused.
"Someone must welcome brother upon his return."
Return was decided then.
"Prepare his triumph the moment we arrive."
The prince instructed with a rare bright smile.
**
The palace gates, shut tight for so long, reopened.
The 2nd Prince summoned his siblings and sisters, sheltered in Ballerhard, back to the capital. He didn't forget preparing the Crown Prince's imminent triumph.
It would be as grand as befitting the hero of the kingdom's great victory.
The capital's citizens cooperated eagerly.
They scoured hills and fields for flower petals, unearthed long-sealed酒 barrels, donating freely for the event.
A heartfelt ceremony prepared in unison by royals and citizens.
Its scale unprecedented in kingdom history.
All that remained was the triumphal hero and war savior's return.
"Crown Prince Your Highness has reached a day's distance from the capital!"
And at last, he returned.
The great hero who annihilated countless imperial legions, forcing their humiliating armistice—and his army.
The Crown Prince stood before the capital gates, proudly bearing the coiled golden lion banner.
"Brother!"
The 2nd Prince welcomed him with a choked voice.
"...You're safe, truly safe. I'm so relieved."
As if forgetting all prepared speeches.
The Crown Prince smiled softly at his younger brother, then spoke.
"...Brought her."
His voice so soft the beginning was inaudible.
When asked, he silently pointed behind him.
There stood a bier draped in golden lion banners.
Citizens and soldiers, about to cheer the Crown Prince's return, fell silent as one.
They knew all too well whose it was.
Only one royal had perished in this war.
The queen, who chose death for the capital's citizens.
The prepared triumph paled.
Then the Crown Prince addressed those lining the walls and square.
"Tribute and mourning suffice with victory offered them."
His low voice carried to all citizens.
Silence blanketed the walls and gates briefly.
But it shattered soon.
"For Queen Margarita."
A knight drew his sword, holding it diagonally in salute.
That sparked it.
Clack.
Capital soldiers and knights raised spears and swords in unison.
"For the brave and merciful queen."
Citizens, grasping late, shouted.
"For the wisest and most devoted queen!"
"Glory to Queen Margarita!"
Roars shook the walls.
Beholding it, the Crown Prince resumed his march.
"...All glory to her."
Murmuring softly.