Tale of Discovery

Chapter 210: Preparation ; Henrietta's Crowning ; Scent of Trouble

"Are you all prepared?" I say to the entourage that will be accompanying me to Tristania for Henrietta's coronation ceremony.

Kirche and Charlotte both quietly nod their heads, while Louise practically exclaims, "Yes! Let's go!"

Nodding my head, I turn over to look at Guiche before asking, "What about you?"

"Wait, please," he says in a slightly nervous tone.

Why is he apprehensive? Now, my curiosity is piqued.

My confusion is all washed away the next moment as the sound of a certain little girl reaches my ears, "Brother Wales!"

Turning around, I find Laura running toward me with a bright smile on her lips.

Once she's close enough, Laura directly leaps into my embrace before she begins to nuzzle head against my chest.

She then looks up at me and says, "Brother Wales, I missed you."

"Me too," I respond while smiling and patting her back.

A few seconds later, she glances at Guiche before saying, "I didn't see when you became a king."

My brows slightly raise as I turn to look at Guiche, only to find his face covered in sweat as he explains, "Wait, please. I truly wanted to be there, but was unable to do so for various reasons."

"Is that so," I say while patting Laura's head.

"Well then," I proclaim, "let's get going."

Seeing no one object, I raise my arm before using Norse Magic to form a gateway directly connected to the castle in Tristania.

As we walk through the gate, I begin to deliberate on the teleportation magic. From what I know so far, the gateway is better when there is a group to transport, while the other one is for when I am the only one that needs to teleport.

Nevertheless, I'm curious about what it would be like for another individual to teleport using the second method.

--

"Saturnus," I say once we've crossed over to the other side.

The android maid that has been patiently waiting for our arrival bows slightly before saying, "Everything is fine, Master."

Hearing the way she referred to me, I immediately look around the room, only to find a brown-haired man that seems to be in his late forties sitting on a wooden chair. From the looks of it, he has been here for quite some time and bothered Saturnus while at it.

"Who are you?" I demand while utilizing Paragon's Eyes.

My vision changes as I continue to peer at the man. As expected, his 'soul' is nearly black.

It makes me curious about why this guy would be here.

"Your Majesty," the man says after getting up from the chair and bowing, "I'm Count Amadou. I had been waiting for your arrival, King Wales."

"I see," I state before shifting my attention to Saturnus.

Seemingly understanding my purpose, she coolly says, "This man questioned numerous things about Master. Moreover, he offered to pay me a hefty sum to serve him."

As Saturnus' voice fades, I sense that the man is presently shaking, as beads of sweat form on his temple.

"What's this all about?" I say while turning my head to face the man with a cold smile on my lips.

Seriously, did this guy expect Saturnus to not notify me about this? How foolish.

"She's lying!" he directly proclaims, "This is most likely a part of her plan to ruin your relationship with us nobles."

Hearing this, the cold smile on my lips grows as I telekinetically slam the man into the ground.

Blood seeps out of his nose as he groans while trying to get back on his feet.

"Saturnus," I say before she swiftly dashes over and knocks the man out by kicking his head.

"Good work," I state while nodding my head in approval.

Then, I glance at the girls, in particular, Laura. Fortunately, they don't seem to be affected by what just happened.

"Was he a bad guy?" Laura, who's still within my arms, asks.

Patting her head, I beam a warm smile and say, "Yes. He lied and did horrible things."

---

"What?" Henrietta exclaims once I have recounted what happened after we teleported over.

"There is a chance that there are other such nobles, and for all we know, they might attempt to ruin today's coronation ceremony," I state.

It would be surprising if they didn't. These pests should be dealt with early on before they can cause significant damage to the kingdom and its people.

"The ceremony will start soon," Henrietta says with her brows furrowed.

"Don't worry," I say, sensing her anxiety, "If they dare try to ruin this day for you, I will punish them accordingly."

A small smile forms on Henrietta's lips as she nods her head once.

"Louise, will you accompany me?" Henrietta then says after shifting her attention over to Louise.

"Yes," comes an immediate reply from the over-excited girl.

And so, the two of them both head toward Henrietta's room.

"Now what?" Kirche asks while looking around the castle.

"I don't know. Do you have anything you'd like to do?"

"How about we explore the capital for the meantime," Charlotte suggests, surprising me.

And here I was beginning to think that this girl would never be able to talk properly. After all, her actions so far represent her as an anti-social girl.

"Then, let's do that!" Kirche says in a slightly jubilant tone.

"Alright," I respond with a smile on my lips.

--

Why? Out of all the ways we could go on about looking around the capital, these two decided that it's a good idea to lock arms with as we walk through the streets.

Laura is in front of us, while Saturnus is silently following us from behind.

Naturally, this has attracted a lot of attention from the citizens.

"Isn't that the newly-crowned King Wales?" I hear an old man ask.

"By golly, you are right!" another one responds.

"Who are the lasses with him?"

"Don't ask me," comes the response.

Ignoring them, I look over at Laura who is happily skipping in front of us. She seems to be enjoying this walk quite a bit.

"I can only imagine their reaction when they find out about your marriage with their queen," Kirche says before chuckling.

"Trouble," Charlotte adds.

"You sure love to joke around," I say while lightly pinching Kirche's but, resulting in her yelping.

Her face flushes in red as she hurriedly says, "Don't do that out here."

"Why not," I say while lightly caressing her butt.

"People are watching!" she says.

"Fine."

As such, the five of us continue to walk around and visit stores while Guiche is 'imprisoned' in the castle.

---3rd POV---

Standing beside the girls, Victor watches with intrigue as Henrietta gives her speech to the citizens that have gathered for this occasion.

The crowd that has gathered is larger than the one back in Albion. One of the main reasons for that is because a lot of people didn't dare return to the capital in Albion so soon after the war.

"To unify the two kingdoms," Henrietta vigorously says, "I shall marry King Wales of Albion."

Hearing this, the crowd is stunned as no one reacts for a short while before a few of them begin clapping.

Shortly, the whole crowd is applauding and cheering.

Unlike the crowd, a black-haired man with azure eyes frowns at the words uttered by Henrietta. The man in question is currently standing near Victor and the girls at the part reserved for nobles and royalty.

He takes a step forward before a hand lands on his shoulder. Startled, the man turns around, only to find Victor glaring at him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Victor inquires.

"Let me go," the man responds in a cold tone, "that woman is supposed to marry me, yet here she is saying something like this."

"Who are you?" Victor questions.

"Emperor Albrecht," Kirche interjects, "He is the current ruler of Germania."

Hearing this, Victor nods his head before saying, "Nice to meet you, Albrecht. Now then, what were you saying about my woman?"