The Grand Duke of Odes's legs were shaking. His calves were tingling, but he couldn't tell if it was a problem with his tendons or muscles.
Meanwhile, in the eyes of Grand Duke Odes, Philip IV, who looked like a ghost crawling out of hell to catch him, was approaching the Grand Duke step by step with a very slow gait befitting a ghost.
“If it’s embezzlement, you can also charge it with treason. Taking government money and giving it to foreigners.”
“Uh, uh...”
Odes took one step at a time and backed away.
“You might want to claim it’s tax evasion. But think about it carefully.”
The crowd parted to avoid the straight line where Philip IV was glaring at Grand Duke Odes.
The road that King Gallico took to hunt his prey was completely empty, with nothing to impede his passage.
Philip sang the song to Odes.
“It’s just a matter of time anyway. I’ll capture the Grand Duke and return to Montpellier, and while you're in custody, I’ll raid your entire household until I find something.”
Philip tilted his head. What if Odes goes mad again while he's locked up?
But he soon shook his head and shook off his worries.
Just keep him locked up until he comes to his senses. What kind of worries are these? Even if they are worries, they are worries that Odes should have, not his.
“What crime should I arrest you for?”
The eyes of the young King, in his late thirties, were gleaming with madness.
In fact, anyone could see that Philip IV was not normal.
Even looking at the way he boldly spoke of arresting and framing him with crimes, even though foreign dignitaries, including Pope Ludovico, were present, it was clear that he was doing so.
“Where? Let’s find the crime. The crime of looking at me with a sidelong glance? The crime of splitting me apart, unfortunately?”
The atmosphere itself was tense. No one, yet, had the courage to stop Philip IV from raising the issue of treason, but King Gallico's behavior was a sight to behold.
Pope Louis seemed unwilling to stop Philip IV, but everyone looked askance at him.
At that moment, the pleasant voice of Prince Alfonso rang out.
“Dear cousin. How have you been?”
Philip IV glanced at the cousin he had tried to kill.
He must be a guy who would be kind to him, considering what he's done... He felt bad because he thought he was trying to interfere.
Although he was far from being in good health by any means, Philip, whose symbol was distorted, answered indifferently.
“Of course. I had a great time.”
Despite Philip's blunt attitude, Alfonso smiled. It was a very bright smile.
But the words he burst out with were not bright at all.
“It’s a little different from what I heard.”
Philip's face hardened coldly.
“What kind of rumors have you heard?”
He spat out briefly, his teeth clenched.
Anyone could tell that Philip IV was not in good condition, but he was barely able to keep his feet on the ground and was acting like a useless guest.
Alfonso seemed to have no intention of saving Philip's face. He smiled brightly and continued speaking.
“His Majesty the King of the Kingdom of Gallico will be here today or tomorrow.”
“!”
A mischievous smile appeared on Prince Alfonso's lips.
“They say we need a new King?”
The audience in the room was in thought. The most interesting thing about the dog was its face.
The earlier argument that using the national budget to support foreigners was treason was the result of interpreting treason to its limits or beyond.
Philip took advantage of what could have been a simple case of embezzlement to show off his power.
However, the discussion about replacing the King was a different story. This was a serious matter that could even lead to a discussion about treason.
The only reason Grand Duke Odes kept his mouth shut was that his name had not yet been revealed. No, in fact, the biggest reason was that he did not know what to say.
But it was only a matter of time before Odes's name was revealed, Alfonso added with a pleasant smile.
“Dear Grand Duke Odes, those were the words of Your Highness, but were they just rumors?”
Philip glared at Odes with snake-like eyes.
“...!”
Although he could have made excuses that he was just trying to ward off His Majesty's health, he trembled like a rat being chased by a poisonous snake.
It was a moment that gave a glimpse into how Philip usually treated Odes.
While Odes was wasting his most precious time, Alfonso had nailed down Odes's last remaining escape route.
“Then he asked me if I would like to become the King of the Kingdom of Gallico.”
That was the end of it. There was no hole left for Odes to escape through.
Odes became lost in thought and fell to his knees.
