Ch.158Reunion (2)

“Um… well…”

What should I… what should I say?

It’s been four years.

At a glance, it might seem short, but four years is the time it takes for a college student to complete their undergraduate studies. In other words, if you consider it as the time needed to produce a proper elite, it’s quite a long time.

I wanted to clear up the strange misunderstanding about him, but His Majesty hadn’t come to the university for a full four years.

I had thought of so many things I wanted to ask His Majesty when we met again, but now that we’ve suddenly reunited, I don’t know what to say. My mind has gone blank, and I can’t think of anything.

“It’s been a while. You seem to have been doing well?”

“What? Oh… yes, I’ve been well.”

That’s not right.

Doing well? I haven’t been doing well even once during all this time.

“How… how about Your Majesty?”

“Me? I’ve been extremely busy. Looking at how the country is doing these days, it’s obvious there’s nothing but busy work. And since others might hear, stop calling me ‘Your Majesty.'”

…I doubt you were busy for all four years.

According to the connections I’ve built while working as a university professor, His Majesty didn’t have much to do until the war broke out.

But why didn’t he see me— No, no… that’s not right.

‘Get a grip.’

What am I thinking?

His Majesty lives in a completely different world from mine. Even if he treats me comfortably, it’s not because he has feelings for me, but simply because I’m of a status that he can treat casually.

Ugh… my thinking has become strange. I definitely wasn’t like this before, but the more I think about His Majesty, the more I get involved with him, it feels like my thoughts are being forced in that direction.

But still, I can’t help feeling resentful. Besides the Queen, he already has two commoners by his side, so why not me— No, that’s not right.

“Ugh… urgh…”

“Ellen?”

“Ah, hahaha… I’m sorry. I’m… feeling a bit unwell.”

“Is that so? Then you should go inside quickly.”

“No, no… it’s not that bad. We’ve met after so long, we can’t part so soon, can we?”

He’s really so kind.

All the men I’ve encountered at the university have pretended to care about me whenever I had a problem, desperately trying to establish a relationship with me, but His Majesty shows no such intentions at all.

Indeed, I wasn’t wrong about him. There’s value in having lived a solitary life without getting involved with any man.

……….

Having insisted she was fine, Ellen suggested we walk around the campus together to catch up on our conversations, and wanting to get close to Ellen again, I gladly accepted her proposal.

“So, those were formed voluntarily?”

“Yes, students have a rebellious nature, so even if someone tried to force them, they wouldn’t comply well.”

As expected, Ellen knows more about these things than I do, having been at the university from the beginning.

There are so many aspects I couldn’t have known just from the reports.

“Isn’t this what Claude wanted?”

“Me?”

“Yes, you wrote such a moving piece.”

Ellen is suddenly saying strange things. That I aimed for this?

That… that bulletin was written because I was worried the people would criticize me for doing nothing while neighboring countries were uniting, not to encourage everyone to go to war…

In modern times, don’t countless politicians make speeches justifying themselves to secure public support? Due to the limitations of this era, I simply made that speech into a bulletin.

Sigh, whatever the reason, it seems things have gone too far to rein in now.

“But don’t you think they’re being too extreme? Their patriotism is excessive.”

“What? Patriotism?”

“Huh?”

In the middle of our conversation, Ellen suddenly tilts her head in confusion.

It’s as if she’s hearing the word “patriotism” for the first time, or doesn’t even understand the concept.

“Aren’t those students acting that way because of patriotism?”

“Love for the country… you mean?”

Ellen truly seems unfamiliar with the word “patriotism,” with the very concept of being loyal to and serving one’s country.

When Ellen was just a simple country girl who had come to the city, if she said she didn’t know something, I would have thought it was because she hadn’t studied. But now, Ellen has worked as a professor at Dijon University, where Rotaring’s intellectuals gather, for five years.

If someone like Ellen says she doesn’t know, it means that patriotism is truly something beyond unfamiliar—it’s a completely new concept to the intellectuals of this world.

“Um… everyone naturally likes their hometown where they were born and raised, but I think those students are acting that way more out of loyalty to Your Majesty rather than that.”

“That’s… possible. It is the medieval period after all.”

Ellen is right. In the medieval era, where the country is the monarch’s personal property, being loyal to the country itself doesn’t make sense. Being loyal to the monarch, perhaps.

So those students aren’t saying “Let’s fight the enemies for our country and people!” but rather “Let’s fight the enemies for His Majesty!” as they create this warmongering sentiment.

