Chapter 110
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110.
Since being dragged into the Underground Prison, his face—which had struggled so hard to maintain composure—crumpled as though reason itself had abandoned him.
"—I am!"
Yet his expression and words played a discordant duet.
"I don't see what the Basmakh Kingdom has to do with me. I've lived in the Empire my entire life since birth."
Sigh. If all his teeth fall out like this, what will he do?
They certainly can't install implants down here.
He ground his teeth so hard they creaked audibly, yet he continued to prattle on as though desperately trying to mask his agitation.
And yet.
"Trade with the Basmakh Kingdom has resumed, you say? How wonderful for a true citizen of the Empire."
All while his clenched molars mangled the word of congratulations beyond recognition.
Well, it hardly mattered.
Once he faced the King, that bravado would shatter inevitably.
"I'm glad you feel that way. Gillard, then I shall see you at the banquet with King Basmakh in three days' time."
With those words, I departed the Underground Prison with Duke Lopez, unhurried and composed.
"What do you mean! Why would you bring a criminal like me to such a momentous occasion regarding the resumption of trade!"
Meaningless echoes reverberated behind us, but neither I nor Duke Lopez offered him any answer.
*
The dinner with the King of Basmarh was held four days later, as I had promised him.
"I am genuinely delighted to finally meet with the King of Basmarh in this manner."
At the dinner table, the Emperor extended words of welcome to the King of Basmarh.
"The sentiment is mutual. It seems our Basmarh and the Empire can now look toward the future, beyond the shadows of the past."
The King then offered his greetings to Duke Lopez as well.
"It has been far too long, Duke Lopez."
"Indeed. I never imagined that my hasty return home following the incident with the Basmach Concubine would be the last time we would meet."
Duke Lopez spoke with measured courtesy, then bowed once to the Emperor and once to the King.
"I am deeply sorry that my abilities fell short in so many ways."
"Not at all. Both you and your predecessor warned me many times—that no matter how sincerely one treats another, those already bound by prejudice cannot be swayed."
The King of Basmarh, looking somewhat embarrassed, had his attendant pour wine for Duke Lopez.
"I should have heeded those words more carefully. Had I done so, the bond between the Empire and Basmarh would not have been severed for so long."
As the King of Basmarh spoke, Duke Jamoti, who had attended the dinner at the Emperor's command, flinched slightly.
'It's remarkable how he grasped the underlying meaning.'
For it was a veiled criticism of his incompetence.
At the time of the Basmach Concubine's fall from her horse, both the King and his people had been consumed with great anger.
Yet because the House of Lopez had devoted itself to managing the aftermath, had Duke Jamoti shown even a modicum of care, relations would have gradually healed with the passage of time.
But Duke Jamoti had not.
"To speak candidly, and with some shame, I lacked sufficient justification to reach out to the Empire first. The Empire, too, seemed to show little interest in our kingdom."
True to the King of Basmarh's words, Duke Jamoti had made almost no effort to win their hearts.
There remained traces of formal requests for audience that had been rejected, but these were merely perfunctory gestures.
'Had he been reporting all this time that the kingdom continued to close its ears?'
The Emperor himself, even during the days when he favored the Fourth Concubine, had rebuked Duke Jamoti repeatedly on this matter.
Each time he was scolded, Duke Jamoti would display a modicum of sincerity, only to revert to his old ways shortly after.
Naturally, the Emperor had attempted to appoint another to handle diplomatic affairs, but each time Scarlett Jamoti had maneuvered to prevent it, prolonging the stalemate.
'Moreover, whenever such matters arose, she would bring forth achievements with other nations to block the Emperor's orders for personnel changes.'
It was a blind spot born from the Emperor's base nature combined with his excessive regard for justification and propriety.
The blockade of Basmarh and the resulting difficulties in southern trade had dealt us a heavy blow, but it had struck Basmarh equally hard, making this reconciliation all the more welcome.
The moment I received diplomatic authority, the numerous requests Duke Lopez had sent through various channels began to bear fruit.
Had Duke Lopez not devoted himself so earnestly to this cause, even with Gilad Basmarh secured on our side, it would have been difficult to bring the King of Basmarh himself to the table.
'From the start, had I attempted to make such requests, Duke Jamoti would have thrown obstacles in my way.'
For his house stood to gain nothing from that nation.
Trade with them benefited only the merchant class and the financial reserves of the Imperial Family.
Well, now Duke Jamoti's fate was to sit here barely managing to eat, constantly watching the other's expression.
The King of Basmarh cut into his steak and brought it to his mouth, then glanced with disdain at Duke Jamoti, who had begun to cough and choke, before turning his gaze back to the Emperor.
"I am deeply grateful that the Empire extended its hand first."
