Laura Mendy, the Chief of Staff of Riester Imperial Palace.

– Click!

“Your Majesty!”

As the second child of a high-status House of a Duke and a loyal servant of the Imperial family, it was rare for her to be this emotional. Furthermore, there was one thing she always insisted to the staff at the palace.

‘Don’t cause a ruckus.’

Within that statement contained everything Laura had learned since when Frédérique was an immature Imperial Princess.

“Your Majesty. I think you should come outside right away.”

“Laura?”

So it was very rare for something like this to happen. The Chief of Staff had a bad feeling that this may happen more frequently from now on. Even a few months back during Autumn, she had completely broken the Empress’s focus because the eastern sky had split open and a golem appeared. It was dark right now. Her two superiors were also unable to get any rest because it was the last day of the year, but……

“This seems urgent. Did something happen?”

The Cardinal sat up from the couch in her pajamas as if she had been waiting for this. The simple meal that she had brought in earlier was less than half eaten. It would be weird for her to have an appetite when the soldiers would need to start moving early in the morning. This was the room next to the Empress’s most secretive location, her bedroom.

Frédérique, who had simple clothes on with a gown on top, scowled. She looked ready to run out at any moment as she had her Holy sword, Durandal, around her waist. The last time Laura had acted like this, the Empress needed to have the troops around the Empire ready to go and set a curfew for the Imperial Capital. She had even contacted Emma Corleone, someone she found burdensome to talk to. The hole in the sky had fixed itself but the Vatican and the Holy Kingdom had sent numerous letters of protest to them. Although she had expected them, that did not make it any less annoying.

“It is the western sky this time, your Majesty.”

“This is driving me nuts.”

‘If you are developing a new weapon, this would be the time to confess to the Almighty God and to me.’

‘If you are receiving divine punishment for going against the will of the Almighty God, confess to that as well in the Temple of Boundaries.’

It was unbelievable bullshit. Whether the Empire was creating a weapon or committing a sin, what authority did the Vatican have, especially with the Pope missing, to be so meddlesome? It was the result of the Venetiaan Royal family pulling the strings. A nation where the Queen’s mind was going in and out should really focus on their own issues.

The Empress took off her gown and got ready to head out.

“Is it another hole in the sky?”

“No, your majesty. It isn’t as major as that, but……” Laura efficiently attended to the Empress as she answered. “It is a grave and urgent situation, your Majesty. A pirate ship is flying toward us from the west. The Imperial Guard sent urgent communication that it is slowly approaching the Imperial Capital through the air.”

“……What is flying toward us?”

“Hmm?”

Her two superiors tilted their heads in confusion. Laura closed her mouth for a moment. She had only told the truth but why was she feeling so frustrated? The middle-aged woman calmly started to speak again.

“A pirate ship that appeared on the western coast cut through the darkness and flew up into the air……”

*

At that time in Claire Plaza, the central spot of the Imperial Capital.

A woman was standing on a simple stage made of wood. There was an old magic amplification device in her hand.

“
That is why our fist fighting territory lord! That is how Baroness Joan Tillier ended up in her Majesty’s prison!”

– Flick flick flick!

She flicked around the beanstalk in her other hand. Dried beans flew out of the dry bean stalk.

– Clap!

“Wahahaha!”

“That’s great, that’s really great!”

The large crowd cheered and clapped. Everybody was happy to hear an evil territory lord who was collecting fifty percent taxes had been captured. The commoners easily sympathized with those villagers and cried and laughed despite it happening in a distant territory.

This was what the Empire called the Beanstalk Cleanse. This Riester custom involved shaking an unusable beanstalk while sharing their frustrations from the past year so that they could welcome the new year with a clean body and mind. The Bean Stalk Cleanse that took place at the end of the year at Claire Plaza was especially famous. A lot of people even traveled up from all around the Empire to participate.

The woman’s cheeks flushed as she shouted. “That was all thanks to his Royal Highness and his close friends! Our territory lord was drinking and partying at a tavern when his Royal Highness taught her a lesson!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

The crowd cheered in delight after hearing about the crown prince. The speaker smiled and smacked the floor with the beanstalk. Cédric Riester was a truly beloved heir to the throne.

