## Chapter 663 – 663. The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated Into The Baek Family
663. The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated into the Baek Family
The King of the Rapelli Kingdom had passed away.
Unlike Count Heathfield, there was no conspiracy behind the death of the Rapelli King. Count Heathfield and the Rapelli King were different in status. There would be various investigations into the King’s death, and the results of those investigations revealed that the Rapelli King had died of old age.
The problem was that the Rapelli King had died without naming a successor.
Generally speaking, it would be right for the eldest son, Prince Aiden, to take the throne. However, Aiden was a known scoundrel. If he had been competent, it might have been different. He was incompetent. Duke Helbrit had planned to use him as a puppet king, but the Helbrit family was annihilated by Yuria.
Nevertheless, Aiden still had supporters. No matter what anyone said, Aiden was the eldest legitimate son, and from the perspective of greedy nobles, it was more advantageous for Aiden to become king.
However, not all nobles were only concerned with their own greed. Nobles with sound minds supported Princess Eileen. She was so capable that she perfectly carried out the duties of a prime minister at a young age. The nobles praised that if she became queen, the Rapelli Kingdom would enjoy a golden age for the next 50 years.
‘Right now, the Rapelli Kingdom doesn’t have a regent, and there’s a war going on.’
Therefore, it was up to the nobles to decide who would be king. Aiden and Eileen. They just had to choose one of the two direct royal family members to succeed to the throne. However, the opinions of the nobles were not united.
‘It’s different from the original. In the original, Aiden had the advantage. Because the Helbrit family chose Aiden.’
Even so, it was Eileen who eventually became queen. Because it was Kyle, the protagonist of the original story, who chose Eileen.
“Yuria. What about the King’s funeral? How are they going to do the funeral?”
“It seems the funeral will be held in the traditional way in two weeks.”
“They’re going to do it in the traditional way even though there’s a war going on? Those old fogeys… Heh.”
The Rapelli King’s funeral was famous. They would cast anti-decay magic on the coffin containing the King’s body, escort the coffin around the entire Rapelli Kingdom, and then cremate it.
The reason they were holding the funeral even though there was a war was not only because the war was only occurring on a small scale at the border, but probably more for political reasons.
“Yuria. We need to participate in the funeral. Tell Floy and get ready. We need black clothes.”
“Yes. I will prepare them.”
Not all nobles needed to participate in the King’s funeral. After all, the funeral procession would travel through all the regions, so the nobles would be forced to attend the funeral in a way.
‘But it’s a bit different if you start in the funeral procession from the beginning.’
Those who were aiming for the central power of the Rapelli Kingdom would all participate in the funeral procession. The funeral would last for about 100 days, and during those 100 days, they could make an impression while attending the funeral with the next king.
‘With Duke Helbrit, Aiden’s biggest supporter, gone, if I do nothing and leave it alone, the nobles will likely support Eileen as queen by the time the funeral is over. I have to participate and keep Eileen in check.’
Of course, this wouldn’t make Aiden king. My goal this time was to keep Princess Eileen in check.
***
The first day of the funeral was gloomy. It wasn’t raining, but the sky was filled with gray storm clouds from dawn.
The citizens of the royal capital, who had to wear dark clothes during the state funeral, whispered that even the sky was mourning the King’s death.
To the people, the deceased Rapelli King was a holy king. During his reign, there were no major wars or major natural disasters, and everything was peaceful.
‘He was a king who was neither incompetent nor competent.’
If he had been competent, he would have passed the throne to Eileen while he was alive, and if he had been incompetent, Aiden would have already become king.
I went to Prince Aiden’s room with Yuria. Prince Aiden was sitting on a chair, nervously shaking his leg.
“Baron Prucus! Why are you only coming now?! If you came to the royal capital, you should have come to see me!”
“Be quiet.”
At my cold reply, Aiden flinched, shut his mouth, and looked at me cautiously. Aiden knew that I had wiped out the Helbrit family overnight. And he also knew that he couldn’t become king without me.
I sat across from him and remained silent. While I was silent, Aiden couldn’t open his mouth.
“Did the King not leave a will?”
“A will… He did. But they were all trivial things. He didn’t leave a single word about the important matter of succession! Damn it! I’m the eldest son, but my father only favored Eileen. Even until the moment he died!”
“Well, calm down. It’s not like Princess Eileen has become queen yet.”
“Now is not the time to calm down! Do you know how many nobles are following that bitch? As far as I know, there are over 30! And among them, Duke Sunheights officially supported her!”
The great noble of the South. Duke Sunheights. Among the nobles in the royal capital, he was the most powerful.
“At this rate, Eileen might take the throne after the funeral is over!”
“That won’t happen, so calm down. Or do my words not sound like words to you?”
Gulp.
Aiden swallowed hard.
“S-Sorry. Baron. I was too nervous, and I upset you…”
“It’s alright, Your Highness.”
“Still, Baron… Eileen is dangerous. That cunning bitch is probably plotting to push me out. How about we get rid of her right now? You can do it, can’t you, Baron?”
“Your Highness. Just because you take the throne doesn’t mean absolute power is established. If the nobles don’t follow you, it’s a useless position. If Princess Eileen dies, who do you think the nobles who supported Princess Eileen will suspect?”
“If we kill them all…”
“Your Highness, do you want a kingdom in chaos? There is a time for everything, so wait.”
Yuria alone couldn’t kill them all. She was strong, but there were a few master-level experts in the kingdom as well.
“Just wait? Is there nothing else I can do?”
