Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
The morning after the rain was particularly refres.h.i.+ng. The sun was not high yet but was warm and gentle.
The selected Dragon Scale horses, emitting silver grey brilliance, accommodated the proud knights to go to the Nekso Palace, galloping as gracefully as if dancing.
Behind them, Natasha accepted the tributes of her subjects with a gold crown and the 'Sword of Truth', followed by the nine dukes and other lower n.o.bles.
After they reached the Nekso Palace, the n.o.bles dispersed and went to the hall where the Parliament of n.o.bles was located, waiting for the queen to host her first meeting.
Natasha returned to the queen's house calmly and turned on a divine power circle, blocking the center of the Nekso Palace. Then, she took off her armor and changed into a black court dress under the help of Camil and two maids.
Hinting to the two maids to leave, Natasha finally revealed slight exhaustion. "That's a lot of pressure. I don't know who are my enemies, who are my friends, and who are supporters that I can win over. This place is too strange and depressing compared to Orvarit. I didn't even dare to speak when the divine power circle was not activated. Kritonia, 'Heart of Time', is the one responsible for the safety of the Nekso Palace and the entire Rentato."
It was obvious that she did not trust Kritonia.
"Actually, you don't need to come to inherit the throne. Holm is much more complicated than Orvarit. As an outsider who lacks concrete support, you can be involved in schemes and riots easily." Camil said a lot of things despite her usual coldness. "Whether you are inclined to the Congress of Magic, or the Church, or try to balance them, it will all be very troublesome."
Natasha said in a bitter smile, "I know it. Even if I collaborate with the Church to strike the Congress of Magic, disregarding Granny Hathaway and the royal family of Holm, it may still not be enough to resist the Congress. They are expanding to fast. In order to contain them, we need both Holm and the help from Brianne, Colette and Calais. Also, it will raise objections and even the revolt of the liberals, which may result in the division of the kingdom, turning Holm into ruins."
"If I'm inclined to balance, the Church will definitely urge me, and I will have to consider that the Violet family and my father are at places where the Church is most powerful."
"Why did you make such an unwise choice if you knew it so clearly?" Camil blamed her.
Natasha shook her head and said ruthlessly, "What excuse did I have? If I state that I'm unwilling to a.s.sist the Church, it would be a betrayal of faith that will be punished by the Holy City, and the Violet family will be weakened openly and clandestinely. Therefore, when I heard the news, I thought that I might go to Holm someday, but not now. However, my father suggested that I come and let me know my mother's regrets."
"Since I couldn't find an excuse, and the blood of Hoffenberg runs in my body, I might as well shoulder the responsibility of Holm. I do not wish to see a civil war in Holm that transforms my mother's beloved hometown into h.e.l.l. That's why I'm here."
"Besides, I am a devout believer, the leader of the Hoffenberg family and the Violet Countess. The Church should respect my will to some degree, just like before."
"Natasha, that was before. If the situation in Holm comes to a critical moment, the Church will never consider what you think but only ask you to sacrifice for the Lord." Camil found Natasha's plan too ideal.
Natasha smiled and said firmly, "If it is completely against my will, I would rather sacrifice myself. The Church cannot interfere with the power of the throne randomly. That's a deal the two parties reached before the Lord hundreds of years ago. If the Church violates it, they will be heretics and raise all n.o.bles' hostility."
Camil looked at Natasha and helped her clean her necklace. "What are you planning to do? What do you want Holm to become? What's your future direction?"
"Well, I don't know yet. I cannot make up my mind for now." Natasha was more or less confused.
Camil looked at her solemnly, "Then, you'd better figure it out fast. Whether you are to lean towards the Congress of Magic or the Church, or to maintain balance, you have to make a decision soon. That's the only way to make preparations in advance."
She was referring to the Duchy of Orvarit.
"I understand. The principles of my administration must be settled soon in order to issue laws and eliminate opposition. However, that needs a much deeper understanding about the situation in Holm. Now, the only thing certain is that even the most liberal n.o.ble is unwilling to be eliminated by the Church and even the most conservative n.o.ble wouldn't want to return to the dominance of the royal power hundreds of years ago. That is, not considering people like Gordon who are completely devoted to the Church. So, I should try to maintain balance for the time being." Natasha nodded.
Then, she turned around and looked at the mirror. Touching the emblem of the Hoffenberg family, she said to herself, "Before that, I need to figure out my faith. What is the Lord to me in my heart? What's the relation between the Lord and the Church? Only by seeing through myself can I make future plans, advance into level eight and draw the Sword of Truth. Also, it's hard to tell what Grand Cardinal Sard thinks and wants…"
She did not tell the Grand Duke or Camil about the shaking of her faith. Besides Lucien, only Fernando and Lucien guessed a little from the projection of Mountain Paradise that Francis summoned.
"Alright, it's time to go to the Parliament of n.o.bles." Camil opened the gate.
