The heavy silence continued even after Adele finished speaking.
Everyone had a lot to say, but as they were competing to see who would speak first, the first one to speak was none other than Duke Lucien.
“I am in favor of Lady Adele Leopold inheriting the Duchess’ throne.”
“Yo, Your Excellency!”
When the neutral nobles were greatly embarrassed and called out, the Duke of Lucien looked at them with a puzzled look.
“Why are you so flustered? Are you guys against my decision?”
“That, that’s not possible! That’s absolutely not true!”
“Then tell me your opinions quickly. I’m really curious.”
As the Duke of Lucien spoke with his eyes wide open, the neutral nobles looked around and then raised their hands slightly.
“I agree too.”
“I agree too.”
The neutral nobles were followers of the Duke of Lucien, so they had no choice but to follow his opinions, even if they didn't feel like it.
Adele's lips smoothly rose as she gained three votes in an instant.
She placed one hand on her heart and bowed to the Duke of Lucien and the neutral nobles.
“Thank you for your support.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
Count Smithen, who had come to his senses late, jumped up from his seat and shouted.
“If Lady Leopold becomes a Duke, what will happen to His Highness the Fourth Prince? He will not receive any title... Is that okay?”
Adele nodded.
“If you are asking for His Highness’s opinion, then you do not need to worry, as he agrees.”
“Your Highness the Fourth Prince agreed to such an absurd thing?”
“Why do you think it would be absurd for me to become a Duke, Count? Am I perhaps not qualified to be one?”
"That..."
When the Count of Smithen closed his mouth before finishing speaking, Adele continued speaking in his stead.
“I obtained the qualification of a knight under the status of Duke Leopold, who is called the Sword of the Empire, and even graduated from the Knight Academy in two and a half years.”
Adele placed the knighthood she had received upon graduating from the academy on the table.
“That’s not all. I also dealt with the Pushk incident that occurred in Martina’s estate three years ago. This is Count Martina’s statement.”
Next to it, Count Martina also put down a detailed account of what happened during the Pushik incident three years ago.
“And everyone here must have heard that it was thanks to me that the Duchy of Leopold was able to maintain its status quo without being shaken even after my father passed away.”
“I heard.”
The Duke of Lucien added with a smile.
“I thought it was really great that it was too much for a young lady who had just become an adult to handle. That’s why I agreed to Young Lady Leopold inheriting the ducal title.”
Adele asked the Duke of Lucien to vote in favor of her succession to the Duchy, but that was all.
Adele glanced at the Duke of Lucien, feeling a little strange that he kept helping her without her asking for anything else.
Was it true that he would have agreed to become a Duke even without asking for a wish?
This time, the Marquis of Macmillan stepped forward.
“That is true, but we must also consider His Highness the 4th Prince’s position, Young Lady Leopold. His Highness’s position will become difficult if Young Lady becomes a Duke, as he is of a higher status than the Duke.”
“Since birth status and title are separate things, His Highness will not be in any trouble.”
“But the royal family still has authority...”
“His Excellency the Marquis of Macmillan.”
Adele spoke in a calm yet angry voice. as if the night before a storm was about to strike.
“Why didn’t someone who thinks so highly of the authority of the royal family give a title to the Marchioness who was the Princess?”
“Ahem.”
The Marquis of Macmillan, who had nothing more to say after hearing the words that hit the nail on the head, coughed in vain and shut his mouth.
It got three votes right out of the gate, but still needed three more to get majority approval.
To be exact, there were two votes.
Since Marquis Prasis signed the contract, he had no choice but to vote in favor, even if he didn't like it.
To get the remaining two votes, Adele smiled and spoke to the anti-imperial nobles.
“For your information, if I become a duke, I will donate 40,000 gold to the temple every year.”
“Hoo.”
“You’re saying you’re donating to the temple?”
Unlike the pro-imperial nobles who actively opposed it, the anti-imperial nobles who had only shown a lukewarm reaction showed slightly brighter expressions.
“The Duke Leopold family has been loyal to His Majesty the Emperor for generations. But to donate to the temple? Are you betraying His Majesty the Emperor?”
On the other hand, the imperialist nobles asked with a shit-chewing expression.
Adele replied with a steady smile.
“Of course. Of course, I will be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor.”
“But why are you in the temple...”
“It’s for the poor children who have no place to go. They are the talented people who will lead the empire in the future. The temple is taking care of these children, so I’m making a donation because I want to be of some help.”
“It’s all God’s will.”
“Because God said to look down on all things.”
As the anti-imperial nobles smiled happily, the expressions on the Emperor nobles' faces became increasingly worse.
The Marquis of Macmillan raised his hand.
“I completely disagree.”