Aiden said. It seemed he was getting impatient as the king had died and the throne was vacant. His own father had died, but he wasn’t even a little bit sad.
“Don’t cause any trouble during the funeral. Do you understand?”
“……I understand, Baron.”
I got up from my seat. The reason I came to see him was to tell him not to cause trouble.
***
People lined up in front of the royal palace. Royal knights in armor on horseback formed a line in the front, followed by a line of luxurious carriages. The carriage carrying the King’s body was the first carriage at the very front. Behind it were Prince Aiden’s carriage, Princess Rapelli’s carriage, and then the carriages of other nobles.
The number of nobles participating in this procession was over 100, and the number of armed soldiers and knights was over 3,000. Including the servants, the number reached 5,000.
Before the procession started, I faced Princess Eileen.
Shining blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes. White skin and delicate features. An outstanding figure that looked good even in a black dress. She was a woman so beautiful that one could believe she was a sculpture, not a person.
“Baron Prucus. You’ve also attended. I heard you came to the royal capital last night… I’m only seeing you now.”
I looked around her. There were nobles. And not just one or two. More than half of them were nobodies, but some were nobles that I couldn’t ignore. All of them were looking at me with unfriendly eyes.
“I apologize, Princess. It was too late last night, and too early today, so I am only greeting you now.”
“Is that so. Did you have a good conversation with my brother Aiden?”
She knew that I had met with Aiden this morning. It wasn’t surprising. The royal palace was Eileen’s territory. Her hands, feet, eyes, and ears were everywhere.
“Yes. We had a good conversation. His Highness is feeling very great sorrow.”
“I heard he was looking for alcohol until last night…”
“He is trying to soothe his sorrow with alcohol. It’s a pity that many people seem to misunderstand His Highness.”
“……”
The atmosphere turned cold. Even I knew what I said was nonsense. Prince Aiden always had alcohol in his mouth. If he was saddened by the King’s death, he should have stayed away from alcohol.
I knew that, but I wouldn’t take away Aiden’s alcohol. If an alcoholic couldn’t drink, he would surely cause trouble. It was better for him to drink and stay quiet.
“Baron Prucus. I know you are busy with matters at the border and matters related to your family. Is it alright for you to come here?”
What she was talking about was the succession competition.
“Thank you for your concern, but it’s alright. The eastern part of the Rapelli Kingdom is being thoroughly defended by my father. I think it’s important to protect the kingdom, but it’s also important to mourn His Majesty the King. Princess, I apologize on behalf of my father for not being able to attend the funeral.”
“It’s alright. Everyone here knows that the Marcher Lord is risking his life to defend the East.”
“Ah, it seems like we’re about to depart soon. I’ll take my leave now. But…”
I raised my head and approached the princess. The nobles around her were shocked. They wouldn’t like that someone like me was trying to be on par with the princess. But Eileen didn’t even bat an eye.
“Do you have something to say to me, Baron?”
“I have business with others, not with the Princess.”
My feet turned to a noble man next to her. A noble who looked like a rat.
“Baron Barmarma.”
“W-What is it? Baron Prucus.”
“Why are you here? Is the item I ordered safe?”
“The item you ordered…”
“Haha. It seems your memory has deteriorated. I’m talking about the item I ordered two years ago.”
“What are you suddenly talking about? I didn’t meet you today, Baron.”
“Haa…”
I sighed. This guy had no sense. I couldn’t entrust him with important work.
“It’s related to Duke Helbrit, who is no longer here. Do I really have to mention him?”
“O-Oh. Oh…”
Baron Barmarma opened his mouth blankly and trembled.
He was one of Duke Helbrit’s dogs. His main job was to smuggle war materials under Duke Helbrit’s orders.
“Baron Barmarma. Why are you here? Let’s have a little chat.”
“A-Alright.”
“Alright?”
“……I understand.”
Baron Barmarma lowered his head with a look of despair. He glanced at Princess Eileen. She didn’t stop me. Instead, she looked at me as if she was observing me.
I called out the names of other nobles one by one.
“Baron Reitanol. Don’t we have something to talk about?”
“Y-Yes, we do.”
“Viscount Barkas. I have something to talk about regarding your daughter.”
“W-What are you talking about? I don’t have a daughter!”
Viscount Barkas was startled and came behind me. He had an illegitimate child. A daughter, whom he liked more than his son.
“Viscount Yasprin. What happened to the money you borrowed from me last time?”
“T-The money is invested. The repayment period is still far away!”
“I was just asking to confirm. Are you going to stay there?”
Viscount Yasprin looked back and forth between me and Eileen, and eventually lowered his head and came behind me.
He had chosen his side well. He knew that following the capable Princess Eileen would be helpful in the future. He had invested half of the money he borrowed from me in Princess Eileen, and the other half in military power. However, he was a debtor, and I was a creditor. And in order to extend the contract period, he had to grovel before me. Otherwise, he would go bankrupt.
I turned around. Behind me, six nobles had lowered their heads and dared not raise them.
The atmosphere had changed. The nobles who had looked down on me were now looking at me with wary eyes, as if they were looking at a great noble. Princess Eileen, who had lost her supporters, looked at me with a calm gaze.
“Princess. I will really take my leave now. It’s cold, so please take care of yourself.”
“……Yes. Please be careful as well, Baron.”
After finishing my greetings, I walked towards my carriage. I could feel stinging gazes on my back. My faction was practically born here. Now, even the great nobles wouldn’t be able to ignore me so easily.
