Liene was left alone with Black in a bedroom where a strange air current made it difficult to breathe every time she took a breath.
“...Thank you for your concern. I’m fine now, so go out and do your business.”
“Would you do that, Princess?”
“...”
Black interpreted Liene's expression of keeping her mouth shut as an answer.
“Just lie down. I’ll watch from the side.”
After finishing speaking, Black pulled a chair from in front of the fireplace and sat down next to the bed.
“...”
Liene sat on the bed, fiddling with the edge of the blanket. In fact, she could have tried to provoke more suspicion. She has a lot to do, and she has more things to worry about than the baby in her stomach right now.
“Let me get straight to the point.”
Liene cut off the useless conversation.
“What did you do with the royal records you stole?”
"...Yes?"
Fermos opened his eyes wide and lifted his monocle.
“What did I do?”
“I don’t want to talk at length. If you have it, give it to me. It won’t make your sins go away, but it will make them a little lighter.”
“So what do you mean? Royal records? What records would I have brought, why, and when?”
“...Are you trying to evade the issue like that?”
“You’re absolutely right! Why would I bring the royal records? I could just look at them and memorize them.”
Fermos, who was jumping up and down, looked really wrong. His expression clearly showed that he had no idea what was going on.
...No, I don’t know. This guy is so sly. Who knows if he’s good at lying.
“I guess it was because you were afraid I would see it.”
“Hmm? Are you saying there are records that the Princess hasn’t seen yet?”
“...”
That question left Liene speechless.
“You are right to doubt me, but I swear to the god of war that I have never touched the royal records.”
When Liene made a face of disbelief, Fermos held out both hands with a harmless expression.
“Do you know who the god of war is in Tiwakan?”
"...No."
“This is Lord Tiwakan.”
“I see. Why is that....”
“To swear an oath to the god of war is to stake your name on it. In Tiwakan, there is not a single human who would use his name in vain.”
“....”
The face of Fermos, who said those words, was so full of confidence and pride that it was impossible not to believe it. Even for a mercenary who uses war as a means of making money, or rather, for such a mercenary, belief was essential. The only thing that made a life that was nothing but death and money humane was belief. To Tiwakan, that was Black.
“...Now that you say that, I won’t press my suspicions any further. I hope that what you say is true. For the sake of your leader’s name.”
“The thing I will never do in my life is to dishonor my lord’s name. A person like that is not worthy of being called Tiwakan.”
...Yes. I get that. Liene swallowed a sigh. Then who on earth did this?
“Are you planning to find the culprit?”
Fermos asked, his worries clearly visible on his face.
"Yes."
“Then I will take care of it. The Princess just gave me a clue about the culprit who killed the high priest, so I have some free time for the first time in a while.”
“Would you do that?”
“Yes, but there is a condition.”
...The lord or one of his men. They all tried to get something by giving one. She couldn’t help but believe that they were all in cahoots.
“What is it?”
“Go back to your bedroom and lie still. My lord said that you wanted to see the old man who knew the whereabouts of your cousin. I have ordered them to bring him to the castle now, and I will tell you when he gets there. Until then, rest well.”
“It’s not that hard.”
“I’m doing this for my lord, not for the Princess. If you want me to be of help, then you must do so. If something goes wrong with the Princess... Ugh, I don’t even want to think about it. Anyway, please keep in mind that the results will be very bad.”
“...”
What Fermos said struck her somewhere. For that man. It sounded like that man was worried about her. What on earth was he doing that for?
“Is it okay if I say I’ll try?”
“No, you can’t. You have to lie still.”
“Then I promise. I will definitely find the culprit. The real culprit. I swear to the god of war.”
Fermos might put forward a false culprit for his lord. That could not be ruled out. Fermos readily raised his hand and swore an oath.
“If that’s all you need to do to lie down, then I’ll be happy to.”
“...Thank you.”
So she couldn't figure it out anymore. How can people with other goals act like that?
“Please go back. I will only move once the Princess returns to her bedroom. Have you taken all the medicine?”
