Chapter 223

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Excellency the Margrave!”

“Congratulations on your victory. And to think you manifested a miracle! When I heard the story from Bishop Marco, my heart started pounding.”

“Indeed. To be able to see the traces of a miracle with my own eyes—what greater fortune could there be? Hahaha.”

“Ah, is that so. Haha….”

The priests from the Holy See were visibly brimming with excitement. To witness a miracle in one’s lifetime was exceedingly rare.

Even if they were only seeing what remained after it had already passed, for the faithful it was still an honor.

Of course—

-GLARE!

—to Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania, who was about to have a not-quite-shameful secret(?) exposed, it was not honor but fury.

Even now, look at her.

Was she not cursing me with her eyes as if she wanted to devour me?

If this spread, it would not merely become fodder for high society gossip—her prospects for marriage could be ruined. There was no way she could be pleased.

“A-ahem. Calm yourselves.”

Thanks to that, I had to struggle to soothe the excited priests, sweating profusely as I did.

“As for the miracle…. Well. I am not sure myself. Haha. It was nothing. There was simply a burst of bright light, and Her Grace woke up, that is all.”

“Ooh.”

“Indeed. So it was true.”

The words I had tried so hard to use to contain the situation seemed to excite them even more. The priests nodded gravely, as though trying to read between my lines.

“Long ago, it was said that miracles manifest without intention.”

“Was it not your desperate wish to save the Duchess of Aquitaine that received an answer?”

“Indeed. Your Excellency has long been known to receive God’s love, so it must be that God gladly responded to this as well. Hahaha.”

An interpretation so absurd it left me dizzy.

If the very people who were supposed to verify this simply trusted my words, was that not a problem? They should have been stricter and said it was not a miracle, but a magical phenomenon in which mystery had intervened!

Instead—

“Ooh. Is that so?”

“To be loved by God… truly astonishing. As expected of Your Excellency.”

That interpretation must have suited the nobles’ tastes.

No noble would dislike hearing that the one they served—or the one with whom they had formed close ties—was blessed by God.

After all, glory and honor were not monopolized alone; they were shared. The nobles here looked as though they were already filled with the Holy Spirit, as if that blessing belonged to them as well.

“…….”

I had nothing left to say.

If they were going to chatter among themselves and reach a conclusion on their own, what could I possibly add?

In fact, it might even be better. If this ended here with such a conclusion, could the fact that I had kissed Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania not quietly be buried along with it?

“However, Your Excellency.”

But of course it would not be that simple.

“How did the light appear? Miracles of this sort generally manifest through contact.”

“Uh…. Th-that is….”

The question struck like a dagger. For a moment, I felt faint. Sweat slid down my back.

When I glanced to the side, Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania had gone pale, shaking her head furiously.

If I had to interpret that intense gesture, it felt like: if you say it, I will kill you.

‘Damn it….’

A truly difficult situation.

Fortunately, as before, the breakthrough was created by the priests themselves.

“Through physical contact… then surely the hand?”

“That is right! That must be it. Is that correct, Your Excellency?”

“H-hand? Ah! Yes, that is right. The hand. The moment I touched her hand, the light burst forth and she was healed by a miracle!”

I seized the moment and spoke at once. And if I thought about it, it was not even entirely false. The “healing” happened when I brought my hand to Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania’s chin.

The kiss afterward was only a mishap that occurred after she had already been healed.

‘N-no… if I think of it that way, the meaning of the kiss becomes even stranger, does it not?’

If the purpose of treatment disappeared, then the act of kissing was left with only its original meaning.

Cold sweat poured down me at the thought, but fortunately my answer seemed to suit Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania’s preferences.

She sat with a noticeably calmer face than before.

Thank goodness.

Truly.

---

The brief commotion of “miracle verification” that our goat beastman Bishop Marco had dragged in ended safely, thankfully.

The priests listened closely to my words, to the testimony of the Duchess of Aquitaine, and to the accounts of those who had seen the light, then organized everything—and declared it a genuine miracle.

-O great Performer of Miracles, could you hold my hand just once?

-Your Excellency! Pious Your Excellency! It is an honor to meet you. Ahaha. You say a miracle does not manifest simply because you hold hands? That is a misunderstanding. It is only that my heart is filled with reverence….

Like this, after a long time, I was forced to play the part of an unexpected superstar, receiving a rain of handshakes.

Nobles, merchants, scholars, and commoners alike—it did not matter.

They struggled desperately to grasp my hand even once, as if it were a universal cure.

