“You fucking Guatieri, you still think you're a god.”
The Marquis of Guatieri, who summoned himself. And the Viscount, who was the Marquis' vassal, whose name he could not remember. Baron Castileone gave a cheerful rebuke to the Marquis of Guatieri's agent in front of him.
“Tell that Marquis. If he’s the Marquis, he’s the one who does it. And you! Don’t ever come here again!”
It was a rare and curious sight to see the Baron shouting at the Viscount, and then at the Marquis.
However, Camellia, who had been visiting her parents' house and having tea time with her father, had a gut feeling that this would not be such a rare sight in the future.
In the Etruscan kingdom of 1127, gold was king.
The new truth that the nobles had no choice but to bow their heads to the new king was raising its head through the cracks here and there.
The Baron of Castiglione cried out loudly.
“Hey! Show the guest where the door is!”
"Yes!"
The servants of the Castiglione family, who had been in a state of rage, rushed excitedly toward the vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri.
The Marquis's vassal, who could not have imagined such treatment, made a final appeal to the Baron of Castiglione.
“Castiglione! So, is this what you’re saying?!”
The tone was quite friendly. Since both sides were vassals of the Marquis Guatieri, there might have been a connection between them somewhere in the past.
But he didn't remember that face.
The family's silver was the family's and it was all cut off when they came up to the capital after being beaten to the bone in the east.
The Baron thought he had 'paid it all', that he had done what he could. Now all that was left was his personal debt. And this was the first time he had met him personally.
“Look here, over there. What’s the name? No. You don’t have to tell me. You’ll forget it anyway.”
It was a name that would never be mentioned again. His son-in-law was elected as the representative of the merchants' association three days ago.
Combined with the decree of King Leo III announced today in the Palagio Carlo, this means that his son-in-law will become the leader of the new free city of Unaisola.
Unaisola was now emerging as the third city of the Etruscan kingdom, following San Carlo and Taranto. It was a position that even the most respected lords could not hand out business cards.
The glory was not just for the Vitelli family. Baron Castiglione himself will join the Council of Seven, which will decide Unaisola's future at its regular meeting next month.
The Council of Seven is comprised of families, but with the permanent addition of the Vitelli family and the Baron Castiglione family, its name has been changed to the Council of Nine.
Now, the vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri, regardless of his rank, whether he is a Viscount or a Count, cannot even share a table with the Baron of Castiglione.
The Baron of Castiglione looked at the nameless Viscount and smiled.
“The example of a lord and his loyal subjects must begin with the lord’s grace.”
Because those above can do more for those below them. They provide relief during crop failures, provide relief during natural disasters, and save the sick, and in return, they receive an oath of loyalty.
“What do you receive from the Marquis Guatieri?”
The Viscount's eyes wavered. He was counting the things he had received.
“What did I receive from the Marquis Guatieri?”
The Baron of Castiglione's voice began to grow agitated.
“Give me a salary, introduce me to business partners, rent me a house, or at least give me protection in aristocratic society?”
The magnificent reception room of the Baron de Castiglione's house resonated with the old Baron's voice.
"Nothing!"
The veins on his neck stood out.
“If the Marquis of Guatieri expected my loyalty, at least! When that happened, my daughter! At least my daughter should have been protected!”
When Isabella de Contarini gathered the ladies and blocked the entrance to the Collezion Party in Camellia, the Marchioness of Guatieri was among the ladies who stood behind and laughed.
“When my daughter collapses with a hemorrhage, she can’t help her, but she can hit her in the back of the head?”
Although he wasn't there to see it for himself, he could clearly see the expression on the face of that greedy woman as she looked down at his daughter and the way she laughed at her.
“She can’t stop them, but she should at least give them a heads up before they go and just sit there and laugh?”
As a vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri, this was the first time he had heard of this story. The Viscount waved his hands in embarrassment.
“Ah, no, that... There’s no way that was...”
