Chapter 65
Not long after I rang the ‘calling bell,’ Elly entered the room.
Elly looked at me with a faint smile.
“Yes, Your Highness. Did you call for me?”
“Yes. I’m planning to visit Misty Port soon, so I called you for that. I’d like to ask you to prepare for the trip.”
“A trip……?”
Elly hesitated before continuing to ask.
“By ‘Misty Port,’ do you mean the coastal city in the southernmost part of the kingdom?”
“Yes. I also called Commander Jereuth and Sir Heinshtangl for that reason. There are a few things to discuss.”
“Um…… I understand. But Your Highness, may I ask why you are going to such a distant city?”
The reason I was going to Misty Port was to meet the ‘Ingrid Island Pirates’ in person, strike a deal, and win them over to my side.
However, only I knew that the pirates would soon appear in Misty Port. So, I couldn't say that I was going to Misty Port to meet them.
So, I had thought of a plausible excuse in advance.
“It's nothing special. I just want to see how the people in other cities are living. I’ve only ever been in the royal capital, but the people of the royal capital are not the only people of the kingdom. So, I need to see their lives too.”
“Does that mean you are going to inspect Misty Port city?”
“Haha, it's not something as heavy as an ‘inspection.’ The lord has been in Misty Port for such a short time, what is there to check? I’m just going to look around.”
At my words, Elly thought for a moment and then nodded her head.
“……I understand, Your Highness. Then I will prepare the travel luggage.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Although Elly said, ‘I understand,’ her expression and voice were not so bright. It seemed she was worried about me going on a long journey because I had collapsed a few months ago.
***
A little later, a knock was heard from outside.
—Knock, knock.
—Your Highness, it is Jereuth. Heinshtangl is also with me.
“Yes, come in.”
***
—Yes, come in.
Leonardo's permission was heard from inside the door.
Jereuth opened the door and entered. As he entered the room, Elly greeted them first.
“Good morning, Commander Jereuth. Sir Heinshtangl.”
“Head Maid.”
“Good morning, Head Maid.”
Jereuth and Heinshtangl returned Elly's greeting. Their attitude was quite polite; after the fact that Elly was the ‘Head Maid’ became widely known, no one could treat her disrespectfully.
The position of Head Maid was that important, respected, and carried great responsibility and authority.
After the three exchanged brief greetings, Leonardo started the conversation by giving the documents on his desk to Jereuth and Heinshtangl.
“First of all, Commander, I have checked the report you gave me yesterday. The new recruits this time—the 3rd recruitment, right? The training of the 3rd batch of new recruits seems to be going well, and the training and management of the 1st and 2nd batches of recruits also seem to be going well. As expected of you, Commander. It must have been difficult in many ways to manage the new recruits since you sent quite a few knights and soldiers to each city and territory.”
“You praise me too much, Your Highness. It was possible thanks to the high morale of the soldiers because you provided them with amazing benefits.”
“Haha…… it’s a natural thing to do for those who became soldiers for the sake of the kingdom. A country where the military is respected is a healthy country.”
In the midst of the warm atmosphere as Jereuth and Leonardo exchanged words.
“And Sir Heinshtangl?”
As Leonardo called him, Heinshtangl swallowed dryly.
‘……I got scolded badly last time, will it be okay this time.’
Heinshtangl used the expression ‘scolded badly,’ but it wasn't that Leonardo had cursed at him, yelled at him, or kicked him in the shin. He hadn't threatened to kill him either.
He had just faintly smiled and explained point by point what he didn't like and how he thought it could be improved.
For a superior to explain in such detail was, in a way, something a subordinate should be grateful for. Because they just had to fix that.
However, because of the cruelty the ‘superior’ had shown until now, Heinshtangl couldn't help but be nervous.
No matter how sincerely Heinshtangl had decided to follow Leonardo, a primal fear of Leonardo still remained.
‘So, to avoid being scolded by His Highness this time, I asked Olivia for advice…… I wonder if it will be okay.’
The reason Heinshtangl asked his daughter, Olivia, for advice was because she was much smarter and more brilliant than he was.
The reason Olivia attracted the interest of many men in high society was due to her beautiful appearance and her characteristic ice-like expressionless face, but Heinshtangl knew that his daughter's mind was more formidable than her beauty.
Even though she was such a proud daughter, Heinshtangl had tried to keep Olivia from getting involved in his work as much as possible. Why? Because if he involved Olivia in his work and Leonardo recognized her abilities, it was obvious that he would hire her.
‘Other nobles are making all sorts of efforts to get their daughters to catch His Highness' eye, or even to send them as maids…… but I honestly don't wish for Olivia to catch His Highness' eye. Even if His Highness is a good person, he is also a frightening person.’
