Immediately after Pelarhar left, Erdene noticed a large shadow circling near the window.
At first, she thought it was a fast-moving cloud, but it wasn’t.
The shadow continued to move back and forth at a constant speed, in a similar location.
‘No way.’
When Erdene was about to open the window, Anne came in. Since Sophia was out, she had come to check if there was anything she needed to do.
“You don’t have to come until I call you. Oh, right. Go to the kitchen and get some water and raw meat.”
“Raw meat? What are you going to use it for?”
Erdene glanced out the window and smiled innocently.
“There’s a cat on the windowsill.”
“A cat...? I see.”
As Anne tilted her head and went outside, Erdene unlocked the door and opened the window wide.
Then, a long shadow gradually came closer, and a large bird quickly flew into her living room.
“Glucker!”
A black-headed and black-winged falcon squeaked loudly and landed on her shoulder.
Erdene flinched and bent down as its sharp talons dug into her flesh.
“Ouch!”
The startled falcon squeaked and flew away again. Then, in a hurry, it grabbed the backrest of the chair and sat down.
Erdene lightly stroked the falcon’s beak with her finger and laughed as she touched its flushed shoulder.
“I guess I can’t do without protective gear. I didn’t realize it because I always wore armor or thick clothes in the empire...”
She smiled contentedly as she looked at the paper tightly tied to the falcon’s leg.
When she untied the string and took out the paper, Anne, who had been in the kitchen, opened the door and stumbled in surprise.
“Your Majesty, that bird...!”
“Shh, Anne. Don’t make a loud noise. Bring it here.”
Anne was so scared that her face turned pale, but she couldn’t dare disobey the order and approached cautiously.
Erdene, who had a similar personality to Sophia and was usually calm, laughed softly when she saw her frozen figure.
“Are you afraid of birds?”
“A woodpecker is fine, but Your Majesty, anyone would be afraid of a large bird of prey like this. Where on earth did this bird come from?”
“It’s a trained bird, so it’s fine. It won’t bite or tear you. Not until I order it too.”
So it can bite or tear me if you order it to... Anne swallowed dryly and slowly stepped back.
In the meantime, Erdene fed the falcon, which had flown a long way, water and fresh food.
“Anne, you must not tell anyone that you saw the bird. Do you understand?”
“...Should I keep it a secret from Miss Sophia?”
“I’ll tell Sophia, so it’s okay.”
Anne let out a small sigh with a somewhat relieved expression.
If it was something to tell Sophia, it wouldn’t be a very serious secret.
No, it might be a serious secret... In any case, all she had to do was forget what she saw here today. It wasn’t that hard for the taciturn Anne to pretend not to see or hear.
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
“You have to keep that in mind. Now, go out.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“It’s okay, so don’t worry and go out. This kid is relatively easygoing, but he might try to sit on your head if he gets bored.”
Anne, her face pale, hurriedly left the room, bending her knees.
Erdene left the falcon to rest for a moment before unfolding the paper. It was stiff and tough, coated with wax to prevent it from getting wet in the rain, and it was military paper used in Hirschsten.
<Your Highness, please.
Please forgive me for writing this in such a hurry. I hope that Glucker will deliver this letter safely to you.
I have seen the letter Your Majesty sent to Captain Thelma, and Captain Aiman as well. I understand what Your Majesty is worried about. Don’t worry, I have kept Rolls under tight control.
Captain Thelma is in charge of Atelgadis. I will report back later, as Ash Kirgel has succeeded in infiltrating the house as an employee.
In addition, I would like to tell you once again that it is a certain fact that he enlisted the imperial officials while Your Majesty was guarding the battlefield with Vinothin.
Atelgadis robbed not only his own property but also the imperial treasury to gather forces to support His Majesty Teneck.
The tax exemption was also a shallow trick. The people of Hirschsten will likely suffer starting from this year’s harvest season.
I haven’t seen the Empress yet. Since she’s practically living in seclusion in the Empress’s palace, there must be an intermediary to deliver the news.
There are indeed various opinions regarding His Majesty the Late Emperor’s downfall. However, there is still no definitive evidence, so we have no choice but to send people here and there to find out while avoiding the Emperor’s eyes. >
Erdene frowned and let out a short sigh.