“You're the Viscount of the house, and you know best, I'm sure, that she's a woman who deserves to be left alone!”
The Marquis of Guatieri, who summoned himself. And the Viscount, who was the Marquis' vassal, whose name he could not remember. Baron Castileone gave a cheerful rebuke to the Marquis of Guatieri's agent in front of him.
“Tell that Marquis. If he’s the Marquis, he’s the one who does it. And you! Don’t ever come here again!”
It was a rare and curious sight to see the Baron shouting at the Viscount, and then at the Marquis.
However, Camellia, who had been visiting her parents' house and having tea time with her father, had a gut feeling that this would not be such a rare sight in the future.
In the Etruscan kingdom of 1127, gold was king.
The new truth that the nobles had no choice but to bow their heads to the new king was raising its head through the cracks here and there.
The Baron of Castiglione cried out loudly.
“Hey! Show the guest where the door is!”
"Yes!"
The servants of the Castiglione family, who had been in a state of rage, rushed excitedly toward the vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri.
The Marquis's vassal, who could not have imagined such treatment, made a final appeal to the Baron of Castiglione.
“Castiglione! So, is this what you’re saying?!”
The tone was quite friendly. Since both sides were vassals of the Marquis Guatieri, there might have been a connection between them somewhere in the past.
But he didn't remember that face.
The family's silver was the family's and it was all cut off when they came up to the capital after being beaten to the bone in the east.
The Baron thought he had 'paid it all', that he had done what he could. Now all that was left was his personal debt. And this was the first time he had met him personally.
“Look here, over there. What’s the name? No. You don’t have to tell me. You’ll forget it anyway.”
It was a name that would never be mentioned again. His son-in-law was elected as the representative of the merchants' association three days ago.
Combined with the decree of King Leo III announced today in the Palagio Carlo, this means that his son-in-law will become the leader of the new free city of Unaisola.
Unaisola was now emerging as the third city of the Etruscan kingdom, following San Carlo and Taranto. It was a position that even the most respected lords could not hand out business cards.
The glory was not just for the Vitelli family. Baron Castiglione himself will join the Council of Seven, which will decide Unaisola's future at its regular meeting next month.
The Council of Seven is comprised of families, but with the permanent addition of the Vitelli family and the Baron Castiglione family, its name has been changed to the Council of Nine.
Now, the vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri, regardless of his rank, whether he is a Viscount or a Count, cannot even share a table with the Baron of Castiglione.
The Baron of Castiglione looked at the nameless Viscount and smiled.
“The example of a lord and his loyal subjects must begin with the lord’s grace.”
Because those above can do more for those below them. They provide relief during crop failures, provide relief during natural disasters, and save the sick, and in return, they receive an oath of loyalty.
“What do you receive from the Marquis Guatieri?”
The Viscount's eyes wavered. He was counting the things he had received.
“What did I receive from the Marquis Guatieri?”
The Baron of Castiglione's voice began to grow agitated.
“Give me a salary, introduce me to business partners, rent me a house, or at least give me protection in aristocratic society?”
The magnificent reception room of the Baron de Castiglione's house resonated with the old Baron's voice.
"Nothing!"
The veins on his neck stood out.
“If the Marquis of Guatieri expected my loyalty, at least! When that happened, my daughter! At least my daughter should have been protected!”
When Isabella de Contarini gathered the ladies and blocked the entrance to the Collezion Party in Camellia, the Marchioness of Guatieri was among the ladies who stood behind and laughed.
“When my daughter collapses with a hemorrhage, she can’t help her, but she can hit her in the back of the head?”
Although he wasn't there to see it for himself, he could clearly see the expression on the face of that greedy woman as she looked down at his daughter and the way she laughed at her.
“She can’t stop them, but she should at least give them a heads up before they go and just sit there and laugh?”
As a vassal of the Marquis of Guatieri, this was the first time he had heard of this story. The Viscount waved his hands in embarrassment.
