“Your opponents are the most powerful people in the country, so resorting to violence is ill-advised... But what about financial prowess?” Christine suggested.
To put it more bluntly, she was referring to bribery. Jeanette’s father, Baron Roussel, had engaged in this kind of dealmaking in order to get Claus to become her fiancé. In exchange for the baron shouldering House Guivarch’s debt, their son got engaged to his daughter. This was nothing unusual in noble circles. Some people married for the sake of acquiring a dowry, and huge sums of money could also be used to annul engagements or marriages.
After a moment of pondering, Christine remembered something.
“You own a diamond mine, don’t you? Could you present it to the king, perchance? Even my brother wouldn’t neglect such an opportunity.”
“I did consider that, but it’d be quite difficult...”
“Why’s that?”
“The emperor of Voltaire granted that mine to my father as a sign of his friendship,” Jeanette explained. “Even if father was allowed to give the mine to me—and that’s still unclear—if I then transferred it to the king, that might fracture the relationship between my father and the emperor.”
In fact, Baron Roussel was currently in the middle of visiting Voltaire. Or rather, he’d been forcefully summoned there because the emperor had taken a liking to him.
“I see...” Christine groaned. “Indeed, passing on something you received from a person as a show of goodwill can be quite problematic.”
Jeanette nodded.
“I also already asked His Majesty if he’d be interested in obtaining the rights to the most popular products sold by Matheson Trading and Roussel Corporation, but he refused.”
“Really?”
“He wrote back saying that if the princess discovered he gave up on Lord Claus because of money, she’d lose trust in him.”
“Did he, now? Gracious, that brother of mine! He really spoils Tia...” Christine placed her hand on her chin and pondered for a while. “What if you get through to him by performing some meritorious service? Just like my husband once won my hand in marriage, you could ask for Lord Claus to be your prize.”
In the past, Duke Pablo had gone to the Pakiran Empire himself to speak to their emperor, who was engaged to Christine (she was a princess at the time). A southern tribe had been troubling the emperor for many years, so the duke suppressed them. His reward was the right to marry Christine.
“A meritorious service... You mean something to resolve the king and queen’s—or the princess’s—troubles?” Jeanette inquired.
“Basically, yes.”
The two women racked their brains. Five minutes passed, and then ten, and still no good ideas dawned on them. Christine let out a deep sigh, as though she’d used up all her strength.
“It’s no use. I know I suggested it, but I can’t think of anything. I have no idea what kind of things are troubling Eric or Tia.”
“Our country is very peaceful, isn’t it? If I had to say, I suppose Her Highness’s matrimony is in itself a problem.”
“Then we’re back where we started!” Christine groaned with frustration. “Maybe there’s no other option than trying to change Tia’s mind? What if you present her with an even more wonderful man than Lord Claus and see if she has a change of heart?”
Jeanette bit her lip.
“Unfortunately, I don’t know any man more wonderful than Lord Claus!”
“Well... I’m sure if he heard that, he’d be over the moon,” the duchess remarked with a chuckle.
“Really?” Jeanette asked with surprise.
“It’s too bad he’s not here,” Christine said, adding that she’d be sure to inform him about this once he was free. “Then what about that friend of Lord Claus’s? The one from Pakira.”
“You mean Lord Kyuriakris?”
Jeanette had actually revealed his true identity to the duke and duchess, since she was close with them. They were shocked at first, but welcomed him warmly nonetheless.
“Indeed. His looks and upbringing are perfect, no? After all, he’s Pakira’s first prince. He and Tia are almost equals in terms of status.”
“You have a point, but...” Jeanette trailed off.
“You’re not too keen on it?” Christine inquired, gazing at her.
“Well... No,” Jeanette admitted hesitantly. “I wouldn’t mind introducing them to each other under normal circumstances, but doing it in order to get Lord Claus back... It’s almost like Her Highness is being offered a replacement. I feel like it’s rude to them both—” she cut herself off once she realized what she’d said. “Ah, I’m so sorry! You had a great idea, Lady Christine, and here I am nitpicking!”
“It’s fine, Jeanette,” Christine said with a kind smile. “If anything, I apologize for saying something so insensitive. You’re right—people’s hearts aren’t chess pieces for us to play with. I’ll reflect on my words. I almost made the same mistake as my brother just now.” After a pause, the duchess continued. “And I just realized that Lord Kyuriakris isn’t a good option anyway.”
“He’s not?”
“No. After all, he’s a prince of Pakira. That means that even if Tia fell for him and decided to marry him, she’d have to become a part of his harem. Her parents would never permit that. They’ll want to keep her close by.”
“From that perspective, Lord Claus is a very convenient choice for them,” Jeanette noted. Claus was a noble from this country, so if Meltia married him, she’d get to stay here.
“Which means that they want you to change your mind about Lord Claus just as much,” Christine pointed out.
“Nnngh...” No matter how much Jeanette deliberated, she couldn’t think of any viable solutions. After much agonizing, she finally spoke up. “If I can’t offer her a person, how about an object?”
“An object?”
“Yes. If I give Her Highness an object even more enrapturing than romance, perhaps she’ll forget all about Lord Claus?”
“That’d be very difficult, I’m afraid,” the duchess said plainly, her brows furrowed. “She’s a spoiled princess. If there’s something she wants to eat, they’ll arrange it for her regardless of price. If there’s something she wants to own, they’ll go and get it for her even if they have to cross the ocean. Poets, dancers, performers—all of them could be summoned to the palace at the drop of a hat if she said the word.”
“True...”
After all, Jeanette and the theater troupe had visited the palace a while ago for that very reason.
“In that case, what if I proposed something that Her Highness cannot do?”
“Something Tia cannot do?”
“Yes! For example...”
When Christine heard Jeanette’s proposal, she fell into deep thought.