The Marquis of Tskaka was gazing absent-mindedly at the sights of the imperial city as he was being rocked in his carriage. His face showed a deep hint of exhaustion.
......Totally, all of them.
He muttered to himself. During the past few days, he had talked with many military officials, including the chief of staff of the Ramallon Imperial Guard, but had not received a positive response. Although they agreed with the opinion of the Marquis of Tskaka, none of them was willing to take an active role. On the contrary, the replies of those who were approached were the same as before.
"Call out to me when you move. I will help you."
They all feel the same way as the Marquis of Tskaka. It would be a terrible thing to have His Highness Falco from Agartha as the next emperor of the Lamaron Kingdom, and the next emperor should be the son of the current emperor, either Orhan or Kurahara. However, even if they think so in their hearts, the nobles are not willing to act as the leader of the movement, which is the true intention of the nobles.
Moreover, although they do not say it out loud, they think that the Marquis of Tskaka, who brought the proposal to them, should be the leader. The more the Marquis of Tskaka moved, the more he felt that he would be made the standard-bearer of the opposition to the decision of the next emperor.
......Wouldn't someone take the lead and lead the others?
He thought about this as he gazed out the window of the train.
"....... Dear ......na. Sir."
A thick male voice rouses me from my reverie. I look over to see the driver holding the carriage door open and looking at me. The marquis clicks his tongue and straightens his posture.
Tell him we've arrived!
The Marquis disembarks from the carriage, hurling such words at the driver. The coachman bows reverently, but he sticks his tongue out at the Marquis' back.
"Well, welcome back!"
He hands his military cap and sword carelessly to his wife as she greets him. He then goes back to his room, takes off his military uniform, and changes into a dark red gown. He goes to the dining room dressed like that and sits down in a rocking chair in front of the fireplace.
As if to keep an eye on his timing, Lilyan, the maid, brings him a tray with glasses filled with wine. The Marquis takes it silently and licks some of the liquor.
Usually he enjoys the feel of Lilyan's buttocks or tits when he strokes them, but lately he does not feel like it. The sake also tasted bitter and not so tasty these days.
When did this sake come from?
"Mr. Filler from the liquor store brought it to me the other day."
"Tell that to the filler. Tell the filler to bring the new wine, not the old.
"Yes, sir."
Lilijan bowed with a blank expression and left the room. As he watched her back, the Marquis was astonished to realize that he had lost interest in women to his own surprise.
He had been so obsessed with Liliang, he had wanted to have her body somehow, but now he had no desire for her at all. Has he lost the ability to be a man? Thinking about this, he steals a sideways glance at Liliang's shapely ass.
He cannot touch the lady-in-waiting because of his wife. At best, he could steal his wife's eyes and touch her body, but not Lilyan. I tried to seduce her many times, but she kept saying, "I can't do it," with a blank expression on her face. Yet, when he touched her body, she never gave him a single look of disapproval.
I wonder if I can get her into my bedroom somehow. ....... I thought about going to her room to attack her, but she sleeps and wakes in the same room with the other maidens. It was obvious that if he raided her room, there would be an immediate commotion. But how could he get his hands on that body? .......
"My dear, your meal is ready!"
Suddenly, his wife's face appears in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. It is round and wrinkled. He stands up silently and takes his place at the table.
He takes a mouthful of the food in front of him without hesitation. He hardly speaks to his wife, who sits across from him, during the meal. She is, however, talking to herself. Most of it is idle gossip about the nobility. Which baron was about to be promoted, which baroness was about to take a wife...to him, it was all quite unimportant.
"Oh, yes. What happened to your story about the next emperor?"
......It didn't matter. It was already announced that the next emperor would be His Imperial Highness Falco. I could not answer the question as to what was wrong with that.
"I heard that you are all against it. ....... Why would you do such a thing when the Emperor is here with his majesty Aukhan and his majesty Clahara? Oh, yes, His Highness Ohan is hosting a tea party. May I go?
"Yes, you should go."
"I will be back before you leave."
...... You don't have to come back. You can go and play until midnight. Then he could bring Liliang to the bedroom. But his wife, perhaps sensing his feelings, does not let him do so easily.
The Marquis stands up with half of the dishes left.
"Well, are you done? I went to the trouble of preparing your favorite duck meat ......"
I'm a little tired.
"Well, that's a big deal. Oh, by the way, I hear that Mr. Ohan is not very happy about this decision. I hear that he laments daily for His Majesty to reconsider the matter somehow. ....... I'm very sorry to hear that.
"If there is anything I can do to help, please let the queen know."
The marquis then took his seat.
A few days later, the Marquis of Tskaka had a visitor in his office.
Even though he was a member of the general staff of the Imperial Army of Lamaron, it was unusual for a visitor to come to visit the Marquis. He does not participate in the council of war, which plans and decides military operations, and only attends the council of staff, where all decisions are made and only approved, and he has no voice as a military officer. No one would visit such a man with no power.
The man who came to him was named Harno. He must have been in his fifties. He had neatly coiffed gray hair, was dressed in black like a butler's uniform, and appeared to be a very gentlemanly man.
"So, what do you want to see me about?"
"Yes. In fact, the paper you use in the Imperial Army ....... I know that you are currently using the Ravanescu Trading Company's paper, but I was wondering if you could use some of the paper that we deal with ......."
"Then you are out of line. You can tell the department that handles the goods."
Yes. But Count Oil, who is the director of the bureau, favors the Ravinescu Chamber of Commerce, and he won't listen to us. We would be grateful if the Marquis would be so kind as to offer his assistance. ......"
The Marquis of Tskaka gives a small click of his tongue. It is true that Count Oil used to take care of him when he was a child. He would not have said no if I had asked him.
"We are confident of the quality of our products. We can offer you a lower price than Ravanescu. We are confident that once you try our products, you will like them.
Hano placed the package he was carrying under his arm on the desk of the Marquis of Tskaka. When he unwrapped the package, a white, high-quality paper appeared inside. Hano took one of the sheets and held it out to the Marquis. He takes it in his hand quizzically.
"......?"
Upon closer inspection, one can see something drawn on the white paper. It was a letter.
The marquis's eyes widened involuntarily. When he looked up, Harno nodded slowly with a serious expression on his face.