ATIRPBT 108

CHAPTER 108…………….

I stared at Jester in surprise.

“You… you’re going to give me all of this…?”

“Yes, if that’s what you want.”

The tempting offer made me pause to think.

Solia fruit.

A plant native to the Dark Forest, extremely sensitive to light.

However, with the help of a wizard to cast preservation magic, the fruit could be stored even in sunlight, not necessarily in darkness.

What made this fruit special wasn’t just that it grew in the Dark Forest.

For elderly people with weak joints, there was no better remedy than Solia fruit.

And it also aids in “expulsion.”

By expulsion, I meant the removal of harmful toxins when consumed by humans.

This was also a discovery by Orca Sorcier.

While treating Yevgeny, he had found the Solia fruit in the Dark Forest.

Through his research, he had revealed to the world that this fruit was extremely effective at expelling toxic substances.

The magic tower kept this knowledge to themselves back then.

At the time, relations between the magic tower and the royal family were strained.

And Adix Lordbridge was involved.

As long as his eyes were bloodshot, there was no way he’d ignore such a valuable remedy being left for the royal family.

Unsurprisingly, Orca later got thoroughly scolded by Adix.

“It’s good if I get it…”

It seemed the Empress had someone mix a large amount of “Necros” into the medicine.

Necros, true to its name, meant “corpse.” The plant itself was famous for its beauty.

But once its leaves were removed, they decayed rapidly—within a minute, they would rot entirely.

Necros was also classified as a poison, not an herb.

Though not seriously harmful by itself… when combined with Nocturne, as I had heard earlier, dark red spots appeared all over the body.

Additionally, the patient’s temperature would spike continuously, leading to uncontrollable body tremors and eventually seizures.

I quickly instructed Jester to transfer the medicine.

“Where should I move it to?”

“Hmm…”

I thought for a moment, then suddenly had a brilliant idea.

“――Move it to … there.”

“Got it.”

Jester snapped his fingers.

The warehouse, once full of Solia fruit, emptied in an instant. I chuckled mischievously.

“Oh, and could you also provide some stationery? If someone suddenly discovers a large shipment of Solia fruit moved to my residence, they’d faint.”

“Sure.”

Jester conjured paper and a pen in midair and handed them to me. I quickly scribbled a letter and smiled.

“Will this call a meeting, I wonder?”

6:00 PM.

The sixth council meeting was convened.

The Emperor’s children, each accompanied by nobles with voting rights, gathered at the top of the council tower.

Next to me was Robin Iolin, sweating nervously as he glanced at me.

He spoke cautiously.

“Um… are you alright?”

“Yes?”

I looked at the Marquess Iolin. He smiled wryly and wiped his sweat with a handkerchief.

“My wife… instructed me to check on Your Highness immediately upon entering the palace. She feared you might be distressed… But fortunately, you appear very composed.”

“Of course.”

I smiled and nodded at his words. He followed with a smile and returned his gaze forward.

“Marquess, you trust me, right?”

“Of course.”

Unlike before, he nodded firmly with trust.

As we exchanged glances, smiling faintly, the announcement came.

“Your Majesties have arrived.”

“His Holiness Pope Maridris Michael is present.”

The Empress and Emperor arrived at the top of the council tower.

The three central council nobles followed, entering after them.

Even Pope Maridris entered with a relaxed expression, and only then did the council doors close.

“Ah, we see Your Highnesses.”

“May the blessings of the goddess Aeliridium reach you.”

The nobles bowed.

However, the center of their attention, the hot topic of the moment, was on me.

They subtly raised their lips and returned to their seats. Dmitri furrowed his brows.

Seeing the council and then me composed, he clicked his tongue but quickly composed himself, rising slowly to greet the Emperor and Empress.

“I, Dmitri Epsilon Caliburg, pay respects to Your Majesties.”

“May the blessings of the goddess Aeliridium reach you.”

“――May they reach you.”

The remaining three completed their greetings. The Emperor raised one hand, gesturing, “Sit,” and we returned to our seats.

For a moment, it felt as though our eyes met.

Just my imagination?

He seemed to look at the agenda before him, as if he hadn’t seen me.

It was my imagination.

The council quickly began the meeting. Expressions stiffened immediately.

Count Robon spoke first.

“The first aptitude test will be conducted tomorrow at 3 PM. Participants should teleport to the temple two hours prior.”

“The main voting will begin five days after the first aptitude test.”

“Any objections?”

Those with voting rights, including me, remained silent. A sign of agreement.

“May we ask questions?”

Count Robon smiled at us four.

“What kind of questions?”

Yevgeny spoke up. Robon cleared his throat.

