Ch.174174. Contractor (1)

The Lord Protector with the surname Cromwell was an unforgettable name in English history.

To some, he was the great leader of the republic; to others, a tyrant.

After all, he was the man who beheaded the king he served, usurped the throne, and became a dictator—a figure responsible for numerous massacres and various problems.

Many issues that persist in British society today originated from the Lord Protector’s actions, and Britain’s constitutional monarchy exists precisely because of the deep trauma from the Lord Protector’s tyranny.

Alicia criticized the Lord Protector before her as being worse than Cromwell, essentially implying that the Lord Protector had failed.

“That’s quite an honor. Being compared to the great Lord Protector?”

Contrary to Alicia’s intention, the Lord Protector misinterpreted her words and seemed pleased about being compared to Cromwell.

After all, when you think about it, wasn’t Cromwell successful in his usurpation?

Of course, his regime didn’t last beyond his generation, but he did succeed in seizing power and reaching the pinnacle of England, enjoying considerable authority during his lifetime.

So Alicia’s comparison to Cromwell had inadvertently given him confidence that he could succeed like Cromwell. Alicia looked at the Lord Protector with disbelief.

While concerned about the Lord Protector’s mental state for taking an insult as a compliment…

“No, I meant Richard Cromwell, the second Lord Protector. How dare you compare yourself to Oliver Cromwell?”

She immediately changed her statement, claiming she had been referring to Richard.

The Lord Protector’s expression changed dramatically, and he glared at Alicia with anger.

While Oliver Cromwell, the first Lord Protector, was indeed the most famous Cromwell, his successor Richard Cromwell had also held the title.

However, unlike his father Oliver, Richard couldn’t even last a year before being ousted from his position, becoming the figure who triggered the restoration of the English monarchy.

“…Your Majesty certainly has a talent for jokes.”

“Wow. Look at how quickly you change your tune when it’s unfavorable. Did you receive your home education from fantasy?”

Naturally, being told he was worse than Richard made the Lord Protector’s expression turn grim.

She was essentially mocking him, suggesting he too would soon be ousted. Unable to tolerate the insult, the Lord Protector wanted to punish the impudent child right away, but officially, she was the queen.

She was the queen he served, and he was the regent leading the cabinet on her behalf, so he couldn’t bring himself to speak harshly and tried to dismiss it as a joke.

In response, Alicia sarcastically asked if his home education came from fantasy, to which he retorted, “It seems Your Majesty also received her home education from fantasy.”

“Well, isn’t my guardian, the Lord Protector, someone who received his home education from fantasy? No wonder the queen’s words have become so cheap.”

He implied the queen was just as bad, but Alicia deflected by blaming all her shortcomings on the Lord Protector, essentially suggesting that if he didn’t like it, he should give up being regent or guardian.

Indeed, officially the Lord Protector was the queen’s regent and guardian, so the queen’s education was also his responsibility.

Alicia was merely reminding him of this fact, and the Lord Protector’s expression twisted as he posed a blunt question to Alicia, who was acting out of line.

“Do you have no intention of giving up quietly? Do you really want to see bloodshed?”

A confrontation with the Lord Protector seemed inevitable.

The moment they fought, blood would certainly flow across English soil, and many would die—but…

“Do you think you would easily give up this position if you were me? My subjects are saying I’ll be the last queen. Tell them to go to hell. I can’t just give away the position my grandfather and father protected for free.”

After all, Alicia couldn’t simply surrender the position left by her predecessors.

Who would want to be the last monarch of a dynasty?

Moreover, in Europe, there was a special event reserved for defeated kings.

“Besides, in Europe, kings who lose power struggles automatically face the guillotine. Surely you know that, working with the Frog Saint as you are.”

“Hmph. How barbaric. I wonder who taught you that.”

“The person who received his home education from fantasy. He taught me through fantasy.”

Yes, the guillotine.

Though this punishment had been abolished in modern times, in this apocalyptic era, couldn’t the guillotine be revived just to cut off a queen’s head?

After all, having declared himself Lord Protector, he would need to behead at least one monarch, and he would readily cut off Alicia’s head for the throne.

“So are you sincerely saying you have no intention of killing me?”

“Well… I am the faithful regent and guardian looking after the young queen.”

“That’s a lie. To firmly establish yourself on the throne, the former royal family would only be an obstacle to your usurpation, wouldn’t it? Calling yourself Lord Protector rather than regent. How dare you lie with a straight face?”

Of course it was a lie.

If the Lord Protector were truly loyal, there would be no need for this meaningless power struggle or war of words.

He could simply step back apologetically, and that would be the end of it.

“If I didn’t have power, you’d have me assassinated without a trace. Yeah, I see right through you.”

