Chapter 3 – Exploration (Part 4)

At the same time, in a small meeting room at the royal palace, everyone summoned early in the morning had gathered without a single person being late. Five high-ranking officials sat at the round table, waiting for King Clois.

Secretaries, who always accompanied the nobles, sat on backless chairs placed behind them. Aaron, sitting behind Cassius, stifled a yawn, curious about the reason for the gathering at this hour.

‘Today isn’t a regular meeting day, and there’s no special agenda that would warrant such an early meeting. Why has His Majesty called us so early?’

Even though the Duke’s waking hours were early, it was rare for a meeting to be convened at the royal palace so early, leading to concerns that something significant might have happened. The faces of the other officials also showed unease. Although they exchanged a few words occasionally, they seemed unable to guess the reason for the summons.

Just then, the door to the meeting room swung open, and a knight standing on either side announced.

“His Majesty King Clois de Brunchia is entering.”

Everyone in the meeting room rose to pay their respects to King Clois. Despite having summoned them at dawn, King Clois, wearing a brighter expression than usual instead of one of tension or worry, gestured with a smile as dazzling as the sun.

“Please, be seated. Today, it’s not because of any special matter, but because I have something to celebrate that I’ve called you all.”

Then, looking at Cassius, Clois smiled even more brightly and said.

“Congratulations on your engagement, Duke Grendel.”

‘Ah…’

Only then did Aaron, realizing the purpose of the meeting, feel the strength drain from his body. Cassius, as always, responded politely without showing any emotion.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

However, the other nobles seated were visibly unsettled for various reasons.

Earl Peter van Kumaran, known for his half-white hair and thick white mustache, couldn’t hide his reddening face and crumpled expression. Earl Kumaran had been considering the Grendel Ducal family as a potential match for his grown daughter, Sera. He had openly proposed marriage between his daughter and the Duke, but the late Duke Aisar had always subtly deflected, and the current Duke had shown no interest. However, since the Duke showed no interest in any women from any families, he felt reassured. When the Duke appeared at this year’s Spring Ball, he hoped it meant he was finally entering the marriage market.

‘He didn’t even dance with my daughter…! I heard rumors that he was considering a match with some strange lower-ranking noble family, and I laughed it off as nonsense, but he’s already engaged?’

In the Earl’s view, among the noble families with daughters of marriageable age, none compared to his own, and no bride was as outstanding as his daughter.

Georg Lance, the Minister of Defense and former head of the Royal Knights, looked at Duke Grendel with admiration. The Lance family, known for producing many outstanding knights, was from the eastern region, famous for its excellent physical abilities. Although not originally a noble family, their title was among the lowest, but Georg had graduated top of his class in logistics from the Academy and mastered all forms of combat and military strategy, earning a formidable reputation as a soldier. 

Although Brunchia had been peaceful without war for a long time, the Minister of Defense’s role was crucial as they always had to monitor the situation in neighboring countries and prepare for any emergencies. Minister Georg Lance had been worried that there might be issues with other countries or a need for military action until the King spoke. Once he realized there was nothing to worry about, he congratulated Cassius in a hearty voice that matched his large build.

“Congratulations, Duke Grendel. Many people around me were asking when you would marry, and now I can finally answer them.”

“Thank you.”

“But I hadn’t heard any rumors about someone you fancied, and yet you’re already engaged? Did you hide her secretly to avoid causing a stir?”

“That’s not the case.”

“Then I must have been late to hear the news.”

“Like Minister Lance, I hadn’t heard anything either. For a family like the Ducal family to propose a marriage, it wouldn’t be a family we wouldn’t know about, right?”

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carnelia Septimum, interjected. Carnelia, a member of a family with influence across the continent, was the only daughter born between a noble from the Kingdom of Tran and a knight from Brunchia. Thanks to the influence of her maternal family, the ‘Septimum’ family of Tran, she was well-versed in the affairs of foreign nobility. She had graduated top of her class in diplomacy from the Academy of Brunchia and had even served as a senior professor at the highest-level academy.

