Governor’s Government – Shadow Questions and Answers
We departed for the capital Lumiere with Hassan and Shandra.
Ambitious time.
While the group was sitting around making bonfires here and there for camping, I was talking to Hassan, their official.
“So you’re saying you’ve already taken control of about half of the Iberica Peninsula?”
Hassan appears to have a calm and serious personality, as befits a government official.
It may not be accurate because his skin color is different, but he has a nice beard and has some wrinkles on his forehead, so I guess he’s around 40.
“Yes, Your Excellency the Marquis. “Our brothers are already fighting united under King Crocs.”
Although Hassan did not say it, it would not be easy to confront Porto Port and the barbarian tribes that were sponsored by the Abyss Corporation.
In particular, the chronic food problem of barbarians who depended on hunting and plunder is probably the biggest problem holding them back as they do not have proper ports or trade routes.
Still, it is certain that Crocs has proven its skills to the extent that barbarian tribes, as much as half of the Iberica Peninsula, follow suit.
Judging from the way they treated Crocs, it seems like they are popular.
“Hwaap!”
I turned my head when I heard a shout and the sound of a sword cutting through the wind.
The great sword swung by Gaston cut through the air, and Shandra jumped back to avoid it and jumped in again as soon as she landed.
The unusual crescent-shaped curved blade held in both hands by Shandra sparkled in the light of the bonfire.
Gaston blocked her attack with his strength, but Shandra used that strength to jump up, somersault, and swing her sword in succession.
It is a fast and light dual sword that is completely different from the way Franzian knights fight.
If you have that level of skill, I think you’ll be able to overwhelm one or two ordinary knights, right?
“Ha!”
“Aaaah-!”
However, Gaston was not an ordinary knight, and every time he swung his sword, Shandra, who was jumping and somersaulting in reaction, was scared and caught Gaston’s sword and then bounced away.
Even so, seeing him twist his body in the air and land is quite impressive.
by the way. I asked, recalling the expression Crocs used.
“How many confidants of King Crocs is the warrior named Shandra?”
“This is the seventh, Your Excellency the Marquis.”
The seventh henchman. So, is that woman the seventh most powerful among Crocs’ subordinates?
While thinking that, Hassan added.
“I am the second, Your Excellency the Marquis.”
…?
I took a quick look at Hassan.
No matter how you look at it, it’s an untrained body… Ah.
“I guess being King Crocs’ henchman isn’t limited to warriors?”
“Yes, Your Excellency the Marquis. “The king values not only military power, but also knowledge and other talents.”
With the answer I just heard from Hassan, I threw away all the perceptions I had about barbarians.
They say they are a barbarian people who are closer to beasts and only worship power.
Were we completely mistaken? Even if we were right, the information would not be at all suitable for the new kingdom Crocs founded.
Ah, I’m still curious about that.
“Then Shandra is the third strongest among your warriors?”
“This is the fourth time, Your Excellency the Marquis.”
I roughly estimated the difference in skill between Gaston and Shandra and asked again.
“What is the difference in power between the henchmen and King Crocs?”
Hassan laughed heartily.
“Four people, including Shandra, will have to attack at the same time to barely be able to take on the king. The generous King Crox values not only brute force but also wisdom, but traditionally only the strong can claim to be the leader of the orcs.”
His face is full of respect and trust.
“That’s amazing.”
It may be an exaggeration, but Crocs’ strength may be comparable to that of the Blue Knight.
The clergy and members of the nobility will likely have a strong dislike for them, but the more I learn about them, the better it seems to have a friendly relationship with them.
Power is power, but if they really take over the Iberica Peninsula, the port of Porto will also fall into their hands, so for Christine’s sake, it is necessary to establish friendship with them to make it easier to maintain the trade route in the upper reaches of Aquitaine.
Above all, these are people who are in conflict with the Abyss Corporation, and there is little chance that the Holy Church will interact with pagans, so once they become trading partners, they could have a fairly close relationship.
“The more I hear about you, the more interested I become. “I hope that if possible, there will be a good outcome from these negotiations.”
Hassan smiled slightly and bowed his head to me.
“King Crocs was happy that the person in charge from Francia was the Marquis, and I think I know why.”
Crocs said that? It’s a little surprising.
“Our brothers are well aware of the prejudice against us in human countries. So, I especially did not expect to meet someone like the Marquis.”
Well, Crocs seemed to know quite a bit about the human nation. This is especially true for Hassan, who is both a human being and a bureaucrat.
Perhaps, rather than having high hopes for peace and trade with Franzia, Crocs may have been trying to predict Frangia’s intentions in advance while conducting a war to unify the Iberica Peninsula.
“I don’t know if it’s rude, but just as Your Excellency looks at us with wonder, so do we. Your Excellency is very different from the Franzian knights we knew. Perhaps our God has prepared His Excellency the Marquis for our brothers.”
