Game of the Monarch

Once the banquet was over, Milton returned to his room all exhausted. 

“Are you alright, My Lord?”

“You look very tired, sir.”

Milton gave his advisors, Viscount Sabian and Jerome, a wry smile at their question.

“Ahh… It’d be much easier to fight on the battlefield.”

Smiling at the meaningless bullshit he had to listen to without getting angry was more tiring and exhausting than he had expected. Milton envied Bianca who had come up with excuses to miss the banquet.

‘I’m really not a politician.’

Queen Leila was much better at this than Milton was. If it was her, she would’ve had the entire banquet in the palm of her hand doing whatever she wanted. Milton was mentally drained and all he wanted to do now was dive into his bed and pass out. But…

“Are you Marquis Milton Forrest?”

A man appeared in the hallway leading to his room.

‘Damn it…’

Seeing Milton greatly annoyed, Viscount Sabian coughed to signal him.

Cough

“…My Lord.”

‘I know, alright, I know…’

This was someone else’s house. I cannot get angry. Why? Because the smart Viscount Sabian said not to be angry. 

Once he had convinced himself, Milton spoke with a smile.

“That’s right, I’m Milton Forrest.”

The other person politely bowed.

“I am Carl Thomas from Florence Principality.”

‘Florence Principality?’

Come to think of it, Milton hadn’t seen a representative from Florence Principality at the banquet. He had heard that the princess, who was in charge of their reinforcement forces, wasn’t feeling good and had to miss the banquet. 

“What can I do for the representative of Florence Principality?”

“Marquis, the Princess wishes to see you. Would you be willing to come with me?”

Milton scratched his head.

‘If she has business with me, she should’ve come here instead. Why’s she telling me to go to her? Does she think being a princess is all that?’

When Milton thought of a princess, he only thought of Queen Leila when she was a princess. Maybe that’s why, but he didn’t feel like he had to coddle and protect her just because she was a princess. However, the attitude of the man who had delivered the message was very polite and his vigorous spirit moved Milton’s heart. 

“You said you were Carl Thomas?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I see you’re an Expert, at least an intermediate level or higher.”

When Milton accurately pinpointed his state, Carl looked surprised. 

“You have a good eye, sir.”

“I guess I do.”

In fact, rather than a good eye, it should be viewed as an ability.

[Carl Thomas]

Knight LV. 5

Strength — 85         Command — 70

Intelligence — 35         Politics — 32

Loyalty — 00

Special Traits — Guarding, Fierce Combat, Fortify

Guarding LV. 5: Overall stats increase when guarding a person you are loyal to.

Fierce Combat LV. 5: Activates in a precarious situation. Bring forth an ability up to 50% higher than normal.

Fortify LV. 3: When defending a fort, increase the morale of ally troops and increase your ability to command. 

He had considerable talent. Just his Strength Stat of 85 was respectable but his special traits were also impressive. 

‘Guarding, Fierce Combat, and Fortify. The traits are a bit inconsistent, but overall, they’re not bad.’

This man seemed like he’d be more useful during the war than Marquis Johanna and the others at the banquet hall. And if she had someone like him under her banner, then Princess of Florence Principality was someone Milton was interested in.

“Please, lead the way.”

“Yes, sir.”

Milton was led to the wing where the Princess of Florence Principality was staying.

“Is she staying here?”

“Yes, sir.”

The place he was guided to was a separate wing that was much smaller than the place Milton was staying in. It was a simple but appropriately styled wing where regular envoys stayed. But seeing how this was a Princess from another country, and she was treated the same as a regular envoy, Milton could see how low the rest of the continent viewed Florence Principality. 

“Your Highness, I’ve brought Marquis Forrest.”

“Please, come in.”

Permission was granted immediately after Carl spoke.

And when Milton entered, 

“Welcome, Marquis Forrest. I am Violet ron Florence.”

At a glance, the princess was a slender beauty with sparkling dark brown eyes and waist length black hair, a symbol of the Florence royal family. Her slender and delicate body type combined with her innocent features exuded a charm that stimulated a man’s protective instincts. She was slender enough that it made people worry whether she might blow away at a gust of wind. 

Milton approached her, then knelt on one knee in front of her and lightly kissed the back of her hand. 

“It’s an honor to meet you, I am Milton Forrest.”

Even if she was a princess of a small country, he greeted her with as much courtesy as expected of her rank; he didn’t look down upon her. The princess seemed a bit flustered, but recovered quickly and smiled at him. 

“I’m sorry for asking you to suddenly meet with me, but I had a request to ask of you. That’s why I asked you to come here.”

Milton thought to himself as he listened to her speaking so politely.

‘That’s right, this is what a princess should be like.’

Thanks to someone, Milton had become biased against princesses in general, but Princess Violet seemed like the perfect person to fix that prejudice. 

‘Let’s take a look at her status window… what’s this?’

At least, that’s what he thought until he saw her status window. 