A spark flashed in Philip IV's eyes. He strode forward as if he was gathering the last of his life and grabbed the Grand Duke Odes by the collar.
“Kkaaaaaaah!”
It was a scream that was more than just the agony of having your throat grabbed. Fear seemed to have taken over the Grand Duke of Odes.
Philip grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar and threw him down.
“Hey, listen!”
It was the heart of Trevero that the crown should be subordinated to the church. Nevertheless, Philip rebuked him, and the Grand Master of the Guards of Gallico answered loudly.
“Yes! Your Majesty!”
“That traitor will be stripped of his title on the spot! He will be brought to trial for treason as soon as he returns to his home country, so arrest him immediately!”
“Your Majesty!”
The captain of the guard of the Kingdom of Gallico held down the Grand Duke Odes, who was lying on the ground.
Meanwhile, Sir Manfredi approached Prince Alfonso and whispered, 'You set it on fire, you set it on fire!'
When Prince Alfonso did not open his mouth right away, the impatient Lord Manfredi went to report directly to King Philip IV.
“Your Majesty, the King of Gallico, I mean the fire that broke out in the palace of Montpellier a few years ago.”
He spoke of the Princess of Lariesa, who had been set free while the Captain of the Guard, Gallico, was subduing the Grand Duke Odes.
“That was also done by Grand Duchess Lariesa, daughter of Grand Duke Odes. I saw it!”
Another act of treason, another act of arson. Philip glared at Lariesa, who had dried up like a mummy, with mad eyes.
“The same goes for your family.”
Sir Manfredi exclaimed in joy. It is too early for a knight to take revenge even after ten years!
While Sir Manfredi was laughing and laughing, Philip IV looked at Lariesa, who was trembling in the corner, with an angry gaze.
It was as if the landlord had just discovered that the family of rats he was raising in his house were not just quietly living in the garden, picking through the trash, but were also scurrying around in the living room, destroying the kitchen ingredients.
The daughter of the rat carefully hugged one of the leather bags and leaned completely on its warmth to endure the King's fierce gaze.
“From now on, all members of the Valoa Grand Dukes will be demoted to commoners, and as soon as the trial is over, all their property will be confiscated and returned to the national treasury. To prevent their family members from embezzling the property, they should also be imprisoned.”
However, the trembling Lariesa's reaction was a bit strange. She looked at the floor, then raised her head and screamed.
“You can’t touch me!”
Her father, who had provided everything for the Grand Duchess, trembled before Philip, but Grand Duchess Lariesa stood firm in front of the King as if nothing was wrong.
“I am Etruscan!”
Indeed, there was a corner of belief.
“I married Prince Alfonso of the Etruscan Kingdom!”
What Lariesa was holding in her arms was a bundle of papers. To be exact, it was a bundle containing documents and letters.
She went back to her quarters to find it, but then came across Philip, who had come to his senses, and dragged him here.
But in Lariesa's mind, the sack was worth it, despite her father's impending downfall.
She took out a piece of parchment from there, a piece of paper that she had kept very carefully. It was the paper that was her life.
“Look!”
Lariesa ran up to Pope Louis with an unsteady gait and presented the documents before him.
“This is the marriage certificate, the marriage certificate! Prince Alfonso signed it with his own hand!”
Pope Louis took the parchment from the hands of the Grand Duchess of Lariesa.
“Prince Alfonso de Carlo is my lawful husband, and I am the Princess of the Etruscan kingdom!”
Pope Louis scanned the papers. The marriage contract was written in the most commonly used form.
Sure enough, beneath it was Prince Alfonso's signature, written in bold blue ink.
"Hmm."
The Pope ran his hand over his heavily bearded chin.
“Yes. Before the treason, before the source of the 100,000 ducats, before the murderous instigation, there was the question of the validity of the marriage.”
He looked back and forth between Prince Alfonso and Princess Lariesa.
“I guess I need to sort this out first.”
Princess Lariesa did not notice the unfavorable tone in the Pope's speech.
“That’s right! It’s right to decide this first!”
Leaving the Grand Duchess screaming madly behind, the Pope looked only at Prince Alfonso and asked:
“Prince. Didn’t you say earlier that you didn’t sign it willingly?”