In the end, Liene returned to her bedroom, escorted by Fermos. Fermos even stationed a mercenary to thoroughly monitor Liene's visit.
Previous Next
“...Thank you for your concern. I’m fine now, so go out and do your business.”
“Would you do that, Princess?”
“...”
Black interpreted Liene's expression of keeping her mouth shut as an answer.
“Just lie down. I’ll watch from the side.”
After finishing speaking, Black pulled a chair from in front of the fireplace and sat down next to the bed.
“...”
Liene sat on the bed, fiddling with the edge of the blanket. In fact, she could have tried to provoke more suspicion. She has a lot to do, and she has more things to worry about than the baby in her stomach right now.
You have no right to do this to me. Is it normal to use worry as an excuse to spy on someone? You may be engaged to me, but I am the ruler of this place. I am the one wearing the crown. But Liene couldn’t say that.
The worry seemed real. That man... He didn’t suspect her. Not even once. If you saw bloody sheets, you would normally suspect and question her. Black believed that the problem was because of the baby. That confused Liene greatly. How could that be?
He has doubts every moment of every day. He can’t keep his mind on even the smallest things. How can that man act like that?
“...Is it difficult for you to talk to me about children?”
Black, who was watching Liene, who was holding the blanket and whose eyes were getting darker, suddenly asked.
"...Yes?"
“Are you worried that I will always be aware of the child’s biological father? Is that why you couldn’t even say that you were sick?”
“That is... maybe.”
“It’s unnecessary. It’s my child.”
“...”
This is what I found suspicious. Why. On the contrary, if you had a child, I would have made every day count.
“You both know that’s not true. It can’t be true.”
The answer stood out.
“Honestly... That can’t be possible. You’re human.”
“I have decided to do so and am working on it.”
“Is this something that can be achieved through hard work?”
No, his blood relative died. Is that something that can be forgotten just because time has passed? He didn't forget that he was engaged to her when he was young, even though Liene doesn't remember it. So how can he forget death?
“No one is that generous... I can’t believe it.”
“It wasn’t particularly an act of generosity.”
“Then what is it?”
“Because I think you’ll accept me that way. Without resentment or hatred.”
“...”
“What should I do for you to believe?”
He doesn't believe her when she says it like that. When she says it like that as if it came straight out of a book. That doesn't exist in this world. It hasn't existed in the world she's lived in.
“Does that mean you’ll do anything?”
“...If only I could make the Princess trust me.”
It was an incredibly blind statement that Black had made. He was a predator everywhere. He had no reason to be blind. But why was he blind to her? That made no sense.
“In return, the Princess must also give me something.”
“What... this.”
“Promise. Determination. Anything. That you will definitely make the child in your stomach mine.”
“...”
“Can you do it?”
“First, show me.”
Liene finally let go of the blanket and faced Black.
“I’ll do anything.”
“What do you wish for?”
“I heard that Sir Fermos took an old man who was begging in front of the temple. I want to meet that old man.”
Black frowned briefly before answering.
“Isn’t this something that has nothing to do with children?”
“No, it doesn’t matter.”
It mattered a lot.
“I need to hear what other people have to say about the person who wants to be my child’s biological father.”
“..."
Black finally understood why Liene didn't trust him.
“It seems the Princess’s mind has returned to the time before I told you about my engagement. Back when you were suspicious of my identity and intentions.”
Liene couldn't bring herself to deny it.
“Yes, I’ll do whatever you want. But,”
Black's lips parted crookedly. The sight of his white teeth revealing themselves looked like a knife cutting into her heart.
“The Princess can never break her promise again.”
Black followed Liene's gaze doggedly from that spot until she finally nodded.
“...Is it difficult for you to talk to me about children?”
Black, who was watching Liene, who was holding the blanket and whose eyes were getting darker, suddenly asked.
"...Yes?"
“Are you worried that I will always be aware of the child’s biological father? Is that why you couldn’t even say that you were sick?”
“That is... maybe.”
“It’s unnecessary. It’s my child.”
“...”