…What is that, it’s embarrassing. How shameful.

“Should I post another bulletin telling them to stop?”

“What? Well… that’s your domain, so I shouldn’t speak carelessly…”

“Don’t be like that, tell me. What do you think I should do?”

“Ugh, um… well…”

“…?”

Ellen is hesitating now, so I moved closer to urge her on, but her reaction is strange.

She suddenly takes a deep breath, and now her voice is trembling like a goat’s.

“Well… I mean… together— no, I’d prefer if you didn’t post it.”

“The bulletin?”

“What? Oh… yes, the bulletin.”

Hmm… I think it might be better to clear up the misunderstanding, but Ellen’s opinion is also persuasive.

Posting a bulletin to correct their misunderstanding would look bad, and it feels wrong to discourage them when they’re pledging loyalty to me.

Above all, students have no way to participate in state affairs, so even if they become a bit radical, it doesn’t matter. The authority to declare war rests solely with me, so no matter how much they lead warmongering public opinion, it’s useless.

“Ellen’s right. It’s better not to touch it and just let it die down on its own.”

Thinking about it, rather than publicly pressuring them to stop, it seems better to quietly control and subdue it from behind.

The movement seems to be led mostly by theology students, with ordinary students following and responding to them. If that’s the case, Jeanne, who still has connections with the theology students, should be able to resolve it well.

……….

[“By the way, could you come to the university at least once a week from now on?”]

[“Why not? It wouldn’t be bad to take a walk for a change of mood and inspect the university at the same time.”]

[“That’s great… then I’ll guide you. I’ll keep my schedule open, so please tell me when you’ll come…!”]

Well, well.

It seems I’ve been misunderstanding Ellen all this time.

Ellen back then seemed uncomfortable talking with me, but the Ellen I met today showed no such signs at all. Rather, she was restless, wanting to talk with me even a little more.

That’s good. I’ve been feeling slightly guilty, wondering if I was the only one who considered Ellen a close friend, but now I don’t need to feel that guilt anymore.

“Where’s Jeanne?”

“Lady Jeanne is currently out. We don’t know exactly where she went…”

Jeanne has been going out frequently these days. Well, she’s officially in charge of supervising the churches in the country, so she probably doesn’t have as much free time as before.

She probably has even less time now than when she was attending university and working as a maid.

“Is that so? When she returns to the palace… no, tell her to come to my room tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

It’s late afternoon now, and it will be night soon. It would be a bit shameless to call for Jeanne at such an hour, so I decided to ask her about the students tomorrow. It’s not an urgent matter anyway.

“Are you back, brother?”

“Yes, Chloe. I’m back.”

Ahhhh…

Home is really the best.

Strictly speaking, the entire palace is my home, so this should be called a room rather than a home, but I can’t help thinking of Chloe’s room and Ines’s room as home.

It’s a place where I can stretch out my legs and sleep, and where my family is—of course it’s home!

“The kids? Are they sleeping as usual?”

“Yes, they just fell asleep, so don’t wake them up.”

“Got it.”

Claudia and Claire always sleep at this hour, perhaps as a reaction to playing all day. It might be a bit early for bedtime, but they wake up on their own for dinner and sleep properly at night, so I don’t bother them.

“I heard you went out today.”

“That’s right.”

“Really, you shouldn’t do that. You should tell us before you go so we can eliminate potential risks in advance. Do you know how worried I was, thinking you might have gone to dangerous places like a gunpowder factory or a construction site?”

“Ah… I’m sorry, I won’t do it again next time.”

Chloe is right.

This outing was already a secret excursion with minimal guards, and if something had happened, I wouldn’t have been able to face not only Chloe but also Ines.

“Hehe, please don’t do it again next time.”

“Alright, alright.”

“And one more thing.”

*Hug*

“…?”

Chloe suddenly smiles brightly and embraces me. It’s something that happens often, but this embrace somehow feels slightly different in atmosphere.

“I want to take a walk with you in a different place too. We’ve always only walked in the palace garden, haven’t we?”

“You want to go somewhere else? I guess you would be tired of it.”

“Yes, how about the university? I heard you went to the university this time, and they say the campus scenery is so beautiful.”

“Sure, let’s go together next time.”

Chloe has only walked in the palace garden with me for security reasons, so she must be tired of it. It’s natural for her to want to walk in a new place.

The scenery of the university I saw while walking with Ellen today was quite beautiful, so I should take Chloe there next time.