“How many are in the Clifford delegation?”
“About twenty total, excluding Prince Noah and Envoy May who arrived early. That’s not counting the escort knights.”
“I was told escorts entering the palace would be limited to five per royal, did you receive those instructions?”
“Yes, yes. I received them. The remaining escorts will be housed in temporary lodgings outside the palace.”
“Hello! I’m from Crown Prince Jin’s chambers.”
“What’s the matter? If you need to check the schedule, there’s a newly written one on that desk over there.”
“What about the Clifford delegation?”
“Fifteen from that side. They said they wouldn’t bring all their escorts. They also ordered thorough checks of the armament status of those entering the palace, so the gatekeepers at the main entrance will handle that.”
“Ah, this is chaotic. Really.”
“What’s next? We need a list of Bariel officials attending the meeting. I put it here, but where did it go?”
“Someone just took it out. They’re sending attendants to each residence, so you don’t need to worry about it.”
“I’m the one in charge of that—who went?”
“What? Ah! This is maddening. The papers must have gotten mixed up!”
Whoosh!
Faint order within chaos.
The attendants handling palace business rushed back and forth exchanging documents and such, with paper stacks tall as mountains collapsing here and there.
But the administrative department was running so frantically that no one could clean up properly. The scattered papers remained scattered, tumbling around people’s feet. And for good reason—they had to accomplish in just a few days what should have taken months of preparation.
This meeting was as important as Jin’s appointment ceremony. A massive conference that the Gaia continent was watching, bringing together not only Clifford, Ruswena, and Burgos but also northern minority forces. With war damage and rift management on the agenda, the attendants’ hands were busy matching that level of importance.
Clatter clatter!
“Make way! Move aside!”
“Oh my, what chaos.”
“Beric! Why are you here?”
“Why? Ian sent me on an errand.”
“Ahhhhh! These clueless Ministry bastards, how long are they going to keep those cloth scraps wrapped around their heads? Even we wouldn’t have enough if we went on strike!”
The administrative staff member cried out while looking at Ian’s documents that Beric brought, and at the same time Quintana’s sharp gaze flashed.
“Shut up. Do you work with your mouth?”
“N-no, ma’am.”
“I’m busy as hell, so don’t even mention the ‘st’ in ‘strike.’ Any bastards who get influenced will calculate my damages compensation and pay every last penny without fail. If you don’t like it, go to the Ministry of Magic! No one’s stopping you!”
Did they think mages were mages for nothing? Their existence alone was valuable enough, and each individual possessed tremendous power. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to say they held independent positions within the Ministry of Magic. They were irreplaceable. Unlike ordinary people who worried their positions might disappear if they left their posts.
The staff member shut his mouth and received the documents Ian had given. Beric batted away papers flying here and there with one hand and said:
“By the way, the Queen of Ruswena just arrived at the main gate.”
“What? Already?”
“Does that country’s king have no dignity? Why are they entering so early? Yesterday dawn brought Burgos delegation, this morning the King of Clifford, and now immediately Ruswena?”
“Someone said they must be shitting themselves.”
“That’s definitely Captain Akorella’s way of talking without even looking.”
“Oh! How did you know?”
“Quintana! I’m submitting this without intermediate approval. Please check it immediately!”
“Pass it over here.”
Crash! Bang!
Tap tap tap! Crash!
Quintana adjusted her glasses and combatively pounded the calculator. Each time an approval stamp was applied, a subordinate staff member systematically transcribed the reports. Only what they held in their hands differed—the heat was no different from a blacksmith’s forge.
Beric sniffled while waiting for a response.
“Where’s last year’s Clifford grape harvest data?”
“I gave it to you earlier.”
“That was the year before last! I told you to make detailed data divided by month, didn’t I? We need to calculate the five-year average to estimate damages. You think I’m pounding the calculator for fun?!”
“I’m sorry! I’ll find it and bring it right away.”
“Tsk. Beric!”
“Yes.”
Quintana, highly sensitized by the numbers game, irritably called Beric. Beric, who rarely got nervous, straightened up and raised his head sharply.
“Take this directly to Minister Ian.”
“Understood.”
“Ah, and one more thing.”
Quintana grabbed the fleeing Beric and turned him around. But as if the words wouldn’t come easily, she just opened and closed her mouth while making groaning sounds. Seeing Beric’s round, innocent-looking eyes, she felt it was meaningless.
“What is it?”
“Never mind. It’s fine, so hurry and go.”
Despite the half-shooing gesture, Beric grinned and left the administrative department.
Quintana pressed on the papers chaotic with numbers while recalling Crown Prince Jin’s summons. A few days ago, in the middle of the night, when schedules were just getting busy.
‘I want to proceed immediately with Ministry of Magic annex construction, so it would be good to create available cash flow right away.’
Not Minister Ian of the Ministry of Magic, but the Crown Prince personally wanting to proceed with Ministry construction? What kind of situation was this?
From the imperial family’s perspective, wouldn’t there be nothing but grounds for opposition in a hundred out of a hundred cases? All the delays until now had been for such reasons. Judging by the Crown Prince giving direct instructions to Quintana, the matter would soon be accomplished.
Quintana gently rubbed her throbbing head and closed her eyes.
“Sigh.”
Where would be best to extract the funds for annex construction? Since negotiation meetings were imminent, it would probably be good to find breathing room from that direction.
Quintana made up her mind and boldly drew a circle with her pen.
***
”Father!”
“Noah?”
