The Hound's Allegiance
Even I couldn't help but be taken aback. However, I quickly regained my composure. If Filgret had truly figured everything out, he would have reported it to the King first. There would be no reason for him to come to me and speak like this. Though there was no one else in the room but the two of us, I glanced around out of habit before speaking.
"My, how surprising. It was such a tragic, unsolved mystery... In that case, would you mind sharing your findings with me? Who exactly is the culprit behind this incident?"
"It is none other than you, First Princess Sera Rustier."
Surprisingly, the shock wasn't all that great. My mind raced, calculating at high speed. How much did Filgret actually know? What was his evidence? And if he truly knew everything, how should I dispose of him? For now, the appropriate reaction was to play the part of a princess outraged by an absurd accusation.
"Me? You claim I poisoned my own father? Filgret Ostana! Are you truly prepared to stake your life on such insolence?"
"Yes, of course, Your Highness. If you would permit it, I shall explain how I came to this realization. Will you listen?"
"...Speak."
"Two days before His Majesty collapsed, Your Highness went on an inspection tour of the capital with me. Surely, you remember?"
"Indeed. We went to gauge the public sentiment of Lurie's citizens regarding the new Queen. What of it?"
"Our final stop was the Tenorich district. There, Your Highness lied to me."
"And what lie would that be?"
"Your Highness claimed you had to hide because some thugs were pursuing you. But in truth, did you not meet with a witch doctor? All to obtain the poison to feed His Majesty."
As if he had witnessed the scene with his own eyes, Filgret recounted my movements that day with absolute precision. His expression remained entirely calm. Where did I slip up? No matter how much I retraced my steps, there shouldn't have been any concrete evidence for him to be this certain.
"A witch doctor? I am deeply offended, Filgret. On what grounds do you claim I met such a person that day?"
"Scent."
"...Scent?"
"Yes. When Your Highness emerged from hiding, a faint but foul odor lingered on your person. Later, I detected that exact same scent on the lips of the collapsed King, as well as on his wine bottle."
I recalled the shape of the glass vial from that day. It certainly wasn't perfectly airtight. But to smell a poison sealed inside a tiny vial tucked away in my clothes? Was such a thing even humanly possible?
"A scent... You might as well claim you discovered it through magic."
"Indeed, no one would believe such a tale. That is precisely why I have come to speak with Your Highness directly."
The very first thing Filgret had asked when he came to see me was to be placed in my personal guard. What was the connection between his accusation and that request? I still couldn't quite grasp the link.
"Please, tell me the truth. Why did Your Highness poison your father, the King?"
Was he trying to extract a confession? He couldn't corner me as the culprit based on a faint scent alone. Even if his hound-like sense of smell was real, there was no way to prove that the scent on me in Tenorich was the exact same one that poisoned Pehart. Yet, the look in Filgret's eyes suggested he wanted something far beyond a mere culprit. He was yearning for something. His gaze burned with a desperate thirst, pleading for me to give him the answer he desired.
Perhaps I could give him exactly what he wanted. But this was a gamble. A gamble where I could either win the allegiance of the kingdom's strongest knight, or confess to high treason before the King's own guard. The stakes were high, but the odds weren't terrible. If my intuition was correct, I had a decent chance of winning. I decided to trust my eyes. Dropping the gentle, sweet tone of Princess Sera, I spoke in a flat, relaxed voice.
"Because of Carmel."
"Because of the Queen?"
"Yes. You might not know this, Sir Filgret, but before she became Queen, Carmel attended a regular council meeting. At the time, His Majesty blatantly ignored his ministers to defend her. And after the meeting, he even ordered me to undergo bridal training simply because I opposed her. That is why I slipped poison into my father's wine."
Filgret did not look surprised. Upon hearing my answer, he closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and spoke.
"I see."
"I have just laid bare my greatest vulnerability to you. Now, it is your turn to reveal your true intentions. Please, speak, Sir Filgret."
Filgret nodded and began to speak.
"Your Highness, I have long believed that this country—the Luistie Kingdom—is in grave peril."
"And why is that?"
"Having served as a royal guard protecting the royal family for generations, I can see it clearly. The power of the crown is waning, while the influence of the nobility grows stronger by the day. One need only look at how the Roberts family monopolizes the vast majority of our commerce to see the truth of it."
He wasn't wrong. Even with Weihart ruling the North, the King possessed absolutely no means to control him. If he—or anyone else who might take his place in the future—harbored treasonous thoughts, the very foundations of the kingdom would crumble instantly. Filgret took another breath and spoke with absolute conviction.
"His Majesty is far too soft to overcome this crisis."
I agreed that Pehart was soft. Even if he hadn't crossed paths with a disaster like Carmel, he was a king who would have achieved nothing more than maintaining the status quo. Yet, for a royal guard to speak so disparagingly of his sovereign... This was likely his way of offering up his own life in exchange for the confession I had just given him.
"But you, Princess Sera... an iron-blooded rule suits you. I realized this from your words just now, and from the decisive manner in which you handled the matter of Earl Roberts."
I finally understood exactly what he wanted. Filgret desired a strong ruler. A sovereign worthy of his absolute devotion.
"You have grand ambitions, Filgret. Do you wish for me to lead a coup d'état with you at the vanguard?"
"No. I am, first and foremost, a guard of the royal family. So long as the Luistie dynasty endures, I am content."
Filgret dropped to both knees and drew the sword from his waist. I did not flinch, even as the sharp gleam of the blade reflected in my eyes. He reversed his grip, presenting the hilt to me.
"Please, become the master of my sword, First Princess Sera."
"I must warn you, I have no particular interest in purging the nobility. Though, of course, I will crush them if they overstep their bounds."
My ultimate desire was, and always would be, Carmel. Even if it resulted in conflict with the nobles, that was merely a byproduct, not my true goal. My real objective was to play with Carmel's body and mind to my heart's content.
"Yes. That is more than enough."
Very well, then. I spoke in a solemn, reverent voice.
"I accept, Filgret Ostana. In the name of the Goddess, I receive your sword and claim you as my own."
Taking the sword from Filgret, I lightly tapped each of his shoulders in turn. A ceremony of fealty. Though it appeared solemn and sacred, this was an act of treason. Filgret, who had already sworn his life to the King, was now performing a rite of allegiance to another—even if she was the princess destined to inherit the throne. Filgret knew this all too well. Yet, paradoxically, that was precisely why this ceremony bound us in true loyalty. We were staking our lives on a shared treason. And so, the strongest knight in the kingdom, Filgret Ostana, became my sword.
Once Filgret left, the tension drained from my body, and I collapsed back into my chair. In the original novel, Filgret hadn't left much of an impression. It made sense, of course. From Carmel's perspective, he was a major obstacle—someone who actively eliminated threats to the royal family. He had been poisoned early on and written out of the story. Granted, even while poisoned, he had displayed such incredible martial prowess that his strength was undeniable, but I still knew very little about his background. Especially that absurd sense of smell. It wasn't as if this world even had beastkin.
His loyalty was genuine, but it possessed a twisted edge. He was loyal not to the King himself, but to the royal lineage. He had sworn fealty to me only because he believed I had the strength to preserve the dynasty. If he ever deemed me a threat to the royal family, he would likely betray his oath a second time without hesitation. Regardless, I had gained an incredibly reliable pawn. I had already planned to recruit him into my personal guard, as he was absolutely essential for what was to come. Now, I wouldn't even have to worry about selecting the rest of my guards. Filgret would know exactly which knights possessed the finest skills.
Only one task remained. To cast a delicious bait named Princess Sera, and wait for Carmel to bite.