<Episode 567> Unexpected Help
Irene was riding her horse toward the Duke of Taranto's mansion when she nearly got hit by an arrow. If she had stopped just three seconds later, she would have turned into a hedgehog.
Actually, she thought it would end with her becoming a hedgehog. However, unexpectedly, the guard who was about to shoot an arrow at her greeted her politely after confirming her identity and opened the side door to let the party in.
Following a servant, she passed through a vast, well-maintained garden of a slightly old-fashioned style and crossed a corridor paved with wide sandstone. As she was escorted into the mansion, Irene tried to gauge the probability that Bianca would actually meet her.
'30%?'
She couldn't understand on earth why the door had been opened. Were they letting her in out of courtesy to the Principality of Manchike, but intending to take her to a steward or retainer to offer some polite advice and kick her out?
The Bianca of Taranto that Irene saw seemed to have no interest in politics.
She has not yet officially succeeded to the ducal title.
It seemed that to receive a title, one would have to do something, whether it was currying favor with the central government, making connections in various places, or finding a powerful guardian like the Pope or Grand Duke Aseretto, but Bianca simply laughed it off, no matter what happened, and made no enemies.
'If Bianca of Taranto gives me her ship today, she will fall out with Grand Duchess Rubina. Will the Duke really take such a risk for the sake of Princess Julia Helena and the Principality of Manchike?'
No matter how much she thought about it, the answer to that was 'no.' That was the reason Viscountess Panamere had no expectation that Bianca would meet her, even though she had dodged the rain of arrows, the doors had opened, and she was being guided deep into the mansion.
Irene reached the area under the large arch with two men, her heart pounding. Just then, the servant spoke.
"The remaining two will have to wait here."
This was a private audience. It means the Duke of Taranto is agreeing to meet her!
Irene's head suddenly started spinning.
***
Knock knock.
"Your Excellency. I have brought Viscountess Panamere of Manchike."
Inside the quiet office, there was a huge desk. Behind it sat the master of the even larger Taranto.
She was very tall and had her grayish-brown hair swept back and tied neatly. She was dressed in men's indoor trousers, a silk shirt, and a simple jacket.
Irene, who was wearing the same pants with the intention of rolling around on the beach, suddenly felt a strong sense of kinship with the Duke of Taranto—no, Bianca of Taranto.
However, the other person must feel a sense of kinship with her; it doesn't make sense just because she feels it alone.
"Viscountess."
Bianca's voice was low and heavy. As she, being of higher status, spoke first according to custom, Irene immediately bowed her head, raised one knee, and knelt down.
"I sincerely thank you for meeting me, even though I couldn't even ask for an appointment in advance!"
Bianca, who had seemed like nothing but a fledgling in front of Ariadne, appeared as high as the sky in Irene's eyes. Bianca's attitude was also different from when she treated Ariadne. She was composed and did not devote all her attention to Irene.
“What is your business?”
"Please save our Princess!"
The person in a hurry will inevitably become desperate. Irene explained the whole situation to the Duke of Taranto while still kneeling. Her tone was passionate.
"...At that moment, the late Grand Duchess Rubina suddenly complained of feeling unwell, dropped off our Princess and Grand Duke Cesare alone at Il Liberta Mondo, and turned back!"
Bianca's expression, which had not wavered in the slightest until now, changed for the first time.
"To Il Liberta Mondo?"
She finally raised her head and met Irene's eyes.
"There is a pack of fierce wild dogs living there."
Irene's face turned truly pale.
Like a person of common sense, Bianca was first worried about the safety of Cesare and Julia Helena, who were abandoned on a deserted island.
Rubina's outrageous behavior only struck her after all her worries about safety had ended.
"Wait a minute. Then, the former Grand Duchess is..."
"Yes! It is a scheme to make the two of them spend the night alone so that the Marquisate cannot cancel the marriage and will have to marry the Princess off to the Grand Duke!"
Bianca was still a long way from being old enough to worry about blood pressure. However, Rubina's trickery raised even Bianca's blood pressure. She placed two fingers on her forehead.
"That's exactly the kind of thing a mistress would do...!"
The hatred for Rubina that her nanny, Baroness Giannelli, had instilled in Bianca since childhood remained. On top of this, anger welled up toward her fifth cousin, Leo III, who had allowed things to turn out this way.
However, Bianca was no longer in a position to make decisions simply because she liked or disliked someone.
'Will Rubina's gamble pay off?'
In Bianca's view, if she could rescue the two and return before sunset, Princess Julia Helena could survive this trial.
This is because, although her reputation might be tarnished for spending time alone with a man without a chaperone, it is ambiguous to attack her by claiming she definitely lost her virginity.
However, if the two of them spend the night on the island, no one can come and save them.
Everyone, including not only the San Carlo social circles but also the people of the Duchy of Manchike, will be convinced that the Princess's virginity has been violated. Any prospective husband the Princess meets in the future will likely bring up this story first to try to haggle down the price.
