The day of the Spirit Festival had finally arrived, and like every year, today was also a beautiful day.
The sky was clear, the flowers planted during the Winter Festival were in full bloom, people were dancing to the sound of music and many stalls were selling tasty food along the streets.
Everyone was celebrating the arrival of spring.
“Fufu, it seems like everyone is properly enjoying this year’s festival, don’t you think so, dear?” – Said Emilia von Harkenberg, with a smile on her face, as she looked outside of the carriage.
“Indeed, and there’s even more people on the streets than previous years, so it seems like this year’s parade is going to be even bigger.” – Said Klaus von Harkenberg, as he stroked his beard. (Tl/n: The author finally gave him a name! …Or I just forgot that he had one, which is probably the case.)
Every year, on the day of the Spirit Festival, the people of the Empire would make merry while parading the streets of the capital, before heading to the Ivory Palace in the afternoon to thank the royal family for everything they did to better the country throughout the past year, and as the tradition went, the royal family would always greet the people who went to the castle from one of the many balconies of the palace.
But even though the festive mood could make anyone happy, the same couldn’t be said about the little girl sitting in front of Emilia.
“Hmm? What is it, deary? You’re not excited about the parade? Is there something wrong?” – Asked Emilia, as she turned to look at her quiet granddaughter.
However, Leonora, the person in question, just shook her head, and said–
“–No, I’m alright….”
Leonora was, without a doubt, a beautiful girl, but her natural features, coupled with the light pink dress that she was wearing today, plus her partially braided hair, made her look even more adorable than she already was. Emilia even had to hold herself back from hugging her granddaughter, otherwise, she’d probably ruin the little girl’s dress. However, that didn’t mean she wasn’t worried about Leonora. The little girl had a resolute look on her face, as if she was ready to face a really powerful opponent… and Emilia knew why.
(I see… so she’s ready to face both Alexia and Balthazar, huh…?)
Recently, many rumors about Albert started circulating in the social circles of the noble society, and Emilia, who was the head of many of them, knew everything that was going on.
(That child imposed his authority on the old nobles to fix the water problem of the country, so his parents were forced to seal his magic power to teach him a lesson… but I don’t think Balthazar is going to let his son off with just that. He’s probably going to exile Albert as well, so I hope Leonora made the right choice.) – Thought Emilia, as she looked at her granddaughter with a kind smile.
Thanks to Kai’s daily letter, now Emilia knew how much Albert cared about Leonora, after all, he was desperately trying to retrieve the dragon mark that he gave her, in order to protect her from the nobles that wanted him, and his associates, exiled at any cost… and that couldn’t have made Lady Harkenberg happier.
(Fufu, who would’ve thought he cared so much about her…) – Thought Emilia, as she unfolded her fan.
By retrieving the dragon mark, Albert was implying that he did everything on his own. In other words, he was trying to focus all the blame on himself, which, to Emilia, just proved that the prince was indeed good enough for her granddaughter. However, things weren’t so simple. Earl Hagmeyer, and many others who were also tasked with solving the water problem, didn’t take the matter of the new magic crest so favorably, after all, they lost all the financial support–or rather, the easy money that they were receiving from the crown because of Albert, so it was more than obvious that they were the ones who wanted the prince exiled.
But Emilia wouldn’t let such a good man slip through her fingers. Not to mention that Albert was someone important to her granddaughter, which was more than enough incentive for her to pull some strings to get him adopted by a noble family after he was exiled, just to make him marry Leonora afterwards. That’s how far Emilia was willing to go for her granddaughter.
(The only problem is that I don’t know what type of person that prince is…)
On paper, Albert was everything that Emilia wanted for her granddaughter. He was handsome, intelligent and he cared about Leonora, but all of those qualities wouldn’t mean anything, if his personality wasn’t good.
(I don’t want her to be stuck with a boring man for the rest of her life… but I don’t think it’ll be that easy to convince her, if it turns out that that’s really the case…)
According to Kai, when Albert asked Leonora to return the dragon mark, she fainted from the shock, and Emilia could understand why that happened, after all, that was the same thing as the love of your life telling you that he’s breaking up your possible engagement just to protect you, which is why Leonora refused to give back the coin by locking herself in her room until the day of the party.
At first, Emilia even thought about scolding the little girl, since not returning the coin to Albert was a reckless thing to do. But after seeing the resolute look on her granddaughter’s face, Lady Harkenberg realized that Leonora knew she was being reckless, however, instead of running away, she chose to face that problem head on. So the least Emilia could do, as a grandmother, was support her granddaughter’s decision… but the person in question was more worried about his dress than the matter about the gold coin.
(I knew it, this shade of pink won’t stand out as much as I wanted. Emilia-sama hasn’t even complimented my dress yet–)
Leo was going to meet the Empress of the Weiz Empire today, so this was the perfect opportunity to show off his new product. The only problem though, is that he didn’t really have knack for dresses, so he wasn’t sure if the color of the dress would catch the eye of the Empress.
(–Well, the dress looks expensive enough, since it has a lot of frills… but I’m not so sure about the overall color–)
Leo wanted to restart the coloring process of the dress from the beginning, but he didn’t have enough time to do that right now.
(–No, I’ve spent the past week perfecting this dress, so I’m sure the Empress will like it! Besides, it’s too late to make another dress anyway, so I’ll have to make do with this one!)
Last week, Leo had an idea for a new product… and that idea was to create dyes out of tea.
Actually, it all started when Albert came to visit him. At the time, Leo thought he was mistaken about the prince, after all, he saved his life… but the new image he had about Albert crumbled the moment he asked Leo to return the gold coin.
(Ugh…! Why the hell am I remembering something like that now, of all times!? Heck, I even fainted from the shock! What a bad memory!)
Well, Albert wasn’t so low to the point of taking the coin from Leo while he was passed out, so he promised to come again on the next day.
But that wasn’t the problem.
When Albert asked Leonora to return the coin, he obviously meant that he didn’t want her to be exiled as well… however, Leo completely misunderstood his intentions. To him, what the prince meant was: “I don’t want everyone to think you’re my fiancee, so I want my coin back.”
(Hmph! Like I thought, I can’t trust Albert! He’s an evil prince! Besides, I’m on the same boat! I also don’t want everyone to think I’m going to marry another man!)
Needless to say, but after the initial shock of almost losing his gold coin, Leo became really angry with Albert. He knew that the prince hated him, however, taking back a present that you gave to someone was a bit too much… so he locked himself in his room.
Well, that’s not to say Leo wasn’t afraid of the prince trying to break in, after all, he knew that Albert was strong enough to break someone’s arm whenever he wanted. But protecting his gold coin was the top priority, so Leo didn’t give in to fear, even though the prince went to his room everyday.
(Yeah, I’ll protect you from that evil prince, Kar-sama! You’re mine! I’m not giving you to anyone else!) – Though Leo, as he clutched his gold coin through the dress.
To Leo, his gold coin wasn’t a dragon mark, or the sign of a candidate for the position of next Empress… it was just a gold coin. So the best course of action that he could think of, was to convince the Emperor and the Empress to not marry him to Albert. They would certainly understand his side of the story, if he told them that he didn’t want to marry their evil son.
However, doing nothing throughout that whole week wasn’t something that Leo could do. He was already bored to death by the end of the first day, since he couldn’t leave his room because he was hiding from Albert… that is, until he found a pinkish stain on the carpet of his room, near where the prince was sitting when they had that dreadful conversation.
