Chapter 127

Today was the day the delegation from Chinguk would arrive at the State.

It really shouldn’t concern me.

‘I’m not even the emperor’s son-in-law yet.’

Of course, I had been granted the noble title of Comte Madeway of Brüpfen, which was considered an imperial court title. The empire’s nobles saw this as proof that my engagement to Victoria was imminent.

But it hadn’t been officially announced yet.

So I’d decided to stay out of it and let things proceed without interference.

“Sir Alan. The delegation from Chinguk is approaching the State.”

Victoria came directly to my company to inform me.

“It will be soon, I suppose. But why me…?”

“The practical members of the delegation from Chinguk have made a peculiar request. While it was not officially made, I thought you should be aware.”

“Peculiar request?”

“They’ve asked if you could serve as their official greeter.”

At first thought, it seemed strange. I was merely a businessman who had only recently been elevated to the rank of comte. I wasn’t a diplomat, after all.

There was only one reason why the envoys from Chinguk could possibly want me.

‘It must be about the narcotics.’

I had suspected the delegation’s purpose before. I doubted they had only come to plead for Anais’s pardon.

But I didn’t expect them to be this direct.

Was it a sign of confidence in their national power?

Or are they just incompetently managing diplomatic affairs?

After hearing from Victoria, neither seemed to be the case.

“Ah, by the way, the official request from the delegation—apparently, it wasn’t directly requested by Han Guang-Yun, the chief envoy responsible for religious and ceremonial duties. It was said that a low-ranking official from Chinguk subtly floated the idea. Once our side raised concerns, they quickly backtracked, claiming it was not an official request,” she explained.

So they weren’t that incompetent after all.

Had the head envoy or the second-in-command boldly made such a demand, it would have been considered a violation of diplomatic etiquette.

But for this type of probing, which quickly retreated, it was hard to criticize as a breach of etiquette.

“Her Highness Victoria, I believe Chinguk also knows.”

“Knows what?”

“That I would have no intention of really serving as the official greeter. They likely only mentioned it lightly to observe our reaction.”

“What’s the significance of that?”

“It’s not without meaning, I assure you. Even Her Highness Victoria reacted sensitively.”

“Ah.”

Victoria hesitated for a moment before adding, “Actually, I had planned to ask about this matter at the welcoming banquet for the delegation.”

Of course. That would be Victoria. She might have directly asked or even interrogated them about their intentions for requesting me as the greeter.

‘She might have inadvertently given them an excuse.’

The tactics used by Chinguk were basic manipulative tricks—testing the waters with vaguely inappropriate behavior to reveal any genuine mistakes from our side. To admonish them as cunning would be inappropriate; we had plans against Chinguk that were far more brutal. This was nothing compared to what we were planning.

But Victoria seemed to think differently.

“…If their sole purpose was to plead for Anais’s pardon, why involve you?”

“The scale is too large for that. They can’t return empty-handed.”

“…”

“After the ceremonies, I believe some members of the delegation will remain at the embassy for their espionage activities. If I were the sovereign of Chinguk, I would have done the same. Don’t worry too much about it.”

She seemed to agree, at least for the moment.

Still, she didn’t look like she intended to completely let the matter go.

“…On second thought, this might be good.”

“Her Highness Victoria?”

“If Chinguk approached us in such a manner, we also have no reason to avoid them. Since they are asking questions about narcotics, it wouldn’t be bad to properly educate them this time.”

At this point, Victoria was set to provide an abundant amount of cocaine-laced wine and use them as promotional agents.

But that method would not work. I thought for a moment and decided to offer her some guidance.

“Her Highness Victoria?”

“Sir Alan, I’ve already repeatedly mentioned that you need not use such honorifics…”

“Victoria, if they’ve already taken notice of me, there’s a way to seize the initiative. Would you follow my advice?”

At this, Victoria immediately nodded.

Siena was observing us from a distance, tapping her foot as she did. She seemed pleased with our focused business discussion. It might also be because she knew Victoria and I hadn’t done anything, yet.

Victoria steadfastly ignored her sister’s gaze.

—

That evening, at the banquet hall within the imperial palace.

A banquet had been prepared to welcome the delegation which had just arrived after a long journey.

The banquet was hosted by Victoria.

Currently, she sat at the head of the banquet hall.

Of course, I also attended the banquet.

However, I wasn’t seated next to Victoria. I was instead sitting with the other businessmen who were permitted to join the event, tucked away in a corner. For now.

“Comte, why are you here?”

“I’m fine, thank you.”

Ignoring the awkward businessmen, I turned to look at the delegation filing into the banquet hall.

They were Easterners with black hair and black eyes, a sight familiar to me.

Notable figures entered the hall: Lord Han Guang-Yun, cousin-by-marriage to Empress Lianhua and the Chief of the Court of Clan Affairs; and the Preceptor of the Crown Prince.