"Yes."
Alfonso answered succinctly.
“I was forced to sign...”
Next to him, Sir Manfredi, who was excited, added his words.
“Let me tell you more about the situation at that time! Oh, that, I wonder if His Majesty Philip IV didn’t hear exactly what I said earlier!”
It was Manfredi's chance to speak before the most powerful men of his life.
Although no beans actually fell on him, he was excited and shook his mouth.
“The Princess of Lariesa made a condition that if he would sign a marriage contract with her, he would be allowed to escape from the Gallico Palace! The papers looked fine, but there were no priests present, and it was a complete illegal!”
Sir Manfredi continued, glancing sideways at Princess Lariesa. Lariesa still looked a bit scary.
“The Prince who was worried about our lives, finally! Unwillingly! Let’s sign! The Grand Duchess of Lariesa poured oil on the Montpellier Palace and set it on fire! Fire! Crackle! The palace is in chaos!”
When Philip learned the truth about the previous fire incident, he was about to explode with anger.
But as it is said that only a madman can be defeated by another madman, the mad obsession of Princess Lariesa was even more powerful.
“So what!!!”
The Grand Duchess shouted after the lion. A cold light shone in her eyes.
“I told you! Unless you force someone to sign by holding their hand, there is no compulsion!!!”
Sir Manfredi's fears of Princess Lariesa were well-founded. Lariesa rushed at Sir Manfredi as if she were going to devour him.
The way she walked, swaying greatly from side to side, looked like a zombie.
Sir Manfredi thought to himself, 'My intuition, honed on the battlefield in anticipation of an attack! What a great knight, Manfredi!' and jumped to the side to avoid the Grand Duchess's grasp.
Princess Lariesa jumped into the space where Manfredi was and fell forward, but she did not waver at all.
“Your handsome Prince signed my marriage contract with his own hands!!! That man is my husband!!!”
Lariesa jumped up and screamed, but someone cut her off.
“No, not necessarily.”
It was a clear voice. Lariesa turned her neck at an odd angle and glared at him.
“What are you?”
“Raphael de Baldessar, a priest.”
Meanwhile, in the eyes of Grand Duke Odes, Philip IV, who looked like a ghost crawling out of hell to catch him, was approaching the Grand Duke step by step with a very slow gait befitting a ghost.
“If it’s embezzlement, you can also charge it with treason. Taking government money and giving it to foreigners.”
“Uh, uh...”
Odes took one step at a time and backed away.
“You might want to claim it’s tax evasion. But think about it carefully.”
The crowd parted to avoid the straight line where Philip IV was glaring at Grand Duke Odes.
The road that King Gallico took to hunt his prey was completely empty, with nothing to impede his passage.
Philip sang the song to Odes.
“It’s just a matter of time anyway. I’ll capture the Grand Duke and return to Montpellier, and while you're in custody, I’ll raid your entire household until I find something.”
Philip tilted his head. What if Odes goes mad again while he's locked up?
But he soon shook his head and shook off his worries.
Just keep him locked up until he comes to his senses. What kind of worries are these? Even if they are worries, they are worries that Odes should have, not his.
“What crime should I arrest you for?”
The eyes of the young King, in his late thirties, were gleaming with madness.
In fact, anyone could see that Philip IV was not normal.
Even looking at the way he boldly spoke of arresting and framing him with crimes, even though foreign dignitaries, including Pope Ludovico, were present, it was clear that he was doing so.
“Where? Let’s find the crime. The crime of looking at me with a sidelong glance? The crime of splitting me apart, unfortunately?”
The atmosphere itself was tense. No one, yet, had the courage to stop Philip IV from raising the issue of treason, but King Gallico's behavior was a sight to behold.
Pope Louis seemed unwilling to stop Philip IV, but everyone looked askance at him.
At that moment, the pleasant voice of Prince Alfonso rang out.
“Dear cousin. How have you been?”
Philip IV glanced at the cousin he had tried to kill.
He must be a guy who would be kind to him, considering what he's done... He felt bad because he thought he was trying to interfere.
