Episode 123. A Guest from the Distant Sea (1)
Agael was considering a plan to make peace with an empire that they could not conquer by force right away, and then build up their power in the meantime to threaten Smailan through the sea route and gain profit.
If that plan succeeded, then they could aim for the empire next.
Agael’s proposal to trade iron ore to the empire was also close to buying time to prepare for war.
King Smailan also noticed this trend soon. After reprimanding the hardliners for being blinded by short-term profits and putting the country in danger, he sent Ryuel to the empire with a secret mission.
“What more could the empire gain from Agael? Smailan’s abundant resources and seafood will fuel the empire’s prosperity. Peace is wealth. Your Majesty, the Great Emperor.”
Smailan’s language, spoken in his characteristically loud and rough voice, was conveyed in the imperial language through the mouth of an interpreter who followed him like a shadow.
The Emperor could not allow Smailan to fall under Agael’s influence. There was a gateway between Agael and the Empire called the Tunbar Mountains, but the open sea route between Smailan and the Empire was closer.
The Emperor had to resolve this issue in advance to remove the seeds of future discord.
He asked Ryuel expressionlessly,
“How do you intend to achieve that peace?”
“Can there be more trust between the two countries than the union of blood?”
Ryuel answered with a slightly higher voice, and the State Hall resonated.
“My King has a grown son. I believe he is more than adequate to be the match for Her Highness Princess Miliora.”
When the Emperor froze at that bold suggestion, the Empress covered the back of his hand with her hand and pressed it down. The Empress looked at him with her cold and hard eyes like glass beads.
When she nodded slowly, the Emperor let out a sigh.
Ryuel said.
“Please allow me, Ryuel, to meet Princess Miliora and explain the great aspects of Prince Smileian and Peilan. I will also gladly tell my master about the beauty and virtue of the Princess.”
The Emperor slowly nodded his head and answered the messenger.
“Permitted.”
I couldn’t wake up early today, but I started the morning early anyway.
In the meantime, the two maids were kicked out in good health, and the attitudes of the other servants had changed noticeably.
I was busy studying the ledgers in my personal pharmacy.
The scale of the Kydel family that I saw through the ledgers was far beyond my imagination. It was almost like a small country.
The ledgers were documents summarizing all the work related to it, and understanding them meant understanding the work of the Kydel family.
Therefore, it would be even stranger if I could quickly understand the ledgers in a few days.
While I was wrapping my head around the ledger, two letters arrived at the same time, saying they were urgent. One was from Prince Kydel, and the other was from Princess Miliora.
It was easy to read because the envelope with the royal seal had “Urgent!!!” written in Her Highness Milliora’s handwriting.
Naturally, I opened Prince Kydel’s letter first. He never exaggerates, but when he says he’s urgent, he’s definitely urgent.
“King Smailan has sent an envoy to propose a marriage between his country’s Prince and Her Highness the Princess.”
“Huh... How can that be?”
I had completely forgotten about Agael. Thinking about it, it was natural for Smailan to be worried about Agael’s actions. It was natural for Smailan to side with the empire, which would not interfere much if they paid tribute, rather than Agael, who wanted to colonize them.
From the empire’s perspective, it was necessary to send a signal to Agael not to act rashly, so this marriage was likely to happen.
I felt like I knew what the Princess’s letter contained even without opening it.
I quickly finished preparing to enter the palace and opened her letter in the carriage.
“Lorisha, we’re in trouble. Come now!"
It was the same as the 'urgent' written on the envelope.
"If it's going to be like this, just send the envelope."
My heart was heavy as I grumbled.
Her Highness Milliora is getting married across the sea... Even if she gets married within the empire, it's lonely and difficult.
"... Isn't it?"
I've always been lonely and difficult. But if you think about it, it wasn't necessarily because of marriage. It's just life.
In fact, it seemed like life had gotten easier recently. After the two maids were kicked out, the servants were more polite, and there were fewer cases of waking up in the same bed as Prince Kydel and being startled.
In fact, there were a few times when I woke up slightly because of the weight of his arms around me...
Anyway, if you're handsome, it seems like most things are forgiven.
No, what I'm saying is that the kind of person your husband is has a huge impact on your quality of life.
But there was no way of knowing what kind of husband the Prince of the country across the sea would be to Her Majesty Miliora.
I had to enter the palace quickly.
