The question was poorly worded. Leo III instinctively shrugged, even though she was Rubina's opponent.
“No, I didn’t cut it all off...”
The interest on the borrowed money, 80 florins, was definitely paid, so it wasn't a break.
“Why all of a sudden?”
Suddenly, a doubt arose in Leo III's mind.
“No way... I have to get permission from the owner, is that what you’re saying?!”
Currently, the court affairs of San Carlo are all managed by Grand Duchess Rubina. However, the King's General Affairs Department provided separate budgets for the main palace and the Prince's palace, and Rubina held command authority over the entire main palace and parts of the Prince's palace.
“What has the owner done that she’s so greedy about the budget now?!”
“No, no, that’s not it!”
Rubina quickly waved her hand.
“That’s... something strange is coming out...”
“You can’t speak properly!”
Rubina really wanted to run away, but at this point, she couldn't just pretend she hadn't heard and turn back. She squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
“Prince Alfonso’s side... said they couldn’t go to Taranto!”
It was now early winter, and the entire royal palace had already moved to the villa in Taranto. The delay was due to Princess Julia Helena.
The Manchike Principality sent her to the Etruscan kingdom to be married at the Palazzo Carlo. While neither the engagement nor the wedding had yet taken place, Princess Julia Helena was a welcome guest at the Palazzo Carlo.
It was burdensome to bring her south to the Taranto villa. If Manchike protested, claiming she was kidnapped, he would have nothing to say.
However, he could not leave the Princess in the empty palace. In winter, the Palagio Carlo was truly empty, reserved for garbage and waste disposal.
So Leo III remained in the Palazzo Carlo until the Manchike approved the replacement of Princess Julia Helena with a new spouse. It was a bold decision, one that did not even consider the possibility of rejection.
“Oh, right. Taranto.”
Leo III muttered.
“Taranto, if you can go, why can’t you go?”
For the King, the royal court's journey to Taranto was a perfectly normal event. When he shouted, "Let's go!", the court would move along automatically, and the nobles would use their own resources to follow. He couldn't understand why the topic of Taranto was being brought up here and now. Grand Duchess Rubina, watching Leo III's expression, spoke.
“They say the palace budget has been cut off, so they can’t move in because they don’t have the money to move?”
The Prince's palace does not go down to Taranto.
This was actually Prince Alfonso's declaration. Realizing that Leo III had no intention of expelling Isabella, Alfonso sought to protect his wife in his own way.
If he wanted to avoid having Ariadne in the same room as Countess Contarini, he could have simply kept her outside the palace, but he had no intention of submitting to his father in that way. For now, the most certain course of action was to not accompany the royal family on their trip to Taranto.
The reason for this was obvious. There was no need for the Prince to make any grand declarations.
When Sir Manfredi stopped by the house, his mother, Countess Manfredi, started nagging him.
"Hey, you should get ready to go down to Taranto, too. Mom made you a light winter shirt."
To the Countess's words, the second son, Sir Manfredi, responded with his mouth full of his mother's roast chicken.
“Mother, we’re not going.”
“What? Just you?”
“No, the whole palace is the same.”
To the society of San Carlo, this was tantamount to skipping meals or church. The entire court's journey to Taranto for the winter was a time-honored and annual routine.
“Why on earth?!”
“Uh... because you don’t have money?”
“Why don’t you have any money?”
“The budget was cut off.”
“The money the Prince gives you?”
Countess Manfredi was a woman who blamed her children rather than others.
“Somehow! Since you don’t do anything like that, the Prince is displeased and doesn’t pay you a salary!”
"Oh, Mom! The entire budget the royal family gives to the palace! Not just my salary!"
This was even more shocking to Countess Manfredi than the news that her son's salary had been cut off.
“What? His Majesty the King said that to the Prince?! To that golden Prince?”
The San Carlo aristocratic community, already keeping their ears open to the current affairs of the royal court, spread this surprising story at lightning speed.
“His Majesty Leo III has cut off every last penny of His Royal Highness’s budget!”
