Beneath the Surviving Princess's Joyful Facade - Chapter 125

Currently, around Miesa were Duke Salachez, Marquise Crispin, Marquis Britz the Grand Justiciar, and Viscount Manere’s family. Now, the Raviate family would be added to the mix. As Eirik continued to examine the remaining names, he calmly explained his thoughts.

“I’m just concerned that you might be surrounding yourself with too many people friendly to Cladnier… But there’s no helping it now. I haven’t had the time to thoroughly assess the central nobles since I returned from the border.”

“What do you mean?” Miesa’s face hardened immediately. She couldn’t understand what he was implying.

But Eirik, looking at her, replied cautiously, “I mean to say that, in the future, you should consider employing even those from families opposed to Cladnier for the sake of the kingdom.”

“Why should I do that? I’m your wife, and I am Cladnier. Why should I ally with people who might harm our family?”

“You must prioritize Esquillir now, Your Majesty.”

Eirik tried to calm her, but it had the opposite effect. Miesa’s voice grew louder.

“Why are you speaking as if I’m not part of Cladnier? Why am I sitting in this position, then?”

Miesa couldn’t comprehend. She had killed Vermel and ascended to the throne for him, yet now he was saying they weren’t on the same side?

To her, Cladnier wasn’t just any family. It was the first name that gave her a sense of belonging, the family that protected her unconditionally even when everyone else saw her as less than human.

Suddenly, he was drawing a line, treating her as an outsider, and anger surged within Miesa.

“I don’t understand what you’re saying. What does the kingdom have to do with me?”

“Your Majesty, you mustn’t say such things. How can you say the kingdom has nothing to do with you?”

Eirik’s face stiffened immediately. It was unimaginable in the world he grew up in for a queen to utter such words about their own country.

Despite trying hard to understand, Eirik couldn’t stop himself from sighing. He carefully explained his position. “I don’t want the Cladnier family to hold too much power or become a target for political attacks.”

“Why are you speaking like the head of Cladnier instead of the consort? And who would attack Cladnier when I’m the queen?”

“I cannot yet relinquish the position of head of the family. Besides, even your father faced checks and surveillance from Duke Salachez throughout his life. Even kings are subject to this, and has any royal family member escaped being attacked?”

Far from escaping attacks, they were all either dead or threatened with death. As Miesa’s speechless face gradually contorted, Eirik spoke soothingly, “We must protect Cladnier separately from the royal authority. No matter what happens, we must have a place to return to for both you and me.”

“……”

“Please don’t worry. Once the royal authority stabilizes, I will step down as head of the family. But as I mentioned, until then, please understand that I cannot relinquish the position, as we may need to establish an independence Margraviate if necessary.”

“…Alright.”

Unable to refute his words, Miesa could only nod.

The conversation ended for the moment. The two headed to the bedroom side by side. But neither of them could easily fall asleep.

In the following days, Miesa appeared to be adjusting splendidly to her role as queen.

Appointing Count Raviate, the head of the moderates, to the position of Minister of State and reclaiming the wealth that Count Silanz had illicitly accumulated by manipulating the ledgers were both actions that seemed impeccable from an outside perspective.

The preparations for the grand festival commemorating the new queen’s ascension were progressing smoothly. Those who came to pay respects to the new queen all unanimously reported how eagerly the people were anticipating the event.

However, the times when Miesa and Eirik conversed with carefree laughter and gazed into each other’s eyes gradually began to diminish.

***

“The Ministry of Finance required Your Majesty’s approval…”

The Grand Equerry came to the study, now converted into an office, to report. Since Viscount Manere took over as head of the Ministry of Finance following the ousting of Count Silanz for corruption, he had been refusing to release funds for even the slightest ambiguous matters.

With the financial strings tightened, court officials were on edge. They had attempted to leverage their connections to understand the new queen’s disposition, but as the palace officials at the central palace were all turning pale and keeping their lips tightly sealed, suspicion only continued to grow.

