[Berlineto]
Last night, there were guests, and I ended up staying awake quite late. Because of that, I had told everyone not to let anyone into my room this morning…
"Your Majesty, I apologize for the early intrusion."
I heard a knock on the bedroom door, followed by a man's voice. Normally, this would be the duty of the servant, but the voice clearly belonged to a middle-aged man. Though I couldn’t tell for certain through the door, it certainly didn’t sound like a servant.
In cases like this, it often means there’s an important report to deliver. I suppressed the urge to complain and quickly donned my cloak before turning to the door.
"It’s open. Come in."
With permission granted, the door opened from the outside. There stood Chancellor Apelta. He looked at me, narrowing his eyes with an expression that seemed both exasperated and amused.
"Oh, Your Majesty. Are you truly just waking up? I thought quite a bit of time had passed since sunrise, but your hair is still quite disheveled..."
"I don’t want to hear your sarcasm this early. What happened?"
I snorted in irritation at Apelta's cheerful demeanor and asked what he needed. In response, Apelta furrowed his brows in displeasure and sighed.
"This morning, we received a request for an audience from Count Panamera, as an envoy of the Marquis Rosso’s household... But more importantly..."
"An envoy of Marquis Rosso’s household, Count Panamera? I don’t understand, but is there something more?"
When I asked him again, Apelta’s expression changed completely, and he nodded with a look as if he had found some toy to play with.
"Would you like to hear it?"
"Speak quickly, quickly."
Seeing me getting impatient, Apelta delightedly shrugged his shoulders. Who was the fool that made this man the chancellor?
"A mysterious ship suddenly appeared on the coast of the capital."
"A ship...? Drifted here? It must be a remarkably lucky person."
Rarely, a fisherman’s small boat may be blown off course. In such cases, it sometimes washes ashore in the southern regions of this area. Usually, the passengers are dead, but could it be that someone survived?
That was my guess, but Apelta looked at me with disappointment.
"Your Majesty. Has age dulled your instincts? How pitiful."
"I’ll punch you, you bastard."
I couldn’t help but express my frustration. Apelta, in response, laughed aloud.
"Oh, Your Majesty. You’ve suddenly become so youthful. It’s good to hear such an old voice again; today has become quite a pleasant one. Hahaha!"
As he laughed, Apelta tried to leave the room.
"Talk about the ship! The ship!"
I inadvertently stomped my foot hard and shouted. What’s going on with Apelta today? He’s more troublesome than usual. This is beyond an act of disrespect—it’s an insult to the royal family. Should I have Apelta work without holidays for a year?
Seeing the angry king, Apelta, with a carefree attitude, opened his mouth.
"Oh, I forgot. The ship appeared this morning on the coast and is already docked. The ship’s size is unlike anything I’ve ever seen; it’s probably close to a hundred meters in length."
"A hundred...!? Could it be the same ship that appeared in the Marquis Rosso’s territory, the large ship!?"
Hearing Apelta’s report, genuine anger started to bubble up. Why is he reporting such an important matter with that attitude? The reports from Marquis Rosso had come three times so far: the first was about a large ship anchoring in the nearby waters; the second, a messenger from that large ship; and the third, concerning an unknown maritime nation. I had instructed him to investigate this matter carefully, but to think a large ship would appear in the capital…
"Why are you so calm? Has the crew disembarked from the ship?"
I asked in a low voice, and Apelta crossed his arms, seemingly trying to recall something. Then, he suddenly had an epiphany and opened his mouth.
"Ah, now that you mention it… there was a report from the knight scouts saying they saw Van Viscount’s figure on the deck of the mysterious ship. Since it was a report from the scouts, the credibility is high."
"Van Viscount!? Oh, I see now! The story of the mysterious ship appearing in the Marquis Rosso’s domain—perhaps Van Viscount is involved! I can’t wait any longer! I’m heading straight to the ship!"
As I said this, I stepped out into the hallway and called out to the attendants waiting outside.
"Prepare immediately! We’re leaving right away!"
"Y-Yes!"
The maids hurried into the room and began preparing my clothes. Glancing at Apelta, I saw him turning around with a wicked grin on his face.
"Then, I’ll go ahead and conduct the reconnaissance of the ship."
"W-What!? You cheat, Apelta!"
"No, no, I’ll make sure it’s safe first, and Your Majesty can come at your leisure. Hahaha!"
Apelta’s loud laughter echoed through the hallway as he quickly left the room. What a guy. Who was the fool who gave him such an important position as chancellor?
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