The details of the 80 florins Leo III had spent on were omitted during the process of circulating the story. It was only natural.
“Why on earth?”
“There was no official reason given, but could it be that he was beaten by his own government?”
“No way. Countess Contarini did something that deserved to be done!”
"But that's all there is to it, isn't it? Has Prince Alfonso ever done anything wrong to His Majesty the King? Has he ever offended him?"
“He escaped from the clutches of the Gallico bastards on his own, he went to Yesak and brought glory to his nation, and he even created an order of knights!”
Alfonso had only one flaw.
"Marriage."
“Without father’s permission. Do as he pleases.”
But there was always a counterargument. The brilliant performance of Countess Contarini was the stepping stone for the leap forward.
“But, if he does as he pleases, I don’t know if he brought home a married woman like Isabella de Mare. Is the woman he brought home just any woman?”
“That’s true. She’s talented, wealthy, smart, educated, and faithful.”
“Does that mean she's not pretty enough or that she's old?”
“She's old.”
“That’s because the Prince kept dragging his feet. Those two were rumored even when Her Majesty Queen Marguerite was alive.”
“In the end, he took responsibility for his woman.”
"Ah, as expected, it’s our Prince.”
And this place was, above all, a place to denounce Leo III.
“He may not be able to help his son as a father.”
"And if the reason was that he didn't like his son's fiancée, he would have cut them off a long time ago. It's only been a few months since Princess Julia Helena appeared in high society."
“That’s true. And His Majesty Leo III...”
Leo III was indeed a man who could stand against the sole legitimate successor for the sake of his own government, was the assessment to those in high society.
The older people remembered the strange behavior of Leo III, who, when Queen Marguerite first came to the Etruscan kingdom as a bride, instead of sending her out of the palace, welcomed her by holding her at his side.
“Do you remember what he said then?”
“He said that since the ‘official government’s job is to welcome state guests, it was proper etiquette for Rubina to meet Princess Marguerite.”
“There was a lot of talk that if His Majesty the former King were alive, he would have been beaten badly, even then...”
After that, the government swept the scene with questions like, "What on earth are you doing to your own children?", "If you're blinded by women, you're truly blind?", "Your son is all grown up, so even if that's true, don't you have any compassion for your own grandchild?", and then the conversation shifted to the most important point.
“But then who pays the Black Helmet Knights’ salaries?”
“Yew? Wasn’t His Majesty paying for it separately?”
People who didn't know were really shocked.
“No. If that were the case, why would His Majesty the King always ask for Prince Alfonso’s permission to mobilize the Knights of the Black Helmet for ceremonial events?”
“I understand that there was no separate national budget and that the maintenance costs were covered by the Prince’s palace budget.”
"Yes?"
This was a significant new topic for Leo III. It was common for a King to be preoccupied with his own business and engage in outrageous behavior. A little extravagance, a little favoritism, was of little consequence in the grand scheme of things.
Disrupting the succession plan was crucial, but it was something that happened in the distant future. Since nothing was happening immediately, he could turn a blind eye and pretend not to notice. It wasn't about national defense.
“So, does that mean His Majesty the King unilaterally cut off the military maintenance budget?”
Society was in an uproar, and there was reason for their concern. The ladies' worries spread directly from the matriarchs of each noble family to the outside.
“If the Kingdom of Gallico invades again with the Montpellier Knights Templar, who will protect us?”
"No, dear. That's not important right now. What if the Black Helmet Knights stationed just outside San Carlo turn their swords on San Carlo?"
Everyone's complexion turned pale.
“They’re under Prince Alfonso’s orders! How could that be?”
"But most of them are foreigners! They can't guarantee loyalty if their salaries are delayed!"
For the Etruscans, accustomed to condottieros, this was a natural concern. It was customary for condottieros and mercenary bands that ran out of money to turn into bandits.
“No, no, that’s not happening. The Knights’ salaries are being paid normally!”
“With what money?”
“Countess Ariadne de Mare is paying it out of her own pocket!”