“Oh right! I forgot about something. The most important thing is still left. This is a story about Prince Jesse!”

“Ohhhhhhhh!” The intense reactions continued. White breaths could be seen all around the crowd.

This year’s Bean Stalk Cleanse was especially heated. The streets of the Imperial Capital were packed. Everybody was wearing earmuffs, scarves, gloves, and hats to protect themselves from the cold. The crowd wasn’t as large as during the Imperial Crown Prince’s succession confirmation ceremony or the day before it, but it was not easy for an event just for the commoners to be this large. It was even more surprising as it was Monday evening. If the Harvest Festival was an event where they all celebrated the hard work for the season, this week to welcome the new year was the time to let go of past frustrations and pray for hope in the new year.

The woman continued to speak. “I thought of it after seeing that child on his dad’s shoulders. According to the errand boy of the tavern, Prince Jesse scolded the territory lord and her friends quite a bit! He could have remained quiet but he gave them a stern lecture!”

“Wooooooow!” Clap clap clap! This time, people clapped and cheered in admiration. They lifted their bottles and pouches of cheap wine to cheer.

“Cheers for Prince Jesse!”

“Ahem! Don’t you know saying things like that can get you imprisoned?”

Someone shouted and the woman on stage scolded them.

‘My goodness!’ ‘Hahahaha!’ A portion of the crowd gasped while the majority laughed out loud as this was clearly a joke. There was nobody in the Empire who didn’t know about the terrorist attack young master Andresy committed while praying for the great future for the Holy Kingdom. Most people believed that the culprit did what he did to get revenge on the Prince. The House of Andresy ended up penniless without any title or honor, with the Count and his wife receiving a life sentence.

All that the young terrorist had left was his life. It was clear that he couldn’t handle the disgrace and tried to put a blemish on a noble person’s character.

“Ah, I’m already out of time? I understand. I will be heading down now! But don’t forget! The Prince of the Holy Kingdom is someone who would give an errand boy a silver coin as a tip!”

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

She must have received a sign from beyond the stage as the woman threw the beans away and rushed down. The spectators dropped their jaws in shock after hearing that he was a customer who would tip a silver coin. Other than some eccentric nobles (for example, Marquis Duhem from the south), it was rare to find a noble who would tip more than a few dozen Francs.

A new person came up for the cleanse as everybody was chatting away about Prince Jesse and his friends. He received everybody’s attention.

“……H, hello everyone.”

The man held the magic amplification device as he slowly started to speak. The bulky young man was sweating bullets despite the cold weather. He must be very nervous as he also looked pale. He took some time before he finally opened his mouth.

“My name. My name is Morris.”

The plaza fell to silence. It was because the man was not continuing to speak.

“Hurry up and let it out! Don’t make us wait!” Someone shouted.

Babies could be heard crying as well. A person could freely talk for hours if they were doing the Beanstalk Cleanse at home, but each person only received ten minutes at a large event like this. Morris held back his tears and looked to the side.

A staff member was urging him on from under the stage. He was telling him to hurry.

“An inn…… I run an inn. I wonder if you’ve heard of our Le Siffre Inn.”

“Le Siffre? Is it famous?”

“Huh? Oh, I know! It’s down south…….!”

Morris introduced his job and the rumblings spread like dominos.

The man clenched his eyes that were as pure as the eyes of a newborn calf and then opened them back. The tears disappeared into the sweat dripping down. The arm holding the dry bean stalk was shaking. His lips were shaking as well.

“I, I’m sure you are all aware of the imperial gift embezzlement incident. That incident…… Caused quite a ruckus this year.”

“Of course. The innkeeper stole the imperial gift from the villagers for generations!”

“Haaaa! Is that Le Chiffre or Le Chiffon or whatever?” (TL: The author finally specified it as le chiffre and not Siffre…Can I just leave it Siffre other than this sentence? Pleeeease? :3)

The crowd started to chatter. It was the backstory of a major incident that even the Empress paid attention. It was impossible to suppress their curiosities. All of their gazes gathered on the speaker.

“My aunt was imprisoned as the culprit. H, however…… The imperial gifts she supposedly buried in the mountain have still not been found.”

“Oh dear!”

“Where did all that money go?”

