Chapter 124 – Part 2 Nobles – Elizabeth’s Visit (1)

“Elizabeth?”

Her hair and her entire face were covered with a large veil, but her upright posture made it immediately apparent who she was.

“Mr. Yuzu.”

Elizabeth also saw me and took off her veil. Her gorgeous hair fluttered out.
Maybe she came out secretly, but she was wearing a maid’s uniform today, not a dress.

“What’s going on? So late at night.”
“I’m sorry. I came to see you at such a late hour…”
“No, that doesn’t matter at all, but isn’t it dangerous to walk around in the dark?

Elizabeth was somehow nervous. I took Elizabeth’s hand and made her sit on the couch.

“So, what’s going on? It doesn’t seem like a normal thing, seeing as Elizabeth came in person.”
“Actually, most of the tasks that Yuzu-sama entrusted to me before have been decided.
“Huh? Already?”
“Yes. The evidence is very clear, and His Majesty the King and Grandpa actively helped. Although the political reasons are large…”
“Well, whatever the reason, it’s great. So you can cut the pig count and all the other gangs off their heads?”
“Yes.”

Elizabeth said.
Like that. After all, did that pig go away so easily? It would make her feel better if I put a fist on the bridge of her nose before she goes behind.

“…Actually, there is something I would like to ask of you, Yuzu-sama, regarding the Luiderun Count family.”
“Huh? What is it? It’s a bit difficult to ask to save the pig.”
“No. It’s not about the count, it’s about his family.”
“Family?”

Did you have a family What did your family do while you were doing such an asshole thing?

“Yes. Considering the crimes committed, not only the person himself but also his entire family will be executed. I have no intention of denying such a legal system. However, the reality is that unfair people may come out.”
“…Is Elizabeth saying that the Pig Count’s family is unfair?”
“Yes. This is going to be a bit long, but will you listen?”

To be honest, I didn’t want to know about Earl Tunge’s family history, but I decided to listen to what Elizabeth had to say.

The pig count of the time was not the heir of the original count family. He was the second son, and above him was the eldest son, the proper heir.
The eldest son of the Luiderun family was not particularly outstanding, but he was not lacking either. He is just a person with the ability to carry on the family normally. That was the evaluation of the eldest son of the Luiderun family.

One day, Count Pig’s father, the former Count Louis Derun, died, and his eldest son took over as the successor. However, the eldest son also loses his life in an accident not long after. Thanks to the early death of his older brother, the Pig Earl succeeded him in the county line.

And in the process, it is said that he registered his widowed young sister-in-law and young niece as his wife and daughter.

“…Does that mean the pig count has a wife and a daughter, but actually it wasn’t a wife and a daughter, it was his sister-in-law and a niece?”
“That’s right.”
“Then the pig killed it.”

It was something that could be taken for granted.
If it were that pig, it would be enough to kill his brother and devour the count’s family. No, since it was a pig in heat, he may have killed his brother with the intention of taking away his sister-in-law from the beginning and took the Countess as a bonus.

In my head, it was already established that the pig was the culprit. But Elizabeth shook her head.

“The circumstances were suspicious, but there was no evidence.”
“Ah~. If I just grabbed it and put a few of them in, it would have blown on its own.”

At my words, Elizabeth burst into laughter.

“It would have been nice if we could have done as Yuzu-sama said… But we couldn’t arrest and imprison a high-ranking aristocrat without clear evidence. In the end, he inherited the count’s family, and he used that power to gather forces and plot scary things like overthrowing the country. Will.”

I thought Count Pig was just a fat pervert, but he seems to be a lot worse than I thought.

“So, what should I do?”
“Please appeal for mercy for the Count’s wife and daughter. Given the circumstances, if another noble requests it, they will be able to save their lives. However, since Count Ruiderun’s forces are all involved in this incident, no one will make such a plea. In this case, you will surely be executed for sitting by association.”

Is it. Since Minerva and Milene were said to have survived because of such a plea, it seems that this side is also in a similar situation.

“Elizabeth? If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be enough to say Elizabeth?”

Elizabeth is the future queen of this country. She is the granddaughter of the chancellor and the daughter of a duke. If she has that kind of power, wouldn’t it be easiest for her to step out on her own?

But Elizabeth laughed self-deprecatingly.

“Politically, Count Ruiderun’s faction and our faction are completely hostile factions. No matter how innocent his family is, if you try to save the count’s family in the name of a knight or duchy, there will be dissatisfaction within the faction. To the faction Among the nobles I don’t belong to, the only one I can ask for is Yuzu-sama.”

Hmm.
I don’t know, but Elizabeth seems more immobile because of her proud position.

“…Okay. That’s easy enough.”
“Thank you, Yuzu-sama.”

Elizabeth’s expression brightened.

“By the way, what should I do with that petition?”
“I will prepare the documents and apply. Yuzu-sama just needs to lend her name.”

I’m glad that Because I hate troublesome work.
Under. But I thought I would plead for the life of the pig count family. I don’t know if I know it’s a human thing.

“I am Yuzu.”
“Huh? Why? What else is left?”
“Would you mind letting me meet Melissa and Minerva?”
“Ah.”

The fact that things are going well means that the Red Star Viscount’s treason charges will be cleared soon. Elizabeth said she seems to be acquainted with the two of them, so she might have something to say on this occasion.

