Chapter 1.0
“This is unacceptable. A bastard from Jenaire’s royal family, no less, as Crown Princess?!”
“She’s a lowborn who grew up in Jenaire’s imperial palace. How can they send such a person as a so-called gift…!”
Angry shouts broke out from all corners.
The Emperor of Lezan frowned as if he had a headache, and the Crown Prince’s face looked more serious than ever.
“Your Majesty, send their envoy’s head back to them. We must not fall for their scheme!”
“This is not something to react emotionally to, Count.”
“Lord Ardin, are you saying we should just sit back and let them disgrace Lezan?”
Late at night, a secret roundtable meeting had already dragged on for two hours with no end in sight. Opinions were fiercely divided.
Would they accept the outrageous demand of their enemy, or reject it and prepare for war?
The great northern empire of Lezan, the “Sun of the Northeast,” had only just been defeated by the rising Holy Empire of Jenaire last year, in midsummer of Lezan Imperial Year 1132.
After seven long years of war, Jenaire had taken control of the fertile southeastern farmlands from Lezan.
They also successfully established many colonies in the western continent, transforming themselves from a kingdom into an empire.
Jenaire’s prestige was growing by the day. Bold and arrogant, they showed off their power across the continent without hesitation.
After subduing nearly all of Lezan’s allied nations, Jenaire finally managed to receive a letter from the Lezan Emperor requesting a ceasefire.
And they found a way to humiliate the once mighty empire.
Marriage.
They proposed a marriage between a member of Jenaire’s royal family and the Crown Prince of Lezan.
But if that was all, today’s meeting wouldn’t have become so heated.
“She’s the daughter of the Second Princess’s affair. She doesn’t even have the royal surname!”
Yes. The “royal” member Jenaire was sending was a bastard. A girl born from an affair between the Second Princess and a wandering shaman of unknown origin.
Asking them to accept her as the Crown Princess was the same as demanding she become the future Empress of Lezan.
In the long run, it meant mixing the royal bloodline with the blood of some vagrant.
It was an utterly insulting proposal. The proud Lezan imperial family and nobility could never accept it easily.
“We can’t keep sacrificing our treasury and innocent youths for this war.”
“And you think giving in now will satisfy Jenaire? I guarantee it won’t. What they really want is Lezan itself!”
The meeting became increasingly heated.
Though no one dared storm out in front of the Emperor, they all raised their voices, faces red with fury.
Even the Emperor could not make a quick decision. He just sighed over and over.
One man watched the entire scene silently.
He was sitting directly across from the Emperor’s golden throne.
Tightly fitted shirt and vest outlined his solid muscles, exuding masculinity.
His movement as he picked up his teacup was incredibly straight yet graceful. Not a trace of emotion could be seen on his noble face.
The first to notice that this man — who held the second-greatest influence after the imperial family — hadn’t said a word, was the Crown Prince.
“Duke Eleanor.”
The man, quietly sipping tea and observing the situation, lifted his gaze. His eyes were a vivid green.
“What do you think about this matter?”
“Yes, Your Grace, please say something too!”
Count Irope, out of breath from his heated speech, turned toward him.
“…Well.”
A polite smile appeared on the man’s face.
“I was just thinking this is becoming a rather wasteful debate.”
The Emperor widened his eyes. Others turned their attention to the man in growing surprise.
He spoke in a calm and even voice.
“They requested that the bastard be allowed to marry ‘the most noble and radiant person in Lezan.’ They never said it must be the Crown Prince.”
That was true. But there was only one person of marriageable age in the royal family who could be described as “radiant as the sun.”
It was clearly referring to the Crown Prince.
But…
Was it only the Crown Prince?
A shared thought flashed through everyone seated at the roundtable.
The Crown Prince wasn’t the only heir to the throne here.
There was also the ruler of Lezan’s north and the vast western wilderness.
The King of the Duchy of Eleanor.
Lezan’s war hero.
Second in line to the throne.
The man who held all these titles was sitting right there. A silent realization spread across the roundtable. The vague wording of the letter now made sense — it was intentional.
Eleanor was the only allied nation that Jenaire had failed to conquer. Lezan had avoided losing its capital largely thanks to Eleanor’s support. If there was any nation Jenaire feared, it was Eleanor.
So if the bastard were to marry the Duke — it would mean they were willing to accept that match.
“I will take Jenaire’s royal bastard as Duchess of Eleanor.”
