When waking up, Lim’s field of view was dim.
──Did I fall asleep at some point?
She guessed that her mind was hazy because of the remaining drunkenness. Apparently she had laid down while clinging to something. Warmth was emitted from whatever her body was glued to.
Lim strained her eyes in the mostly dark tent. But, once she understood what she was clinging to, all sleepiness was blown away at once. After all, it was Tigre who was softly snoring right next to her.
While taking a look at the sleeping face of the youth, Lim slowly recalled what had happened before she fell asleep. She had truly talked a lot about Eugene. Over all the time, Tigre had carefully listened to her while conversationally confirming her words every so often. The first wine bottle became empty in no time, and thus Tigre had procured another two bottles from somewhere.
It was around half a koku after she had started to talk when tears began to run down her cheeks. She had no doubt that the wine played a not so insignificant role in this, but when the face of the dead Eugene overlapped with her past memories of him, she couldn’t contain her emotions any longer.
“He was no one who should have died in such a place,” was something she had probably repeated countless times across the night.
She didn’t know when it started, but once she realized, her face was buried in Tigre’s chest. Her tears caused many stains on Tigre’s clothes. Meanwhile Tigre had gently caressed Lim’s head and back. As if telling her to cry for as long as she needed it.
She had cried like a child. Yet, Tigre had told her that crying wasn’t shameful at all, no matter how old one might be. However, he didn’t use words, but his warm, dry palm to pass it on to her.
──I have never done anything like that, not even with Lady Eleonora…
She didn’t believe it to be anything unbecoming, but now, after calming down and remembering it, it was a completely different issue whether it was actually embarrassing. Especially with Tigre being the other party.
Or, Lim pondered, maybe that’s the reason why Elen sent Tigre over.
Once she lifted her face and checked the situation, she saw that it was still night out. Lim laid down once more, snuggling up to Tigre. She wanted to stay like this for a bit longer. And while harboring that wish, she fell asleep.
◎
The ones seeing Tigrevurmud Vorn’s proclamation first were the lords holding territories in Zhcted’s west.
“My name is Tigrevurmud Vorn. I want to become Zhcted’s next king after inheriting the will of Earl of Pardu Eugene Shevarin who lost his life to an assassin’s dagger after exerting himself to rule this fine nation until the other day. Some may harbor doubts about whether a foreigner has the qualification to become your king. But, I would like all of you to remember that the incarnation of the black dragon, the founder of this kingdom, was not born on this land either. What matters are the answers to the questions: whose trust have they gained and what can they do for the sake of the kingdom’s people. The Vanadis of Leitmeritz, Olmutz, Lebus, and Brest are already supporting my becoming the next king. Therefore I shall pour all my might into putting the current chaos under control, and after restoring Earl of Pardu’s honor, I shall take the crown. Those wishing to offer their power for the sake of Zhcted ought to rally under the black dragon’s flag hoisted by me.”
The western lords held a lot of information on Brune and Asvarre because of their geographical location. During times of peace, the exchange with the neighboring countries would increase, while their territories would naturally turn into contested zones during wartimes. Of course they were well aware about the civil war in Brune two years ago, the civil war in Asvarre one year ago, and the many battles that took place in Brune from spring until autumn this year. They also knew about Tigre holding the titles 『Star Shooter』 and 『Knight of the Moonlight』. And anyone who had attended this year’s Sun Festival would know how close Tigre had been to the Vanadis.
Conversely, the current state in the capital was difficult to grasp for them. Just as they believed that Ruslan might have come back, the prince collapsed. Eugene then served as proxy ruler, but he was soon to be thrown into jail due to some kind of accusation, just to be replaced by Grand Chamberlain Miron. On top of that, the Vanadis of Osterode became the First Prince Aide.
In the past, Eugene had worked as diplomatic envoy for Brune over a long period of time. Because of that, the western lords were well-accustomed to his character and capabilities. They had also agreed with King Viktor nominating him as the next king. That alone was more than enough for them to be suspicious of Eugene being ousted from his position as proxy ruler.
Furthermore, letters written by Elen and Marina reached the lords with territories close to Pardu together with Tigre’s proclamation. The shock they experienced from Marina’s letter was huge. In her handwriting, she informed them of Eugene having appointed Tigre as next king and Eugene himself having passed away. Of course, her letter had also been sealed by the Shevarin family’s crest. Elen’s letter was identical in content, but naturally bore Leitmeritz’s official seal.
This put the western lords in quite a bind.
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