69: [The First Prince on Inspection]
Prince Konrad, approaching my sister with a smile, looked at me.
“…And Lady Adelheid, I never expected to meet you here as well.”
While he used the same line, his tone was noticeably less enthusiastic.
…This guy clearly had a thing for my sister.
While I didn’t like him, I had to give him credit for his taste in women.
“Indeed. I’m surprised as well. Are you alone?”
“…Hardly.”
Konrad chuckled wryly.
“I have guards. Just like you.”
If someone attempted to destabilize Eustasia, we would be among the most valuable targets.
Objectively speaking, I, as the head of the “Coldhearted Vanderwaals,” was probably the more important target, but once he became king, that would change.
Since this was my own territory, the Vanderwaals’ “shadows” had established a three-dimensional security net, from the roads ahead and behind to the rooftops… though they were invisible.
The royal family would also have tight security around the First Prince. ――We had no say in the matter.
The use of our lives had already been decided.
“If you’re returning to the lord’s mansion, I can offer you a ride.”
Translated using a special dictionary, it meant, “I want to impress your sister. And I want to spend time with the girl I like in the same carriage.”
Whether that was endearing or creepy depended on your opinion of him.
“…We’ll accept your kind offer.”
It was best to simply follow fate’s arrangements.
As we reached the main street, Konrad raised his hand, and a carriage promptly arrived and stopped. I reflexively checked for a crest, but there wasn’t one.
At first glance, it looked like an ordinary two-horse, four-passenger carriage for hire.
However, the smooth ride, the quality of the horses… were far beyond what you’d expect from a hired carriage. ――And, more importantly, the coachman and the man sitting next to him were clearly skilled guards.
While perhaps not on Ciel’s level, they both wore swords at their hips, and I wouldn’t be able to easily defeat them in a two-on-one fight, even with weapons.
I wasn’t sure if my belief that Ciel could handle them stemmed from blind faith in my governess, who had served me since childhood… or from a purely objective assessment of her skills. The two were intertwined, inseparable.
However, currently, relations between the Eustasia royal family and the Vanderwaals were amicable, so such calculations were merely a habit, not a necessity.
While the prince and I didn’t get along, perhaps because he was interested in my sister, he seemed to be holding back on his usual barbs towards me, her older sister.
Konrad boarded the carriage first and then offered his hand to Leticia with a smile.
“Lady Leticia, may I?”
“…Thank you, Your Highness.”
Leticia politely took his hand, as etiquette dictated, and sat in the back.
Konrad was about to sit next to her—
“Your Highness.”
“Yes?”
—when Leticia spoke.
“You offered me your hand, didn’t you?”
“…Yes.”
Konrad looked bewildered.
While I found it amusing, I was also bewildered.
I didn’t understand what my sister was getting at.
“Please extend the same courtesy to my Elder Sister.”
I exchanged a look with Konrad.
That was unexpected—however, there was nothing wrong with her request.
Long ago, only men could become kings or heads of families. Women’s rights were more restricted than men’s.
During times of war, women, who didn’t fight on the battlefield, were looked down upon.
However, with wars of attrition demanding all available resources, and a severe shortage of soldiers, some countries began to employ female soldiers, albeit in limited roles, and opened knighthood to women.
Furthermore, when a male head of family died in battle and there were no male heirs in the direct line, many countries chose the closest blood relative, regardless of gender, when deciding who should inherit the family.
And those who made that choice won.
They became the victors, the ones who wrote history.
It was because of that historical trend that I now held the position of family head.
It might not have been complete equality. Even now, most soldiers and knights were men, with few women serving in the military, even fewer as knights.
While female heads of families weren’t unheard of, they were still a minority.
…I imagined some families probably had their husbands handle such troublesome duties.
In any case, the etiquette between men and women, and vice versa, still remained.
Such customs would likely never disappear completely, and if they did, romance novelists might struggle to find sources of conflict.
Well, that was irrelevant.
The problem now was…
…neither of us wanted to show the other such courtesy.
In public, of course, we would both tolerate it… but this wasn’t a public setting.
However, our interests aligned—Konrad didn’t want to offend the older sister and risk alienating the younger sister, and I didn’t want to set a bad example by disregarding the manners I had taught her—so we ended the silent standoff.
