“Hey, should I say Crown Princesses?”
Of course, as expected, Kiara Verati was aware of our true identities.
She was someone who could infiltrate the Empire. So she must have had that much information before coming.
Before we could even sit down, she took one of the terrace seats and crossed her legs.
It was quite different from how she treated me when I was alone.
Hmm, thinking back, it made sense. At that time, I wasn’t dressed like this… I had just swaggered up without asking questions and stuffed bills into my chest.
I didn’t look like I was trying to sneak in, and I acted as if I knew my identity from the beginning, so she probably couldn’t look down on me carelessly.
And even now, it was the same. She looked relaxed at first glance, but her gaze kept drifting toward me.
If she received reports about how I appeared at the trilateral talks, she’d have a hard time underestimating me.
However, Alice seemed a bit concerned about Kiara’s repeated glances in my direction.
Alice sat down. She chose a seat at the end of the long chair in a semi-circle, facing Kiara Verati. She crossed her legs and folded her arms defiantly.
Thanks to that, her appearance became a bit… well, it was slightly embarrassing to watch, but at least right now, her pride seemed to take precedence over her modesty.
I sat down with some space beside her, then Claire, and next to Claire was Leo, who looked incredibly tense.
“Well, big brother, why don’t you come sit here?”
Kiara Verati said, lightly tapping the seat beside her as if to take control of the atmosphere.
“Though you look a bit innocent, I don’t mind you that much.”
“Aren’t you a knight and a nun? Can you really be interested in men?”
“Well, the Goddess did tell us to work hard on having children. If all the kids she made are holed up in their rooms, not giving birth, and just growing old and dying alone, she might not be too happy about it, right?”
After saying that, Verati shrugged her shoulders.
“Well, that’s not entirely wrong. I’m still keeping my purity for now. But do you think the Order of Knights would kick me out if I stopped? I’d rather eliminate troublesome men to preserve my position.”
“Wouldn’t the Emperor be thrilled if someone from the loyal Grace family got killed?”
“Well, who knows? No matter how powerful the Empire is, it can’t just start a war with the Papal State, right? Maybe burying the death of a single noble wouldn’t be such a big deal?”
That was obviously just bravado.
The whole reason the Papal State and Kingdom were trying to form an alliance in the first place is that they could never win against the Empire in a nation-to-nation conflict. Plus, they were also wary of the Empire rapidly strengthening its military and moving forces toward the borders.
I looked at Alice.
Alice’s expression didn’t change at all. It wasn’t simply maintaining a poker face. She was well aware of the situation between the Papal State and the Kingdom. I had passed on detailed information about that day’s meeting.
“Stop talking nonsense. Father would actually be the kind to use that as an excuse to invade the Papal State.”
“……”
That’s right.
What mattered most in war was justification. No matter how powerful you are, if there’s no justification, the underlings won’t follow. Whether that’s inflated patriotism or the practical fear of dying if they don’t fight back right now, there needs to be a ‘reason’ for soldiers to engage in battle.
The Emperor could stir up an entire nation over the death of a single noble.
Even when the autonomous regions were asking for help, they were paying the price in advance so that no more than a certain level of imperial troops could come in. At least those people knew what kind of person the Emperor was.
“So? I’ve heard the Emperor has a son and a daughter. If you think you can threaten me by leaning on the Emperor’s power, you’d better not. There’s no benefit for us in listening to a mere Crown Princess whose status as the Crown Prince hasn’t even been confirmed yet. Unless…”
Verati smiled sweetly and said, “How about I help you become the next Emperor? If we can get along, sharing information wouldn’t be a bad idea. It wouldn’t be bad for a true friend to become the next Grand Emperor.”
“Shut up.”
Alice reacted immediately.
“Do I look that innocent? The rights of imperial succession belong solely to the Empire’s royal family. No other country, not even the council, can touch that right.”
“Well then, that’s the end of the conversation. You’re not someone who will become the next Emperor—”
Verati’s gaze swept over me again.
“—Just an average Crown Princess with no remarkable abilities, only boasting noble blood. We have no interest in teaming up with you. It would be better for us to just use this information and go back with what we want.”
