Chapter 233 – 233. Ada’s I’m Still Alive (2)
– One –
Woo woo woo woo woo.
The light fades
Even in the southern mine area of the distant continent, there was no problem seeing the light emitted by the saintess.
And there too,
Buzz buzz.
… Is it…
Big deal…
People were in awe.
In front of the entrance of the mine, a man and a woman stood in the setting sun.
They slipped away from the side of the road and clung to each other, so as not to obstruct the passage of passers-by.
“Mondavi.”
“Yes, Brother Robert.”
“What do you think?”
“… I think it’s true.”
“I guess so…”
The two people who escaped from the slash-and-burn village were quite different from then.
Mondavi’s hair was bobbed short, and her skin was even paler from working out of the sun.
Both of them seemed very thin, with bruised and cracked fingertips, broken fingernails, and wrinkles all over their black, grime-covered hands.
Soot was smeared all over his face, and sweat dripped into dirty streaks.
They had become perfect miners.
“The video can be manipulated with magic tools, but I don’t think that light was ever manipulated with something like that. Something… Umm…”
Mondavi frowned and pondered.
With her filthy, shabby appearance, Robert was the only person in this mining town who knew of her natural beauty.
So, Robert
Pounding, pounding.
Pounding, pounding.
Even when she saw her shabby appearance, her heart fluttered.
She stares blankly at her troubled figure, hoping she doesn’t hear the beating of her own overheated heart.
But at the same time, he desperately wants her to hear it.
There’s no way she doesn’t know that, but I hope she doesn’t even know those contradictory feelings.
It was kind of sad.
“That’s right.”
As Mondavi finishes her contemplation, she focuses on Robert’s face.
Food.
“What are you staring at so blankly, brother?”
She laughs
She must have recognized Robert’s intentions this time as well.
She’s not stupid enough to not know that.
No, as far as Robert knows, she is smarter than anyone else.
Her intellect, which had not been able to shine because she lived in a slash-and-burn village, began to bloom as she explored the world over the past few months.
The only thing she needed to be wise was her experience, but as soon as she began to fill in even that, she progressed at a terrifying pace.
Unlike Robert, who is still there.
That always gave Robert a sense of shame.
“No. I was just waiting for your answer.”
“Hmm. I see.”
Mondavi strikes her eye smile.
She nods her head and returns to her original topic.
There is no change.
“Anyway, that light felt like the light that a healer casts a healing spell.”
“Is that so… Um… Come to think of it, that’s the same thing.”
“Yes. I’m not a priest or a theologian, so it’s hard to be sure, but it felt different from the light normally emitted by magic tools. If magic tools can create such a light, it’s not too far for wizards to conquer the realm of priests. It’s an unheard of story, but I’ve never heard of such a story.”
“It did.”
Mondavi always reads.
Leaving her slash-and-burn village and wandering far to the South, she taught herself to read, heard rumors from street vendors, and acquired her knowledge by picking up and reading discarded newspapers.
She passed on her knowledge to Robert at every opportunity, and Robert accepted it silently.
Their relationship is still a one-way street.
“It was…”
“Yes. So, it’s most likely that the light that the goddess sent down after being called by the saintess. In that case, Robert’s brother.”
Swoop.
She draws closer to him
Throbbing.
Throbbing.
“What do we get here?”
“… That what the saintess said was the truth.”
“Right. What about the second?”
“Fortunately, I guess we knew this before we made final contact with the rebels.”
“That’s right.”
Swoop.
Mondavi backs down.
She was smiling her wide smile at Robert.
It seemed that it would still take a long time for Robert’s heart to calm down.
As long as she’s okay, it’s because she continued to do things that were harmful to Robert’s heart.
“I must meet my comrades tonight.”
“I’ll collect them.”
“Will you do that?”
“Huh.”
“Thank you.”
Koo Woo-wook.
She takes Robert’s hand.
Let go
– 2 –
“Honey. Did you write everything down?”
“I couldn’t write down some parts in the middle because I lost my mind for a while, but I wrote most of them down.”
“I was a little like that too… Where do you compare?”
“Here.”
They put each other’s notes side by side and compare their notes.
They were checking sentence by sentence, looking carefully to see if there were any missing parts.
“Haa… I missed a sentence after all.”
“I’m sorry, Sinatra.”
“It’s okay. It’s not going to be a full text anyway. It’s not a very important sentence in context.”
Dump.
They returned each other’s notes and sat down on the chairs provided on the carriage platform.
Looking up at the reddish sunset, I wait for the last carriage of the day.
“Honey. Perhaps the greedy ones the saintess was talking about must be Regal and her vassals, right?”
Sinatra whispers to Frank, lowering her voice.
Frank answers with a quiet nod.
“I heard that the imperial army will go out together, so maybe the imperial faction is sympathetic to it.”
“Well… The imperial faction is now on the side of the media, but in the end, those people are the ones who can push us out as much as they want to protect their vested interests.”