While most people were simply relieved, those with a sense of purpose lamented the situation where a mere Countess was single-handedly covering the country's defense budget.
“It’s the end of the world, the end of the world...”
“They say she’s the saint of the poor, but she’s feeding even the nobles.”
There have always been those who worry too much.
“How can this be possible! If this is the case, even if they are Countess de Mare’s private soldiers, His Majesty the King will have nothing to say!”
However, they couldn't step forward and raise funds or contribute to Prince Alfonso's upkeep. To do so would be tantamount to squandering their own money on the Prince's personal army. While this might have been possible for Countess de Mare, who was entangled with the Prince through marriage, for the average noble family, it was a luxury beyond the reach of a gold coin.
Those who sympathized with Alfonso and those who admired or detested the influence of Countess de Mare agreed on one point.
Leo III did something he shouldn't have done.
Rubina, the Grand Duchess, was alarmed by the growing public opinion in the aristocratic society and rushed to Leo III.
“Your Majesty, you really didn’t cut off the palace budget, did you?”
Rubina didn't relay the above stories to Leo III. Being a messenger carrying bad news would only lead to being hit by arrows.
And honestly, it would have been better for her if Alfonso's budget had been completely cut off. National defense was none of Rubina's business. This country had been around for over 300 years, and it would always take care of itself.
All she cared about was taking the throne from Prince Alfonso and giving it to her own son. It was like cutting off the Prince's budget without her doing anything.
But from Rubina's gaze, her attitude, and the wording of her questions, Leo III could see through the hidden story.
'Your Majesty, we're in big trouble!'
Rubina did not give Leo III the details of public opinion in the aristocratic society, but she sat down with her son Cesare and told him everything from A to Z.
“Oh my goodness! So that’s why that woman pulled out a 4,000 ducat note!”
Envy and jealousy flashed in Rubina's eyes.
“I was worried that it wouldn’t bounce because it was a bill, but when I took it to Camino Rosso Albero, the Lemu merchant exchanged the entire amount for gold Ducato coins without a word!”
“No, I didn’t cut it all off...”
The interest on the borrowed money, 80 florins, was definitely paid, so it wasn't a break.
“Why all of a sudden?”
Suddenly, a doubt arose in Leo III's mind.
“No way... I have to get permission from the owner, is that what you’re saying?!”
Currently, the court affairs of San Carlo are all managed by Grand Duchess Rubina. However, the King's General Affairs Department provided separate budgets for the main palace and the Prince's palace, and Rubina held command authority over the entire main palace and parts of the Prince's palace.
“What has the owner done that she’s so greedy about the budget now?!”
“No, no, that’s not it!”
Rubina quickly waved her hand.
“That’s... something strange is coming out...”
“You can’t speak properly!”
Rubina really wanted to run away, but at this point, she couldn't just pretend she hadn't heard and turn back. She squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
“Prince Alfonso’s side... said they couldn’t go to Taranto!”
It was now early winter, and the entire royal palace had already moved to the villa in Taranto. The delay was due to Princess Julia Helena.
The Manchike Principality sent her to the Etruscan kingdom to be married at the Palazzo Carlo. While neither the engagement nor the wedding had yet taken place, Princess Julia Helena was a welcome guest at the Palazzo Carlo.
It was burdensome to bring her south to the Taranto villa. If Manchike protested, claiming she was kidnapped, he would have nothing to say.
However, he could not leave the Princess in the empty palace. In winter, the Palagio Carlo was truly empty, reserved for garbage and waste disposal.
So Leo III remained in the Palazzo Carlo until the Manchike approved the replacement of Princess Julia Helena with a new spouse. It was a bold decision, one that did not even consider the possibility of rejection.
“Oh, right. Taranto.”
Leo III muttered.
“Taranto, if you can go, why can’t you go?”
For the King, the royal court's journey to Taranto was a perfectly normal event. When he shouted, "Let's go!", the court would move along automatically, and the nobles would use their own resources to follow. He couldn't understand why the topic of Taranto was being brought up here and now. Grand Duchess Rubina, watching Leo III's expression, spoke.
