Before the news of Marquis Luden arrived, Grand Duke Roygar and his party had left the Duchy of Riagan and arrived at the Kingdom of Eimmel.
The royal palace, built where the coast was visible, was pure white.
âItâll be blown away by the sea breeze.â
Garnet, who thought it was made of marble, muttered unknowingly.
The head of Felona, ââwho was standing nearby, answered.
âItâs not marble, itâs the salt crystals that reflect the white light.â
âReally? Itâs like a jewel.â
Garnet replied. Inside is probably not a good place to live because of humidity and salinity, but it would not be polite to ask such a question about a royal palace in a foreign country.
It was also true that they were as beautiful as Riaganâs salt crystals.
âBy the way, why doesnât the Kingdom of Eimmel make salt? There was enough salt to form on the outer walls of the building?â
âBecause there is a shortage of lumber and manpower.â
The head of Felona replied.
Skyla muttered.
âGood salt is made by boiling seawater in a large cauldron over a fire. I know that it is difficult to find enough firewood in the Kingdom of Eimmel. Is there also a shortage of labor in the Kingdom of Iantz?â
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âBecause itâs more profitable making yarn than watching salt cauldrons.â
The head of Felona replied with a smile.
âWe are just producing what is consumed domestically. Common people are more likely to just use seawater.â
âI see.â
âBut wealthy people buy salt from the Duchy of Riagan and use it. The salt tastes savory instead of bitter, and when you break the crystallized salt and put it in a glass bottle, it looks beautiful. When we welcome a special guest, we always put it on the table.â
âSo thatâs why each person has a salt bottle set on the table.â
Garnet, who had never paid much attention to things like salt, answered with a bit of surprise.
It was a specialty of the Duchy of Riagan, so she thought thatâs why they had it, but she didnât know there was such a culture in the South.
âYour Grace, please go into the cabin now. Getting the sea breeze for too long is not good for your skin.â
Viscountess Weave said in a hard voice.
She didnât like Felonaâs head staying by Garnetâs side.
She didnât like her since in the first place Skyla didnât even ask for her opinion and passed the story directly to Garnet.
The same was true of Garnetâs favoritism on Skyla, Marquisate Camellia had a higher status than Viscounty Weave, and her bloodline was closer to Marquisate Luden.
In the end, Skyla was the youngest lady-in-waiting, so she was like the chief maid. Even Marchioness Camellia asks for a favor in taking good care of Skyla.
But that didnât mean she could go over her head to Garnet.
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Above all else, it was Grand Duke Roygarâs will to masquerade the head of Felona as Garnetâs maid and blend in with the party.
âWhy are you making me do such a dangerous thing?â
Viscountess Weave complained in her heart.
She could not be taken as the maid of Grand Duke Roygar. She knows that.
When a stranger suddenly appeared around Grand Duke Roygar, there would surely be someone who would trace her background.
If thatâs a problem, shouldnât they make her the maid of a trusted person among the attendants?
It was not that there were no women among those who came to represent each family or upper ranks.
[âItâs not like weâre all in one accord. If you want to make room under someone elseâs name, you have to reveal the identity of the head of Felona to that person. His Grace the Grand Duke would of course want to avoid that.â]
Skyla said it like she was a loyal person.
Viscountess Weave didnât like it either. She didnât know why, so she felt repulsed.
Nevertheless, she wanted to eliminate any hazard from Garnet alone.
The problem, though, was that Garnet felt close to the head of Felona.
It was fun to talk to new people. Garnet used to ask the head of Felona about Southern culture and history that she was not familiar with.
Then the head of Felona kindly answered.
She would have liked it, if it was under usual circumstances. If they were on a normal trip right now, and if theyâve been asked to go out with the head of Felona who had publicly identified herself.
Viscountess Weave had a hard face, but Garnet didnât care.
âLetâs look around a little more. When will I have another chance to visit the Kingdom of Eimmel?â
Garnet said so and pressed her hand to her tousled hair. And she looked up again at the palace where the white sunlight shattered.
Grand Duke Roygar came out of his cabin.
He was holding Garnetâs shawl in his hand. With the attendant far away, he strode alone.
And he said as he wrapped his arms around Garnetâs shoulder.
âItâs windy.â
âItâs not cold. It is rather hot.â
âWhat did you find so interesting?â
âItâs the palace. If it had been in Krates, I thought it would have had a nice name.â
âDo you want a palace like that, too?â
âNo. I already have several pretty villas.â
âBut there is no palace. Do you like a white marble palace?â
Grand Duke Roygar smiled softly and lightly rubbed her shoulder.
It was not something to say so hastily.
Palaces belong to the monarch. Even if Grand Duke Roygar was of imperial family, even if he built the most beautiful house in the world, he could not pronounce it a palace.