“So. Even if they are in fierce confrontation with each other, if someone infringes on the vested interests of all of them, they are people who can temporarily join hands and suppress public enemies. That is the consistent view of the superiors looking at the inferiors. Won’t you?”
“Hoho. I always feel it, but you’re always critical of nobles.”
“…Isn’t it because I’ve always seen him like that?”
Sinatra nods her head with a blurred face.
I lifted my head and looked far north, then lowered my head again.
“That’s right…”
Her face darkens
Swoop.
Hold on.
Frank holds Sinatra’s hand.
“When will we be able to put an end to this escape?”
“If you go a little further, it’s a place where Regal’s influence doesn’t reach much.”
“In the end, we’ll have to go to the minefields, right?”
“I guess so.”
Seruk.
Took.
Sinatra rests her head on Frank’s shoulder.
A deep tiredness emanated from her that she could not hide.
“The mining town is always dusty.”
“Huh.”
“Even if she cleans the window sills every day, it comes out black with dust, and when she walks outside and comes in, her nostrils are full of black, sticky grime.”
“Perhaps?”
“My child… Can he grow up well without getting sick in a place like that?”
Frank’s face blurs as well.
“… It’s also a place where people live, but wouldn’t there be children?”
“I have children, but I’ve heard that people who have been there for a long time usually suffer from chronic lung disease.”
“Hmm…”
Frank nodded his head with a heavy face, as if he had heard the story.
However, there were not many alternatives.
“Except for the South, Regal’s influence is generally too strong. We had no other options.”
“That’s right… I was just hanging around in a different province, like Rai,”
“Sinatra.”
Frank quickly cuts her off.
“Ah…”
Rattle rattle.
The mere thought of Rai’s terrifying appearance in her public toilet left Sinatra wet with cold sweat in an instant.
Whoops, whoops.
Shiver.
Frank wipes the sweat from her forehead with the palm of her hand.
It’s not enough.
Squeak, squeak.
Swoop.
Tuk-tuk.
He took her handkerchief from her bosom and wiped the sweat from her forehead and neck.
The handkerchief was soaked.
Pat, pat.
Frank gives her a friendly pat on the back.
She falls into Frank’s arms.
The tremors gradually subside.
“It’s still dangerous. Even if it’s stable, think only about what’s good for the child. Okay, Sinatra?”
“Yes, honey…”
She murmurs in a weak voice, slowly nodding her head.
It was then.
Multiple, multiple, multiple, multiple.
As dusk began to fall, a carriage approached the platform.
The eyes of the two return to the carriage.
“Let’s get up. I need to pack my things.”
“Yes, honey.”
“It will take less than two hours. When we arrive, let’s take a bath in warm water today and rest a little while eating greasy food.”
“Still, I have to write an article and rest, honey.”
“I’ll double it, so you get some rest.”
“Still,”
“Sinatra.”
“Ugh… Ok.”
Jjoong.
Frank kissed Sinatra on the forehead.
They carried their luggage and waved at the wagon.
– 3 –
“It’s true… I think we need to deal with a new topic additionally in this hearing.”
Someone sitting in the parliamentary seat smiles and speaks to the chairman who is presiding over the hearing.
He seemed to be a nobleman belonging to the imperial faction, but judging from his attire and the position of his seat, he was presumed to have the title of count.
Regal was smiling happily as if he was suing for facing an embarrassing situation.
In the audience, Viscount Uwebol looked at Regal with a similar expression.
Hearing his suggestion, the chairman looked terribly perplexed, rolling his eyes this way and that, alternately looking at the Emperor and the Regal.
“Umm… Isn’t it too sudden? What we want to discuss in this hearing is, of course, to verify the connection between the recent serial death of aristocrats and the Duke of Regal B. Whiscay. Even if you did, why are you changing the agenda without even having time to prepare?”
“That’s right!”
An aristocrat belonging to the aristocratic faction who was sitting in the audience protested.
He was a nobleman who called out that the saintess’ speech was a lie.
“We need time to prepare in advance in order to exercise sufficient defense! What’s more, it’s already been over 10 hours since this meeting started! There is a physical burden just by listening, but the duke responded to unnecessary quibbles. Aside from accepting the saintess’ insistence, continuing the hearing while changing the agenda is customary and has never happened!”
“That’s right! Rather, it is to be thoroughly verified that the saintess’ speech is true, after the saintess has been brought here and put on her witness stand! !”
“Moreover, even if the person who gave that speech was really the saintess herself, it could be that the person who has already been pointed out as the leader of the rebels is frightened when a large army approaches, and is making a foolish attempt to divide the leadership in the enemy battle and stir up alienation. !”
“That’s right! Even if the saintess’ words are true, the imperial army can first verify the saintess’ words on the spot! There is a risk of being attacked by rebels from behind while the imperial troops withdraw believing in the saintess’ words for no reason! It’s too risky to accept the unspoken remarks!”
