Being a pure and righteous saint is my current selling point. If I show any political ambition, my holiness will quickly fade, and I’ll be seen as a greedy, lascivious woman.
I need to discuss with the royal family and the nobles and come to an agreement in a way that minimizes criticism.
However, the problems are too big for someone like me, who was just a count’s daughter until yesterday.
I’ll have my father handle negotiations with the royal family and the nobles. I believe my father, who is quick to adapt, will manage well in times like these.
I also need to hurry and reorganize the knight orders.
Not only was the Black Hawk Order, the pillar of the country, wiped out, but the Blue Wolf Order and the Red Moon Order, which joined the rebellion, were also disbanded. As a result, the kingdom’s military power has dropped to an unprecedented low.
The defense of the Ghazal Gate, which supports the border against the Demon King’s army, also has a gap. I don’t think the Demon King’s army will attack immediately after losing Garrios, but if we take too long to recover our forces, we might allow a reinvasion.
Even if we cancel the Demon-Slaying Order declared by King Henry, we will probably have to make Al and Ray independent and let them lead their own orders.
This would greatly increase my and my father’s authority, but given the expected chaos, we need a strong knight order right now.
We also need to reform the church’s power.
Even though Cardinal Pharmaid cut ties with General Zaria and annulled the rebellion, not only Cardinal Pharmaid but other church leaders also agreed to the rebellion. The church’s corruption is intolerable. We should take this opportunity to start internal reforms. For now, let’s reinstate Priest Note and promote him to cardinal. Then, we can pursue a reconciliation policy and review the current system.
Fortunately, Cardinal Pharmaid is cooperative with us. Or rather, after the rebellion, he seems to have aged drastically.
He used to have a greasy face and eyes shining with gold, but now he looks like a withered radish.
It seems the death of Elisabeth is the cause. It appears he didn’t realize what he truly loved until he lost it.
Thanks to this, we have relatively free rein with the church, but there are still too many things to do, like rebuilding the capital, revitalizing the economy, and punishing the knights and nobles who joined the rebellion. My head felt like it was going to explode.
Honestly, I didn’t even know where to start.
As I held my head on the hill, I heard footsteps approaching.
“Still making that difficult face, huh?”
“If you keep frowning like that, you’ll get wrinkles, you know.”
Two voices called out to me. I turned around in a hurry.
Standing there were two women. Ekaterina, in a black robe with a large triangular hat, and Princess Lu, with a sword on her back, dressed in fresh green martial arts attire.
“Ekaterina! Princess Lu! Huh?”
I was surprised to see them.
Their reunion wasn’t unexpected. It wouldn’t be strange for them to stay in the kingdom, and if they knew about the deaths of King Henry and Elisabeth, they would come running no matter where they were. However, the presence they held in their arms caused me great confusion.
“Huh? Huh? A child? Since when? Congratul… huh?”
Ekaterina and Princess Lu each held a child in their arms.
I didn’t know if I should congratulate them and ended up saying something confusing even to myself.
“When did you get married? To whom?”
When I asked, Ekaterina and Princess Lu exchanged troubled looks and then laughed together.
Seeing their smiles, I realized they weren’t married yet.
The children sleeping soundly in their arms. The child Ekaterina held seemed about one and a half to two years old, and the one Princess Lu held seemed about six months old. The children didn’t resemble Ekaterina or Princess Lu; their sleeping faces somehow reminded me of the late King Henry and Elisabeth.
“Could it be, these children are…!”
I remembered the missing children of King Henry and Elisabeth. The two princes should be about the same age as the children Ekaterina and Princess Lu held.
If Ekaterina and Princess Lu protected the princes at the founding ceremony and took them to the detached palace…
“Ekaterina! Princess Lu!”
We should place the eldest prince, Allen, on the throne.
I swallowed the words that were on the tip of my tongue.
If it could be proven that these two were the true princes, they would be the most legitimate claimants to the throne.