This is what I found suspicious. Why. On the contrary, if you had a child, I would have made every day count.
“You both know that’s not true. It can’t be true.”
The answer stood out.
“Honestly... That can’t be possible. You’re human.”
“I have decided to do so and am working on it.”
“Is this something that can be achieved through hard work?”
No, his blood relative died. Is that something that can be forgotten just because time has passed? He didn't forget that he was engaged to her when he was young, even though Liene doesn't remember it. So how can he forget death?
“No one is that generous... I can’t believe it.”
“It wasn’t particularly an act of generosity.”
“Then what is it?”
“Because I think you’ll accept me that way. Without resentment or hatred.”
“...”
“What should I do for you to believe?”
He doesn't believe her when she says it like that. When she says it like that as if it came straight out of a book. That doesn't exist in this world. It hasn't existed in the world she's lived in.
“Does that mean you’ll do anything?”
“...If only I could make the Princess trust me.”
It was an incredibly blind statement that Black had made. He was a predator everywhere. He had no reason to be blind. But why was he blind to her? That made no sense.
“In return, the Princess must also give me something.”
“What... this.”
“Promise. Determination. Anything. That you will definitely make the child in your stomach mine.”
“...”
“Can you do it?”
“First, show me.”
Liene finally let go of the blanket and faced Black.
“I’ll do anything.”
“What do you wish for?”
“I heard that Sir Fermos took an old man who was begging in front of the temple. I want to meet that old man.”
Black frowned briefly before answering.
“Isn’t this something that has nothing to do with children?”
“No, it doesn’t matter.”
It mattered a lot.
“I need to hear what other people have to say about the person who wants to be my child’s biological father.”
“..."
Black finally understood why Liene didn't trust him.
“It seems the Princess’s mind has returned to the time before I told you about my engagement. Back when you were suspicious of my identity and intentions.”
Liene couldn't bring herself to deny it.
“Yes, I’ll do whatever you want. But,”
Black's lips parted crookedly. The sight of his white teeth revealing themselves looked like a knife cutting into her heart.
“The Princess can never break her promise again.”
Black followed Liene's gaze doggedly from that spot until she finally nodded.
***
She couldn't just lie down the whole time. Liene forced herself to stay in the bedroom until the medicine arrived, as Black had said. She gulped down the medicine that Madam Flambard handed her in one gulp and headed to the office. The medicine was very bitter, and she thought that eating something like this would actually startle the child more. Still, Fermos said that he had carefully checked the ingredients that went into the medicine and that it was safe.
“It’ll be left somewhere.”
What Liene was looking for was a royal record from 20 years ago.
“It’s been 21 years since my father was crowned. So the man was harmed when my father was King.”
If there was talk of engagement, it must have been a fairly famous family. Liene looked through the families that had participated in the coronation.
“Did you say that the letter ‘G’ was included...”
Of the thirteen families invited to the coronation, none had such consonants. Her arms were aching as she flipped through the heavy royal records, thickly covered in dust.
“Is the engagement itself a lie?”
Liene chewed her lips as she stared at the letters that didn't change much no matter how much she looked at them.
“No, the wife might have seen it wrong. It might be one of these.”
Liene carefully examined the thirteen families. Six of them were the great nobles of Nauk who had created the Treaty of Liseberg. The remaining three had either died out over time or lost their former glory, and the remaining four families had left Nauk one by one for twenty years.
“There is no time zone that matches.”
The families that left Nauk did not fit what Black had said. After looking at the old letters for a while, which had been eating dust, Liene felt dizzy.
“Maybe the time zone is wrong.”
If Black wasn't completely lying, he might not have been telling the exact time. Usually, when talking about a long time like 20 years, he didn't specify exactly how many years it was.
“It might have been a little over 20 years ago.”
Liene began to search for records from before the coronation.
"...What's this."
And she discovered something very strange: there were no records left from before the coronation, that is, from 25 to 21 years ago.
“What the hell is going on?”
It was absurd that only that part had been cut out with a knife, and there was a clear trace of it. It was shocking that someone had tampered with the royal records, but it was also extremely suspicious that the part that was so important to know was missing.
