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Chapter 20 – The Most Powerful Demon King in History. Hears from Old Men
Even after parting with the children, Lumiel was still approached for consultations on various matters.
“I wanted to show you around the town today, so…”
“Don’t worry about it. You’re a fine town guide. Please listen to your people.”
“Thank you.”
Lumiel listened attentively in every consultation.
Leaving Lumiel like that, Jorm muttered telepathically after returning to my shoulder.
『Your Majesty, the Hero Sapling is taking these consultations seriously, but does she have the power to rectify their woes?』
『I suppose she can’t do it all.』
『Then the people she consulted, will they not be disappointed?』
When I was talking to Jorm about that,
“Thank you, thank you.”
“The Princess even listens to people like us who were abandoned by our Lord. She is a fine lady.”
From afar, two old men were praying to Lumiel as if she were a saint.
One of the old men was a beastman, and the other was an elf, a rarity in these parts.
Curious about the old men, I called out to them.
“May I speak with you for a moment?”
“…? Ah, the young man who returned yesterday with the Princess. I heard you saved the princess. Thank you.”
He seems to know me because Lumiel introduced me to the townspeople yesterday.
These old men may have been among those who greeted Lumiel yesterday.
“What kind of person is the Princess?”
“What, you don’t know? You came back together, didn’t you?”
“Even so, I just met her yesterday. I don’t really know how she usually is.”
“I see. Such is life I suppose. The Princess…”
The two old men began to talk about Lumiel. Once they started talking, they couldn’t stop.
“The Princess would show her face even in the favelas and listen to what people had to say without looking down on them.”
“Of course, she’s disguised and under a pseudonym, so it’s unofficial, but… everyone knows who she is.”
“Indeed. And she’s going to talk to the Lord to see what can be done about it.”
“We can’t appeal to him directly, he won’t listen to us. We could even be imprisoned.”
Many countries prohibit direct appeals by commoners.
The fact that Lumiel is appealing on their behalf is greatly appreciated.
“Will the Princess’ negotiations improve the situation?”
When I asked, the old men nodded deeply.
“Yes, it will. The abolition of the almshouse has been called off, as was the demolition of the orphanage.”
“Besides, the Princess donates most of her salary as the Knight Commander.”
As expected, Lumiel seemed to be popular with the people.
“What kind of person is the Lord?”
“He’s hopeless” “Yes, no good”
Both old men immediately answered that they are “useless” at the same time.
“Is that so? I heard that he has some achievements as an administrator.”
“Achievements? Nothing significant. As a local governor, he squeezed tax money out of the people.”
“That’s not all. He used that to line his own pockets and bribed the Prime Minister to become a Lord.”
When the two old men talked about the Lord, their faces turned bitter.
The Prime Minister is the highest-ranking vassal who assists the King, in other words, the nobleman with the most political power.
It wouldn’t be as difficult as recommending a local lord.
“You’re quite well-informed.”
It’s unusual for a slum dweller to know so much.
“Despite my appearance, I was a government official until ten years ago. As a result of my opposition to the Lord’s policies, I was convicted and had my property confiscated. Five years I was imprisoned.”
That’s what the old beastman said.
“Five years? That’s tough.”
“I too am a former government official. I was fired three years ago. All he wants to do is to fatten his own pockets.”
The old elven man had also endured, but his conscience finally got the better of him.
And when he reprimanded him, he was fired for a misdemeanor.
“Because I was an elf, I wasn’t imprisoned, but my property was confiscated. I’m still better off.”
“And now we’re inhabitants of this place.”
And the old men laughed self-deprecatingly. Then their faces suddenly became serious.
“Mr. Hyrum, is it? You are strong, aren’t you? You and the princess even managed to defeat an Orc Lord.”
“For a human, it’s a considerable feat. Do you have a secret?”
“Of course, but…”
“Oh, you don’t have to tell me, I’m sure there are a lot of things.”
“Anyway, take care of the princess. She’s in a delicate position.”
“Delicate? Does that mean she is being watched by the lord because she’s making petitions?”
I asked, and the old man shook his head.
“It’s worse than that. The princess is much too popular with the people and decent nobles. Even outside of this town.”
“True. Not only is she benevolent, but also honest with a strong sense of justice. Many nobles do not like that.”
“Like the Lord here?”
The old man nods deeply.
“That’s right. The nobles who love to line their own pockets would be in trouble were the princess to become King.”
