Chapter 64


In the kingdom of Rotaringia, ruled by the devout and strong, the legitimate ruler, supreme commander of the kingdom’s legions, ultimate overseer of legislative affairs, most authoritative chief justice in charge of the kingdom’s judiciary, and the decisive leader of the kingdom’s administration, master of the world’s capital and most noble city, Ravenna, Duke of Liguria, Calabria, and Tuscany, Count of La Spezia, Catanzaro, and Arezzo, and above all, the rightful owner of the glorious and great Iron Throne installed in Ravenna, I, Vittorio Amedeo di Rotaringia, hereby declare… (omitted)…

The moment such a grand proclamation, beginning with first-person rhetoric, was issued from the royal palace and delivered to each noble house, prestigious family, and influential faction in Ravenna, the political arena of the royal city was thrown into a state of great shock.

Prince Eduardo Luigi di Napoli listened silently, his face devoid of emotion, as the attendant read out the proclamation. When the attendant finished, one of the supporters who had been listening along clicked his tongue and said, “Tsk, I thought he would just die… It’s quite something that he managed to survive and cause trouble for everyone.”

Despite being among their own, the blatant rudeness of the comment, directed at the still-living current king, was almost unbelievable. Yet, no one present pointed out his tone. They all shared similar sentiments, whether big or small.

The plan to exploit the ambiguous legitimacy between the 1st Prince and the 7th Prince, using the conflict to their advantage, and to establish a puppet king with weak authority and legitimacy, thereby controlling the kingdom’s power from behind the scenes, had been indefinitely postponed due to the king’s recovery from a coma. It was no wonder they were frustrated.

“Don’t speak carelessly, Count of Salerno. If you distort the loyal nature of His Highness the Prince in such a way, how will the world see us?” said Alfonso di Este, the legitimate son of the Duke of Ferrara, brother of the Duchess of Mantua, and Count of Cento, as he approached the Count of Salerno, who had openly revealed his inner thoughts, and gave him a formal rebuke, whispering in his ear, “Don’t you know that loose lips are the quickest path to disgrace? Do you really not understand why His Highness the Prince is keeping his expression hidden?”

The moment Count Alfonso di Este’s reproach reached his ears, the Count of Salerno realized his mistake, and a chill ran down his spine, accompanied by cold sweat. He quickly fell silent, and Count Alfonso nodded at him before immediately addressing Prince Eduardo, “Your Highness, this is a great occasion for our country. We cannot ignore the royal palace’s proclamation. We must arrange an appropriate order and present Your Highness’s loyalty before His Majesty the King.”

In short, it meant, “The legitimacy lies with them. So, don’t hesitate. Seize the right moment to pledge loyalty to the king, gain political advantage, and at the same time, spy on the royal palace and the king’s movements.”

Only after Count Alfonso’s suggestion did Prince Eduardo slowly nod. In truth, he completely agreed with Count Alfonso. However, if he had brought it up first, it might have seemed like he was submitting too easily. Thus, he chose to appear as if he was listening to his subordinates’ opinions before acting.

“Very well. Since my brother has regained his health, this is undoubtedly a great blessing for the kingdom, and as his brother, I am overjoyed. I wish to make all necessary preparations by the date His Majesty has set for the summons. You must not be negligent in your preparations.”

Prince Eduardo, who had seemed like a lazy lion while silent, now exuded the majesty of a lion king the moment he opened his mouth to set his course. At this moment, to those gathered, Prince Eduardo was already their king.

As Prince Eduardo issued commands with the charisma of an emperor, his supporters and vassals looked upon him with awe and admiration.

+++++

While Prince Eduardo Luigi di Napoli and the southern Rotaringian nobles began to move quickly to solidify their political positions, pretending to rejoice at the king’s recovery, the 1st Prince, Eduardo Lamperto di Rotaringia, could not hide his complex expression.

“As a son, I cannot help but rejoice at my father’s recovery, but I also cannot easily calm my uneasy heart,” he lamented, his face neither happy nor sad.

Count of Monferrato, who watched with a pitiful gaze, agreed, “Before losing consciousness, His Majesty was preparing to welcome Lady Agnes, the 7th Prince’s mother, as his queen. Now that His Majesty has risen, I worry that he might resume his previous plans.”