Prince Noah spotted his father entering the main palace from afar and came running at full speed.
The king’s eyes seemed sunken from his grueling schedule—was it just his imagination? Noah examined his father thoroughly with sparkling eyes, and the king noticed something different about his son.
“Your Highness!”
“May!”
“Ah, Your Majesty! Have you arrived? My apologies.”
The king embraced his son’s head, much larger than himself, while signaling to May. Though hidden by a traditional Clifford hat, he definitely felt it. Under the cloth, unfamiliar ears protruded with a pop. Moreover, it wasn’t a sweet smell but rather an earthy scent reminiscent of forests.
Noah grinned and tightly embraced his father’s shoulders.
“…Oh my. This is serious, Noah.”
“It’s still okay for now. I missed you. There’s a lot to discuss too.”
“Let’s go inside. Not all the carriages could enter. They say they’ll return the approved ones only after inspection is complete, so it will take some time.”
“This way, Father. It’s been a while since you’ve been to Bariel’s imperial palace, hasn’t it?”
“Yes. When you were very young. This is the first time since then.”
The king sent attendants far away and climbed the stairs entering the main palace. Noah excitedly showing animated gestures, and May watching him with concern.
The king personally closed the reception room door while whispering to May.
“What happened? May.”
“The curse has manifested. I thought it would happen soon, but I didn’t expect it to happen so suddenly. My apologies.”
“The palace hasn’t noticed?”
“Crown Prince Jin and Minister Ian know the secret, so I informed them of the situation. It hasn’t leaked beyond that. Clifford is already distracted with reconstruction—would it help to add more worries?”
“Right. Exactly. If they learned that the royal they trust and follow is a beast-person, who would willingly accept it? Moreover, they’ve experienced magical beasts through war and rifts. It absolutely must not be revealed. I heard last time that you received help from a mage?”
“Yes. I requested it this time too. But that only temporarily suppresses symptoms and has considerable side effects. Since His Highness is still fine and Your Majesty was coming soon, he didn’t drink it.”
Noah sat properly in place and just kept nodding his head.
Seeing such behavior, the king let slip a gentle smile. His body had fully grown, but he was still his young child. Being both a curse and proof of royalty, he couldn’t easily laugh or cry.
Knock knock.
“Your Majesty. The carriages have entered after inspection. We’ll move the documents brought from Clifford and do final organizing.”
“Good. I’ll come soon too.”
The bloody war fought with swords and shields had stopped, but now they had to fight a war with even greater impact. A war of tongues, fighting with each side’s positions and claims as weapons.
“May. The palace guidance?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. If you go down the corridor a little, there are lodgings and preparation rooms provided for the delegation. Agreements will continue for a maximum of five days, until there are ‘somewhat’ satisfactory results.”
Of course, the standard for ‘somewhat’ was Bariel. There would be a line that Bariel considered appropriate and sufficient. Burgos and Ruswena would try their best not to exceed that, while Clifford’s goal was to maximize the benefits they could vigorously pull toward themselves.
May handed the king the report she had prepared with Noah and explained.
“Your Majesty. And you need to know a bit about the current palace atmosphere. Regarding the Ministry of Magic…”
Whisper whisper, May told the king everything they had seen and heard first. The red headband wave called a strike and the Ruswena mages’ asylum. And Ian’s position and attitude, among other things. The kind-looking king’s eyes closed gently, then he clicked his tongue as if finding it complicated.
“This is troublesome.”
“Therefore, how about we argue this in the meeting? It’s a small opinion from His Highness and myself, so if Your Majesty sees any shortcomings, please let us know.”
Rustle.
The King of Clifford read through May’s report while turning down the corridor. Approving groans flowing down as he grasped each character. Just as the King of Clifford was about to say let’s go with this strategy, it happened.
At the end of the corridor, an eight-foot tall woman with blue-green hair appeared. Queen Eripony of Ruswena.
“Ahem.”
The king straightened his shoulders and faced Eripony with dignity. If she had any conscience, shouldn’t she come apologize to them immediately?
But thinking that would be a poor strategy, they likewise passed by the king with their heads held high. Even treating someone like a transparent person wouldn’t be this natural.
“I say!”
“May. That’s enough.”
Though May angrily tried to confront them, the king raised his hand to stop her. A chill settled over his gentle face.
“We don’t need to get angry for nothing. Soon enough, their neck will be so stiff it breaks. We can just watch then.”
“…I’m so angry, Your Majesty.”
“Hehe. Me too. The heat rises all the way to the top of my head.”
The king patted May’s shoulder and told her to continue on their way.
Finally arriving at the lodgings, the delegation was so absorbed in negotiation preparations that they didn’t notice it getting dark outside, and could only come to their senses when called by a palace attendant.
Knock knock.
“Excuse me. It’s time to enter the grand conference hall.”
“Is it that time already?”
“Yes. It’s right next door, so you can walk there.”
“Everyone go. Prepare thoroughly. And Noah!”
“Yes, Father!”
“Come with us too.”
The king grasped Noah’s hand firmly as if gaining strength. Then he followed the attendant into the grand conference hall where negotiations would take place.
The first thing visible straight ahead was the Burgos delegation. A woman sat beside Damon, who was a mess of wounds.
Was she the delegation representative? Just as the king wondered internally, Damon opened his mouth and showed his tongue.
“…!”
A roughly severed cross-section. Not knowing what it meant, the king flinched and froze.
Seeing this, Damon grinned and casually closed his mouth.