‘That said, the timing is far too early.’
I hadn’t expected Abatus to play a card this soon.
The official reason I had attended the party, at least outwardly, was that they would mediate so that I would accept the prince’s apology.
If the prince and I brought our conversation to a close at this point, then honestly, they would no longer have any reason to keep us detained at the party.
But dragging things out wouldn’t do us any good either, so I made no attempt to stop or prevent it and simply let things be. In the end, it was Cardio who conducted the conversation.
“Recently, there was an incident in which Lord Gilford challenged Lord Aizen to a duel. It was a minor loss of control brought about by his concern for the knight orders, whose many accumulated traditions may collapse because of piloted golems, combined with his worries over the golem’s safety….”
So that’s how they’re dressing it up.
It almost made me curious how much further they could go with the embellishment.
Of course, Cardio seemed to be the type who knew there was nothing to gain from speaking at length.
“…And so, regardless of the outcome of the duel, Lord Gilford has prepared twenty bottles of the Church’s highest-grade holy water and fifty bundles of furs as compensation. The items are currently being kept by the Count Abatus family. They are scheduled to arrive at the academy tomorrow.”
“What….”
The prince looked as if this was the first he’d heard of it.
It was easy to tell whose pocket that was actually coming out of.
Which was why I understood their intent the moment I heard it.
‘They really put a lot of effort into mocking people.’
Seeing the prince look a bit surprised told me that the goods must be tremendously expensive.
But what use would I have for holy water or furs?
If I entrusted them to Mina, I could probably watch her multiply their value several times over, but to me right now, they were luxury items I couldn’t even use.
Noel wasn’t unaware of what this meant either, so she was smiling, but judging by the faint trembling of her staff, she seemed angry.
They were a truly admirable gift that the Abatus family had carefully chosen, lest I find some way to put it to use if they gave me metal.
Still, judging by the reaction, they seemed to be worth an enormous sum, so I couldn’t very well refuse them.
“…Thank you for your offer, Your Highness.”
“Hm? Ah… yes. I hope you put them to good use.”
The prince said that, then looked as if he realized his mistake.
It seemed even he knew this was too much.
Still, seeing as he said nothing else, perhaps even while thinking it was a petty thing to do, he had wanted to attack me in this manner.
‘Both of them must dislike me, after all.’
In the end, the Abatus family was also the prince’s maternal cousin’s family, making him one of their people as well, and though Abatus had not made any direct declaration, they were in a state no different from being hostile to our side.
Considering that they had taken a serious blow because of us, and that matters they were pursuing were on the verge of falling apart, the possibility of them suddenly drawing blades and charging at me here wasn’t zero.
Still, the purpose for coming here had, at least, been fulfilled.
“I, Aizen Arclight, shall accept Your Highness’s compensation.”
“Then the items shall be delivered to your dormitory by the servants of our House Abatus.”
And that was the end of the conversation—of course not.
“Since things have concluded so smoothly, how about a drink?”
“I cannot drink alcohol.”
“Lady Noel is here as well, so I won’t bring anything strong. It is only a beverage sufficient to cleanse the palate.”
Even though I had refused once, Cardio pressed on.
What they brought out while we remained seated was a bottle of alcohol that looked expensive at a glance.
“It is a famous liquor from the Empire. Its nickname was the Devil’s Blood, I believe. A sweet red liquor with a devilish charm. Personally, it is my favorite.”
He poured a glass for everyone, then smiled and took the first sip.
Was he trying to show that there was no poison?
Next, it was my turn to drink, so I frowned and drank.
It was high-class liquor—or rather, it would be more accurate to say it was close to a beverage, with its sweet taste, but for some reason the aftertaste was bitter.
There was a strange peach-like fragrance to it, but somehow, it tasted bad.
“It doesn’t suit me.”
“Haha. You simply don’t know the taste of alcohol yet. It’s all right. You’ll come to understand in time.”
After that, Cardio poured liquor into Noel’s glass.
However, Noel actually looked troubled after smelling it, so I quickly spoke.
“Noel seems to be feeling slightly unwell today, so if it would not be rude, I will drink it in her stead.”
“…Thank you, Lord Aizen.”
I had said it because it seemed Noel had some other reason she couldn’t drink it, and apparently, I had been right.
After I drank the liquor that was not to my taste once again, at some point the prince also had a glass in hand.
And after the prince drank, he said quietly,
“Good liquor truly does have a deep flavor.”
“Thank you.”
Cardio said with a smile.
It really did seem closer to a beverage, since even after drinking two glasses in a row, I felt no intoxication.
Then Cardio smiled and said,
“Even so, I was secretly looking forward to this. I wanted to speak with Lord Aizen, whose fame resounds throughout the kingdom, and now an opportunity has arisen. To think you would so readily accept the prince’s apology as well—just as I heard, you are a magnanimous man.”
“Is that so.”
