Nod… Nod… Nod?
Mia’s mind started working again after a short blank. The room’s attention had been drawn from Lampron to Mia by Rafina’s beautiful voice.
What in the moons is going on right now?!
She wasn’t sure what Rafina wanted her to say, but she knew she had to say something. After a moment of doubt, determination set in.
I have to get through this! I don’t know where this wave is going, but I think I won’t drown if I ride with it like a jellyfish.
She took a quick breath. The next second, she had a huge smile on her face.
“Yes, it is great news that the House of Greenmoon and the royal family of Sunkland are getting married. Prince Echard is a wonderful person. I’m so happy for my good friend Esmeralda that she found such a great man.”
The feelings with which she spoke were real. When people get married, they often grow. For Echard to become a more mature person through this agreement, he might not want to plan any more murders. Mia could, in theory, gain from this marriage because it would let her speak her truth. At least for this part of the meeting.
“So am I,” Rafina said in the end. “May the Lord fill their days together with love and joy.”
As soon as Rafina said her greeting, everyone in the hall started talking. Count Lampron smiled at the hurriedly talking lords, and his face looked a little smug. He had even planned for Rafina to be there because of this very reason. Getting approval from the Saint of Belluga gave the planned marriage legitimacy that made it hard, if not impossible, to annul. There were also a lot of important people from other countries there, all of whom could attest to her support. The point of this party was to finally seal the deal on this marriage.
Rafina turned to Mia and said, “It is truly wonderful that marriage has brought the Kingdom of Sunkland and the Tearmoon Empire closer together. They are two of the most important countries on our continent. I’m sure it will also help you a lot with what you’re trying to do Mia, isn’t that right?”
Mia wasn’t sure what Rafina meant at first. The good news is that she realized the answer before she made any signs of being confused. In this case, what Mia was trying to do was to keep food coming in during a general famine. She had, after all, asked for open and mutual food aid between countries during the opening event. In this way, getting along better with Sunkland was definitely a good thing.
Because of how Sion acts, he probably won’t say no to food aid. Still, having more safety is always a good thing, and Esmeralda becoming his in-law will do that nicely. That being said, this marriage is a pretty good deal. That is, when the hunger comes, no one will have time for political games anyway.
But was the deal really that good? Ludwig, Rafina, and Anne were the three Mia fanatics who came up with this plan. Was that really the only thing they had in mind? No, of course not. Their plan was much bigger.
“This past few months, you’ve been too busy that you have been keeping to yourself.” Rafina went on. “I heard about your great performance in Perujin.”
Before Mia could answer, a close Sunkland noble spoke up.
“Oh?” He asked out loud, making it clear that he wanted other people to hear him. “Could that have anything to do with the news that Tearmoon is increasing their food reserves?”
“What a coincidence. We were wondering the same thing too.”
More nobles joined the chat.
“Concerns have been raised that Tearmoon is storing food in preparation for an invasion.”
“Anyway, I’ve actually talked to His Majesty—” Mia stopped when she saw that Ludwig, her loyal subject, was quietly walking toward them and was much better able to answer their questions. That’s correct. Again, Mia was ready. She had not only her right hand with her, but also her brains. It does make one wonder, “How much of Mia was really Mia if her right hand and brains were all other people?” It’s too bad there wasn’t time for such deep intellectual thought.
Hm… Yes, I should really let him handle this. He is going to do a much better job.
To avoid making things even more suspicious, the answer had to be carefully worded. That’s why it made sense to use her brains, in other words, Ludwig.
“Regarding that, I know there are a lot of misunderstandings going on. I’m fortunate to have one of my most trusted vassals here with me. I would like to introduce you to Ludwig. He will tell you the truth about what’s going on,” Mia said, expecting him to give her a perfect answer that left no room for question.
That’s what he did. His answer made it very clear what he meant without room for doubt.
Ludwig nodded after Mia gave him the metaphorical baton.
“I think you all want to know why Her Majesty went to Perujin…” He tapped his glasses. “The reason for her trip was to set up a continent-wide system of mutual food aid that would not be limited by borders and sovereignties.”
When she heard this answer, Mia folded her arms and nodded happily.
“And for her vision to come true,” Ludwig went on, “she needed the help of a number of merchant companies to set up the organization that would oversee this work.”
Mia kept crossing her arms and nodding her head, but her eyebrows started to tilt in a strange way.
“Forkroad & Co. and the famous merchant Shalloak Cornrogue will help with this.”
