Chapter 183: Artifice
Looking down on Geldaria Castle from a window in the castle.
People have already been looking at the sky for days
An anxious old man
A young man who is intrigued
A child throwing stones out of curiosity
A mother stopping it
Their gazes lead me to look at the sky again
"Prince John, the audience is ready."
The minister calls out from behind me.
"What about Mother?"
"She is on her way there. It will take some time."
"Then there's no need to run. Let's go."
"Ha"
While walking down the corridor, I am having a casual conversation with the ministers.
"You guys, the ship in the sky. What do you think?"
"I think it's a terrible piece of technology."
"We would like to show some kind of friendship."
That was the natural response.
A few days ago.
A ship suddenly appeared from the direction of the rising sun.
Not a ship that crosses the sea.
It was a ship in the sky.
It stopped a short distance from the city gates.
A group of unarmed men descended from inside.
And they requested an audience with the kingdom.
But the kingdom has its own pretexts.
Even with the fear of the unknown before us, there are political matters that must be given the highest priority.
Fortunately, they were a very attentive group.
They kept us on schedule for an audience.
"I hear they are a very lowly lot. They are very humble people! If we order them to do so, they will bow down and offer the ship, won't they?"
One of the ministers, Shemalua, said such a thing.
"What if we said something like that and offend them? Use your brain a little more."
"…I'm very sorry."
A royal guard opens the door to the audience chamber.
There were already 30 unfamiliar people standing in line.
They stand beside us facing the throne.
30 people
All of them were younger than me
Especially the one at the head of the line was more of a girl than a woman.
They did not move an inch when I appeared.
They don't talk to each other.
I could tell they had been well-trained.
"Her Majesty Queen Helmaris Salem Geldaria has arrived!"
After a while, Mother also came in
Everyone but me gets down on one knee
The young people did not hesitate at all.
Mother sits on the throne and starts talking
"Now, who are you guys? May I ask?"
The girl at the front of the line looks up
"Ha! Her Majesty Queen Geldaria, we are from Berdreich, a country that used to be north of here."
"What is your purpose? It can't be the invasion of Geldaria, can it?"
"Ha! Our purpose was to go south of Geldaria to the center of the continent. However, our airship was unexpectedly fragile and we had to land here."
"I see, so you're going to fly away from this land once the repair is done?"
"Yes, I do not intend to cause damage to the kingdom. I would like permission to rest for a while."
"Very well, do as you please. I will send a messenger to report the location to you at a later date. Be ready to fly at any time."
"Thank you very much!"
That's the end of the audience
Mother went back to her room to attend to political affairs
---------------------
"May I come in, Your Majesty?"
I hear a knock on the door from outside the room
"Who is it?"
"It's Shemalua"
"Come in"
Minister Shemalua enters the room.
"What do you want?"
"It's about the ship you were talking about earlier."
"...Do you want it?"
"Yeah"
I see
Minister Shemalua is such a person
He takes whatever he wants.
Money, power, jewels, authority, land, women
It's convenient for me, that's why I've been using him.
"I don't know what kind of strength they have. Will it go well?"
"No problem. Whatever their strength, we will capture all 30 or so of them."
"Failure is not an option. Cut them down without mercy."
"Please leave it to me."
Minister Shemalua then finished his report and left the room.
"………… Fufu"
Laughter comes out involuntarily
"I was surprised by the flying ship, but I'm sure we'll make good use of it."
My plan will be accelerated.
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