Chapter 27

Because It’s Embarrassing

Count Consilus asked again in surprise.

“The Regent? You mean... Valdrova’s fiancé?”

“We do not know the full details ourselves, but the fact that he managed to win over Branch Chief Stephan Pascal proves that he is capable. He is not the sort of man who can normally be swayed by status alone.”

“Ah...”

A hollow sound of amazement escaped Count Consilus’s mouth.

Ferda Valdrova.

What sort of image did the man currently have?

The worst imaginable.

All he had done thus far was pressure and threaten the local lords.

As a result, their dissatisfaction had continued to accumulate.

‘That young brat... was securing the Pascal Trading Company?’

It was astonishing to discover that Ferda had joined hands with the Pascal Trading Company without any of them realizing it.

The second surprising thing was—

‘He did not do it to satisfy his personal greed.’

If his goal had been personal gain, he would only have needed to focus on Valdrova Castle.

His attempt to revitalize trade meant that he intended to develop the stagnant and isolated territories throughout the region.

It was far removed from selfish ambition.

‘What sort of terms could he possibly have offered?’

The territories belonging to the Duchy of Valdrova had no value.

Dense forests covered the front lines to impede the monsters, and even if the trees were cut down to create farmland, the most they could produce was an occasional harvest of hardy famine crops.

Moreover, the front line was pushed back every year, leaving the land increasingly devastated.

The Far East had such a terrible reputation that even if someone offered it for free, people would start to say, “That sounds won—” before immediately backing away.

That meant Ferda had offered terms valuable enough to outweigh all of those disadvantages.

‘Something no other lord... could have accomplished.’

Whether what Ferda had shown them was false or absurd did not matter.

What mattered was that he had succeeded.

Consilus decided to deal with the immediate matter first.

“Come inside. Have the carriages organized, and spend the day resting after your journey. I will hear the details of your plan later.”

“Thank you, Count.”

The man blew a whistle, and the Pascal Trading Company’s carriages entered one after another.

Consilus looked beyond the gloomy forest toward the mountain rising high into the sky.

“Regent...”

His voice swelled with emotion.

Today, Count Consilus spoke the name as though he had witnessed a transcendent figure emerging from the darkness.

Consilus knelt in that direction and paid his respects.

“My lord?”

Arwon was bewildered by the sudden action.

However, he soon understood its meaning and knelt beside him, offering his respects in the same direction.

Then another followed.

And another.

One by one, they knelt and bowed toward the solitary mountain.

***

Luri, standing in the banquet hall, suddenly raised her hand.

“Tormenta!”

It was the name of a high-ranking wind spirit.

At that moment, white wind coiled before Luri and gradually assumed a visible form.

It resembled a human figure that looked ready to disperse at any moment, yet it maintained its shape firmly.

The spirit bowed respectfully to Luri.

—You called, Master. You appear to be in a foul mood again today.

“We are beginning another thorough cleaning. Summon every lower-ranking spirit. Open all the windows and eradicate every last trace of air inside this room!”

—Your command shall be obeyed.

“Fuente!”

The next name she called belonged to a lower-ranking water spirit.

Mana dripped through the air and formed into a sticky, liquid shape.

—Chubak.

“Absorb and wipe away every bit of broth and filth those wretched creatures spilled. Do not leave a single stain. I will not allow them to mark the residence of the great sovereign as though they were dogs urinating on a wall. Do you understand?”

—Chubabak!

The sound of water being violently stirred echoed through the hall.

Sensing that Luri was in a worse mood than usual, the spirit began moving with exceptional speed.

The water spirit repeatedly divided itself and shook its body, sucking grime from the castle floor and walls.

“Haa...”

Luri’s small chest rose and fell heavily.

The faint smell of sweat and perfume still seemed to linger and sting the tip of her nose.

No matter how often she tried to erase it, the scent refused to disappear.

‘How irritating.’

Luri did not like knights.

She especially disliked wandering knights.

Not only did they lie to exaggerate their achievements, but they did not hesitate to commit blasphemy.

The blasphemy Luri referred to was the familiar tale of a brave knight confronting an evil dragon.

Such stories made up nearly seventy percent of all knightly exploits and were among the most popular tales told to the public.

Strangely, though the story was always the same, the protagonist’s name changed every time.

That was because wandering knights paid bards to replace the original hero’s name with their own before spreading the tale.

As a result, nearly half of all wandering knights were reputed to be dragon slayers.

Dragon slayers who fled down corridors while pissing themselves.

There truly was no more revolting breed.

‘He did accomplish his intended objective.’

More than fifty wandering knights had arrived, and the number of monster corpses they brought exceeded fifteen hundred when roughly totaled.

They had even stared stupidly at the mountain of corpses and asked, “Isn’t this too many?”

Disposing of them afterward had also been a problem.

‘The second son of the Pascal Trading Company whom he brought into his camp handled that part.’

Verified laborers and assistant researchers arrived in droves and quickly dealt with the corpses.

Even so, traces remained near the entrance and wherever the carriages had stopped, and a faint odor of decay lingered.

‘I cannot believe I find the smell of those disgusting creatures preferable.’