After consulting with Kai, Leo found out that he dropped his tea cup on the carpet when he fainted. The young butler also mentioned that he tried really hard to remove the stain, however, not even his cleaning skills could accomplish that… and that’s what caught Leo’s attention.
Thanks to his mind always working on business mode, Leo quickly figured out that, since the tea stain was so hard to remove, he probably could use it as a new type of dye, after all, not long ago, Oscar sent him a lot of those tea leaves, which meant that he didn’t have to worry about them running out anytime soon.
So, after sending a letter to Leena, explaining why he wouldn’t be able to meet her before the Spirit Festival, Leo finally started fiddling with that new type of “dye” and some of the white dresses on the back of his wardrobe.
Suffice to say, the end result was a master piece… even if the creator himself didn’t think so.
(There’s a 50% chance the Empress won’t like my dress, but this is worth the risk! I’m sure she’ll like the concept of using tea, that is a relatively cheap product, as a new type of dye! And then I’ll make a lot of money by selling dresses to her, and the other noble ladies!)
Leo knew that just by being the Empress, a woman could create a new trend in the blink of an eye, so he wanted to use that in his favor, after all, if she bought a dress from him, many other noble ladies would do the same. Besides, if there were too many orders, Leo could just leave the dyeing process to the people of the Bernstein Company, since he didn’t mind sharing the profits with them, as long as he made a lot of money.
(Yosh, you can do this, Leo! You just have to believe in yourself!) – Thought Leo, as he clenched his fists to pump himself up.
Even though this was the long awaited Spirit Festival, Leo was too nervous to enjoy the festive mood, like everyone else. He was about to sell a dress to the Empress of his country, and just the thought of doing that, was as nerve-wracking as speaking with her evil son, so he couldn’t calm down at all.
So, just like that, a carriage carrying a nervous little girl, an old lady trying to hide her dubious smile behind her fan and an old man stroking his beard, entered the premises of the castle.
While being guided down the many corridors of the Ivory Palace, Leo couldn’t help but admire the expensive decorations of the place, since this was his first time entering a castle. However, while he was doing that, the Harkenberg family suddenly arrived at a place that was far from being a party hall.
(Woah! This place…! I think this is the Audience Chamber, right!? It’s so huge!) – Thought Leo, as he looked around the room with an excited look on his face.
The audience chamber was on a whole other level, compared to everything that Leo had already seen of the palace. There was a fireplace located at the right side of the room, that was as expensive as the chandeliers hanging on the ceiling. There was also a lot of expensive painting and mirrors hanging on the walls. Not to mention the huge balcony located on the left side of the room.
This place was, without a doubt, the definition of the word expensive… however, none of those decorations could beat the two majestic thrones adorned in gold and jewels located at the far end of the room. Leo almost started drooling when he saw that. But the small anomaly–or rather, the small coffee table located at the center of the room, kept him from doing that.
According to the servant who guided the Harkenberg family to the audience chamber, every year, before the royal greeting, the Emperor and the Empress liked to sit down somewhere quiet to enjoy a cup of tea, while they waited for the parade to arrive at the castle.
Well, those two were busy people, so it was understandable that they would try to relax a bit, before a major event.
However, Leo still couldn’t understand why the two wanted to do the same thing this year as well, after all, they were the hosts of today’s party. So, after noticing the confused look on the little girl’s face, Emilia decided to explain what was going on.
“It’s okay deary. We’re just going to have a little chat with the Emperor and the Empress before the party. Also, I know that there are a lot of people here today, but I made sure to bribe–I mean, I made sure that no one would bother us while we’re having that conversation, so you don’t have to worry about anything.” – Said Emilia, with a kind smile, as she let out a low, and evil, chuckle.
“I-is that, so…?”
When Leo saw that smile, he felt a chill run down his spine, so he made a mental note to never, ever, cross Emilia, since she could be really scary sometimes.
As they waited for the royal couple to arrive, Emilia took that moment to teach her granddaughter how to port herself in front of royalty.
Well, to tell the truth, this wasn’t a formal meeting, so Emilia didn’t really have to do that, but since those manners would help her granddaughter in the future, she decided to do it anyway.
“Oh, and one more thing. It seems like the Empress is quite interested in you, deary, so you should think twice before drinking anything that she gives you.” – Said Emilia, with a serious look on her face, as she stared deeply into Leonora’s amethyst eyes.
“So… if she tries, to give me, some tea, I shouldn’t, drink it?”
“That’s right… in my opinion, you shouldn’t drink it–”
There was a brief moment of silence right after Emilia said that… but then, as if her serious expression was never there to begin with, she looked at Leonora with a gentle smile, before continuing her sentence.
“–But that’s up to you to decide, deary. You see, if an older lady, who has a son of marriageable age, decides to pour a drink to a younger lady of marriageable age, during an informal meeting, she’s probably asking you: “Do you want to marry my son?” And if you drink what she offered you, that’s the same thing as saying “yes,” which is why I told you to think twice before drinking anything that she gives you.”
“!!!!!!!!!”
Leo was visibly surprised when he heard that. His main objective today was to sell a dress to the Empress, not to marry her evil son, so he was really grateful to Emilia for telling him that piece of information, after all, now that he knew what would happen if he drank anything that the Empress prepared for him, Leo just had to find a way to accidentally break the cup–
“Well, even if the worst happens, and everyone turns against you because of your choice, we’ll be here to protect you, so you should just enjoy the party after we finish here. Besides, I doubt Her Majesty will hold you accountable for your choice anyway. She may be a bit frightening at first, because of her demeanor, but deep inside she’s a good girl, so I’m sure you two will get along just fine.” – Said Klaus, as he stroked his beard.
“……….”
–But what Klaus said next made Leo feel even more nervous than he already was. From what he now knew about the Empress, she was probably as frightening as Albert. There’s no way she would forgive him if he broke the cup, so Leo decided to just politely refuse anything to that she gave him, after all, that approach was a lot safer than the previous one.
However, before Leo could prepare himself for what was about to come, the doors of the audience chamber swung open… the Emperor and his wife had arrived. So, like Emilia instructed him, Leo quickly stood up by her side and waited for the two reach the table.
“Oh, so you guys were already here, eh? Haha, sorry for keeping you all waiting!” – Said Balthazar von Weizsäcker, as he strode towards the Harkenberg family in an elegant gait.
Like a true Emperor, Balthazar was wearing an expensive white tunic, decorated with shiny jewels and golden ornaments… however, Leo couldn’t care less about that right now. The man know as the Emperor of the Weiz Empire wasn’t just handsome, he was really scary as well. The contrast of his gentle, light brown hair, compared to his sharp, grayish blue eyes, was too much for Leo to handle. In fact, his gaze was so sharp, that Leo couldn’t even focus on appraising the expensive jewels and golden ornaments on his clothes.
“Please, take a seat.” – Said Alexia von Weizsäcker, as she gestured for the Harkenberg family to take a seat by the table with them.
Much like Balthazar, Alexia was also wearing expensive clothes. Her light blue dress contrasted perfectly with her blond hair and azure eyes. However, contrary to her fierce husband, Alexia was exuding a gentle aura; she was the complete opposite of Balthazar. It was like Leo was dealing with the beauty and the beast, from how different the two were.