To find a husband who would turn a blind eye to this, she had to accept her husband's title being downgraded to Count or a lower rank. This was, although she was the monarch's daughter and the sole remaining descendant of the Emperor on the entire continent.
Bianca checked the time first. It was a little past four in the afternoon. It was a close call.
'Give the order right now, and no matter how fast the ship sets sail, it is five o'clock. If the wind cooperates, it will take two hours, or less than that, for the ship to turn around and reach Rae Island.'
If she could arrive at the island and find Cesare and Julia Helena right away, she could save the Princess—no, them—before dinner time.
There was no need to return to the burial site before sunset. This is because Bianca and her party would serve as her alibi.
'I'm at the age where I need a chaperone too, but it looks like I'm going to end up being the chaperone.'
Putting her troubled mind far away, Bianca asked Irene a question.
"What is the Grand Duke's attitude?"
It is meaningless to rack your brains here if Cesare has already had a romantic encounter with the Princess on the sandy beach.
Irene felt ashamed for a moment, wondering how the Princess she served could be so unpopular, but she gritted her teeth and answered.
“He didn’t seem to have any thoughts.”
Bianca knew Cesare well. If it wasn't him, then it wasn't him. This was especially true if it was a matter of personal preference for women. Irene added.
"For reference, the Grand Duke seemed to have no idea what his mother had plotted."
Bianca nodded. Rubina and Cesare were more than capable of doing so. They were strangely close, but they certainly weren't a mother and son who talked much. Nor were they close enough to cooperate well.
From the looks of it, Cesare, trapped on the island, will not touch the Princess, nor will he make any derogatory remarks about her once he leaves the island. She means that kind of vulgar bravado, like saying it’s all over.
"If it were a few years ago, he would have talked about that every time he opened his mouth for about half a year," Bianca muttered, thinking that Cesare had changed a lot.
"We will likely cooperate."
"I am receiving this from the Heavenly God."
However, Bianca still hesitated. She could only stop the marriage when everything had gone well.
The worst-case scenario was that she stepped forward, failed to find the Grand Duke and the Princess, and Rubina achieved her ambition of marrying the two off.
She wanted to run away immediately, but she could not antagonize the central government based solely on her own feelings. She was the Lord of Taranto and the leader of the South, and she had to take responsibility for her people.
Realizing that Bianca was hesitating, Irene begged.
"Your Excellency, the Duke, please, I beg of you. Our Princess has no time."
Bianca also knew that Julia Helena was running out of time. In the urgent situation, she desperately tried to make a judgment without panicking.
Bianca does not yet hold the ducal title. The fact that she wields full power is purely due to the personal loyalty of Viscount Gennaroso.
Viscount Gennaroso, who had been acting as Duke following the death of the previous Duke of Taranto, voluntarily handed over all the affairs of the estate to Bianca. He personally took her around, teaching her everything about the estate one by one and handing it over to her.
Taranto was following Bianca not because she was a legitimate Duke. She needed the ducal title to consolidate her power. And to have the title approved, she needed ratification from the central government.
'The throne is still Uncle Leo's.'
If Alfonso inherits the throne, he will naturally confirm to Bianca that the Duchy of Taranto has been succeeded.
Thus, Bianca had been patiently waiting for the Prince to ascend the throne. However, a situation has now arisen where she must make a decision.
'If I rescue Princess Julia Helena and send her back to Manchike, wouldn't that be helpful to Brother Alfonso and Sister Ariadne?'
Bianca was actually not sure whether the marriage of Cesare and Julia Helena would be advantageous or disadvantageous to Ariadne and Alfonso.
'If the two of them get married, my sister's position will indeed be shaken. It is a future challenge to my brother's legitimacy.'
However, Bianca knew how long Cesare had relentlessly followed Ariadne.
'Getting married and getting rid of it might not be a bad idea.'
Especially for her brother Alfonso.
Bianca personally could have done anything for Alonso and Ariadne.
She was already quietly searching all of Taranto at Ariadne's request. It was to find the Moor who had exchanged a check for Ducats, in case a bank teller saw them.
It was for this purpose.
However, that was not something Bianca, as a lord, would necessarily do. It would not be in Taranto's best interest in the long run for outside merchants to know of Taranto as a difficult city to trade in.
Bianca steeled herself. She could do small things for the people she liked. However, the main point was that she had to make a decision solely for Taranto.
Ultimately, the question returned to square one. As the ruler of Taranto, what actions must Bianca take for the greatest benefit of the Taranto territory?
'...I don't like it.'
She disliked the Pisano estate. She asked herself if her hatred for Rubina and Cesare had transferred to it, but regardless of that, she was not pleased with it.
The kingdom's second city is Taranto.
After Cesare was granted the title of Duke of Pisano, Pisano effectively became a direct domain of the King, and in return, various forms of support and benefits from the central government were sent to the north.
A significant portion of these were privileges Taranto had received from the previous King in exchange for guarding the southern coast.
She could not accept that the land her father had bequeathed to her would fall into the status of just another mediocre estate.
"...Prepare your boat."
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