"We bear responsibility in this matter as well, King of Basmarh. And as Duke Lopez may have told you, there is something embarrassing about claiming credit for this affair as belonging solely to myself or Duke Lopez."
The Emperor was displaying an uncharacteristic modesty.
As I inwardly criticized him, the King of Basmarh's gaze turned toward me.
Over the past four days, it seemed he had gathered considerable information.
"Duke Lopez mentioned it beforehand. I was quite astonished to hear that you were a young lady who had only recently made her debut."
"I share that sentiment. Even I find myself frequently taken aback by her. In fact, it was she who uncovered the suspicious elements in the Applicant examination this time."
"I offer my gratitude, Marquis Clupea."
At the King's direct praise, I lowered my head and observed proper courtesy.
For some reason, the Emperor wore an exasperated expression at my demeanor.
I decided to overlook that face and opened my mouth to address the King of Basmarh.
"However, as I conveyed through Duke Lopez, final confirmation remains necessary."
"Yes, I hear that even with concrete evidence presented, he refuses to acknowledge it."
"That is correct."
At my words, the King of Basmarh released a heavy sigh.
"It seems that even after more than a decade, nothing has changed whatsoever. It feels as though he need not even submit to examination."
The King of Basmarh shook his head as if his temples were throbbing.
Yet this was not a refusal.
"All the more reason, as his elder brother, it is my duty to show my foolish younger brother the reality of his situation."
As the King spoke, I gestured, and Gillard entered with his hands bound by thin chains.
He was the man who had reconciled with Duke Lopez at the banquet, speaking of a shared future with the Emperor in gentle tones....
The moment Gillard appeared, the King of Basmarh's expression turned cold.
"You bring me, who has committed such a trivial offense, to this honored gathering? Is that so, Salice Advisor?"
Gillard, habitually inclined to address me disrespectfully, rarely showed awareness of the atmosphere and managed to preserve his tone of speech.
The problem was that his manner toward me remained far too presumptuous.
Crash!
The moment he spoke, the King of Basmarh rose abruptly from his seat in exasperation, sending his chair tumbling backward.
"Still, still! Have you not learned your lesson, you fool!"
His fists clenched as though he might strike at any moment.
"...I do not understand why you speak as though you know me, Your Highness."
Of course, Gillard remained reluctant to abandon his fabricated identity.
"I am merely Baron Jorn Selling, who was imprisoned in the Underground Prison for causing a disturbance by blaming others for my own lack of skill."
"As if I would not know that no such baronial house exists!"
At his preposterous claim, the King of Basmarh grew even more incensed.
His earlier rationality now seemed a complete fabrication.
And so I.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to exert yourself further. With this, we need not rely on words alone to prove the truth."
I produced the sacred relic for blood kinship verification that I had requested from Wesley Morel.
"This is a sacred relic created personally by Saint Wesley Morel. When one hair from each person is placed within and kneaded together, it will bind if they share blood kinship, and unravel if they are complete strangers."
The face of the man calling himself Jorn Selling went rigid.
He clearly understood that words would no longer provide an escape.
"The Saint's certification is present here. Should you wish to contest the results, you may lodge a formal objection at the Temple."
At my words, the King of Basmarh nodded with satisfaction, while Gillard's expression showed him contemplating how to evade this situation through further deception.
And so I added a courteous clarification.
"Should you prove to be unrelated to the King of Basmarh, I shall offer sincere apologies and release you effective immediately. Of course, if you are—."
When I flashed a bright smile, Gilad Basmarh's face hardened like that of a trained animal over the past few days.
It seemed he had finally learned the lesson.
That whenever I smiled like this, he was about to suffer completely.
"Well then, shall we begin?"
At my words—which sounded like a death sentence—Gilad Basmarh thrashed about, desperately trying to keep his hair from being taken.
But that resistance didn't last long.
Cassian Artez, who had been silently watching from the side, spoke up.
"I could cut it myself if you'd like, though of course that would only be an option if you truly wish to lose all your hair."
He delivered the chilling words so casually that Gilad Basmarh's blood ran cold.
*
The result came exactly as expected.
However Wesley had managed it.
-Brother! Me! Yes! Fighting is bad, it's clear who was wrong, so please apologize quickly.
The blood-relation detector had pinpointed the exact relationship between the two before the hair even began to tangle, proving its accuracy.
In fact, it was the first time the blood-relation detector had ever made a sound in such a manner.
Unable to make an enemy of the Temple and cornered, Gilad Basmarh suddenly whipped his head around and cried out desperately.
"First Concubine! You must protect me! I only did everything you commanded!"
Directed at none other than the First Concubine.
"Wasn't it you, First Concubine, who proposed this arrangement to me over a decade ago!"
His voice was filled with such grievance, as though truth itself overflowed from every word.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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