For anyone completely unrelated, it wouldnât matter, but it was dangerous for a person with the right to inherit the throne to do such a thing.
But this was the South. On the deck stood only Garnet and Grand Duke Roygar, the ladies-in-waiting and attendants, and the head of Felona.
The sailors were preparing to call in the port, and the sea breeze was so strong that only the voices of people nearby could be heard.
Garnet suddenly had a thought of her old days.
When she was young, she thought that if she married, she would live in the Empressâ Palace. Then she would make the Empressâ Palace the most beautiful palace in the world, she used to plan that way.
She was so young, so there was nothing dangerous about it.
Like children dreamed of becoming princesses, she took it for granted that she would become an empress.
âI donât need a marble palace.â
âThen?â
âI wish there was a tree big enough for a swing. Itâs a big swing that me and the kids can all lie down on.â
âIt would be a huge tree.â
Grand Duke Roygar smiled.
âThe garden needs to change its style, too.â
âThatâs rightâŚâŚ . Shall we make it in the village?â
âIsnât it good to change things after a long time? If I send them a message now, by the time we get home, theyâll be able to hang the swing.â
âWhat about the kids?â
âPlease ask mother-in-law for a moment. Or wouldnât it be okay to go to the villa before winter?â
âShall we?â
While talking like that. The ship entered the port.
Cadriol was watching people disembark from the ship through a telescope on the lighthouse.
âCertainly, thatâs the head of Felona.â
He departed from the Duchy of Riagan at the same time as Grand Duke Roygar and his party.
His ship was much faster than that of Grand Duke Roygar, who was carrying the nobles. Although he came at a leisurely pace, he was able to buy more than a weekâs time.
It was enough time for an internal crackdown.
âSince there was no way she could have joined in the middle of the sea, she mustâve contacted them while in the Duchy of Riagan.â
âIâm sorry, Your Highness. I didnât notice.â
âItâs okay. I guess weâre not as good at gathering information as the Iantz.â
At those words, the subordinateâs head bowed even deeper.
âI know itâs hard to do delicate work with rough guys. It seems that she was in contact through the side of Grand Duchess Roygar.â
Cadriol looked at the faces of the maids around the head of Felona and said.
âThen, it would have been more difficult to know.â
Cadriol had no subordinates to take control of the collection and management of information. There were no women either.
Because his power base was pirateering. Not all of the trustworthy subordinates were men, but none of them had the talent to approach the wives and dig up information.
So thatâs why he wanted Artizea even more.
âI know that Grand Duchess Roygar is not very involved in this.â
Cadriol murmured and lowered the telescope.
âDoesnât Grand Duke Roygar want to meet the head of Felona anyway?â
âRight. In any case, would it be of no use to have separated Marchioness Camellia?â
Or maybe Artizea had other plans.
Cadriol was unaware of the details. The only thing he had dealt with Artizea was the life of the Queen.
âThe head of Felona must have come to represent the Iantz Kingdom. The fact that Grand Duke Roygar hasnât said a word of it to me means that the talk is going well.â
And coming this far means that there was something to tell King Eimmel.
âI didnât mean to play in the hands of Marquis Rosan.â
If Grand Duke Roygar took his hand, he was going to try and coolly hit Artizea in the back of the head.
However, if he joined hands with the Iantz Kingdom, thereâs no helping it.
At the very least, the Iantz Kingdom will try to solve it by putting everything on itself.
There was no choice but to counterattack from this side.
âShould I wait a little longer?â
Perhaps, the King would not accept Grand Duke Roygar and Iantzâs offer. The Queen is no more now.
Well. Despite the wait, the result was clear. He knew it well enough to lose his life.
And even if his father did not accept the offer, since Grand Duke Roygar had chosen the Iantz Kingdom, he had to fight back.
Cadriol, in a complex mood in many ways, threw his telescope at his men and put on his cloak.
âDo you want to go back to the palace?â
âIâm going to meet the Grand Duke. Organize the army.â
âYes?â
âBecause there might be things that need to be moved. It will take quite a bit of preparation to deal with Fatherâs army and the escort knights from the Empire at the same time.â
âWill it be okay? Otherwise, it will become a war with the Empire.â
âThe Grand Duke and his party will send them back without touching a single fingertip. This is our internal Eimmel problem. Unfortunately, he got involved in a fight between the father and the son.â
âThen, I will send the prepared national letter to the imperial capital. So that we wonât be at fault.â
âAlright.â
In the letter, a detailed description of the smuggling relationship between the dead Queen and the Duchy of Riagan was written.
That will be the first spark.
Once they get to the capital, Artizea will pour oil on it.
After all, Artizeaâs purpose must be to defeat Grand Duke Roygar. He can trust that part.\n