All I could do was sigh, but it was also, in its own way, a good method for securing public sentiment within the Duchy of Aquitaine. So I did it, swallowing my pride and shaking hands diligently.

“Baa-a-a! Get in line. Get in line. You cannot grasp our lorrd’s hand so casually, Mehr!”

The one truly delighted was Bishop Marco the goat beastman.

He had already caught the scent of money, and without my knowledge he had created a “day of audience,” wringing coins from the people.

That insane, money-maddened goat beastman!

‘Still… he pays half into my pocket, so perhaps it is not entirely bad?’

Anyway, in this manner I began to steady the public sentiment of the Duchy of Aquitaine while working through the backlog of tasks.

After all, the war was not entirely over.

Fortunately, in the south, the Kingdom of Catalia did not cross the border. Upon hearing that I had entered, they immediately extended a hand of reconciliation.

From the perspective of both me and the Duchy of Aquitaine, there was no need to maintain multiple fronts, so of course I accepted—

All that remained was Crown Prince Charles I in the central region.

But even that did not seem likely to last long.

“Count Steffen has seized three castles in the border region. He requests that we send reinforcements to hold them. He says he will advance and force a decisive battle so as not to give Crown Prince Charles I time.”

After I handed him nearly ten thousand cavalry, Count Steffen did not betray that trust.

As if to prove that the “spec” of a 4-star general was not for show, he seized three border castles of Crown Prince Charles I in an astonishingly short time.

With Count Steffen rampaging like that, Crown Prince Charles I must have been in real trouble.

He needed time to regroup his forces, yet he was not being given even that much breathing room.

“Has Count Steffen requested anything beyond reinforcements?”

“No. He says that support is enough, and that he will handle the rest in the field.”

“Hmmm.”

As far as work went, he truly was an excellent general. Generals who could be sent into the field with such peace of mind were exceedingly rare.

It was only regrettable that he was not yet fully my feudal vassal.

‘Well, I can bring him over slowly.’

To recover the honor he had lost, would he not have to fight several more wars?

During that time, I could coax him properly.

Thinking that, I turned my head toward Magician Agpiel.

“Are the nobles of the Duchy of Aquitaine not resisting? I must have interfered quite a bit in administrative matters. Magician Agpiel.”

Recently, whenever I needed someone trustworthy for administrative tasks, I had been relying on Magician Agpiel.

As a Great Sage, his reputation was high, and his actual ability was excellent.

With experience and accumulated knowledge, he handled nobles and administrators with practiced ease. Still, this was another’s domain, so I expected difficulties.

“Heh heh. Fortunately, there has been no great problem.”

“Oh, has there not?”

“There has not. In fact, they cooperated quite readily. I met Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania in advance and asked her for a favor—to lend her strength. Heh heh heh. Thanks to that, everyone follows instructions without complaint.”

“Is that so?”

It was understandable if he had spoken with Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania in advance… but why did it still feel odd?

What could he possibly have said that she would gladly allow an outsider to shake her domain around?

When I tilted my head, Magician Agpiel, as though suddenly pricked by guilt, cleared his throat.

“Ahem? It was nothing in particular. Ahem, ahem. Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I was not even suspicious.”

“I-is that so?”

Oh?

Now his flustered reaction was even more suspicious.

It felt like something I ought to press him about, but that thought did not turn into action.

“Your Excellency the Margrave, a guest has come to see you.”

“A guest?”

“Yes. Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania has come. Shall we receive her in the reception room?”

‘Huh?’

What kind of situation was this?

Startled, I looked toward Magician Agpiel. And Magician Agpiel wore a meaningful expression, as though what was destined had finally arrived.

This old man….

Did he do something behind my back?!

“Y-Your Excellency. She is waiting outside. What should we do?”

“Ah! Let her in at once. And prepare some simple refreshments.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

Good grief. I truly did not want to face her alone, and yet she had to come personally.

What was I even supposed to say to her? I felt miserable.

But what could I do?

The situation had already unfolded. I had to deal with it.

In the end, with a sigh, I headed to the reception room like a condemned man.

---

Before entering the reception room, I steeled myself.

No matter what she said, I would not be shaken. I would resolve it cleanly.

I would talk it through, erase all this awkwardness completely.

But the moment I entered and met Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania, my resolve collapsed in ruins.

“Take responsibility.”

-SPURT-!

Forgetting all decorum, I sprayed out the tea I had been drinking.

“W-what did you say?”

Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania’s expression did not waver in the slightest. She stared at me sharply and repeated the words she had just spoken.

“Take responsibility. You thief of lips!”

She even attached a somewhat unjust charge.

Damn it!