No matter how outstanding an absolute ruler was, he was a father who did not want to send his daughter to a cruel man, that was Heinshtangl.
With such thoughts, Heinshtangl nervously waited for Leonardo’s ‘evaluation.’
It was then.
“Sir Heinshtangl’s report was also excellent. Truly.”
Leonardo said in a bright and clear voice befitting his age.
“As I mentioned before, the roads in the royal capital have been redesigned much more efficiently, and the road between the large farm and the royal capital seems very neatly planned. It also seems that taxes are being collected stably within the royal capital.”
“Ah…… yes!”
“Also, it was good that the ‘standardization of materials,’ which is most important for stabilizing construction speed and material supply, seems to be well prepared. It couldn't have been easy to prepare all this, you’ve worked hard.”
“Ah…… yes, th, thank you, Your Highness!”
The Crown Prince had never praised him like that before, so Heinshtangl, while feeling awkward, was honestly happy. Unbeknownst to Heinshtangl, he was being tamed by Leonardo’s ‘whip and carrot.’
“By the way, did someone else write this report? The handwriting is Sir Heinshtangl’s, but somehow…… the feeling is subtly different from the reports you’ve written so far.”
The atmosphere of the report is subtly different.
Heinshtangl was extremely flustered by Leonardo's perception in noticing that.
‘……I just copied the report Olivia wrote for me, and he noticed that?’
To hide his daughter’s existence, he had even deliberately transcribed it to hide the handwriting, but it seemed it wasn't enough to fool that tyrant.
This is why quick-witted children make things difficult for adults.
‘What…… should I do.’
Heinshtangl pondered. Should he tell the truth that Olivia wrote the draft, or should he hide it.
The deliberation was deep but short. Leonardo had clearly stated before that he disliked ‘lies,’ so Heinshtangl did not have the confidence to lie to him.
‘He once threw five officials into the underground prison for a trivial lie. I can’t let that happen to me…….’
“I, it is as you say. In fact, the draft of that report was written by my daughter, not me.”
“Your daughter, Sir Heinshtangl?”
Leonardo tilted his head slightly in thought, then answered his own question.
“Ah, was she the one who came in with you, Sir Heinshtangl, when we gathered the merchants for a meeting?”
“Th-that’s right. It is an honor that you remember.”
“Well…… Lady Olivia was a beauty, after all.”
—……?!
—……?!
—……?!
Leonardo spoke in a passing tone, without much thought. ‘She was a beauty, after all.’
Leonardo would probably forget he had said that in a few seconds. He had said it with that little meaning.
However, the ripple effect of that one phrase was enormous. Jereuth, Elly, and Heinshtangl all interpreted the meaning of Leonardo’s words for their own reasons.
‘H-His Highness described her as a beauty? He, who has never shown interest in any maid or servant until now. His Highness will soon become an adult, and it is customary to take a wife and a concubine before then……. Hmm, I should have a word with Heinshtangl.’
This was Jereuth’s thought—
‘Was His Highness interested in my daughter? Should I laugh or cry about this. That tyrant and my daughter?’
This was Heinshtangl’s thought.
And finally, Elly’s thought—
‘……Huh?’
Elly’s thoughts came to a halt. She felt a similar sensation to when Leonardo had collapsed.
Perhaps it was an even greater shock.
Leonardo, who had delivered a huge shock to the three, did not notice it and asked Jereuth again.
“By the way, Commander.”
“Yes, yes!”
Jereuth’s answer was awkward. His concentration had been stolen by Leonardo’s earlier remark.
Leonardo didn't pay much attention to Jereuth's reaction and continued to ask what he intended to.
“How is Yoanna? Is she training well?”
“Yoanna, you say, hmm hmm.”
Jereuth quickly gathered his wits and nodded his head.
“Yes. Yoanna is serving as an attendant to the other knights and is receiving training in basic etiquette, culture, and light weaponry. She is also learning horsemanship, and her growth is extremely fast despite having started training only a short while ago. The knights are full of praise for the squire Yoanna, saying that there is a reason Your Highness recommended her.”
“That’s a relief. Everyone is busy, I hope my request to raise Yoanna as a knight hasn't increased your workload, has it?”
“Not at all, so you don't have to worry. On the contrary, the knights are happy that a new attendant has joined the 3rd Knight Order. Not only Yoanna but the other new attendants we've accepted are also a great help.”
Leonardo smiled with satisfaction at Jereuth’s words.
***
‘It’s a relief that Yoanna is training well.’
For the past four months, I had been undergoing physical training while stably developing the royal capital.
