The Royal Dilemma 2

Translator: Cinder Translations

...

After much effort, Earl Rupert Walter finally shook off the petitioning southern nobles and escaped the scene with a thick stack of petitions in hand.

Half an hour later, he appeared at the palace and went straight to the council chamber.

"Ah, Rupert, everyone has been waiting for you," said His Majesty the King from the main seat.

The important officials of the kingdom's government, including the Minister of Finance, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Military Affairs, Director of Intelligence, Grand Chamberlain, and Chief of Intelligence, were already seated.

Sitting to the right of King Rodney was Princess Catherine.

"Sorry, Your Majesty, Princess, and esteemed colleagues, I was delayed on the way..."

Before he could finish, the expressions of the ministers present revealed their shared understanding of the situation.

Earl Merlin, the Director of Intelligence, said, "Your Excellency, we all understand. To be honest, I had to disguise myself to get in today."

"Ah, I was even planning to dig a tunnel from home."

"Honestly, we should do something about these lawless people."

"There are quite a few prestigious families that contributed greatly to the establishment of the kingdom; do you dare to take action against them?"

Others began to voice their complaints as well.

Cough, cough! Princess Catherine cleared her throat, and everyone quieted down.

"Gentlemen, the purpose of today's meeting is to discuss how to appease the southern nobles who have lost their lands."

The princess spoke somewhat awkwardly; similar meetings had been held several times, but no thorough solutions had been put forward each time.

The direct cause of this situation was that the kingdom's army had not completely defeated Giles in the south.

As the commander of the pacification forces, she felt a heavy responsibility on her shoulders.

As the meeting commenced, the Minister of Finance, looking worried, addressed everyone: "Your Majesty, Princess, and esteemed ministers, according to our previous plan, we should allocate one million silver shields annually for armoring, training knights, and stocking provisions in preparation for the next pacification. However, with the arrival of these southern nobles, we have had to squeeze funds from various expenditures to maintain their dignified living, including reallocating 150,000 from the military budget. If this continues, our progress in pacifying the rebellion will be greatly delayed. Additionally, in past years, the royal treasury's annual revenue was about five million silver shields, but this year's harvests have been poor. I estimate the income will only be between four and four and a half million silver shields. If we don't cut back on expenses, we'll have to borrow from the populace."

(Note: Silver shields are the currency of the Aldor Kingdom, named for the shield design on them, containing 23 to 25 grams of silver each.)

The situation was so dire that the ministers present frowned upon hearing this news.

"Your Majesty!"

Earl Salifor Reynolds, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, suggested, "Given the current situation, we should take decisive action."

Everyone turned their attention to Reynolds.

"Let's first target the most vocal offenders, strip them of their noble titles, and then place the others under house arrest, reducing their living standards until we can recover the southern territories and return them."

Sir Ben Russel, head of the kingdom's heraldry, immediately expressed opposition: "It's disgraceful to use such harsh measures against those ancient noble families. The King would face criticism from the entire nobility, and it would even spread abroad, becoming ammunition for attacking Aldor."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"Regardless, we cannot mistreat these families; their ancestors have done great service to the kingdom, and during this rebellion, even if they haven't achieved anything, they have suffered."

"Ah, if only they had died to uphold their honor when their lands were attacked."

"What kind of talk is that?"

The crowd erupted into noisy debate, failing to reach any conclusion.

A loud banging sound echoed as the King struck the table, and everyone turned to their monarch.

Rodney frowned and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, to be frank, I am prepared for a recovery of the south that will take several generations."

"What?"

Princess Catherine stood up; this was the first time she was hearing of her father's "preparation."

"Your Majesty!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Rodney commanded his daughter, "Sit down, Catherine."

Reluctantly, the princess sat back down. If the south could not be recovered during her father's reign, it would be an unimaginable disgrace for her.

The King turned to Earl Merlin, signaling him to speak.

The Earl nodded and explained to everyone: "Based on the information we currently have, there is a mysterious force supporting Giles. The strange occurrences during the rebellion are all related to this force."

The mysterious fires in the granaries, the assassination of a naval commander by his loyal servant, the fireballs appearing during the West Port invasion, the rebels who were more powerful than knights and fought recklessly, and the makeshift leather armor that offered protection comparable to metal armor…

Earl Merlin recounted these incidents one by one. In fact, everyone present was part of the kingdom's high echelons and already knew one or two of these matters.

"Our informants in the rebel ranks have returned with news confirming that there are indeed some mysterious individuals among the rebels, but they publicly identify themselves as clergy."

"It's strange—there's no other way to describe it. The oddities of this force have surpassed our understanding and logic. We can't even guess what other bizarre things they might be capable of. For this force and those representing it, I can only temporarily refer to them as…"

"Magic, and… sorcerers!"

"After all, there's no more suitable term to describe them."

Earl Merlin's words left the room in silence. Fear stems from the unknown, and they were facing one of the greatest unknowns in human history… at least in the history of Aldor.

Magic and sorcerers—things that only exist in legend, yet they were not on their side, invisible and intangible.

The King tapped the table and cautioned everyone: "We must first understand what kind of existence we are facing before taking the next steps. If we recklessly engage without knowing the true identity of the enemy, we will eventually suffer great losses and lose even more strength and honor."

He glanced at Catherine, who lowered her head.

"Your Majesty!" the Minister of Military Affairs suggested, "Isn't the Church the one that hates sorcerers the most? Can we not request their assistance?"

"Humph!" The King scoffed. "The Church is still grappling with the issues at Horns Bay. Moreover…"

"We cannot give the Church an opportunity to interfere in Aldor's domestic affairs."

Earl Merlin added, "In fact, from various intelligence sources, it's very likely that the mysterious events occurring in Horns Bay in recent years also involve this force."

This was too audacious! Everyone was astonished; Aldor was a great nation, and the Church could shake the continent with a stomp. What kind of power would dare to poke its nose into the affairs of two lions at once?

But for now, it seemed that Aldor was being made a fool of. The thought brought a wave of discouragement over everyone.

"Because I have decided to understand them, to contact them…"

The King spoke in a deep voice.

"Even, when necessary, to learn from them and possess what they have."

His words astonished the ministers.

Manipulating sorcery had always been a taboo, especially with the Church's presence.

(End of the Chapter)

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