Chapter : 02
The capital of Arvey, Brosia, had been intoxicated by a strange sense of excitement for several days.
A new king was taking the throne.
That fact alone was enough to cause a commotion, but this time, the princess who had been taken hostage twelve years ago, at the height of Cornelli Empire’s oppression, was returning as the new king.
Every day, the newspapers were busy reporting about the princess who was returning to her homeland after twelve years.
They reported on how she had lived in Arvey, how she had been treated in Cornelli, and even went so far as to publish scoops about the drawings she had made as a child and the foods she liked.
The public’s reactions to the newspapers were largely the same.
“She must be insane. She’s practically a Cornelli spy. There’s no doubt she’ll just be their puppet.”
Amid such anxiety, the people of Arvey began leaving their homes from dawn, when they were told the new king would arrive in the capital, and filled the streets.
They waited for the city gates to open, carrying worry and unease in their hearts.
It wasn’t difficult to tell that the king was nearly there.
The heavy thudding of military boots shaking the earth and the snorting of horses announced their approach.
Even under the soldiers’ control, people stretched their necks as far as they could, desperate to catch even a glimpse of the queen’s face.
By the time the procession came into view, the bewildered people began murmuring.
“Uh…?”
In Arvey, only nobles were permitted to see the king’s face.
It was considered proper etiquette not to look casually upon the face of such a noble person, who was different from commoners like them by birth.
Even the rulers praised as sage kings throughout Arvey’s history had only ever opened the carriage window slightly during their processions, showing their hands as they waved to the people while keeping their faces hidden.
As a result, ordinary people could do little more than look at the faces engraved on coins and imagine what their king looked like.
But now, the people gathered there couldn’t take their eyes off the procession.
There was no need to explain who the woman riding into the city beside the Knight Commander with such a straight posture was.
They were the very people who had read, day after day, the endless newspaper articles about the princess who would soon become their king.
Perhaps the newspapers would have to close down.
That was what one farmer’s daughter thought.
The newspapers had repeatedly described the princess as fragile and unstable, speaking almost maliciously about how delicate and weak she had been as a child and expressing their sympathy for her.
But what about the woman standing before them?
Her red hair was neatly tied up so that it wouldn’t be disturbed even by the cool breeze.
Her green eyes resembled a summer forest.
Her skin, white and pure as a magnolia blossom, did not make her look fragile. Rather, it made her vitality stand out even more clearly.
Dignity flowed from her straight, impeccable posture.
If every king throughout history had been like that, then perhaps the people had been right all along.
The highest person in the kingdom really was someone fundamentally different from ordinary commoners like them.
For a moment, the people fell silent as they gazed at their new ruler.
And at what she held in her hands.
It was the enormous national flag attached to the end of the standard carried by the flag bearer.
It must have been heavy for such small hands to hold, yet the queen refused to let go of Arvey’s flag, even if she had to accept the Knight Commander’s assistance.
The people gathered there simply stared at the queen’s procession as she returned home, without cheering or condemning her.
Then, within the hearts of those who had been filled with fear and anxiety that the queen might abandon the country, a small sense of hope began to bloom.
That hand gripping the national flag was a declaration.
A declaration so unmistakable that even those who had received little food or education could understand it instantly.
She was a daughter of Arvey.
And she was the king of Arvey—not of any other country.
As that thought spread, the streets were instantly filled with cheers.
“Our king!”
“Great one who has returned to your homeland!”
People hurriedly bought flowers and threw them into the air, while others waved the handkerchiefs they had been carrying.
The streets came alive in an instant.
Even if it was nothing more than a public display, it didn’t matter at that moment.
The news that Cornelli had chosen a new king for Arvey had first reached the people about two weeks earlier.
For those two weeks, the people had been consumed by anxiety, wondering when their country would collapse.
They had trembled with fear that instead of protecting them, their own king would abandon them.
Amid all of that, the small act of the queen steadfastly carrying their national flag helped soothe their fears.
“Long live Her Majesty the Queen!”
“May eternal blessings fall upon Arvey!”
Lethe’s grip tightened as she heard the people’s cheers.
Just as the people in the streets saw hope in Lethe, Lethe saw hope in them.
Hope that things could be different from the past.
It was different from the past, when she had entered the capital in silence, unable to show her face, feeling the cold gazes of the people through the carriage window.
It was a very small change, but the fact that something had changed was what mattered.
Thump—thump—
Her heart continued to beat pleasantly.
I can change it.
She could protect it.
She could create a future different from the one she knew.
This life had been granted to her like a miracle.
