Episode 82 Governor’s Government –
A week has passed since I returned to the princess’s capital, Lumiere.
I had to spend a busy time handling backlogged work for the Commander-in-Chief and writing reports to be submitted as a representative of the Iberica Peninsula mission.
In the end, Damien de Mirbeau found a mistake in a document uploaded by a subordinate and spent an extra day making the excuse that he needed time to correct it, but ironically, thanks to him uploading the document late, he was able to work with more time.
If Damien had done his job as perfectly as Dejet and was just waiting for me, I probably wouldn’t have had time to rest.
Of course, that doesn’t mean I didn’t go for Damien.
By the time I had finished cleaning up the pile of work that was waiting for me and taking a breather, Eris had returned to Lumiere after traveling around Francia to relieve the poor and do charity work.
“Welcome, saint. “Welcome back.”
As always, I bowed lightly and spoke politely to Eris, who was dressed in a white robe. She looked up at me for a moment through her veil and answered slowly.
“It’s been a long time, Marquis de Lafayette.”
After making light eye contact with Jenny, the maid who followed Eris as always, and Lord Beaumont, I held out my hand and Eris naturally gave it to me.
As Eris entered the mansion, she took off the veil she was wearing under her hood and handed it to Jenny.
Perhaps because she is nearing the end of her teenage years, Eris’s face, unlike before, has lost a lot of its youthful feel.
If you think about it, Eris is now older than Christine, who she met right after she returned.
I feel strange, perhaps because I secretly thought of him as my younger brother.
“Oh. The artifact the Marquis gave me was really useful. I was so happy because it was cool even in the summer. Thank you again.”
Eris said that and smiled.
He seemed to have been satisfied with the gift given to him because he remembered that he had a hard time wearing layers even in the summer, but he was strangely polite…
“You seem to have calmed down a bit?”
If her unique playfulness and lightness took away from the mysterious aura of her appearance from the beginning, the current Eris’ attitude and appearance combine to give off quite a bit of elegance.
However, as soon as she heard my words, Eris’ purple eyes filled with mischief.
“Do you like this?”
What the hell.
“well.”
“Hmm~”
When Eris responded vaguely on purpose, she covered her mouth with her hand and laughed mischievously, then immediately changed her expression and opened her mouth again.
“Now I have to be a little more careful.”
“okay.”
Now, just as I don’t necessarily ask her to treat me comfortably even if I treat her politely, Eris’s free-spiritedness is far from foolish self-indulgence.
This princess, who has been precocious since she was a girl, knows her position very well.
Still…
“…it’s just a little while, so don’t expect too much.”
Eris was smiling mischievously as she said that, so much like her that I also smiled secretly.
* * *
As I escorted Eris into the living room, Christine and the Count of Anjou, who had been waiting in advance, stood up.
“Count of Aquitaine, Count of Anjou.”
“Her Royal Highness.”
When Eris lifted the hem of her robe and slightly bent one knee in greeting, Christine did the same and bowed politely – and the Count of Anjou suddenly got down on one knee.
“Meeting with Her Royal Highness Princess Esiliste Liliane de Francia!”
The atmosphere in the living room suddenly became awkward.
Uhm, well. It’s usually like this.
Even Count Anjou is an elderly noble within the Central Party…
“Please wake up, Count Anjou.”
As Eris spoke with an awkward smile, Count Anjou also stood up.
“Keuhum khum. “I thought you were missing, but it’s an honor to meet you here, Your Highness.”
“Thank you, Count.”
Eris answered simply and sat down.
The car was ready and the Count of Anjou spoke.
“You are truly amazing, Marquis de Lafayette. “He was attending the Third Princess, and I never thought she was a saint.”
“It was a coincidence.”
I only answered like that, but the Count of Anjou looked at me with a very new expression.
I opened my mouth, looking at the count’s gaze.
“As you know, the first princess Cecilia, who became empress of the Germanian Empire, is preparing for war, citing her right to succession to the Frangian throne. However, Francia has not yet recovered from the damage from the civil war and the previous war.”
Even though the Storm Witch was present, even the last offensive, which was a difficult victory, was nothing more than a show of condescension from the Germanian Empire’s point of view, sending only a small number of troops.
However, if they unite and attack to give the Empress the throne of Francia, to put it bluntly, it will be difficult to stop them with the current power of the Republic.