“Sure. Maria, can you call me Melissa and Minerva?”
“Yes. Please wait a moment.”

Maria, who had been silent until now, bowed her head and left her drawing room.
Now it’s just me and Elizabeth in the room. Elizabeth took a deep breath with a nervous expression on her face.

“…Yuzu-sama. Also, I personally have a request for you.”
“Huh? What is it?”
“There… That’s…”

Elizabeth, unlike her confident demeanor until now, was having a hard time talking. She was in the mood to confess to me.

“If this ends well…”
“What if it ends well?”
“Would you like to become friends with me?”
“Uh?”

Is it really a confession?

Elizabeth’s face, originally white enough to be transparent, was now as red as if it were on fire.
But is she really the lover Elizabeth says is the lover I know?

Hopefully Elizabeth isn’t saying this as a joke, and she’s not on some weird drug or hypnotized. Or is there something political about it? She might be a political guardian or, in that sense, a slang word used among high-ranking people.

“Hey, Elizabeth. What exactly does she mean by being that lover?”

So I decided to ask first.
Elizabeth kept her head down and quietly opened her mouth.

“Yuzu-sama, do you know that nobles openly have lovers even after they are married?”
“Yeah. Well, that’s it.”

Nobles can basically get a second or third wife even if they get married and have a wife. Not only that, but you can also have a lover without formally marrying him.

Then, what about the wife who married into an aristocratic family? Basically, a husband is one person, but a wife can have a lover. In some cases, they meet with permission from their husbands, and in other cases they meet secretly, and even if they are caught secretly meeting their lover, the husband cannot be held guilty. Rather, it is said that he is said to be a narrow-minded man and is ostracized among other nobles and noble wives.

“Having a lover is the same for royalty. His Majesty the King and previous kings have done it, and so does His Highness the Crown Prince, who is my fiancée.”
“Even the crown prince? Maybe that makeup hair monster? Haha.

Come to think of it, that pale prince was Elizabeth’s fiancé. Elizabeth is too precious of a talent to be handed over to such an eight-year-old.

“…Even I didn’t understand at first. I thought it was pitiful. Why was she wasting her life for a love that had only harm like that… Even after knowing that, he tried to protect me.”
“Heh. That’s amazing.”
“She said she would accept any condition to save the woman. She swore that she would marry me, that her heir would be properly educated, and that she would never cause any trouble in the future. To save the woman.”

Haha.
In a way, the crown prince is also great, but for Elizabeth, it would be rather humiliating. It’s like she considers marrying Elizabeth like a big punishment.

“I couldn’t understand why she went so far and whether she was worth it. I thought she was just stubborn, or maybe she was just being sarcastic towards me. But.”

Elizabeth lifted her head and met her eyes. Her face was still red, and tears welled up in her eyes.

“I can understand now. Because I also fell in love with Yuzu-sama!”
“Eh, Elizabeth?”

Overwhelmed by Elizabeth’s intense gaze, I involuntarily retreated behind her.
Elizabeth put her hand on her chest, as if trying to calm her excitement, and took a deep breath.

“I’m sorry, Yuzu-sama. You’d have trouble hearing this all of a sudden. But somehow, I couldn’t bear to tell you how I felt.”
“Elizabeth…”
“After I met Yuzu-sama at the party that day, no matter where I was or what I was doing, all I could think of was Yuzu-sama. Wherever you are and what you’re doing right now, there’s no way we’ll run into each other, even by chance.

It was the first time I received such a direct love confession.
I was so fond of the teary-eyed Elizabeth that I wanted to hug her right away.

“My feelings for Yuzu-sama grew bigger and bigger, and nothing else caught my eye, and then I realized. ‘Ah, this is love.’ That’s why you burned yourself so much. That’s why you couldn’t see anything. Only then did everything make sense. If I had exchanged positions with Her Highness the Crown Prince, I would have made the same choice.”

Why am I receiving so many fervent love confessions?
Did I do anything to be loved by Elizabeth this far?
Of course, I’m glad that you like it, but I really didn’t know it.

“Yuzu-sama. There’s not much I can do for Yuzu-nim. But would you please accept my heart?”

And Elizabeth wonders why she is so unconfident in herself. She is such an attractive woman, yet she has the power to rule the country, so why is she so frightened?
If I just said ‘Shut up and be my lover!!’, I would have bowed and chased after you.

“Thank you, Elizabeth. And you don’t have to ask about that. Didn’t I tell you from the beginning? It was love at first sight. I would have followed her even if I didn’t like her.”
“Ah… Mr. Yuzu.”

No more words were needed between us. I grabbed the hand of Elizabeth who was crying with emotion and raised her up.

Elizabeth and her face to face.
Quivering eyelashes. Tense lips. Two cheeks stained red.
She knew in her grasp what to expect.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, and I brought my lips close to hers.

But then.
Smart.

“Master. I brought Melissa-nim and Minerva-nim.”

Maria’s voice startled Elizabeth, and she tried to get away from me.
But I grabbed Elizabeth’s arm as she was about to fall and pulled me back into her arms.

“Yu-sama Yuzu…”

And kissed her
I savored the lips as sweet as if they would melt for a long time.