Chapter 14
I quickly realized why Luxor was embarrassed.
Meetings were usually held in the ruler’s office. Customs varied a bit by country, but ordinarily no one could enter the king’s office at will. Even if you were lucky enough to be allowed in, you could not even sit down without the king’s permission — it was that stifling a place.
Besides, I had entered in the body of a direct member of the royal family. Even a small child could later become a rival, so of course they’d be on guard.
While I was thinking how to coax him, Luxor spoke first.
“Father is on his way to a finance meeting. Ria might find the talk boring and get nothing out of it — would that be all right?”
He was looking embarrassed because he thought I’d be bored? Not because he was keeping an eye on me?
…Apparently I’d been overestimating Luxor.
“It’s fine.”
“You must want to spend a lot of time with your father, then! Great. Let’s go together.”
Luxor beamed and took my hand as we headed to the office. As we went inside I slipped my hand free and scanned the nobles around the room.
The shabby and the flashy were mixed at about a two-to-eight ratio.
I catalogued the glossy faces of the flashy men in my head and stood beside Luxor.
‘These are the ones who’ve been siphoning off the treasury for generations.’
If I were the emperor, I wouldn’t have let them get away with it.
I took a deep breath to stop myself from throwing a tantrum, and felt my body lift. Surprised, I turned and saw Luxor’s face.
How could he let his daughter sit on his knee in a place with so many people! What a king without dignity!
I forced my lips closed to hold back the scolding and slid down from his knee.
“Why is that, Ria?”
One cannot sit on a peer’s knee. The emperor’s dignity is at stake, after all.
I shook my head and gestured to the servant.
The servant didn’t seem to understand and only blinked while pulling his head forward.
“A chair.”
“Oh — yes!”
The servant hurried off in an ungainly way and brought a child’s chair. I looked at the tiny, gaudily colored seat and forced a smile.
Don’t sigh. Don’t sigh.
I told myself that and sat in the small chair. Turning my head, I saw Luxor’s sulky face. He seemed hurt that his cherished youngest daughter refused to sit on his knee.
I didn’t care, so I motioned with my eyes for him to get on with the meeting.
One of the shabby attendants with Luxor announced the start of the meeting.
I watched, arms folded, when one man suddenly burst into tears.
“Your Majesty. Please postpone the tax payment deadline just a little longer.”
What kind of nonsense was that?
I turned toward the sound of the crying. I saw hair powdered so white it looked as if flour had been poured all over it; with maybe pearl dust sprinkled on top, it gleamed. His mustache had the tips curled up stylishly, and his eyebrows were neat. Ribbons and lace were crisply arranged, showing he’d put a lot of care into his attire.
Even without a crown he looked more king-like than Luxor — that said everything.
“Count Getelin. Didn’t we already postpone once?” one of the shabby men said in a flat voice. The flashy one, smartly, looked to the soft-hearted decision-maker, Luxor, and pleaded.
“My daughter fell ill… and the medicinal plants used are hard to find and very expensive; our family is on the brink of bankruptcy, Your Majesty.”
What nonsense. If he sold the stuff on his head, his family wouldn’t be bankrupt.
If I didn’t have to pretend to believe him, I wouldn’t fall for such an obvious lie…
“Is it really that bad? Well then. If a daughter is sick, that’s only natural!” Luxor said.
No way, Luxor.
I felt tension at the back of my neck and sighed inwardly, standing up from my seat. If I stayed any longer here I might either collapse from anger or throw the nearest vase and take down that flashy fellow.
But an emperor did not reveal his true feelings. I’d better hold it in.
‘Count Getelin, huh.’
I’d have to dig a little deeper. Find out how the power plays were shaped, whether Count Getelin had colluded with outside forces, that sort of thing. Should I sneak into his mansion? Recruit someone?
The thought of everything attached to that man made my head ache.
“Ria. Is your head hurting?” Luxor asked.
“Yes.”
“Father can’t just be working while Ria’s unwell.”