“So what they sought as a countermeasure was the throne of Franzia, which was their justification for war. “If a worthy royal ascends the throne, their claims will lose their justification.”
“So, you were attending Her Highness the Third Princess.”
“That’s right. “This time, the National Assembly will be held to prepare for the threat from the Germanian Empire, and I would like to propose at that meeting that we formally enthrone Her Highness the Third Princess to the throne.”
“Oh…”
Count Anjou quietly admired.
Even if I look at it with my own eyes and wonder how many moves were made with such anticipation in mind, it is just embarrassing to me.
“Does Her Royal Highness Princess Haeun agree with the Marquis’s thoughts?”
After hearing Count Anjou’s words, Eris nodded with quite a dignified look.
“I will fulfill my responsibilities as the princess of this country. However, there are some areas of concern.”
“Please speak, Her Royal Highness.”
Eris seemed to hesitate a little at my words and then opened her mouth.
“My mother was from Cortijan. “The German Empire clearly has the upper hand in terms of legitimacy, but will they back down easily just because of that?”
“That part is not a big problem, Your Highness.”
It was Christine who answered Eris’ question.
She unfolded the black fan she always carried and added, flapping it.
“Of course, if you look at it based on orthodoxy alone, it feels a bit out of place, but Her Majesty the Princess is also a saint recognized by the church. “I have received an answer from the Church saying that they will support Your Majesty as the rightful successor to the Frangian throne.”
Even if she were just a saint, it would be difficult to attack her with orthodoxy, but would she blatantly criticize the successor to the throne, supported by the church, as an illegitimate child?
This is no different from saying that they are going to fight the Pope.
“Oh, that’s amazing. No matter how strong the empire is, it cannot ignore a saint who is directly recognized and supported by the church as legitimacy.”
“It is as Count Anjou said. “There won’t be many feudal lords who would choose between the imperial and imperial powers to crown the empress.”
Christine responded and turned her gaze towards me.
“I and the Count of Aquitaine will fully resolve the legitimacy issue that Her Majesty the Princess is concerned about. “You don’t have to worry about that.”
“…okay. “I was a little surprised.”
Eris was purely impressed after hearing what I said.
The result is good, but it is not a clean transaction if you know the process or the inside story, so I did not tell Eris about this plan in advance.
This is possible because we succeeded in stopping religious persecution in Francia, as requested by the Church, and also promised to make generous donations.
From the church’s perspective, they pretended they couldn’t win because it would be a great help in expanding their authority if a saint they recognized ascended to the throne.
Eris was silent for a moment and then opened her mouth.
“Then one more thing. “The National Assembly takes the throne…”
Eris paused for a moment as if choosing her words, and then continued.
“Wouldn’t we accept this as the end of the revolution?”
“There are definitely those concerns.”
I remembered the last moments of Maximilien Isidore.
Even as he was dying, he worried about the fate of the National Assembly.
They were especially afraid that the revolution would collapse because of me when all the keepers were gone.
“Once the decision has been made to enthrone Her Royal Highness, the Republic will come to an end and the kingdom will be resurrected. “The important thing is whether to deny their revolution and establish a ruling system under the queen, or to establish Her Majesty as queen but continue to rule through the National Assembly.”
“What I want, of course, is the latter.”
Eris answered very simply.
I knew she would say this.
“But I’m not sure everyone will understand our intentions.”
Eris said that and her face became a little worried.
Perhaps, if Eris were crowned queen, it would not be difficult to receive support from the people of Franzia.
The people of Francia, exhausted by civil strife and war, desperately desire peace.
If we look at Eris’s actions so far, she is a saint who kept her identity hidden, did not show greed for the throne, and only did good deeds for the people of Francia during the civil war and revolution.
It is possible, if one wishes, to package Eris’s ascension to the throne as a sacrifice to sit on an unwanted throne in order to save the Frangian people from war.
If we exclude myself, who knew in advance that Eris is a princess and prepared for it, and look at it only from Eris’s perspective, that is the truth.
However, that is only public opinion and the National Assembly is somewhat separate.
“As you said, as long as the leaders are me and the Central Party, the National Assembly will naturally be suspicious of our intentions.”
There is a high possibility that Talleyrand and the Revolutionary Party, who claimed to be the successors to Maximilien Isidore, will accept our actions as an attempt to return to the old system.
Nicola Brissot and the Liberal Party have had a relatively friendly relationship with us since the early days of the Republic, but that was only to keep in check the radicals who were relatively strong.
