Alfonso requested an audience with both his parents at the same time but was unable to meet Leo III that day. Leo III said he was planning to spend time with his mistress, Countess Rubina, on her birthday.
“No matter how much I call you the Prince, for today...”
Sir Delpianosa, secretary to Leo III, bowed his head deeply.
“I apologize, Your Highness.”
Alfonso sighed and tilted his head back.
“Is that your fault? Okay, I’ll discuss it with my mother first and talk to my father again later.”
'Today is Countess Rubina's birthday.'
Cesare could not have known Queen Marguerite's birthday, but Alfonso did not remember Countess Rubina's birthday. That was the margin of deficit. However, being a Prince who could not see the face of his father spending intimate time with his mistress was an unavoidable limitation.
Alfonso decided to go see his mother instead. It was a way to spend time with his mother, who had lost his husband to the mistress. He headed to the Queen's temporary residence at the Winter Palace in Taranto.
“Oh my.”
Unlike the King's residence, Prince Alfonso was able to visit the Queen's Palace as often as he wanted without prior arrangements. That was the bond between the Prince and his mother. Like a normal mother-child relationship, the relationship is one where the child always holds his hand out.
“Are our Alfonso here? This mother was very worried because they said you weren’t feeling well.”
“No, mother. You don’t have to worry.”
Alfonso sat down next to Queen Marguerite, who was basking in the fire in the fireplace. She continued to sip lukewarm water with citron pieces in it as her throat burned.
“Mom, I wasn’t sick, I just went to San Carlo.”
"What? You?"
Queen Marguerite was surprised. She estimated the number of days her son had not been seen and she asked.
“Can you come back so quickly?”
Alfonso grinned.
“Of course, mother. My mother’s son is the best jockey in San Carlo, living up to his position and responsibility.”
“That’s amazing, Alfonso.”
Queen Marguerite had a vague premonition as to why her son had visited San Carlo. She was of a similar kind to what Bernardino, the Prince's secretary, felt. But instead of speaking first, she waited for her son to speak up. She was hoping in vain that it would be harder for her son to talk, that he would stop before he could say anything. But her son spoke so easily, so clearly and clearly.
"Mother. I would like to refuse any marriage talks with the Kingdom of Gallico.”
Queen Marguerite remained silent for a moment. She finally opened her mouth and asked.
“Is it because of that child?”
Her son answered without hesitation this time.
"Yes."
“Alfonso, we have already finished talking about this...”
“It is true that I want to welcome Ariadne as my Princess. But Ariadne was not the only one the reason that I did not want to enter into a marriage alliance with Gallico.”
"Then?"
Alfonso took a deep breath and answered.
“Peace gained by begging for mercy is bound to be broken.”
Queen Marguerite, who thought her son would preach about the immorality of Grand Duchess Lariesa, looked at Prince Alfonso with an expression of surprise. In fact, in the eyes of Queen Marguerite, Lariesa, contrary to her first impression, she was arrogant and self-indulgent, and at the same time, foolish and dull.
"Oh?"
“Even if we beg for cannons and gunpowder from the Kingdom of Gallico, it is nothing more than their generosity when they feel like it. For example, isn’t the formula for gunpowder still a top secret?”
The prince looked straight at his mother.
“If we try to use those guns against the Kingdom of Gallico, they will immediately cut off the supply of gunpowder. Even if there are trained troops, if it is impossible to supply gunpowder, what would be the use of it? It's just a useless thing that costs money. Is that all?”
Alfonso continued.
“Even if we use those guns to go to war with Acereto rather than the Kingdom of Gallico if the Kingdom of Gallico doesn’t like the situation or the way things are going, they will cut off the supply of gunpowder at any time. In the end, the situation where we cannot apply pressure through military power and have to rely on diplomacy has not changed from then to now.”
The Prince told his mother.