In the Empire where the atmosphere had changed, it would not have been easy for the three of them, who were already under Tenek’s watch, to move secretly.
And now, wasn’t I here in Vetor, who would be their background...
Erdene pursed her lips and continued reading the letter.
<Do you remember the niece of Captain Aiman, Diona, who became the palace physician last year? Right after Your Majesty left for Vetor, the child secretly visited Captain Aiman and said that he found something strange in the records of the Office of the Royal Doctors.
It was a record of the medicine prescribed by the palace doctors when the Emperor was ill, and the paper and material used in the records seemed different.
No one knew anything when asked, and the palace doctor who wrote the prescription voluntarily resigned and returned to his hometown right after the Emperor passed away.
In order to find this palace doctor, I found out his hometown and sent someone there. It is quite far from the capital, so it may take some time, but I will tell Your Majesty the news as soon as I get it.
I will stop here. Please stay strong.
Merton.>
Erdene's fingertips holding the letter trembled faintly.
The falcon, who was sitting on the chair and moving his feet here and there as if he felt uncomfortable, sensed that his master was in a bad mood, so he made a small squeaking sound and nipped her hand as if to comfort her.
Erdene’s clenched fist pressed firmly against the window frame.
Uncontrollable anger was boiling inside her.
‘Palace doctor.’
A sound came from Erdene’s teeth.
‘Yes, palace doctor... I should have suspected the letter of resignation a long time ago. You said that Father had a sudden illness and then suffered afterward. The palace doctor must have prescribed medicine when he had a cold. If he had become unwell after that...’
The bones in her fist stood out white.
She wanted to catch the fastest horse and ride to the empire right away.
She would run and grab Teneclk by the collar, drag him down from the throne, and then put her sword to his neck, and then she would hear the answer. Or...
‘Atelgadis.’
Atelgadis, the father of Empress Roelica, was a man with wide connections in many ways.
After offering her daughter to Prince Tenek, he was given a higher position by the former Emperor and became the center of the imperial bureaucracy.
However, until then, Atelgadis was only a figurehead, pushed aside by the knight commanders and officers centered around Erdene.
Erdene knew that Atelgadis was getting close to the officials who were dissatisfied with the knight commanders, but she didn’t care.
‘I didn’t know it would turn out like this back then. If I had known, I would have gotten rid of that pig a long time ago.’
Her clenched jaw trembled. Erdene sighed with her brows narrowed, and furrowed her brow as she glanced down at Merton’s letter.
It was a useless assumption now. It was the same for Atelgadis and Tenek.
In the end, she needed to stay here in Vetor and observe the empire. To do that, she had to think.
She had to open her eyes... Just like in war. She had to be two or three steps ahead of the enemy, preparing for both attack and defense.
She took out a piece of paper and wrote a reply to Merton.
<Merton, Thelma, and Aiman.
Glucker delivered the letter well. I know what you want to say, so do it. Be careful not to catch Tenek’s eye.
Write to me as soon as you find the doctor in question. And have Aiman’s niece gather more information from the letter of resignation.
It will be difficult, but I cannot help but ask you.
Also, do your best to persuade the Empress.
Roelica is absolutely necessary not only for the matter of Father but also for monitoring Tenek in the future.
Wait for news.
Erdene.>
Erdene went to the toilette room and searched through the dresses.
She found a shawl made of a material that was not easily soaked in water, brought it back, and tore it to pieces with a letter knife. It was a very expensive fabric, but she didn’t care.
The hawk flapped its wings once, startled by the sound. However, when Erdene hung a piece of paper wrapped in cloth around its ankle, it obediently folded its wings.
“Glucker, tell Merton this. You’re going to have a hard time from now on... Fortunately, none of the soldiers standing guard at the border of Vetor are skilled enough to shoot you.”
Glucker made a clicking sound with his beak as if he understood Erdene’s words.
She gave the falcon a sip or two of water and then carefully led it to the window.
“Go.”
The falcon, which had been looking down the window, spread its wings and swooped down.
Then it rose upward as if riding the wind and disappeared behind the clouds in an instant.
After the falcon disappeared, Erdene, who had been staring blankly at the empty sky, closed her eyes and closed the window. Then she heard someone running down the hallway with a thump.