Now that Christine and I have taken control of the National Assembly halfway, we cannot rule out the possibility that the Revolutionary Party and the Liberal Party will join hands to stop us.
“Hmm, your Royal Highness, there is nothing lacking in your personality or your love for the people, but now that this country is trying to get back on track, those foolish people…”
Count Anjou clicked his tongue and I smiled softly.
Of course, the nobles of the Central Party would usually react like this.
Nobles would prefer to serve a legitimate authority figure like the Queen rather than governors who were heads of government from commoners.
Even more so if the person who becomes the queen is someone who deserves to be loved and respected by everyone.
Count Anjou touched his chin and opened his mouth.
“How about forcing a breakthrough? Now, we have quite a few forces, and I think we can do it with the Marquis de Lafayette, the Count of Aquitaine, and me and the Central Party.”
If you do as Count Anjou said, it will be possible.
Since the Republic is in danger of being destroyed by starting a war with the Germanian Empire right away, there is nothing that cannot be done by pushing back against those who oppose it by accusing them of being liars with the Germanian Empire.
But seeing how my actions in anger over Christine’s injury were viewed, it’s not a path I really want to take.
Above all, wouldn’t that make me betray my oath to protect them as long as I don’t betray the revolution?
The words I spoke in front of the dying person who maintained his faith until the end were not simple comfort or hypocrisy, but were a determination I engraved on myself.
furthermore.
“Count of Anjou, I did not reveal myself as a princess to bring you back to the old times.”
“I’m so sorry, Your Royal Highness.”
Count Anjou cleared his throat and felt embarrassed at Eris’ cold gaze.
Even if I tried, Eris would never want the throne taken by such means.
As the Count of Anjou was drinking tea in embarrassment, Christine opened her mouth.
“The important thing is to ensure that they do not perceive our actions as an attempt to overthrow the revolution. “If we go through the slightly cumbersome process of recruiting lawmakers one by one, there is nothing that cannot be done even if public opinion is divided.”
If it were Christine, it would be possible to appease to some extent by going through the process of roasting other members of the National Assembly.
The problem is that it requires time and money…
“That would be more realistic, but in the meantime, the Germanian Empire will be steadily preparing for war. “The longer we wait, the less good it will be.”
No matter how capable their empress was, I don’t think she would have moved the feudal lords with just her words.
She would certainly have promised the benefits she would receive as Queen of Francia, and if Eris ascends to the throne right away and the possibility of Cecilia being crowned queen decreases, most of the feudal lords will withdraw their support for the war.
However, if too much time is delayed, the feudal lords will waste their assets and complete sufficient preparations for war.
Then, we cannot ignore the possibility that they will force their way into the war with the intention of receiving a suitable compensation or even destroying Francia.
If you have already spent money, it is better to receive something rather than just waste it, so the loss is less.
Then Eris, who had been quietly listening and drinking tea, put down her tea cup and opened her mouth.
“I have a suggestion.”
“Please tell me, Your Highness, Princess.”
“Germania is a country that elects its emperor through elections, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. The next emperor is elected through the elections of the electors. Recently, it has become more of a formality to approve the enthronement of the current emperor’s family…”
“Let’s assume that we also elect the king by popular vote.”
“yes?”
For a moment, me, the Count of Anjou, and even Christine had blank faces.
“Even if it’s an election, it’s just about putting Her Majesty the Princess on the throne.”
“We are accepting candidacy not only from myself but also from those who have the right to succeed to the throne. For example, the empress of the Germanian Empire who is currently preparing for war.”
“I guess it’s possible, but what does that mean…”
Of course, there is no possibility that the people of Franzia will elect an empress of the Germanian Empire instead of Eris, so what does that mean?
Moreover, we were discussing the issue of receiving support from the National Assembly, and suddenly this is some nonsense.
As I was thinking that, Eris spoke again.
“The elected king is given a term of office like members of parliament. At the end of the term, we will hold another election vote. Since we can only keep the throne if we continue to receive the people’s trust, the National Assembly will also give us some approval…”
Eris raised her index finger and brought it to her mouth with her playful purple eyes shining. He just laughed.
“If the Empress of the Empire denies the election and incites war, even though she has nominally opened the possibility of ascending to the throne either this time or the next election, how will the Electors of the Empire, who take it for granted that their legitimacy is recognized through voting, react?