Well, first impressions aside, this was the first time Leo ever spoke with the two rulers of his country, so he bowed his head and introduced himself.
“I-it’s a, pleasure to, meet you, I-I am Leonora, von Harkenberg.”
Leo was really nervous right now, but a good first introduction was the most important step to any successful transaction, so he did his best to sound as respectful as possible while doing so–
“Hee∼, so you’re that Leonora, huh…? I can see that the rumors about you were spot on….”
–But Balthazar didn’t seem to care much about that, seeing that he just slumped down on one of the couches by the coffee table, as he continued glaring at the little girl. However, Alexia, who was sitting by his side, wouldn’t let that rude behavior slide off, so she momentarily glared at her husband, before turning back to look at Leonora with a smile.
“I’m really sorry about Balthazar. I’m sure he didn’t mean to be rude. Also, there’s no need for you to be this tense, Leonora. This is an informal meeting, so please, relax.”
Alexia had a gentle and soothing smile. Anyone who looked at her would think so as well… but to Leo, that wasn’t the case.
(T-the Emperor… h-he… he fixed his posture when she glared at him…!)
At first, Leo thought Alexia was the complete opposite of Balthazar, since she seemed to be a lot gentler, but after having a glimpse of her true self, he couldn’t trust that smile anymore. Leo could easily read someone’s intentions if they were as straightforward as Balthazar, however, the same principle didn’t apply to people who were that good at hiding their emotions behind a mask–or rather, a smile, like Alexia was.
(S**t…! That fake smile…! I have the worst compatibility with people like her! She’s definitively that type of housewife who’ll try to cut down the price of what she’s going to buy by half!)
Well, Leo was a seasoned salesman, so he knew what to do to counter those types of housewives. The only real problem though, is that they were a pain to deal with.
(Khh…! So I’ll have to flatter her until she gives in, huh? …She’s indeed a tough opponent…)
To Leo, this wasn’t just an informal meeting anymore, this was now a battlefield, and to win against the Empress, he would have to go all out.
Following the cue to the start of that mental battle, a servant approached the table and poured some tea to the five of them, before retreating to one of the corners of the room, so Leo took that opportunity praise Alexia’s choice of teas.
“Oh, if I’m, not mistaken, this is, Lambert tea, right? This tea, has such a, nice aroma… you have a, great taste, in teas, Your Majesty.”
“Ara, so you like Lambert tea, Leonora?” – Said Alexia, with a impressed look on her face.
“Yes… Lambert tea, has a, beautiful color, and a, refreshing aroma, so, I like it, a lot. And, what’s more, it goes well, with the sweets, that you prepared, for us today, Your Majesty.” – Said Leo, with a nod, as he smiled at Alexia.
The reason why Leo knew that Lambert tea went well with sweets, was because of the oldest son of the Bernstein family, Francis. When the two met for the first time, after the field trip, Leo ended up learning a lot about that tea. But, of course, no one here knew that, so they were a bit surprised to see that the little girl knew a lot about tea.
“Oh my! So you know a lot about teas, huh? Fufu, that is certainly unexpected, but… we’re all drinking different types of tea, you know?”
When Alexia pointed that out, Leo instinctively glanced to the side, and, indeed, Emilia’s tea was different from the one that he was drinking, so he also sneaked a peek at everyone else’s cups, before pointing out the name of each one of those teas.
“I see… so, everyone is, drinking a, different type, of tea. Emilia-sama, is drinking, Hanish* tea, Klaus-sama, is drinking, Kuradeel* tea, and Your Majesties, are drinking… I presume, it’s Stolz* tea, right?” (*Tl/n: I tried googling the name of those teas, but I found nothing, so I did a literal TL.)
Because of all the tea dyes that Leo had to create, until he found the right one to dye his dress, he became quite familiar with a lot of different types of teas. It reached a point were he could tell the name of a tea just by it’s color. So, this time, Leo not only surprised the four of them again, but he also managed to surprise the servant who served the tea as well.
(How is it, ma’am? Did I manage to impress you?) – Thought Leo, as he stared at Alexia’s surprised expression with a beaming smile.
Leo wanted to change the topic of the conversation to the dresses that he made as fast as possible, but given the personality of the Empress, that would be a bit difficult to do right now. Not to mention that now wasn’t the right time to strike anyway. However, once Leo managed to get on Alexia’s good side, she would probably let her guard down… he just needed to wait a bit more.
(This girl… she’s way more knowledgeable than I expected…) – Thought Balthazar, as he studied the little girl that was sitting across the table.
Leonora was an adorable little girl and she had a warm personality… however, that wasn’t the only good thing about her. She was also way more intelligent than normal–
(–and above all else, she’s not scared of me…)
Balthazar was way more of a warrior, rather than an Emperor. He fought alongside Klaus in innumerable battlefields and reaped many lives, so he knew how to intimidate weak people with just his gaze… but nothing happened to Leonora when he glared at her. On the contrary, she just stared right back at him with her amethyst eyes, as if she was unfazed.
And the same thing happened to his wife.
Alexia wasn’t just a beautiful and elegant woman, she was also really sharp and she knew how to hide her emotions behind a smile, which is why many younger ladies respected her a lot. However, even though most girls her age would’ve started squealing by now, after being praised by the Empress, Leonora didn’t show any reaction, except the usual “Thank you.”
Leonora’s social skills were the real deal. Balthazar even wondered if she had turned into an experienced merchant midway through their conversation, after all, sometimes, her compliments managed to get through Alexia’s thick skin. But that wasn’t all. Leonora knew a lot about other things as well, not just tea. Be it jewelry, the market price of goods, or even money, she never dropped off of a topic. However, what impressed Balthazar the most wasn’t her knowledge… it was her humbleness.
Even when Balthazar thanked Leonora for saving his two kids during the presentation, or when he thanked her for helping Bianca become a Child Loved by the Spirits, Leonora was humble enough to say: “I didn’t, do much. They’re, the ones, who should, be praised, not me.”
(I see… I didn’t believe Bianca and Gustav because I doubted their judgement, but after seeing this, I guess there’s no denying it… she really is the Altruistic Saintess…)
As a matter of fact, Leo didn’t do anything to help either of them. Those were total coincidences, so he ended up feeling really bad for being praised for something he didn’t do. But the Emperor didn’t know that, so he ended up thinking highly of the little girl.
(Hmm… now I don’t think it’s a good idea to involve her on that matter anymore…) – Thought Balthazar, as he stared at the delicate pendant hanging around the girl’s neck.
That pendant on Leonora’s neck was Albert’s dragon mark. In other words, she was still loyal to his son, which only made Balthazar feel even more conflicted, since he was indebted to her for saving the life of his kids. However, it was also true that, because of her, Albert stopped being the perfect prince that everyone loved, so Balthazar decided to use Leonora as his son’s test, after all, he had to make sure that Albert was still suitable for the position of Crown Prince.
Besides, if that gamble paid off, Balthazar would get two worthy successors to the throne. The only problem though, was that Alexia didn’t know of his plan. She had grown attached to the little girl with amethyst eyes and she didn’t want anything bad to happen to her, so she glanced at Balthazar with a concerned look on her face.
(You don’t have to worry, Alexia, I won’t punish her–)
After winking at Alexia, Balthazar then glanced at the clock that was hanging on the wall, before turning his attention to the front door of the Audience Chamber with a smile.