Along with that, I had given Jereuth one more very important instruction. That was to increase the ‘number of knights.’
The reason I ordered the increase in the number of knights was because the <Future Diary> had stated that there was a shortage of commanders—‘knights’—to lead the soldiers in the battles against the bandits.
Of course, knights are not made overnight in one or two years, so it was practically impossible to train new knights by the time we subjugated the bandits.
‘So I tweaked the organization of the common soldiers a bit. From the existing two-tier system of ‘recruit’ and ‘regular soldier’ to a four-tier system of private, private first class, corporal, and sergeant.’
I would explain the organization of the common soldiers later.
Returning to the topic of ‘knights’—
It was a fact that the number of knights was absolutely insufficient compared to the number of soldiers.
So I asked Jereuth to train knights, and I personally recommended Yoanna. Besides Yoanna, several of the orphans I had invited to the royal castle with her were also receiving training to become knights, first as squires.
The girl whose life I saved, Yoanna.
If I hadn't changed the future, Yoanna was a girl who would one day start a popular uprising.
She not only had that much leadership but also had a talent for the sword, to the point of being called the ‘sword of the people that even knights feared.’
Thus, Yoanna was a girl with outstanding talent guaranteed by the <Future Diary>. So if she was educated well, she would become a great talent.
‘Maybe she’ll become a knight like France’s national heroine, ‘Joan of Arc’.’
Or she could become a hero like ‘Margaret of Anjou’ who was active in the Wars of the Roses, the ‘Order of the Hatchet’ in the Crusades, or the knights of the Order of Tortosa who fought against the great army of Islam.
Heroes who played a major role militarily and politically in a nation's crisis.
‘I hope she grows up well.’
As I was having these various thoughts, Jereuth added a word.
“Yoanna's greatest strengths are her strong will and zeal. She is great in other areas compared to her fellow squires, but her will and zeal are second to none.”
“Will and zeal?”
“Yes. I personally evaluate that Yoanna's mental fortitude is already perfect. There are still many things to learn, such as etiquette, swordsmanship, horsemanship, and archery, but the most important thing, loyalty to her master, is perfect.”
Her loyalty to me is great…….
‘Then maybe the future where Yoanna starts a rebellion has completely disappeared for sure.’
“That’s a relief. Please continue to take good care of her.”
After finishing the conversation about Yoanna, I decided to get to the main reason I had called them.
“Then I will tell you the reason I have gathered you both. I mentioned it to Lady Elly first, but I plan to visit Misty Port soon. The reason I want to go there is to see how the people outside the royal capital are living. They are also my people, after all.”
“……?”
“……?”
As I spoke, both Jereuth and Heinshtangl made similar expressions. It was an expression of being quite surprised, and also an expression of opposition to me leaving the royal capital to go to such a distant city.
However, contrary to his expression, the words that came out of Jereuth’s mouth were positive.
“There must be a reason for Your Highness to go in person…… I understand, Your Highness. Then I will select the knights and soldiers to escort you on your journey.”
***
Ingrid Pirate Island.
“Hey! Load that up quickly!”
“Did you pack all the jerky and hardtack? Don't we need to pack more?”
“Is this all the rum we’re packing?! I want to pack at least ten more barrels!”
“We have to leave some for the people remaining on the island!”
“Ah…… right. But if everyone's coming anyway, isn't it better to all go at once?”
“The waves will be rough for a while, so the kids and women can't get on the boats. And it’s the season when the ‘Sea Lions’ appear. How are you going to fight those bastards with women and kids on board.”
“Kyah, Sea Lions! If you stir-fry and eat those bastards’ balls, you’ll be up all night, just erect and erect—!”
“Hey, hey, tell that bastard to shut his mouth! The kids can hear!”
—Dad, why do you get erect and erect when you eat Sea Lion balls?
“That’s…… if you want to make a younger sibling, you get erect and erect…… Ah, damn it!”
Today, an unusual number of pirates had gathered at the port. The reason they had gathered was because today was the day the advance party was leaving the island for the mainland.
For the past few months, the pirates had been preparing food and supplies for the long voyage to the mainland and for a while after arriving there. It took 20 days at the earliest, and a generous 30 days, to get from Ingrid Island to the mainland, so there was a lot to prepare.
Ronak sat on the ship's deck and gazed out towards the sea. The focus of his gaze was on the invisible mainland, beyond the horizon.
‘Somehow…… I feel like something interesting will happen on the mainland. It’s a good feeling. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this way.’
Whether Ronak’s expectation was just a simple feeling or the ability called ‘intuition’ that had kept him alive at sea until now.
He would find out soon enough when he reached the mainland.
The wind felt good.