Whether his daughter was actually sick or not, the nation had to be governed. It was absurd for a king to have that attitude.
Luxor picked up my head and hugged me.
“Then we shall end the meeting here for today.”
As soon as he said that, the clerk announced the meeting’s end.
Really? They were just going to end it like that?
Before I could finish thinking ‘No way’, I was already being carried by Luxor down the corridor.
I came to my senses from the suddenness of it and freed myself from his arms. The moment my struggling feet hit the floor, a loud voice came from behind.
“Your Majesty!”
The shabby attendant who had escorted Luxor into the room earlier was running toward us.
“Chancellor, why are you running so? You’ll collapse from breathlessness.”
“Your Majesty, you can’t end the meeting like this.”
“But Ria—”
The attendant — no, the chancellor — glanced at me, then stepped close to Luxor.
“Look at the princess. She appears to be all right. She must have been bored and said that. Storming out of the meeting? Even if she were truly ill, the meeting should come first.”
He probably thought he was speaking quietly so the girl wouldn’t be hurt, but I overheard everything.
Still, he had a point. There are many others to look after a child, but no one else to govern the country if the ruler is absent.
I blinked, pretending not to hear, and focused on the two whispering.
“There really isn’t anything more to discuss, is there?”
“Of course there is! We still have the national debt to cover.”
So there was debt. Well, seeing how the palace looked, that wasn’t surprising.
“You also need to order an investigation into the cause of the fire.”
They hadn’t even investigated an incident that happened nearly two weeks ago?
I couldn’t help but look at Luxor. He, sensing perhaps that he’d overdone it, merely cleared his throat.
“Ahem. Er-hem!”
“Also, the money from selling the crystals from the chandeliers! I told you over and over not to touch that money!” the chancellor snapped.
“That was…,” Luxor began, avoiding the chancellor’s eyes.
Had he gambled it away? If so, I’d pull Luxor down and put Kinesia on the throne immediately.
And you’d be a dead man, Luxor. We’ll go to the afterlife together.
I glared, but what came from the chancellor’s mouth was something else entirely.
“Or have you been giving it out to the people?”
“It wasn’t a severe drought.”
“If you keep handing out money whenever disaster strikes, how can the palace be maintained?”
“But you can’t abandon the people.”
So that was why, when I went to the square, everyone looked so cheerful.
Well. He’s a good kid — but talentless and naive.
If he had some backbone, coldness, or a strong supporter behind him he could’ve become a sage-king like me. It’s a pity.
I clicked my tongue in pity. Luxor cleared his throat and whispered again.
“Anyway, it’s not something that will be solved by holding a meeting right now.”
“But, if you’re going to return from another country in front of the people, shouldn’t you do something so they’re not embarrassed?”
“That’s true, but…”
“You can solve the unpaid taxes immediately. You should push harder.”
“But the count said his daughter is sick.”
Oh, how frustrating!
It felt like shoving dry, stale toast down my throat. I gasped. The chancellor clutched his chest as if his ribs were broken — a futile, painful gesture. I pretended not to notice out of compassion for his meaningful sacrifice, and instead motioned for Luxor.
“Why is that, Ria?” the chancellor asked.
Luxor leaned down with a gentle expression. I seized the moment and grabbed his collar.
“If you were really worried your daughter was ill, would you have had time to dress like that? He put so much flour on his head he’d turn into bread if you put him in an oven!”
The chancellor and Luxor stared at me, eyes wide.
Regardless, I shook Luxor’s lapel back and forth, holding him tightly.
“Go get the money now!”
Luxor, flustered, set me down.
“But, Ria—”
“Go! Aren’t you going?”
Holding back the urge to kick him out, I shouted. Luxor’s face froze in shock. The chancellor gave Luxor a look and then pulled the king along, giving me a nod that probably meant ‘thank you for your trouble,’ before turning away.
‘I was hoping to fix Luxor a bit and make use of him, but that won’t work. No hope.’
Focus on Kinesia.
Resolute, I went straight to Kinesia’s room and threw the door open.
