Two days ago—at House Eldran’s secondary residence in the royal capital.
The carriage carrying Vain Razgrim disappeared beyond the gates.
Galvas Eldran, watching from a second-story window, stroked his white beard and snorted.
Despite coming to seek support, the boy hadn't even attempted to play the sycophant; instead, he had the audacity to call the Duke a stubborn old man to his face. Furthermore, despite receiving no confirmation that his request had been granted, there wasn't even a hint of disappointment in the young man's posture as he left.
Usually, a young noble would bow low and scan Galvas's face for any sign of approval the moment they heard the name of House Eldran. That youngster, however, only truly threw away his reservations after confirming several times that he would not be punished for his bluntness. It was impossible to say whether the man simply lacked manners or was incredibly cautious.
“Your Grace. Was this wise?”
An old retainer standing behind him turned his gaze toward the gate.
“In what regard?”
“Entrusting Lady Lydia and a hundred soldiers to Count Razgrim. If the goal was merely to investigate the domain, sending a single subordinate would have sufficed.”
Galvas didn’t answer. He returned to his desk, where two letters sealed with royal wax were laid out. One was from the Second Princess, Alecia, and the other was from the First Prince, Regnard.
Alecia’s letter detailed the tax and military reforms she intended to implement after taking the throne, and how she hoped for the strength of House Eldran to assist in that endeavor. At the end, she added that she would respect his judgment even if he chose not to support her.
“Not bad. However, anyone can be a magnificent ruler on paper.”
Next, he opened Regnard’s letter.
It spoke of wishing for a harmonious relationship between the royal family and the Western Lords. It expressed a desire for the highway and commerce stretching from the Granary Region to the royal capital to continue without hindrance—it was filled with nothing but mild, diplomatic words.
If Galvas didn’t support the Prince, his path would be narrowed and his trade halted. It wasn’t written in so many words, but there was no other way to interpret the subtext.
Galvas tossed the letter onto his desk.
“...That shitty prince.”
“Your Grace. As words directed toward royalty, that is a bit—”
“I wouldn’t say it to his face. Does he think that threatening me with polite words makes his actions any less base?”
“Then, you will not be supporting His Highness the First Prince?”
“I never had any intention of entrusting the soldiers of the West to such a man. However, the throne is not so light a matter that I would choose his sister as Queen simply because I dislike that shitty prince.”
Galvas tucked Alecia’s letter into a drawer and placed the paper Vain had left on top of it.
Is pretending to be neutral not just a way to flee from responsibility?—those were not words one typically wrote to a Duke upon their first meeting. Galvas had been annoyed, but for the first time in a long while, he also found a person genuinely interesting.
“Was the reason you sent Lady Lydia to test Count Razgrim?”
“I have three objectives. To confirm the state of the domain that was said to be in ruins. To see how a youngster handles having a hundred soldiers forced upon him. And finally, to show that man to my daughter.”
“For Lady Lydia’s sake?”
“At eighteen, there are few her age who can match her with a sword or a horse. She is quick to learn how to move troops. That is precisely why she is in a precarious position.”
Lydia followed the rules and was strict with both herself and others. While she possessed rare qualities for a commander, she was poor at bending once she decided something was "right." If her opponent lacked etiquette, she would go as far as to doubt the quality of their work. In all these aspects, she closely resembled Galvas in his youth.
“Straight trees make for a fine sight, but a tree that cannot bend will snap in a gale. She must be shown a human being who does not move according to military manuals.”
“And you chose Count Razgrim for that role?”
“He has no manners, and he has a foul mouth. He speaks of nothing but money and contracts, and he doesn't know how to curry favor... If left alone, he will only create unnecessary enemies.”
“That makes him sound even less suited for the task...”
“Having flaws and lacking caliber are two different things.”
Galvas turned his eyes toward the window.
“He purged his corrupt vassals, took in those discarded by other houses, and created a place where those people could work. He didn't bind them by family status or fear... He is an extraordinary talent capable of moving people. His appearance and behavior are the worst, but as someone to show my daughter, there is no one better.”
“It is rare for Your Grace to speak so highly of a young man.”
“I am simply stating facts.”
“It sounds quite a bit like you’ve taken a liking to him.”
“You must have misheard.”
As he answered, the corners of Galvas’s mouth turned up slightly.
◇
Early morning on the day of the Royal Selection.
Having ridden her horse through the night, Lydia entered her father’s office still in her traveling clothes. Morning dew clung to her silver hair, and her cheeks were slightly flushed from the cold. Despite that, her posture remained perfectly straight.
“I have summarized the findings from the Razgrim domain. I have left the hundred soldiers with my lieutenant and ordered them to continue their surveillance until your next command arrives, Father.”
In the report, she had recorded exactly what she had seen.
He had placed the Duke’s soldiers in the same barracks as his own men and provided them with the same meals. Even on the day before the Royal Selection, he did not stop the work in his domain, personally touring the damp barracks and the road leading to the new domain. The people of the estate did not follow him out of fear; they continued their contracts of their own free will.
All of it differed from the ill rumors she had heard in the royal capital.
However, that didn't mean she had come to like Vain. Because of that, she had written in bold characters—so they wouldn't be accidentally overlooked—that he desired a life of decadence and that he looked at women's faces when hiring them.
Galvas, reading the report, stopped at that section.
“You seem to have put quite a lot of strength into your brush here.”
