Her Majesty’s Secret Service

015. The Fabricated Genius

Mary suspected that Logan had stolen this book, containing the blueprints, from a shipbuilder named ‘Brian Laberry.’

The words ‘Brian Laberry’ that the Queen could recognize were undoubtedly indicating the author of this book.

If a foreigner from a distant land had a book in English, anyone would think so.

“Seeing that you’re not answering…”

The moment Mary opened her mouth, Logan, who had been swallowing his saliva and watching Mary’s reaction, spoke.

“He was… that is… my teacher.”

Mary looked at Logan quietly, doubting his words but willing to hear what he had to say.

“So… it was when I was… back in my hometown…”

From the introduction, it seemed it would be a long story.

* * *

The queen’s gaze upon me was unsettling. I couldn’t tell what it meant, but I could guess it wasn’t anything good.

Feeling a sense of crisis, I blurted out an excuse, though I had no idea how far it would get me.

“Hmm… Go on, speak. I’m curious to hear what you have to say.”

That tone, I’ve heard it often in my childhood. It’s the one teachers use when they know you’re lying but want to hear your excuse anyway.

“Firstly… I come from the distant East.”

“Is that so? From where in the East? This… China? Or Korea? Or is it this Japan? Tell me, which country do you hail from?”

The queen pushed a world map spread out on her desk towards me. She had that too. It meant she had thoroughly searched my belongings at some point.

I couldn’t exactly accuse her of stealing my things. Calmly, I pointed to the Korean Peninsula, labeled ‘Korea’ on the map. It was a 21st-century map with all modern country names, but the queen didn’t seem to care.

“This place, Korea… it’s Korea.”

“Really? How did you, coming from such a far place, become a student of Brian Laberry? Surely, he must be a local?”

The queen’s interrogation began. I had to come up with a story convincing enough for her.

“Uh… I rescued the adrift Brian. He had been washed out to sea.”

If a Dutchman could drift and end up in Joseon, why not an Englishman? I started the story with the theme of ‘adrift.’

The queen, skeptical yet seemingly willing to continue listening, sent me a doubtful look.

“Continue.”

“So… I am from a noble family in Korea, the ‘Deoksu Lee clan.’ One day, someone was washed ashore…”

If yangban are nobles, then it wasn’t a lie. My grandfather always boasted about our family being descendants of the Deoksu Lee clan, and it turned out to be helpful.

Once I started fabricating the story, it flowed endlessly. The queen’s expression changed with every word I spoke.

“Wait, wait a moment.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Is it true… that a man named Brian fled persecution in England and made it all the way to this Korea where you reside?”

“Yes, that’s what he said. I also learned English from him.”

“I see. Your fluency in our language is thanks to his teachings then.”

The queen’s tone suggested she was beginning to believe my words.

“Yes, yes, that’s right. I learned many other things as well.”

“When did you come to know this man, how many years ago?”

“Yes… It was 10 years ago.”

A lie begets a lie, but what I needed now were more plausible lies. I had to craft more convincing words, hoping the queen would believe this deception.

* * *

Having heard all of Logan’s words, Mary was at a loss for words.

According to Logan, this ‘Brian Lavery’ had not forgotten his longing for his homeland and his sincere faith, even in a distant foreign land.

“So, you’re saying he built a ship, and you wandered the world with him for five years? And this map was also created during his five years of travel?”

“Yes, that’s correct. However… we encountered a storm on our way here…”

“Then, how are we to decipher this book he wrote…!”

Logan had claimed that the strange grammar and spelling of the book were a precaution taken by the devout and loyal genius Brian. He had devised his own grammar to write this book in case it fell into the wrong hands.

“I can interpret the book. I learned the method from him.”

“Is that so? That is indeed fortunate…”

Mary had come to understand the significance of the diagrams drawn in the book.

Logan had introduced the ship depicted in these diagrams as Brian’s masterpiece. A blueprint imagined for warships a hundred, or perhaps three hundred years into the future.

It was an unbelievable tale, but the evidence lay before her eyes. The drawings were too detailed to be dismissed as mere fantasy.

Mary was unable to decipher the English written on this blueprint and feared that this technology, claimed to be centuries ahead, would be lost. However, when Logan said he knew how to interpret the English, she was relieved and kept repeating how fortunate it was.

And then, she heard the story of a loyal Korean artisan who had drifted to a distant land to escape the religious persecution of her father, Henry VIII, and the trials he endured to return to his homeland. It was truly a moving tale.

“Ah… Because of my father’s greed, I lost my mother, and the kingdom lost our Da Vinci…”

Not only had he created technology centuries ahead and transferred it to blueprints, but he had also drawn the world map himself, and the designs and units of each part written on this blueprint all came from Brian Laberry’s mind.

If he had been alive, how much he could have helped this country… A deep sigh of regret escaped from Mary’s lips.

* * *

The queen sighs.

At first, she seemed to doubt my story, but as she listened to the chronicles of Brian Laberry, which I had woven together from all the stories I knew, her doubts seemed to fade.

