Ch.203203. The Royal Palace (2)

To understand why we were invited to the royal palace like this, we need to turn back time briefly and return to the aftermath of dealing with Kagan.

Myself, Sophia, Louis VII, and his beloved Pegasus Lord.

After these four high-ranking individuals joined forces to defeat Kagan El-Temur, naturally, the four of us were treated as the primary contributors to this war’s victory.

Of course, Louis VII, being the supreme leader of a faction, couldn’t be freely praised due to political issues, but for us who couldn’t be clearly defined as belonging to any particular faction, it was a different story.

Especially since many excellent politicians, concerned that Louis VII might use this military achievement to strengthen his voice, actively worked to check his power and diminish his accomplishments.

As part of this restraint, Louis VII’s competitors and adversaries carried out political schemes that included highlighting Sophia and me to somehow downplay his achievements.

Even now, Louis VII, as a powerful figure, is gradually trying to unify the kingdom around himself in domestic politics. In this process, if he gained the achievement of subjugating Kagan El-Temur, no one would be able to stand in his way.

As the Frankish Kingdom is currently transitioning from a loose alliance of small kingdoms into a unified state, domestic nobles wary of losing their power and external forces checking the revival of a major power decided to join hands.

…Even though each territory enjoys power comparable to that of a state, they clearly shouldn’t have the qualification to establish diplomatic relations with other countries.

Moreover, they’re trying to drive a wedge between us and Louis VII through their divisive tactics, but is there really any need to fall for such intentions?

To be frank, since they’re trying to use us as they please, I decided to coordinate with Louis VII to turn this situation to our advantage…

“I see. In that case, could you come to the capital, Frank, for a while?”

“…What?”

This was the fundamental reason why both of us were invited to the royal palace of the Frankish Kingdom.

Currently, Louis VII’s competitors—commonly known as the ‘noble faction’—and high-ranking politicians from other countries were trying to highlight my and Sophia’s achievements, using this to undermine Louis VII’s contributions and distort his accomplishments as much as possible.

In this process, since they couldn’t completely erase the existing achievements, those accomplishments would naturally be attributed to Sophia and me.

Well, looking at it objectively, this could be called a fairly effective political scheme, and it might even be considered the best move they could make given the circumstances.

After all, since it’s impossible to deny what has already happened, they’re trying to minimize its impact instead.

Yes, that’s all well and good, but…

The biggest problem with this plan is that it was carried out without any consent from Sophia and me, who are arguably the most crucial pillars of this scheme.

To be honest, as a lord governing a small manor, I might have understood if they had sought my permission properly, but how could I possibly look favorably upon those who blatantly try to use us?

Let alone those who are showing such obvious disrespect.

‘…What’s going on?’

At first, I wondered why people who must know the meaning of ‘Aleinos’ would act with such audacity, but upon reflection, I could somewhat understand their reasoning.

Humans are creatures who become foolish when their interests are at stake and their livelihoods threatened. In certain situations, there exist those whose intelligence is so embarrassingly low that it’s shameful to share the same species.

Anyway, for these reasons, we decided to turn their scheme against them.

Once those forced confrontational narratives and false rumors they created spread widely, if I personally denied these facts, it would create a backlash against those who had been trying to create such public opinion.

As I’ve mentioned several times before, in this era and world, honor is as valuable an asset and symbol as wealth. It’s a time when people all over the world are willing to risk their lives for even a shred of honor.

And in such an era, spreading false rumors to insult the honor of someone who is undeniably a king provides justification for political offensives severe enough to eliminate all political opponents under the pretext of duels.

Of course, politics won’t flow so simply, but there’s no doubt that this provides sufficient justification for such actions…

And this was the main reason why we hurriedly left the battlefield and came to the royal palace of the Frankish Kingdom overnight.

※ ※ ※

The royal palace of the Frankish Kingdom, located in the capital city of Frank, was a building that gave off a very orthodox impression of what a royal palace should be.

If the Elven Kingdom’s palace felt like the pinnacle of advanced technology that appropriately mixed science fiction and fantasy, the Frankish Kingdom’s palace was, for better or worse, close to the ordinary fantasy palace we imagine.

It was surrounded by walls built by stacking stones, and various parts of the castle were painted with primary colors like red or blue, giving it a unified appearance.

Flags depicting the Frankish Kingdom or the royal family hung on the walls, and the dome or cone-shaped roofs were also distinctive.

So, comprehensively judging, it emphasized aesthetic aspects rather than functional and practical ones.

This palace, which clearly revealed the design philosophy that the inner castle couldn’t withstand once the outer castle fell, had an interior structure that emphasized residential functionality rather than fortress capabilities.

The interior decoration also gave a stronger impression of being a dignified residence for a monarch rather than a defensively capable castle.

The artwork placed at regular intervals in the corridors, or the expensive full plate armor that would cost a house to buy being used as decoration, certainly seemed far from the practicality a castle should have.

…Though I didn’t get such an impression from the magic spells applied throughout the castle.

Anyway, after arriving at the castle as secretly as possible.

“Welcome to my castle.”

“It’s an honor, Your Majesty.”

Sophia and I encountered Louis VII not in the main reception hall where the throne was located, but in a small room on the second floor.

In a small room similar to a modern conference room, he wore a surcoat with beautiful patterns over his armor… He was a splendid man who made me think that if I ever regained the power of aging, I would want to age like him.

From what I know, he’s 43 this year, which by this era’s standards is well into middle age—old enough to have grandchildren—yet he didn’t look particularly old.

His black beard, the same color as his hair, was neatly trimmed to give a dignified impression, and having been influenced by aura to become handsome, he embodied what might be called, albeit in somewhat dated terms, a “flower of middle age.”

“Did you have any problems on your way here?”

“No. Thanks to your concern, there were no major issues.”

“And the guerrilla unit…?”

“As you advised, we disbanded it, keeping only the formalities. After all, there’s nothing more for us to do.”

“Yes, you chose well.”

At his warm smile and laughter, as if looking at a child, I awkwardly smiled back, still not quite accustomed to such expressions despite our age difference.

“Gregory Aleinos. Descendant of the great Druid.”

“…You called for me?”

“Yes. Please be careful while staying in the castle. This palace… despite its appearance, is ultimately a hell of intrigue with only a splendid exterior.”

“What? …I understand.”

Though it sounded like an exaggerated and dubious statement, considering the true nature of humans, it was a reality I couldn’t deny.

Court politics has been a major theme in creative works from ancient times to the modern era, and the royal courts of this era are often several times worse than those depicted in such media.

Eliminating all children except the heir out of fear of rebellion is not common but happens occasionally, making the courts of this era truly dangerous places where daggers and poison are exchanged.

Of course, if monarchs managed things properly, there might not be major problems… but is that really possible for lords and monarchs who are mostly just educated thugs?

And perhaps because of this, I was able to realize quite soon how accurately Louis VII’s words fit.

Because that evening…

“…Lord Gregory Aleinos.”

“Hmm? Are you… a maid of this castle?”

“Yes. The person I serve has invited you.”

Despite us not saying anything in particular, one of the castle maids secretly approached me.