A Barbaric Proposal

_{^{Happy Holidays to everyone who celebrates something during this time! If not, then Happy (early) New Years! Just putting a little notice here to let everyone know that the (77) might be a little bit delayed due to time constraints and holiday business! Emphasis on the ‘might’, though.}}

Chapter 76 On the Eve (3)

translator/editor: astralmech

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[Mrs. Flambard] “There’s trouble, Princess!”

Today was another very busy day.

Rienne woke up this morning, washed up, got changed, had breakfast with Black, and then saw him off before he left for the meeting.

Having lots of work to do was hardly new, but now it actually felt a little disappointing. All that business felt like it was taking away from the time she could spend with him.

[Rienne] “What’s wrong, ma’am?”

After seeing off Black and returning to the castle interior, Rienne was immediately swamped with work. But with Lord Arland’s help, she managed to make some progress in writing all the letters of appointment for the mercenaries.

As they worked, all that could be heard in the air was the sound of pens scratching against parchment when suddenly Mrs. Flambard burst into the room, claiming trouble was afoot.

[Mrs. Flambard] “The tailor sent me the clothing and….No, you just have to see it. Come with me. Seeing is believing with this one.”

Her face, flustered beyond belief, looked awfully haggard.

Rienne turned and nodded towards Arland, setting down her pen and standing up.

[Rienne] “Alright, we’ll go together. Where is it?”

[Mrs. Flambard] “My room.”

Like she was in a hurry, Mrs. Flambard grabbed Rienne’s hand, rushing off towards her room at a steady jog.

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[Mrs. Flambard] “Tell me if this makes any sense?”

Flipping around the fabric the tailor brought, the woman couldn’t contain her anger.

[Mrs. Flambard] “What sort of embroidery is this!? Oh goodness, and we paid you so much, too!”

[Rienne] “Ah…..”

Due to time constraints, they relied on the tailor and their chosen assistants to do the detail work on the fabric cut according to Black’s measurements. And to make sure it was all done in time, they paid them handsomely.

But the final result was less than stellar.

[Mrs. Flambard] “Oh my goodness…..There are no words. How could you possibly call this something fit for a wedding? A royal wedding, no less!”

Seen up close, the embroidery was exceedingly sloppy. The stitches were all different sizes and there were parts that were still sticking up, as if the thread hadn’t been pulled all the way through or the knot hadn’t been tied properly.

Mrs. Flambard’s standards were high, but the thought of such feeble embroidery on Black’s wedding attire would’ve made anyone shudder.

[Mrs. Flambard] “If you have a mouth, then explain this! What royal family could possibly call this embroidery!?”

Mrs. Flambard held out her finger towards the struggling tailor. At this rate, Rienne was certain the woman was moments away from pulling out his hair, one strand at a time, so she decided to step in.

[Rienne] “I know it’s upsetting, but let’s hear him out first. What happened?”

[Tailor] “Well, Princess……It’s…….”

The tailor bowed his head, his shoulders shaking.

[Tailor] “I don’t know what happened. I hired the most skilled people I know of, so they must’ve lost their eyesight trying to complete it by the time you requested.”

[Rienne] “Pardon? How many people did you hire?”

The tailor proudly stretched out his hand.

[Tailor] “Five! All so it could be done on time!”

[Mrs. Flambard] “Oh for God’s sake, sir! If there’s five different people working on it, of course the stitches would all be different!”

But hearing out the tailor just sparked even more of Mrs. Flambard’s as she pounded her chest.

[Mrs. Flambard] “And you call yourself a professional! If five people were embroidering like this to the point they ‘lost their eyesight’, they’d be like children holding needles after a day or two.”

[Tailor] “Wha, who are you to say that? They are skilled embroiderers who have all been at this for years!”

[Mrs. Flambard] “Quiet! Industry professionals who have been doing this for years, yet this is the best they can do?”

Rienne could swear this was the first time she’d seen Mrs. Flambard get so angry. It was so embarrassing she could feel her face turning red all the way up to her ears.

[Rienne] “Then um…..maybe they could fix it? And if not, they can just start over.”

[Mrs. Flambard] “What are you talking about, Princess? How can they fix this mess? And even if they start over, it’ll just turn out the same.”

The tailor looked angry, but he nodded along as if she were right.

[Rienne] “Then…..What should we do?”

[Mrs. Flambard] “We’ll have to rip it apart and start from the beginning. And we can replace the fabric if it cannot be removed.”

[Rienne] “Ah….but we don’t have much time left. And like you said, it would only be the same if they started over.”

[Mrs. Flambard] “Princess.”

Mrs. Flambard turned towards Rienne, the look in her eyes incredibly solemn, but serious and determined at the same time.

[Mrs. Flambard] “It can’t be helped. You and I will do it together, Princess.”