“In admiration of the beauty of Her Highness Miliora, the small sun of the empire, I, the Smilean messenger Ryuel, pay my respects.”
Miliora froze as she listened to the dark-skinned man bowing before her and the low, quick voice of the interpreter standing next to him.
Miliora had never frozen so much in front of the Empress. This situation was just as scary for Miliora.
‘What about Lorisha?’
Miliora looked at Eria with eyes that seemed to be shouting at her to bring Lorisha right in front of her. But Eria just shook her head.
It had only been a little while since she had sent the letter to Kydel, so Lorisha could not have arrived already.
And at that moment, Kalin came in with hurried steps and greeted Ryuel. The medal of the attendant was shining on her chest.
[I am Kalin Ankart, maidservant to Her Highness Princess Milliora. I will assist you in your conversation from now on.]
Miliora bit her lips in frustration as she listened to Kalin’s fluent Smilean.
Ryuel, whether or not he knew how Miliora felt, answered with a hearty laugh.
[Indeed, it would be proper etiquette to have an interpreter sit on both sides.]
[Thank you for your understanding, Lord Ryuel.]
Kalin finally spoke to Miliora.
“I have introduced you to Lord Ryuel, Your Highness.”
Miliora spoke almost without moving her lips, almost as if she were ventriloquizing.
“What are you doing here?”
Kalin sat down next to Miliora and whispered, also avoiding eye contact.
“I cannot meet a foreign envoy without accompanying you, Your Highness. I will receive the punishment for disobeying your order later.”
“...”
Milliora couldn't stand the fact that she was already in a tight spot, and was crawling up to Kalin.
However, she had recently become much more stable. As the anxiety that seemed to be holding her hair subsided, she gained some patience.
Milliora didn't immediately chase Kalin away because she had squeezed out that little patience. She couldn't show herself in a bad light in front of a foreign envoy, and especially in front of someone who had come to propose marriage.
Ryuel continued the conversation, freely moving his muscular arms with his shirt rolled up.
He talked about his experiences on the ship to the empire, his impressions of the food he had eaten at the imperial banquet, and his praise for Milliora's beauty.
Ryuel was cheerful and skillfully led the conversation. The only problem was that the other person was in a state where she couldn't be cheerful.
Milliora only knew a few greetings in Smilean. However, Kalin understood Ryuel's words on her own and burst into a fake laugh before her.
The interpretation was left to Ryuel's interpreter, but she glared at Kalin like a younger sister trying to steal her older sister's groom.
Looking at that, Miliora felt like strangling Kalin.
When the tea came in, Kalin said,
"This is the tea that Her Highness usually enjoys, so please enjoy it."
"What an honor!"
Ryuel answered exaggeratedly and looked at Miliora's face.
Miliora lifted the teacup with a fake smile that narrowed her eyes. It was still hot and steaming.
"Kalin, translate. I'm glad I can serve this tea to the Smilean messenger."
"I already told him that, ugh!"
"Oh my, what should I do with that!"
Miliora turned to order Kalin to translate, but her elbow tripped and spilled the teacup on Kalin's chest. As the hot tea seeped into her, Kalin endured the pain until her face turned bright red.
Ryuel asked in Smileian if she was okay, but she didn’t get up. She also kept a fake smile on her face.
“Kalin, go and change your clothes. You might be burned, so go to the hospital.”
“..!”
Kalin clenched her teeth to hold back her anger, but she couldn’t help but look like she was angry.
[I’m sorry. I’ll have to leave for a moment.]
When Kalin left, Miliora pretended to blush.
“I hope your Prince doesn’t know that I’m acting like this. I’m really embarrassed.”
The interpreter said after a short conversation with Ryuel.
“Prince Peylan is extremely generous and will gladly provide Her Highness with new teacups and maids.”
Miliora smiled sincerely for the first time and answered.
“That’s really nice to hear.”
“Lord Ryuel said that Prince Peylan would do anything to receive Her Highness’s thanks.”
Milliora did not dislike hearing Ryuel’s fluent and sweet words, but said with a cold smile.
“How can you be so sure of that, my lord?”
“Ryuel has made friends with many people, from the royal family to the merchants of Smailan, and has earned their trust. Ryuel wishes that Her Highness would trust him more.”
“Of course. Tagar respects and trusts Smailan.”
Milliora answered, casting her anxious gaze toward the door.