“I can’t help but believe that both my mother and father had a lot of concerns. However, in my view, this is merely a change of the existing practice of relying on others for national defense from the Condoliero kingdom to the Gallico kingdom. The Etruscans must move forward on the path of self-strengthening.”
“But Alfonso. Self-reliance also requires technical skills.”
These were the words Alfonso had been waiting for. The Prince's face brightened.
“I stopped by San Carlo and received a report on the results of the instructions I had given to my people.”
Alfonso took out a bundle of parchment from his pocket and handed it to his mother. It was a detailed report. Queen Marguerite took out her magnifying glass and began to look at the report, with the Prince beside her adding the comments.
“If we could reverse engineer* the gunpowder mixture of the Gallico Kingdom, all of these problems would be solved at once, but reverse engineering is impossible with our country’s current technology anyway. In the long term, we need to invite alchemists from the Moorish Empire and invest in chemical research.”
The pages of the report turned.
“It will be a long-term task that will take more than 20 years. If you can't do it right now anyway and need an engineer from the Moorish Empire, you can start with the gunpowder formula from the Moorish Empire. Gallico also started like that, and it is generally accepted that the gunpowder of the Moorish Empire is superior to the gunpowder of the Gallico Kingdom when it comes to gunpowder used in personal firearms in addition to the gunpowder used in siege warfare.”
He said, pointing his finger at a section of the report.
“My subordinates report that small amounts of gunpowder from the Moorish Empire can be obtained even on the black market.”
Prince Alfonso, who waited patiently by Queen Marguerite's side until she finished reading the report, looked at his mother and spoke earnestly.
“Mother, please give strength to your son.”
Queen Marguerite looked at Prince Alfonso with a wrinkled brow and said.
“Alfonso. You put a lot of thought into it. But even if everything you researched is true, this is a long way back.”
Queen Marguerite took off her reading glasses and placed them on the nightstand next to her. She was expressing her wish to stop talking.
“I won’t say more about practical work. The military is a field that the mother does not know much about, and it is right to leave such matters to the experts. I will only tell you what I know. Inheriting the throne is a tricky task. Even if you are the only heir to the throne, there are many obstacles to overcome to succeed to the throne.”
Prince Alfonso was the only illegitimate child of Leo III, but Leo III was a great man whose emotions were always changeable and who was full of unusual ideas. Queen Marguerite thought that if her husband was wrong, he would be more than capable of doing things that would not be allowed in the world of sectarianism, such as registering a bastard and acknowledging him as his eldest son.
“Oh my.”
Unlike the King's residence, Prince Alfonso was able to visit the Queen's Palace as often as he wanted without prior arrangements. That was the bond between the Prince and his mother. Like a normal mother-child relationship, the relationship is one where the child always holds his hand out.
“Are our Alfonso here? This mother was very worried because they said you weren’t feeling well.”
“No, mother. You don’t have to worry.”
Alfonso sat down next to Queen Marguerite, who was basking in the fire in the fireplace. She continued to sip lukewarm water with citron pieces in it as her throat burned.
“Mom, I wasn’t sick, I just went to San Carlo.”
"What? You?"
Queen Marguerite was surprised. She estimated the number of days her son had not been seen and she asked.
“Can you come back so quickly?”
Alfonso grinned.
“Of course, mother. My mother’s son is the best jockey in San Carlo, living up to his position and responsibility.”
“That’s amazing, Alfonso.”
Queen Marguerite had a vague premonition as to why her son had visited San Carlo. She was of a similar kind to what Bernardino, the Prince's secretary, felt. But instead of speaking first, she waited for her son to speak up. She was hoping in vain that it would be harder for her son to talk, that he would stop before he could say anything. But her son spoke so easily, so clearly and clearly.
"Mother. I would like to refuse any marriage talks with the Kingdom of Gallico.”
Queen Marguerite remained silent for a moment. She finally opened her mouth and asked.
“Is it because of that child?”
Her son answered without hesitation this time.
"Yes."
“Alfonso, we have already finished talking about this...”