But Allen and Aller, the two princes, were too young. An infant king’s reign could easily become a puppet regime.
Even now, too much power is concentrated in my and my father’s hands. If we could also control the king, it would be as if we ruled the country.
Even if we had no such intention, others wouldn’t stay silent. Rebellion would surely arise.
It wouldn’t be good for the young princes either.
The palace is a nest of vipers, full of intrigue and assassination plots.
Throwing these infants into such a situation would be as good as killing them.
The power struggles within the palace have nothing to do with these children. They survived against all odds; they deserve to grow up healthy.
Seeing me swallow my words, Ekaterina and Princess Lu smiled. Seeing their smiles, I smiled too. There was nothing else to do but laugh.
“What will you two do now?”
When I asked, both Ekaterina and Princess Lu tilted their heads, wondering what to do.
“I’ll probably go back to my old home and teach this child magic.”
Ekaterina seemed to be returning to the forest where she used to live.
“I’ll also find a mountain or forest to teach this child martial arts.”
Princess Lu hadn’t decided where to settle yet.
However, the princes of a nation becoming a magician and a martial artist. Who could have imagined such a future?
“Well, Romelia. It’s going to be tough, but hang in there!”
“Do your best!”
Princess Lu’s resolute voice and Ekaterina’s drawn-out voice called out as they left.
I watched the backs of the two, each holding a child.
I looked forward to seeing King Henry and Elisabeth’s children grow up and succeed.
Thinking about the children, I thought of the first task I should tackle.
As I worked under the flag on the hill, a group of armored people approached me.
“Hey, Captain Rome. What’s that song? I’ve heard it somewhere before. Where was it?”
Al returned with the Rome squad and asked about the song I was humming.
“Don’t you know, Al? This is the song of the Hero and the Saint.”
I told him about the song.
On their journey, the Saint sang it to the Hero to comfort him.
“It’s a good song.”
Ray listened to the melody I was humming.
“Isn’t it? I’ll teach it to you all next time.”
I promised the Rome squad members.
This was my first task.
To pass down the names and love of
Hero King Henry and Saint Queen Elisabeth.
So that their story would be sung even a thousand years from now.
continue
Afterword
Thank you for picking up the second volume of [The Chronicles of Romelia].
My name is Ryo Ariyama.
In the first volume, due to space constraints, there was no afterword, so this is the first time I’m greeting you.
Nice to meet you, dear readers.
This book came to be because I thought, “Wouldn’t it be popular if I combined stories of exile and broken engagements?” while I was sleeping.
It’s deeply moving to think that an idea from a dream took shape and was published like this.
However, only the first line was conceived with a sleepy head, and the rest required some serious thought.
Especially since my mentor, Labo Asai, who taught me how to write novels, always said, “A novel must have surprise and beauty.” I wrote while constantly questioning, “What is beautiful surprise?”
Moreover, this work was intended to significantly revise what was previously published on the web.
Since I was adding more content, it had to be more moving and beautiful than the previous web version, and after much trial and error, the final scene of this work emerged.
How did you find the second volume?
I hope you enjoyed it.
Many people helped in the publication of this book.
I caused a lot of trouble for my editor, Mr. Hamada.
I am endlessly grateful to Mr. Kodama, who illustrated the previous book, and Mr. Ryo Ueto, the new illustrator, for providing beautiful illustrations.
And without my mentor, Labo Asai, who taught me many things, this book and my current self wouldn’t exist.
There was also the cooperation and help of many people behind the scenes.
Above all, it is thanks to the support of you, the readers, that I was able to publish this second book.
I express my heartfelt gratitude and thanks here.
Thank you very much.
Well then, if we have the chance, let’s meet again somewhere.
Ryo Ariyama
TLNOTE : Volume 3 English translation is still coming, but real life stuff is keeping me busy now. Any donation would really help me free up time to keep translating
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