She would never allow anyone to destroy her kingdom.
If protecting this country was all that mattered, she was willing to sacrifice her own life without hesitation.
When they entered the palace, they saw people with expressions just as surprised as those outside, but they quickly composed themselves and bowed their heads.
“We welcome Your Majesty the Queen.”
The palace servants bowed in unison.
A man who had been standing at the front of them approached.
His hastily dyed blond hair and slicked-back hairstyle, with not a single stray strand, gave him a strangely provincial appearance.
Lethe immediately recognized him.
“It is an honor to meet Your Majesty. I am Jean Hoshikoff, Your Majesty’s aide.”
The man who presented himself as her aide had been the spy Alben Abihi had assigned to Lethe before her regression.
And he was also proof of just how much Duke Abihi had underestimated the inexperienced young queen.
“I don’t remember appointing an aide yet.”
“Duke Abihi appointed me.”
At the answer, which seemed to place Duke Abihi’s authority above that of the queen standing before him, the corner of Lethe’s mouth twisted.
“Since Duke Abihi personally placed you at my side, you must be an exceptionally talented man. I look forward to working with you.”
“Ahem. It feels somewhat immodest to say this myself, but I never once lost the top position throughout my time at the academy.”
“Oh? Is that so?”
Lethe swallowed her mocking laughter and replied.
Encouraged by her reaction, Jean began boasting, puffing himself up dramatically.
“Your Majesty may not know this, but the academy is not an easy place to get through.”
An academy diploma, once a mark of exceptional talent, had by now fallen to little more than a symbol of nobility.
This was because academies had sprung up like weeds as the nobles became increasingly arrogant with the decline of royal authority.
There were even quite a few academies that had been established solely for the sake of a single heir and then closed immediately after that heir graduated.
“Then, as your first command as queen, I shall give you an order. Since you claim to be such an outstanding talent, I trust you will certainly be able to accomplish it.”
“Just give me any order. I will carry it out perfectly.”
He dropped to one knee and raised his voice dramatically.
Lethe lightly patted him on the shoulder.
“I will attend tomorrow’s royal council meeting as well. Inform the nobles accordingly.”
“Pardon?”
“Then I suppose I need to know about the matters that have been under discussion until now. The late king must have received reports on them, so bring those reports to me.”
“Please, wait a moment. Just a moment. Since Your Majesty has only just returned after such a long time, wouldn’t it be better to rest a little longer and recover from the journey?”
Jean hurriedly tried to dissuade Lethe.
The nobles had asked him to prevent the queen from participating in state affairs for a while.
Although he was currently the queen’s aide, he knew better than anyone how precarious his position was.
Without his position as the queen’s aide, he was nothing more than a mere baron.
Since he couldn’t predict what would happen in the future, it was better not to make unnecessary enemies.
After calculating his options, Jean desperately stepped in front of the queen.
“Arvey’s style of dress may feel unfamiliar to you, so I could contact the royal wardrobe, or perhaps arrange some food…”
“Would it be appropriate for a queen to have something else take priority over state affairs?”
“Th—!”
Just as Jean was about to shout something, Lethe spoke first.
“Or perhaps you failed to make preparations? It is your duty to ensure that everything is ready so that I can participate in state affairs immediately.”
Her voice struck him like a blade.
“If you cannot even carry out this one simple task immediately, I will have no choice but to dismiss you. I cannot keep an incompetent and lazy aide at my side.”
There was nothing wrong with the queen’s words.
She continued as though she knew exactly what Jean was afraid of.
“Then Duke Abihi must be quite embarrassed. Recommending an incompetent man was the duke’s mistake, after all.”
Fear appeared on Jean’s face.
Do not inconvenience House Abihi.
Do not anger the duke as much as possible.
These were practically unwritten laws.
The moment anyone violated those rules, they could no longer expect to survive in Arvey.
“Answer me. Is carrying out my command really that difficult?”
The queen pressed him without giving him even the slightest opening.
Jean looked up at the woman who was considerably younger than himself, his eyes almost pleading.
Her gently smiling face somehow resembled the sly smile of a snake.
It looked strangely similar to Duke Abihi’s.
“N-No. I can. I can do it.”
Jean barely managed to force the words out through his trembling voice.
He couldn’t risk losing his life simply because he had tried to fulfill the other nobles’ requests.
Hearing a few curses from behind his back was far preferable to provoking Duke Abihi’s anger.
“Reliable indeed. I see why Duke Abihi recommended you.”
The smiling queen lightly patted his shoulder.
Jean nodded, feeling as though he were about to cry.