“Haha. Your Majesty seems to excel at making people angry.”

Seemingly stung by the mention of assassination, the Lord Protector responded with an annoyed expression.

He had indeed considered assassinating the queen before she grew up further.

Seeing this, Alicia spoke with disgust.

“Well, someone made me this way. Don’t tell me the great Lord Protector doesn’t know? The Lord Protector, known throughout the world, doesn’t know this? What incompetence! Why don’t you hand over your position to someone else? I hear there are plenty of people who want to be Lord Protector.”

“You seem confident about dealing with someone other than me.”

“Yes, I am confident. Should I fire a dragon beam at you? It’s incredibly effective, you know.”

At the mention of the dragon Bahamut, the Lord Protector’s expression changed dramatically.

Yes, the reason the Lord Protector couldn’t do anything despite Alicia’s defiance was precisely because of the dragon deity Bahamut’s existence.

The presence of the dragon priestess under the dragon deity’s protection made the Lord Protector hesitate.

“……”

“Watch yourself. If I get angry, I’m prepared to take you down with me.”

The interesting fact was that if the Lord Protector truly threatened Alicia’s life, the dragon deity Bahamut might actually appear to protect her.

And he might fire a beam at the Lord Protector, the source of the trouble, which would certainly kill him.

The Lord Protector seemed to be imagining the worst-case scenario from Alicia’s words, as his face turned pale…

“That was truly an enlightening conversation, Your Majesty.”

He ended the conversation as if retreating and disappeared into the distance.

“You think this was enlightening? The Lord Protector’s head resembles those parliament members who spout nonsense.”

[You have quite a talent for verbal combat]

Alicia was surprisingly skilled at verbal sparring.

Of course, being royalty with legitimate succession rights, she must have received education befitting a monarch, but she was too familiar with it…

“When you have to argue with parliament members, you naturally get better at it.”

[How dreadful]

She had no choice but to accumulate experience.

As the Queen of England, she had to deal with parliament’s antics.

Alicia’s eloquence had grown whether she wanted it to or not; it was inevitable given her position.

[Now that you’ve just met the Lord Protector, I wonder what kind of chemical reaction will occur when you meet others?]

“I don’t know either. But I have no intention of losing. Or being looked down upon.”

[I’ll help you as much as I can]

However, just meeting the Lord Protector had resulted in an exhausting, intense conversation.

If she were to meet others, what kind of fierce exchanges would follow? Bahamut was concerned, but Alicia steeled her resolve, saying she had no intention of losing.

“Your Majesty, it’s time to make your appearance.”

“Very well. Let’s go.”

And the queen began moving with her attendant to attend the meeting.

“I never expected Your Majesty to come to Paris in person. This is truly an honor.”

“Ugh.”

On the way to the meeting hall, she encountered the Saint of Orleans, the second person she didn’t want to meet.

The Saint greeted Alicia as if pleased to see her, but Alicia clicked her tongue as if regretting the encounter.

“Nothing to discuss.”

Thinking the Saint would just spout strange logic or sophistry, Alicia tried to ignore her and walk past.

“But I have business with Your Majesty. Today… I finally understand how you feel. It truly makes me happy.”

“What do you understand?”

However, the Saint seemed to have something to discuss with Alicia, claiming she could understand Alicia’s feelings and praising herself.

Alicia responded with an irritated tone, asking what exactly she understood.

Honestly, half of Alicia’s suffering was caused by the Saint before her, so the fact that she didn’t use harsh words showed Alicia’s patience had reached its limit.

“The contract.”

“…Huh?”

“I too, just like Your Majesty, have successfully made a contract.”

The words that followed were something Alicia couldn’t possibly ignore.

Contract? What did that mean?

So…

“B-Bahamut, did you make a contract with this Saint!?”

Could she be saying she had contracted with the dragon deity Bahamut?

Without telling Alicia?

Greatly flustered, Alicia took out her scrying mirror in front of the Saint and questioned Bahamut…

[I-I did no such thing!?]

Bahamut also seemed surprised, responding in an incredulous voice that he had not.

Of course, he had no memory of such a thing.

Considering that Bahamut’s main area of activity was the Korean Peninsula, there were no conditions for him to contract with someone from another country without Alicia’s mediation.

The American side could have requested a contract, but they had only arranged Alicia’s contract and showed no other movement regarding contracts.

In other words, Alicia was the only contractor with Bahamut in Europe.

“Haha. You seem surprised. That’s natural. After all, you contracted with the dragon deity Bahamut thinking it was invincible. But what can you do?”

With an amused face full of superiority…

“The being I contracted with also possesses power no different from that dragon deity.”

She boasted that she too had contracted with a being equal in power to the dragon deity.