“They say the palace budget has been cut off, so they can’t move in because they don’t have the money to move?”
The Prince's palace does not go down to Taranto.
This was actually Prince Alfonso's declaration. Realizing that Leo III had no intention of expelling Isabella, Alfonso sought to protect his wife in his own way.
If he wanted to avoid having Ariadne in the same room as Countess Contarini, he could have simply kept her outside the palace, but he had no intention of submitting to his father in that way. For now, the most certain course of action was to not accompany the royal family on their trip to Taranto.
The reason for this was obvious. There was no need for the Prince to make any grand declarations.
When Sir Manfredi stopped by the house, his mother, Countess Manfredi, started nagging him.
"Hey, you should get ready to go down to Taranto, too. Mom made you a light winter shirt."
To the Countess's words, the second son, Sir Manfredi, responded with his mouth full of his mother's roast chicken.
“Mother, we’re not going.”
“What? Just you?”
“No, the whole palace is the same.”
To the society of San Carlo, this was tantamount to skipping meals or church. The entire court's journey to Taranto for the winter was a time-honored and annual routine.
“Why on earth?!”
“Uh... because you don’t have money?”
“Why don’t you have any money?”
“The budget was cut off.”
“The money the Prince gives you?”
Countess Manfredi was a woman who blamed her children rather than others.
“Somehow! Since you don’t do anything like that, the Prince is displeased and doesn’t pay you a salary!”
"Oh, Mom! The entire budget the royal family gives to the palace! Not just my salary!"
This was even more shocking to Countess Manfredi than the news that her son's salary had been cut off.
“What? His Majesty the King said that to the Prince?! To that golden Prince?”
The San Carlo aristocratic community, already keeping their ears open to the current affairs of the royal court, spread this surprising story at lightning speed.
“His Majesty Leo III has cut off every last penny of His Royal Highness’s budget!”
The details of the 80 florins Leo III had spent on were omitted during the process of circulating the story. It was only natural.
“Why on earth?”
“There was no official reason given, but could it be that he was beaten by his own government?”
“No way. Countess Contarini did something that deserved to be done!”
"But that's all there is to it, isn't it? Has Prince Alfonso ever done anything wrong to His Majesty the King? Has he ever offended him?"
“He escaped from the clutches of the Gallico bastards on his own, he went to Yesak and brought glory to his nation, and he even created an order of knights!”
Alfonso had only one flaw.
"Marriage."
“Without father’s permission. Do as he pleases.”
But there was always a counterargument. The brilliant performance of Countess Contarini was the stepping stone for the leap forward.
“But, if he does as he pleases, I don’t know if he brought home a married woman like Isabella de Mare. Is the woman he brought home just any woman?”
“That’s true. She’s talented, wealthy, smart, educated, and faithful.”
“Does that mean she's not pretty enough or that she's old?”
“She's old.”
“That’s because the Prince kept dragging his feet. Those two were rumored even when Her Majesty Queen Marguerite was alive.”
“In the end, he took responsibility for his woman.”
"Ah, as expected, it’s our Prince.”
And this place was, above all, a place to denounce Leo III.
“He may not be able to help his son as a father.”
"And if the reason was that he didn't like his son's fiancée, he would have cut them off a long time ago. It's only been a few months since Princess Julia Helena appeared in high society."
“That’s true. And His Majesty Leo III...”
Leo III was indeed a man who could stand against the sole legitimate successor for the sake of his own government, was the assessment to those in high society.
The older people remembered the strange behavior of Leo III, who, when Queen Marguerite first came to the Etruscan kingdom as a bride, instead of sending her out of the palace, welcomed her by holding her at his side.
“Do you remember what he said then?”
“He said that since the ‘official government’s job is to welcome state guests, it was proper etiquette for Rubina to meet Princess Marguerite.”
“There was a lot of talk that if His Majesty the former King were alive, he would have been beaten badly, even then...”
