Ch.101Commotion (1) (Revised)

[Why did you suddenly reach out your hand and then stop? Is something wrong?]

[Uh… well… y-yes… thank you…]

“Then… I’ll begin the second lesson…”

‘Ughh… ughhhhh…’

Even now, thinking about yesterday makes my face burn and my breathing quicken without my control, making it very difficult to stand.

I had no choice but to hold his hand… but I realized later it was the first time in my life I’d held a man’s hand. I’ve held the hands of various elderly people and my father before, but strictly speaking, that’s an entirely different matter.

“Now… let’s briefly review yesterday’s lesson on cleanliness and hygiene…”

F-first… I need to focus on the lecture.

I’ll fix my gaze on the students in front of me and continuously think only about the lecture to temporarily erase thoughts of His Majesty.

Phew… good, that’s a bit better now.

……….

“…? Leclerc.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“The land registers for Dijon’s outskirts and the building prices in Dijon seem a bit strange. Do we have any related documents?”

“Hmm, I regret to say that as far as I know, we don’t. I’ll prepare the relevant documents immediately.”

“Yes, please do.”

Since the opening of Dijon University, housing prices in Dijon and the surrounding land values have risen tremendously.

Staff working at the university, students and their attendants and servants all need accommodations, so demand has skyrocketed while supply remains limited—a natural result.

Anticipating this outcome, we converted many unused buildings and parts of the old palace into dormitories, but apparently they didn’t meet the standards of the noble young men working at the university.

‘But even considering that, these prices are strange.’

No matter how much these young nobles want spacious and luxurious accommodations, ordinary lodgings shouldn’t have increased in price this much.

It’s as if someone is deliberately driving up the prices. It smells like market manipulation.

But this raises a question.

No matter how much someone wants to raise prices, they couldn’t even attempt such a thing without the capital to back it up.

‘Is there someone in Dijon with that much capital right now?’

Dijon has historically been a city where the House of Burgundy held overwhelming power. Naturally so, as it was the capital of the Duchy of Burgundy, the predecessor to the Kingdom of Lotharing.

Any forces strong enough to disrupt Dijon’s order were crushed by my ancestors long ago.

This means those behind this scheme are either outsiders or wealthy merchants who’ve recently made fortunes through foreign trade.

They certainly have guts. If I find them, their assets will definitely be confiscated.

Hmm… until Leclerc investigates this matter, there’s nothing more to uncover, so I’ll attend to other matters for now.

“Running a university for the first time certainly brings many minor incidents.”

I set aside the report showing Dijon’s building prices and pick up another report listing all incidents that occurred at the university over the past five days.

Professors making mistakes due to inexperience is common, and there are many young nobles who flaunt their status in classrooms or cause disruptions during lectures, having lived their lives doing whatever they pleased.

‘But that’s relatively minor.’

The most serious issue is the mockery of my decree stating that government positions would be evaluated based on university graduation and academic performance.

Thanks to Leclerc making an example by expelling someone who insulted the decree on the second day, the severity of such actions has decreased considerably, but they haven’t completely disappeared and still persist in small ways.

Tsk, I didn’t expect there would be no resistance given how deeply entrenched the feudal order is, but facing it directly is quite disheartening.

The most absurd part is that the lower nobility, who would benefit most from these reforms, are the ones looking down on commoners while making such remarks.

Sigh, such culture won’t disappear during my lifetime.

Knock knock—

“Come in.”

“Excuse me…”

At that moment, Jeanne quietly opens the door to my office and enters.

Is it because I haven’t seen her for five days? Her demeanor seems very different.

How should I put it—before, she seemed to blindly follow me, but now it feels like she’s not just following but revering me.

The feeling of being treated like a treasure someone fears might be stolen, held tightly in their embrace, has changed to being treated like a sacred treasure too holy to be touched carelessly.

What’s this sudden change?

“I’d like to report to the Saint about what happened at the university over the past five days, if that’s acceptable?”

“Yes, I permit it. But why come only now? Ah, this isn’t a criticism, just curiosity.”

She’s so different from the Jeanne I knew before.

The Jeanne I remember would have used reporting daily events as a pretext to make contact with me every day. Why didn’t she use such a perfect excuse?

“That’s because… the Saint was resting.”

“Resting?”

“Yes, classes end at 4 PM according to the time system you defined, but you leave work at 3 PM, so I had no opportunity to see you even if my classes ended early. I thought it would be improper to discuss work matters with you while you were resting, so I came to see you today when there are no classes.”

…Oh.

So the reason was on my side?

Indeed, I used to work until just before sunset, but lately, with the bureaucratic system improved by Luca somewhat established, and with Claudia and Lilianne born, I’ve been delegating miscellaneous tasks to officials and leaving work early.

Jeanne couldn’t meet me in the mornings because she was at the university, and in the afternoons I had already left work. Even if she encountered me in the palace as a maid, I was already off duty and resting, so she refrained from bringing up any work matters.

Thus, Jeanne spent five days waiting, and only now, on a day without classes, has she come to report.

No wonder whenever we occasionally crossed paths in the palace, she would just accompany me without mentioning anything about the university.

“Why didn’t you submit a written report?”

“It’s… slightly embarrassing to say, but I wanted to report verbally while facing you directly, Saint…”

“…I see.”

It’s Jeanne’s mistake, but not one serious enough to point out.

The purpose of reporting remains the same, and there’s a perception that reporting face-to-face is more respectful than through a few written lines. Plus, I had already left work. It wasn’t an urgent report anyway.

Above all, Jeanne has received my seed. Scolding a woman for wanting to see the one she loves would be quite pathetic.

Tsk…

“Ahem, Jeanne. From now on, you may report to me even during my rest time if it’s urgent.”

“Yes, Saint.”

“Anyway, tell me. About what happened at the university.”

With my words, Jeanne finally begins to explain everything that happened at the university, one by one.

As I had instructed, she frequently engaged in debates and continuous discussions to encourage pious and healthy theological development, and she became friendly with several students and clergy who shared similar values. Having accumulated over five days, Jeanne’s account was quite lengthy.

There were moments when she seemed to be deliberately extending her speech, but since Jeanne was clearly enjoying this rare conversation with me, I decided to overlook it.

“Oh, and I also introduced myself to people at the university as Jeanne de Bourgogne.”

“I see? Jeanne de Bourgogne—what?”

After about an hour had passed, Jeanne suddenly drops this bombshell statement as if she just remembered it.

Bourgogne? Jeanne?

But your surname is… no, wait.

“Well… I married you, didn’t I? A wife should take her husband’s surname… hehe…”

“…”

What Jeanne is saying is only half correct.

Here, when people marry, the wife does take her husband’s surname… but strictly speaking, Jeanne and I are not officially married.

Of course, I consider Jeanne my wife, but others don’t see it that way at all. The same goes for Chloe.

‘…I’m screwed.’

The House of Bourgogne is widely spread throughout the Kingdom of Lotharing.

The House of Bourgogne, which has ruled the Duchy of Burgundy for hundreds of years, successfully replaced local lords with members of their own family over generations. This raised the family’s prestige but also made them susceptible to family opinion.

In this situation, what would happen if Jeanne’s words reached their ears?

Bang bang bang—!

“…Enter.”

“Your Majesty! I apologize for getting straight to the point. Letters and messengers sent by the lords of House Bourgogne are arriving at Dijon Castle one after another, and the atmosphere seems ominous. Some messengers are desperately begging for an audience with Your Majesty, and we can hardly hold them back—”

Oh sh—