Natasha looked at the mirror again. When she saw the fear and sorrow of the beautiful purple-haired girl inside, she suddenly thought of something else, "After I become the queen of Holm, I cannot go to the magic tower to visit Granny Hathaway, or check his unique magic tower and the Atom Inst.i.tution that he mentioned a lot in Aalto. My every move will be interpreted by the malicious n.o.bles. If I do those two things, it will be a sign that I'm inclined to the Congress of Magic."
"It's impossible for them to visit me under Kritonia's watch… While we are closer in distance, we are actually further from each other."
"I hope his new encryption algorithm can protect our communication…"
In the hall of the Parliament of n.o.bles, Natasha stood on the podium and accepted the n.o.bles' tributes again. Then she said concisely: "Now, I'm going to announce two things. Firstly, the whole country will mourn for a month as my grandfather and my uncle's funeral is prepared. In the meantime, the meetings in the Parliament of n.o.bles will be suspended, and all the orders and policies needed will be proposed to me."
Now that the king and the prince had both been summoned by the Lord, it was reasonable of Natasha to propose such a request. Therefore, none of the n.o.bles had any objection.
Natasha went on, "Secondly, In light that I don't know much about the affairs of the kingdom yet, and based on my confidence in the policies that my grandfather and my uncle released, unless any unexpected and unprecedented event takes place, I will not approve any motion that changes current policies or ministers in the next six months. Please contribute to the prosperity of the kingdom just like before."
"What?" The n.o.bles exclaimed in shock.
Rex stood up and objected, "Your Majesty, there are many problems in the kingdom that need to be addressed in time. Isn't it too extreme that no motions will be approved?"
"Before my arrival, the kingdom has been growing prosperously thanks to the policies and the efforts of the ministers. Are they no longer applicable just because I am here? Will they turn from being helpful into poisonous in only six months?" Standing straight, Natasha asked back resolutely.
The n.o.bles, who were used to the old King Feltis and the weak Prince Patrick, suddenly felt a lot of pressure.
"No, that is not what I mean. I'm only implying that they may not reflect the current situation." Rex defended himself. He did not want to be marked as someone who slandered the late king.
Count Henson, as the Minister of Finance, was relieved. His post seemed safe now. Therefore, he stood up and argued with Rex, "Her Majesty made it clear that, if anything unexpected happens, say, a certain minister proves to be guilty of a crime, then she will certainly replace him. But until then, carrying on the previous policies and personnel will help the kingdom pa.s.s the shock caused by the demise of the king and the prince. I agree with the proposal."
The winners in the past felt more or less regretful that they couldn't earn more, but they could live with it since their interests were not jeopardized. Therefore, both the conservatives and the liberals seconded it. How could anyone in the Parliament of n.o.bles not be a winner in the past?
"One more thing. I will bequeath estates and properties to the ten knights who came with me from the treasury of the royal family. If there are no objections, this meeting will be over. Let's prepare for the funeral." Natasha looked at the n.o.bles.
It was not the n.o.bles' place to comment on how the money of the royal family was spent. Therefore, they rose and bid the queen farewell.
After they went out, Camil looked at Natasha carefully. "Well done. It was redundant of the Grand Duke to ask me to watch over you."
She believed that Natasha had been well trained as the Violet Countess in the past ten years.
Natasha smiled at the garden up ahead. "There are abundant population and material resources in the new alternate dimensions. They will be the focus of the Church and the Congress. Therefore, I followed someone's advice and did things by not doing anything first."
What she did not mention was the other focus of the Congress, which was the mysteries of 'fission' and 'fusion' that Fernando and Hathaway were working on from the legendary magic models Lucien provided including 'Eternal Blaze'. Lucien couldn't explain the experiment phenomena, as it was based on the discovery and research on the particles such as neutrons. Therefore, he simply ascribed them to Alterna, claiming that he constructed the models by the power of the Silver Moon and the feedback of the world. As a result, the two grand arcanists had to completely dedicate themselves to the research. But of course, since there were magic models, it was still much easier than aimless explorations.
In Allyn, Lucien stepped into the Atom Inst.i.tution.
After Fernando confirmed the existence of nucleus by blowing gold foil with hydrogen particles and Lucien found neutrons by blowing nitrogen with the same particles, establis.h.i.+ng his own alchemy system, the elemental sorcerers went crazy, and so did the sorcerers of other schools. More and more arcanists began to blow weird things with particles, hoping to find something. Therefore, Lucien saw quite a few more similar magic circles and alchemical devices in the Atom Inst.i.tution, like the electromagnetic cyclotron he 'invented'.
"Master, you're back? We were hoping to find you!" Katrina and Layria exclaimed in delight.
"What's up?" Judging from their faces, Lucien could tell that it was a good thing.
With a brilliant smile, Katrina said, "Master, we discovered an unusual phenomenon when we ran low-temperature experiments. When metals are lowered to a specific temperature, their electrical resistance will be gone!"
