“It doesn’t mean anything deep,” he finally muttered. “It’s just a positive phrase indicating that something is ‘very good’ or ‘wonderful.’”
“Did this situation warrant a positive phrase?”
Lord Nigel had whispered foreign words two times, both in front of Mr. Meyer. The first was when Mr. Meyer had claimed that Mr. Mace was the culprit behind the carriage tampering, and the second was when he’d urged us to hide deeper within the castle because terrorists had bombed the bridge. Wasn’t it rather strange for Lord Nigel to have said words of praise during those moments?
“Were you saying it ironically?” I blinked. “As if to scoff at Mr. Meyer for lying left and right?”
“I suppose so. I really didn’t mean anything deep by it. I merely thought he was quite the actor, and I wanted to see how he’d react.”
“You mean whether or not he’d understand Shulkian?”
Lord Simeon and Prince Severin also came over, neither appearing surprised. It seemed everyone had already noticed.
I gazed out at the sea too. “Princess Mira told me that Mr. Meyer had only recently started working at their royal palace. He’d left the capital when he was young because of his family circumstances and had gone to work in a regional office. He’d returned and used his uncle’s power to obtain a position... I wonder how much of that story is true.”
No one gave me a clear response. We’d all gleaned part of the truth, but none of us had definitive evidence.
I glanced at Lord Simeon. For once, he didn’t hide anything and explained what he could to me.
“Our only option is to wait until Vissel has investigated on their side, but he most likely switched places with someone else. The chance of the real Meyer still being in the regional office is unfortunately...low.”
Had he left the real one alive, the culprit’s true identity could have been revealed at any time. He’d most likely disposed of that man so there wouldn’t have been two Mr. Meyers.
His Highness added, “The uncle he seduced had probably been deceived. The last time he’d met this supposed nephew, the man had been a child, so the uncle’s memories were vague. He wouldn’t have been suspicious about Meyer’s appearance changing, and it would’ve been easy for the culprit to make up a story by simply researching the family history beforehand. People like him sneak into establishments through such methods.”
The real Mr. Meyer had vanished without anyone knowing. We didn’t even know where he’d been laid to rest.
“How unfortunate...” If nothing else, I wished we could’ve given the remains to his family, but the one person who knew where he was had died as well. I wondered if we could look into it. “That man wanted me to fight with Her Highness. He was trying to frame her for the incidents targeting me.” Thinking back on it, even during our travels, he’d been quite aggressive with his attempts at angering me. He’d most likely wanted to create friction between me and the princess—between Lagrange and Vissel. “Had she died during our fights, Vissel would have blamed Lagrange, and we would’ve responded that we were victims as well. Both countries would’ve been incited with no way to calm down.”
“Correct,” answered His Highness. “Had you been killed, my sisters would’ve no doubt mourned you. My parents have both taken a liking to you as well, and I, of course, would not have been able to keep quiet about it. And then there’s my fiancée, who is your best friend.” His Highness was telling me that the issue wouldn’t only have been a political one—it would have been deeply personal as well. He’d never have forgiven it. “There are also members of parliament who are fond of you. Even Marquess Rafale, who voices his opposition on the daily, would have cooperated with us in getting revenge. And more than anyone else...” Prince Severin grinned at Lord Simeon teasingly. “Simeon would have gone wild with rage, and no one would have been able to stop him. He’d have struck directly at Vissel.”
I laughed as well. Lord Simeon tried to say he wouldn’t have done anything rash, but I giggled and mentioned that coming up with a well-thought-out attack plan would also have been going too far.
The culprit’s goal had been to worsen the relationship between Lagrange and Vissel. Or rather...that was the goal of the person controlling that culprit.
“As Lord Simeon is always telling me, this wouldn’t stop at being a conflict between two countries only. It would spark a huge war, involving others as well. We wouldn’t be able to do anything to the far-off southern kingdoms. If the northern countries fell into disarray because of war, our colonies would find it a favorable opportunity to take back independence. At first, this was like the start to a romance novel—it’s unbelievable that a ploy like this was hidden beneath it.”
The culprit had said that the more lowbrow and disgusting we got, the better. He must have thought that it would be preferable for Lagrange to be hurt in the midst of a filthy war. He hadn’t just wanted to drive us away—he’d wanted to take us down with him.
Prince Severin gave a bitter laugh. “If we went to war, our colonies would get involved too. Rather unscrupulous of the culprits to think that their countries wouldn’t shed blood when those around them go to war. They made sure we wouldn’t be able to trace them by using mercenaries. Those mercenaries accepted the mission thinking that they were only doing it for the reward. A pitiful tale.”
“But if we simply didn’t have colonies in the first place...”
“Marielle.” Lord Simeon’s sharp voice stopped me from refuting. He was scolding me, telling me it would be presumptuous to go any further.
I closed my mouth and looked down at my feet. Prince Severin placed his big hand on my head. “I know what you’re trying to say, and I don’t think you’re wrong.” His voice was kind, intending to soothe me, but at the same time, he was reasoning with me. “No matter how you try to explain it, we’ve profited from sacrificing others. The right answer is to return those profits to their true owners. But what’s logically correct isn’t always what’s politically correct. We can’t exactly let go of the enormous benefits we’ve had for so long. You’re not exempt from this either. You’ve received many blessings within your daily life. If we were to suddenly lose our colonies, Lagrange’s economy would be thrown into chaos.”
I nodded softly. “I understand...”
“We wouldn’t be able to avoid taking hits to our kingdom’s power, which would also destroy our equilibrium with other countries. This is not a simple matter.”
“Yes, sir...” He was right. Even I knew that this wasn’t a task that could be resolved with pure justice. If I really wanted change, I would have to be prepared for my life to change with it. But even if I were prepared, there was no telling if the rest of my countrymen would feel the same way...