C106
After hearing what I said, Viscount Cainbert stared fixedly at Terence.
"His Royal Highness...?"
He soon let out a sneer of contempt.
"Ethel Wallace, have you lost your mind? It's not possible for His Royal Highness to be in this town!"
When the viscount began to laugh at the village for leaving, the viscount's son also laughed, and even the soldiers laughed at us.
"You won't believe it."
Terence's appearance still exuded charm, but it made no sense for the prince to be here dressed as a commoner.
But unfortunately for Viscount Cainbert, this absurd situation had become a reality.
At the next moment, the viscount took a deep breath with the sound of his unsheathed sword.
"... What, what are you doing?"
In an instant, Terence approached the horse that the viscount was riding and pointed his sword at his neck.
"It's, this guy!"
"How dare you?!"
The viscount's son and the soldiers, who noticed the incident belatedly, pointed their swords and spears at Terence.
"From insults to the royal family to attempts to assassinate the royal family."
Terence looked calmly around without lowering the sword pointed at the viscount.
"If everyone is massacred here, there will be nothing to say, right?"
It was a question full of laughter, but tension flourished on the faces of those surrounding him.
Perhaps it was because they felt an unusual energy from Terence.
At that moment.
"What if you stop?"
Roland, who was heading for the carriage, probably decided that if they waited longer, his plan would be interrupted.
"As someone who lives above, show generosity and forgive those beneath you, Your Highness."
"Well, then this person is really..."
Viscount Cainbert stammered and looked at Roland with pleading eyes.
"I see. This is the first time I see him in person, but according to my granddaughter, he is definitely the second prince."
The viscount, whose face immediately turned pale, quickly shouted at his son and subordinates.
"Can't you stop pointing your weapons at that precious person right now?"
Without the viscount having to do it, they had already thought about it and dropped their weapons to the ground.
"I apologize!"
"P-please spare my life!"
While the soldiers begged Terence for forgiveness, Roland shouted at the distracted viscount.
"What?! Won't you immediately arrest those who dared to aim weapons at His Highness?!"
"How...?"
"Do you really want to be punished for attempting to assassinate the royal family?"
After a while, the fifteen soldiers surrounding Terence were tied with ropes and surrounded by other soldiers.
"Father!"
Among them was the viscount's son, and the viscount reassured him with a wink as if telling him to wait a little longer.
"With this, all those who rebelled against His Highness have been suppressed. His Highness will punish them gradually according to the law."
Roland, with a malicious smile on his face, approached Terence.
"Viscount Cainbert has to continue with the territorial war, but it can be dangerous, so it would be better for you to retire with me."
"He insulted me."
"What an insult. The viscount just laughed heartily when he found out from my ex-daughter-in-law that His Highness the Prince was here."
Roland's wrinkled eyes narrowed.
"Or is it true that you intend to block the territorial war that His Majesty has allowed?"
He was truly a cunning bastard.
Terence, who was competing with Mikhail for the throne, had to be careful with every move.
Moreover, since Mikhail had been dethroned for tarnishing the emperor's authority, it was a dangerous act to intervene carelessly in matters approved by the emperor.
"Well."
But Terence was also a formidable man.
"If that were the case, what would you do?"
When he showed no sign of hesitation, Roland's face hardened.
"Tell me. What would you do if I told you I would stop this territorial war?"
"..."
"He knows the power the royal family holds; it wouldn't be a difficult task to defeat them all if he wanted to."
"I know well. But I also know very well that His Highness the Prince is not the type of person who does that."
"Why?"
"For generations, members of the royal family have taken the lead in caring for the people and setting an example for them."
"It's very eloquent. Different from someone who was once called the devil of Cassius."
"Hehe, it's just a thing of the past."
The two men engaged in a fierce and fiery battle of nerves.
The viscount and others stood paralyzed, waiting for this uncomfortable moment to pass.
At that moment, Terence suddenly concealed his violent aura and smiled gently.
"It's a joke. There's no way I can stop the territorial war that received the approval of His Majesty without any justification."
While everyone was bewildered by the sudden change, Terence asked Viscount Cainbert.
"So, does the viscount really plan to continue with the territorial war?"
"Well, that's..."
The viscount swallowed nervously and looked back and forth between the prince and the former Duke Cassius.
It seemed he was wondering which side to choose. It was obvious that if he chose one side, he would be in disagreement with the other.
