NOVEL NEXT Chapter 256
“That’s a funny thing to say.”
The reaction of the Adelhaid Duke was immediate. The Baron Eniche, seemingly just as surprised or perhaps realizing that this was not a way to converse, looked at the Carthroy Duke with dubious eyes, just like the Adelhaid Duke.
“Do you think such a bill can be passed in the Senate? Not a chance.”
“Max, you’ve always had a tendency to be indecisive.”
The Adelhaid Duke’s eyebrows twitched for a moment. Regardless of that, the Carthroy Duke casually continued slicing his meat.
“At first, I couldn’t understand it. Your always blunt demeanor and your unwillingness to actively agree was certainly curious. I’ve always taken the words of adults at face value.”
“Carthroy Director of Defense.”
“Seeing you like that, I thought to myself. Max, unlike the children of other noble families, you harbor only your own beliefs… paving your own path.”
“……”
The Adelhaid Duke briefly furrowed his brow. It was entirely unclear what he wanted to say. Since his youth, he had always employed a lengthily explanatory style that annoyed his listeners.
“I was very naive in my childhood. Back then, I admired your actions just by looking at your appearance.”
“Cut the nonsense…”
“But now that my brain has matured a bit, I realize. Your intelligence and brilliant aspects, along with your cold and rational thinking didn’t lead you to forge your own path. You were simply unable to do anything.”
The Adelhaid Duke closed his eyes tightly. When he opened them again, cold and subtle anger flickered in his gaze.
“Enough with the nonsense. Explain what you just said. What was it? You’re preparing for war?”
“After realizing that, you could no longer be my idol. Instead, you left me filled with disappointment.”
“Carthroy Director of Defense.”
“Of course, I believe there are still admirable aspects about you. You have the capabilities and have transformed the dire circumstances of war, rising to the status of a war hero.”
“Francisco van Kartroi.”
Silence ensued. The Adelhaid Duke was thorough in distinguishing between public and private matters.
For him to call someone by their name without a title, especially in a public setting, indicated that this room was on the brink of freezing over.
Whether that meant freezing in a figurative sense or… truly freezing in a physical sense.
“…Hic.”
The Chief Curbin, upon noticing the magic wand in the Adelhaid Duke’s right hand visible beneath the table, unconsciously hiccuped. Despite hurriedly covering her mouth, her hiccups showed no signs of stopping.
What would happen if the Adelhaid Duke unleashed magic in this place? The Chief Curbin scanned the faces of those seated around the round table.
The Carthroy Duke and the Adelhaid Duke continued to face each other off, while the Jericho, sitting across, was calmly sipping wine. No matter how capable he might be, he surely must be feeling thirsty too.
Certainly, regardless of how angry the Adelhaid Duke was, he would never act impulsively, but still, the law is distant and the fist is close. Right before them was the magic wand of the Archmage shaking with anger, so who cared about laws or ethics in that moment?
“Now, now, both of you, let’s not get too excited.”
Surprisingly, it was the Baron Eniche who took the initiative in this suffocating situation.
He smiled with his characteristic squinted eyes and elegantly served some delicious food to both men. The plate was clean, without a drop of sauce, filled neatly with food.
“The food will get cold. You should eat this first. Oh, Jericho, please have a plate too. The food is closer to me…”
“…Hmm. I’ll take my share myself. It seems that dining from a single plate together is the essence of this restaurant.”
“Haha… if that’s how it is.”
Whether the Adelhaid Duke bristled with thorns or not, Jericho stood up and cut a large piece of meat from a distance, placing it on his plate.
Thanks to that, the glaring gazes clashing between the Adelhaid Duke and the Carthroy Duke were momentarily obscured.
“…Jericho. It seems you enjoy the food here.”
“Indeed, it seems that way. Braised meat in soy sauce and honey, the flavor is considerable. I shall likely visit this place repeatedly.”
“Ahem….”
Jericho appeared genuinely uninterested in the conflict between the two. The Adelhaid Duke, feeling somewhat awkward, sighed as he put his wand back.
Even though he seemed indifferent for now, if actual force were to be exercised, Jericho would not remain idle either.
“I’m afraid that this conversation isn’t going to go anywhere.”
The Carthroy Duke resumed his previously halted hand motions, muttering. As he said, the air in the room had grown even colder than before.
“Eating like a pig while only voicing your own opinions won’t lead to any progress.”