“Ah, no, that... There’s no way that was...”
“You're the Viscount of the house, and you know best, I'm sure, that she's a woman who deserves to be left alone!”
Frankly, he couldn't deny it. The Marchioness Guatieri was greedy and liked to travel in groups, so she was always the subject of petty gossip.
Considering her behavior at home, she was not a person you would want to take sides with. The Viscount kept his mouth shut like a mute who had eaten honey.
“Do you think the guys who hit me on the back of the head wouldn’t hit you on the back of the head? Do you think the guys who did that to my daughter wouldn’t do that to your daughter?”
The Viscount's silence grew longer and longer.
“Do you understand what I’m saying? Even if you brought me a thousand pieces of gold, I have no intention of ever being associated with you again!”
The Baron of Castiglione shook his head.
“No, if it’s gold, there’s more on this side! Enough, get out of here! Don’t ever show up in my corner of the house again!”
The Baron's servant approached and politely guided the Viscount to the exit. Even the Viscount was left speechless.
The Marquis Guatieri had made a mistake, and he had nothing to offer the Baron of Castiglione to cover it up.
A sincere apology from the Marquis of Guatieri offered a small chance of turning things around, but as a mere vassal, he could not promise that.
He followed the servant out of the mansion without objection.
After the unknown Viscount from the Guatieri family left, Camellia, who was sitting behind her father, called out to him with teary eyes.
“Dad...”
After Camellia had a miscarriage, Baron Castiglione would call his daughter in whenever he had an excuse and feed her sugar, cookies, and suspicious juices that were supposedly good for her health.
She hugged her father from behind.
“Dad... I’m so touched.”
Her father was always distant. She thought he was more interested in gold than in his children.
But today, he stood up proudly and declared a breakup with those who tormented his daughter.
Camellia blinked her eyes open and closed repeatedly to swallow the tears that were forming in her eyes. On the other hand, Baron Castiglione became stiff as a stick and shouted.
“What, what!”
Camellia rested her cheek against her father's back.
“Because of me... You fought with the Marquis... In fact, you wanted to marry me into a prestigious family, but you readily agreed to let me marry your husband...”
“Cough, cough!”
The Baron coughed loudly.
“Well, I didn’t decide it because of you.”
He stuttered without answering.
“I was annoyed by the growing size of the Vitelli Company, but now that we can chemically merge them, it’s a good thing!”
His face is going to puff up.
“The Guatieri guys are just unlucky! Yeah, that’s how it is!”
Camellia chuckled and slapped her father on the back.
“Oh, Dad, you too.”
Baron Castiglione shouted.
“This hurts!”
“It doesn't hurt.”
Camellia hit her father again.
“It really hurts!”
He felt sorry for his daughter who had lost her baby, so he fed her everything good for her health, but it seems that it didn't lead to health, but rather to muscle strength.
When Baron Castiglione saw his daughter raise her hand once more, he started to run away in a hurry.
***
Ariadne prepared to go to Trevero step by step. The first thing she packed was a note from the Grand Duchess of Lariesa that Alfonso had once asked her to keep.
"Kill or otherwise harm Ariadne de Mare, the illegitimate daughter of Cardinal de Mare of the diocese of San Carlo in the Etruscan kingdom.
March 18, 1123,
"Lariesa de Valoa."
Raw malice. Ariadne opened the safe and took out the note, seemingly indifferently, and put it deep inside her luggage, but she was not completely unsettled.
‘You wanted to get rid of me by doing this...’
As you experience situations where you are hated, you become numb to it, but it never gets completely better.
Well, it was bearable because Ariadne was hated not for her existence itself but for what she possessed—Alfonso's affection.
Isn't it hard to digest baseless malice? It would be better if there were a reason.
Ariadne decided to think positively anyway. Her tendency to maintain a certain cheerfulness even in the worst situations was one of Ariadne's greatest strengths.
