Chapter 452
While Liberta and the others were in the midst of chaos and commotion, other forces were also busy.
"Ahhh, this is exhausting. Playing the role of a polite princess isn't easy, you know."
"Princess, please refrain from such behavior."
"Ehh, what's the harm, Mabel? It's just you and me here. That fussy chamberlain, Machel, isn't around. The princess is on break right now!"
Though I say "busy," there's only one girl, who had been refined during the day, now sprawled lazily on the bed Liberta had prepared.
"Sigh, well, I understand that the princess's position is restrictive. As long as you're properly preparing the report to His Majesty, I suppose it's fine."
"You know, I like you, Mabel. You let me do as I please while still nagging me."
The sight of her lying on the bed, writing the report in a sloppy posture, is not something she can show others.
"What if there were monitoring eyes in this room?"
"There aren't. This is, after all, a princess's room. Even if they say I'm being treated as a student, that man didn't strike me as someone who would take such a risk."
Her refined appearance vanished within seconds of entering this room. More precisely, she let it all go once she sent the maids out, leaving only her guard Mabel.
"You mean Liberta-dono?"
"Yes. That child knows where to draw the line. If he didn't, it would be much more convenient for him to kill you quickly and make me obey. You understand that, don't you?"
One could call that a bold statement. Whether it's acting strong or simply being brazen.
Stopping her writing, she capped the ink bottle, placed the quill where it wouldn't stain the bedsheets, and then lay on her back, staring at the ceiling.
"...Yes. If he intended to do something, I would likely be killed without a chance to resist by the soldiers there. No, from their perspective, they could easily subdue me without killing."
"That's why Maria is behaving herself. Otherwise, she'd probably be picking a fight with some soldier by now."
The ceiling she stared at in a sprawled position was modest compared to the royal palace she usually saw, but it was sufficiently spacious, and the bed beneath her was of higher quality than her own bed in the palace.
"We're in an environment with an overwhelming difference in power. We're like canaries that wandered into a dragon's nest. As long as we sing prettily, the dragons will let us live. No, even if we scratched with our claws or pecked with our beaks, they probably wouldn't care. Just as long as we don't touch their reverse scale."
Having experienced the facilities provided in the embassy, she keenly felt that it was more comfortable than the royal palace. Clean water was easily available, the room temperature was comfortable, the bath was spacious and maintained at a constant temperature, the soaps were worthy of being presented to the royal palace, and the ingredients were all of high quality.
If they had strained themselves to prepare this, it would have been endearing, but Catia sensed that if she said it wasn't enough, they'd probably provide even more.
"Father is an idiot for not putting a leash on someone who can do something this absurd. A complete fool. A moron even the gods would abandon."
"Princess, His Majesty has his reasons."
"Because of his relationship with Duke Edelgard? He could have managed that with minimal sacrifice. Nowhere is getting good results because everyone wants to save face. If he had the resolve to make an enemy of the Duke and secured Liberta, we'd be sleeping soundly right now!"
Forces that could destroy a nation, resources that could sustain a life of leisure beyond self-sufficiency.
Technological prowess that, for a single city, rivaled that of a kingdom.
And all of it was still in development, with abundant room for growth.
Each and every one of these is a threat.
Having vented her frustrations, Catia let herself collapse, her limbs flopping back onto the bed.
"Ahhh, thinking about it just brings a parade of troublesome things. I'm done. Don't come, morning. I'm marrying this futon."
"You cannot. Besides, morning will come whether you like it or not."
"As your princess, I command you! Mabel, go cut the sun down."
"Impossible."
"Then go seduce Liberta and make him weak in the knees. That'll solve everything."
Her expression gradually lost motivation, and her completely limp figure lacked even a shred of dignity befitting a princess.
"That is not the duty of a knight."
"Well, it is my job, isn't it? How troublesome. If Liberta-kun would just sneak into my room tonight, it'd be over in one go."
"...As your guard, I cannot permit that."
"It's fine, it's fine. Just cover your ears and pretend you can't hear my voice. It'll be over in no time."
"Princess!"
Tossing and turning lazily, she lay face down, her grinning face sticking out sideways. For a princess, it was undeniably vulgar. She made a circle with her thumb and index finger and gestured with the index finger of her other hand. Mabel shouted in objection, but Catia didn't seem to care.
"Actually, isn't that what Father wants?"
"...It is."
"It's troublesome, but I'm being educated as royalty, I'm being fed well, given nice clothes, and taken care of. This is just payment for that. I know such knowledge."