“Your tone has become crude while I wasn’t looking, Max.”
“Did I say something incorrect? If you are going to nitpick that I’ve become crude, then clean the sauce off your mouth first.”
“…Anyway. Let’s get back on track… Chief Curbin?”
At the sharp inquiry from the Adelhaid Duke, the Carthroy Duke, awkwardly wiping his mouth, turned his gaze to Chief Curbin. She barely managed to suppress her face from souring and looked at him.
‘Why am I being called out again?’
Of course, none of these thoughts escaped her lips. She wasn’t an amateur after all.
“…Yes, Your Excellency.”
“Do you have any investigations you’ve conducted? Present them in detail here.”
“Understood. Then, first, regarding this side’s data…”
Out of nowhere, an agent, who had been standing like a shadow behind Chief Curbin, took out a securely locked briefcase and handed out the documents inside to everyone.
“As you can see from the documents we distributed earlier, the movements of the Elves have been unusual lately. According to the intelligence our agents gathered… they seem to be running out of capabilities to pay the reparations.”
“What’s the reason for that?”
“The reason is…”
Chief Curbin hesitated to answer. She looked at the Carthroy Duke and the Adelhaid Duke for a while, then, taking in the indifferent gaze from Jericho, she finally managed to open her lips.
“…The amount of war reparations imposed on the Epiris Kingdom has been absurdly severe from the beginning.”
“That means… our Empire has set an amount of reparations that we wouldn’t be able to collect from them in the first place?”
“…As of now, that is correct.”
“I see.”
The Carthroy Duke smirked with a somewhat self-satisfied demeanor. How could there be any satisfaction in their nation not receiving its justified reparations through a legitimate treaty?
The questions from the Adelhaid Duke and the Baron Eniche were soon resolved.
“Beneath the harsh economic laws enforced by Elven society to pay such exorbitant reparations… a sinister public sentiment is being cultivated.”
“By sinister public sentiment, you mean?”
“A refusal to pay the reparations and a call to overthrow the pathetic regime to reclaim lost territories…”
Chief Curbin eventually trailed off, bowing her head deeply. It was indeed a blatant faux pas.
Yet no one in that room could find fault with her. Everyone seated had their voices taken away.
“…I believe we have a rough understanding of the situation.”
Breaking the silence was the Carthroy Duke, now looking at the Adelhaid Duke with a serious expression.
“Adelhaid Duke. Those scoundrels are moving a sinister force. While they even refuse to pay the legitimate reparations we deserve, they dare to covet territories that have rightfully been integrated into the Empire through proper procedures.”
“……”
“What’s more troublesome is that the Epiris Kingdom isn’t taking any significant measures. Isn’t that truly infuriating?”
The Carthroy Duke appeared self-assured. He had the power to be so.
“Those scoundrels will, in the near future, likely provoke us. No, I believe they will definitely do so.”
“…We must avoid war.”
“I’m not suggesting we engage in full-scale war once more. However, some military pressure might be necessary, right?”
The Carthroy Duke then turned his gaze toward Jericho.
“As for the peacekeeping in the City, I’ll be discussing it separately with the Chief of Security, but the Imperial Knight Order will surely be the key force, won’t it?”
“I’ll refrain from speaking on that.”
“Oh please, that’s something everyone knows… Therefore, in case of an emergency, I would like to request your assistance, Jericho.”
“……”
Even Jericho did not respond. The Baron Eniche’s squinted eyes twitched slightly.
“Director of Defense, I’m very sorry, but funds for that military action… I can’t provide them at once.”
“No, we do have one.”
“…What?”
Although the Baron Eniche, who was aware of where the funding holes were, was baffled by the audacity of the Carthroy Duke’s statement, that question was quickly resolved.
“We have just initiated… yes, the compensation plan for retired soldiers. We could adjust a little on that, couldn’t we?”
“About that…”
The Baron Eniche made a rather perplexed expression. Regardless of how politically adversarial his relationship with the Adelhaid Duke was, he still believed that a reasonable compensation for participants was a necessary expense.
“Absolutely not.”
And the originator of that bill was glaring fiercely, his eyes blazing.
“Even if my eyes get filled with dirt, I can never concede on that.”
“Come now, Max. Don’t be so unreasonable…”
“Absolutely not.”
Everyone at the table, aside from the two dukes, thought the same.
“No way.”
It seemed almost inevitable that events would unfold this way.