Part One, Section Three: “And Then, the Sisters Sprang Into Action”
Chapter Twenty-eight (Mia’s POV)
“I never expected you would cooperate with us, Saint Mia.”
After that, with Himari’s assistance, I managed to locate a member of the first prince’s faction who had blended into the ranks of the guards. Standing before me was Pierre, the leader of the first prince’s faction.
He recently became the captain of my personal guards. The previous captain was fired for supposedly frightening Prince Julius and embarrassing him before me. After having the prince experience the field, my guards completely changed…
Among the soldiers especially, there was a growing concern that Prince Julius’s approach could lead to the downfall of the country, and it seemed the influence of the first prince’s faction was gradually increasing.
To be completely honest, when it came to meeting Prince Fernando, I thought the biggest challenge would be making contact with the first prince’s faction without the guards noticing. So, I was surprised to learn that the new captain of my personal guards was from the first prince’s faction. He seemed to have struggled to deceive Prince Julius, but Pierre had secretly gathered others who opposed him.
That showed how much Prince Julius’s popularity had dropped…
“Honestly, His Highness Julius’s methods are awful. He treats us soldiers as nothing more than disposable pawns. Despite the rising demons threatening to overwhelm many areas if left unchecked, he refuses to allocate personnel.”
“But that’s not all. Our squad was reduced in number to build statues of Their Highnesses.”
“At this rate, Girtonia’s soldiers will slowly dwindle, and it will become impossible to properly defend the country. You are working so hard to maintain barriers, Saint Mia, but even so…”
The soldiers on the field were in a much tougher situation than my guards. I was prioritizing locations where my barriers had been destroyed, but lately, there had been a sharp increase in areas where barriers were on the verge of breaking due to the overwhelming rise in demon numbers. In these places, demons didn’t show up very often, but the number of soldiers available to manage these situations was overwhelmingly not enough.
While Prince Julius couldn’t imagine what would happen if I became unable to act, they could. More and more soldiers were becoming apprehensive, harboring distrust of Prince Julius.
Still, the power of Prince Julius, who had the support of the nobles, was so strong that the only way to counter it was for the king to return and for Prince Fernando to rise up and unite the first prince’s faction.
“So, you wish to meet with His Highness Fernando… He didn’t even give His Majesty’s words a second thought, but perhaps, with you, Saint Mia, it might be different…”
Prince Fernando was the elder brother of Prince Julius and the first prince. His frail constitution had been a hindrance, causing him to dislike being in public, and he secluded himself for a long time in one of the chambers of the palace. He was what you might call a recluse, insisting that he wanted nothing to do with politics in exchange for wanting nobody to bother him.
Because he was like this, the faction that believed Prince Julius was more suited to be the next king had gained strength, enabling his current grip on authority…
Anyway, I have no choice but to meet and speak with him… I must make him stand against His Highness Julius…
“Yes, you’re right. I’ll try my best to persuade His Highness Fernando. But how can I meet him?”
With each passing day, the surveillance on me became more intense. Event Today I could talk like this because Pierre and the other guards were from the first prince’s faction…
How can I meet His Highness Fernando, who is in the palace?
“As His Highness Julius’s fiancée, you need only say you wish to pay your respects… I doubt he would react negatively. The former fiancée, Lady Philia, made such visits too, I believe.”
“Oh, has my sister met His Highness Fernando before?”
That was news to me. Philia had greeted His Highness Fernando… Well, it makes sense. I wonder how it went…
“I heard that after taking the medicine prescribed by Lady Philia, his health improved significantly. However, later, His Highness stopped taking that medication.”
“W-Why did he stop? If my sister’s medicine was effective, then by continuing to take it…”
“Growing healthy is unbearably frightening… for His Highness.”
Were you scared of getting healthy? Is that even possible? But it’s understandable. Sis was concerned about Prince Fernando’s well-being too. She even prepared medicine for him. Truly, Sis is consistently thorough…
“Until now, he used his frail constitution as an excuse to stay indoors. However, if he were to obtain a healthy body… that excuse would no longer hold. In that case, he thought it would be better to stay as he is now…”
It was a rather spineless reason. To think that just because the façade he had maintained no longer held up, he stopped taking Philia’s carefully prepared medicine…
It’s too sad. But if so…
The very fact he made excuses means deep down, he thought this couldn’t continue. Then there was hope.
That’s right. First, I should meet with His Highness Fernando.
And then, I’ll awaken the fighting spirit that lies deep within his heart. After all, I’m a saint, so I should be able to save at least one person…
“In that case, Saint Mia… Please look after Prince Fernando for me… What?! Who’s there…?”
As Pierre said that and bowed, the next moment he drew his sword and leaped at the shade of the trees behind me.
“Not bad…”
He had noticed Himari hiding near me and crossed blades with her dagger. No one else had until now, but he did. I heard he was called the kingdom’s greatest swordsman, and it turned out to be true…
Finally, a reliable guard.
“Pierre, please sheathe your sword. Himari is my personal spy.”
“P-Personal… spy?”
“I’m sorry, Miss. I’ve made a mistake and been discovered…”
When I stepped in to stop him… Pierre, who was trying to overpower Himari, froze in place. Phew… If this person had been from Prince Julius’s faction, things would have become quite troublesome… It was fortunate.
“I apologize for attacking suddenly. I thought you might be a ruffian trying to cause trouble for Saint Mia.”
“No, as a guard, that was the right decision. My lack of training is why I was discovered.”
In response to Pierre’s words, Himari replied in a low voice and then swiftly disappeared from the scene, looking embarrassed. With her professional pride, getting detected must’ve been humiliating.
And so, I go around multiple places where demons keep emerging uncontrollably, sometimes even engaging in battle myself, while meticulously erecting barriers.
At this rate, the situation would truly become dire sooner than later. Prince Julius still leisurely says "Philia will return, so no need to stress," but…
Speaking of Prince Julius, it seemed that at his orders, Aunt Hilda had also started to take action today. I wonder if everything would be alright?
Now that I think about this, as soon as my parents heard about the news of her returning as a saint, they seemed to become quite displeased. It appeared there was some sort of conflict between Aunt Hilda and the father.
I wonder if it’s related to her retiring right after Sis and I became saints…
With work finished, I told Prince Julius I wished to visit Prince Fernando and surprisingly, he readily granted permission.
“I don’t see why you need to greet that guy, but he’ll probably envy me for having such a beautiful fiancée. Teeheehee.”
Perhaps in his mind, the engagement with Philia never happened…?
Normally, If another fiancée also going to visit the same man, he should be wary of that…
At any rate, I got approval. The next day, I was shown to Prince Fernando’s private chambers.
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