The lords were very upset when they heard the name of the second person.
“What? Cornrogue? Wasn’t he greed on legs? He was brought on by her?”
People might have been less impressed with the statement if Cornrogue had made it by himself. Shalloak Cornrogue often used bold business strategies that made a lot of people dislike him. That being said…
“Well, Forkroad is also a part of the plan…” Even though Forkroad wasn’t as big as Cornrogue, he was known as a trustworthy and honest trader. Even nations that were close by knew that he was known for being fair and honest in business.
“Also, weren’t those two fighting a lot lately?” Many lords frowned in confusion when they heard that Cornrogue was targetting Forkroad.
No matter what, if Mia was able to get their backing, it could only mean one thing: she had not only made peace between them, but also won them both over. People who had only heard of the Great Wisdom of the Empire by name were shocked. What people said about her and her feats was no longer just a story. Now, they were seeing one of her amazing accomplishments for themselves. Plus it’s in real time. The experience was a lot stronger.
But Ludwig wasn’t finished yet. They wouldn’t be able to breathe again until he was done.
“If possible, Her Highness wants to end all famine on the land for good. That’s why she’s putting together this group. That’s why she went to Perujin.”
Someone in the crowd asked, “What does Perujin have to do with this? Aren’t they a vassal state?”
Ludwig gave the questioner a nod.
“A good question. There is no denying that the relationship between the empire and Perujin Agricultural Country are the targets of a lot of criticism, and that criticism is certainly valid. That being said, changing our current plan isn’t easy because Perujin doesn’t have any military force. It wouldn’t take long for an unfriendly country to try to take them over. To do that, they need the empire’s armed power to keep them safe. Because of this complicated relationship and all the problems and baggage that comes with it, I hope you can all see that the criticism of Perujin’s status as an empire vassal is true, but there is no easy way to fix it,” Ludwig said, getting more and more talkative as he spoke. “However, even though Her Highness knew this was a tough situation, she looked at the arrangement…and turned it down!”
Passion filled every word he spoke. He made hand motions. His speech sped up, but it didn’t lose any of its beauty. His whole body seemed to be buzzing with energy, and he felt waves of happiness running through him. He was basically going through what geeks do when they can talk about their favorite thing.
He was filled with pride at the princess he served with historic success and said, “That’s why Her Highness went to Perujin! To show the way forward in what she belives in! A road that isn’t cut by knives. Not burned by war. But it was made with care. She didn’t go to fight, but to teach how to fight! She taught them how to fight for themselves and stay safe without weapons by putting the offices of the merchants’ organization in Perujin!”
Anywhere there could be a food shortage. It could happen to any nation. Who would make an enemy of the country that offered help if it did happen? If that country was then attacked by enemies who wouldn’t offer help in return.
“The real enemy of Her Highness, the one she plans to go to war with…is a foe no one has even thought of before. She wants to fight hunger itself! She is building an organization that will help people from different nations, cultures, and regions do that. This big idea will start to take shape in Perujin!” At the end of Ludwig’s speech, there was dead quiet.
After a beat, Rafina spoke. “Unbelievable… truly unbelievable. Being friends with Princess Mia makes me proud like never before.” She looked at Mia. “It’s an honor, and my doubts about whether I deserve it grow every day.”
By giving her sign of approval to Mia’s big idea, the Saint of Belluga set the record straight for how great her achievements were. That’s what Ludwig wanted. In a way, it was an attack on Sunkland’s “justice.” What kind of organization was Mia building? What did it represent?
It was a group that worked for peace. A truly fair group that would fight famine, which is a threat to all people.
“Her Highness is trying to uphold a justice that is not limited by borders. One that is universal for all nations” is a good way to sum up Ludwig’s speech. In any way, its rightousness was even greater than what Sunkland expected from its leaders. He was challenging the kind of justice favored by Count Lampron and his friends by offering a different one and, after showing them how much better it was, daring them to fight it. In this fight, would they stand against her? Choose the side of famine?
Without a doubt not. As long as they couldn’t fight against Mia’s justice, Esmeralda and Echard’s marriage would help Mia. Sunkland was a kingdom of justice. If Mia’s justice was more true, they would have to follow her.
Ludwig had done a great thing when he used Sunkland’s values against them to further their own values. In this fight, he used justice against justice, and made it better.
“…Huh?”
As you might expect, Mia had no idea what had just happened.
