20. Everything Belongs to Edward

“Count Winters, I know that although you have inherited the title of Count, you have no interest in politics and are simply living a carefree life, going wherever the flow takes you.”

“That doesn’t sound like a compliment.”

Larael let out a small laugh at his words. Seeing her laugh, Count Winters flinched slightly. It was an unexpected laugh.

“I need someone to assist His Majesty the Emperor on my behalf.”

At Larael’s words, Count Winters frowned. He couldn’t understand what the Empress Consort was talking about. Her words were completely different from what he had expected.

‘Who is helping whom? She doesn’t even seem capable of taking care of herself right now.’

“I don’t think I’m the right person for the job. Your Highness, please find someone else.”

It felt so abrupt to be summoned suddenly to hear something like this. Count Winters no longer felt the need to continue the conversation with Larael and began to rise from his seat.

“No, didn’t I say that I could help you, Count? Don’t you remember?”

Larael spoke in a soft voice, her eyes widening innocently.

Count Winters, who had been about to stand, felt all the strength leave his body and collapsed back onto the sofa. A shiver ran down his spine.

As soon as he heard those words, he recalled something she had said before. His lower lip trembled slightly, but he pressed his lips tightly together to hide it.

This was impossible. Truly impossible. Count Winters denied it. For now, he decided to deny everything.

“I’m not sure what Your Highness is talking about, but can’t you assist His Majesty directly?”

“Because I absolutely cannot.”

Larael’s expression darkened for a moment. She bit her lip tightly. After taking a deep breath, she raised her head and looked at Count Winters again. Her eyes were filled with complex emotions. As if trying to hide them, she lowered her gaze and made her request once more.

“Count Winters. No, Master. I will provide Four Seasons with a wealth of information. So please, help me.”

Larael raised her head and met Count Winters’ eyes. Her gaze was filled with certainty as she looked at him.

“Your Highness, just who are you?”

When she called him “Master,” Count Winters realized that denying it any further was futile. He looked at Larael with a mixture of shock and fear, seeing her sitting calmly before him.

She even wore a relaxed smile, as if enjoying his confusion, observing him with composure. Count Winters felt as though he was completely exposed before her, with nothing to hide.

“The Empress Consort. I was planning to speak with you at the banquet, but something unexpected happened yesterday. The human memory is not perfect, so I missed a few things.”

“Yesterday?”

Instead of questioning her identity, Count Winters decided to focus on what she was saying. He was curious about what she knew and what she intended to say.

“I’m talking about the Kingdom of Hashiya’s army entering the Kayaneuman Mountains.”

It was something discussed during the noble council meeting yesterday. Since he was close to Beatrice, she speculated that the Marchioness of Argen might have shared the details of the meeting.

When Count Winters remained silent, Larael continued speaking.

“The Kingdom of Hashiya is facing significant internal difficulties. Although they have managed to patch things up for now, the regional lords are beginning to harbor dissatisfaction, and the excessive tax levies have caused peasant rebellions, leaving some territories in uncontrollable chaos.”

“There have indeed been peasant rebellions.”

Count Winters unconsciously agreed, then quickly cleared his throat and shut his mouth.

“A hero of yesterday, feeling insecure about the monarchy, will likely turn his attention to an external enemy to resolve the kingdom’s internal situation. It seems like a reckless choice, doesn’t it? But why the Kazel Empire? Why target a nation led by Edward, who has won several major wars?”

“……”

Count Winters opened his mouth to respond but closed it again. The way she naturally referred to the Emperor as “Edward” felt oddly familiar. Larael didn’t seem to realize that she had casually used the Emperor’s name.

“Am I supposed to answer that?”

Larael firmly shook her head, signaling for him to remain silent.

“When the negotiation team arrives at the Hashiyan camp, the king will set aside his pride and plead. He’ll admit that he has no real intention of attacking the Kazel Empire. He’ll request permission to advance just to the walls of Kalia until the kingdom stabilizes internally. In reality, they won’t attack Kalia. They’ll simply remain in a standoff in front of Kalia’s tall, long walls. Even the Hashiyan soldiers won’t know the true reason. That information is a tightly guarded secret.”

“A tightly guarded secret?”

The more Larael spoke as if she knew everything, the stranger Count Winters felt. How could she possibly know all this?

“The standoff in front of Kalia’s walls might last for years. Gradually, the Kazel Empire will stop paying attention to them. The peace treaty won’t actually be broken. During that time, the Kingdom of Hashiya will secretly extract all the high-purity mana stones buried in the Kayaneuman Mountains and transport them to their kingdom.”

“Mana stones!!!”

At her final words, Count Winters forgot all his doubts about her and shouted loudly.

Mana stones, imbued with mana, were widely used in magic. The Kazel Empire had only a few mana stone mines, and even those produced low-quality stones, forcing the empire to import most of its supply from neighboring countries.

The Kingdom of Hashiya had grown into a powerful nation rivaling the Kazel Empire by monopolizing mana stones. While it was known that a mana stone mine had been discovered within Hashiya, the truth behind it had been concealed.

This secret had been uncovered by informants planted in Hashiya by Grand Duke Vellaus, but the Grand Duke had kept it quiet, fearing the Emperor might hold him accountable. Separately, it was said that Herwen had fallen into a deep depression for days after learning about the mana stones, as though they had belonged to him.

Count Winters now looked at Larael with an almost reverent gaze. While others might dismiss her words as nonsense, he didn’t find them absurd at all. Her crimson eyes shone with deep conviction.

“How do you know all this? Even Four Seasons doesn’t have this level of information. And as I mentioned earlier, wouldn’t it be better for Your Highness to speak directly to His Majesty?”

He couldn’t understand. If everything was as she said, it would be a great achievement that could even secure her position as Empress. Why was she seeking a substitute?

“I am unworthy of His Majesty’s trust and love. Please don’t ask me any more. The way I obtained this information is highly unconventional, so I have nothing to say. Let’s just say it came to me in a dream.”

Larael gave a bitter smile.

‘If only it really were a dream. If everything were just a dream, I could erase it all and start over…’

The guilt from past events always weighed on her heart like a heavy burden.

“What do you want me to do?”

Count Winters recalled the legend of the Empress’s third eye. If Larael truly possessed such an ability, as he suspected, then she should rightfully ascend as Empress.

“Join His Majesty’s negotiation team and ensure that the mana stone mine falls into the hands of the Kazel Empire—or rather, into the hands of His Majesty.”

Larael spoke each word clearly and with determination.

When she first heard that the Kingdom of Hashiya was advancing into the Kayaneuman Mountains, the memory of the mana stone mine came to her mind. This time, she was determined to place it in Edward’s hands. It would become his strength.