(–I just want to see how she’ll help our son fare through that test…)
“Before we continue this conversation, I have something to ask you, Leonora… would you mind if my son joined us on this joyous occasion…?” – Asked Balthazar, as he stared at Leo with a serious look on his face.
“Eh…? A-Albert-sama, is going to, join us…?”
The topic of the conversation had finally shifted to dresses, so Leo thought now was the right time to start talking about his new product. However, before he could do that, Balthazar dropped a massive bomb. Now, Leo was in a bind. He obviously didn’t want to see Albert, but he also didn’t want to ruin the the good image that the Empress had of him by saying “no,” so he just shook his head, and said–
“–I don’t, mind… you can, call him….”
Leo hadn’t spoken with Albert ever since the day he went to his room to retrieve the coin. In other words, it had been a week since then, so Leo was afraid that the prince might do something to him when they finally met… but after the Emperor told Albert to enter the room, all of those thoughts vanished.
Like his father, Albert was also wearing an expensive white tunic, decorated in gold and jewels. You could even say that those clothes made him look a lot more handsome than he already was… well, if only his complexion didn’t make him look like a sick person, that is.
(He’s really pale… even more pale than the other day. Did something happen to him…? Is he sick…?)
Albert’s complexion was, indeed, really bad, but that wouldn’t stop him from giving the Harkenbergs a proper greeting, so he held out his right hand to Klaus to give him a handshake… which briefly exposed the golden bracelet that he had on his wrist.
Normally, Leo would feel attracted to anything made out of gold, however, much like that other time, that didn’t seem to be the case for the golden bracelet that Albert was wearing, so he thought he had lost his knack for appraising valuable objects, again. But after taking out his gold coin from under his dress and having a good look at it, Leo breathed out a relieved sigh, after all, to him, his Kar-sama, was still the most valuable object in the world.
However, the prince wasn’t relieved at all.
“…*Whisper*…Why are you doing this, Leonora…?”
Albert became really distressed when when he saw Leonora holding her gold coin out in the open. To him, it was like she didn’t care about the consequences of her actions, and that pained him. But, like always, Leo was oblivious to his feelings. The prince even thought about taking her away from that place, however, as soon as he released Klaus’s hand, the old man spoke.
“Aren’t you being a little bit too harsh with your son, Your Majesty? This sealing bracelet is so strong, that it can even steal the magic power of those who touch it’s wearer, so wouldn’t it be wiser to take that thing off of him, before he dies of magic power exhaustion?” – Said Klaus, as he stared at Balthazar with a frown.
(Huh!? A-Albert’s going to die because of that bracelet!? What do you mean by that!?) – Thought Leo, as he turned to look at Klaus with a surprised look on his face.
Leo was really surprised when he heard that, but since he didn’t know why Albert was being forced to wear that thing, he just kept quiet and listened.
“I’m sorry, Lord Harkenberg, it wasn’t my intention to steal your magic power.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to worry about that, Your Highness. I know you didn’t want to do that. What I’m trying to say, is that your punishment is too heavy. Besides, today is the day of the Spirit Festival, you know? This is supposed to be a happy and joyous day, after all, we’re celebrating the arrival of spring, so I think you should take that thing off of him, Your Majesty.”
Klaus wasn’t just much older than Balthazar, he was also war hero. Lord Harkenberg had so many achievements on the battlefield, that it was a bit hard for the Emperor to openly deny one of his requests. However, instead of going along with him, Balthazar shook his head, and said–
“–Don’t you understand, Klaus? It’s precisely because today is the day of the Spirit Festival, that I’m doing this.”
“What…? So you’re really going to–!”
“–That’s right, what a better day to decide what I’m going to do with* my son, if not today?”
(*Tl/n: That part can also mean to dispose of something, so I used the first meaning.)
Everyone was taken aback by what Balthazar said, including Leo, after all, that was something extremely harsh to say to a family member.
(The Emperor is going to… dispose of his son…?)
To Leo, this situation was akin to a shop owner throwing away expired products. But since they were talking about another person, that could only mean one thing–
(–In other words… he’s going to execute Albert…?)
After piecing together what Klaus said about the bracelet and Balthazar’s declaration, Leo reached that conclusion. However, he still couldn’t understand why the Emperor would do something like that to his own son, so he continued listening.
“This stupid son of mine not only created something that will forever change the power structure of this country, but he also released it to the public without even thinking twice on how his actions will impact the lives of the people of this country. That magic crest may be harmless now, considering that it can only create water, but eventually, things will get out of hand. Well, it will take a while for that magic crest to replace the power of the royal family… however, the same thing can’t be said about the lower nobles. Many of them were diligently serving the crown, but now, it’s like we, the royal family, rewarded their hard work by stabbing them in the back–”
Balthazar then stood up and grabbed his son’s right arm, before lifting it up.
“–Which is why I’m not taking this thing off of him. He’ll continue wearing this until he understands how it feels to lose the only thing that can distinguish us from the common people.”
“!!!!!!!!!”
(No way…! So Albert is being punished because of that magic crest…!?)
Since Leo didn’t know why Albert was being punished, hearing that left a strange sense of guilt on his chest, after all, this only happened because he insisted on getting Carnelian’s blessing–
(–No, wait, maybe that’s why Albert asked me to return the gold coin! He wasn’t there to take back his present, he just wanted me to lend him some money! He knew that he was going to be executed, so he was going to use that money to start a new life as a commoner, after he ran away from his evil father! That conversation had nothing to do with a possible marriage!)
After realizing that, Leo wanted to punch himself for not understanding what Albert meant at the time. The prince liked money as much as he did, so it was obvious that he wanted to use that money as an investment for his new life… however, because Leo kept hiding from him, Albert was now in a pinch, which only made that strange sense of guilt grow even stronger.
Well, to tell the truth, it wasn’t really Leo’s fault that Albert decided to create that magic crest, but since he was saved by the crest during his negotiation with Carnelian, Leo felt like it was only fair to save Albert as well, so he stood up and faced Balthazar.
“You can’t, do that, to him! Albert-sama, didn’t do, anything wrong! It was all, my fault…!”
Leo was really scared of having to face Balthazar. He so scared, in fact, that he even unconsciously squeezed his gold coin. But Leo couldn’t simply let his savior, or rather, Albert, die like that, so he stood his ground and continued facing the Emperor.
“My son already told me everything, Leonora. I know it’s not your fault, so I’m not going to punish you with him… instead, I’ll give you a test.”
“Eh…? You will, give me, a test…?”
Even though the little girl in front of him didn’t understand what was going on, Balthazar couldn’t care less about that. He just turned towards Alexia, and said–
“–My wife, grab the tea pot….”
“!!!!!!!!!”
Alexia was really surprised to hear that, but since she knew what Balthazar was trying to say, her surprised expression quickly turned into a happy one.
“Of course, dear….”
“Please, don’t do this, mother! She didn’t do anything wrong!” – Yelled Albert, with a desperate look on his face, as he tried to stop his mother.
“My, ufufu, aren’t you being a little bit too mean, son? You’re yelling at me like I’m some kind of monster. Relax, I’m not going devour her.” – Said Alexia, as she grabbed the tea pot and poured it’s contents onto a clean tea cup.
After filling the cup, Alexia then looked straight into Leo’s amethyst eyes, and said–
“–Here… would you like to have a cup of tea, Leonora?”
