第７０１堀：やっぱり腹黒姫 (Part1)
**Chapter 701: The Black-Hearted Princess, As Expected**
**Side: Yuki**
Is it really been a while? Or should I say it’s been a while if it’s been over a month? It’s hard to find the right words for it, but the Weed delegation has arrived at the castle in the Royal Capital of Haiden.
"Hey, I’m happy you’re here to meet the Princess, but what about the letter you were entrusted with by the Beast God?" Kagura asks, her voice laced with concern as she guides us.
"Ah, that. It’s on hold."
"Eh? On hold... is that really okay?"
"It’s fine. I wasn’t told to deliver it immediately, nor was I given a deadline for a reply. As long as I deliver it eventually, there’s no problem."
"...Are you sure about that?"
"It’s natural to be skeptical, but it’s a letter for a divorced couple. We’re at a loss ourselves on how to handle it. If you’re that worried, you can take the initiative yourself. Use Hairen, for instance."
"“No, that would be a disaster.”"
Even the apprentice goddess Hairen, who was with Mikos, joins in to shut that idea down.
I agree, it’s a terrible idea. I can only foresee the situation spiraling out of control.
"The timing is also bad. Right now, we’re in the middle of activities leading up to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs establishment conference, which will serve as the foundation for intercontinental exchange. If I hand over that letter carelessly and Lilishe or Faide get their backs up, it’ll shake the High Elf Kingdom, the Beast God’s nation, and at worst, the Ritea Holy Kingdom."
For better or worse, Alstaire, the Saintess of Ritea, is aware of Lilishe and Faide’s existence, and she’s quite dependent on them.
There’s no guarantee Lilishe won’t take offense after reading the letter. If that results in the Ritea Holy Kingdom pulling out of the intercontinental exchange, all our hard work will have been for nothing.
There’s no way I can just hand over a bomb like that.
I feel bad for the Beast God Tra, but the nation comes first. It can’t be helped.
Perhaps Kagura and Mikos understood what I meant, as they didn’t complain any further. Since they are worried as people, I decide to explain the future course of action.
"Don’t worry about it so much. For now, the matter of the letter has been conveyed to Alstaire via Rurua. The timing of when to deliver the letter isn’t something we can decide on our own."
That’s right; the situation with Lilishe and Faide is, if anything, closer to a Ritea problem than a Weed one.
Even though I was entrusted with the letter, it’s not something I can just handle on my own, especially considering the aforementioned issues.
This is a letter containing high-level political complications.
So, the reason I haven’t delivered it yet isn’t because I’m afraid of a domestic spat between a couple.
As I’m thinking about this, Kagura stops, signaling we’ve reached our destination.
"We’re here. Wait a moment, please. Excuse me. I am Kagura, a diplomat from Weed..."
As she tries to announce our visit to the guards standing before the door...
"We have been expecting you. Princess Carrie is waiting. Please, this way."
Princess Carrie’s personal maid opens the door to welcome us.
This maid’s loyalty is truly something else. She followed us from the front lines of Baide all the way to the headquarters of the Haire Church.
With that thought in mind, I enter the room. It isn’t a conference room, but rather Princess Carrie’s office, where a desk is piled high with a mountain of paperwork.
It’s a sad realization that in any world or any era, nothing moves without paperwork.
"Welcome. I have been waiting for you, Yuki-sama."
The master of the room, Princess Carrie, welcomes us with a smile as if nothing were amiss.
"Greetings, Princess Carrie. It is good to see you in good health."
"I wouldn’t exactly call it 'good health.' Between the battle against Findall in Baide and the clandestine movements of the Mad God’s followers lurking behind the Haire Church, rebuilding Haiden afterward has been quite a struggle. Thanks to that, I’m buried in paperwork from morning till night."
Oh? That’s rare. This princess is actually complaining about work.
Wait, is she just exhausted?
"It’s much the same on our end. The work for intercontinental exchange is immense. Ah, but we can eat cake whenever we want, so perhaps it’s easier on the spirit. Now, before we talk business, I brought some cake as a souvenir, so let’s relax and have some. It’s not something that keeps well, after all."
"...Thank you for your consideration. Kuno, please prepare the tea and the cake."
"Yes, understood."
Ah, the maid’s name was Kuno.
Thinking that, I hand over the souvenir cake, and Kuno leaves the room.
The Princess must be truly tired. I tried to retort with a bit of irony—that I’m having a harder time than she is—but she didn’t react, so she either didn’t realize she was complaining, or she just found it too troublesome to respond.
"Is Kagura doing well?"
"Yes. Just the other day, she safely finished her visits to the High Elf Kingdom and the Beast God’s nation. Both showed interest in Kagura, and there was no ill will, so I think it will lead to a positive direction."
"Is that so? That is good to hear."
"Well, it’s not as if there are no problems, so there is still a need for further meetings and discussions."
"Naturally."
The fact that Kagura, who has Japanese blood, likely has the most leverage for negotiations with the High Elf Kingdom is a problem for Weed, and the reality of the Beast God’s nation’s misanthropy is still unknown.
There’s no telling how those pieces will move.
Well, the relationship between Haiden and those two nations is something they should work on themselves; our intervention will likely be kept to the bare minimum.
"Thank you for waiting."
While we were making small talk, Kuno returned with the tea, so we leisurely began to eat the cake.
"Haa, this is delicious. I wish I could just keep eating this. Honestly, I’m surrounded by nothing but noisy people..."
"Um, Princess. Is the Royal Palace still...?"
"Yes. They are desperate to fill the vacant posts. Even though they wouldn’t be able to handle the responsibilities without actual merit. On top of that, there are even those who oppose lifting the confinement on Mother."
"They don’t want the Queen to return?"
"She’s the former Queen now, though. Originally, I shouldn’t be a Princess, but the daughter of the former King, yet my uncle refuses to let me step off the stage. Well, on the surface, Mother and I are the leaders of the Old Royal Faction, while my uncle manages the Current Royal Faction, so it’s only natural. If they try to remove me, the Old Royal Faction will fear a monopoly of power, and conversely, lifting Mother’s confinement would be an admission of the Current Royal Faction’s failure..."
Ah, the scramble for vacant posts is just a clear microcosm of that power dynamic.
This is going to be a long one...