It’s also kind of interesting to see a pagan who doesn’t believe in the God of Light talk like this.
“I have already experienced the value I believed in being overturned.”
“It must have been unusual for someone of His Excellency’s stature to experience something like that.”
I just smiled at him.
It’s definitely not normal to experience a revolution and have your head blown off the guillotine.
I became very aware of how light my values and stereotypes were.
“Aaaah!”
As soon as I thought the scream was close, Shandra flew up in the air and landed a little next to us.
“Ugh…”
I grinned at Gaston at the sight of Shandra, who had lost both swords, struggling on the floor, clutching her waist.
“It looks like the game has been decided.”
Gaston, breathing slightly heavier, came over, bowed his head to me, and held out his hand to Shandra.
“It was a good match.”
After shaking for a moment, Shandra grabbed Gaston’s outstretched hand, stood up, looked at Hassan, and suddenly shouted.
“Oppa, I like this guy!”
Gaston froze with his eyes wide open, and Hassan frowned and placed his hand on his forehead.
…Wait brother? Not even your dad?
I glanced at Shandra. No matter how I look at it, it looks like I’m about the same age as Gaston.
“I apologize, Your Excellency the Marquis. “That child is ignorant of Frangia’s etiquette…”
“No, that’s okay. “I’m sorry, but Hassan, you’re old…”
“…I’m twenty-six, Your Excellency the Marquis.”
You’re 26 now with that face? You want me to believe this?
No matter how closely I look at him, he looks like he’s in his mid-30s.
Shandra, who saw my expression, burst out laughing, and Hassan sighed half-resignedly, as if he was used to it, and answered.
“Twenty-six, sir. “You don’t have to look so pitiful.”
–
Lumière, the capital of the French Republic.
Under the stained glass, where the sun had set and no light was shining, the silver light from the candles surrounding the icon illuminated the dark chapel.
Christine D’Aquitaine, Countess of Aquitaine, entered the chapel with graceful, slow steps.
Wearing a black dress reminiscent of mourning clothes and her long black hair flowing down, she walked forward, passing the chairs in the empty chapel.
Every time her steps entered a dark place where the feeble light of a candle could not illuminate, it seemed as if she was immersed in the darkness.
At least that’s what Bishop Arnaud Richelieu felt as he stood on the preacher’s podium looking at her.
Lady, who was closer to darkness than anyone else, reached the front of the preacher’s podium where he was standing, lifted the hem of her dress, and bowed her head.
“Christine D’Aquitaine, Count of Aquitaine and member of the Central Party of the National Assembly of the Upper States, sends greetings to the renowned Bishop Arnaud Richelieu.”
“Arnaud Richelieu, a lowly servant of God, will greet you, Count of Aquitaine.”
After receiving his greeting, Christine lifted her lowered head and slowly opened her eyes.
I heard that the Count of Aquitaine’s eyes were as lifeless as a dead person’s and were like an abyss, but when Bishop Richelieu made eye contact with Christine, he had a completely different impression.
The eyes, which seem cold at first glance, are naturally imbued with an expression that only an extremely dangerous type of person can produce.
Are these the eyes that a young woman of only 22 can have?
Arnaud Richelieu was inwardly shuddering and offered her a seat.
“It’s nothing compared to a nobleman’s drawing room, but if it’s okay to use a chair in the chapel, would you please sit down?”
“Thank you for your consideration, Bishop.”
Christine naturally sat on a chair in the chapel, holding a black fan and covering her mouth.
Bishop Richelieu slowly came down from the podium and sat down next to her.
“Why have you invited me to meet this lowly servant of God?”
Christine lightly flapped her fan and answered in a casual manner.
“It’s been quite a while since I came to the capital, but I was disappointed that I didn’t get a chance to meet the bishop whom I respected because he was in retirement. However, recently the chaos in the capital has subsided and the bishop has returned to the embrace of believers, so I asked to meet him as a believer.”
Richelieu swallowed dry saliva.
Although the words were perfectly normal, depending on what you heard, it could sound like an interrogation as to why he showed up now after not caring for the believers during the turmoil in the capital.
“…I guess so. “I had no idea that the Count of Aquitaine was so religious.”
“Even though it looks like this, the upper class of Aquitaine has done many charitable activities with the help of the Marquis de Lafayette and the saint. “It is natural to be interested in a bishop who has earned a high reputation by caressing the citizens of the capital.”
Lafayette and the Virgin.
Richelieu narrowed his eyebrows at the seemingly intentional comment, then sighed lightly and opened his mouth.
“The Count of Aquitaine, this lowly servant of God, is now sick of aristocratic speech.”
Still, Christine is fanning her fan without changing her complexion at all.
“We served the old system for too long, but that system collapsed. “Tell me what you want.”
“It’s nothing, Bishop. “The bishop seems to have been busy due to changes in the capital during his retirement, so I thought I could provide a little help to him, if you would allow it.”
Christine spoke calmly as if it was no big deal.