Agael was considering a plan to make peace with an empire that they could not conquer by force right away, and then build up their power in the meantime to threaten Smailan through the sea route and gain profit.
If that plan succeeded, then they could aim for the empire next.
Agael’s proposal to trade iron ore to the empire was also close to buying time to prepare for war.
King Smailan also noticed this trend soon. After reprimanding the hardliners for being blinded by short-term profits and putting the country in danger, he sent Ryuel to the empire with a secret mission.
“What more could the empire gain from Agael? Smailan’s abundant resources and seafood will fuel the empire’s prosperity. Peace is wealth. Your Majesty, the Great Emperor.”
Smailan’s language, spoken in his characteristically loud and rough voice, was conveyed in the imperial language through the mouth of an interpreter who followed him like a shadow.
The Emperor could not allow Smailan to fall under Agael’s influence. There was a gateway between Agael and the Empire called the Tunbar Mountains, but the open sea route between Smailan and the Empire was closer.
The Emperor had to resolve this issue in advance to remove the seeds of future discord.
He asked Ryuel expressionlessly,
“How do you intend to achieve that peace?”
“Can there be more trust between the two countries than the union of blood?”
Ryuel answered with a slightly higher voice, and the State Hall resonated.
“My King has a grown son. I believe he is more than adequate to be the match for Her Highness Princess Miliora.”
When the Emperor froze at that bold suggestion, the Empress covered the back of his hand with her hand and pressed it down. The Empress looked at him with her cold and hard eyes like glass beads.
When she nodded slowly, the Emperor let out a sigh.
Ryuel said.
“Please allow me, Ryuel, to meet Princess Miliora and explain the great aspects of Prince Smileian and Peilan. I will also gladly tell my master about the beauty and virtue of the Princess.”
The Emperor slowly nodded his head and answered the messenger.
“Permitted.”
***
I couldn’t wake up early today, but I started the morning early anyway.
In the meantime, the two maids were kicked out in good health, and the attitudes of the other servants had changed noticeably.
I was busy studying the ledgers in my personal pharmacy.
The scale of the Kydel family that I saw through the ledgers was far beyond my imagination. It was almost like a small country.
The ledgers were documents summarizing all the work related to it, and understanding them meant understanding the work of the Kydel family.
Therefore, it would be even stranger if I could quickly understand the ledgers in a few days.
While I was wrapping my head around the ledger, two letters arrived at the same time, saying they were urgent. One was from Prince Kydel, and the other was from Princess Miliora.
It was easy to read because the envelope with the royal seal had “Urgent!!!” written in Her Highness Milliora’s handwriting.
Naturally, I opened Prince Kydel’s letter first. He never exaggerates, but when he says he’s urgent, he’s definitely urgent.
“King Smailan has sent an envoy to propose a marriage between his country’s Prince and Her Highness the Princess.”
“Huh... How can that be?”
I had completely forgotten about Agael. Thinking about it, it was natural for Smailan to be worried about Agael’s actions. It was natural for Smailan to side with the empire, which would not interfere much if they paid tribute, rather than Agael, who wanted to colonize them.
From the empire’s perspective, it was necessary to send a signal to Agael not to act rashly, so this marriage was likely to happen.
I felt like I knew what the Princess’s letter contained even without opening it.
I quickly finished preparing to enter the palace and opened her letter in the carriage.
“Lorisha, we’re in trouble. Come now!"
It was the same as the 'urgent' written on the envelope.
"If it's going to be like this, just send the envelope."
My heart was heavy as I grumbled.
Her Highness Milliora is getting married across the sea... Even if she gets married within the empire, it's lonely and difficult.
"... Isn't it?"
I've always been lonely and difficult. But if you think about it, it wasn't necessarily because of marriage. It's just life.
In fact, it seemed like life had gotten easier recently. After the two maids were kicked out, the servants were more polite, and there were fewer cases of waking up in the same bed as Prince Kydel and being startled.
In fact, there were a few times when I woke up slightly because of the weight of his arms around me...
Anyway, if you're handsome, it seems like most things are forgiven.
No, what I'm saying is that the kind of person your husband is has a huge impact on your quality of life.
But there was no way of knowing what kind of husband the Prince of the country across the sea would be to Her Majesty Miliora.
I had to enter the palace quickly.