“…Please, Lady Adelheid.”
“Yes, thank you, Your Highness.”
We exchanged insincere smiles.
Outwardly, at least, our graceful gestures were textbook examples of proper etiquette. I took his hand and boarded the carriage.
We both looked at my sister, who nodded in satisfaction, and I was relieved.
Konrad probably felt the same.
He was still the First Prince, after all. And I was the head of a ducal family.
Even if our relationship was a strained one, not quite deserving of the term ‘childhood friends,’ we weren’t in a position to disregard etiquette.
Leticia wasn’t a noble by birth and hadn’t received a noble upbringing from a young age.
However, seeing her awareness of such manners, I was reminded of the power of education and the benefits it bestowed upon those who were receptive to it.
…If the situation were reversed, and my sister had been treated disrespectfully, I would have been furious.
Konrad seemed to want to sit next to my sister, but I used my position, having been escorted in, to push him to the far side and then gracefully settled into the seat next to the door, securing my position.
While I also wanted to sit next to my sister, I didn’t have the courage.
Ciel boarded the carriage and sat next to Leticia, then closed the door.
Apparently, there was once a rule that servants didn’t ride in the same carriage as their masters, but it had gradually become less strict due to the inconvenience of using multiple carriages and the inability to hold meetings during travel… The custom had eroded over time.
That aside, this was actually my first time riding in a carriage with this prince.
He had been the first in line to the throne since birth.
I had been the first in line to inherit my title since birth.
Both our families had their own carriages, and there had never been a need for us to travel together.
Since conversations inside a moving carriage were unlikely to be overheard, they were sometimes used for confidential discussions, but in such cases, they wouldn’t bring children along.
Furthermore, as someone accustomed to using her own family’s carriage, it felt strange to be in a royal carriage—even a disguised one—with Prince Konrad.
I addressed the prince, sitting next to me.
“Your Highness, what brings you here?”
I knew, but I asked anyway.
He also knew that I knew, but I asked anyway.
“His Majesty tasked me with inspecting Vandergant. I was just walking through the city.”
“I see. You’ve been entrusted with a position of great responsibility.”
The Kingdom of Eustasia wouldn’t be a kingdom without the territories of the great nobles.
It was an important task, essential for the survival of the royal family, to ensure that those territories were being properly managed… Specifically, to check for any signs of rebellion or tax evasion.
Well, our territory was… beginner-level for inspections.
Judith always prepared meticulous reports, with no inconsistencies, and we had always passed the “shadows’” inspections.
With an Acting Lord like her, it would take an idiot to mismanage the territory.
Of course, the head of the family had to make the final decisions, but with her and Ciel offering their well-considered opinions, I sometimes felt… a bit spoiled.
…This position was a heavy burden. It came with great responsibility.
I didn’t think just anyone could be the head of the Vanderwaals.
However, I had the foundation built by my predecessors and the support of capable individuals.
I wasn’t the only one who could sit in the seat of the family head.
“…Elder Sister, what’s the difference between an inspection and… an… in-spec-tion?”
Leticia’s hesitant question brought my attention back to her.
“They’re similar, but in this case, I’m patrolling my own territory, while His Highness is here to confirm that his vassal’s territory is being properly managed.”
“I see…”
Someday, Leticia would sit in the seat of the family head.
And Judith would support her then… hopefully.
And so would her chosen partner.
“…Lady Adelheid, while this is unofficial, I’d like to speak with you, as the lord, and with the Acting Lord. Would you be willing to receive me?”
“Certainly.”
I nodded curtly.
The ‘unofficial’ part was a bit concerning, but his inspection itself was unofficial.
If necessary, I could simply pretend he had never visited. It was unofficial, after all.
While I couldn’t physically harm the First Prince, the first in line to the throne, I could probably get away with a few threats.
Just then, Konrad wrapped his arms around himself and shivered.
“Your Highness? Are you alright?”
“It’s… nothing. It happens whenever I’m with your sister.”
Konrad answered my sister’s question with a smile, shaking his head as if to dispel something.
I felt like I had just been grossly insulted, but I couldn’t retaliate without proof.
If he weren’t the First Prince, I would have elbowed him in the ribs.
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