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nChapter 173Proofreader: somnium

nWar was not what the Krates Empire wanted.

nMore than anything else, military supplies were a problem.

nIt was the Duchy of Riagan who decided to take responsibility for the supplies of the conquest in the South.

nIt was very difficult to take a large amount of material from central to there. In addition, it was because the southern part of the country used to regularly solicit pirate subjugation.

nThe Duke of Riagan was suppressed by the Eimmel Kingdom Army, so he could not move hastily.

nSo did the Southern Army. If the system worked well, the Southern Army had to make a single move independent of the Duchy of Riagan to intercept the Eimmel Kingdom Army.

nHowever, the Southern Army commanders, who were close to the Duke of Riagan, did not move hastily.

nTo make matters worse, Cadriol attacked the strategic points, as if he knew where the Southern Army military warehouses were, disrupting the chain of supplies.

nIn the end, the central had to send down a person in charge who would arrange everything.

n“Now you have to make a decision.”

nThe priests urged the Emperor to make a decision every day.

n“We must punish the Eimmel Kingdom so that it will never invade the Empire’s territory again.”

n“Is war so easy? Sanctions against the Kingdom of Eimmel should be sufficient as economic sanctions. Stop all trade and issue a decree that bans all exchanges with the Eimmel Kingdom, including the Iantz Kingdom and the small southern kingdoms.”

n“What kingdom would recognize and follow an empire whose territory has been invaded and the Emperor’s parent’s land destroyed as a great power? An empire is an empire because it has the power to subdue all nations.”

n“Let’s say that it is so and then win against the Eimmel Kingdom. Even if the victory was won by consuming huge amounts of material, if the Duchy of Riagan was destroyed, it would be a loss of face anyway!”

nThe battle between the group that advocates for war and the group that advocates for reconciliation and peace was tense.

nA fact-finding investigation surrounding Terry Ford was conducted separately.

nDealing with the Eimmel Kingdom is something to be done with the face and justification of the Krates Empire at the center. The Empire would never admit that the assassination of a queen had anything to do with them.

nBut even if it was external, they had to know the facts.

nAll persons suspected of having had contact with Terry Ford, including Viscount Hoden, were detained and subjected to harsh interrogation.

nSome of them were found guilty of other corruption in the process and were punished.

nIn the capital, more people were interested in this than the disputes with other countries in the southern provinces.

nAfter all, the Eimmel Kingdom is a small country. Most of them thought that no matter what happened there, there would be nothing special happening to the Empire.

nTherefore, what the nobles paid attention to was the situation of the Duchy of Riagan and the direction of the successor.

nBecause of this, Lawrence was fired from his position as Secretary of State and was placed under probation at his home.

nThe suspicion grew even more when it was revealed that Terry Ford had a grudge against Marchioness Camellia.

nHowever, in the end, the identity of the person behind it was not revealed. This is because all evidence was cut off in the Kingdom of Iantz.

nHowever, there were rumors that the Emperor’s investigators knew it and covered it up.

nThat was the basis for claiming that Lawrence had done it.

nIf the Emperor didn’t push him, Lawrence didn’t have any legitimacy to claim. So was the claim to power.

nTherefore, if the Emperor’s favorites could no longer cover his faults, he could no longer be the Emperor’s heir.

nAnd the spark of this incident flew at Grand Duke Roygar. It was also in the wrong direction he hadn’t thought of.

n“Is Garnet still in the room?”

nGrand Duke Roygar took off his robe and left it to the butler.

nThe butler answered with an apologetic face.

n“Yes.”

n“How about a meal?”

n“Skyla brought it in, but she didn’t even put it in her mouth.”

n“It’s already been four days. What do you mean?”

nThe butler bowed his head at the harsh words.

nIt was the fourth day that Grand Duchess Roygar lay down and stopped eating. Marchioness Camellia comforted her and Marquis Luden even went for a visit, but to no avail.

nLying on the bed, she talked only with her older sister, Marchioness Camellia, and never tried to converse with anyone else.

n“The kids?”

n“Madam doesn’t even want to see the Misses. She’s afraid they’ll be worried.”

nGrand Duke Roygar clicked his tongue.

n“Bring me some pomegranate juice. Cool it down.”

n“Yes.”

nShe’ll be angry when she sees his face, but when his wife is sick, how can he pretend he doesn’t know.

nSoon the butler brought a glass of pomegranate juice.

nGrand Duke Roygar took the cup with his own hands and knocked on the door of the Grand Duchess’ bedroom.

n“Garnet. It’s me.”

nThere was no answer from inside.

n“I will go in.”

nEven after speaking, Grand Duke Roygar remained polite and waited for a while.

nThen the door swung open. Skyla raised her head and said cautiously.

n“Welcome, Uncle. Aunt is feeling …… not very good right now.”

n“Isn’t this the fourth day? How is she?”

n“I don’t think there is anything I can say.”

n“The lady-in-waiting is just you?”

n“Yes.”

nGrand Duke Roygar motioned for Skyla to come out.

n“I must go in.”

nSkyla didn’t bother to stop Grand Duke Roygar. For four days, Grand Duke Roygar had been patient enough.

nWhen Grand Duke Roygar entered the bedroom, he held his breath and all the maids waiting here and there stopped the sound of their footsteps and disappeared outside.