“I also disagree.”
“I also disagree.”
The Count of Smithon and the Imperialist nobleman Count Robert voted against it.
Adele nodded calmly and looked at the anti-imperial nobles, as she had never thought they would agree from the beginning.
They chatted for a while and then each raised their hand.
“I agree.”
“I agree too.”
“I object.”
“I disagree, too.”
With this, there were 5 votes in favor and 5 votes against.
Whether Adele would become a Duke or not depended on where the Marquis of Prasis cast his vote.
Marquis Prasis has not said a word since the Aletheia was held, only wiping away the cold sweat.
“What are you doing, Marquis of Prasis? Please cast your vote against it immediately.”
“Your Excellency the Marquis.”
As the fellow imperialist nobles harassed him, the Marquis of Prasis closed his eyes tightly.
He secretly hoped there would be six votes in favor before he made his decision.
Then, even if he doesn't necessarily agree, it will be confirmed that Adele will become the Duke.
But it was a bleak situation because the decision he made was to make Adele the duke.
“Why don’t you say anything, Marquis Prasis?”
“Your Excellency the Marquis.”
The constant nagging from the same faction of nobles was also burdensome.
The Marquis of Prasis glanced at Adele. When their eyes met, his gaze urged her to speak quickly.
The Marquis of Prasis closed his eyes tightly, then opened them and raised his hand.
“I... am in favor of Young Lady Adele Leopold becoming the Duke.”
“Your Excellency the Marquis!”
“Marquis of Prasis!”
The imperialist nobles stood up in amazement at the completely unexpected decision of the Marquis of Prasis.
The anti-imperial nobles and neutral nobles also looked at him in surprise.
“This is really fun.”
The only one who was smiling was the Duke of Lucien.
Adele confidently said that she would get the remaining votes if only he would agree, and he thought she would really do it.
It was surprising and amazing.
The Duke of Lucien looked at Adele.
She was smiling too.
It was natural for her to smile since she got what she wanted.
But why is that?
Her smile felt uncomfortable, so the Duke of Lucien continued to stare at her until Adele received her title of succession to the Council of Nobles and left the Great Hall.
At the same time, Adele attended the Aletheia held in the conference room of the outer palace.
Perdes was in Leopold's duchy.
Normally he would have gone to the capital with Adele, but today, unusually, he stayed in the ducal territory.
There is homework assigned by Adele, and the Emperor might get furious and summon him if he follows her around and hears about what happened in Aletheia.
In front of Perdes was a mountain of books. They were all related to magic circles.
As he was studying how to release the magic circle on the drawer, the Pura embedded in the ring he had placed next to the book began to sparkle.
It was a magic communication ring given by the Emperor.
Perdes checked the time.
The current time is 2:40.
If all had gone according to plan, it would have been time for Adele to go to court with the approval of the House of Lords.
Perdes was secretly curious about the results, and he could tell by the magic communication ring the Emperor had given him that it was sparkling.
Perdes smiled happily.
He didn't answer the first call, but he answered the next call.
[Change Perdes immediately!]
As soon as he got the call, a voice full of anger fell like lightning.
It must be a secret that Jack is the watcher the Emperor planted, but he seems quite angry at being asked to change it all of a sudden.
Perdes leaned back against the back of the sofa, imagining the expression on the face of the crumpled Emperor, Daimon.
“I have already received it, so you do not need to come to me separately, Your Majesty.”
Perhaps embarrassed, Daimon said nothing.
"Your Majesty?"
When Perdes called out in surprise, only then did Daimon speak again.
[Why do you have this ring?]
“Well, Jack gave it to me. He said he was afraid of receiving a call from His Majesty the Emperor.”
[What... No, that’s okay. That’s not what’s important right now.]
It seemed as if the Emperor could be heard taking a deep breath.
[I clearly told you to protect the ducal title, so why did you hand it over to Adele Leopold?]
“It wasn’t handed over. The ducal title originally belonged to Lady Leopold. She is the only blood relative of the Duke Leopold’s family, so it’s only natural that she should become the Duke.”
[... Are you challenging me now, Perdes?]
Daimon asked in a low voice. It was a voice that gave people goosebumps just hearing it, but it had no effect on Perdes.
“How could that be, I was just stating the obvious.”
[Perdes!]
“Oh, my beloved fiancée is coming back as a Duke, so I’ll have to throw her a grand celebration party. I have to go get ready quickly, so I’ll hang up now.”
Perdes placed the magic communication ring into the glass of water.
As its name in ancient languages meant flame, Pura was weak to water and did not function properly when placed in water.
So when contact with Daimon was cut off, Perdes stood up with a cheerful smile.
“Then shall we prepare a celebration party?”