The illegitimate prince and the great Cassius family. Moreover, in a situation where the legitimate prince was extremely protective of Cassius, Viscount Cainbert's choice was decided.
"Yes, I will carry out a territorial war."
Terence easily responded to the solemn viscount's answer.
"Then let's do it."
"What?"
"Right now."
"I-Is it really okay?"
"If it's not now, I won't have any chance."
"I'll do it! Let's start now!"
The viscount urgently shouted to the remaining soldiers.
"The battle begins! Forward! Occupy that mine!"
The soldiers advanced awkwardly, paying close attention to the viscount, Roland, and Terence.
Because the villagers had cleared the way, they seemed to advance toward the abandoned mine without any obstacles.
"Stop!"
Until they heard this shout.
Since there hadn't been a real noisy and tumultuous battle to start with, everyone halted their actions and looked towards the place where the shout came from.
From a distance, a knight on a white horse galloped toward the village.
Furthermore, he wasn't alone. Dozens of knights followed him.
"Imperial Knights!"
Viscount Cainbert recognized their identities by their uniforms.
The Imperial Knights reached the village entrance and surrounded Viscount Cainbert.
"Why, why are you doing this?!"
A knight on a white horse, who seemed to be the tallest among the knights, spoke to the protesting viscount.
"Viscount Cainbert, I will arrest you for attempting to take over imperial property by unjust means."
Viscount Cainbert was surprised.
"Imperial family property?! The mine I was trying to capture belongs to Ethel Wallace!"
"The imperial family made a contract with the owner of the Andala mine. Instead of being responsible for the mine's expenses, she decided to receive a share of the magical stones produced in the mine."
"W-What? Magical stones? Haven't the magical stones from that mine dried up already?"
The viscount seemed to have tried to wage territorial war at Roland's instigation without knowing the truth about the mine.
"A contract with the imperial family? It can't be! I've never heard of this!"
I was a bit dumbfounded.
"I told him when I introduced Terence..."
Perhaps the viscount thought I was funny, or he was solely focused on the fact that Terence was the prince, but he completely wiped what I said from his brain.
The viscount wasn't the only one denying reality.
"Wait!"
Liena, who was waiting in the carriage, jumped.
"Is it possible to find magical stones in the abandoned mine? Isn't there some mistake?"
There's no way magical stones have already come out. That's probably what she really means.
Much later, in Liena's first life, the Wallace family found magical stones in the mine and complained.
And given Liena's personality, there was a high possibility that she periodically sent people to the mine without my knowledge to check for changes.
"Sorry, but the goddess dropped the meteorite a few months earlier as a gift for me."
So, there would surely be a difference from the last life Liena knew.
"It was Princess Cassius."
The knight looked at Liena and answered the question.
"We have finished identifying the composition of the rock found in that mine."
He pulled out a softly glowing stone from his arms. It was the magical stone that Terence sent to Vinetta.
"This rock is a magical stone."
Yes. Of course, it's a magical stone.
"It is also a first-level magical stone."
Yes, that's right. Of course, it's a first-level magical stone... what? A first-level magical stone? Isn't it just a high-level magical stone?
"This is ridiculous! How can it be a first-level magical stone?!"
Liena replaced what she wanted to say, but the knight spoke calmly.
"The imperial mages have confirmed it several times. It's a high-quality magical stone."
The reality she faced in person was different from the second life of Liena that I read about in the book.
"..."
The knight averted his gaze from Liena, who was speechless, and looked at Viscount Cainbert.
"Some of the magical stones from that mine belong to the imperial family. In other words, you will be treated as a criminal who tried to steal the property of the imperial family."
Terence added a word.
"The viscount's soldiers even threatened me."
Then the eyes of the knights looking at the viscount became even sharper.
"...He took his time with the aim of waiting for them from the beginning, Your Highness."
Terence shrugged as Roland muttered with a voice containing much anger.
"Didn't I tell you? I have no intention of stopping the Territorial War, which has been approved by His Majesty, without any justification."
I blocked it because there was justification. That's all.
"Release me! I did nothing wrong!"
Viscount Cainbert, captured by the Imperial Knights, struggled and complained about the injustice.
No one could guarantee that his life would be intact, as he attempted to steal the wealth of the imperial family, especially the higher-quality magical stones, which were considered more precious than diamonds due to their extremely small quantity.
As a viscount, he had to cling to a burning nail, so the subsequent push was also a natural step.
"It was all done by that person!"
He pointed at Roland Cassius.
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