“These questions pertain to your accomplishments. Please inform the attendees of what you have done for the Empire.”

He glanced at the Pope. It was clearly self-promotion time.

No matter the public support, the temple’s word, especially the Pope’s, could sway the people.

Yevgeny quickly spoke.

“I invested in orphanages and ships operated by Count Amelie. I aimed to ensure smooth supply lines for small merchants and to support regions outside the temple’s reach.”

“I assisted in suppressing bandits and monsters in Molbven, Siteri, Norit, and surrounding territories.”

Yevgeny and Isabel proudly stated their accomplishments.

The nobles with voting rights straightened their posture.

Having heard their answers, attention naturally shifted to Dmitri and me, the only ones who hadn’t spoken.

We remained silent.

Dmitri had too much on his plate already, handling petitions for the Emperor daily.

He had no particular interest in this matter. The only one without accompanying voting nobles was Dmitri.

The Crown Prince is popular enough with the people.

He doesn’t need to exert himself.

Then that leaves only me, the First Princess.

The council’s and nobles’ eyes subtly slid toward me and Marquess Iolin.

Then:

“Your Highness Princess… it seems you have shown no particular initiative.”

Navia, the last council noble, narrowed his eyes at my calm demeanor.

“My personal opinion: does Your Highness have no interest in being selected to light the signal fires?”

“Eh? No? Of course not.”

I smiled innocently, denying his claim. The nobles stirred slightly.

Count Robon spoke with a sharp tone.

“Then why have neither the Second Prince nor the Second Princess shown any action? If it’s due to pressure or public attention, you may step back comfortably. No one here will blame you.”

Many would be thrilled to see me pressured instead.

I refused to let that happen.

Robon smirked and subtly exchanged glances with the Empress, his gaze sliding toward me.

“Public opinion is not favorable. Do you know how the Empire currently addresses Your Highness Princess?”

Thud!

Everyone flinched, turning toward the sound.

The Emperor, second in rank only to the Pope, narrowed his eyes and growled lowly.

“Enough. What is this to a newly come-of-age girl, Count Robon?”

“Ah, no. I merely informed Your Highness of the current situation. Your reaction seems unaware…”

“Mind your tone. Correct it.”

“…Understood.”

Count Robon reluctantly nodded. I returned my gaze to him.

“So?”

“Eh?”

“I thought you intended to explain the current public sentiment to me? Go on.”

“….”

Hah.

The Empress quietly chuckled, undoubtedly viewing me as a struggling worm.

I’d rather be the one laughing at her.

Count Robon explained, veins bulging, the current state of public sentiment toward me.

“Oh! Is that so!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“I didn’t know~.”

I smiled broadly. Robon clenched his teeth. I tilted my head innocently.

“But it’s strange. I developed this medicine about eight years ago, right? And now side effects appear—what could have caused this?”

“….”

“Count, you find it strange too, don’t you?”

“…Well…”

Ahem. Count Robon cleared his throat.

There was only one person capable of such scheming here.

The Empress’s face reddened slightly. Yevgeny glared and gritted his teeth.

I clapped my hands to end the discussion.

“Enough with this topic! Isn’t it a sensitive issue? Besides, I had prepared for it.”

“Prepared?”

The Empress’s eyes widened. Realizing her mistake, she pursed her lips.

I smiled at her.

“When developing a medicine, shouldn’t one consider various scenarios? I researched the effects of combining it with different poisons in advance. And judging by the side effects, it seems Necros was used, right?”

“…!”

“So, instead of acting myself, I…”

I looked at Marquess Iolin beside me. He smiled confidently after meeting my gaze.

“Using the magical tool given by Your Highness, I explained the situation to his son, Jester Asa Lordbridge. Jester and Your Highness are close, so he succeeded in finding materials to alleviate the side effects.”

“Yes, that’s what happened. No need to worry! Count Robon supporting me in this way—how touching!”

I employed the tact learned from Emin to utterly fluster the others.

“Ha, ha ha.”

The remaining nobles tapped Robon’s shoulder sympathetically, which only embarrassed him more.

The Empress’s expression changed constantly: from smirk, to sympathy, to humiliation.

Yevgeny seemed frozen, alternating his gaze between me and the Empress.

“Pfft… Hahaha! As expected. Isn’t this why I recommended her? Brilliant, First Princess. Planning for multiple contingencies—most impressive.”

Even Pope Maridris’s support added to it!

I laughed wickedly inside, speaking in an innocent voice.

“So, is today’s meeting concluded? I need to send Marquess Iolin to deliver the antidote quickly.”

“No need to worry. My people are already distributing it.”

“Goodness~ Marquess Iolin is truly swift!”