Duke Pendragon

“Anyways, I am certain that the regent and Your Majesty Isla will take care of it well. It will be strange for me to intervene excessively in matters of marriage, even if I am the queen. Now, to the next issue…”

“My Queen, I have something to tell you.”

“Hmm?”

Mia had been sitting calmly until now. When she suddenly voiced out, Elena became slightly astonished. Although her youngest daughter was incomparably bright compared to when she was young, she wouldn’t usually express her opinion at a public gathering with numerous nobles and knights.

“You may speak.”

Elena responded in a gentle voice. She felt rather proud of her youngest daughter’s growth, but somewhat anxious at the same time.

Although she had a different personality, Mia was still Irene’s younger sister. In addition, she was just as eccentric as Irene had been. She continued to have the goblin Kazzal by her side, and she associated herself with the other races present in the Pendragon Kingdom.

“I would like to follow His Majesty Isla.”

As if fulfilling Elena’s unease, Mia spoke unexpected, outlandish words. Everyone was thrown into shock at the declaration of the Pendragon family’s youngest daughter.

“W, wait. What did you say?”

“I would like to follow His Majesty Isla and contribute to choosing a bride, Your Majesty."

“Ha!”

Elena let out an exasperated sigh, forgetting herself in the moment. She was dumbfounded. It wasn’t as if they were setting out on an adventure, but rather, the king of a country was making a trip to choose his bride.

What would happen if Mia accompanied him as a princess?

It was an act of disrespect towards the families of the ladies who were nominated as candidates to become Isla’s bride. Even though Isla prioritized himself as Knight of Pendragon before the King of Valvas, it could be considered excessive interference.

Above all else, Mia was also a lady of marriageable age, and this was a problem. According to traditions, she was at an age where she should have found an appropriate partner.

If the two people were to travel together, rumors were bound to spread.

“Impossible. Please carry out your duties in the castle, Princess. Even your young nephew and niece are fulfilling their obligations, so how could you think to not?”

Despite Elena’s harsh reprimand, Mia gazed at her mother with indifferent eyes and spoke clearly.

“His Majesty Isla is Knight of Pendragon before he is King of Valvas, My Queen. Naturally, the decision should be made by His Majesty Isla, but I do not think it is right to turn a blind eye to such a significant event of a knight belonging to our Pendragon Kingdom.”

“And that is a job for Regent Ron.”

“The regent cannot accompany His Majesty Isla to see the candidates because he is completely occupied with other matters of the kingdom. And strictly speaking, Regent Ron is a loyal servant and a knight of the kingdom, is he not? Should we not personally take care of His Majesty Isla’s marriage as the royal family of Pendragon?”

“…..”

Since when were her words so eloquent? 

Elena could not find words to speak, so she had no choice but to remain silent. Isla was also surprised by the unexpected situation, so he remained silent. The other nobles alternated their gazes between him and Mia.

“Princess Mia has a point, My Queen.”

A harmonious voice resonated deeply throughout the palace. It belonged to Vincent Ron, regent of the Pendragon Kingdom.

“Regent.”

Although she responded with a frown, Elena could not blame him. Vincent’s contribution to the development of the Pendragon Kingdom was truly enormous during the seven years that her son and king, Alan Pendragon, was absent.

The reputation of Pendragon’s Raccoon Mask was widespread, not only in the Aragon Empire, but also in various foreign nations as well. No lord, monarch, or even Emperor Ian dared belittle him.

He never worked for self-interest and status. Rather, he devoted himself wholly to the kingdom with a sense of duty and responsibility. Even though Elena was a queen and possessed the most seniority, she could not disregard his opinion.

“It would be best if Your Majesty the Queen could personally see the three candidates in person, but that is practically impossible.”

“Well, that is true, but…”

She still had her doubts, but she agreed for now.

Vincent continued with his unique smile. It was soft, but mysterious.

“So then, Princess Irene, ah, please excuse me, Empress Irene must perform the duty on behalf of Your Majesty, but that is also impossible. Of course, Her Majesty the Empress would be willing to take her time for His Majesty Isla, but… there’s someone scary who is always by her side. He might just try to prey on anyone who tries anything of the sort.”

“Kekeuah!”

“Haha…”

Chuckles could be heard from all over the palace.

The ‘scary man’ that Vincent was referring to was Ian, Irene’s husband and the emperor of the Aragon Kingdom. The whole world knew how affectionate he was to Irene. He still called her his ‘little lark’ even though they had been married for quite a few years.

“Hmm! Please continue.”

Elena faked a cough and spoke. She had smiled without meaning to, realizing that Vincent used her daughter and son-in-law’s connubial bliss to reverse the rather stiff, chaotic atmosphere.

“Then the only ones left to accompany His Majesty Isla are Baroness Conrad and Princess Mia. However, Baroness Conrad is devoting herself to raising the prince and the princess, and she can be a little shy, so it might be difficult for her to accurately determine the intentions of the three ladies when they meet for the first time.”

“Hmm…”

Elena nodded in agreement. She could not leave such a heavy responsibility to Lindsay. After all, Lindsay was fully occupied raising her seven-year-old children.

“Considering all options, only Princess Mia remains, Your Majesty.”

“Hmm. I understand your words very well, Regent. But I do not think that is a sufficient reason to send this child to such far distances.”