[Rienne] “I’m sorry?”

Then, her next words were so haunting, Rienne didn’t even know what to say back.

[Mrs. Flambard] “We just need to stay up for the next three nights straight. No, I think we can do it in two.”

[Rienne] “Ma’am….”

But then Rienne would have completely non-functional hands for the next three days……..And she had so many other things she needed to do.

[Mrs. Flambard] “As I thought, I cannot leave this to anyone else. Especially not to those who don’t know the basics of working with a needle and thread! It’s for a wedding, after all.”

To be perfectly honest, the state of the embroidery was completely unacceptable to Rienne as well.

But to stay up for two whole nights…….

…..Can’t be helped.

If there was no other way, then the least she could do was give it her all. She couldn’t give him plain clothing, lacking in well done embroidery as a gift. She didn’t like that.

[Rienne] “Very well. Let’s do it.”

[Mrs. Flambard] “Yes, of course! Thank you, Princess!”

Mrs. Flambard’s face immediately brightened up once Rienne agreed to work for two nights straight. She was always very serious when it came to embroidery.

[Tailor] “But, Princess……”

But the tailor looked like he was going to be sick.

[Tailor] “My fee…….”

[Mrs. Flambard] “What are you talking about? You basically poked holes in the outfit for nothing.”

The woman spoke as if she were shocked he even dared to ask.

[Tailor] “But I hired five workers to do this……”

[Mrs. Flambard] “Then you should’ve hired better people. Because of your negligence, the Princess and I are going to suffer more!”

Mrs. Flambard was right, but the tailor also had a point.

[Rienne] “How about we do it like this?”

So Rienne came up with a compromise.

It was decided that the wages would be sent to the five workers. In exchange, the tailor would need to return his part of the payment. He went back in tears, but Mrs. Flambard clicked her tongue, saying Rienne was being too generous with this. In the end, the leftover money was left with Mrs. Flambard.

Unexpected work had piled up, but at least no one got hurt in the end.

Ah, but….I am losing something for this.

Rienne looked at the woman who was sitting with a troubled expression, carefully undoing the embroidery from the fabric.

For the next two nights, Black would have to sleep alone.

Those words he whispered to her about how he spends all day looking forward to when they could sleep together echoed painfully and sadly in her ears.

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[Burey] “We won’t allow you to enter today.”

The nobles who had already decided upon their new representative were determined this time.

Private soldiers were placed in advance and the entrance was blocked. Today, they would not let the Tiwakan disturb their meeting as they did yesterday.

He couldn’t even use ‘monitoring the prisoners’ as an excuse this time since all they needed to do was select a new High Priest and inform the royal family.

[Burey] “Don’t even think about taking a single filthy step into this place. Begone.”

Burey spoke strongly, still remembering the slight against him from yesterday.

Just as there were the day before, there were only eight Tiwakan mercenaries here accompanying their leader. There was another man with them, but he looked old and wasn’t carrying a weapon, so he definitely wasn’t a mercenary.

Meanwhile, the nobles had nearly two hundred soldiers from across the five families gathered.

They were a little upset and bitter that Rosadel didn’t bring any soldiers from his home, but a large number such as two hundred was reassuring enough.

[Black] “You used your brains today.”

Black nodded, commending their efforts to bring soldiers and placing them effectively. After suffering so much the day before, they actually decided to put their heads together this time.

[Burey] “What did you say!? Return now! This is not a place where a mercenary of low birth can step foot in!”

Standing behind Serquez, Burey continued to brazenly shout out.

But Burey chose his words poorly.

[Randall] “Low birth……?”

However, it wasn’t Black that got angry, but the mercenaries standing beside him.

Randall, one of the ten-year mercenaries, tapped his fingers against the hilt of his blade. ⁽¹⁾

[Randall] “I wonder how the nobles of Nauk managed to get away with being so damn stupid all this time.”

Even if they were a small kingdom, stuck near the southern edge, it was strange they’d never heard many stories of the Tiwakan. From the start, there were few nobles and royals who spoke ill of Black’s origins, and the few that didn’t know any better did not do so without shedding tears of repentance for their sins.

Because for all the grumbling people did about them, if there was one thing the mercenaries couldn’t stand, it was gossip about Black’s origins.

[Randall] “I’ll cut off their tongues, sir. Don’t worry. I’ll leave everything else behind.”

Randall mumbled with fire in his eyes, his hand firmly gripping the hilt of his blade.

[Black] “It’s fine.”

But Black held out his hand, urging him back.

[Randall] “You’re gonna stop me? Really? You didn’t even do that back when we were in the Kingdom of Friana……”

[Black] “You’ll only complicate things. Unless you’re planning on dealing with all a hundred and ninety-three soldiers alone, you should stop while you’re ahead.”

[Randall] “If you let me, I bet I can set a new record.”