Although he was far from being in good health by any means, Philip, whose symbol was distorted, answered indifferently.
“Of course. I had a great time.”
Despite Philip's blunt attitude, Alfonso smiled. It was a very bright smile.
But the words he burst out with were not bright at all.
“It’s a little different from what I heard.”
Philip's face hardened coldly.
“What kind of rumors have you heard?”
He spat out briefly, his teeth clenched.
Anyone could tell that Philip IV was not in good condition, but he was barely able to keep his feet on the ground and was acting like a useless guest.
Alfonso seemed to have no intention of saving Philip's face. He smiled brightly and continued speaking.
“His Majesty the King of the Kingdom of Gallico will be here today or tomorrow.”
“!”
A mischievous smile appeared on Prince Alfonso's lips.
“They say we need a new King?”
The audience in the room was in thought. The most interesting thing about the dog was its face.
The earlier argument that using the national budget to support foreigners was treason was the result of interpreting treason to its limits or beyond.
Philip took advantage of what could have been a simple case of embezzlement to show off his power.
However, the discussion about replacing the King was a different story. This was a serious matter that could even lead to a discussion about treason.
The only reason Grand Duke Odes kept his mouth shut was that his name had not yet been revealed. No, in fact, the biggest reason was that he did not know what to say.
But it was only a matter of time before Odes's name was revealed, Alfonso added with a pleasant smile.
“Dear Grand Duke Odes, those were the words of Your Highness, but were they just rumors?”
Philip glared at Odes with snake-like eyes.
“...!”
Although he could have made excuses that he was just trying to ward off His Majesty's health, he trembled like a rat being chased by a poisonous snake.
It was a moment that gave a glimpse into how Philip usually treated Odes.
While Odes was wasting his most precious time, Alfonso had nailed down Odes's last remaining escape route.
“Then he asked me if I would like to become the King of the Kingdom of Gallico.”
That was the end of it. There was no hole left for Odes to escape through.
Odes became lost in thought and fell to his knees.
A spark flashed in Philip IV's eyes. He strode forward as if he was gathering the last of his life and grabbed the Grand Duke Odes by the collar.
“Kkaaaaaaah!”
It was a scream that was more than just the agony of having your throat grabbed. Fear seemed to have taken over the Grand Duke of Odes.
Philip grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar and threw him down.
“Hey, listen!”
It was the heart of Trevero that the crown should be subordinated to the church. Nevertheless, Philip rebuked him, and the Grand Master of the Guards of Gallico answered loudly.
“Yes! Your Majesty!”
“That traitor will be stripped of his title on the spot! He will be brought to trial for treason as soon as he returns to his home country, so arrest him immediately!”
“Your Majesty!”
The captain of the guard of the Kingdom of Gallico held down the Grand Duke Odes, who was lying on the ground.
Meanwhile, Sir Manfredi approached Prince Alfonso and whispered, 'You set it on fire, you set it on fire!'
When Prince Alfonso did not open his mouth right away, the impatient Lord Manfredi went to report directly to King Philip IV.
“Your Majesty, the King of Gallico, I mean the fire that broke out in the palace of Montpellier a few years ago.”
He spoke of the Princess of Lariesa, who had been set free while the Captain of the Guard, Gallico, was subduing the Grand Duke Odes.
“That was also done by Grand Duchess Lariesa, daughter of Grand Duke Odes. I saw it!”
Another act of treason, another act of arson. Philip glared at Lariesa, who had dried up like a mummy, with mad eyes.
“The same goes for your family.”
Sir Manfredi exclaimed in joy. It is too early for a knight to take revenge even after ten years!
While Sir Manfredi was laughing and laughing, Philip IV looked at Lariesa, who was trembling in the corner, with an angry gaze.
It was as if the landlord had just discovered that the family of rats he was raising in his house were not just quietly living in the garden, picking through the trash, but were also scurrying around in the living room, destroying the kitchen ingredients.
The daughter of the rat carefully hugged one of the leather bags and leaned completely on its warmth to endure the King's fierce gaze.
“From now on, all members of the Valoa Grand Dukes will be demoted to commoners, and as soon as the trial is over, all their property will be confiscated and returned to the national treasury. To prevent their family members from embezzling the property, they should also be imprisoned.”