“…So it seems you want something that’s here.”
I almost laughed at Alice’s words without realizing it.
Sure enough, she’s showing her diligent studying skills.
“You’re saying you want to take something away from here. Right? And, that means you still don’t have accurate information either. If you had, you would have run away with what you wanted before being discovered. At least it’s a relief that it’s not too late.”
“What of it?”
But Verati also didn’t change her expression and shrugged again.
As the conversation passed back and forth between the two, it was like watching a game of ping pong as the heads of the people sitting between them bobbed back and forth.
“As long as I don’t open my mouth, you won’t have any idea what it is we want to take with us.”
“……”
Alice straightened her back. Her legs were still crossed, but her hands clasped neatly on her lap, resembling the posture of an Emperor.
“It seems you’re misunderstanding something.”
There was nothing from Alice’s calm demeanor that gave away her feelings. No hostility, no aura.
Of course, I couldn’t feel any of that, being how I was.
What about the others? Did Claire and Leo sense anything from Alice?
At the very least, they seemed to feel that the atmosphere was different from Alice’s usual self. Both of them were gaping at Alice, their mouths agape.
“I’m the Empire’s Crown Princess, and I am to become the next Emperor. It doesn’t matter what you think of my abilities. In the end, I’m the only one carrying the royal bloodline, and I alone will continue the legitimacy of the Empire’s royal family.”
Alice spoke without changing her expression.
“And this is the Empire. Not the Papal State. No matter how many troops you brought, in the end, all you can do is move in secret. You couldn’t sneak the entire Papal State’s order of knights in here.”
“……”
Verati seemed to sense something from Alice’s calm demeanor.
As if to judge Alice, she stared intently, and Alice spoke as if delivering a judgment.
“You came all this way knowing I was a Crown Princess. Or did you really underestimate me that much and came all the way here for no reason? Either way, it doesn’t matter. Thanks to you, I can deal with you without causing civilian casualties. Above all, I was able to bring you to such an open place.”
“If you’re threatening me—”
“Threatening? Do I look that foolish?”
Alice slightly lifted her chin. Her blue eyes shone brightly in the moonlight.
Turning to Verati, who just a moment ago was looking down on Alice as a mere Crown Princess, Alice said, “It’s not a threat; it’s a plan. I found out two weeks ago that you’d be here and came up with a plan.”
Two weeks ago, that was when we were sitting in the café and listening to Bella’s info.
“The moment you followed us, you fell into a trap. Now you have only two options. Either keep your faith and stay alive, or attempt an escape that would be tantamount to suicide.”
Ah, I see.
So that’s how it turned out.
No wonder Bella hasn’t been around for a while.
As Verati, who was realizing the situation, suddenly tried to get up, whoosh, a terrifying sound made the curtains rip apart.
Something came into the scene, with a glove on the end, looking like a toy that would hit the opponent when the trigger was pulled.
Of course, it wasn’t actually a toy. Each area that unfolded had a deadly blade, and it was so flexible that it was incomparable to any toy.
Whoosh, the weapon returned to its original state and clanged into a single sword. The saw-like appearance with blades on both sides transformed once more into the form of a thin, long sword.
The person standing there said, “Hello~”
Bella waved her hand cheerfully and greeted Leo and Claire. Leo stood there, mouth agape, staring blankly at Bella.
But those two probably wouldn’t recognize Bella.
She wore a fox mask that looked like something from a Japanese festival, and her hair was black, not the original color of Bella’s hair.
Though she wore tight-fitting black clothing that revealed her figure perfectly, her skin was completely covered. Perhaps she was intentionally raising her neck, as she spoke in a high-pitched, youthful voice that didn’t match her usual tone.
It was likely a costume Bella wore because her strength lay in people not knowing her face.
There was clearly some preference of the creators in having her wear the fox mask. Here it would be set as a souvenir that came from the East.
“Kiara Verati, baptismal name is Eliza.”
At that, Verati shot a glare at Alice.
“Congratulations. This is an honor that nobody within the Empire has ever experienced, meeting all the Crown Princesses in one place at once.”
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