“It is true that I want to welcome Ariadne as my Princess. But Ariadne was not the only one the reason that I did not want to enter into a marriage alliance with Gallico.”
"Then?"
Alfonso took a deep breath and answered.
“Peace gained by begging for mercy is bound to be broken.”
Queen Marguerite, who thought her son would preach about the immorality of Grand Duchess Lariesa, looked at Prince Alfonso with an expression of surprise. In fact, in the eyes of Queen Marguerite, Lariesa, contrary to her first impression, she was arrogant and self-indulgent, and at the same time, foolish and dull.
"Oh?"
“Even if we beg for cannons and gunpowder from the Kingdom of Gallico, it is nothing more than their generosity when they feel like it. For example, isn’t the formula for gunpowder still a top secret?”
The prince looked straight at his mother.
“If we try to use those guns against the Kingdom of Gallico, they will immediately cut off the supply of gunpowder. Even if there are trained troops, if it is impossible to supply gunpowder, what would be the use of it? It's just a useless thing that costs money. Is that all?”
Alfonso continued.
“Even if we use those guns to go to war with Acereto rather than the Kingdom of Gallico if the Kingdom of Gallico doesn’t like the situation or the way things are going, they will cut off the supply of gunpowder at any time. In the end, the situation where we cannot apply pressure through military power and have to rely on diplomacy has not changed from then to now.”
The Prince told his mother.
“I can’t help but believe that both my mother and father had a lot of concerns. However, in my view, this is merely a change of the existing practice of relying on others for national defense from the Condoliero kingdom to the Gallico kingdom. The Etruscans must move forward on the path of self-strengthening.”
“But Alfonso. Self-reliance also requires technical skills.”
These were the words Alfonso had been waiting for. The Prince's face brightened.
“I stopped by San Carlo and received a report on the results of the instructions I had given to my people.”
Alfonso took out a bundle of parchment from his pocket and handed it to his mother. It was a detailed report. Queen Marguerite took out her magnifying glass and began to look at the report, with the Prince beside her adding the comments.
“If we could reverse engineer* the gunpowder mixture of the Gallico Kingdom, all of these problems would be solved at once, but reverse engineering is impossible with our country’s current technology anyway. In the long term, we need to invite alchemists from the Moorish Empire and invest in chemical research.”
The pages of the report turned.
“It will be a long-term task that will take more than 20 years. If you can't do it right now anyway and need an engineer from the Moorish Empire, you can start with the gunpowder formula from the Moorish Empire. Gallico also started like that, and it is generally accepted that the gunpowder of the Moorish Empire is superior to the gunpowder of the Gallico Kingdom when it comes to gunpowder used in personal firearms in addition to the gunpowder used in siege warfare.”
He said, pointing his finger at a section of the report.
“My subordinates report that small amounts of gunpowder from the Moorish Empire can be obtained even on the black market.”
Prince Alfonso, who waited patiently by Queen Marguerite's side until she finished reading the report, looked at his mother and spoke earnestly.
“Mother, please give strength to your son.”
Queen Marguerite looked at Prince Alfonso with a wrinkled brow and said.
“Alfonso. You put a lot of thought into it. But even if everything you researched is true, this is a long way back.”
Queen Marguerite took off her reading glasses and placed them on the nightstand next to her. She was expressing her wish to stop talking.
“I won’t say more about practical work. The military is a field that the mother does not know much about, and it is right to leave such matters to the experts. I will only tell you what I know. Inheriting the throne is a tricky task. Even if you are the only heir to the throne, there are many obstacles to overcome to succeed to the throne.”
Prince Alfonso was the only illegitimate child of Leo III, but Leo III was a great man whose emotions were always changeable and who was full of unusual ideas. Queen Marguerite thought that if her husband was wrong, he would be more than capable of doing things that would not be allowed in the world of sectarianism, such as registering a bastard and acknowledging him as his eldest son.