“Whatever he decides, it is ultimately His Majesty’s choice. As his son, I can only follow. But for you, who have followed me despite my inadequacies, it would be truly unfair,” the 1st Prince said with a faint smile.

Seeing the 1st Prince’s demeanor, Count of Monferrato spoke with a heavy heart, “If the 7th Prince becomes the official crown prince, he will surely harm Your Highness! How can you so easily let go of yourself?”

“But if I sacrifice myself, at least your safety can be preserved. I cannot bear to see you all fall into trouble because of me,” the 1st Prince replied.

The nobles who had gathered to support the 1st Prince, seeing his selfless attitude, felt their hearts ache with pity. Meanwhile, Count Salvatore di Pachi, watching the 1st Prince and the nobles, had a glint in his eye.

This was it. The reason Salvatore di Pachi followed the 1st Prince was precisely because of this nature. Though the 1st Prince himself called himself inadequate and unvirtuous, the nobles of northern Rotaringia who had gathered to support him were truly moved by his virtue and had sworn to follow him out of loyalty.

Even if the king were to oppress the 1st Prince again, those who followed him would never break their unity. Suddenly, something flashed in Salvatore’s mind.

“Your Highness, you must truly rejoice at His Majesty’s recovery, right?”

“Hmm? Of course, but why do you ask?”

“Then it would be best to respond to His Majesty’s summons before anyone else. Go and show your filial piety and loyalty before His Majesty and many others. Those who think will surely recognize your sincerity.”

Since things had come to this, it was better to seize the opportunity to showcase the prince’s noble character before the public. At Count Salvatore’s words, the 1st Prince nodded obediently. Naturally, given his inherently kind nature, he had no reason to refuse the suggestion to show filial piety to his father.

In truth, Salvatore was not fond of strategies that relied on the uncertain opinions of the masses to secure the future of their faction.

‘But there’s no other way. Above all, we lack information. For now, we must present the 1st Prince’s royal qualities to the people and use this as an opportunity to gather the lacking information.’

Still harboring an unshakable bitterness, Count Salvatore began preparations to respond to the king’s summons.

+++++

Unlike the camps of Prince Eduardo and the 1st Prince, the camp of the 7th Prince, Bernardo Berengario di Veneto, was in a complete festive mood.

“Now that His Majesty has awakened, won’t he proceed with his previous plan to install Lady Agnes as queen? If that happens, Your Highness will become the legitimate heir to the kingdom!”

“Hahaha, let’s not get too carried away. It hasn’t been long since His Majesty woke up. It would be disloyal and unfilial for us to chatter like this among ourselves.”

“Ah, my apologies… I got carried away. Hearing the news of His Majesty’s recovery, I was so overjoyed that my words slipped out!”

The 7th Prince Bernardo, along with his maternal family, the Counts of Veneto, and the influential figures of Ravenna and its allied cities, were all unable to contain their excitement and joy. If the 7th Prince were to ascend the throne, it would mean that a new power, different from the traditional noble forces, could become the mainstream of this era.

The elite intellectuals from the universities, with their knowledge and connections, and the merchants affiliated with the guilds, with their capital and markets—if these two elements were to align properly, they could finally succeed in creating a new regime. If that happened, they would be able to realize the most powerful and progressive secular power in history.

However, amidst this jubilant atmosphere, there was one place that did not share in the excitement—the newly appointed Master of the Baking Guild, Giuseppe Gallo.

He had heard that before the king’s recovery, a paladin nun knight named Sophia de Chazel had visited the royal palace, and he couldn’t shake a strange sense of foreboding. Though he didn’t know why, he had a gut feeling that things wouldn’t go as smoothly as they hoped.

At the very least, the nun knight Sophia de Chazel, whom he had met, was the kind of dangerous figure who could stir up trouble.

‘In the first place, why do they expect that His Majesty will resume his previous plans after recovering from his illness? It’s common for people’s thoughts and feelings to change before and after a serious illness.’

In fact, he was more curious about what basis the 7th Prince and his supporters had for believing that the king’s recovery would be advantageous to them.

Moreover, this matter was likely related to the Church Order. It was a well-known fact that few matters involving the Church Order were not entangled with demons. What if, just what if, this summons was related to those demons? How would the situation unfold then?

Suddenly, the word “defection” flashed fiercely in his mind.