Everyone had a lot to say, but as they were competing to see who would speak first, the first one to speak was none other than Duke Lucien.
“I am in favor of Lady Adele Leopold inheriting the Duchess’ throne.”
“Yo, Your Excellency!”
When the neutral nobles were greatly embarrassed and called out, the Duke of Lucien looked at them with a puzzled look.
“Why are you so flustered? Are you guys against my decision?”
“That, that’s not possible! That’s absolutely not true!”
“Then tell me your opinions quickly. I’m really curious.”
As the Duke of Lucien spoke with his eyes wide open, the neutral nobles looked around and then raised their hands slightly.
“I agree too.”
“I agree too.”
The neutral nobles were followers of the Duke of Lucien, so they had no choice but to follow his opinions, even if they didn't feel like it.
Adele's lips smoothly rose as she gained three votes in an instant.
She placed one hand on her heart and bowed to the Duke of Lucien and the neutral nobles.
“Thank you for your support.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
Count Smithen, who had come to his senses late, jumped up from his seat and shouted.
“If Lady Leopold becomes a Duke, what will happen to His Highness the Fourth Prince? He will not receive any title... Is that okay?”
Adele nodded.
“If you are asking for His Highness’s opinion, then you do not need to worry, as he agrees.”
“Your Highness the Fourth Prince agreed to such an absurd thing?”
“Why do you think it would be absurd for me to become a Duke, Count? Am I perhaps not qualified to be one?”
"That..."
When the Count of Smithen closed his mouth before finishing speaking, Adele continued speaking in his stead.
“I obtained the qualification of a knight under the status of Duke Leopold, who is called the Sword of the Empire, and even graduated from the Knight Academy in two and a half years.”
Adele placed the knighthood she had received upon graduating from the academy on the table.
“That’s not all. I also dealt with the Pushk incident that occurred in Martina’s estate three years ago. This is Count Martina’s statement.”
Next to it, Count Martina also put down a detailed account of what happened during the Pushik incident three years ago.
“And everyone here must have heard that it was thanks to me that the Duchy of Leopold was able to maintain its status quo without being shaken even after my father passed away.”
“I heard.”
The Duke of Lucien added with a smile.
“I thought it was really great that it was too much for a young lady who had just become an adult to handle. That’s why I agreed to Young Lady Leopold inheriting the ducal title.”
Adele asked the Duke of Lucien to vote in favor of her succession to the Duchy, but that was all.
Adele glanced at the Duke of Lucien, feeling a little strange that he kept helping her without her asking for anything else.
Was it true that he would have agreed to become a Duke even without asking for a wish?
This time, the Marquis of Macmillan stepped forward.
“That is true, but we must also consider His Highness the 4th Prince’s position, Young Lady Leopold. His Highness’s position will become difficult if Young Lady becomes a Duke, as he is of a higher status than the Duke.”
“Since birth status and title are separate things, His Highness will not be in any trouble.”
“But the royal family still has authority...”
“His Excellency the Marquis of Macmillan.”
Adele spoke in a calm yet angry voice. as if the night before a storm was about to strike.
“Why didn’t someone who thinks so highly of the authority of the royal family give a title to the Marchioness who was the Princess?”
“Ahem.”
The Marquis of Macmillan, who had nothing more to say after hearing the words that hit the nail on the head, coughed in vain and shut his mouth.
It got three votes right out of the gate, but still needed three more to get majority approval.
To be exact, there were two votes.
Since Marquis Prasis signed the contract, he had no choice but to vote in favor, even if he didn't like it.
To get the remaining two votes, Adele smiled and spoke to the anti-imperial nobles.
“For your information, if I become a duke, I will donate 40,000 gold to the temple every year.”
“Hoo.”
“You’re saying you’re donating to the temple?”
Unlike the pro-imperial nobles who actively opposed it, the anti-imperial nobles who had only shown a lukewarm reaction showed slightly brighter expressions.
“The Duke Leopold family has been loyal to His Majesty the Emperor for generations. But to donate to the temple? Are you betraying His Majesty the Emperor?”
On the other hand, the imperialist nobles asked with a shit-chewing expression.
Adele replied with a steady smile.
“Of course. Of course, I will be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor.”
“But why are you in the temple...”
“It’s for the poor children who have no place to go. They are the talented people who will lead the empire in the future. The temple is taking care of these children, so I’m making a donation because I want to be of some help.”
“It’s all God’s will.”
“Because God said to look down on all things.”
As the anti-imperial nobles smiled happily, the expressions on the Emperor nobles' faces became increasingly worse.
The Marquis of Macmillan raised his hand.
“I completely disagree.”
“I also disagree.”