In addition, there were reportedly over ten high-ranking officials of the third rank and ten scholars who accompanied the delegation to document diplomatic proceedings.

And…

There were also some unaffiliated guests with no official role who accompanied the delegation.

Among them, it was said that there was a legendary martial artist with a skill level akin to a master. Allegedly from a prestigious family.

Given that someone like this was part of the delegation, it must have been a carefully thought-out decision. Or someone must have been personally invited.

Clearly, the delegation was unnecessarily robust.

The preparations to welcome them were already in place.

The moment the Chinguk envoys had all entered the banquet hall and were assigned their seats,

Victoria greeted the chief envoy and raised her glass.

“…You must have endured a great journey. On behalf of His Majesty, I present you with this banquet, allowing diplomacy to take a back seat as we hope you enjoy yourselves freely. …For if you are at peace, fostering goodwill between our two nations will be much smoother.”

With that, servants began filling the glasses of the delegation’s dignitaries with high-quality wine suitable for such an occasion.

Up until this point, the proceedings were quite standard. The Chinguk members seemed to accept them as such.

Their expressions changed, however, when Victoria added:

“Ah, this wine has been graciously provided by the esteemed Comte Alan Medoff of the Empire. It’s been specially prepared for you, he says, to ease your fatigue after a long journey.”

I was letting them know that this was an offering from me.

People who understood the Imperial language—like the interpreters or embassy personnel—stiffened immediately, and other high-rankers followed suit as they were informed of the implications.

In particular, the delegation’s main envoy, a man named Han Guang-Yun, stared wide-eyed at the full glass before him.

This clearly indicated that he already knew about me, and perhaps even the methods I used when first distributing heroin among the elves.

‘They must be suspecting what’s in the wine. They’re human after all.’

Of course, I hadn’t laced the wine with heroin.

No cocaine either, nor even any coca leaf infusion. We simply did not have the quantity yet. The elves were probably still harvesting leaves, and it would be some time before the stock reached the State.

It was just an expensive wine.

Yet, the Chinguk delegation seemed to have already caught a case of paranoia.

“Let us raise our glasses, shall we?”

Even as Victoria urged them on, the awkward laughter was evident—proof that everyone was hesitant to drink.

The reactions were varied: Those fingering their glasses only to set them down again; those taking a mere sip and returning the glass to the table; the senior officials giving younger ones the look to drink first. Yet, not a single person actually drank the wine.

Not one.

It made sense. No one wanted to become a fool with a single sip.

Even in the Empire, a custom had arisen to tease newly appointed lieutenants or officials with the fear of heroin.

And considering it was an unknown terror to the visitors from Chinguk, it was unlikely anyone would willingly face such risk.

Victoria did not forcefully push them to drink.

“It seems it doesn’t suit your taste. Though it’s not poisoned.”

Yet, her demeanor visibly changed as she began drinking the same wine provided to the delegation.

She filled her glass, took a sip, filled it again, and sipped again.

Briefly pausing, then repeating the process.

The atmosphere in the banquet hall cooled noticeably due to Victoria’s behavior.

Soon after, our officials began drinking the wine as well. The Minister of Military Affairs even downed the glass at once, winking at me as he did so.

“Comte Madeway? Thanks to you, we get to try such a fine wine. My gratitude.”

This led other nobles of the Empire to competitively drink their wine.

“Why don’t they drink?”

It seemed as if everyone in the Empire was doing this to avoid crossing Victoria.

Between our people, carefully watching Victoria and me while drinking, and the Chinguk delegation awkwardly watching them,

The supposed welcome banquet proceeded without any actual warmth.

It was at this moment that I sat next to Victoria.

“Sir Alan. Regrettable. I didn’t expect it to turn out this way.”

“I’m fine, Victoria.”

Now, the Chinguk delegation appeared dejectedly looking at us.

They seemed to realize the situation. By doubting the wine gifted by me, someone who was potentially to be the emperor’s son-in-law, they risked offending the two nations’ friendly relations.

The second-in-command of the delegation later loudly proclaimed something in the Chinguk tongue before drinking the wine, but the chilly atmosphere of the banquet hall did not improve.

Without a single word exchanged, the banquet ended an hour later.

The Chinguk envoys all had a sickly expression on their faces, but luckily no one complained that the reception was inadequate.

—

The next day, the delegation from Chinguk was finally received at court.

They presented the personal letter from the sovereign of Chinguk, requesting the pardon of their granddaughter, along with a substantial offering of gifts.

Of course, the answer from our emperor was to accept.

It was the moment Anais’s pardon became official.

As scheduled, there was no surprise, and all we wished for was that she would live peacefully after her release.

This pardon would be her final chance.

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