The Revenge of the Soul Eater

When I was invited to the royal palace by Princess Sakuya of Ad Astera, the first words that came to my mind were "give me a break".

Just when I thought I had obtained the catalyst for warding magic and had finally put an end to the Hydra affair, I felt like a new nuisance had come my way.

Well, the invitation through Lord Dragunaut was a polite one, and in that sense, it may be too early to call it a nuisance.

However, the other party was the Third Crown Princess, who was currently the focus of attention in Canary. She is the Crown Princess and the future Queen of Canary, and there must be many people, regardless of status, who wish to meet her.

It was under such circumstances that she took the trouble to invite me. It was only natural for her to think that something was going on.

According to Lord Dragonaut's letter, the princess is treating people with sincerity and without any pretense of imperial prestige, and is being received favorably in the palace. The invitation this time is also in the form of "if possible, by all means", so it is not impossible to refuse, but ......

It's not a good idea.

I scratch my head.

In the event that you're not sure of what you're looking for, you'll be able to find a lot more information on the web. The princess probably thought so too, and that's why she invited me through Lord Dragunaut.

If I were to refuse the invitation here, I would lose face with the princess as well as Lord Dragunaut. If I messed up, I could get Claudia involved and cause a big problem--that's why I decided to accept the princess's invitation.

So I decided to accept the princess's invitation, and began to research the princess I was about to meet. After all, the only thing I knew about Princess Sakuya was that she was the third princess of the empire.

Fortunately, or perhaps naturally, it was easy to gather information on the princess in the Canary Kingdom, where the wedding ceremony was about to take place. In fact, just walking along the streets of Ithaca, one could hear rumors.

However, as for me, it was possible for me to hear information without going all the way to the streets. The source of the information was Miroslav. Apparently, he had gotten information about the wedding ceremony through his father, who ran a trading company, and he even gave me information about the current imperial family of the Ad Astera Empire.

I knew that sooner or later, the empire would make contact with the master dragon slayer.

Miroslav said, "That's why we did our research while we were in Belka. What an itchy thought! I also appreciate the fact that he went to the trouble of getting highly accurate information from his father, whom he dislikes.

The improvement of antidotes and restoratives that I've ordered for a long time has been producing good results, and I may need to reward Miroslav for his work in the near future. With this in mind, I looked over the information Miroslav had gathered on the princess.

The name of the princess, Sakuya, sounded similar to my mother's name, Shizuya. Her appearance is also similar to my mother's, as she is said to have black hair and eyes.

However, since both names are not uncommon in the eastern part of the continent, I don't think there is any blood relationship between the two. My mother came from the city, and Princess Sakuya's mother is said to be the daughter of a powerful lord in the eastern part of the country, so there is probably no connection in that sense either.

--The reason why I use the words "I think" and "I suppose" when describing my mother is because I myself do not know her origins in detail. My mother was a person who rarely talked about her past, and when I asked her as a child, she always looked sad and lonely. I remember feeling in my childhood that it was something I should not ask her about.

All I know is that my mother was born in the eastern part of the continent. I don't know if she was born in the eastern part of the continent, or in the Far East, which is not part of the Empire.

Of course my father would know, but there was no way I could talk to him back then. What I should be thinking about now was not my mother's origin, but Princess Sakuya.

As I just mentioned, Princess Sakuya was born to the Emperor of Adoastera and the daughter of an eastern nobleman. This mother is still alive and well in the Imperial Palace of Adoastera as a favored princess, and has one son and one daughter with the Emperor.

The first daughter is, of course, Princess Sakuya. The first son is Prince Shion, who will be ten years old this year. Since the emperor is very old, Prince Shion will probably be the last male child.

The emperor seems to be very fond of the youngest child born to his favorite princess, and there is sometimes a silent creak between him and the elderly Prince Richard.

Prince Richard is known to be even more fierce than his father when he was young. On the other hand, as his father grew older, he became more concerned about reconciliation policies, and it seems that the father and son are not getting along well in this respect either.

Therefore, the emperor's will may have played a strong role in this marriage ceremony. If it were the Crown Prince, he would not have held a wedding ceremony, but would have directly sent his troops to invade the Canary Kingdom.