The other mercenaries exchanged looks with each other, letting out hearty laughs as if they’d just heard a joke.

[Black] “Save your playtime for when you’re free.”

[Randall] “Tch. Can’t believe you’re stopping me.”

Randall grumbled as he pulled his hand away from his sword, but the nobles were watching the whole thing happen with amazement.

[Ellaroiden] “Are they crazy…….?”

Ellaroiden unconsciously mumbled. Rosadel could only nod in agreement.

The shock he received back at his estate was still too strong. He wondered if it was too late to back out of the plan to delay the marriage by selecting a new delegation head.

[Burey] “I, I told you to leave…..!”

But unlike them, who were smart enough to fear, Burey struggled to keep up his voice.

[Black] “Oh, that would be difficult.”

Black’s voice was absurdly casual, given the situation. He stood tall and stalwart, unshaken as if everything was completely ordinary.

[Burey] “What’s the difficulty? What need is there for a mercenary at a meeting of Nauk’s elders?”

[Black] “The meeting is canceled.”

[Serquez] “What? What do you mean, canceled?”

Though he’d been staying silent up until now, Serquez couldn’t help but speak up, stepping forward as he did. He was an opportunist who was a bigger fan of biding his time when he could, but now wasn’t the time.

[Serquez] “You dare make a joke of Nauk’s noble houses? Who are you to cancel it?”

If anything, this had to be the moment where they finally stopped this barbarian from acting however he pleased, even if it resulted in an armed conflict.

[Black] “You all came here because you wanted to talk about a new High Priest.”

And the fact that his speech was calm and informal only served to fuel their ire.

[Serquez] “You dare speak of our meeting’s agenda?”

[Black] “But there’s already a High Priest, so the meeting’s pointless.”

[Serquez] “Already a High Priest……? Now you’re just speaking whatever nonsense you please!”

[Black] “Bring him in.”

Black gestured with his head behind him.

[Mercenary] “Yes, sir.”

The mercenaries headed out the front entrance, returning moments later with a person in tow. He was an old man with white hair, wearing a robe that reached past his ankles.

[Burey] “What? Who is this?”

Burey chuckled, so dumbfounded by all of this that even his sarcasm couldn’t be delivered properly.

[Burey] “This thing? A High Priest of Nauk, you say?”

[???] “That’s right, Lord Erling Burey.”

[Burey] “…….?”

Burey opened his mouth, a sinking feeling forming in his chest at the sight of such a suspicious old man. It was one thing that he knew his name, but the fact that his voice was familiar sent shivers down his spine.

[Burey] “Wh……what?”

The old man moved his shaky hand, roughly pulling the worn hood of his cloak from over his head.

[???] “It’s been twenty-one long years, everyone.”

[Burey] “……!”

The words ‘twenty-one years’ were like an arrow, invisible to the naked eye yet being shot towards the five nobles all the same. All of their eyes were widely open with unmistakable and deep guilt.

[Burey] “No….it can’t be……”

Burey shook, pointing his finger at the old man, while Serquez just aimlessly shook his head in a daze, struck into utter disbelief.

[Serquez] “The High Priest from twenty-one years ago………Manau?”

The old man nodded carefully.

[Manau] “And as the voice of God, no other should be permitted that name over I.”

[Burey] “Oh…oh God……”

And just like that, the faces of the five gathered noble heads turned yellow like poorly aged paper.

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Black was right.

Manau’s existence completely eliminated the purpose of the council meeting.

Manau was named the High Priest before the formation of the Treaty of Risebury and as such, his validity could not be called into question by the delegation head chosen by the treaty itself.

With his authority as the High Priest, Manau blessed the royal marriage with his own voice, setting the chosen date as three days from then, at noon precisely.

And since the voice of God recognized the marriage on behalf of the divine, Black became the Consort of Nauk as per the marriage contract written up with House Arsak. ⁽²⁾

Serquez tried to argue that it was not credible until vows were exchanged and they were officially wedded, but in accordance with Nauk’s customs, the contract was already sealed and valid.

[Black] “Now it’s time for you to put those right hands of yours to use.”

Sitting at the head of the table, Black’s words were heavy upon the shoulders of the nobles. The family heads who had their left hands broken before this swallowed hard.

[Black] “Sign it.”

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^{T/N: (1) It literally refers to Randall as a “10 year man”, which I can only assume means he’s one of the mercenaries who has been working with Black the longest.}

_{(2) The raws don’t speak this pointedly, but because Black is marrying a princess, his official title would technically be Prince-Consort. Once the two of them are crowned, his title would then become King-Consort. Then, if something were to happen to Rienne (death, illness, etc), his title would change to King-Regent. Essentially, what that all means is that his title is entirely dependent on his marriage to Rienne and that her authority will always be above his.}