Chapter 204
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 204
Chapter Title: 62. The Embers in the Furnace Remain the Same (2)
The citizens shouted the Queen's name until their throats went hoarse. The soldiers and knights also paid their respects to the Queen and the royal family, holding their spears and swords at a slant.
The Crown Prince walked silently through the center of it all. The knights and soldiers followed behind, pulling the Queen's bier.
There was no trace anywhere of the triumphant general who had routed the massive forces of the empire threatening the kingdom.
This was certainly not the picture Maximilian had imagined.
The triumphal procession he had envisioned was a raucous festival filled with cheers for the war hero and brave soldiers who had crushed the overwhelming might of the imperial army.
But it wasn't disappointing.
On the contrary, as he walked the capital's main avenue alongside his brother, his chest tightened with emotion several times.
He couldn't help but be impressed.
He was even awed by his brother's thoughtfulness in dedicating the glory that should have been his own entirely to the fallen soldiers.
When he voiced these inner thoughts, his brother replied matter-of-factly,
"It's the Ballerhard way."
He said it was simply following the hometown customs of the fallen.
After walking the capital's main avenue for a long while, they finally arrived at the palace.
"Welcome back, brother. And congratulations on the victory."
Maximilian celebrated his brother's safe return and handed back the position of palace master he had temporarily held.
"Thanks."
His brother merely nodded calmly once again.
With the royal bloodline returning, the palace regained its former appearance.
Of course, it couldn't be exactly the same as before.
There were far too many empty seats for that.
The Queen and her maids, the court knights and palace soldiers—they were all people lost forever after the recent war.
Those empty spots couldn't be filled by anything.
Nevertheless, it was true that the palace had regained some vitality.
At its center were the blood of the Leonberger royal family.
"Brother! Brother!"
The Second Prince sought out his older brother at every opportunity.
"Have you eaten? What are you going to do looking like a starved boy?"
The Crown Prince welcomed his younger brother without a hint of annoyance.
The surviving court knights and maids from the war watched the two brothers fondly.
The Crown Prince, hailed as the young lion of the North.
The Second Prince, hailed as a saint.
The most outstanding brothers in kingdom history acted no differently from ordinary men, and their brotherly warmth was simply pleasing.
The Grand Marshal couldn't hide his delight whenever he met the two brothers.
"Stop grinning like that."
The Crown Prince recoiled in disgust.
"More importantly, have you heard the news?"
The Grand Marshal pressed on undeterred by the Crown Prince's rebuke.
"What news out of the blue?"
"A delegation from the Teuton Kingdom has arrived at the eastern port."
"Teuton Kingdom..."
"It was once a hegemon exerting influence over several western continental nations. Of course, its prestige and influence have waned since the empire curbed its momentum, but it's not something to dismiss."
The Crown Prince showed interest.
"In fact, the Teuton Kingdom is a nation His Majesty has long worked to ally with. But due to the kingdom's situation at the time, forced to watch the empire's mood, no major results were achieved."
To be precise, the Teuton Kingdom had unilaterally ignored the kingdom's envoys, and Marquis Billefeld gave a wry smile.
"They didn't see it as worth risking giving the empire an excuse to form an alliance."
But that was only for a moment, as Marquis Billefeld's eyes gleamed.
"Yet the Teuton Kingdom, which had ignored our envoys time and again, has now sent its own delegation first, signaling intent for an alliance with the kingdom."
Undoubtedly because the kingdom had won its war against the empire, changing their minds.
"Even offering up a cherished princess."
At Marquis Billefeld's words, the Crown Prince's face, full of anticipation until now, hardened rigidly.
"A princess?"
"The purpose of this delegation is a marriage between our royal families."
Marquis Billefeld added,
"There's no surer proof of alliance than blood ties."
Looking at the marquis, the Crown Prince nodded reluctantly in agreement.
"What they want is the young lion of the North."
The marquis grinned mischievously at the Crown Prince.
"That's you, Your Highness."
The Crown Prince's face twisted in displeasure.
**
By the time the Teuton Kingdom's delegation arrived in the capital, the city was in an uproar.
"What? Brother's gone missing?"
Maximilian looked dumbfounded at the court knight's report.
"Where did he go at such a crucial time?"
Arwen Kirguyen, who had been standing back with an apologetic expression, stepped forward.
"He left only this letter..."
What was called a letter was barely a scrap of paper worthy of the name.
「I have something to fetch, so I'll be heading north briefly.」
Seeing that single line without context or explanation, Maximilian let out a hollow laugh.
"Of all times, now..."
His brother had always been willful, but the timing couldn't be worse.
Guests were practically at the capital's doorstep. And those guests were the delegation from the Teuton Kingdom, which the royals had long courted.
Even a normal delegation would require going out barefoot to greet them, but the leader of this one was an enormous figure.
「Duncan Seymour Tudor」
He was famous enough that even the Second Prince of a remote kingdom ignorant of foreign affairs knew his name.
「The Teuton Kingdom's sole duke.」
「The current king's only brother and most trusted advisor.」
「Master of the Rose Thorn Knight Order, one of the strongest knight orders in existence.」
「The kingdom's greatest knight in the West.」
Whether by birth or achievements, he was no lightweight—a true heavyweight, far beyond a second prince with no real position despite his royal blood.
And the delegation didn't consist solely of Duncan Seymour Tudor.
「Hestia Neumann Tudor」
The eldest daughter of the Tudor royal family and the current Teuton king's most cherished princess.
She was also quite well-known across the continent, if not quite to Duncan's level.
「The most beautiful rose blooming in the Tudor royal garden.」
Most of that fame stemmed from her natural beauty, but she was still a heavyweight in her own right.
After all, she was the current Teuton king's favorite princess and couldn't be ignored.