“If it would not be rude, would you converse with me here for a while? As an apology for the discourtesy committed by a member of my family, I too would like to offer compensation. At the same time, I wish to learn more about Lord Aizen, and if the chance allows, form a friendship.”
I had wondered why he seemed intent on wrapping up the matter with the prince so quickly.
Since Hephaes had been rude, he would compensate me, and since the chance had arisen, he wanted to have a conversation—that was the gist of it. But there was no way this was such a simple matter.
Rather, they wanted to probe me once more and come to a conclusion about what sort of person I was.
Likewise, I had no justification to refuse.
A moment ago, it had been a matter involving the prince of a nation, and now, the heir of an influential family who was also hosting the party wished to converse with a distinguished guest invited to that party.
For a guest to unconditionally refuse the host’s request would also provide them with a pretext.
I had come prepared, knowing this would be a situation I couldn’t easily escape from, but it truly made me think they had prepared diligently.
‘By the way, I wonder if that prince realizes he’s been treated as lower in standing.’
Since the queen was of the Abatus family, Prince Gilford’s maternal relatives and backing were the Count Abatus family.
The initiative lay with Cardio, his maternal cousin, so the prince’s expression had relaxed somewhat, but the order of this conversation was clearly no different from hurriedly disposing of the prince’s matter as if it were nothing important.
“…If it is Lord Cardio’s request, it would be proper for Lord Aizen to oblige, but we keep receiving such precious gifts that it feels burdensome. Why not set another date and deepen your friendship then?”
“I have heard that Lord Aizen is a busy man. There could be no gift greater than having his precious time yielded to me.”
Cardio dismissed Noel’s words.
Noel’s intention had likely been to avoid giving Cardio too much initiative, and also, in truth, to be considerate of the prince, who had been treated as lowly, but Cardio did not listen.
At least through this conversation, it was being revealed that from the Count Abatus family’s perspective, Prince Gilford was merely one game piece.
‘If I were to call it pitiful, it is somewhat pitiful.’
Still, I suppose I had to leave the oblivious prince alone.
If Noel had helped him once, honestly, from our side, that was already far more care than he deserved.
Soon, Cardio smiled and filled his glass again, then drank.
“Where should I begin? Since I know of Lord Aizen’s reputation, there are so many things I wish to say that, now that I actually have the chance to speak with you, I find it rather difficult to start. Ah, yes. The Arclight domain. What sort of place is it? Since a genius like Lord Aizen emerged from there, it must surely be a place of spiritual power.”
“It is a place with nothing but potatoes, and I have hardly ever entered the main house there except for work, so I think it would be best to ask Mark Arclight for details. He is the eldest legitimate son of the Arclight family.”
“To think they would not put forward such a famous person as the heir. How unexpected. It seems the Arclight family has many problems.”
At first glance, it sounded as though he was belittling the Arclight family, supposedly my birth family… but for some reason, it also felt like he was mocking me, asking how, despite all that, I had still been pushed out of the position of heir.
“I’m sure they have their reasons.”
“It means Lord Aizen has not received an evaluation fitting for his abilities. It must have been difficult.”
Cardio smiled gently.
Then he continued speaking.
“Speaking of abilities, I have heard that the Cyclops is truly remarkable. From what I hear, it was nearly destroyed against the one-eyed giant, but in the end, it managed to defeat it, did it not? I heard it performed magnificently against monsters as a mobile battery. Count Phoenix also praised its power and safety.”
“The count was kind enough to think highly of it. It is still lacking.”
“I suppose so. I heard from Lord Hephaes that the Cyclops to be submitted to the royal family has not yet been completed. Completing a weapon is always difficult, and it seems the Cyclops certainly has that chronic ailment as well.”
Noel’s expression turned bad.
Conversely, I was beginning to find this interesting.
He was emphasizing the fact that although the Cyclops had ultimately taken down the one-eyed giant, it had nearly lost, and he was taking the fact that I had submitted the blueprints but did not yet have a completed military Cyclops and striking at it as though no finished unit existed at all.
“Lord Aizen, your support must have been limited, so you must always have had many worries while conducting your research. Our family also researches weapons, so we understand. Time, personnel, resources—they are all necessary, and doing it alone must be difficult.”
Cardio said that, then grinned again.
“Ah, that’s right. Have you heard the news of the weapon our family intends to submit to the royal palace?”
“I’ve heard plenty.”
People had been comparing it everywhere, after all.
Cardio grinned as he said,
“What do you think of it? Since you likely have not seen the real thing, if you wish….”
“I’m not particularly interested.”
After saying that, I smiled slightly and added,
“Honestly, the moment the war ends, it feels like a troublesome burden that will have to be disposed of immediately, so I can’t bring myself to be very intrigued.”
Then, belatedly acting as if I had realized my mistake, I covered my mouth slightly and smiled.
“Ah, my mistake.”
I had misspoken.
Probably.