Queen Marguerite's strategy of supremacy was to lie low as much as possible and then naturally succeed to the throne upon Alfonso's father's natural death.
“This mother wants you to get to the main road and safely. It’s not a good idea to go against your father by talking about national defense and all that.”
Alfonso looked longingly at his mother.
"Mother. This is not the way back, it is the only right way. Marriage with the Kingdom of Gallico is not a shortcut. Because it's not a road. Even if it is not Ariadne, this is a path that the Etruscan kingdom should not take.”
Queen Marguerite smiled sadly as she looked at her son. She was debating whether to say what she said or not and eventually whispered softly.
“But son, this mother wishes for my son’s honor and safety rather than the prosperity of the Etruscan kingdom.”
A normal Alfonso would have looked at Queen Marguerite in shock at his mother's words, which amounted to disrespect for the country. But today Alfonso did not flinch and expressed his opinion in front of his mother. There was something else that was more important to him.
"Mother. If I lose Ari and have to live with Lariesa, I will be unhappy forever. If it’s for your son’s happiness, please support me.”
“Alfonso, if you really want to be with that child, you don’t have to get married, do you? If she is the illegitimate son of a Cardinal, her status is a bit higher than desirable, but her status is not suitable for a government.”
"Mother!"
Alfonso's voice rose.
“Didn’t my mother’s life lose color when my father brought her in?”
Prince Alfonso glanced at the lukewarm citron water his mother was drinking. Queen Marguerite's cold has gotten worse recently, so she even changed all her water to heated water.
“Even today, he went away to spend time with his mistress, leaving mother, who was in poor health, alone.”
“...”
“I can’t do that to a woman’s life. Especially if it’s the woman I love.”
He said it. The gaze of the boy, Alfonso, who was a little surprised even when he spoke in front of his mother, crossed the gaze of his mother, Queen Marguerite, who was also surprised by the declaration of the son she had raised in her arms. The Queen lifted the water cup and took a sip.
“This mother wants you to get to the main road and safely. It’s not a good idea to go against your father by talking about national defense and all that.”
Alfonso looked longingly at his mother.
"Mother. This is not the way back, it is the only right way. Marriage with the Kingdom of Gallico is not a shortcut. Because it's not a road. Even if it is not Ariadne, this is a path that the Etruscan kingdom should not take.”
Queen Marguerite smiled sadly as she looked at her son. She was debating whether to say what she said or not and eventually whispered softly.
“But son, this mother wishes for my son’s honor and safety rather than the prosperity of the Etruscan kingdom.”
A normal Alfonso would have looked at Queen Marguerite in shock at his mother's words, which amounted to disrespect for the country. But today Alfonso did not flinch and expressed his opinion in front of his mother. There was something else that was more important to him.
"Mother. If I lose Ari and have to live with Lariesa, I will be unhappy forever. If it’s for your son’s happiness, please support me.”
“Alfonso, if you really want to be with that child, you don’t have to get married, do you? If she is the illegitimate son of a Cardinal, her status is a bit higher than desirable, but her status is not suitable for a government.”
"Mother!"
Alfonso's voice rose.
“Didn’t my mother’s life lose color when my father brought her in?”
Prince Alfonso glanced at the lukewarm citron water his mother was drinking. Queen Marguerite's cold has gotten worse recently, so she even changed all her water to heated water.
“Even today, he went away to spend time with his mistress, leaving mother, who was in poor health, alone.”
“...”
“I can’t do that to a woman’s life. Especially if it’s the woman I love.”
He said it. The gaze of the boy, Alfonso, who was a little surprised even when he spoke in front of his mother, crossed the gaze of his mother, Queen Marguerite, who was also surprised by the declaration of the son she had raised in her arms. The Queen lifted the water cup and took a sip.
Her mouth was starting to feel dry, and she needed something to get his attention.
“Alfonso. This story is so sudden. Give your mother time to think, too.”
She offered a compromise.