Yet the kingdom meant to receive them had all its key figures absent.
The king needed time to return from expedition, and the stand-in Crown Prince had vanished.
For Maximilian, it was maddening.
He immediately ordered the communication orb linked to the North brought.
[His Highness the Crown Prince has disappeared?]
Even the Winter Lord was unaware of the Crown Prince's absence.
[He seemed to be staying put for a while, then suddenly why?]
To the Winter Lord inquiring about the situation, Maximilian briefly explained.
He mentioned receiving word that the Teuton delegation had arrived at the kingdom's port to propose marriage to the Crown Prince, and that his brother had vanished right as they neared the capital.
[This feels deliberate... no, like he hid to avoid an unwelcome engagement.]
Maximilian fully agreed with the Winter Lord's words.
"I can't fathom his thinking. As a prince of this nation—its firstborn heir no less—he knows taking a spouse and securing heirs is a vital duty."
[When has he ever cared about such things? His head's filled with nothing but war, war, war.]
Not a word of the Winter Lord's rant was off-base.
Which made it all the more bleak.
Though the empire was embroiled in civil war and couldn't look outward, many nations still watched its mood. The Teuton Kingdom sending a delegation now was no light matter.
Internally, it was the first official foreign delegation to visit the kingdom, isolated from the world by the empire. Externally, it was the first move by a nation long suppressed by imperial pressure.
Especially since the purpose wasn't mere diplomacy but marriage—between direct royals of both sides.
If it went smoothly, the kingdom could gain another blood ally after Dotrin.
Even utmost hospitality for such honored guests would fall short.
Yet the Crown Prince meant to receive them had vanished.
Even Maximilian, who would support his brother through dancing naked in public if need be, couldn't help resenting him this time.
「At least he said he's going north, so he hasn't gone elsewhere. I'll dispatch rangers to search for His Highness immediately.」
"Thank you. If you find him, please persuade him to return to the capital as swiftly as possible."
Leaving those words, Maximilian rose from the orb.
"I shouldn't have said anything. The old man's lament set him off."
Grand Marshal Billefeld, arriving late with the news, berated himself repeatedly.
"The one responsible for greeting the delegation can't do so without knowing their purpose. You did nothing wrong, Grand Marshal. No need for self-reproach."
"That's true, but... sigh. What now?"
"In the worst case, I suppose I'll have to greet them in his stead."
"When we should be rolling out the red carpet, we're committing a breach of etiquette from the start."
Marquis Billefeld let out hollow laughs. His face clearly showed his distress.
Maximilian's expression was no different.
"All we can do is hope brother returns in time."
But the brother he'd pinned his hopes on showed no sign of returning.
He heard nothing from the Winter Lord beyond no results from the search.
And so the day of the delegation's visit arrived.
"Brother really isn't coming, is he."
Maximilian sighed and stepped out of the palace to greet the delegation.
Standing at the capital's gate and waiting briefly, a group of riders appeared from the distant plains, signaling the delegation's approach.
"See to it no one dares call the kingdom's army or knights lacking!"
At Maximilian's stern command, the capital guards and court knights checked their ranks and postures once more.
"The delegation's in sight!"
Maximilian strained his eyes toward the far plains.
There was the Teuton delegation.
A hundred Teuton knights, still vigilant despite the strict escort from the kingdom's knight order and cavalry that had gone out to meet them.
Clad head to toe in crimson plate armor, they were undoubtedly the famed Rose Thorn Knight Order.
"Truly living up to their reputation."
Maximilian couldn't help admiring them.
But it was premature to be impressed.
The true spectacle wasn't the hundred mounted Rose Knights.
It was the four-horse carriage surrounded by the Rose Knights, and the middle-aged man seated at the driver's perch.
"Ah..."
The moment he saw him, Maximilian knew.
That was Duncan Seymour Tudor, the West's greatest knight.
He couldn't be mistaken.
The man was like a giant.
From the moment Duncan Seymour Tudor appeared, the kingdom's knights could barely breathe.
Even among the fearless court knights, some let out stifled groans.
Then figures stepped forward before the kingdom knights crushed by Duncan Seymour Tudor's presence.
The kingdom's silver lions, his brother's knights.
Arwen Kirguyen raised a quiet aura. Bernard Ilai boldly asserted his presence.
Only then did the kingdom's knights exhale long and steady their disrupted stances.
But that was it.
Even with the silver lions—who had earned great merits in the war against the empire—stepping up, the best the knights could do was catch their breath.
Duncan Seymour Tudor's presence still dominated the area.
Compared to him, the silver lions' auras were like fireflies before the moon.
Maximilian let out a sigh.
He'd heard the Teuton Kingdom hadn't even considered the kingdom an equal ally until recently.
He'd meant to greet them confidently, but the first encounter was already crumbling.
But there was nothing for it.
Duncan Seymour Tudor was a real monster.
Maximilian composed his expression and stepped forward.
At that exact moment.
Roooar.
A massive presence suddenly erupted from behind the gate. Simultaneously, Duncan Seymour Tudor's pressure on the kingdom's knights vanished like a lie.
"Ah..."
Maximilian's heart began to race.
The enormous aura rising from behind was all too familiar.
Maximilian turned his head.
"Brother!"
There stood the Crown Prince of the kingdom, the one he'd waited so desperately for.
"A bit late."
The Crown Prince passed through the gate and stood beside Maximilian.
Then he clicked his tongue and said,
"What a pain."
Guests who claimed to come in goodwill were threatening the host—utterly deplorable.
And so the Teuton Kingdom's delegation finally arrived before them.
"We welcome you to the Leonberger Kingdom."
Idrian Leonberger offered words of welcome.
Baring his fangs fiercely.