Are they all watching the Cladnier family, who stand firmly behind the queen? This vague assumption began spreading like a dark undercurrent among the officials, especially given Viscount Manere’s cautiousness.

The Grand Equerry surveyed the study. Today, the Margrave of Cladnier was absent, and only the red-haired illegitimate child of the Salachez family, the captain of the guards, and a lady-in-waiting were present. His tensed body briefly relaxed, but it tensed again at the queen’s chilly voice.

“What approval do you need?”

When Miesa asked, the Grand Equerry bowed deeply. “We need to replenish the horses used by the eastern messengers. Recently, an illness caused the death of thirty horses…”

As she listened, Miesa recalled Count Carlisle’s son, who was reportedly affiliated with the Grand Equerry but had disappeared after his father’s execution, keeping a low profile.

Having entered the royal tent on the night of the hunting tournament to mock Eirik and herself, there was no reason not to punish Carlisle’s son. Moreover, Miesa thought it might be a good time to scrutinize the Grand Equerry.

So she asked, “How do you manage the messengers’ records, Grand Equerry?”

“We keep the originals and copies separately by region based on importance, with the official in charge stamping them with their seal.”

“Bring all the records from this year. I’ll take a look. As for the horses, purchase them as needed.”

At Miesa’s willingness, the Grand Equerry’s face turned pale. The issue wasn’t just about buying a few horses.

“All the records from this year amount to a huge volume.”

“How much?”

“It would be well over twenty volumes if converted into books.”

“I can read that in two days. Bring them.”

The Grand Equerry quickly recalled past events. There were numerous issues that could arise if those records were scrutinized. Even if he wanted to conceal or fabricate them, he needed time.

“By when…?”

“Right now.”

The Grand Equerry’s complexion turned gray. However, Miesa stretched and said, “Actually, send over about three years’ worth. I don’t have anything pressing to attend to now.”

“The volume would be truly, truly immense.”

“Is that so? Since it’ll be heavy, I’ll send the guards. Tilberg!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Go with the Grand Equerry now and bring all the records of the messengers from the last three years—no, make it five years.”

Thus, the Grand Equerry had all the records seized without being able to utter a single word of protest.

“……”

Miesa quickly skimmed through the messengers’ records. It wasn’t too difficult to infer the missing parts as she read through the scattered entries.

There was no significant corruption, and the records were quite helpful in understanding the situation of the provincial nobles. However,

“These bastards…”

She discovered just how dangerous the war with the Principality of Sidate had been. Especially three years ago, when she read about the battle in the Oeneka region, where only Eirik and Emmerich from the Cladnier family survived, while everyone else was annihilated, it made her hair stand on end.

Even in the few words of the short report, the urgency of the situation was evident. Yet, requests for military support were consistently ignored. In disbelief, Miesa continued to read the records.

While minor requests from other regions were quickly addressed or politely declined, there was no trace of any response to requests from the Cladis region.

Moreover, when the then Margravine of the Cladnier family reached out for help just once, there was no record of any action taken. Her elegant handwriting described the landslide disaster in the Dakarel region to the east of Cladis, where over a hundred households were affected and in need of rescue and reconstruction assistance, but all reports stopped at Count Sellas’s desk.

They were never properly reported to the king. Grinding her teeth, Miesa contemplated how she would deal with Sellas in the secret chamber.

“Your Majesty, it’s time for bed.”

Eirik, who had left for the Cladnier estate early and returned to the palace late at night, immediately checked on her.

Miesa obediently followed him to the bedroom. However, an unspoken awkwardness lingered between them.

“I hear my father regained consciousness today,” Eirik said, his words making her uncomfortable. Even alone, he explained the situation with a formal tone.

“Although he hasn’t fully recovered yet, fortunately, it seems there will be no severe aftereffects.”

“…That’s a relief.”

“He intends to come to the central palace to pay his respects once he can move more easily.”

“…Alright.”