“Besides, the Prime Minister is also a problem. That one not only loves to fatten his own pockets.”
“What kind of person is that Prime Minister?”
“…… The Prime Minister. I don’t know if it’s not something I should say to a human such as yourself, Mr. Hyrum, but…”
“What is it?”
“…… his mother was human.”
That was surprising.
In the Kingdom of Ortville, humans are despised.
In fact, the closer we got to the slums, the more humans there were.
“That’s unusual. The Prime Minister is a great nobleman, isn’t he? I thought he was an elf.”
“Yes. His father is an Elven Marquis.”
“But his mother was a human concubine. To be precise, his mother’s mother was a human.”
In other words, he is one-fourth human.
“Then he’s kind to other humans, isn’t he?”
“It’s the other way around.”
The old elf shakes his head.
“The humans all rejoiced when someone with human roots became Prime Minister.”
“However, the Prime Minister only used harsh policies on the human race. In the past, this country was easier for the human race to live.”
“I guess he wants to believe he’s different from humans.”
“They say a man once mentioned the Prime Minister’s ears being short compared to other elves, and he was killed.”
The Prime Minister seems to have a lot of political power.
He skillfully navigated the factions of the Royal Palace, rose to the rank of Prime Minister, and married his daughter to the King.
“That daughter gave birth to the First Prince, the Princess’s older brother.”
Naturally, as Prime Minister, he wants to put his grandson, the First Prince, on the throne.
To that end, Lumiel, who is popular with the nobles and people, would be an obstacle.
“But wait. The Princess is poor at magic, and, well, I hate to say it, but…”
“You’re right, Mr. Hyrum. The unspoken ones are the ones speaking ill.”
“Yeah, incompetent, disgraceful, and so on.”
The old men also seem to know that Lumiel is being ridiculed.
“If that’s the case, wouldn’t her getting the throne be impossible?”
“Mr. Hyrum. This is the peaceful Kingdom of Ortville, remember?”
“Why would an individual’s military prowess have any significant effect on the order of succession to the throne?”
“That may be so, but…”
Having said that, is there anyone who bears the burden of those who are despised and said to be incompetent?
That’s what I thought.
But the old man says with a laugh.
“To have a crown decided by individual force, is akin to the demon nation ruled by a Demon King.”
“…… it may be, indeed.”
I can’t argue with that.
Power is everything. It’s the logic of the demon race. It is only natural that a different logic reigns in the elven kingdoms.
“Well, with that being said, the princess is definitely in a position to aim for the throne.”
“So, in order to tie the princess’ hands and feet, the Prime Minister also decided to place the princess’ knights under his influence.”
“…… The Third Knight Order’s stipend comes from the Lord. Mr. Hyrum. Do you know what this means?”
“…… Ah, I understand. No wonder the knights don’t follow the princess’ orders.”
Perhaps it is more than just the salaries he pays.
The Lord must also have great power over the personnel within the Third Knights Order.
“Just before the princess took office, all the excellent knights were recruited by the First Knight Order.”
“Ah, the current knights are all the dull-witted sons of nobles who belong to the Prime Minister’s faction.”
“More to the point, the princess was assigned here because of the Lord.”
Lumiel’s subordinates don’t seem to be on her side either.
“In the Royal Palace, the Prime Minister’s faction holds power. His Majesty the King is merely a puppet of the Prime Minister.”
“Does the princess have any allies?”
“Of course she does. We, the common people, are all on her side. In addition, there are many nobles who will stand by the princess.”
“Some of the nobles are demanding a change in the way the humans are treated.”
“However, though there are many Great Nobles who support the princess, almost all of them live in the countryside.”
The greater the nobles are, the busier they are in governing their own territories.
It seems that the environment in those territories are easier for humans to live in.
However, the central government is dominated by the nobles who do not have their own fiefdoms.
And, almost all of those nobles are of the Prime Minister’s faction.
In other words, Lumiel apparently has no allies in either the Royal Palace or in the Knights Order.
It seems that she is forced to fight a solitary battle.
“Even so, she’s doing what she can for us with a positive smile on her face.”
“I can’t thank her enough. Everyone in this town feels the same way.”
“So, Mr. Hyrum. Please take care of the princess.”
“Okay, I’ll do my best.”
“Oh, thank you. What the princess lacks is strong allies.”
Hearing my words, the old men smiled.
Sads Translates 