Chapter 33: 8.2

Chapter 8 Part 2

「No. There were some issues that mustn’t be talked about that come into play. It does have affect our current situation, but it is frankly an embarrassment to our nation, and I would like to spare you the details. I will tell you that five years ago, just when we were about to assign her her own servant, when a horde of large monsters appeared. We just didn’t have eyes on all of our human resources. That’s when she slipped through the cracks.」

The Japanese members could understand the horde of large monsters. Even in-game, there were a few times when there were incidents like that, as an administrated event. Especially the appearance of a large horde would usually take a month or even up to three months to take care of. The longer the players took, the wider the aftermath spread. By all means, it was needlessly realistic.

「…Uh-huh. Sounds like much more than that ain’t our business, though. She ain’t in the picture anymore, is she?」

「She has been executed, so unless she comes back as a walking corpse, she is permanently out of the picture.」

Hiroshi and Haruna flash a complicated expression at this. Apparently, the servant was caught with attempted poisoning when Aearis’ position was finalized. It seemed like she had been framed, but by that time, the higher-ups knew that she had turned her back on the princess she was supposed to serve. Either way, she would have been executed sooner or later. While Farlane had a very high standards for legal execution, someone who was basically abusing royalty (a young, defenseless princess at that) easily qualified.

On another note, the man who had fired many tutors (who learned of Aearis’ situation and tried to rat) with his own authority in order to conceal the truth, had also been eliminated. He had enough power to do so, but not in position well enough to affect the core of the nation. Apparently, he had been spectacularly brainwashed.

「I really should have been able to hold onto the reins, no matter who I was dealing with…」

「Nah nah nah. I don’t ken when ya started havin’ her, but that kind of character would never let a preteen child “hold the reins”.」

「Actually, at first I thought you were older than you are, Elle-chan.」

「Same with me. In fact, I think you’re more mature than we are. 」

Hiroshi jumped in.

「Any noble’s daughter with a proper education is much more mature than I am.」

「”Proper” being the operative word, here.」

Rayna remarked, and everyone gave her a look as if that would bestow upon her some self-awareness.

「Let’s get back on topic.」

Tatusya said, and Douga continued with a nod:

「A bit of a side note, but there are two others with the qualifications of Priestess Princess at the moment. The second Crown Princess, who was born by the queen, and the fourth Crown Princess, who was not. The second Crown Princess and Aearis-sama are very close, and so are the second and fourth Crown Princess…」

「But that couldn’t be less true for Elle and the fourth Crown Princess.」

「More accurately, the fourth Crown Princess despises her one-sidedly.」

Douga added to Makoto’s remark. They looked at Aearis for confirmation, and she nodded with a sorrowful expression.

「It’s kinda complicated, ain’t it?」

「I’ve always wondered why they always have so many kids. They know there are going to be rivalries. With more than one woman, too. 」

The group could only truckle at Mio’s innocent question. Ideally, the best situation for a royal family would be to have one heir, and one Priestess Princess, in the case of Farlane, to prevent any drama. The problem was, the throne would hang on a single thread in this case. Especially since this world lacked in medical advancements compared to the real world, any royal family wanted a good number of potential heirs and back-ups to keep the bloodline from severing.

In fact, even in Japan where medicine was much more advanced than Farlane, it was very possible that there would no longer be a male heir to the emperorship in the near future, due to the lack of male children in the bloodline. Even risking some feuding over the throne, having a certain number of potential heirs seemed to be a necessity. In addition, a king’s concubines and their children can play roles in politics as well. It would be more difficult to not have them in a country as large as Farlane.

Still, it was easy to understand that Mio, a Japanese girl of a sensitive age (with an idealized view of romance) couldn’t swallow the existence of concubines and their numerous children with ease.

「Amazingly, the Queen and the two concubines are very fond of each other, and all of their children, with the exception of Aearis-sama and the fourth Crown Princess, are close as well. In turn…」

「That makes the rift between Elle and the fourth Crown Princess stand out even more. Sounds like a pretty big rift.」

「It does, naturally. She is displeased with Aearis-sama’s existence to begin with, so there is not much that can be done.」

「It’s kind of weird that it’s so hostile just between them. How old is the fourth Crown Princess, anyway?」

「She turns sixteen this year. She should be settling on a suitor in the near future.」

It was an awkward age gap.

「Sounds like a big hassle.」

「Indeed, quite a big one. To boot, the fourth Crown Princess has suddenly appointed this man as her advisor from who-knows-where.」

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「Is he the one…」

「Who transported us to Piaranork. That’s the one.」

The Japanese member could only wince as they sank deeper and deeper into the convoluted court drama of Farlane.

「Just so we’re on the same page, can you outline the people in this country’s court?」

Haruna asked Douga, after some time in silence.