At first, she thought it was a fast-moving cloud, but it wasn’t.
The shadow continued to move back and forth at a constant speed, in a similar location.
‘No way.’
When Erdene was about to open the window, Anne came in. Since Sophia was out, she had come to check if there was anything she needed to do.
“You don’t have to come until I call you. Oh, right. Go to the kitchen and get some water and raw meat.”
“Raw meat? What are you going to use it for?”
Erdene glanced out the window and smiled innocently.
“There’s a cat on the windowsill.”
“A cat...? I see.”
As Anne tilted her head and went outside, Erdene unlocked the door and opened the window wide.
Then, a long shadow gradually came closer, and a large bird quickly flew into her living room.
“Glucker!”
A black-headed and black-winged falcon squeaked loudly and landed on her shoulder.
Erdene flinched and bent down as its sharp talons dug into her flesh.
“Ouch!”
The startled falcon squeaked and flew away again. Then, in a hurry, it grabbed the backrest of the chair and sat down.
Erdene lightly stroked the falcon’s beak with her finger and laughed as she touched its flushed shoulder.
“I guess I can’t do without protective gear. I didn’t realize it because I always wore armor or thick clothes in the empire...”
She smiled contentedly as she looked at the paper tightly tied to the falcon’s leg.
When she untied the string and took out the paper, Anne, who had been in the kitchen, opened the door and stumbled in surprise.
“Your Majesty, that bird...!”
“Shh, Anne. Don’t make a loud noise. Bring it here.”
Anne was so scared that her face turned pale, but she couldn’t dare disobey the order and approached cautiously.
Erdene, who had a similar personality to Sophia and was usually calm, laughed softly when she saw her frozen figure.
“Are you afraid of birds?”
“A woodpecker is fine, but Your Majesty, anyone would be afraid of a large bird of prey like this. Where on earth did this bird come from?”
“It’s a trained bird, so it’s fine. It won’t bite or tear you. Not until I order it too.”
So it can bite or tear me if you order it to... Anne swallowed dryly and slowly stepped back.
In the meantime, Erdene fed the falcon, which had flown a long way, water and fresh food.
“Anne, you must not tell anyone that you saw the bird. Do you understand?”
“...Should I keep it a secret from Miss Sophia?”
“I’ll tell Sophia, so it’s okay.”
Anne let out a small sigh with a somewhat relieved expression.
If it was something to tell Sophia, it wouldn’t be a very serious secret.
No, it might be a serious secret... In any case, all she had to do was forget what she saw here today. It wasn’t that hard for the taciturn Anne to pretend not to see or hear.
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
“You have to keep that in mind. Now, go out.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“It’s okay, so don’t worry and go out. This kid is relatively easygoing, but he might try to sit on your head if he gets bored.”
Anne, her face pale, hurriedly left the room, bending her knees.
Erdene left the falcon to rest for a moment before unfolding the paper. It was stiff and tough, coated with wax to prevent it from getting wet in the rain, and it was military paper used in Hirschsten.
<Your Highness, please.
Please forgive me for writing this in such a hurry. I hope that Glucker will deliver this letter safely to you.
I have seen the letter Your Majesty sent to Captain Thelma, and Captain Aiman as well. I understand what Your Majesty is worried about. Don’t worry, I have kept Rolls under tight control.
Captain Thelma is in charge of Atelgadis. I will report back later, as Ash Kirgel has succeeded in infiltrating the house as an employee.
In addition, I would like to tell you once again that it is a certain fact that he enlisted the imperial officials while Your Majesty was guarding the battlefield with Vinothin.
Atelgadis robbed not only his own property but also the imperial treasury to gather forces to support His Majesty Teneck.
The tax exemption was also a shallow trick. The people of Hirschsten will likely suffer starting from this year’s harvest season.
I haven’t seen the Empress yet. Since she’s practically living in seclusion in the Empress’s palace, there must be an intermediary to deliver the news.
There are indeed various opinions regarding His Majesty the Late Emperor’s downfall. However, there is still no definitive evidence, so we have no choice but to send people here and there to find out while avoiding the Emperor’s eyes. >
Erdene frowned and let out a short sigh.