'But thanks to this note, I am finally parting ways with the Grand Duchess of Lariesa de Valoa.'
Ariadne didn't actually hate greed itself. Everyone has at least one burning goal in life.
Born as the daughter of a collateral Prince without any ruling power in the Central Continent, if the opportunity to marry a legitimate Prince of the Etruscan kingdom were to roll over her, how many women would be noble and conscientious in front of him?
'But if she doesn't succeed after doing all this... She'll have to pay the price.'
An adventure requires weighing what you can gain and what you can lose, and being prepared to fail. It is not an adventure if you just win. That is the nature of adventure.
If this note is made public, Lariesa would be better off giving up her plans to marry into the Etruscan kingdom.
A foreigner plotting to murder an Etruscan to obtain the position of Princess? And the 'Saint of Rambouillet', who was popular during the plague?
This was an act that ignited the anti-Gallico sentiment that was rampant in the Etruscan kingdom and the public opinion that demanded modesty and chastity from the Prince's wife, that is, the daughter-in-law of the people.
It would be impossible for her to perform her duties as a normal Princess. And if this were to be made public, it would also be impossible for her to find another normal spouse.
Ariadne wasn't too worried when she heard that Alfonso might already be legally married.
Because on their side, they would have to give up anything to keep the note absolutely secret.
It may be argued that Princess Lariesa would never do that, but her father, Grand Duke Odes, certainly would.
Ariadne smiled. Yes, this is the final farewell to Princess Lariesa. Ariadne was confident.
***
Cardinal de Mare was the unsure one. As the departure date drew near, he became increasingly anxious and could not sleep at night.
'It's a scandal...'
At first, he couldn't believe it, then he was angry. But as his thoughts continued to wander, Cardinal de Mare had no choice but to accept his fear.
'Perhaps I will be excommunicated and lose everything on this Trevero trip.'
There have been too many things he's done. First of all, the thing that's bothering me the most is Lucrezia's black magic incident.
At the time, Lucrezia's servant, who was involved, was killed to silence her, and although the remaining people were all trustworthy, it was impossible not to feel uneasy because even the slightest testimony could lead to a disaster.
Besides this, Cardinal de Mare had many other concerns.
He reviewed all his writings, one by one, to find any hint of heresy, but the volume was too vast, and he could not be objective, so he simply collapsed under the tower of paper.
Today, the day he was supposed to set out on his journey, Cardinal de Mare was in a semi-exalted state.
“Father, everyone is waiting on the first floor.”
This time, his second daughter, Ariadne, who accompanied him, urged him politely. She was the only child left in the family.
There was a time when this house was bustling with four siblings, but with Lucrezia's death, they all disappeared.
“...Yes.”
The Cardinal walked down the central staircase of the steeply angled de Mare mansion.
He was having ridiculous thoughts like, maybe Lucrezia and her children were all mirages created by black magic.
The Cardinal left the hall with the help of his butler.
The thick oak door opened, and the late summer San Carlo sunlight, too intense for the old eyes, invaded the room all at once, and a loud shout shook the earth.
“His Eminence the Cardinal, salute!”
"Salute!”
"God bless you!”
The front yard of the de Mare mansion was filled with men fully armed with black helmets and colorful armor.
They took up every available space and overflowed into the empty lot outside the main gate.
In the crowd, a slim man pushed his way forward. He was a young man, slightly smaller than Prince Alfonso.
“Your Eminence, Cardinal! Countess de Mare! I have come to fetch you!”
It was Sir Manfredi who was chosen as the adjutant for this trip to Trevero.
Cardinal de Mare was about to greet the Prince's aide-de-camp, but a shadow appeared behind him and obscured Sir Manfredi.
As the Cardinal blinked his dim old eyes and looked ahead to see what was going on, a man in silver armor slowly appeared on horseback.
It was Prince Alfonso who appeared through the crowd.
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