His slow but firm voice filled the now-silent room.
“…That bastard was surely raised to prioritize marrying the Crown Prince,” the Emperor said, his voice trembling.
But the Duke answered without hesitation, as if that didn’t matter.
“Then I’ll make her choose me instead.”
“…”
“By whatever means necessary.”
His voice was neither loud nor harsh, yet it held overwhelming force.
Color returned to the Emperor’s face. If Eleanor supported this plan, the Emperor had no reason to refuse.
But the Crown Prince still couldn’t accept the Duke’s proposal easily.
“Your Grace, what do you mean by ‘whatever means’?”
“There’s no need to worry! He is the leader of Eleanor, after all!”
Marquis Luchez jumped in with excitement.
“A palace-like mansion, hundreds of servants, grand feasts every day, immense wealth. Eleanor would offer more luxury than that girl has ever known. If we persuade her well…”
“If that’s the case…”
But the Marquis’s voice trailed off. He realized the flaw in his own logic.
Lezan’s capital was filled with material wealth as well. Whether Lezan or Eleanor was richer probably didn’t matter much to the girl.
“Uh… then how…”
Not only the Marquis, but every noble around the table began to glance at the Duke.
“As the Marquis said, it won’t be difficult.”
The man tapped the table rhythmically with his long index finger, then smiled like a painting.
“Just tell her this — I will treat you like a human being.”
Despite his relaxed posture across from the Emperor, no one dared criticize him.
Everyone held their breath to hear the Duke’s voice.
“A noble or royal bastard is seen as worse than a worm. Something to be crushed before it sprouts. A disgrace to the family and the nation. That girl has probably never once been treated as a human in Jenaire.”
Only the Crown Prince noticed the flash of light in the Duke’s eyes when he said “bastard.”
A sharp hostility sparkled in those green eyes, then vanished without a trace.
“So a few words will be enough. Eleanor is different from Lezan and Jenaire.”
“I — and my nation — will treat you as a person.”
“…”
“I will love you as a person.”
The smile that had been on the Duke’s face had disappeared. His final words were cold.
“She’ll come. Without fail.”
Half of those present gasped at the cruelty in his words. The other half stared in fearful confusion. Count Irope cautiously spoke.
“Uh, but… Is this really okay, Your Grace? There’s also the dignity of the Duchy… and that incident ten years ago…”
There wasn’t a noble here who didn’t remember the great tragedy that struck the Duchy ten years ago. The previous Duke and Duchess were brutally killed by a bastard child of Eleanor.
They had welcomed a bastard into their family just once. And a few years later, they were betrayed and murdered. The one who executed the rebel — when he was just a boy — was the current Duke.
The Duke nodded indifferently.
“I’m not fond of the idea personally, but I don’t mix personal feelings with state affairs.”
“Oh, then…”
“Of course, that also means Eleanor doesn’t do anything without gaining something in return.”
His cold words tightened the air in the room once more.
Only then did the nobles realize what the young Duke truly wanted — a transaction.
He wasn’t acting out of patriotism for Lezan. He was simply a more refined negotiator than Jenaire.
“In return for the Duchy’s honor, I’d like the Gelnor Plains in the northeast.”
The Emperor’s face showed hesitation at that request.
After losing the large southern farmlands to Jenaire, only a few fertile plains remained in Lezan. Gelnor was one of them.
But Eleanor was Lezan’s last shield. And now the Duke was offering to handle the bastard, too. What was a plain compared to that? After a few seconds of hesitation, the Emperor raised his head.
“Fine. Gelnor is yours.”
A servant brought the deed and the imperial seal. Transferring ownership of Gelnor took less than five minutes.
A sense of lazy satisfaction spread over the Duke’s face.
“I’m glad today’s meeting wasn’t a waste.”
“…Make sure you truly win over the bastard girl. Understood?”
The Duke responded with a silent bow.
He had been the only one to confront Jenaire head-on without losing an inch of the Duchy’s land. If Rayan Eleanor decided to do something — he would do it.
Especially if the opponent was just a small, weak girl.
Only then did the Emperor let out a long sigh of relief.
That day’s meeting ended successfully.
After the Emperor and nobles had left, the conference room was empty. Only two men remained. The Crown Prince looked across at the Duke and finally spoke, the words hard to get out.
“What you said earlier… You didn’t mean it, did you, Brother?”