However, the trembling Lariesa's reaction was a bit strange. She looked at the floor, then raised her head and screamed.
“You can’t touch me!”
Her father, who had provided everything for the Grand Duchess, trembled before Philip, but Grand Duchess Lariesa stood firm in front of the King as if nothing was wrong.
“I am Etruscan!”
Indeed, there was a corner of belief.
“I married Prince Alfonso of the Etruscan Kingdom!”
What Lariesa was holding in her arms was a bundle of papers. To be exact, it was a bundle containing documents and letters.
She went back to her quarters to find it, but then came across Philip, who had come to his senses, and dragged him here.
But in Lariesa's mind, the sack was worth it, despite her father's impending downfall.
She took out a piece of parchment from there, a piece of paper that she had kept very carefully. It was the paper that was her life.
“Look!”
Lariesa ran up to Pope Louis with an unsteady gait and presented the documents before him.
“This is the marriage certificate, the marriage certificate! Prince Alfonso signed it with his own hand!”
Pope Louis took the parchment from the hands of the Grand Duchess of Lariesa.
“Prince Alfonso de Carlo is my lawful husband, and I am the Princess of the Etruscan kingdom!”
Pope Louis scanned the papers. The marriage contract was written in the most commonly used form.
Sure enough, beneath it was Prince Alfonso's signature, written in bold blue ink.
"Hmm."
The Pope ran his hand over his heavily bearded chin.
“Yes. Before the treason, before the source of the 100,000 ducats, before the murderous instigation, there was the question of the validity of the marriage.”
He looked back and forth between Prince Alfonso and Princess Lariesa.
“I guess I need to sort this out first.”
Princess Lariesa did not notice the unfavorable tone in the Pope's speech.
“That’s right! It’s right to decide this first!”
Leaving the Grand Duchess screaming madly behind, the Pope looked only at Prince Alfonso and asked:
“Prince. Didn’t you say earlier that you didn’t sign it willingly?”
"Yes."
Alfonso answered succinctly.
“I was forced to sign...”
Next to him, Sir Manfredi, who was excited, added his words.
“Let me tell you more about the situation at that time! Oh, that, I wonder if His Majesty Philip IV didn’t hear exactly what I said earlier!”
It was Manfredi's chance to speak before the most powerful men of his life.
Although no beans actually fell on him, he was excited and shook his mouth.
“The Princess of Lariesa made a condition that if he would sign a marriage contract with her, he would be allowed to escape from the Gallico Palace! The papers looked fine, but there were no priests present, and it was a complete illegal!”
Sir Manfredi continued, glancing sideways at Princess Lariesa. Lariesa still looked a bit scary.
“The Prince who was worried about our lives, finally! Unwillingly! Let’s sign! The Grand Duchess of Lariesa poured oil on the Montpellier Palace and set it on fire! Fire! Crackle! The palace is in chaos!”
When Philip learned the truth about the previous fire incident, he was about to explode with anger.
But as it is said that only a madman can be defeated by another madman, the mad obsession of Princess Lariesa was even more powerful.
“So what!!!”
The Grand Duchess shouted after the lion. A cold light shone in her eyes.
“I told you! Unless you force someone to sign by holding their hand, there is no compulsion!!!”
Sir Manfredi's fears of Princess Lariesa were well-founded. Lariesa rushed at Sir Manfredi as if she were going to devour him.
The way she walked, swaying greatly from side to side, looked like a zombie.
Sir Manfredi thought to himself, 'My intuition, honed on the battlefield in anticipation of an attack! What a great knight, Manfredi!' and jumped to the side to avoid the Grand Duchess's grasp.
Princess Lariesa jumped into the space where Manfredi was and fell forward, but she did not waver at all.
“Your handsome Prince signed my marriage contract with his own hands!!! That man is my husband!!!”
Lariesa jumped up and screamed, but someone cut her off.
“No, not necessarily.”
It was a clear voice. Lariesa turned her neck at an odd angle and glared at him.
“What are you?”
“Raphael de Baldessar, a priest.”
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