The day of the Spirit Festival had finally arrived, and like every year, today was also a beautiful day.
The sky was clear, the flowers planted during the Winter Festival were in full bloom, people were dancing to the sound of music and many stalls were selling tasty food along the streets.
Everyone was celebrating the arrival of spring.
“Fufu, it seems like everyone is properly enjoying this year’s festival, don’t you think so, dear?” – Said Emilia von Harkenberg, with a smile on her face, as she looked outside of the carriage.
“Indeed, and there’s even more people on the streets than previous years, so it seems like this year’s parade is going to be even bigger.” – Said Klaus von Harkenberg, as he stroked his beard. (Tl/n: The author finally gave him a name! …Or I just forgot that he had one, which is probably the case.)
Every year, on the day of the Spirit Festival, the people of the Empire would make merry while parading the streets of the capital, before heading to the Ivory Palace in the afternoon to thank the royal family for everything they did to better the country throughout the past year, and as the tradition went, the royal family would always greet the people who went to the castle from one of the many balconies of the palace.
But even though the festive mood could make anyone happy, the same couldn’t be said about the little girl sitting in front of Emilia.
“Hmm? What is it, deary? You’re not excited about the parade? Is there something wrong?” – Asked Emilia, as she turned to look at her quiet granddaughter.
However, Leonora, the person in question, just shook her head, and said–
“–No, I’m alright….”
Leonora was, without a doubt, a beautiful girl, but her natural features, coupled with the light pink dress that she was wearing today, plus her partially braided hair, made her look even more adorable than she already was. Emilia even had to hold herself back from hugging her granddaughter, otherwise, she’d probably ruin the little girl’s dress. However, that didn’t mean she wasn’t worried about Leonora. The little girl had a resolute look on her face, as if she was ready to face a really powerful opponent… and Emilia knew why.
(I see… so she’s ready to face both Alexia and Balthazar, huh…?)
Recently, many rumors about Albert started circulating in the social circles of the noble society, and Emilia, who was the head of many of them, knew everything that was going on.
(That child imposed his authority on the old nobles to fix the water problem of the country, so his parents were forced to seal his magic power to teach him a lesson… but I don’t think Balthazar is going to let his son off with just that. He’s probably going to exile Albert as well, so I hope Leonora made the right choice.) – Thought Emilia, as she looked at her granddaughter with a kind smile.
Thanks to Kai’s daily letter, now Emilia knew how much Albert cared about Leonora, after all, he was desperately trying to retrieve the dragon mark that he gave her, in order to protect her from the nobles that wanted him, and his associates, exiled at any cost… and that couldn’t have made Lady Harkenberg happier.
(Fufu, who would’ve thought he cared so much about her…) – Thought Emilia, as she unfolded her fan.
By retrieving the dragon mark, Albert was implying that he did everything on his own. In other words, he was trying to focus all the blame on himself, which, to Emilia, just proved that the prince was indeed good enough for her granddaughter. However, things weren’t so simple. Earl Hagmeyer, and many others who were also tasked with solving the water problem, didn’t take the matter of the new magic crest so favorably, after all, they lost all the financial support–or rather, the easy money that they were receiving from the crown because of Albert, so it was more than obvious that they were the ones who wanted the prince exiled.
But Emilia wouldn’t let such a good man slip through her fingers. Not to mention that Albert was someone important to her granddaughter, which was more than enough incentive for her to pull some strings to get him adopted by a noble family after he was exiled, just to make him marry Leonora afterwards. That’s how far Emilia was willing to go for her granddaughter.
(The only problem is that I don’t know what type of person that prince is…)
On paper, Albert was everything that Emilia wanted for her granddaughter. He was handsome, intelligent and he cared about Leonora, but all of those qualities wouldn’t mean anything, if his personality wasn’t good.
(I don’t want her to be stuck with a boring man for the rest of her life… but I don’t think it’ll be that easy to convince her, if it turns out that that’s really the case…)
According to Kai, when Albert asked Leonora to return the dragon mark, she fainted from the shock, and Emilia could understand why that happened, after all, that was the same thing as the love of your life telling you that he’s breaking up your possible engagement just to protect you, which is why Leonora refused to give back the coin by locking herself in her room until the day of the party.
At first, Emilia even thought about scolding the little girl, since not returning the coin to Albert was a reckless thing to do. But after seeing the resolute look on her granddaughter’s face, Lady Harkenberg realized that Leonora knew she was being reckless, however, instead of running away, she chose to face that problem head on. So the least Emilia could do, as a grandmother, was support her granddaughter’s decision… but the person in question was more worried about his dress than the matter about the gold coin.
(I knew it, this shade of pink won’t stand out as much as I wanted. Emilia-sama hasn’t even complimented my dress yet–)
Leo was going to meet the Empress of the Weiz Empire today, so this was the perfect opportunity to show off his new product. The only problem though, is that he didn’t really have knack for dresses, so he wasn’t sure if the color of the dress would catch the eye of the Empress.
(–Well, the dress looks expensive enough, since it has a lot of frills… but I’m not so sure about the overall color–)
Leo wanted to restart the coloring process of the dress from the beginning, but he didn’t have enough time to do that right now.
(–No, I’ve spent the past week perfecting this dress, so I’m sure the Empress will like it! Besides, it’s too late to make another dress anyway, so I’ll have to make do with this one!)
Last week, Leo had an idea for a new product… and that idea was to create dyes out of tea.
Actually, it all started when Albert came to visit him. At the time, Leo thought he was mistaken about the prince, after all, he saved his life… but the new image he had about Albert crumbled the moment he asked Leo to return the gold coin.
(Ugh…! Why the hell am I remembering something like that now, of all times!? Heck, I even fainted from the shock! What a bad memory!)
Well, Albert wasn’t so low to the point of taking the coin from Leo while he was passed out, so he promised to come again on the next day.
But that wasn’t the problem.
When Albert asked Leonora to return the coin, he obviously meant that he didn’t want her to be exiled as well… however, Leo completely misunderstood his intentions. To him, what the prince meant was: “I don’t want everyone to think you’re my fiancee, so I want my coin back.”
(Hmph! Like I thought, I can’t trust Albert! He’s an evil prince! Besides, I’m on the same boat! I also don’t want everyone to think I’m going to marry another man!)
Needless to say, but after the initial shock of almost losing his gold coin, Leo became really angry with Albert. He knew that the prince hated him, however, taking back a present that you gave to someone was a bit too much… so he locked himself in his room.
Well, that’s not to say Leo wasn’t afraid of the prince trying to break in, after all, he knew that Albert was strong enough to break someone’s arm whenever he wanted. But protecting his gold coin was the top priority, so Leo didn’t give in to fear, even though the prince went to his room everyday.
(Yeah, I’ll protect you from that evil prince, Kar-sama! You’re mine! I’m not giving you to anyone else!) – Though Leo, as he clutched his gold coin through the dress.
To Leo, his gold coin wasn’t a dragon mark, or the sign of a candidate for the position of next Empress… it was just a gold coin. So the best course of action that he could think of, was to convince the Emperor and the Empress to not marry him to Albert. They would certainly understand his side of the story, if he told them that he didn’t want to marry their evil son.
However, doing nothing throughout that whole week wasn’t something that Leo could do. He was already bored to death by the end of the first day, since he couldn’t leave his room because he was hiding from Albert… that is, until he found a pinkish stain on the carpet of his room, near where the prince was sitting when they had that dreadful conversation.