“You are entirely correct. However, there is another reason why I recommended Princess Mia.”

“Hmm…”

“Although our Pendragon Kingdom managed to grow to what it is today by enduring many external and internal troubles, our relationships with noble families of foreign countries and the Aragon Empire have not made much progress. In particular, Prince Raymond will one day rise to the throne to oversee our kingdom. However, the number of times he has gone out of our kingdom can be counted on one hand. Moreover, all of them were visits to the imperial castle of the Aragon Empire.”

“…..”

Emotions swirled inside Elena’s eyes.

Vincent’s words were true.

She truly cherished her two grandchildren left by her son.

As such, she rarely let them out of the castle, let alone the kingdom. However, her grandchildren would soon be eight years old.

At that age, they would need to make an official appearance in the noble society. In particular, Raymond would need to continue the kingdom one day. His existence needed to be known in foreign countries, including the Aragon Empire.

“As such, in my humble opinion, I dare say that Prince Raymond should accompany His Majesty Isla as the representative of our kingdom’s delegation, and that Princess Mia should accompany His Majesty Isla as part of the delegation, as well as Prince Raymond’s guardian.”

“Hmm. Raymond as well…”

Elena could not refute Vincent’s words. It made sense and he was right. Even so, Elena couldn’t immediately come to a decision. She was hesitant in letting her precious grandson and daughter travel such far distances.

“It’s going to be a long way… He is still young, and I am worried he might face too many hardships…”

“Those who have not suffered cannot become great monarchs, Your Majesty. Think of our king, the one who will soon return.”

Vincent’s unique smile could no longer be found. Instead, he bowed his voice while speaking in a stern voice. His appearance silenced the nobles of the palace, and Elena’s eyes quivered greatly.

He was right once again.

She, as well as everyone else, had forgotten – how he, the founder of the great kingdom, fought and won…

They had forgotten what kind of monarch Alan Pendragon was.

“Let us do that.”

Elena made a determination. If she sheltered and protected everyone she loved, not letting them leave the castle, her grandson would never become a true king.

The blood of Pendragon was not thin.

Throughout the generations, Pendragon’s monarchs were knights of knights and lords of lords. Although her grandson was still young, he needed to walk a thorny path as long as he possessed the blood of Pendragon.

That was the responsibility of one born as Pendragon. 

“Well, although I spoke as such, it will not be a very thorny road. No matter what anyone says, Princess Mia and Prince Raymond will be by the side of the Knight King of Valvas.”

“Hoho…!”

Elena chuckled. She had been worried about sending her youngest daughter and grandson to the outside world, but the one accompanying them would be the strongest knight. Who would dare act pompously toward a delegation with the Knight King and the shining knights of Pendragon?

“Mia.”

“Yes, My Queen.”

Elena spoke softly. Her daughter’s eyes were glowing brightly just as they had when she was but a child.

“Were your thoughts aligned with the Regent's words?”

“Yes. I came to the decision because I knew there was no one else except me. I am also a Pendragon.”

“Yes, of course. You are indeed a Pendragon. Who could say otherwise?”

Elena could not hide her expression as she nodded. She was immensely proud of her daughter. Although their father died young, she had done an excellent job raising her children. She could proudly show them off to the rest of the world.

*** 

“Ehem! Are you busy?”

“Not particularly. Did you have something you wanted to discuss?”

Killian approached while coughing awkwardly, and Vincent replied with a curious expression. But he already knew. The following words of this man, the knight commander of the Pendragon Kingdom and the lord of its largest territory, were well within his predictions.

“Well… I was thinking. Wouldn’t Elkin, I mean, the King of Valvas be a little uncomfortable? This is not the South, so he might have trouble navigating around…”

“Sir Isla wandered from place to place as a free knight before becoming a knight of the lord. He must have a superior eye for navigating compared to Sir Killian, who always resided in our Kingdom. Moreover, ten royal guards will be accompanying them to protect Princess Mia and Prince Raymond. Sir Killian, there is absolutely nothing for you to worry about.”

“…..”

Vincent replied with a smirk. Killian couldn’t find words to say. Even though they had known each other for almost ten years, Killian still found it irritating when Vincent acted as such.

“No, but still, I…”

“You cannot.”

“I haven’t even told you what I was going to…”

“There is no need.”

“…..”

Killian's disappointment was evident. The regent was firm in his words. Even though Killian was the knight commander of the kingdom and had served the family ever since it was a duchy, he could not go against Vincent’s words.

Killian appeared dejected with drooping shoulders. Perhaps feeling bad for him, Vincent continued with a gentle smile.

“However, I have a gift for Sir Killian. I think it will be to your liking.”

“Ohhhh! What is it? A vacation? Ah, I think I would prefer a large city or a beach…”

“Mister Karuta is coming.”

“Hiek!”

Killian’s large body visibly heaved. His expression turned pale, and sweat droplets began forming on his forehead. However, Vincent maintained his sly smile while continuing.

“Rumor has it that he has become much stronger than before after training for a long time. He would like to display the results of his training to Sir Killian before anyone else, since you lead all the knights in our kingdom. Isn’t this truly wonderful? He shows genuine consideration for our kingdom…”

“Uah… Uahhhh! No. Nooo!”

Along with a crazed scream, the head knight of the Pendragon Kingdom bolted away.