“I even introduced my niece from Tran to you, thinking you might have no interest in women at all, since you showed no interest. Hohoho!”

Minister of Foreign Affairs Carnelia, who had a niece in Tran, a country bordering Brunchia’s western border, had become her godmother after losing her husband and having no children of her own, caring for her niece as if she were her daughter. To her, looking for the best groom for her niece in Brunchia, the Duke was naturally the top candidate. 

She had often tried to arrange meetings with her niece or invite Cassius for tea under the pretext of discussing affairs after court meetings, but Cassius, having seen through her intentions, had always curtly declined, so there was a sharp edge to her words.

Before Cassius could respond, King Clois asked.

“So, which family’s daughter is it?”

The King and the ministers all looked on with curiosity. Cassius answered, somewhat surprisingly.

“She is the eldest daughter of the quasi-Baron Serenze family. I thought Your Majesty already knew.”

“No. All I knew was that there was a proposal somewhere and that the conspicuous carriage crossed the capital and returned to the Ducal estate. Naturally, the person in that carriage was the Duke’s fiancée.”

“The Serenze quasi-Baron family doesn’t seem very familiar.”

Marquis Whis van Orga, with his thin and elongated appearance reminiscent of a weasel, spoke. The Orga Marquis family, who had solidified their position as a meritorious family since the founding of Brunchia, had once wielded enough power to threaten the royal family. Although their power had waned over recent generations as the royal authority strengthened, they still wielded considerable influence among the nobility as a historically high-ranking noble family.

The current Marquis Orga, unlike his predecessor who despised commerce, had understood the importance of money from a young age and studied finance and accounting at the Academy. Although he had been advising on royal finances since the previous king’s reign, the current King Clois did not fully trust him. Therefore, while he sought advice from him at court meetings, he did not grant him the position of Minister of Finance.

King Clois, upon hearing the name Serenze quasi-Baron tilted his head, trying to recall. If it were a significant noble family, he would have known its history, but the quasi-Viscount family was unfamiliar to him as they had not stood out, so there had been no need to know about them.

Earl Kumaran scoffed as if he had heard a bad joke upon hearing the Serenze family’s name.

“It’s a family that made a little money trading with nobles, not a particularly impressive one. The daughter has never attracted attention in social circles. Considering my dealings with her father, I’ve occasionally told my daughter to invite the Serenze daughter to gatherings. But even at these gatherings, she was said to be quiet and unremarkable, seemingly reluctant to attend in the first place, likely because there’s nothing particularly noteworthy about her.”

Earl Kumaran explained, trying to hide his discomfort while pretending to know well.

Duke Grendel, who had been listening silently to Earl Kumaran’s words, spoke.

“The Serenze family acts as intermediaries between commoner trading companies like Haas and the nobility. Since the Haas Trading Company mainly deals in wholesale without having a shop in the market, they can’t send servants, and nobles who don’t want to deal directly with commoner trading companies without status still need their goods. Among those seated here, there are probably some who would be inconvenienced without the Serenze family’s mediation.”

Cassius was simply stating facts, not necessarily trying to defend the Serenze family. However, his words sounded like an insult to Earl Kumaran, who used the Serenze family’s mediation to avoid dealing with commoners. His face turned red with anger, but being in the presence of the King, he had to restrain himself.

Aaron Hass glanced at Earl Kumaran’s face and inwardly clicked his tongue at the pettiness of belittling the Serenze family. Aaron knew that the Serenze family wasn’t insignificant in terms of their skill or scale, as they handled distribution not only between commoners and nobles but also between less developed regions and the capital.

The smile disappeared from King Clois’s face as he listened to the conversation between the two. Noticing the change in the King’s demeanor, the others tried to discern what had disturbed him.

“Now that everyone knows which family’s young lady it is and the congratulations are over, let’s end today’s meeting here. Now, Earl Kumaran and Minister Septimum will trouble me less, right? And I hope the others present will spread the word so that no one else requests an audience over the Duke’s marriage issue.”

With those words, King Clois rose, and the others followed suit, showing their respect. At the King’s signal, Cassius followed him, and Aaron quickly followed the Duke.