Chapter 189

A luxurious horse-drawn carriage drives slowly down the main street of the imperial city of Drisdal.

The ride is quite comfortable. The quality of the carriage itself may not be bad, but the fact that the streets are well maintained is probably even more important. The carriage didn't shake, and if I tried hard enough, I could sleep through the ride.

Yuri opened the small window of the carriage and looked out at the scenery of the flowing city of Drisdal.

Most of the buildings in this world are generally two or three stories high, such as those in the former Kingdom of Eldard and the cities of the Duchy of Selsia. But here in Drisdal, buildings up to five stories tall seem to be the norm.

It is simply proof that the Volmisian Empire has such a high level of building technology. Even though they are not in an earthquake-prone area like Japan, I think it is quite a big deal.

Well, there are many multi-story buildings with more than ten floors in the cities built by the Yuri Empire, especially in the city of Ulysses. This is not a reference to the construction technology of the Yuri Empire, but simply because the children of <Kikyou> are abnormal cheats.

“It's an inactive city.”

“Yes, it is…”

The city itself is neat and orderly, with a fine majesty. In contrast, the citizens of the city do not seem to have any sense of vitality.

The streets of the city were littered with citizens slumped on the ground, clearly without energy.

It seems that the information obtained by【 Spatial Grasp 】―――that nearly 70% of the people living in this city are in a state of ‘starvation’ or ‘hunger’―――is an undoubted fact.

It's often said that you can't go to war if you're hungry, and also that rice granary knows how to be polite. People are creatures that cannot get energy for any kind of activity unless they have enough food first.

(……We'll have to do something about that.)

As Yuri observed the people living in the city, she felt a terrible pain in her heart.

No matter how many people are suffering in places that are not closely related to her, Yuri does not feel any pain. She’s not that compassionate.

But then again, half of the hungry citizens are women, so it's not surprising.

Whenever Yuri looks out the window and sees a hungry woman, she feels tormented.

She was aware that she was being discriminatory, but she couldn't help but overlook the fact that the people she loved, women, in other words, were being subjected to needless suffering.

If this were her own country, she would do whatever she could. It's not like I can directly do anything to help them since it's another country.

(…… What is the Volmisian Empire doing?)

Instead, Yuri looked at the women standing in the street, and her hostility towards this nation grew bigger in her mind.

It is a flaw of the state that the people are suffering. Yuri believes that the first and foremost responsibility for helping the people should be borne by the state. What is a ‘nation’―――if it does not fulfill this responsibility?

“Let's just take it away…”

“I think that would be a good idea.”

Yuri's words dropped. Lindworm nods happily.

Yuri was confused by the answer, as it was just a random thought that had come out of her mouth.

Even if I wanted to―――I couldn't.

In the past, Yuri has declared to the children of the Yuri Empire that she does not wish to expand the country any further for the time being.

It would be a shame if she were to take the initiative in violating that stance. Yuri will not be able to apologize to those children who have given their wholehearted loyalty to her.

“If you wish, Yuri-dono. I could take it all and give it to you outright…”

“Please don't do this, Lindwurm…… I appreciate the sentiment, but……”

“Yes. Forgive me for saying so much.”

Whether it's Lindworm or the children of the Yuri Empire―――many children can accomplish almost anything with just a single word from Yuri. Even conquering the Volmisian Empire and giving it to Yuri would be a piece of cake for them.

That's why Yuri, the leader of the group, needs to be cautious.

At the very least, it's not like they're picking a fight with her. It was not advisable to think of an easy solution by force.

The carriage drove slowly through the city of Drisdal for about ten minutes before stopping in front of a large building in the center of the city.

It was the building that boasted an exceptional grandeur even among the many splendid buildings of Drisdal. It was none other than the residence of the emperor of the Volmisian Empire.

“I'm coming down.”

“Yes, Yuri-dono.”

After getting off the carriage with Lindworm, Yuri registered a [Transfer Point] at that location. It is not likely that all the negotiations will be completed in a single day, so there will be several opportunities to transfer to this location, which is right in front of the entrance to the Imperial Castle, in the future.

“I'll show you around, so come.”

“…… Yeah, I got it.”

The leader of the group, a knight who had been dismounting for some time, spoke up. Yuri frowned slightly but responded by nodding.

The word ‘come’ is humble, so the way you ‘humble’ the recipient of your conversation is a way of treating them as lower than you.

(TN: Not sure if this is accurate.)

However, there is no point in arguing about one of these ways of speaking.

In the first place, Yuri doesn't even know the extent to which the benefit of the〔 Translation 〕that Lydina has given her is accurately translating the language of this world into Japanese.

Yuri walked alongside Lindworm through the imperial castle, taking care not to fall behind the knights who were striding rather quickly without showing any consideration for their guests.

From the outside, the Imperial Castle looked magnificent, but its interior was also magnificent.

It was not to Yuri's taste, though, as it was unnecessarily overly ornate. It would not be wrong in general to show the visitors that we seek luxury.

The soldiers, knights, and noblemen we encountered in the castle all looked at us with distrust, even as they gave way to Yuri and the others who were guests.

The stares, especially from the nobles, are harsh and blatant. They make no secret of the fact that they are wary of how Yuri, the monarch of another country, is trying to threaten the Volmisian Empire.

“Wait in this room for a while until the audience is ready!”

“All right. Thanks for the tour.”

“Thanks for the tour.”

Yuri expressed her gratitude. The leader of the group, a knight, did not hide his displeasure and walked away from Yuri.

As Yuri watched her back, Yuri wondered why he’s so irritated. Isn't he getting enough calcium?

“……………… You don't mind if I kill that guy, do you?”

With a blue streak on her forehead, Lindworm revealed her anger with a smile.

Yuri didn't particularly care for it, but to her, it was an outrageous attitude. Yuri touched Lindworm’s shoulder with her hand and quieted her down.

“Calm down. It's not worth your time.”

“Huh. Sorry.”

“Come on, let's go into the room.”

When I entered the room I was led to, I found myself in a reception room.

In the center of the room, lined with luxurious furniture, sat a large, face-to-face sofa, and on a low table between the two sofas, steamy tea and sweets were laid out.

Six maids in maid's uniforms were waiting in the corner of the reception room.

The tea and sweets must have been prepared by them.

“Yuri-dono.”

“Yes, it's all right. I know exactly・・・・・what they’re doing.”

After letting out a heavy sigh, Yuri sat down on the sofa.

Yuri then used her <Appraisal> skill on each of the tea and sweets that her [Danger Detection] ring on the middle finger of her right hand had been reacting to since a while ago.

『 You've been given a most enthusiastic and unambiguous welcome. 』 

『 I didn't expect it to be this much either…… 』

Yuri and Lindworm, who were sitting on the other side of the room, couldn't help but look at each other.

―――Tea and sweets laid out on the table.

The reason is that Yuri found out that both of them were laced with a level 26 ‘poison’.