n“I’m here.”

nGrand Duchess Roygar, who had probably heard and knew what was going on right away, turned around and didn’t even pretend to listen.

n“I brought the pomegranate juice you like. Just take a sip.”

nWith the juice at her bedside and sitting next to her, Grand Duke Roygar gave a friendly voice.

nGrand Duchess Roygar opened her mouth.

n“Leave me alone. I’m going to starve to death.”

n“Honey. Don’t do that. I didn’t say I had anything to do with it.”

nGrand Duchess Roygar tapped Grand Duke Roygar’s hand as he was about to stroke her cheek.

nAnd she looked at Grand Duke Roygar with a face full of tantrums.

n“Don’t lie.”

n“Why would I lie to you like that?”

n“You think I’m stupid, don’t you? Or you think that the lady named Ford must have forgotten who she was talking about.”

n“You know that nothing happened with Lady Ford. Your sister even confirmed it, did you forget?”

n“You think I don’t even have ears? So what kind of money did that Terry Ford woman have to buy herself a title, so she could properly pretend to be noble?”

nGrand Duchess Roygar tried to get up and was dizzy.

nGrand Duke Roygar hurriedly supported her and sat her leaning against the cushion. Then he put pomegranate juice on her lips.

n“Garnet, don’t be stubborn. And if you collapse because of this, what do I and the kids do?”

nGrand Duchess Roygar flinched.

nHowever, from the beginning, she was raised to be precious, and she had a temper that could not tolerate suffering well.

nIf she had been stubborn for four days, she would have endured enough. She was very thirsty and the pomegranate juice was so fragrant. It has been one of her favorite drinks since forever.

nGrand Duchess Roygar finally took a sip of the juice.

nThen, she tried to make her voice cold and hard.

n“Anyway, I don’t trust you. You liked that girl.”

n“Terry Ford and I have nothing to do with each other. Really. Didn’t you hear people say it was all Lawrence? To frame your sister.”

nGrand Duke Roygar sighed and said.

nIt was an idea that Grand Duke Roygar had never imagined.

nIn case there was any misunderstanding, he wanted to keep it out of the ears of the Grand Duchess if possible.

nBut as Lawrence’s arrest and further action seemed to be taking place, the socialites and salons were ablaze with the story.

nGrand Duchess Roygar also heard that the assassin of Queen Eimmel, Mrs. Lexen, was a woman named Terry Ford.

nAnd Grand Duchess Roygar remembered the name of Lady Ford.

nHer husband’s interest in another woman remained as a rare and painful memory of her life’s ups and downs.

n“Don’t blame my sister. What my sister did was always for me.”

n“That’s right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to deny it.”

nGrand Duke Roygar spoke as softly as he could.

nGrand Duchess Roygar said with eyes reddened by her tears.

n“So, you didn’t do it because you were sorry for what my sister did?”

n“Your sister did nothing. She said that woman’s sister committed suicide. Perhaps she was deceived by Lawrence, too. Poor thing.”

n“…….”

n“But I guess the woman was invested such a huge sum for whatever reason and was given a business in the South. His Majesty said either Lawrence had done it, or that he would have gone with the Duke of Iantz. Don’t believe what people say without knowing.”

nGrand Duchess Roygar was silent. Then she burst into tears.

n“I am upset.”

n“Then, stop crying and drink more pomegranate juice. Your pretty face will be swollen.”

n“You keep giving me a hard time.”

n“Didn’t I say that it was all a misunderstanding?”

nIn the end, Grand Duchess Roygar nodded her head.

n“Then are you going to eat right now?”

n“…….”

n“Don’t make me so sad.”

nGrand Duchess Roygar did not answer this time again, but her mood had softened considerably.

nGrand Duke Roygar patted her hair once more and stood up.

nHe was astonished and bewildered when Terry Ford’s affairs were revealed. He was only concerned about the involvement of his faction nobles through Viscount Weave.

nHe never thought that Grand Duchess Roygar would misunderstand it this way.

nIt really was an unexpected spark.

nAs he stepped outside, he said to Skyla, who was waiting outside the door.

n“Bring her some soft soup or something. Now, if you recommend it several times, she’ll eat because she can’t win.”

n“Will aunt be okay?”

n“It’s okay because she’s just ranting. Please comfort her. Doesn’t Garnet like you very much?”

n“Yes.”

nSkyla bowed her head in obedience.

nGrand Duke Roygar sighed heavily and strode towards the study.

nOriginally, he could have played a big part in this. As a means of attacking Lawrence, or as a means of expanding his influence over the southern provinces.

nBut now he could not reach out his hands or feet. No matter what he did, the Grand Duchess must have misunderstood and wept when she heard the news.

n‘Tsk.’

nHe loved his wife. But he wondered if it would have been better if he had had a more comradely spouse than the innocent and loving wife at this time.

n“A guest is waiting for you.”

nThe butler said, “I made him wait in the library.”

nThere were not many guests who were greeted directly to the study rather than the parlor. There was no one coming tonight.

nGrand Duke Roygar looked at the butler curiously. The butler said in a low voice.

n“He was from the Duchy of Riagan. He came here right from the Empress’ palace, so I took him to the study.”

nGrand Duke Roygar clenched his fist.

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