I wonder if other knights also get so many holidays? She didn't know what to do with this suddenly free time. In any case, she was told not to go outside. They said that there was nothing good in catching the Count’s eye once again. But Adi's thoughts were different. The Count will certainly take steps to regain his position.
Adi also had to act. However, it was impossible to avoid prying eyes. Although among them there were people sent by the Duke, wherever Adi went, strange eyes followed her everywhere.
When she arrived at her destination, the guard, pushing his spear aside, asked:
—Are you from the Woodpecker family?
“...Yes, but this has nothing to do with Your Lordship.” I have received a separate invitation from Your Highness, the Crown Prince.
The guard, seeing her face covered with marks, said with disbelief in his voice: “Sir Adrian Grimaldi?”
-...Yes.
Perhaps all these glances that followed were caused by this particular face. Judging by the fact that even the local guards know about it, the rumors seem to have spread throughout the Palesa Palace.
- They are waiting for you. Come on in.
The guard put away his spear. Bowing as a sign of respect, Adi went inside.
There was no one in the reception area. The curtains were drawn, making it especially gloomy inside. Perhaps the bad weather outside was to blame. While Adi was standing, the servant came and told her to wait sitting down.
After sitting on the sofa waiting for about ten minutes, the door finally opened and Your Highness, the Crown Prince, appeared. Two servants followed him. Claude seemed to have just woken up: he was wearing only a robe, and, brushing his hair from his forehead, he greeted Adi with his arms outstretched. Adi stood up and met Claude.
- Wow.
Claude's hand covered his own mouth.
- What's wrong with your face?
He pretended to be surprised, but there was no shock on his face. Only slight curiosity and a spark of interest in the eyes.
- Is the count really such a cruel person? I didn't even know.
The always cool Spencer Grimaldi. No matter what happened, he showed no emotion; sometimes it seemed as if he was a golem created by some magician.
However, looking at this appearance, it became clear that the count was also a man. This is the price for leaking the family fencing technique. However, he did not reveal it even to the royal family.
- Why didn’t you get treatment? Didn't Yuls provide you with a magician healer?
Claude asked this as he sat down in the place of honor.
“If I get cured, the count won’t like it.”
“Won’t he like walking around like this even more?”
Adi snorted. Ah, that's how it is. They say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, but they really are the same. It would be a pity if this handsome young man turned into Spencer Grimaldi. Although, perhaps, he is already a match for him.
- It was on purpose.
Said Claude. A riot committed at your own peril and risk.
- Funnier than I expected, Sir Adrian Grimaldi.
- Glad you're entertained.
“I sent you on an assignment to Ionad, but Woodpecker has already sent an order for the assignment.
Claude asked, sinking deep into his chair. Today he didn't smell like musty grass. His gaze seemed clearer than usual.
“Are you going to Woodpecker?”
-...
“I don’t like it when someone plays with me.”
- Oddly enough, I didn’t know anything about it.
- Yes. Everyone says so.
Is it possible to tell something definite by appearance? All people hide their true intentions, renounce their actions and join the side that is more profitable for them.
“But Woodpecker isn’t so bad.”
Adi responded to Claude’s words with a puzzled look. The Prince seemed to be trying to hold back the Duke, but now he claims that he is not bad? Does this mean they are on good terms? After all, the Duke himself spoke of the prince as the one who could overthrow him.
“If you go there, I’ll be calmer too.” At least more than if you were somewhere else. After all, he is my only cousin whom I trust.
This is weird. Usually in such cases there can be no trust between them. And even if someone trusts another, it would be more logical to assume that it is the Duke who trusts the prince, and not vice versa. Higher positions are always desired by many, and therefore their holders are invariably suspicious of everyone around them.
- Come to me anyway.
How did the Duke manage to win the prince's trust?
“Your Highness has a reason why you need me?”
“...The reason you are needed.”
“I thought that you were in a close relationship with my father, but judging by the current situation, it turns out that this is not the case.”
— Close relationship with your father, you say?
Claude rubbed his fingers together. The movement looked slightly nervous. The servant standing nearby undoubtedly noticed this, but did not move. After all, there was no order from the prince.
“The Count is just one of many vassals.
Claude said.