Without a moment to relax, the queen’s questions continued. I had to think of another plausible answer.

“But… why didn’t you immediately present this blueprint? Did you, like others, intend to sell it to a foreign country?”

“That is… I truly lost my memory. It was only recently that it returned…”

“Do you expect me to believe that?”

“Please believe me, Your Majesty. I intended to present this book and map to you soon.”

“Hmm… You haven’t been at court for long. You said you came here through the North Sea, didn’t you? Then why didn’t you sell his blueprint elsewhere? Merchants or nobles from other countries would have bought it, no matter the cost.”

“Did I not make a promise with Brian? To hand over his posthumous works to the king of England, who has restored the Catholic faith.”

“A promise, you say?”

“Yes, is there a problem…?”

Upon hearing my words, the corners of the queen’s mouth lifted slightly.

“I see, a promise. That’s good. I’m truly pleased.”

“Excuse me?”

“It is a joy to meet one who is divine. So, you are a student of Brian, are you?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then wouldn’t it be right for you to take Brian’s place?”

It wouldn’t be right. I wasn’t as wise as the genius in the story I had created. If I were asked to develop a ship or come up with some other technology, my lack of knowledge would be obvious. Though I was confident in cooking.

“Thank you for your words, but… I am not as wise as you.”

“Do not worry. You just need to do what you can.”

“What I can do is…?”

“Of course, you must decipher this book. Didn’t you say you learned to read his writings from Brian?”

“Ah… Yes, that’s correct.”

“This task must not be known to anyone. Logan, from now on, come to decipher this book whenever I call you. It is an order.”

It seems I have dug my own grave.

* * *

I never anticipated things would turn out this way. The Queen, moved by the hastily concocted ‘Life of Brian’ I presented, has suspended her suspicions of me…

It was a task more difficult than cooking.

Me, who stumbles through modern English, now has to decipher it into Middle English. I’m in the dark. I never knew Middle English to begin with.

After finishing the private audience in the Queen’s chamber, I returned to my room and lay down on the bed. I felt overwhelmed.

The plan to get closer to Elizabeth had long gone awry. Far from getting closer to Elizabeth, I’m likely to become known as Mary’s confidant.

“Mary will die in a few years anyway… What should I do now…”

Getting close to Mary would be futile since she won’t live for many more years and will die.

The problem lies ahead. Elizabeth will undoubtedly ascend to the throne, and by then, presenting myself to her, I would be nothing more than a strange foreigner.

It was no secret in the palace that Bishop Steve, a confidant of the Queen, had brought me here. And that the Queen had taken a liking to my cooking, appointing me as her chef.

With such rumors spread, it was unlikely Elizabeth would come near.

“Getting close to Elizabeth is now impossible… Damn, should I flee to Spain? No, the book and map are with the Queen… I can’t even run away…”

The Queen declared she would not return the book and map but hide them deep within her chambers.

Whether she truly believed the story I concocted about Brian, or if it was merely an excuse to seize those items… either way, the book and map were now in the Queen’s possession.

“Perhaps I should go to the Netherlands to make some money…? Maybe sell some tulips…? Are there even tulips now…?”

With the money I’ve saved up, I could afford the voyage to the Netherlands and still have some left over.

“No, the same fortune I found here won’t likely be found there…”

I was already aware of the immense fortune I had stumbled upon by becoming the palace chef.

Having lived in the servant’s quarters and seen how the peasants of this era lived, I knew well the great fortune I now had.

My head throbbed. If things continued this way, the inevitable end could not be avoided.

Mary would die young, and Elizabeth would ascend to the throne.

“Certainly… Queen Mary won’t live for many years… She’ll die without an heir, and Elizabeth will become Queen…”

Fragments of memory resurface, within the limits of what I know.

All I really know is that after Mary’s death, Elizabeth ascends to the throne. And the other fact is…

“Philip…?”

Queen Mary’s husband, King Philip II of Spain, contributed to her death. Did Queen Mary, married to Philip, fall for him and succumb to stress-induced cancer? What was it?

“Think… think. After marrying Philip…”

I desperately try to recall.

—

Queen Mary, married to Philip II, joined the war on the side of her husband’s nation, Spain, during the conflict between Spain and France. She suffered the loss of Calais, England’s last continental territory, and succumbed to the shock, passing away that year.

“Calais… Is Calais the issue? No, it was the choice of spouse from the beginning.”

With that thought, I organized the current situation in my mind.

‘The Queen believes I am the only one who can decipher the genius Brian’s book. After hearing Brian’s story, the way she looked at me changed. Without a doubt, she believes my story.’

Was it not she who summoned me every time to decipher the book? That meant I had more opportunities for private audiences with the Queen.

In an era where a private audience with the monarch equated to power,

Initially, Mary’s doomed trust was a heavy burden, but upon reflection, if I could prevent that doom, wouldn’t I be able to live prosperously within England?

“So, this is how it’s become…”

I will prevent Mary and Philip’s marriage at all costs. Then, the loss of Calais would not occur.

Having fallen into this era, I must wield the power I have at least once.

—