In the Empire where the atmosphere had changed, it would not have been easy for the three of them, who were already under Tenek’s watch, to move secretly.
And now, wasn’t I here in Vetor, who would be their background...
Erdene pursed her lips and continued reading the letter.
<Do you remember the niece of Captain Aiman, Diona, who became the palace physician last year? Right after Your Majesty left for Vetor, the child secretly visited Captain Aiman and said that he found something strange in the records of the Office of the Royal Doctors.
It was a record of the medicine prescribed by the palace doctors when the Emperor was ill, and the paper and material used in the records seemed different.
No one knew anything when asked, and the palace doctor who wrote the prescription voluntarily resigned and returned to his hometown right after the Emperor passed away.
In order to find this palace doctor, I found out his hometown and sent someone there. It is quite far from the capital, so it may take some time, but I will tell Your Majesty the news as soon as I get it.
I will stop here. Please stay strong.
Merton.>
Erdene's fingertips holding the letter trembled faintly.
The falcon, who was sitting on the chair and moving his feet here and there as if he felt uncomfortable, sensed that his master was in a bad mood, so he made a small squeaking sound and nipped her hand as if to comfort her.
Erdene’s clenched fist pressed firmly against the window frame.
Uncontrollable anger was boiling inside her.
‘Palace doctor.’
A sound came from Erdene’s teeth.
‘Yes, palace doctor... I should have suspected the letter of resignation a long time ago. You said that Father had a sudden illness and then suffered afterward. The palace doctor must have prescribed medicine when he had a cold. If he had become unwell after that...’
The bones in her fist stood out white.
She wanted to catch the fastest horse and ride to the empire right away.
She would run and grab Teneclk by the collar, drag him down from the throne, and then put her sword to his neck, and then she would hear the answer. Or...
‘Atelgadis.’
Atelgadis, the father of Empress Roelica, was a man with wide connections in many ways.
After offering her daughter to Prince Tenek, he was given a higher position by the former Emperor and became the center of the imperial bureaucracy.
However, until then, Atelgadis was only a figurehead, pushed aside by the knight commanders and officers centered around Erdene.
Erdene knew that Atelgadis was getting close to the officials who were dissatisfied with the knight commanders, but she didn’t care.
‘I didn’t know it would turn out like this back then. If I had known, I would have gotten rid of that pig a long time ago.’
Her clenched jaw trembled. Erdene sighed with her brows narrowed, and furrowed her brow as she glanced down at Merton’s letter.
It was a useless assumption now. It was the same for Atelgadis and Tenek.
In the end, she needed to stay here in Vetor and observe the empire. To do that, she had to think.
She had to open her eyes... Just like in war. She had to be two or three steps ahead of the enemy, preparing for both attack and defense.
She took out a piece of paper and wrote a reply to Merton.
<Merton, Thelma, and Aiman.
Glucker delivered the letter well. I know what you want to say, so do it. Be careful not to catch Tenek’s eye.
Write to me as soon as you find the doctor in question. And have Aiman’s niece gather more information from the letter of resignation.
It will be difficult, but I cannot help but ask you.
Also, do your best to persuade the Empress.
Roelica is absolutely necessary not only for the matter of Father but also for monitoring Tenek in the future.
Wait for news.
Erdene.>
Erdene went to the toilette room and searched through the dresses.
She found a shawl made of a material that was not easily soaked in water, brought it back, and tore it to pieces with a letter knife. It was a very expensive fabric, but she didn’t care.
The hawk flapped its wings once, startled by the sound. However, when Erdene hung a piece of paper wrapped in cloth around its ankle, it obediently folded its wings.
“Glucker, tell Merton this. You’re going to have a hard time from now on... Fortunately, none of the soldiers standing guard at the border of Vetor are skilled enough to shoot you.”
Glucker made a clicking sound with his beak as if he understood Erdene’s words.
She gave the falcon a sip or two of water and then carefully led it to the window.
“Go.”
The falcon, which had been looking down the window, spread its wings and swooped down.
Then it rose upward as if riding the wind and disappeared behind the clouds in an instant.
After the falcon disappeared, Erdene, who had been staring blankly at the empty sky, closed her eyes and closed the window. Then she heard someone running down the hallway with a thump.
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