“The only difference is that now the king hates him.” Perhaps he believed that his position allowed him to say so. It was a mistake.
- Is it possible to find out how this happened?
- Well, nothing special. Their opinions simply did not agree with the king.
Having said this, Claude tapped his forehead with his index finger.
- My father, you see, is completely ossified here.
Adi doesn't know the king. Not only had he never been to an audience, but he had only seen him once, on the day of his arrival in Palesa. In appearance, the king seemed quite normal. Perhaps because of the strength that the position gives? This was not surprising. But those who are closer see differently?
“It seems that in old age it is no longer possible to break into a ossified mind with new thoughts.” He believes that the current situation is not so bad at all. In fact, Dalcatir has always teetered on the edge. Like most states. Rather, the preservation of an absolute monarchy is something unusual.
Claude said this and sighed. He stared into space for a moment, as if thinking about something, then stood up and leaned forward.
- How well do you understand politics, Adrian?
-......Not too good.
—War will break out in the north.
- In the north? Do you mean Thuringia?
- Yes. The situation there is extremely precarious. It's about the confrontation between the nobility and the Rebels.
Thuringia is located near Grimaldi. Immediately beyond the small village in the north of their domain, Thuringian land begins.
The inhabitants of that village speak both Thuringian and Dalcatir. To be precise, the two languages are similar in many ways, and the manner of speech adopted in Grimaldi is close to the Thuringian literary standard. Because of this close connection, the outbreak of war would cause great damage to Grimaldi.
“However, these Rebels turned out to be much more united and numerous among the elite than one might have expected. They talk about the world they want to build, but for us this world does not bode well. That is why the Thuringian princes asked for help. After all, if one royal house falls, it will inevitably affect other states. Isn’t it natural in this case to come to each other’s rescue?
Adi could not agree with this. This may be beneficial for the royal house, but for the northern nobility there is nothing good about it.
- However, opinions are divided. The Count spoke out against responding to the request for help.
If Adi had been on this council, she would probably have shared the Count’s opinion. Any ruler would make such a decision if he really cared about the welfare of his subjects.
— And on this issue I agree with the Count.
- Why?
“Although my interests and the Count's interests do not coincide, judging solely by my standards, the Royal power in Dalkatir is now in greater danger than in other countries.
Adi was a little surprised. Despite the fact that she herself had little understanding of the political situation, Claude seemed to assess her situation quite objectively.
— My father is the third son. Legitimacy belongs to my cousins. In theory, Duke Woodpecker's right of succession to the throne should have been higher than mine. It only increased because I became the crown prince. Apart from Yuls, everyone else has long been coveting the royal throne.
Doesn't Duke Woodpecker claim it? And why does he think so?
“The Count said that Dalcatir cannot provide assistance to other countries when the royal right itself is more shaky than ever.” And he's right. For the royal family.
For Graf, this was a smart decision. After all, such a path served the interests of both the royal house and the lands of Grimaldi.
“However, my father thinks differently.”
However, his every reasonable word only added to the king’s resentment, which accumulated one after another.
“He believes that the Count said these words to protect his possessions. He himself broke the order of succession and became king, and since the attempt to transfer the throne to another ultimately failed, he became confident in his own strength. He wants to demonstrate this power to other states.
Claude, having said this, grinned with bitter irony.
“At the same time, he cannot even properly control his own vassals.”
And is this vassal the only Grimaldi, or are there others?
“That’s why I sided with the Count.” But I didn’t provide him with a residence in the Palesa Palace.
“So you’re not going to completely take the Count’s side.”
- Right. I agree with the Count's opinion, but he underestimates royal power too much.
Judging by the actions of the King after his accession to the throne, this was understandable. Grimaldi seemed to see fault in everything and found fault with the royal family on every occasion. Although there was some truth in his words, the King did not want to admit it, as he considered it an encroachment on royal power.
“He believes that he himself placed him on this throne.”
This was not far from the truth. The fact that the King now occupied this place was the merit of Count Grimaldi. And everyone else thought the same. This was the problem.
This happened not thanks to the King himself, but because he had such a vassal.
The existence of Count Grimaldi was as beneficial to royal power as it was a threat to it.
— Apparently, that’s why the ancient rulers exterminated all the Honored Companions. They're too arrogant.