229: The Intimidating Villigianiya

"This is being looked down upon."

"...Being looked down upon?"

Now, the two papers presented by Count Iseimeetsu.

After seeing them, Villigianiya's atmosphere turned terrifying.

Extremely terrifying.

Clearly furious.

Furious, yet unable to move the conversation forward, so I speak up to Villigianiya.

"It's all about this. First and foremost, the order from Prince Syngubirumu. That's completely unacceptable. If the Imperial Family issues such an order, they can't complain if all the corporations suddenly turn their backs on them."

"Really that serious...?"

"That's enough. They probably think things like 'there are replacements,' 'we can find others,' 'it's just one company,' 'there's no branch of Teisei Vanilla Sid among top executives,' or 'it's easy to deal with,' but can a nation really take custody of a person's life based on a unilateral order? How many reasonable people would want to do business with someone who does that? It's clear as day that a country built on unreasonable deals will eventually collapse."

"Y-yeah, I guess..."

"Hehehe, if my memory serves me right, Prince Synquibirum was once known as a member of the Order faction or the hardliners, but wouldn't it be better to rename them the 'Fallen Nation faction' instead?"

Yeah, I get what Vilijanira is getting at.

The reason the Vanilla Imperial Empire is currently ruled by the Vanilla Emperor's family is because reasonable negotiations still work.

If the imperial family were to become someone with whom reasonable negotiations are impossible... then, at the very least, a coup or forced removal would surely occur through the cooperation of the nobility, corporations, the imperial army, the parliament, and the general populace.

Of course, the imperial family might have some trump card hidden away, but if that trump card were powerful enough to overcome the entire world as enemies, then the imperial family would have grown even more arrogant long ago.

But reality isn't like that—when humility becomes the norm, it's clear that such a trump card couldn't possibly rule the empire through fear.

Yeah, I can understand why Villigianira would harshly criticize that Prince Sinquubilimzo.

"His Majesty... well, perhaps the letter of command from Prince Sinquubilimzo is also serving as a countermeasure. That's why things are still manageable... but still, 'manageable'?"

"Manageable?"

Even so, inviting an ordinary woman who's made no preparations at all for the tea party just two days away can only be described as unreasonable. Did you prepare a dress? Cosmetics? Staff? And you're not even bothering with etiquette? That's not the point at all! If you think a woman's preparation ends with just having the right things on hand, I must strongly object. There must have been other ways to handle this!

Ah, yes.

Honestly, after discussing it with my mother, Her Majesty the Empress, and several other noble ladies, I believe the Emperor must also receive instruction. Memoqui, I ask that you and Great Mother cooperate.

Understood.

Ah, Your Majesty, namaste.

You've been evaluated, but Viridiana is also displeased with you.

Well, when it's a tea gathering with Your Imperial Majesty, the preparations naturally extend beyond attire, makeup, and personnel—touching the heart and body as well...

Dr. Mizeon maintains her physique for the sake of healthy research and education, but not everyone can manage that.

Given the current schedule and invitation details, it's understandable if people assume we didn't consider those aspects when inviting Dr. Mizeon.

"And then there's the Crown Prince. They likely signed to demonstrate their own legitimacy, but we're left with no choice but to evaluate them as similarly neglectful of preparations for women, just like the Emperor. We'll need to discuss this with the Crown Princess as well later on."

"……"

"If I may speak frankly, I would have preferred if Your Majesty had offered a rebuke and refused to sign, rather than appearing to simply follow the Emperor's lead."

"Ugh..."

Please do your best, Prince Imperial.

You're rated lower than the Emperor in the eyes of Vilijanira.

Still, it's certainly a problem if you're merely following along without offering your own opinions.

If you're just following along without offering your own opinions, you might not be able to push through when faced with strong opposition from those around you.

That would be a serious issue for the Crown Prince... and for the next Emperor.

One might say such matters seem trivial from a broader perspective... but perhaps that's precisely why they're problematic—because they arise in situations that seem unimportant at first glance.

"Iseimītsu Marquess"

"Y-yes. How may I assist you, Viscount Viridiana?"

"What is Dr. Mizeon's scheduled start date?"

"……According to the notice, it's the day after the tea party."

"You may use my name if necessary. Adjust the schedule so that he begins only after at least three days of vacation. If he resists, I'm prepared to inform the companies involved about this matter."

"Y-yes, of course."

Viscount Iseimītsu, my apologies...

Right now, isn't this person the one suffering the most?

Even setting aside my personal connection as Dr. Mizeon's relative, I can't help but feel compelled to help.

"Then let's each get moving. Dr. Mizeon, we'll part ways here today. We need to head over to the Vanillagenru Route Viscount's family estate shortly."

"Ah, got it. Let's meet again tomorrow. We'll probably have some meetings to arrange anyway."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow. Then, Memo, Sata, Joharis, shall we be off?"

"Understood."

"O-Okay, I got it."

"R-Right, got it."

I mean, I never would have expected to see such a demeanor from them—something I hadn't witnessed before.

Even Vilijanira, despite being of the imperial family, truly is formidable.