Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 510

Kayla briefly licked her lips, then chuckled. Chloe’s provocation today seemed quite blatant, didn’t it? Something had clearly upset her, and figuring out what that was should be the priority. If her opponent was provoked, it meant that I had unknowingly pricked her with a thorn. I needed to be aware of what kind of weapon I held in my hand.

Kayla replied with a soft smile.

“It is only natural for a child to follow their father and contribute to the family. It’s not something to be praised, but it seems you think otherwise, Young Lady.”

All members of the Davion family were officials in the Imperial Palace. They weren’t working for the prosperity of their own family, but rather dedicating themselves to the Imperial Palace.

Meanwhile, Chloe was leisurely enjoying tea without any official position, which Kayla subtly pointed out. Unfortunately, there was no change in Chloe’s expression.

“No. I also think it’s natural. Therefore, like the Davion family has always done, I will dedicate myself to the Imperial Palace someday.”

From the Empress’s seat.

Chloe didn’t finish her sentence, but everyone gasped and exchanged glances. Today was the day. Would Kayla respond? The young ladies carefully examined Kayla’s expression and soon realized that she was holding back a laugh.

Kayla cooled her slightly flushed face with a hand fan and asked,

“For the Imperial Palace?”

“Yes. Of course.”

Not knowing her place, exceeding her limits. Kayla barely suppressed her laughter and cleared her throat, while Chloe watched her with cold eyes.

“What is so amusing?”

“I apologize. But, Young Lady Chloe, if you truly care for Bariel, wouldn’t it be right to help the Imperial Palace make choices that benefit the national interest, even now?”

It meant that it would be more beneficial for the national interest if the Empress came from Hollin, which held a tight grip on the defense industry, rather than from Davion, which was of no help. They only claimed to care for the Imperial family, but the fact that Davion was aiming for the Empress’s seat was itself a sign of the family’s greed.

‘In the end, you and I are in the same boat, yet how dare you.’

It was a fatal point. The young ladies watching thought that Chloe would back down at this point.

But the opponent was Chloe Davion. Although she couldn’t control the Imperial Palace, she was the young lady of the Davion Earldom, who had enough power to cause ripples on the calm surface.

Chloe calmly retorted.

“If you’re talking about national interest, there is nothing more valuable than a strong relationship between the ruler and his subjects. That’s what the relationship between the ruler and his subjects is like. It’s like a wall, and the more solid and sturdy it is, the more prosperous the country becomes. Soft gold coins can never build it solidly.”

She pointed out that the long-standing bond between the Imperial Palace and the Davion family could not be compared to the gold coins that Hollin was pouring out.

As the two young ladies’ gazes met coldly, Charlotte, the host of the tea party, snapped her fan shut. It was a signal to stop being difficult and hide their claws.

“By the way, Kayla. If you went to the Magic Department, did you see the rumored Minister?”

“You mean Sir Ian Hielo?”

“Yes, yes. They say he has beautiful blonde hair and green eyes. And his grace is also outstanding.”

“Moreover, I heard that his work ability is excellent, and His Majesty’s affection for him is very deep. Above all, he is said to have defied the flow of time. I’m very curious.”

“Hmm. Well. It seems the rumors weren’t exaggerated-”

Kayla frowned without realizing it, trailing off. What good was being handsome and capable? He was a very troublesome existence for the Hollin family.

Chloe read Kayla’s subtle emotional change.

‘It’s a lie that she only had a private meeting with the Duke, and she must have had a significant conflict with the Magic Department. The only thing that could shake the Hollin family like that is the defense industry. Did the Magic Department suddenly reach out in that direction? How strange.’

She was already feeling strong displeasure at the fact that Kayla had rejected the Davion family’s invitation for a meeting and had seen the Hollin family first.

However, she couldn’t afford to be on bad terms with the Magic Department. If she turned hostile to the Imperial Palace, the biggest beneficiary would be Davion.

‘I need to change my attitude. Instead of holding the construction of the annex hostage, it would be better to treat them as favorably as possible and go against Hollin’s position.’

Once she returned to her mansion, she would be able to quickly find out what had happened between the Magic Department and the Hollin family.

As Chloe silently sipped her tea, Kayla watched her. She didn’t know what she was thinking, but it wouldn’t be a positive sign.

‘…What if Davion uses its power in the Imperial Palace to push the Magic Department?’

The Hollin family would be under strong pressure. It wasn’t just a matter of disrupting the family business. It meant that Davion could become the leading Empress family, surpassing Hollin. The benefits of securing the business rights were one, but the Empress’s seat had countless benefits intertwined.

Tap tap, Kayla tapped her chin with her fan and winked at the nearby young ladies. It was a signal to arrange a separate meeting to give them a separate message. The young ladies put down their teacups and naturally looked around.

“Hmm. By the way, the garden is very beautiful. The gardener’s skills are excellent.”

“Shall we take a walk? It would be rude to just sit here with such a beautiful garden.”

“That’s a good idea. I wanted to walk a little anyway. The dessert was so delicious that I ate too much without realizing it.”

Clatter.

They hadn’t even finished their tea, but suddenly? The other young ladies noticed that they had exchanged some kind of signal and only gave awkward smiles.

It was the moment when Kayla’s faction and Chloe’s faction naturally separated.

* * *

“The Magic Department is producing weapons?”

The next day, at the regular conference held in the morning.

At Ian’s statement, several officials were startled and raised their heads. They had thought that something unusual was happening since the Dera tribe entered the palace, but wow. The Magic Department producing weapons?

It was as if the Imperial Palace cooks were being selected as the vanguard of the army. Each had their own duties, but they couldn’t understand why the Magic Department was producing weapons.

“What are you saying? Did I hear you correctly?”