"No way..."
At that time, there was one person who could not help but be suspicious.
“The wonder of Fermos...”
He was hiding in his office, never having been allowed entry. No one knew how often he had been coming and going before.
“Because that guy told you to?”
Liene wonders if there was anything about Black among the records from the past five years that disappeared. Maybe that's why he deleted it in advance, thinking she would look for it like this someday.
“What, then... I should be suspicious.”
The hand that was placed on the disappeared page began to tremble.
“That guy is weird.”
Thump!
“It’ll be left somewhere.”
What Liene was looking for was a royal record from 20 years ago.
“It’s been 21 years since my father was crowned. So the man was harmed when my father was King.”
If there was talk of engagement, it must have been a fairly famous family. Liene looked through the families that had participated in the coronation.
“Did you say that the letter ‘G’ was included...”
Of the thirteen families invited to the coronation, none had such consonants. Her arms were aching as she flipped through the heavy royal records, thickly covered in dust.
“Is the engagement itself a lie?”
Liene chewed her lips as she stared at the letters that didn't change much no matter how much she looked at them.
“No, the wife might have seen it wrong. It might be one of these.”
Liene carefully examined the thirteen families. Six of them were the great nobles of Nauk who had created the Treaty of Liseberg. The remaining three had either died out over time or lost their former glory, and the remaining four families had left Nauk one by one for twenty years.
“There is no time zone that matches.”
The families that left Nauk did not fit what Black had said. After looking at the old letters for a while, which had been eating dust, Liene felt dizzy.
“Maybe the time zone is wrong.”
If Black wasn't completely lying, he might not have been telling the exact time. Usually, when talking about a long time like 20 years, he didn't specify exactly how many years it was.
“It might have been a little over 20 years ago.”
Liene began to search for records from before the coronation.
"...What's this."
And she discovered something very strange: there were no records left from before the coronation, that is, from 25 to 21 years ago.
“What the hell is going on?”
It was absurd that only that part had been cut out with a knife, and there was a clear trace of it. It was shocking that someone had tampered with the royal records, but it was also extremely suspicious that the part that was so important to know was missing.
"No way..."
At that time, there was one person who could not help but be suspicious.
“The wonder of Fermos...”
He was hiding in his office, never having been allowed entry. No one knew how often he had been coming and going before.
“Because that guy told you to?”
Liene wonders if there was anything about Black among the records from the past five years that disappeared. Maybe that's why he deleted it in advance, thinking she would look for it like this someday.
“What, then... I should be suspicious.”
The hand that was placed on the disappeared page began to tremble.
“That guy is weird.”
Thump!
Liene stood up from the record book. There was no way she could find the missing records even if she searched for them.
“I guess I’ll have to search the room.”
If Fermos was the culprit, it was one of two things. He either got rid of it or hid it. She left the result to fate. If she was lucky, he would have hidden it instead of getting rid of it.
“I guess I’ll have to search the room.”
If Fermos was the culprit, it was one of two things. He either got rid of it or hid it. She left the result to fate. If she was lucky, he would have hidden it instead of getting rid of it.
Liene got up and headed somewhere. It was the room she had used as a child, across from Amdam’s bedroom. Now, Fermos said he was using that room as his office.
***
Knock!
The door was unlocked. If it had been, Liene would have gladly broken it down. She had no intention of searching secretly in the first place. The royal records were royal property, and naturally, unauthorized people could not carry them on their person or damage them. This time, she was going to punish him no matter what. She had no intention of judging their social status, but what Fermos had done was disloyalty and an insult to the royal family.
“Huh...? Princess? What’s wrong?”
But Liene didn't know that Fermos would be in this room at this time. Liene, who was almost flustered, quickly regained her composure and said.
“I came to ask you something.”
“How did you know I was here?”
“...I don’t think that’s important.”
“Oh, um... Of course, I am. I was a little surprised. By the way, shouldn’t the Princess be lying down? I don’t think the lord will be happy to see you walking around like this.”
“Huh...? Princess? What’s wrong?”
But Liene didn't know that Fermos would be in this room at this time. Liene, who was almost flustered, quickly regained her composure and said.
“I came to ask you something.”
“How did you know I was here?”
“...I don’t think that’s important.”
“Oh, um... Of course, I am. I was a little surprised. By the way, shouldn’t the Princess be lying down? I don’t think the lord will be happy to see you walking around like this.”
“Let me get straight to the point.”
Liene cut off the useless conversation.
“What did you do with the royal records you stole?”
"...Yes?"
Fermos opened his eyes wide and lifted his monocle.
“What did I do?”
“I don’t want to talk at length. If you have it, give it to me. It won’t make your sins go away, but it will make them a little lighter.”
“So what do you mean? Royal records? What records would I have brought, why, and when?”
“...Are you trying to evade the issue like that?”
“You’re absolutely right! Why would I bring the royal records? I could just look at them and memorize them.”
Fermos, who was jumping up and down, looked really wrong. His expression clearly showed that he had no idea what was going on.
...No, I don’t know. This guy is so sly. Who knows if he’s good at lying.
“I guess it was because you were afraid I would see it.”
“Hmm? Are you saying there are records that the Princess hasn’t seen yet?”
“...”
That question left Liene speechless.
“You are right to doubt me, but I swear to the god of war that I have never touched the royal records.”
When Liene made a face of disbelief, Fermos held out both hands with a harmless expression.
“Do you know who the god of war is in Tiwakan?”
"...No."
“This is Lord Tiwakan.”
“I see. Why is that....”
“To swear an oath to the god of war is to stake your name on it. In Tiwakan, there is not a single human who would use his name in vain.”
“....”
The face of Fermos, who said those words, was so full of confidence and pride that it was impossible not to believe it. Even for a mercenary who uses war as a means of making money, or rather, for such a mercenary, belief was essential. The only thing that made a life that was nothing but death and money humane was belief. To Tiwakan, that was Black.
“...Now that you say that, I won’t press my suspicions any further. I hope that what you say is true. For the sake of your leader’s name.”
“The thing I will never do in my life is to dishonor my lord’s name. A person like that is not worthy of being called Tiwakan.”
...Yes. I get that. Liene swallowed a sigh. Then who on earth did this?
“Are you planning to find the culprit?”
Fermos asked, his worries clearly visible on his face.
"Yes."
“Then I will take care of it. The Princess just gave me a clue about the culprit who killed the high priest, so I have some free time for the first time in a while.”
“Would you do that?”
“Yes, but there is a condition.”
...The lord or one of his men. They all tried to get something by giving one. She couldn’t help but believe that they were all in cahoots.
“What is it?”
“Go back to your bedroom and lie still. My lord said that you wanted to see the old man who knew the whereabouts of your cousin. I have ordered them to bring him to the castle now, and I will tell you when he gets there. Until then, rest well.”
To get something out of them, something better for Liene, who had to give, than for them, who had to receive.
“I’m doing this for my lord, not for the Princess. If you want me to be of help, then you must do so. If something goes wrong with the Princess... Ugh, I don’t even want to think about it. Anyway, please keep in mind that the results will be very bad.”
“...”
What Fermos said struck her somewhere. For that man. It sounded like that man was worried about her. What on earth was he doing that for?
“Is it okay if I say I’ll try?”
“No, you can’t. You have to lie still.”
“Then I promise. I will definitely find the culprit. The real culprit. I swear to the god of war.”
Fermos might put forward a false culprit for his lord. That could not be ruled out. Fermos readily raised his hand and swore an oath.
“If that’s all you need to do to lie down, then I’ll be happy to.”
“...Thank you.”
So she couldn't figure it out anymore. How can people with other goals act like that?
“Please go back. I will only move once the Princess returns to her bedroom. Have you taken all the medicine?”
In the end, Liene returned to her bedroom, escorted by Fermos. Fermos even stationed a mercenary to thoroughly monitor Liene's visit.
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