The nobles who belong to the aristocratic faction oppose it as a group.
No one has ever spoken of withdrawing troops.
However, the moment you accept the saintess’ words as true, and based on them, attack Regal, who most ardently insisted on war, withdrawal of troops is bound to become a fait accompli.
As long as it becomes an agenda, the aristocratic faction and even the legal must avoid it.
The aristocratic faction was to prevent political attacks from occurring, and the Regal was to prevent the grand scheme from being distorted.
“Be quiet.”
Land, land, land.
The chairman taps the gavel.
Then he raised his head and looked at the emperor.
“…”
The emperor didn’t say anything, just staring at his chair with cold eyes.
The emperor seemed to be entrusting everything related to this situation to the chairman.
A cold sweat broke out on the president’s forehead.
The chairman stealthily turns his gaze and examines the face of the lawmakers attending the hearing.
Gulp.
The chairman swallowed her dry saliva and opened his mouth cautiously.
“The departure date is tomorrow, Duke of Regal B. Whiscay?”
“Exactly.”
The smile had completely disappeared from Regal’s face before he knew it.
Instead of a smile, what took place on his face was a complex mixture of annoyance and annoyance.
“Please postpone it for three days.”
“…Why do you have to do that?”
“First, the agenda for today has not been finalized.”
“Um… That’s-“
The chairman interrupts Regal.
“Secondly, it’s late now, and the mood isn’t right to finish the agenda. Admit it?”
“… That’s right.”
Regal replied with a reluctant nod of his head.
“Thirdly, even though evidence has emerged that can distort the fundamental reasons for the upcoming war, we cannot ignore it, so there is a need to verify it.”
“…”
As if he wanted to grind his teeth right away, Regal’s jaw bulged with muscles.
As his bloody eyes lit up, the chairperson raised his gaze sneakily up.
The Chairman continued his words, looking not at Regal’s eyes, but at the empty space above Regal’s crown.
“So, tomorrow we will continue the discussion on the original agenda. After that, with a day of preparation time, we will proceed with a new agenda the day after tomorrow, namely, the discussion related to the testimony of the saint. If you have any objections, please tell us right away.”
“…”
Regal gritted his teeth and pondered for a moment.
Buzz buzz.
Those in the audience and those sitting in the parliamentary seats made noise by exchanging opinions with those nearby.
“I object!”
An aristocrat shouts from the audience.
“The troops waiting to be drafted and ready to go out are consuming military food and capital just by being stationed! Who will pay for the resources consumed and the damage that will result from delaying the start of the war for three days? Is it the proposed chairman’s share? Or is it the emperor’s share?!”
The chairman’s brow furrows.
From the stain on the nobleman’s words, he inferred what he originally intended to say.
“Can’t you shut up!”
“Moo, moo, moo,”
The noble’s face turned bright red.
Being publicly insulted, the nobleman seemed to be speechless.
“If the location of the rebels had been accurately identified in the first place, and if the relationship between the saintess and the rebels had been completely verified, there would have been no need for such additional discussions at the hearing! Wasn’t it suggested that it was necessary to hold a
“That, that’s… Uh, the video is manipulated,”
“There is no evidence that the video is not fabricated, and there is not even a background to be sure of that!”
“…”
Bang!
The chairman slams the desk with the palm of his hand.
His face was also flushed.
Of course, it was not shame, but anger at the violation of the chairperson’s authority.
“And you’re sitting in the audience! You’re a spectator who doesn’t even deserve to say anything like that!”
Flinch.
Those who shouted in the audience shrug their shoulders.
All of them were the ones who broke into the hearing without being allowed to speak by the chairman and started shouting.
“If you talk your way without permission at one more hearing, I’ll drag you all out or put you on the witness stand!”
The chairman sighs and turns his head.
And look at the legislators and Regal.
Whoa…
Let out a sigh and calm your anger.
“I apologize for the delay in discussion due to a moment of excitement.”
“…”
“The author broke in and said his own words, but he said something that made sense, Chairman.”
Members choose to remain silent, but Regal calmly raises objections to the Speaker.
“If the war is delayed for three days, who will compensate for the damage that is caused?”
The chairman shakes his head.
“If the saintess is right, wouldn’t it be possible for the war to end in the first place?”
“…”
“If we can avoid unnecessary war and the resulting sacrifices by handling things a little more carefully, then the three-day delay and material loss might be better.”
“But if you end up waging war,”
“I don’t think that the nobles who dispatched the enlisted soldiers, nor the imperial family who dispatched the imperial army, are in such poor financial condition that they can’t even endure a three-day delay.”
“…”
The chairman looks away from Regal.
Other legislators do not object.
“Then, with this, today’s hearing will be closed.”
Land, land, land.
Ada’s speech caused a great stir.
It was, of course, a ripple that occurred simultaneously throughout the empire.