***
“In admiration of the beauty of Her Highness Miliora, the small sun of the empire, I, the Smilean messenger Ryuel, pay my respects.”
Miliora froze as she listened to the dark-skinned man bowing before her and the low, quick voice of the interpreter standing next to him.
Miliora had never frozen so much in front of the Empress. This situation was just as scary for Miliora.
‘What about Lorisha?’
Miliora looked at Eria with eyes that seemed to be shouting at her to bring Lorisha right in front of her. But Eria just shook her head.
It had only been a little while since she had sent the letter to Kydel, so Lorisha could not have arrived already.
And at that moment, Kalin came in with hurried steps and greeted Ryuel. The medal of the attendant was shining on her chest.
[I am Kalin Ankart, maidservant to Her Highness Princess Milliora. I will assist you in your conversation from now on.]
Miliora bit her lips in frustration as she listened to Kalin’s fluent Smilean.
Ryuel, whether or not he knew how Miliora felt, answered with a hearty laugh.
[Indeed, it would be proper etiquette to have an interpreter sit on both sides.]
[Thank you for your understanding, Lord Ryuel.]
Kalin finally spoke to Miliora.
“I have introduced you to Lord Ryuel, Your Highness.”
Miliora spoke almost without moving her lips, almost as if she were ventriloquizing.
“What are you doing here?”
Kalin sat down next to Miliora and whispered, also avoiding eye contact.
“I cannot meet a foreign envoy without accompanying you, Your Highness. I will receive the punishment for disobeying your order later.”
“...”
Milliora couldn't stand the fact that she was already in a tight spot, and was crawling up to Kalin.
However, she had recently become much more stable. As the anxiety that seemed to be holding her hair subsided, she gained some patience.
Milliora didn't immediately chase Kalin away because she had squeezed out that little patience. She couldn't show herself in a bad light in front of a foreign envoy, and especially in front of someone who had come to propose marriage.
Ryuel continued the conversation, freely moving his muscular arms with his shirt rolled up.
He talked about his experiences on the ship to the empire, his impressions of the food he had eaten at the imperial banquet, and his praise for Milliora's beauty.
Ryuel was cheerful and skillfully led the conversation. The only problem was that the other person was in a state where she couldn't be cheerful.
Milliora only knew a few greetings in Smilean. However, Kalin understood Ryuel's words on her own and burst into a fake laugh before her.
The interpretation was left to Ryuel's interpreter, but she glared at Kalin like a younger sister trying to steal her older sister's groom.
Looking at that, Miliora felt like strangling Kalin.
When the tea came in, Kalin said,
"This is the tea that Her Highness usually enjoys, so please enjoy it."
"What an honor!"
Ryuel answered exaggeratedly and looked at Miliora's face.
Miliora lifted the teacup with a fake smile that narrowed her eyes. It was still hot and steaming.
"Kalin, translate. I'm glad I can serve this tea to the Smilean messenger."
"I already told him that, ugh!"
"Oh my, what should I do with that!"
Miliora turned to order Kalin to translate, but her elbow tripped and spilled the teacup on Kalin's chest. As the hot tea seeped into her, Kalin endured the pain until her face turned bright red.
Ryuel asked in Smileian if she was okay, but she didn’t get up. She also kept a fake smile on her face.
“Kalin, go and change your clothes. You might be burned, so go to the hospital.”
“..!”
Kalin clenched her teeth to hold back her anger, but she couldn’t help but look like she was angry.
[I’m sorry. I’ll have to leave for a moment.]
When Kalin left, Miliora pretended to blush.
“I hope your Prince doesn’t know that I’m acting like this. I’m really embarrassed.”
The interpreter said after a short conversation with Ryuel.
“Prince Peylan is extremely generous and will gladly provide Her Highness with new teacups and maids.”
Miliora smiled sincerely for the first time and answered.
“That’s really nice to hear.”
“Lord Ryuel said that Prince Peylan would do anything to receive Her Highness’s thanks.”
Milliora did not dislike hearing Ryuel’s fluent and sweet words, but said with a cold smile.
“How can you be so sure of that, my lord?”
“Ryuel has made friends with many people, from the royal family to the merchants of Smailan, and has earned their trust. Ryuel wishes that Her Highness would trust him more.”
“Of course. Tagar respects and trusts Smailan.”
Milliora answered, casting her anxious gaze toward the door.
Comments
Post a Comment