The stench of monster corpses was still better than the mixture of knights’ sweat and perfume.

The smell of corpses would eventually fade.

This repulsive odor, however, seemed determined to remain forever.

A task that would normally have taken ten minutes became a two-hour daily cleaning ritual.

For ten days, Luri cleaned the banquet hall again and again.

She liked cleanliness, but she was not obsessive about it.

The impression left by the knights had simply been that severe.

Only when not a single strand of hair remained and the floor looked completely new did she finally begin to relax.

—Master, it is almost time for you to attend to your other duties. What would you like to do?

“Ah, yes. Thank you for your work, Tormenta and Fuente.”

—Then I shall return.

—Chubabak!

The wind and water spirits reversed their transformations, returned to mana, and dispersed.

‘That should be enough cleaning for today... Now I can deliver the weekly report.’

Leaving the banquet hall behind, Luri searched through the inner pocket of her skirt.

She took out a sheet of paper summarizing information obtained through the Imperial Intelligence Bureau and descended into the lair.

As always, a red-scaled dragon lay there with her body coiled.

—You have come?

“Yes. Have you been well?”

—Hmm... Yes, I have been well. What have you come to tell me?

“It is the weekly report. Today is the day I am supposed to deliver it.”

—Ah. Yes, of course.

Luri was accustomed to Valdrova frequently forgetting things, but today’s reaction felt different from usual.

‘She seems distracted.’

It was as though she were living while lost in other thoughts.

There was no need to ask what those thoughts were about.

Ferda, naturally.

Since it was obvious, Luri did not mention it and moved directly to the main subject.

“They say the political situation within the Empire has recently become unstable.”

She began with the most important subject, the Empire.

“Laws are being enacted that increasingly concentrate privileges among the ruling class, and the lower classes are resisting. It appears the authorities are attempting to placate them with entertainment for citizens and food distributions.”

—Hmm... I see.

Valdrova gave a reflexive response.

It was obvious that she had no interest, but Luri mechanically continued reading from the paper.

This had happened there.

That had happened elsewhere.

Once she finished delivering the news concerning the entire continent, she moved on to the next subject.

“And regarding the current state of the duchy...”

Valdrova’s body twitched.

She adjusted her posture, raised her head, and perked up her ears.

—Go on.

Her voice became clearer.

Her eyes also appeared noticeably brighter than usual.

Luri disliked that as well, but she maintained her neutrality and continued.

“The position formerly held by Thessalos Walcher remains vacant, but a contract has been established with an heir to a major trading company, providing considerable stability to the duchy itself.”

—I see.

Her voice sounded unusually wistful.

Her mood had risen merely from hearing a single piece of news that Ferda was doing well.

‘She has been even worse since that day.’

Luri could no longer endure it.

“Does it please you that much?”

—What do you mean?

“I am speaking of Lord Ferda.”

Grrr—

Steam burst from Valdrova’s nostrils.

To someone seeing it for the first time, she might have appeared angry.

Luri knew better.

Valdrova was flustered like a young girl.

—What do you mean, “please me”? I do not like my fiancé.

“You do not like him?”

—Of course not.

Valdrova added with a serious expression,

—I merely recall from time to time how he suddenly intervened, and I am only briefly concerned for his safety. Is he not a weak human?

Valdrova passionately defended herself, insisting that she only cared because he was weak.

Luri, however, interpreted her words differently.

‘Lady Valdrova is becoming unusually talkative.’

Valdrova always grew tense whenever humans were involved, but anything connected to Ferda felt noticeably different.

With everything else, her default mood was gloomy and subdued.

Right now, however, she seemed to be floating on air.

Hoping to let her release at least some of those emotions, Luri made a suggestion.

“Then why not hold a tea party?”

—A tea party?

Grrr.

Another forceful puff of steam burst from Valdrova’s nostrils.

—You mean the sort where one drinks tea, eats sweets, and talks?

“Yes. It is common for engaged humans to meet and speak with each other beforehand. They use the opportunity to confirm their feelings before the wedding.”

—A tea party... Such a thing does not suit me. It is meant for young and beautiful maidens, is it not?

“The Dread Queen of Valdrova, who possesses the greatest beauty on the continent, would look perfectly suited to anything she did.”

—Hmm...

Valdrova rested a claw beneath her chin and released a thoughtful breath.

She did not appear entirely opposed to the idea.

However, something was clearly still bothering her, making it difficult to accept immediately.

—A meeting... Then I would naturally have to face him in human form, would I not?

“Yes.”

—Hmm... In that case, I cannot go.

Valdrova was like someone who complained of hunger, only to overturn the meal placed before her.

“Why not?”

—Because it would be too embarrassing.

It was hardly a reason befitting a sovereign.

Luri took a deep breath before asking,

“...Have you not already met him once? I understand that you faced one another while you were in human form.”

—Yes, we met once.

“You even held hands.”

—We held hands as well.

Valdrova had seen Ferda, and Ferda had seen Valdrova.

How could either of them possibly forget that day?

Just as the memory remained vivid in Ferda’s mind, it was equally vivid in Valdrova’s.