After consulting with Kai, Leo found out that he dropped his tea cup on the carpet when he fainted. The young butler also mentioned that he tried really hard to remove the stain, however, not even his cleaning skills could accomplish that… and that’s what caught Leo’s attention.
Thanks to his mind always working on business mode, Leo quickly figured out that, since the tea stain was so hard to remove, he probably could use it as a new type of dye, after all, not long ago, Oscar sent him a lot of those tea leaves, which meant that he didn’t have to worry about them running out anytime soon.
So, after sending a letter to Leena, explaining why he wouldn’t be able to meet her before the Spirit Festival, Leo finally started fiddling with that new type of “dye” and some of the white dresses on the back of his wardrobe.
Suffice to say, the end result was a master piece… even if the creator himself didn’t think so.
(There’s a 50% chance the Empress won’t like my dress, but this is worth the risk! I’m sure she’ll like the concept of using tea, that is a relatively cheap product, as a new type of dye! And then I’ll make a lot of money by selling dresses to her, and the other noble ladies!)
Leo knew that just by being the Empress, a woman could create a new trend in the blink of an eye, so he wanted to use that in his favor, after all, if she bought a dress from him, many other noble ladies would do the same. Besides, if there were too many orders, Leo could just leave the dyeing process to the people of the Bernstein Company, since he didn’t mind sharing the profits with them, as long as he made a lot of money.
(Yosh, you can do this, Leo! You just have to believe in yourself!) – Thought Leo, as he clenched his fists to pump himself up.
Even though this was the long awaited Spirit Festival, Leo was too nervous to enjoy the festive mood, like everyone else. He was about to sell a dress to the Empress of his country, and just the thought of doing that, was as nerve-wracking as speaking with her evil son, so he couldn’t calm down at all.
So, just like that, a carriage carrying a nervous little girl, an old lady trying to hide her dubious smile behind her fan and an old man stroking his beard, entered the premises of the castle.
While being guided down the many corridors of the Ivory Palace, Leo couldn’t help but admire the expensive decorations of the place, since this was his first time entering a castle. However, while he was doing that, the Harkenberg family suddenly arrived at a place that was far from being a party hall.
(Woah! This place…! I think this is the Audience Chamber, right!? It’s so huge!) – Thought Leo, as he looked around the room with an excited look on his face.
The audience chamber was on a whole other level, compared to everything that Leo had already seen of the palace. There was a fireplace located at the right side of the room, that was as expensive as the chandeliers hanging on the ceiling. There was also a lot of expensive painting and mirrors hanging on the walls. Not to mention the huge balcony located on the left side of the room.
This place was, without a doubt, the definition of the word expensive… however, none of those decorations could beat the two majestic thrones adorned in gold and jewels located at the far end of the room. Leo almost started drooling when he saw that. But the small anomaly–or rather, the small coffee table located at the center of the room, kept him from doing that.
According to the servant who guided the Harkenberg family to the audience chamber, every year, before the royal greeting, the Emperor and the Empress liked to sit down somewhere quiet to enjoy a cup of tea, while they waited for the parade to arrive at the castle.
Well, those two were busy people, so it was understandable that they would try to relax a bit, before a major event.
However, Leo still couldn’t understand why the two wanted to do the same thing this year as well, after all, they were the hosts of today’s party. So, after noticing the confused look on the little girl’s face, Emilia decided to explain what was going on.
“It’s okay deary. We’re just going to have a little chat with the Emperor and the Empress before the party. Also, I know that there are a lot of people here today, but I made sure to bribe–I mean, I made sure that no one would bother us while we’re having that conversation, so you don’t have to worry about anything.” – Said Emilia, with a kind smile, as she let out a low, and evil, chuckle.
“I-is that, so…?”
When Leo saw that smile, he felt a chill run down his spine, so he made a mental note to never, ever, cross Emilia, since she could be really scary sometimes.
As they waited for the royal couple to arrive, Emilia took that moment to teach her granddaughter how to port herself in front of royalty.
Well, to tell the truth, this wasn’t a formal meeting, so Emilia didn’t really have to do that, but since those manners would help her granddaughter in the future, she decided to do it anyway.
“Oh, and one more thing. It seems like the Empress is quite interested in you, deary, so you should think twice before drinking anything that she gives you.” – Said Emilia, with a serious look on her face, as she stared deeply into Leonora’s amethyst eyes.
“So… if she tries, to give me, some tea, I shouldn’t, drink it?”
“That’s right… in my opinion, you shouldn’t drink it–”
There was a brief moment of silence right after Emilia said that… but then, as if her serious expression was never there to begin with, she looked at Leonora with a gentle smile, before continuing her sentence.
“–But that’s up to you to decide, deary. You see, if an older lady, who has a son of marriageable age, decides to pour a drink to a younger lady of marriageable age, during an informal meeting, she’s probably asking you: “Do you want to marry my son?” And if you drink what she offered you, that’s the same thing as saying “yes,” which is why I told you to think twice before drinking anything that she gives you.”
“!!!!!!!!!”
Leo was visibly surprised when he heard that. His main objective today was to sell a dress to the Empress, not to marry her evil son, so he was really grateful to Emilia for telling him that piece of information, after all, now that he knew what would happen if he drank anything that the Empress prepared for him, Leo just had to find a way to accidentally break the cup–
“Well, even if the worst happens, and everyone turns against you because of your choice, we’ll be here to protect you, so you should just enjoy the party after we finish here. Besides, I doubt Her Majesty will hold you accountable for your choice anyway. She may be a bit frightening at first, because of her demeanor, but deep inside she’s a good girl, so I’m sure you two will get along just fine.” – Said Klaus, as he stroked his beard.
“……….”
–But what Klaus said next made Leo feel even more nervous than he already was. From what he now knew about the Empress, she was probably as frightening as Albert. There’s no way she would forgive him if he broke the cup, so Leo decided to just politely refuse anything to that she gave him, after all, that approach was a lot safer than the previous one.
However, before Leo could prepare himself for what was about to come, the doors of the audience chamber swung open… the Emperor and his wife had arrived. So, like Emilia instructed him, Leo quickly stood up by her side and waited for the two reach the table.
“Oh, so you guys were already here, eh? Haha, sorry for keeping you all waiting!” – Said Balthazar von Weizsäcker, as he strode towards the Harkenberg family in an elegant gait.
Like a true Emperor, Balthazar was wearing an expensive white tunic, decorated with shiny jewels and golden ornaments… however, Leo couldn’t care less about that right now. The man know as the Emperor of the Weiz Empire wasn’t just handsome, he was really scary as well. The contrast of his gentle, light brown hair, compared to his sharp, grayish blue eyes, was too much for Leo to handle. In fact, his gaze was so sharp, that Leo couldn’t even focus on appraising the expensive jewels and golden ornaments on his clothes.
“Please, take a seat.” – Said Alexia von Weizsäcker, as she gestured for the Harkenberg family to take a seat by the table with them.
Much like Balthazar, Alexia was also wearing expensive clothes. Her light blue dress contrasted perfectly with her blond hair and azure eyes. However, contrary to her fierce husband, Alexia was exuding a gentle aura; she was the complete opposite of Balthazar. It was like Leo was dealing with the beauty and the beast, from how different the two were.