After that, the government swept the scene with questions like, "What on earth are you doing to your own children?", "If you're blinded by women, you're truly blind?", "Your son is all grown up, so even if that's true, don't you have any compassion for your own grandchild?", and then the conversation shifted to the most important point.
“But then who pays the Black Helmet Knights’ salaries?”
“Yew? Wasn’t His Majesty paying for it separately?”
People who didn't know were really shocked.
“No. If that were the case, why would His Majesty the King always ask for Prince Alfonso’s permission to mobilize the Knights of the Black Helmet for ceremonial events?”
“I understand that there was no separate national budget and that the maintenance costs were covered by the Prince’s palace budget.”
"Yes?"
This was a significant new topic for Leo III. It was common for a King to be preoccupied with his own business and engage in outrageous behavior. A little extravagance, a little favoritism, was of little consequence in the grand scheme of things.
Disrupting the succession plan was crucial, but it was something that happened in the distant future. Since nothing was happening immediately, he could turn a blind eye and pretend not to notice. It wasn't about national defense.
“So, does that mean His Majesty the King unilaterally cut off the military maintenance budget?”
Society was in an uproar, and there was reason for their concern. The ladies' worries spread directly from the matriarchs of each noble family to the outside.
“If the Kingdom of Gallico invades again with the Montpellier Knights Templar, who will protect us?”
"No, dear. That's not important right now. What if the Black Helmet Knights stationed just outside San Carlo turn their swords on San Carlo?"
Everyone's complexion turned pale.
“They’re under Prince Alfonso’s orders! How could that be?”
"But most of them are foreigners! They can't guarantee loyalty if their salaries are delayed!"
For the Etruscans, accustomed to condottieros, this was a natural concern. It was customary for condottieros and mercenary bands that ran out of money to turn into bandits.
“No, no, that’s not happening. The Knights’ salaries are being paid normally!”
“With what money?”
“Countess Ariadne de Mare is paying it out of her own pocket!”
While most people were simply relieved, those with a sense of purpose lamented the situation where a mere Countess was single-handedly covering the country's defense budget.
“It’s the end of the world, the end of the world...”
“They say she’s the saint of the poor, but she’s feeding even the nobles.”
There have always been those who worry too much.
“How can this be possible! If this is the case, even if they are Countess de Mare’s private soldiers, His Majesty the King will have nothing to say!”
However, they couldn't step forward and raise funds or contribute to Prince Alfonso's upkeep. To do so would be tantamount to squandering their own money on the Prince's personal army. While this might have been possible for Countess de Mare, who was entangled with the Prince through marriage, for the average noble family, it was a luxury beyond the reach of a gold coin.
Those who sympathized with Alfonso and those who admired or detested the influence of Countess de Mare agreed on one point.
Leo III did something he shouldn't have done.
Rubina, the Grand Duchess, was alarmed by the growing public opinion in the aristocratic society and rushed to Leo III.
“Your Majesty, you really didn’t cut off the palace budget, did you?”
Rubina didn't relay the above stories to Leo III. Being a messenger carrying bad news would only lead to being hit by arrows.
And honestly, it would have been better for her if Alfonso's budget had been completely cut off. National defense was none of Rubina's business. This country had been around for over 300 years, and it would always take care of itself.
All she cared about was taking the throne from Prince Alfonso and giving it to her own son. It was like cutting off the Prince's budget without her doing anything.
But from Rubina's gaze, her attitude, and the wording of her questions, Leo III could see through the hidden story.
'Your Majesty, we're in big trouble!'
***
Rubina did not give Leo III the details of public opinion in the aristocratic society, but she sat down with her son Cesare and told him everything from A to Z.
“Oh my goodness! So that’s why that woman pulled out a 4,000 ducat note!”
Envy and jealousy flashed in Rubina's eyes.
“I was worried that it wouldn’t bounce because it was a bill, but when I took it to Camino Rosso Albero, the Lemu merchant exchanged the entire amount for gold Ducato coins without a word!”
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