That is the duty of royalty; especially for an unmarried princess, a political marriage is an unavoidable path.
"At least they're not telling me to marry some much older man. Rather, being married off to someone who can easily provide a room like this, who isn't bad-looking and seems nice, has income, is promising, and is favored by the gods... what is there to be pessimistic about?"
"Well, when you put it that way..."
What her father and the Prime Minister expect from Catia is simple enough that even she, who hides her true abilities, cannot fail to understand: form a romantic relationship with Liberta, ensuring the kingdom and Liberta do not become hostile.
"Yes, don't be pessimistic, don't be pessimistic. So, it's okay if we don't rush, right?"
"Princess, aren't you trying to avoid marriage with that kind of attitude?"
"Because, did you see the people around Liberta-kun?"
She understood her mission, but when asked if she could muster the motivation, Catia's answer was no. The reason was simple.
"There are at least six women around him. Trying to join that group and outshine the others... just thinking about it makes me lose motivation."
From Catia's perspective, it was clear that the women around Liberta held feelings for him.
"From what I know, there's Nell, the fox beastkin, Amina, the bird-kin, Ingrid of House Gryure, and the Edelgard sisters, which makes five. Who's the sixth?"
"Claudia-sama."
"Eh! Liberta-dono and Claudia-sama are more than a generation apart in age!"
"Those are the reports. There's no helping it. It's more problematic to assume otherwise and step on the dragon's tail."
The royal family also gathers information. Among it, information about romantic relationships is highly prioritized; they've invested in spies, and have repeatedly confirmed sightings of them shopping together in the royal capital.
Nell and Amina, of similar age; Ingrid and Esmeralda from noble families; and Claudia.
These five have been seen acting friendly together in the royal capital.
Regarding Iris Edelgard, there's information that both she and her sister have been helped.
"If at least there were some tension among the women, there'd be room to step in. There should be. But there isn't, which is what makes it so troublesome."
If multiple women harbor feelings for one man, relationships usually become strained and distorted.
In fact, such distortions occur in noble families—even royal families. Catia understood that no matter how much power or wealth one has, such things should remain unchanged.
"There isn't any?"
"None. At least, Gryure-san and Esmeralda-san have a good relationship, and the sisters are close. Even though Gryure-san was so close, Esmeralda-san didn't bat an eye."
"I think it's common for them to hide it publicly."
"With that kind of thinking, you'll keep getting turned down for marriage because 'men who are stronger are a bit much'."
"How is that related now? Does my dark history of being rejected for having a six-pack have anything to do with this?"
"Stay away. And your eyes are scary."
But around Liberta, there's no such atmosphere. There might be an air of mutual support and competition, but she can't detect any negative emotions of wanting to tear each other down.
Pushing away the encroaching face of her guard Mabel, Catia sighed, realizing that here, common sense regarding human relations doesn't apply.
"...We haven't seen all of Liberta-kun's relationships with our own eyes yet, so I can't say for sure, but when it comes to romance, there's no doubt it will be troublesome if we step in carelessly."
She pulled a pillow of suitable firmness close, burying her face in it. The scent of freshly washed pillowcase brought a slight drowsiness.
"Sigh, I don't want to work. I want to be a shut-in, read books in my room forever."
"But you also dislike being seen that way and getting a strange reputation, don't you?"
"Yes, I do, which is why I settled on being a mediocre princess, intending to find a suitable marriage partner somewhere, make him do my bidding, and live a comfortable life..."
Catia lamented. Having weighed the disadvantages of being seen as lazy and cold, she had secured a mediocre position, neither good nor bad, and had stuck to it.
"Why me? For someone his age, a younger sister would be better, and she'd be more proactive, wouldn't she?"
"Rather, His Majesty and the Prime Minister probably had doubts about that proactiveness. Your younger sisters tend to overestimate their status as royalty, and... they've heard that Lord Liberta has two commoners close to him."
Building a relationship with the boy said to be an apostle of the gods.
It's a mission of considerable importance to the kingdom.
Originally, sending one of his accomplished sisters was also considered. But there was a problem.
Yes, educated as royalty, they had developed a certain sense of entitlement. This was particularly pronounced in the still immature princesses; some even looked down on the commoner-born Liberta.
Simply put, they're selfish.
"Thus, Your Highness Catia was chosen, as you would handle things safely and prudently."
"Ahhhhh! If I'd known, I would have played the incompetent one!! How troublesome!!"
Given this situation, the King and Prime Minister chose Catia, remembered as the most harmless. The princess laments her own miscalculation.