Well, first impressions aside, this was the first time Leo ever spoke with the two rulers of his country, so he bowed his head and introduced himself.
“I-it’s a, pleasure to, meet you, I-I am Leonora, von Harkenberg.”
Leo was really nervous right now, but a good first introduction was the most important step to any successful transaction, so he did his best to sound as respectful as possible while doing so–
“Hee∼, so you’re that Leonora, huh…? I can see that the rumors about you were spot on….”
–But Balthazar didn’t seem to care much about that, seeing that he just slumped down on one of the couches by the coffee table, as he continued glaring at the little girl. However, Alexia, who was sitting by his side, wouldn’t let that rude behavior slide off, so she momentarily glared at her husband, before turning back to look at Leonora with a smile.
“I’m really sorry about Balthazar. I’m sure he didn’t mean to be rude. Also, there’s no need for you to be this tense, Leonora. This is an informal meeting, so please, relax.”
Alexia had a gentle and soothing smile. Anyone who looked at her would think so as well… but to Leo, that wasn’t the case.
(T-the Emperor… h-he… he fixed his posture when she glared at him…!)
At first, Leo thought Alexia was the complete opposite of Balthazar, since she seemed to be a lot gentler, but after having a glimpse of her true self, he couldn’t trust that smile anymore. Leo could easily read someone’s intentions if they were as straightforward as Balthazar, however, the same principle didn’t apply to people who were that good at hiding their emotions behind a mask–or rather, a smile, like Alexia was.
(S**t…! That fake smile…! I have the worst compatibility with people like her! She’s definitively that type of housewife who’ll try to cut down the price of what she’s going to buy by half!)
Well, Leo was a seasoned salesman, so he knew what to do to counter those types of housewives. The only real problem though, is that they were a pain to deal with.
(Khh…! So I’ll have to flatter her until she gives in, huh? …She’s indeed a tough opponent…)
To Leo, this wasn’t just an informal meeting anymore, this was now a battlefield, and to win against the Empress, he would have to go all out.
Following the cue to the start of that mental battle, a servant approached the table and poured some tea to the five of them, before retreating to one of the corners of the room, so Leo took that opportunity praise Alexia’s choice of teas.
“Oh, if I’m, not mistaken, this is, Lambert tea, right? This tea, has such a, nice aroma… you have a, great taste, in teas, Your Majesty.”
“Ara, so you like Lambert tea, Leonora?” – Said Alexia, with a impressed look on her face.
“Yes… Lambert tea, has a, beautiful color, and a, refreshing aroma, so, I like it, a lot. And, what’s more, it goes well, with the sweets, that you prepared, for us today, Your Majesty.” – Said Leo, with a nod, as he smiled at Alexia.
The reason why Leo knew that Lambert tea went well with sweets, was because of the oldest son of the Bernstein family, Francis. When the two met for the first time, after the field trip, Leo ended up learning a lot about that tea. But, of course, no one here knew that, so they were a bit surprised to see that the little girl knew a lot about tea.
“Oh my! So you know a lot about teas, huh? Fufu, that is certainly unexpected, but… we’re all drinking different types of tea, you know?”
When Alexia pointed that out, Leo instinctively glanced to the side, and, indeed, Emilia’s tea was different from the one that he was drinking, so he also sneaked a peek at everyone else’s cups, before pointing out the name of each one of those teas.
“I see… so, everyone is, drinking a, different type, of tea. Emilia-sama, is drinking, Hanish* tea, Klaus-sama, is drinking, Kuradeel* tea, and Your Majesties, are drinking… I presume, it’s Stolz* tea, right?” (*Tl/n: I tried googling the name of those teas, but I found nothing, so I did a literal TL.)
Because of all the tea dyes that Leo had to create, until he found the right one to dye his dress, he became quite familiar with a lot of different types of teas. It reached a point were he could tell the name of a tea just by it’s color. So, this time, Leo not only surprised the four of them again, but he also managed to surprise the servant who served the tea as well.
(How is it, ma’am? Did I manage to impress you?) – Thought Leo, as he stared at Alexia’s surprised expression with a beaming smile.
Leo wanted to change the topic of the conversation to the dresses that he made as fast as possible, but given the personality of the Empress, that would be a bit difficult to do right now. Not to mention that now wasn’t the right time to strike anyway. However, once Leo managed to get on Alexia’s good side, she would probably let her guard down… he just needed to wait a bit more.
(This girl… she’s way more knowledgeable than I expected…) – Thought Balthazar, as he studied the little girl that was sitting across the table.
Leonora was an adorable little girl and she had a warm personality… however, that wasn’t the only good thing about her. She was also way more intelligent than normal–
(–and above all else, she’s not scared of me…)
Balthazar was way more of a warrior, rather than an Emperor. He fought alongside Klaus in innumerable battlefields and reaped many lives, so he knew how to intimidate weak people with just his gaze… but nothing happened to Leonora when he glared at her. On the contrary, she just stared right back at him with her amethyst eyes, as if she was unfazed.
And the same thing happened to his wife.
Alexia wasn’t just a beautiful and elegant woman, she was also really sharp and she knew how to hide her emotions behind a smile, which is why many younger ladies respected her a lot. However, even though most girls her age would’ve started squealing by now, after being praised by the Empress, Leonora didn’t show any reaction, except the usual “Thank you.”
Leonora’s social skills were the real deal. Balthazar even wondered if she had turned into an experienced merchant midway through their conversation, after all, sometimes, her compliments managed to get through Alexia’s thick skin. But that wasn’t all. Leonora knew a lot about other things as well, not just tea. Be it jewelry, the market price of goods, or even money, she never dropped off of a topic. However, what impressed Balthazar the most wasn’t her knowledge… it was her humbleness.
Even when Balthazar thanked Leonora for saving his two kids during the presentation, or when he thanked her for helping Bianca become a Child Loved by the Spirits, Leonora was humble enough to say: “I didn’t, do much. They’re, the ones, who should, be praised, not me.”
(I see… I didn’t believe Bianca and Gustav because I doubted their judgement, but after seeing this, I guess there’s no denying it… she really is the Altruistic Saintess…)
As a matter of fact, Leo didn’t do anything to help either of them. Those were total coincidences, so he ended up feeling really bad for being praised for something he didn’t do. But the Emperor didn’t know that, so he ended up thinking highly of the little girl.
(Hmm… now I don’t think it’s a good idea to involve her on that matter anymore…) – Thought Balthazar, as he stared at the delicate pendant hanging around the girl’s neck.
That pendant on Leonora’s neck was Albert’s dragon mark. In other words, she was still loyal to his son, which only made Balthazar feel even more conflicted, since he was indebted to her for saving the life of his kids. However, it was also true that, because of her, Albert stopped being the perfect prince that everyone loved, so Balthazar decided to use Leonora as his son’s test, after all, he had to make sure that Albert was still suitable for the position of Crown Prince.
Besides, if that gamble paid off, Balthazar would get two worthy successors to the throne. The only problem though, was that Alexia didn’t know of his plan. She had grown attached to the little girl with amethyst eyes and she didn’t want anything bad to happen to her, so she glanced at Balthazar with a concerned look on her face.
(You don’t have to worry, Alexia, I won’t punish her–)
After winking at Alexia, Balthazar then glanced at the clock that was hanging on the wall, before turning his attention to the front door of the Audience Chamber with a smile.