“Sir Ian. Weapon manufacturing and distribution are already being carried out through private businesses, are you aware of that?”

“Yes. But there is a part that needs to be clarified. What the Magic Department is trying to make is not ‘general weapons,’ but ‘special weapons’ that are only effective against monsters and the Atan tribe, etc., non-human races. They cannot cause any harm or pain to humans, so they are clearly different from the weapons we have used so far.”

Rustle.

At Ian’s explanation, the officials slowly turned over the reports. They didn’t fully understand all the details, but they understood the context. Especially the content written in bold, that Beric, an Atan, had personally stepped forward to prove its effectiveness, helped their understanding.

“We have secured a great blacksmith from the Dera tribe, but we cannot move their workshop here. Therefore, we plan to purchase a part of the Hollin family’s territory near the Imperial Palace, and acquire and operate some of the weapon manufacturing facilities and infrastructure.”

As if what was coming had come, the officials stirred greatly. Those who had ties with the Davion family felt an opportunity, while those who didn’t felt a crisis.

“But as you know, the weapon business rights in Bariel are currently monopolized by the Hollin family. To bypass that, we need to register the weapons made by the Dera tribe as ‘special weapons,’ which requires the consent of more than half of the total.”

“Will the Hollin family just stand by?”

“Oh, what if they don’t stand by?”

Ian asked back as if he was very surprised, and the official waved his hand, saying that wasn’t what he meant.

“The Hollin family’s tax revenue is enormous. There may be problems with the Imperial Palace’s finances next year, and above all, if we betray the trust of the nobles in this way, we cannot achieve good results in the long term.”

“That’s right. It would be better to call the Hollin family and resolve it through dialogue rather than deciding among ourselves.”

“We have already had a dialogue. We offered to purchase the land and acquire the manufacturing facilities, but the response wasn’t very good. The Magic Department is trying to prepare in its own way.”

As Ian said that, positive answers were heard from here and there.

“I agree. It’s a special weapon, isn’t it? It’s something that only the Magic Department can make, so it’s right to acknowledge its uniqueness.”

“Yes, and I think we need to be wary of having a matter of national importance handled in the private sector. Especially now, with war on the horizon.”

“And everyone, it’s a weapon that can deal with monsters, isn’t it? Do you understand what this means?”

“That even soldiers can handle monsters…”

“Ah, that’s right. That’s it.”

At someone’s question, the officials exclaimed as if they had realized something. It meant that monsters could be handled without wizards, which meant that the dependence on the Magic Department would decrease. The Magic Department was now offering a means to check themselves, similar to Idgal before.

“It would be good to think about it a little more. Let’s put the agenda on the table today and discuss it slowly, shall we?”

“Yes, let’s do that. Minister of the Magic Department.”

“But it shouldn’t take too long. The delegation to Burgus is said to depart next week, so we should take our time but proceed as quickly as possible.”

“But, Sir Ian. How much did you estimate the payment to the Hollin family?”

It wasn’t written there. Ian said it was nothing much and held up two fingers.

“The price of the necessary land is twice the purchase price. The production infrastructure is the Magic Department’s budget for one year. We only proposed a small part of it, as it will be a pilot project.”

Swoosh.

At that moment, Romandro approached Ian. He bowed deeply and carefully placed a letter in front of Ian. It was a letter with the Hollin family’s seal on it.

Ian raised his hand as if to ask them to wait a moment, and the officials took the opportunity to whisper among themselves.

“What’s going on?”

“Hmm.”

Ian, who was reading the letter, smiled faintly. It was a very calm and peaceful smile, as if he had expected it.

“It’s a reply from Duke Hollin. He has deeply considered what I proposed yesterday-”

“I knew it, he’s going to say no, right?”

“What can we do if he says no? We’ll have to expand the Imperial Palace’s smithy.”

Shhh. Ian gestured for them to be quiet for a moment, and the officials paused.

“He says that it’s not possible at the proposed price.”

“I knew it!”

“He says it’s not possible even at double the price? That’s impressive.”

“It’s land adjacent to the Imperial Palace. Money isn’t the issue.”

Ian put the letter down with a thud and added,

“He wants five times the purchase price for the land. And he also wants five times the Magic Department’s budget for the infrastructure.”

At those words, the officials’ mouths dropped open. How much was that? Numbers that were impossible to calculate with simple math flashed through their minds.

“Impossible. Absolutely, absolutely impossible.”

“But the Hollin family has done its duty. Rather than rejecting it outright, they have presented a reasonable compromise.”

“Sir Ian, what are you going to do now? I don’t think even the Magic Department can afford that amount of money.”

It was a reasonable countermeasure that the Hollin family could take first. Rather than rejecting the proposal outright, they presented a counter-proposal to make the other party give up.

Ian also nodded in agreement.

“That’s true, but wouldn’t it be possible if we put in a little effort?”

“…What do you mean?”

The Magic Department didn’t need to directly respond to the card that Hollin had thrown.

“Where would you get that kind of money?”

“The Technology Development Department, the Imperial Defense Department, and the Imperial Guard will participate in the development. Who knows if other departments will join forces as well.”

Where would they get it? From their pockets.

“Each department, please return all the money you borrowed from the Magic Department. By the end of this week.”

“Wh-What! It’s not just a penny or two, how can we pay that by the end of this week?”

“Yes. I’m sorry to say this, but we are in the same situation. Sir Ian. It would be better to give us some time-”

“If we are to give you time, the Magic Department needs to have some leeway, but didn’t you see? Duke Hollin asked for five times the amount.”

“No…”

The officials’ faces turned black as they realized the intention.

“If the Hollin family changes their mind and agrees to the price proposed by the Magic Department, we won’t have to collect the money urgently. So, instead of talking to me, please talk to the Duke directly.”