“...It is an important fact.”
“I don't see how it's more important than the domain's income and expenditures.”
“The Count himself admitted it without a hint of shame. If I omitted it, I would be distorting the facts.”
Her father snorted as if exasperated and closed the report.
“So, how did you see that youngster?”
“I detest him. I cannot forgive the way he speaks to you, Father... He lacks too many things as a noble, and I find it unpleasant how his mood only improves when the topic turns to money.”
“I am not asking about your likes or dislikes. How was he as a lord?”
Lydia couldn't answer immediately.
She had to separate her personal feelings from the facts she had seen with her own eyes. She couldn't ignore the fact that Raisa had stayed behind with a smile, that the soldiers of House Eldran had eaten their fill of meat, and that not a single person in the mansion feared Vain.
“...He was fulfilling his duties as a lord. The reason he provided meals to the soldiers was not to curry favor with House Eldran. He did not look down on his people or subordinates, and those in the mansion remain of their own volition. At the very least, he was not a man who should be judged by rumors alone.”
“I see, I see... It seems my assessment wasn't off.”
“Did you trust him that much from the beginning?”
“I entrusted my daughter and a hundred soldiers to him. If I had any doubts about my own eyes, I wouldn't have pulled such a stunt.”
With those words, she finally realized.
“Then, sending me wasn't just for surveillance, was it?”
“I tested both the lord and my daughter at the same time. What is wrong with that?”
“Everything is wrong with it! I am already eighteen. To send me to someone else's domain without telling me anything, as if I were a child—”
“Do not raise your voice... Maintain the decorum of a Duke’s daughter.”
“You are the one saying that to me, Father?!”
As they glared at each other across the desk, the old retainer by the wall quietly averted his eyes.
“Someday, you will be entrusted with the soldiers of House Eldran. At that time, if you measure a person’s work by your likes or dislikes, the ones who will die won’t be you, but your subordinates. It is fine to dislike those who lack etiquette. But do not let your dislike cause you to overlook their righteous deeds.”
“...I did not give a low report of the Count’s work.”
“That is good. Before you were sent to the domain, you only thought you understood.”
“Father...!”
“Besides, I can't just leave that youngster be... Even though he has the caliber to move people, he lacks both etiquette and the social grace needed for the capital. At this rate, he’ll create even more unnecessary enemies. I’ll have to personally mentor him on various matters.”
Lydia stared intently at her father’s face.
“You really have taken a liking to Count Razgrim, haven't you?”
“Why would you think that?”
“Because no one goes out of their way to worry about and teach someone they dislike.”
“It isn't mentoring. As an elder, I am simply correcting him so he doesn't stray from the path.”
“Isn't that what they call looking after someone?”
“An eighteen-year-old daughter shouldn't talk back to her father... Now, go prepare. We are heading to the royal palace.”
“You’ve evaded the question again, haven't you?”
“The young shouldn't interrogate their elders.”
Her father’s mood had improved ever so slightly as he stood up. Knowing that pursuing the matter would only lead to a long lecture, Lydia didn't say anything more.
◇
Inside the carriage heading toward the royal palace, Lydia asked once more.
“I understand that Count Razgrim is more than just talk. So, will you be supporting Her Highness the Second Princess?”
“I haven't decided yet. The one becoming King isn't that youngster; it's the Princess.”
“What exactly do you intend to see?”
“How she behaves when she is betrayed by the person she trusted.”
Members of the First Prince faction had been seen entering and leaving House Dalgren’s estate multiple times. It seemed they held some sort of leverage regarding the heir, but the specific details hadn't been uncovered. Even so, there was a high possibility that the Marquis would betray Alecia in today’s Royal Selection.
Would she lash out in anger? Would she hint at punishments after becoming Queen? Or would she show her wounded self to garner sympathy from those around her?
What Galvas wanted to see wasn't a ruler who remained unmoved no matter what was done to them.
It was this—when they were dealt pain, to whom would they return that pain?
◇
“Duke Eldran! If you cannot name the person you support, shall we assume House Eldran remains neutral?”
At the Old Prime Minister’s voice, Galvas returned his consciousness to the present.
Alecia, who had just been betrayed, stood in the center of the hall. Her complexion was poor, and her voice was raspy. She couldn't entirely hide the pain of being turned upon by someone she had trusted.
Even so, she did not curse Marquis Dalgren. She didn't demand he provide a reason, nor did she try to weaponize her own wounds to gain sympathy.
If it were just the words written in her letter, he still wouldn't have believed in her.
She had personally visited a house that had distanced itself, she hadn't blamed the man who returned, and in the end, she had even absorbed the betrayal of the one she believed in. Having seen this much, it was enough.
Being hurt is not weakness.
Refusing to pass that pain onto others after being hurt—that is the strength required of those who lead.
Galvas turned his eyes toward Lydia beside him.
“Your report was somewhat useful.”
“Somewhat? I rode my horse through the night to return, you know...”
“When you are praised, accept it in silence.”
“The way you give praise, Father, is just as irritating as Count Razgrim.”
“Do not lump me in with that youngster.”
Handing his gloves to Lydia, Galvas Eldran rose from his chair.
Every gaze in the hall converged on him at once.
“Well... Sorry to have kept you waiting. I am not neutral.”
His deep voice reached every corner of the royal palace.
“House Eldran supports Her Highness, Alecia Valsein, as the next ruler.”