“Are you sure she didn’t lie? Maybe she hid it somewhere else!”

The whispers were never ending. Morris barely managed to speak. His entire body felt as if he was being stabbed.

“I want to speak the truth about it here. All of it…… My aunt, she swindled it to the March. She took it all to Marquis François Duhem. She offered it all to him!”

“What?” This was a shocking declaration. The faces of the crowd turned pale.

The Marquis was famous even among the commoners. He would come up with a cheap yet amazing invention anytime people might forget his name. He was also a Pair de Riester cherished by their stern Empress and a collateral line of the Imperial family. The sad story of how he became a Marquis at the young age of nineteen was famous around the Empire as well.

Someone started pointing at him.

“Hey! Do you have any proof?!”

“Yes! I have proof. The Marquis, The Marquis……”

“Oh, this guy is in for some trouble. He’s going to end up being dragged away like this!”

Morris clenched his teeth and put down the amplification device. He could taste blood from his busted lip and the tip of his tongue. He tried his best to not pay any attention to his blurring sight. He was scared of receiving divine punishment. The young man had never committed a sin like this since he was born. His limbs were shaking and his throat clenched. He had lost his parents and was left alone but he had grown up with the support of the villagers of Lucas Village. It was the first time he felt so lonely and in pain.

He suddenly recalled the voice he had heard back in Spring.

‘Thank you for everything the last few days.’

‘I am honored, your highness. It was an honor to be able serve the prince of the Holy Kingdom-’

‘No, I was speaking to Morris.’

The Prince with the purple eyes and the pure heart. The people who had saved the village from his aunt’s tyranny.

“Sob.”

He didn’t dare to frame such people.

‘Even though they threatened me by saying that they will let my grandfather and aunt out on parole…… A person shouldn’t do something like this.’ He tightly grasped the beanstalk as if to crush it.

‘It should be okay even if the threat becomes a reality. Marie and Teddy are there as the village representatives and the villagers are stronger mentally than back then. Even if grandfather and aunt came back, we should be able to-’

“Eek.”

Morris noticed someone looking at him from the front of the crowd. He got chills all over his body.

“N, no way……”

The person was wearing a thick robe and had his face covered by a mask. The gaze underneath it was as cold as knives. The instincts of a subject awakened the young man. This person was the person in power who had demanded him to do this vile act. The person who could hurt Marie and Teddy with just his fingertips was watching him from right below.

For a regular person like Morris, an individual’s appearance alone was enough to cause fear. He displayed a courage that was closer to lunacy.

“Apparently to help Prince Jesse’s rebellion!”

“……”

The plaza became as quiet as a funeral. The vicious winter wind slapped against people’s faces. The crowd slowly turned pale after seeing that Morris was being serious.

“Holy Almighty God! Someone drag him down!”

“Excuse me! Do you even know what you just said?!”

“Do you really mean that?”

“Someone call the Imperial Capital Garrison!”

“It’s all true! D, did you not see that pamphlet? The one that was thrown around Claire Plaza! Everything on it was true!” Morris shrieked. His voice cracked and he was crying. Even staff members ran onto the stage. He shook the beanstalk as if he had gone crazy and continued to shout.

“If she passed on the imperial gifts to the Marquis! His family! They used the money to prepare for the rebellion! Ever since Prince Jesse arrived! They’ve secretly been raising an army of Holy Kingdom soldiers in the south!”

“Oh, oh, I remember seeing something that said that!”

At that moment…

– Goooooooooooooooooooo……

A large shadow appeared above the plaza. The moonlight disappeared and everything became dark. The rambling crowd immediately looked up at the night sky. They then gasped.

“P, pirate ship!”

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

– Shaaaaaaa……!

At the same time, hundreds of thousands of mana pebbles resembling cherry blossoms gathered on the stage. It was so beautiful it made them have the delusion of spring arriving. The shouting crowd looked at the stage with both fear and shock. Morris as well as the staff members trying to drag him down stood there in a daze. The mana particles that gathered in the air instantly turned into two silhouettes.

– Paaaaa……!

[Relax, Morris. I will help you.]

A warm voice echoed out through the bright golden glow.

—
Translator’s Comments

Flying pirate ship, attack!

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