“I also disagree.”
The Count of Smithon and the Imperialist nobleman Count Robert voted against it.
Adele nodded calmly and looked at the anti-imperial nobles, as she had never thought they would agree from the beginning.
They chatted for a while and then each raised their hand.
“I agree.”
“I agree too.”
“I object.”
“I disagree, too.”
With this, there were 5 votes in favor and 5 votes against.
Whether Adele would become a Duke or not depended on where the Marquis of Prasis cast his vote.
Marquis Prasis has not said a word since the Aletheia was held, only wiping away the cold sweat.
“What are you doing, Marquis of Prasis? Please cast your vote against it immediately.”
“Your Excellency the Marquis.”
As the fellow imperialist nobles harassed him, the Marquis of Prasis closed his eyes tightly.
He secretly hoped there would be six votes in favor before he made his decision.
Then, even if he doesn't necessarily agree, it will be confirmed that Adele will become the Duke.
But it was a bleak situation because the decision he made was to make Adele the duke.
“Why don’t you say anything, Marquis Prasis?”
“Your Excellency the Marquis.”
The constant nagging from the same faction of nobles was also burdensome.
The Marquis of Prasis glanced at Adele. When their eyes met, his gaze urged her to speak quickly.
The Marquis of Prasis closed his eyes tightly, then opened them and raised his hand.
“I... am in favor of Young Lady Adele Leopold becoming the Duke.”
“Your Excellency the Marquis!”
“Marquis of Prasis!”
The imperialist nobles stood up in amazement at the completely unexpected decision of the Marquis of Prasis.
The anti-imperial nobles and neutral nobles also looked at him in surprise.
“This is really fun.”
The only one who was smiling was the Duke of Lucien.
Adele confidently said that she would get the remaining votes if only he would agree, and he thought she would really do it.
It was surprising and amazing.
The Duke of Lucien looked at Adele.
She was smiling too.
It was natural for her to smile since she got what she wanted.
But why is that?
Her smile felt uncomfortable, so the Duke of Lucien continued to stare at her until Adele received her title of succession to the Council of Nobles and left the Great Hall.
***
At the same time, Adele attended the Aletheia held in the conference room of the outer palace.
Perdes was in Leopold's duchy.
Normally he would have gone to the capital with Adele, but today, unusually, he stayed in the ducal territory.
There is homework assigned by Adele, and the Emperor might get furious and summon him if he follows her around and hears about what happened in Aletheia.
In front of Perdes was a mountain of books. They were all related to magic circles.
As he was studying how to release the magic circle on the drawer, the Pura embedded in the ring he had placed next to the book began to sparkle.
It was a magic communication ring given by the Emperor.
Perdes checked the time.
The current time is 2:40.
If all had gone according to plan, it would have been time for Adele to go to court with the approval of the House of Lords.
Perdes was secretly curious about the results, and he could tell by the magic communication ring the Emperor had given him that it was sparkling.
Perdes smiled happily.
He didn't answer the first call, but he answered the next call.
[Change Perdes immediately!]
As soon as he got the call, a voice full of anger fell like lightning.
It must be a secret that Jack is the watcher the Emperor planted, but he seems quite angry at being asked to change it all of a sudden.
Perdes leaned back against the back of the sofa, imagining the expression on the face of the crumpled Emperor, Daimon.
“I have already received it, so you do not need to come to me separately, Your Majesty.”
Perhaps embarrassed, Daimon said nothing.
"Your Majesty?"
When Perdes called out in surprise, only then did Daimon speak again.
[Why do you have this ring?]
“Well, Jack gave it to me. He said he was afraid of receiving a call from His Majesty the Emperor.”
[What... No, that’s okay. That’s not what’s important right now.]
It seemed as if the Emperor could be heard taking a deep breath.
[I clearly told you to protect the ducal title, so why did you hand it over to Adele Leopold?]
“It wasn’t handed over. The ducal title originally belonged to Lady Leopold. She is the only blood relative of the Duke Leopold’s family, so it’s only natural that she should become the Duke.”
[... Are you challenging me now, Perdes?]
Daimon asked in a low voice. It was a voice that gave people goosebumps just hearing it, but it had no effect on Perdes.
“How could that be, I was just stating the obvious.”
[Perdes!]
“Oh, my beloved fiancée is coming back as a Duke, so I’ll have to throw her a grand celebration party. I have to go get ready quickly, so I’ll hang up now.”
Perdes placed the magic communication ring into the glass of water.
As its name in ancient languages meant flame, Pura was weak to water and did not function properly when placed in water.
So when contact with Daimon was cut off, Perdes stood up with a cheerful smile.
“Then shall we prepare a celebration party?”
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment