'That bastard Ippolito, he tried to touch a woman, got beaten up, and ran away!'
The double nosebleed was a bonus. Ariadne had to really try her best not to laugh.
The double nosebleed was a bonus. Ariadne had to really try her best not to laugh.
She has never had to control her expression so carefully, not even in front of Leo III.
Bianca anxiously urged Countess de Mare, who was keeping her mouth shut and only twitching the corners of her mouth.
“Tell me, are you saying that you can’t tell me because you feel sorry for me and you’re afraid I’ll be dragged off to jail?”
Bianca looked genuinely frightened. Ariadne quickly answered, fearing that the poor Princess would torment herself with her wildest imaginations.
“Since Your Highness is the monarch of the Taranto Territory, you have the power of life and death over the citizens of Taranto.”
“The right to life and death...?”
Bianca looked shocked.
It seems that she either didn't know that she had such enormous power or if she did, she never thought about it.
Ariadne continued her explanation. It was based on the national law of the Etruscan kingdom, which developed from the customary law of the Central Continent.
“You could argue that Ippolito was born in Taranto and grew up there, so he is a citizen of Taranto. In that case, there is no punishment for killing him. You were exercising your legitimate authority as a Princess.”
However, Ippolito had lived in San Carlo since his childhood, so the claim had a 50/50 chance of being refuted.
“Even if that claim is not accepted, you will not be punished immediately. Instead, the lord of Ippolito will demand that His Majesty the King punish him for harming his subjects, and then a trial will be held.”
The trial will discuss what Ippolito did, whether Bianca acted in self-defense and other such things.
But that's when the lord demands punishment.
“Oh, but Ippolito lives in the capital, so his current lord is His Majesty the King.”
Ariadne raised one finger like a tutor teaching a student.
“Your Highness the Lord of Taranto, do you think your cousin would punish you severely for killing a man?”
Bianca hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
“Ah, probably not...”
Ariadne suddenly realized that there was something she had overlooked.
Ippolito has recently become a nobleman thanks to Ariadne's title.
If the fight had been between nobles rather than commoners, the head of the victim's family—the one with the title—could have formally demanded that Bianca be punished.
But Ariadne decided to just let it go.
'I'm asking for Bianca's punishment? I'm asking for one more slap.'
And there was a more important point. She said simply:
“And he probably isn’t dead. I heard a false story from my nanny and searched all over the house for Ippolito, but he’s nowhere to be found.”
Ariadne said with a refreshing smile.
“If he were dead, he should just be lying there in that garden with his limbs spread out. Isn’t that right?”
Bianca followed suit and burst out laughing. Ariadne's attitude was so refreshing.
The voice of the stern Baroness Giannelli rang out.
“Now is not the time to laugh!”
To their nanny, those two looked like very immature children.
“It’s a good thing Your Highness defeated that guy!”
Bianca chuckled at the choice of the word 'defeated', then tucked her neck between Baroness Giannelli's shoulders like a turtle at the sight of her gleaming eyes.
“We must catch that bastard quickly! Even if it was an attempted crime, the crime of trying to lay a hand on our Princess cannot be forgiven!”
It was absolutely true that Ippolito should not be let go. Ariadne agreed with that.
It was obvious that he was trying to change his ways by unfairly abusing the child.
The crime was filthy. However, Baroness Giannelli glared fiercely at Ariadne, who was in this position instead of Ippolito.
“If you try to protect him just because he's your older brother, he won’t be able to avoid divine punishment!”
“Of course.”
Ariadne nodded briskly. Please, take Ippolito away.
“Report to my father, that is, to Cardinal de Mare, what Ippolito has attempted, and demand his release in the name of the Lord of Taranto.”
The accusation that Ippolito had attempted to rape the Duchess of Taranto was so outrageous that Leo III would not let him off easy.
And in the face of such a heinous crime and the King's wrath, it was difficult for even Cardinal de Mare to protect Ippolito.
Ippolito would have made up some ridiculous excuse like, 'I was just trying to say hello,' but it would be hard to be convinced by such an excuse when he had put his hand on Princess Bianca's shoulder without any courtesy.
Given the reputation of the perpetrator and the status of the victim, it was unlikely that Ippolito would be able to survive without falling into Taranto's clutches.
“No!”
But this too could not satisfy Baroness Giannelli.
“Then wouldn’t the attempted rape be exposed to the world? That alone would tarnish the Princess's reputation!”
It was the same logic as when the Duke of Mireille of Gallico almost attacked Ariadne, although the details of the incident were different.
At that time, Ariadne had bruises all over her body, including strangulation marks, and there was no way to hide them since even her family was not on her side.
Bianca... Not a single hair on her head was injured. The only problem was the opponent's injuries.
But Bianca's expression turned gloomy again at the nanny's firm attitude and the mention of tarnishing her reputation.
“A woman’s most important asset is her reputation!”
Baroness Giannelli's words were not entirely wrong.
Bianca was probably going to marry a foreign monarch, so whatever the people of San Carlo thought of her didn't really matter in itself, but as Alfonso's example showed, marriages between princely families were strictly political.
It was quite possible that during the negotiations, he would try to adjust the terms by saying, “But there is a rumor going around that the bride-to-be is not pure.” Ariadne asked.
“Then are you going to bury the case like this?”
“That won’t do!”
Baroness Giannelli shrieked sharply.
“Shouldn’t we make them pay somehow?”
But there was no blueprint for that 'how'. Ariadne's back began to twitch.
“You don’t want to deal with Ippolito, and you don’t want to leave him alone, so what are you suggesting we do?”
"That!"
Baroness Giannelli glared at Ariadne and shouted.
“You should take care of it! We are the victims! The perpetrators should take care of it!”
Ariadne was in a state of confusion as she was suddenly lumped in with Ippolito and was asked to please a demanding opponent—one who had not even paid her. Then, the opponent turned out to be confident.
“The landlord is responsible!”
Baroness Giannelli pointed to Ariadne and said things like she hadn't kept the house in order, how there could be no servants in the garden at this late hour, and then suddenly lamented that she was the worst nanny in the world for leaving the Princess alone because she had to go to the bathroom at that very moment. The noise was so loud that Ariadne's skull was buzzing.
Princess Bianca closed her eyes tightly, bowed her head, and covered her ears with both hands.
Ariadne briefly suspected that Bianca, too, might be distressed not just by the content of the nagging, but by the tone of voice itself.
“Let’s go out.”
"Yes?"
Ariadne again demanded from the dumbfounded Baroness Giannelli.
“Please leave for a moment. I would like to speak alone with Her Highness.”
"What!"
Baroness Giannelli shuddered. She was not a large woman, but her presence was immense. The vibrations were felt physically.
“How dare you―!”
The nanny was about to yell.
“...Please come out.”
Bianca said in a small voice. She added as if it was raining.
“It will only take a moment.”
Baroness Giannelli looked at Princess Bianca as if she had been hit in the head by a meteorite that had fallen from the sky.
It was like a mother bird witnessing the moment when her little baby bird—although it was much too big for a baby bird—was about to fly away.
Just as she was about to open her mouth to say something, Ariadne quickly cut her off.
“You heard that, Baroness?”
Ariadne shouted loudly, pushing the nanny out of the room.
“Hello! Is there anyone here? Invite the Baroness to the first-floor drawing room and serve her the best tea!”
Sancha, who had been pricking up her ears outside, came running in like a squirrel. She grabbed Baroness Giannelli by the wrist and dragged her away.
Although Sancha's body was very small, it was as sturdy as Altolan's. Baroness Giannelli was dragged out of the room like a piece of luggage by her young friend's strength.
The drawing room suddenly became quiet and awkward without Baroness Giannelli. Bianca broke the silence.
“...No one ever told me exactly what I could do.”
She had been speaking to hmAriadne like a family member earlier because she was in a hurry, but now she had come to her senses and was speaking properly.
“That’s not good. When I hear things like, ‘It’s not good, it’s hard, don’t do it.’ It’s hard to gauge whether it’s something I really can’t do, or whether it’s just something the nanny and the servants think is undesirable.”
Ariadne smiled a little as she watched Bianca wandering around.
“You can speak comfortably.”
Bianca smiled faintly, but Ariadne could see it.
“You are the first person who has ever said that to me.”
It was Ariadne who first told her to speak comfortably and to give her clear standards. Bianca blushed as she said that.
“...I will change my tone of speech when I am mentally prepared.”
Ariadne smiled brightly. Some even laughed enviously. She wanted to make the Princess feel a little more at ease.
“Whenever Your Highness wishes.”
This child needed a little more warmth and welcome. Having done this, Ariadne has now gotten down to business.
“Your Highness, what do you want to do with Ippolito?”
Bianca anxiously urged Countess de Mare, who was keeping her mouth shut and only twitching the corners of her mouth.
“Tell me, are you saying that you can’t tell me because you feel sorry for me and you’re afraid I’ll be dragged off to jail?”
Bianca looked genuinely frightened. Ariadne quickly answered, fearing that the poor Princess would torment herself with her wildest imaginations.
“Since Your Highness is the monarch of the Taranto Territory, you have the power of life and death over the citizens of Taranto.”
“The right to life and death...?”
Bianca looked shocked.
It seems that she either didn't know that she had such enormous power or if she did, she never thought about it.
Ariadne continued her explanation. It was based on the national law of the Etruscan kingdom, which developed from the customary law of the Central Continent.
“You could argue that Ippolito was born in Taranto and grew up there, so he is a citizen of Taranto. In that case, there is no punishment for killing him. You were exercising your legitimate authority as a Princess.”
However, Ippolito had lived in San Carlo since his childhood, so the claim had a 50/50 chance of being refuted.
“Even if that claim is not accepted, you will not be punished immediately. Instead, the lord of Ippolito will demand that His Majesty the King punish him for harming his subjects, and then a trial will be held.”
The trial will discuss what Ippolito did, whether Bianca acted in self-defense and other such things.
But that's when the lord demands punishment.
“Oh, but Ippolito lives in the capital, so his current lord is His Majesty the King.”
Ariadne raised one finger like a tutor teaching a student.
“Your Highness the Lord of Taranto, do you think your cousin would punish you severely for killing a man?”
Bianca hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
“Ah, probably not...”
Ariadne suddenly realized that there was something she had overlooked.
Ippolito has recently become a nobleman thanks to Ariadne's title.
If the fight had been between nobles rather than commoners, the head of the victim's family—the one with the title—could have formally demanded that Bianca be punished.
But Ariadne decided to just let it go.
'I'm asking for Bianca's punishment? I'm asking for one more slap.'
And there was a more important point. She said simply:
“And he probably isn’t dead. I heard a false story from my nanny and searched all over the house for Ippolito, but he’s nowhere to be found.”
Ariadne said with a refreshing smile.
“If he were dead, he should just be lying there in that garden with his limbs spread out. Isn’t that right?”
Bianca followed suit and burst out laughing. Ariadne's attitude was so refreshing.
The voice of the stern Baroness Giannelli rang out.
“Now is not the time to laugh!”
To their nanny, those two looked like very immature children.
“It’s a good thing Your Highness defeated that guy!”
Bianca chuckled at the choice of the word 'defeated', then tucked her neck between Baroness Giannelli's shoulders like a turtle at the sight of her gleaming eyes.
“We must catch that bastard quickly! Even if it was an attempted crime, the crime of trying to lay a hand on our Princess cannot be forgiven!”
It was absolutely true that Ippolito should not be let go. Ariadne agreed with that.
It was obvious that he was trying to change his ways by unfairly abusing the child.
The crime was filthy. However, Baroness Giannelli glared fiercely at Ariadne, who was in this position instead of Ippolito.
“If you try to protect him just because he's your older brother, he won’t be able to avoid divine punishment!”
“Of course.”
Ariadne nodded briskly. Please, take Ippolito away.
“Report to my father, that is, to Cardinal de Mare, what Ippolito has attempted, and demand his release in the name of the Lord of Taranto.”
The accusation that Ippolito had attempted to rape the Duchess of Taranto was so outrageous that Leo III would not let him off easy.
And in the face of such a heinous crime and the King's wrath, it was difficult for even Cardinal de Mare to protect Ippolito.
Ippolito would have made up some ridiculous excuse like, 'I was just trying to say hello,' but it would be hard to be convinced by such an excuse when he had put his hand on Princess Bianca's shoulder without any courtesy.
Given the reputation of the perpetrator and the status of the victim, it was unlikely that Ippolito would be able to survive without falling into Taranto's clutches.
“No!”
But this too could not satisfy Baroness Giannelli.
“Then wouldn’t the attempted rape be exposed to the world? That alone would tarnish the Princess's reputation!”
It was the same logic as when the Duke of Mireille of Gallico almost attacked Ariadne, although the details of the incident were different.
At that time, Ariadne had bruises all over her body, including strangulation marks, and there was no way to hide them since even her family was not on her side.
Bianca... Not a single hair on her head was injured. The only problem was the opponent's injuries.
But Bianca's expression turned gloomy again at the nanny's firm attitude and the mention of tarnishing her reputation.
“A woman’s most important asset is her reputation!”
Baroness Giannelli's words were not entirely wrong.
Bianca was probably going to marry a foreign monarch, so whatever the people of San Carlo thought of her didn't really matter in itself, but as Alfonso's example showed, marriages between princely families were strictly political.
It was quite possible that during the negotiations, he would try to adjust the terms by saying, “But there is a rumor going around that the bride-to-be is not pure.” Ariadne asked.
“Then are you going to bury the case like this?”
“That won’t do!”
Baroness Giannelli shrieked sharply.
“Shouldn’t we make them pay somehow?”
But there was no blueprint for that 'how'. Ariadne's back began to twitch.
“You don’t want to deal with Ippolito, and you don’t want to leave him alone, so what are you suggesting we do?”
"That!"
Baroness Giannelli glared at Ariadne and shouted.
“You should take care of it! We are the victims! The perpetrators should take care of it!”
Ariadne was in a state of confusion as she was suddenly lumped in with Ippolito and was asked to please a demanding opponent—one who had not even paid her. Then, the opponent turned out to be confident.
“The landlord is responsible!”
Baroness Giannelli pointed to Ariadne and said things like she hadn't kept the house in order, how there could be no servants in the garden at this late hour, and then suddenly lamented that she was the worst nanny in the world for leaving the Princess alone because she had to go to the bathroom at that very moment. The noise was so loud that Ariadne's skull was buzzing.
Princess Bianca closed her eyes tightly, bowed her head, and covered her ears with both hands.
Ariadne briefly suspected that Bianca, too, might be distressed not just by the content of the nagging, but by the tone of voice itself.
“Let’s go out.”
"Yes?"
Ariadne again demanded from the dumbfounded Baroness Giannelli.
“Please leave for a moment. I would like to speak alone with Her Highness.”
"What!"
Baroness Giannelli shuddered. She was not a large woman, but her presence was immense. The vibrations were felt physically.
“How dare you―!”
The nanny was about to yell.
“...Please come out.”
Bianca said in a small voice. She added as if it was raining.
“It will only take a moment.”
Baroness Giannelli looked at Princess Bianca as if she had been hit in the head by a meteorite that had fallen from the sky.
It was like a mother bird witnessing the moment when her little baby bird—although it was much too big for a baby bird—was about to fly away.
Just as she was about to open her mouth to say something, Ariadne quickly cut her off.
“You heard that, Baroness?”
Ariadne shouted loudly, pushing the nanny out of the room.
“Hello! Is there anyone here? Invite the Baroness to the first-floor drawing room and serve her the best tea!”
Sancha, who had been pricking up her ears outside, came running in like a squirrel. She grabbed Baroness Giannelli by the wrist and dragged her away.
Although Sancha's body was very small, it was as sturdy as Altolan's. Baroness Giannelli was dragged out of the room like a piece of luggage by her young friend's strength.
The drawing room suddenly became quiet and awkward without Baroness Giannelli. Bianca broke the silence.
“...No one ever told me exactly what I could do.”
She had been speaking to hmAriadne like a family member earlier because she was in a hurry, but now she had come to her senses and was speaking properly.
“That’s not good. When I hear things like, ‘It’s not good, it’s hard, don’t do it.’ It’s hard to gauge whether it’s something I really can’t do, or whether it’s just something the nanny and the servants think is undesirable.”
Ariadne smiled a little as she watched Bianca wandering around.
“You can speak comfortably.”
Bianca smiled faintly, but Ariadne could see it.
“You are the first person who has ever said that to me.”
It was Ariadne who first told her to speak comfortably and to give her clear standards. Bianca blushed as she said that.
“...I will change my tone of speech when I am mentally prepared.”
Ariadne smiled brightly. Some even laughed enviously. She wanted to make the Princess feel a little more at ease.
“Whenever Your Highness wishes.”
This child needed a little more warmth and welcome. Having done this, Ariadne has now gotten down to business.
“Your Highness, what do you want to do with Ippolito?”
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