If we look deeper, the reason why Princess Sakuya is lowering her voice and gathering people's attention in the Canarian Royal Palace may be because she wants to mobilize the Canarian soldiers to save her father and brother when a civil war breaks out in the Empire. Aside from Canary's military strength, the mobility of the Dragon Knights could also be of great use when considering the vastness of the Empire's territory.

I'm not sure what to make of this.

I'm sure I'm overthinking this. You'll know it when you get there.

I shrugged my shoulders lightly and thought about my future plans.

If I send a reply to Lord Dragonaut, arrange a date for the meeting, and then go to King's Landing again, it will be troublesome. Since other troubles might arise at any time, it would be better to meet the princess as soon as possible.

I think I should go to the capital directly to give my consent. The fact that I rushed to the capital as soon as I heard the news would surely make a good impression on the princess. I don't mean to flatter the princess, but I don't want to get the attention of the duchess and cause trouble for her.

And there's another reason for going to King's Landing.

Miroslav will have to come with me this time. I'd like to stop by the Sauzal Trading Company.

The red-haired sorcerer's eyes widened in surprise as he called out to Miroslav, who was standing by his side like a maid.

I'd be happy to accompany you, but I'm not sure what your business is with ...... my father's business association.　I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear that.

I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that. I've always been indebted to you.

When Miroslav heard this, he did not know what to say and stopped talking. He could not decide whether I was joking or serious.

Incidentally, the correct answer was "serious". 　

Originally, the president of Southall had told me through Miroslav that he wanted to meet me once. I think it was around the time when Miroslav came back from Skim Mountain and officially joined the Sword of Blood Smoke.

However, I didn't see him at that time. Miroslav said that he wanted my connections with Lord Dragunaut and others, so he didn't see the need to meet me. To tell the truth, I don't want to see him even now.

However, there have been a few times when Miroslav has been helpful to me with the help of the Southall Chamber of Commerce, as in this case. So, I thought I would return the favor.

Miroslav, who hated his father, kept his eyebrows raised when he heard my story.

After a few moments, his light red lips slowly parted.

"......, Master. As I've said before, my father wants the connections of the Master. You can say that it is a tool to gain access to the nobility.

The Sauzer Chamber of Commerce is said to be one of the three largest in the capital, but in reality, it is an upstart power that Miroslav's father built in his lifetime. Because of this, it is said that it is difficult for nobles, especially those above the rank of count, to take advantage of it.

Because of this, there is a significant difference in assets between the other two merchant associations.

My father will probably ask the Master to make a connection with Lord Dragunaut. But the Dukes already have a trusted Chamber of Commerce. I don't think he will accept any other business association, no matter how much the Alliance Master asks. In the worst case, it could cause discord between the Alliance and Lord Dragnoth.

That's why it's better not to meet my father, Miroslav said.

Miroslav tried to persuade me to change my mind with a fervent look, but I responded without hesitation.

I'm not going to get involved in the affairs of the dukes. The main business of the Southard Trading Company is a clothing store, isn't it?　If you could make me a formal dress for my future visits to the palace, it would at least help with publicity. If I'm not good enough, I can ask Master Claudia.

As for Claudia, she's my fiancée, so it wouldn't be unnatural for her to make me an outfit. I'm sure the duke's merchant company won't complain.

It would indeed be difficult to make it in time for the upcoming wedding ceremony, but if Claudia and I were to wear Southall's formal wear every time we came and went to the royal palace in the future, it would be enough to repay us for all we've done.

Miroslav responded with a puzzled look on his face.

The Dragon Slayer and the Dragunaut's daughter, both of whom are currently at the height of their powers, will be unloading clothes from the Southall Chamber of Commerce. I'm sure my father will be delighted. ...... Are you sure about this?

Yes. You can't borrow formal wear from the dukes every time you go to the palace.

If you are thinking about the future, you will need some kind of formal wear no matter what. There is no reason why it should not be ordered from Southard Trading Company. This will make it easier for Miroslav to get support from the Chamber of Commerce in the future, and if you think about it, there is no reason not to ask the Chamber of Commerce.

At the same time, he could kill two birds with one stone by touring the capital with Miroslav and giving him a reward for his past efforts. If only there were new magic wands or better robes for sale in King's Landing.

I was thinking about this as I watched Miroslav shrug his shoulders in fear.