(–I just want to see how she’ll help our son fare through that test…)
“Before we continue this conversation, I have something to ask you, Leonora… would you mind if my son joined us on this joyous occasion…?” – Asked Balthazar, as he stared at Leo with a serious look on his face.
“Eh…? A-Albert-sama, is going to, join us…?”
The topic of the conversation had finally shifted to dresses, so Leo thought now was the right time to start talking about his new product. However, before he could do that, Balthazar dropped a massive bomb. Now, Leo was in a bind. He obviously didn’t want to see Albert, but he also didn’t want to ruin the the good image that the Empress had of him by saying “no,” so he just shook his head, and said–
“–I don’t, mind… you can, call him….”
Leo hadn’t spoken with Albert ever since the day he went to his room to retrieve the coin. In other words, it had been a week since then, so Leo was afraid that the prince might do something to him when they finally met… but after the Emperor told Albert to enter the room, all of those thoughts vanished.
Like his father, Albert was also wearing an expensive white tunic, decorated in gold and jewels. You could even say that those clothes made him look a lot more handsome than he already was… well, if only his complexion didn’t make him look like a sick person, that is.
(He’s really pale… even more pale than the other day. Did something happen to him…? Is he sick…?)
Albert’s complexion was, indeed, really bad, but that wouldn’t stop him from giving the Harkenbergs a proper greeting, so he held out his right hand to Klaus to give him a handshake… which briefly exposed the golden bracelet that he had on his wrist.
Normally, Leo would feel attracted to anything made out of gold, however, much like that other time, that didn’t seem to be the case for the golden bracelet that Albert was wearing, so he thought he had lost his knack for appraising valuable objects, again. But after taking out his gold coin from under his dress and having a good look at it, Leo breathed out a relieved sigh, after all, to him, his Kar-sama, was still the most valuable object in the world.
However, the prince wasn’t relieved at all.
“…*Whisper*…Why are you doing this, Leonora…?”
Albert became really distressed when when he saw Leonora holding her gold coin out in the open. To him, it was like she didn’t care about the consequences of her actions, and that pained him. But, like always, Leo was oblivious to his feelings. The prince even thought about taking her away from that place, however, as soon as he released Klaus’s hand, the old man spoke.
“Aren’t you being a little bit too harsh with your son, Your Majesty? This sealing bracelet is so strong, that it can even steal the magic power of those who touch it’s wearer, so wouldn’t it be wiser to take that thing off of him, before he dies of magic power exhaustion?” – Said Klaus, as he stared at Balthazar with a frown.
(Huh!? A-Albert’s going to die because of that bracelet!? What do you mean by that!?) – Thought Leo, as he turned to look at Klaus with a surprised look on his face.
Leo was really surprised when he heard that, but since he didn’t know why Albert was being forced to wear that thing, he just kept quiet and listened.
“I’m sorry, Lord Harkenberg, it wasn’t my intention to steal your magic power.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to worry about that, Your Highness. I know you didn’t want to do that. What I’m trying to say, is that your punishment is too heavy. Besides, today is the day of the Spirit Festival, you know? This is supposed to be a happy and joyous day, after all, we’re celebrating the arrival of spring, so I think you should take that thing off of him, Your Majesty.”
Klaus wasn’t just much older than Balthazar, he was also war hero. Lord Harkenberg had so many achievements on the battlefield, that it was a bit hard for the Emperor to openly deny one of his requests. However, instead of going along with him, Balthazar shook his head, and said–
“–Don’t you understand, Klaus? It’s precisely because today is the day of the Spirit Festival, that I’m doing this.”
“What…? So you’re really going to–!”
“–That’s right, what a better day to decide what I’m going to do with* my son, if not today?”
(*Tl/n: That part can also mean to dispose of something, so I used the first meaning.)
Everyone was taken aback by what Balthazar said, including Leo, after all, that was something extremely harsh to say to a family member.
(The Emperor is going to… dispose of his son…?)
To Leo, this situation was akin to a shop owner throwing away expired products. But since they were talking about another person, that could only mean one thing–
(–In other words… he’s going to execute Albert…?)
After piecing together what Klaus said about the bracelet and Balthazar’s declaration, Leo reached that conclusion. However, he still couldn’t understand why the Emperor would do something like that to his own son, so he continued listening.
“This stupid son of mine not only created something that will forever change the power structure of this country, but he also released it to the public without even thinking twice on how his actions will impact the lives of the people of this country. That magic crest may be harmless now, considering that it can only create water, but eventually, things will get out of hand. Well, it will take a while for that magic crest to replace the power of the royal family… however, the same thing can’t be said about the lower nobles. Many of them were diligently serving the crown, but now, it’s like we, the royal family, rewarded their hard work by stabbing them in the back–”
Balthazar then stood up and grabbed his son’s right arm, before lifting it up.
“–Which is why I’m not taking this thing off of him. He’ll continue wearing this until he understands how it feels to lose the only thing that can distinguish us from the common people.”
“!!!!!!!!!”
(No way…! So Albert is being punished because of that magic crest…!?)
Since Leo didn’t know why Albert was being punished, hearing that left a strange sense of guilt on his chest, after all, this only happened because he insisted on getting Carnelian’s blessing–
(–No, wait, maybe that’s why Albert asked me to return the gold coin! He wasn’t there to take back his present, he just wanted me to lend him some money! He knew that he was going to be executed, so he was going to use that money to start a new life as a commoner, after he ran away from his evil father! That conversation had nothing to do with a possible marriage!)
After realizing that, Leo wanted to punch himself for not understanding what Albert meant at the time. The prince liked money as much as he did, so it was obvious that he wanted to use that money as an investment for his new life… however, because Leo kept hiding from him, Albert was now in a pinch, which only made that strange sense of guilt grow even stronger.
Well, to tell the truth, it wasn’t really Leo’s fault that Albert decided to create that magic crest, but since he was saved by the crest during his negotiation with Carnelian, Leo felt like it was only fair to save Albert as well, so he stood up and faced Balthazar.
“You can’t, do that, to him! Albert-sama, didn’t do, anything wrong! It was all, my fault…!”
Leo was really scared of having to face Balthazar. He so scared, in fact, that he even unconsciously squeezed his gold coin. But Leo couldn’t simply let his savior, or rather, Albert, die like that, so he stood his ground and continued facing the Emperor.
“My son already told me everything, Leonora. I know it’s not your fault, so I’m not going to punish you with him… instead, I’ll give you a test.”
“Eh…? You will, give me, a test…?”
Even though the little girl in front of him didn’t understand what was going on, Balthazar couldn’t care less about that. He just turned towards Alexia, and said–
“–My wife, grab the tea pot….”
“!!!!!!!!!”
Alexia was really surprised to hear that, but since she knew what Balthazar was trying to say, her surprised expression quickly turned into a happy one.
“Of course, dear….”
“Please, don’t do this, mother! She didn’t do anything wrong!” – Yelled Albert, with a desperate look on his face, as he tried to stop his mother.
“My, ufufu, aren’t you being a little bit too mean, son? You’re yelling at me like I’m some kind of monster. Relax, I’m not going devour her.” – Said Alexia, as she grabbed the tea pot and poured it’s contents onto a clean tea cup.
After filling the cup, Alexia then looked straight into Leo’s amethyst eyes, and said–
“–Here… would you like to have a cup of tea, Leonora?”