[Violet ron Florence]

Princess Knight LV. 5

Strength — 88         Command — 85

Intelligence — 25        Politics — 20

Loyalty — 00

Special Traits — Recklessness, Fierce Combat, Commando, Intuition

Recklessness LV. 8: The ability to fight while ignoring your own injuries during battle. However, your rational judgment will be greatly reduced. 

Fierce Combat LV. 8: Activates when you are in a precarious situation. It brings your ability up 80% higher than normal. 

Commando LV. 9 (MAX): Jumps into the fray against many enemies and attacks wildly. You have a high probability of breaking down the opponent’s battle lines. It can also reduce enemy morale. 

Intuition LV. 5: The ability to detect a critical situation for your troops in advance 

‘…Huh? This is strange, is my ability broken?’

Why was it that when Milton used his ability on the princess, the stats on the window reminded him of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms? Milton opened his eyes and checked Princess Violet’s status window again. The floating stats did not change. He looked at the princess again. 

‘Mm… nothing’s changed?’ 

Standing in front of him was a woman who looked like she couldn’t wring a chicken’s neck, let alone fight in a war. War? It looked like she was better suited for calmly embroidering with a needle than holding a sword. But her stats felt like it belonged to a legendary Berserker. It was the first time he had seen a Commando trait that had been MAXed. Even the fearless Rick’s Commando trait was at a Level 4. And Recklessness on top of that? This was the first time Milton had seen a trait like that. The ability to fight without worrying about injuries during a battle. But your rational judgment would be greatly affected. Should traits like this be given to bloodthirsty berserkers and not a delicate and innocent princess?

‘What’s up with this princess?’

Milton knew for sure now. Even if she was a different type, this princess wasn’t a normal person either. Whether she knew what Milton was thinking or not, Princess Violet gave him a small smile. 

“You’re very famous, Marquis Forrest. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Just based on her appearance, she was a very beautiful princess, but Milton, who knew her true nature(?) was secretly burdened by her praise. 

“I don’t think I’m particularly famous, Your Highness.”

As Milton humbly responded, Princess Violet widened her eyes. 

“That can’t be. As the hero who saved the Lester Kingdom from the Republic’s invasion, what are you talking about? You’re famous even in my country, Marquis.”

Princess Violet’s voice had become slightly excited. 

Seeing her like this, Milton had a thought.

‘Now that I think about it, Florence Principality is just south of my country.’

If the Lester Kingdom had lost against the Republic, then it was likely that Florence Principality would have been next. So, at the time, Florence Principality had taken great interest in the war that had taken place in the Lester Kingdom. It was only natural that they would be highly interested in the hero who had rescued his country during the war. 

Princess Violet continued to talk about Milton’s career on the battlefield. 

“It was truly amazing that you decided to advance into the Hildes Republic in that situation. When I heard about it, I was overflowing with admiration for you.”

“Ah… is that so?”

‘That was Viscount Sabian’s plan.’

“And weren’t you also the only person to win against Siegfried? You’re really amazing. Siegfried was the one who killed Duke Derek Brans, he’s a very powerful enemy and you fought him off.”

Even as she was talking, her voice kept rising in excitement and her eyes kept sparking as she got closer and closer to Milton…

‘A fangirl?’

That’s right. She was like an extreme fangirl who was meeting her idol. 

‘Either way, I don’t feel any hostility from her.’

Milton was slightly flustered but he now knew that she held no hostility towards him. 

If she was acting, then she was a vixen of the same level as Queen Leila, but Princess Violet’s Intelligence Stat was 25 and her Politics only 20. Those numbers showed there was no way she could have vixen-level acting skills. And so, Milton relaxed a bit. 

Princess Violet, who had been praising Milton for a very long time, finally came to her senses and got to her main point.

“But Marquis Forrest, I have a reason for asking you to meet me privately.”

“Please, speak.”

She straightened her back and looked straight at Milton. 

“Would you allow Florence Principality to take the vanguard during this war?”

“You’re asking me to place you in the front?”

She nodded at his question and responded with a serious expression. 

“I must make a big contribution in this war. If you give me a chance, I won’t disappoint you.”

Milton thought for a moment. Seeing him, Princess Violet thought he was hesitating and quickly continued to speak. 

“You may think I’m unreliable, but truthfully, I’m… stronger than I seem, Marquis.”

Princess Violet spoke hesitantly. She was doubtful whether he would believe her when she was a woman. Most men had a preconceived notion that even if a woman was strong, there was a limitation to what she could do. But…

“Yes, I know. You’re an intermediate leveled, almost advanced Expert.”

Milton easily acknowledged Princess Violet’s strength. 

“……”

She had never been treated like this before in her life and was rather confused by his attitude. Even with her innate talent, she had worked hard to become as strong as she was now, but most men didn’t recognize her abilities. The only ones who did acknowledge her skills were men who were beaten down and knelt before her sword on the training grounds. And of those men, half of them didn’t admit they lost to a woman. Instead, there were more who complained behind her back. But Milton had easily acknowledged her skills. Not only that, he had accurately pinpointed her skill level. 

‘Hm… I thought I hid it?’

Princess Violet was truly surprised. 

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Princess Violet is another character that cracks me up.