“This mother will also look into this and that based on the report you gave me. Let’s talk again after cross-checking whether this report is really as it says, whether negotiations with the Kingdom of Gallico are going well, or whether it is likely to conclude unfavorably for us.”
She cautioned her son with anger.
“And, it would be best to refrain from speaking to your father for the time being. Introducing gunpowder to the Gallico Kingdom is a major project your father is pursuing. As a successor, it is never wise to say this or that.”
To persuade Leo III, rather than pointing out his mistakes, it would be more effective to beg him to look after his poor son as a man because he did not like Archduchess Lariesa as a woman. Or, Queen Marguerite thought, it would be much better to appeal to vanity by asking when did the great Etruscan kingdom become a poor beggar for strategic weapons from the scum of Gallico?
“Promise me you won’t tell your father without consulting your mother. Anyway, the Grand Duchess of Valoa was picky, so the negotiations took a bit longer. Besides, even if the negotiations are concluded tomorrow, we will have to sign the contract after receiving approval from the Holy Office, so we have at least half a year.”
Alfonso has always been an obedient son. But Queen Marguerite felt that today he was more stubborn than an ox.
"One month. Please tell me within a month. Until then, I will wait to hear from you, but if you don’t hear anything after that, I have no choice but to find another way.”
Queen Marguerite sighed deeply.
"Yes."
“Alfonso. This story is so sudden. Give your mother time to think, too.”
She offered a compromise.
“This mother will also look into this and that based on the report you gave me. Let’s talk again after cross-checking whether this report is really as it says, whether negotiations with the Kingdom of Gallico are going well, or whether it is likely to conclude unfavorably for us.”
She cautioned her son with anger.
“And, it would be best to refrain from speaking to your father for the time being. Introducing gunpowder to the Gallico Kingdom is a major project your father is pursuing. As a successor, it is never wise to say this or that.”
To persuade Leo III, rather than pointing out his mistakes, it would be more effective to beg him to look after his poor son as a man because he did not like Archduchess Lariesa as a woman. Or, Queen Marguerite thought, it would be much better to appeal to vanity by asking when did the great Etruscan kingdom become a poor beggar for strategic weapons from the scum of Gallico?
“Promise me you won’t tell your father without consulting your mother. Anyway, the Grand Duchess of Valoa was picky, so the negotiations took a bit longer. Besides, even if the negotiations are concluded tomorrow, we will have to sign the contract after receiving approval from the Holy Office, so we have at least half a year.”
Alfonso has always been an obedient son. But Queen Marguerite felt that today he was more stubborn than an ox.
"One month. Please tell me within a month. Until then, I will wait to hear from you, but if you don’t hear anything after that, I have no choice but to find another way.”
Queen Marguerite sighed deeply.
"Yes."
***
While one mother was experiencing internal conflict as she watched her son trying to escape from her embrace, the other mother chose to explode her obsession and anxiety outward without even having a conflict.
Thump thump thump!
They heard the sound of relentless footsteps coming from the stairs on the first floor to the second floor.
“Ippolito! Our sons!”
A warning was also issued by voice. Ippolito and Maleta, who had taken off their clothes and were lying together in the bed, turned blue in the face.
"Is this Madame Lucrezia?!”
“Quick, quickly, get into the closet!”
Ippolito jumped out of bed in a hurry, tying his arms and legs into the tattered clothes around the bed.
“Ippolito! Our sons!”
A warning was also issued by voice. Ippolito and Maleta, who had taken off their clothes and were lying together in the bed, turned blue in the face.
"Is this Madame Lucrezia?!”
“Quick, quickly, get into the closet!”
Ippolito jumped out of bed in a hurry, tying his arms and legs into the tattered clothes around the bed.
Bang!
“Our sons! Good morning!"
“...”
Ippolito, scantily clad, exposed a considerable amount of skin and made eye contact with his mother, who burst through the door with an ambiguous expression.
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