Richelieu narrowed his eyes to gauge her intentions, but he could not read anything in Christine’s dark, sunken eyes.
Richelieu sighed softly.
“Thank you for the offer, but I will only accept your heart gratefully, Count of Aquitaine.”
The moment she felt that Christine’s face had become a little drowsy, she folded her fan loudly.
“I think the bishop has some misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstand?”
As Richelieu laughed empty-handedly, Christine smiled back.
“Bishop. “We just work for this country in the National Assembly.”
Richelieu flinched, but then answered softly.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Count of Aquitaine. “Why do you think I, a lowly servant of God, care about and misunderstand them and the National Assembly?”
Christine smiled languidly.
Do not threaten him harshly or deceive him with many words.
Richelieu felt a deep sense of fatigue just by encountering the brilliant light inside those engulfing black eyes.
Christine looked at him leisurely for quite a long time and then opened her mouth.
“While the bishop was in retirement, those who received help from him either starved or took up arms and stood in the ranks of the revolution. But even now that he has come out of retirement, he is not paying any attention to them. Rather…”
“Stop.”
Richelieu’s face crumpled.
I don’t know how much this woman knew, but the situation of being swayed by a hateful woman who had no intention of hiding that she was monitoring his movements was eroding his patience.
“Do you want to tell me to join the National Assembly?”
“We have already resolved the misunderstanding between Western believers and the National Assembly and lifted the suppression order against the church. “If the Bishop will be with you-”
“I have no intention of doing so.”
Even though appeasement was rejected, Christine only smiled softly, and Richelieu’s patience ended there.
“I have no desire to become one of your Central Party’s puppets.”
“A puppet, so a devout person would say-”
“No? “The National Assembly is not functioning properly because it is tied down by the money power you wield.”
“As a member of Franzia, I simply provided the help that the country and government needed.”
“I don’t think that’s what someone who is betrothed to a man who ignored the laws of France and committed a massacre in the middle of the city would say.”
For the first time, the masked smile on Christine’s face was erased.
Richelieu, seeing her expression, felt a slight sense of guilt and excused himself.
“I am aware of the injustice done to the Count, and I regret it. But even so, what the Marquis de Lafayette did was no different from what they did. As a result, didn’t they just control and neutralize the National Assembly through fear?”
Richelieu looked at all that and decided that there was no hope for this National Assembly.
That was why he was convinced that Raphael Balian, who established pure military merit, would be the one to lead the people, rather than Pierre de Lafayette, who also emerged as a hero but was tainted by politics.
Instead of the National Assembly, which constantly repeats conflicts and checks and antagonism, Balian leads the people and the army and takes charge of politics to assist him.
“If the Marquis de Lafayette had arrested them and brought them before the National Assembly, would they all have received the punishment they deserve? In a Congress full of people who ignore the very laws? “If that doesn’t work, is there any guarantee that they won’t use an easier and more effective method again?”
Richelieu thought that Christine would defend Lafayette.
They’re just going to make a shallow claim that there is a difference between terrorism committed against civilians in the city and killing only the lawmakers and their minions who committed the crime.
So Richelieu could not answer.
“There is a saying in the Eastern Empire that killing one makes a hundred tremble. The Marquis de Lafayette took action to repay terrorism with terrorism, but ultimately made it impossible for anyone in the National Assembly to consider terrorism.”
“Are you saying that as long as the result is good, the process is probably good?”
“No, Bishop. However, I am saying that it is unrealistic to force justice only on the other side when justice is not functioning properly in a society that has not yet been established. “It is like someone who is good and upright can be trusted but cannot be trusted.”
After finishing speaking, Christine asked as if she were peering at Richelieu.
“…Don’t you think so, Bishop?”
Bishop Richelieu flinched.
Since the Marquis Lafayette’s morality is criticized in front of her, the work he is preparing cannot be called moral.
With cold sweat running down Richelieu’s spine, Christine slightly tilted her head and opened her mouth.
“If we give up on making things right and destroy order, only eternal chaos will remain.”
Richelieu narrowed his eyebrows.
“This is what someone in the National Assembly said. The chaos in the absence of justice and order was long and plenty of blood was shed. “Now is a transitional period to rebuild everything.”
How much does this woman know?
“It’s late. I hope I have a chance to receive teachings from the bishop in a better atmosphere without misunderstandings.”
Bishop Richelieu simply nodded without answering.
Only after Christine’s shoes were moving away with a clicking sound did Richelieu turn his head to look at her.
Christine, who was slowly walking away, stopped when the candle light did not shine into the darkness, and turned her head to look at Richelieu.
Her expression could not be seen due to the darkness, but even in the darkness, Richelieu was almost shocked when he encountered her brightly shining eyes.
Christine turned around again and left without saying anything.
But Richelieu could not forget the look in her eyes.
His eyes were extremely cold, as if they were judging whether he was alive or dead.