—That is precisely why I cannot do it.

Valdrova recalled the emotions she had felt then.

That man had continued despite his suffering.

When blood streamed from his nose, he looked as though he might collapse at any moment.

Left with no other choice, she had polymorphed into a human and caught him.

As she shed tears in sorrow at the sight of his pain, Ferda clasped her hand, wrapped an arm around her waist, and pulled her closer.

She was a dragon who had flown across countless battlefields, burning and tearing apart everything that defiled the earth.

An absolute being before whom all others held their breath and lowered their heads.

She possessed such overwhelming might that no one dared even speak of strength in her presence.

She was the very embodiment of absolute power and status.

Yet the instant his arm wrapped around her waist, every legend that defined her dissolved like a mirage, leaving only helplessness behind.

She was drawn forward by the touch of a man thousands of times weaker than herself until their faces were almost touching.

For the first time that day, Valdrova had become a princess from a story.

A woman.

—It is a pleasure to meet you, my heart.

A man’s touch, which she had never experienced before.

His warm greeting.

Even his handsome smile.

For someone who had gone several centuries without interacting with humans, it was far too much information to process.

That was why Valdrova had been unable to do anything.

She had frozen where she stood.

Her mind had gone completely blank, and even the tears that had been about to fall vanished.

She had remained frozen for a long time, even after Ferda collapsed helplessly against her chest.

Every one of her actions from that day remained perfectly preserved in her mind.

“My heart...”

—Krrr!

Valdrova covered her face.

She remembered Ferda’s actions, but she also remembered her own shameful behavior.

Merely recalling it caused her body to react again.

Her heart burned as fiercely as a furnace filled with molten lava.

A strange tingling sensation spread through her body, making her want to fidget for no reason.

As she twisted and shifted, her chest filled with air as though she had forgotten to breathe.

Valdrova slowly released it.

Fweeeeeeeeeee...

The long, whistle-like sound echoed throughout the cavern.

‘That sound again...’

It was the sound Luri hated most.

Valdrova always made it whenever she became overwhelmed by more happiness than she knew how to handle.

It was a hundred times better than seeing her miserable, but Luri still did not like it.

“I believe holding a tea party would be a good idea. What will you do?”

Valdrova peered at Luri from between the wings covering her face.

—What do you think I should do?

“Master, you are the embodiment of power. The embodiment of power must know how to express her own will decisively.”

In other words, do not push the decision onto me.

—Indeed. That is how I should behave...

Valdrova scratched her chin with a claw.

She tilted her head from side to side.

She repeatedly rolled her enormous body over as she agonized over the decision.

‘She is desperate to go.’

Luri had already read the answer from Valdrova’s movements.

Her desires were clearly directed toward Ferda as well.

Yet merely desiring something did not mean everything would proceed according to her wishes.

The dragon who fearlessly burned and tore apart monsters was a greater coward than anyone else.

—I think I would prefer to remain here for a while longer... I am not yet confident enough to face my fiancé.

“Understood. Then we shall postpone the tea party. I will take my leave.”

Even when someone pushed her toward a prepared meal, Valdrova would ultimately overturn the table.

Luri bowed respectfully and turned to leave.

—Luri.

“Yes?”

—Have you been experiencing many difficulties recently?

Luri could not understand the intention behind the question.

“No. Nothing in particular.”

—Ah, I see. The smell of sweat on you was rather strong, so I thought you had been so busy that you could not even bathe.

“...The smell of sweat?”

Luri possessed an exceptionally sharp sense of smell.

However, Valdrova was a dragon, and hers was even sharper.

Moreover, there was no possibility that Luri would sweat merely from managing the castle.

—Do not overwork yourself. I do not wish to see you pushing yourself too far.

“...There is no need to worry, my master.”

Upon returning to her room, Luri immediately tore off her clothes and burned them.

She then swore that every knight would be required to scrub themselves thoroughly before ever setting foot inside the castle again.

***

Ferda was in his office with Mori.

After joining forces with Stephan Pascal, he had resolved the supply problems that the Empire had failed to address.

Ferda intended to quantify the benefits they had obtained.

“What is the current progress on the items listed in the supply plan?”

Mori answered through writing.

—Thirty-two percent complete. The most essential supplies have already been delivered primarily to Count Consilus’s territory. Distribution to the other territories will continue gradually.

“What are the projected effects of the supplies?”

—If distribution proceeds according to the plan, it will contribute thirty percent toward stabilizing civilian livelihoods, improve the individual combat capabilities of the troops by forty-five percent, and increase morale by thirty percent.

“It seems we have achieved the best possible outcome.”

Mori nodded.

Since Ferda had been working for the development of the territory, it should have been welcome news.

Yet Ferda was not entirely pleased.

“Something serious will happen soon.”

Mori tilted her head.

Ferda answered the unspoken question.

“There are people in this world who cannot tolerate seeing others succeed.”

The sort who inevitably ruined things the moment they began going well.

And those people currently occupied the highest positions in the Arken Empire.

Even if they themselves were incompetent, they could not bear to see anyone else display excellence.

It did not even take several days.

Those consumed by greed came rushing toward Ferda.