「Hm. The oldest of the children is Lord Avin, son of the first concubine. He is 22 years old, but he is moving to our ally, Falldania as a prince consort, so he has lost his place in line for the throne.」

「Aint’ that dangerous?」

「Falldania was born out of Farlane. The younger brother of our third king, who wanted to avoid any conflict for the throne, took his group of supporters to the continent across the Ridona Sea, and built Falldania there. So, when they are short on male heirs, we may send a prince consort. Besides, the first concubine is the cousin of the current king of Falldania, the niece to the previous king. He had the right blood for the position, anyway.」

「Is he cool with it?」

「He’s ecstatic, I’m sure. It’s public knowledge that Lord Avin and Princess Presea, first in line for the throne of Falldania, are lovers.」

The Japanese members looked pleased by the good news from Rayna. Regardless of any politics involved, it was nice to know that they were happy with each other.

「Getting back on track… The daughter of the second concubine, Lady Magdarena, used to be the first Crown Princess. She turns twenty this year. She was betrothed to the crown prince of Darl. She recently had a daughter. There will be a celebration ball for her, next year. 」

「Then, the second Crown Princess Elena, daughter to the queen. She turns 19 this year. Since she is the queen’s daughter, a suitor has to be chosen more carefully. As such, she is still unmarried. Since she is also the Priestess Princess, she will most likely marry a powerful noble in the country.」

「Then there is the fourth Princess Katrina, age 16, whom we have been talking about. Then the next-in-line, the Crown Prince Layotte, 15. And the third Crown Prince Mark, the son of the second concubine. Below them is Aearis-sama.」

「The son of the king’s brother is also in line for the throne, but he’s only 3 years old, and hasn’t really taken to the Hereditary Spell. No noble is unaware of the importance of the Hereditary Spell, so there is no movement to back him.」

The group mentally organized all the information Douga and Rayna had just explained. Haruna, after drawing up a simple diagram, asked to confirm:

「So, the ones who might be involved in politics, at least in the country, are Elena-sama, Katrina-sama, Crown Prince Layotte, and Elle-chan. Does that sound right?」

「Sure does.」

「And any fight for power is going to be between Katrina-sama and Elle-chan?」

「Their relationship is the only one with a chance to turn into such a thing, but it won’t be a fight for power. Unfortunately, Aearis-sama isn’t popular.」

There weren’t many people who have the opportunity to directly know the face and character of royalty before they become of age to attend social functions. Aearis was chosen to be the Priestess Princess, and began her life of isolation in the Temple, before she was old enough to attend even the nobles’ tea parties, the practice rounds for other social functions. As a result, no one but the higher-ups of the temple and the royal family, along with people who have been serving since her youth (like Douga) had a clear picture of who Aearis was.

The aftermath of the servant’s debauchery was still prevalent, and the vast majority were even unhappy that Aearis was chosen to be the Priestess Princess in the first place. The pushback for Aearis is only contained (at least on the surface) because Princess Elena and the previous Priestess Princess have unequivocally declared that no other candidate is better suited for the job than Aearis, both by virtue of powers and character. If it came down to a popular vote, more people who cast their vote for Princess Katrina or Princess Elena.

True, the Priestess Princess held no political power. But the job was a vital pillar of the nation’s foundation, along with the monarch. There were historical records of Priestess Princess with troubled characteristic in the past, and times were bad for the country when that happened. It was only natural that most people would oppose a child taking that position, when all they have heard about her were bad rumors.

With all of that in the background, they couldn’t hire any old personnel to guard or serve Aearis. The only qualified personnel at the moment were Douga, who had proven himself through the years and made friends with every member of the royal family, and Rayna who was skilled more than enough in combat, and at the very least, who never betray her. An erroneous addition to the party just opened up the window for betrayal, or abuse of the Priestess Princess’ powers. The problem was, with her reputation this bad, most people with common sense and smarts would never work for Aearis.

「So, my gut feeling is that this Princess Katrina’s a brat.」

「We can’t tell you anything about that. We wouldn’t want to cloud your judgement.」

「At the very least, she acts like a responsible lady in public.」

Douga and Rayna gave a vague response to Tatsuya’s remark. It appeared that Aearis herself couldn’t say much about, since she was in the midst of it. The lives of the high and noble always seemed to be tangled up in red tape, no matter which world they were in.

「So, I just remembered this. How does me makin’ those antidotes come in play for your future?」

「Can we assume that, since you can make antidotes, you are well versed in poison?」

「A bit, I guess. 」

「Then, let me ask you this. Can you make a poison with no taste or smell? One that can make a target ill, without killing the taster?」

「Makin’ the poison itself ain’t hard. It’s easy as pie as long as we can dose ‘em more than once. The only trick part’s adjustin’ the dosage.」

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