“As you said, Madam Sienna, I told them I’m going to hold a Knight’s contest today.”
Valore sometimes visited Sienna’s room. He said he wanted to run away, but he was taking part in politics little by little and voicing up thanks to Sienna’s encouragement.
Valore, who did not want to disappoint Sienna, took the courage to speak out or express opposition to the aristocracy, who often ignored him. He realized that his throne was only a shadow. Whenever he was frustrated, she gave advice to him.
Following the recent crisis in soaring wheat prices in the capital city, Valore ordered to punish the person in charge and award Sienna for helping stabilize the price of wheat by donating wheat to the temple. The issue of severe punishment for those in charge was closely contested by opponents and proponents, but it was eventually concluded that the person in charge would be punished and the construction would proceed quickly.
However, the idea of awarding the prize in the name of the emperor to Sienna was opposed by all the nobles. They argued that she be pushed for making donations to the temple of the goddess of the land, not as the distribution of free wheat in the name of the imperial family.
Her actions were condemned as shaking the foundations of the Leipsden Empire, which had been in a neutral position regarding religion. Apparently, as they said, she encouraged conflicts between religions by showing her support for one religion. In the end, giving the prize was thwarted and Arya’s men forcing punishment had to be calmed.
Valore felt frustrated by the aristocrats that did not agree with his ways, and asked for advice from Sienna. Sienna suggested holding a Mutu competition, saying it was necessary to clean up vested interests.
The Mutu competition had the purpose of checking the skills of the imperial knights. It was to allow not only the imperial knights but also outside knights to participate, so the loser was eliminated in a one-on-one competition, and the winner was to compete until the final one came out.
“Did anyone oppose it?”
“The Queen stood up and opposed it, but most of the nobles approved it. Many people agreed that we would give the title to the winner and that we would give the award to those who were ranked in the imperial knighthoods as well as those who recommended them.”
“That’s a good thing.”
The event seemed to have a good purpose for the aristocrats, but it was actually different. Knowing that the imperial knights were in a mess, Valore and Sienna planned to hold a competition to reveal their poor skills to the world.
Their plan was to punish those involved for the lack of ability of the imperial knights and to create a new aristocratic force to stand on the emperor’s side. Furthermore, the move was aimed at pressuring aristocrats who had used their connections or money to buy and sell knight positions.
Without knowing that, the aristocrats were full of dreams, hoping that the knights they recommended would win.
“Cough, cough!”
Valore coughed violently.
“The cold seems to last too long. What does the doctor say?”
“What do you need for a doctor? It’s just a cold.”
Valore coughed deeply. He covered his mouth with his hand and coughed, but his hand was covered with blood. Sienna held out her handkerchief, pretending not to see it.
“Still, call in the imperial clinic for a consultation. His Majesty’s body is not for yours alone. Stay healthy.”
“Thank you for your concern. By the way, could you play the piano for me?”
“There’s only one song I can play. You’re not tired of it?”
“Not at all. These days, I only feel alive when I listen to your performance.”
He spoke with a very tired look. Sienna stood in front of the piano, ignoring the shadow of death on Valore’s face.
“I receive Your Majesty’s command. I’ll play it.”
Her fingers were placed on the keyboard.
“Are you out of your mind?”
Arya’s voice echoed in the palace.
“Wouldn’t it be a good idea to hold a martial arts competition? The public sentiment in the capital is bad, so holding a big event to appease them would be…”
clang-rang-
Arya could not contain her anger and threw the teacup into the face of DukePanacio. The teacup that hit Depine’s face broke as it fell on the marble floor. He wiped the tea from his face with a towel.
“Arya Panacio!”
Depine couldn’t stand it and called Arya’s name in an angry voice. Although she was sitting in the position of Queen, she was his younger sister. There was no reason for him to be insulted like this.
“Shut up! How dare you call my name! Even though you have the same father as me, I am now the Queen of the Leipsden Empire. I am the Emperor’s Mother! I don’t deserve to be called recklessly by someone like you.”
The Duke bit his lower lip, unable to hold back his anger.
“Are you carrying your head as a decoration? Are you putting it on your shoulders just in case it feels empty? Who knows the skills of the Imperial Knights now better than you? And yet you are in full favor of the Emperor’s words!”
Depine said, still frowning.
“It’s still the Knights of the Imperial Household…”
“It’s just a name. Don’t you know it’s just a scarecrow that you and I made to distribute the title to the nobles? It’s a group of idiots who can’t slash anything with a sword. It seemed plausible in flashy armor, but now I’m going to be ridiculed when their pathetic skill is shown in front of everyone.”
“But if they’re the only ones competing against each other…”
At Depine’s words, Arya laughed in vain.
“So that’s what you should have said. You should have insisted that only the imperial knights be sent to the competition when the Emperor says that he will hold a contest with a collection of talented knights from all over the country. Were you absentminded at the meeting?”
Recently, Depine heard that his son, Delhi, was trying hard day and night, so Depine couldn’t think of anything else because he was obsessed with the idea that his son might win.
“Then even now, I will talk to His Majesty…”
Arya said with a deep sigh.
“I’ll go and tell him. By the way, how is the Southern store coming along?”
“That’s… …just on the verge of bankruptcy. Most of the land they held as collateral has been taken away with penalties, and now, some of the southern nobles have sold their titles in the aftermath. It’s a lot of damage. We’re going to lose most of our money.”
“You know, the road repair cost… That’s all right. It’s already over. I just want you, Duke, to comfort the Southern aristocrats. By the way, the amount of money coming from the South Merchants has been quite large.”
“It’s very unfortunate. Our Panacio family alone is left with half the land. It’s not just about funding. The rising price of wheat in the capital city is not good for public opinion. The people believe that the main cause of the surge in wheat prices is the southern aristocracy, especially our family.”
At Depine’s words, Arya’s eyes turned wild. Depine said with a sullen face.
“In particular, public opinion is not good about Emperor Valore. So why don’t you, my Queen, ask the First Princess? Didn’t she donate that much wheat again as soon as the wheat ran out of stock in the capital? It must be connected to a wheat-rich company. So I suggest you find a way to borrow wheat from her…”
At Depine’s words, Arya said, rubbing her forehead.
“It’s strange—when all the warehouses in the capital are empty, and even the imperial warehouse is empty, she donated enough wheat to quell the surge in wheat at the capital. It’s as if she knew in advance that this was going to happen.”
“How could she know? Heavy rain and landslides are the will of heaven… she’s not even a prophet.”
“It’s still suspicious. I’m sure it’s related… do you have any information about the merchant who paid the temple wheat?”
“Why do you think I even asked the emperor? No information is found. That’s why everyone calls it the Dark Merchants. It is not known what the original name of the merchant is, who the owner of the merchant is, what aristocrats are in contact with, or when the merchant was created. All it’s known is that she donated to the temple in the name of the First Princess.”
“Is there anything else unusual?”
“Oh! Now that I think of it, there’s one strange thing. I don’t know if this has anything to do with the Dark Chamber, but…”