"This, this is an unexpected greeting from His Majesty, the King of the Yellenetta Kingdom himself... I'm humbled."
Panamera said with a smile, bowing elegantly. It was a very graceful ceremonial bow, but seeing Panamera's expression, the people around us flinched.
It was a sharp remark, but the King of Yellenetta didn't seem fazed, simply nodding.
The King was a small, thin elderly man, but his gaze held a strange intensity.
"My Yellenetta Kingdom has become a vassal state of the Scuderia Kingdom. That is the truth... but—"
The King of Yellenetta calmly murmured this, then paused for a moment before raising his head.
"Even as a vassal state, I am still the King of the great Yellenetta Kingdom, Erhart Asbach Yellenetta. Although I am a noble under the suzerain country, I will not tolerate being treated lightly."
Erhart declared his name, showing the dignity of a king, and the surrounding royals and nobles let out admiring sounds. Panamera, too, seemed impressed.
She lifted one corner of her mouth, her smile turning ferocious.
"This is an unpleasant surprise... But I'm glad to see His Majesty’s fangs are still sharp. It wouldn't be fun otherwise."
She said this, then glanced around at everyone present. Her gaze was so intense that more than half of them looked away, as if blinded by high beams.
I felt like I was in the middle of a mafia turf war. What is this tense atmosphere? If Dee and Kamshin weren’t here, I’d probably have peed myself. But since I’m only ten, it’s fine, right?
As I thought about this, Erhart suddenly turned his gaze to me.
"...Viscount Van, I also ask for your cooperation."
"Ah, please, take it easy on me!"
I responded with a crisp greeting, proud of myself for being so composed.
"...This child?"
"The Devil of Scuderia, huh..."
"Don’t be deceived by his appearance."
I overheard these hushed, ominous conversations. Wait a minute—did they just say what I think they said!?
Who’s the devil? Who? The beautiful, delicate genius boy Van-sama is not a devil! I almost want to interrogate them about it. As I pouted in anger and glared at the adults, Panamera couldn’t hold back her laughter and shook her shoulders, chuckling.
"I’ve been given some strange nicknames too, but now you’ve joined the club, haven’t you, boy? Should I call you ‘Devil Boy’ from now on?"
"Absolutely not. In every sense, no. I’ll get mad if you call me that."
I firmly set my boundaries. I really don’t want to end up apologizing to anyone for a ridiculous title like that.
Maybe because I was so firm, Panamera looked at me with wide eyes, clearly surprised.
"Well, well, don’t be so angry. I forgot—Van-sama doesn’t want to rise through military exploits. My bad."
Panamera apologized with a wry smile. I wasn’t really angry, but I did feel a rare sense of mental superiority over Panamera.
"Well, if you apologize, I’ll forgive you."
"Oh, thank goodness."
I acted as though I were the one accepting an apology, and Panamera responded with a laugh.
The royals and nobles of the Yellenetta Kingdom, who had been watching, exchanged glances and began to speak in low voices again.
"...The Count just apologized to the Viscount in public."
"It seems we shouldn’t be deceived by his appearance..."
"...So that’s the Devil of Scuderia, huh..."
"I really wish you’d stop calling me that!?"
I couldn’t help but complain when I overheard them muttering about the "Devil" again. At that, the nobles who had been whispering behind me quickly bowed their heads.
"My apologies."
"Forgive us for the rudeness..."
"We ask for your forgiveness."
The adults apologized, and seeing their pitiful figures, I couldn’t help but feel bad and accepted their apologies.
"...I’ll accept it this time. But honestly, what makes me a devil? Do I look like a devil to you?"
I put my hands on my hips and asked, and in response, Erhart, representing them, gave a wry smile and spoke.
"Ah, our subjects are to blame. Ever since we acquired firearms and black powder, many of us, including myself, became overconfident in our country’s power. We never imagined that our kingdom could lose. Then, suddenly, this young noble appeared with strange tactics and broke through head-on... This is a major incident not just for our kingdom, but for the surrounding nations as well. The nickname ‘Devil’ may be a bit ominous, but it’s because you were seen as such a formidable threat."
"...Hmph."
I couldn’t help but voice my dissatisfaction with his unsatisfactory excuse. Seeing me, Erhart couldn’t help but smile wryly.
"Well, I hope you can at least take it as something without ill will."
"...Understood. I’ll accept your apology."
When the King spoke, I had no choice but to agree. I accepted Erhart’s apology with the proper attitude.
...Wait a minute. Why does it feel like I’m the most important person here?
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