“What?! Are you sure?!” I couldn’t help but exclaim after hearing the servant’s breathless report.
On their way to the holy country of Waltdiez, the carriages carrying the king and the fourth prince had been attacked and had fallen from a cliff. Judging from the circumstances, the chances of them surviving were depressingly low.
The country was already in great turmoil due to the battle for the throne, and with both House Burton and House Fibass being eliminated, the first prince’s faction had been put at an obvious disadvantage. With their backs to the wall, they’d begun behaving more radically while also digging their heels in regarding policies, leading to a near standstill in the government as the friction between the two factions only got worse.
There was essentially a deadlock amid the fears of the neighboring country potentially looking to attack. The longer this continued, the more danger our country would be in. As a way to calm the situation, His Majesty had decided to unilaterally put an end to the succession struggle, and it seemed his choice had been the fourth prince. They’d been on their way to Waltdiez to have him purified by the holy waters, as per tradition before being named the crown prince. Most likely, news of this spreading was the trigger for the coup d’état.
I chased after Ana as she ran from my office. His Majesty was Ana’s uncle and he had always doted on her because of how much he loved my mother-in-law, his little sister. I had no doubt that Ana was devastated by this news because of how close they’d been.
“Ana!”
“Sir Gino...”
I caught up to her in the documents room known as the Cordierite, where she was already at a desk, holding a handkerchief to her eyes as she shuffled through some documents. Seeing her tears hurt my heart. I ran up to her and embraced her.
“I’m okay... This is a critical moment, so I must do what I need to.”
“There’s time to cry. I’ll help you if you’re behind on paperwork,” I said, holding her face close to my chest.
Ana simply cried without saying another word.
“Young madam, Sir Ginorious! Her Majesty and the third prince have been attacked!”
“What?!”
“Huh?!”
Both Ana and I looked up in shock at Bridgette’s report.
“Sir Ginorious, this is an extremely serious situation. Please return to your duties. I will comfort the young madam.”
We needed to make our move now to be prepared for the great shifts in the political landscape. Both my mother- and father-in-law had gone to the palace for that very purpose. That meant both Ana and I needed to stay here and take care of any problems in the territory. Of course, there’s a lot of work waiting for me, but...I really want to comfort Ana! After seeing that I wasn’t budging a muscle, Bridgette forcibly ripped me off of Ana and wrapped her in her arms instead. Though Ana couldn’t see it, Bridgette sent me a satisfied smile. Urgh! Stupid work! I’m so mad!