Chapter 283: A Request from Prime Minister Cromwell

[A/N: Updated the character of Robin Marie, hype it up by adding popularity to it :D]

"Last of all, Ambassador Marie will be going to Count von Kirchhoff after this to repay the debts, yes?"

"Yes, I will."

I answered at once. I would not be the one going, though.

"I thought so. In that case, would you deliver five thousand gold coins for me, and tell him they are a sympathy gift from me?"

"Hah!? What did you say?"

What are you saying, Lord Cromwell!

"Come now, there is nothing to be surprised about. Win or lose aside, Count von Kirchhoff took terrible losses last night, did he not? Is it so startling that I would send him sympathy money for that? Am I saying something so strange?"

The Prime Minister looked at my face with a straight expression.

"No. There is nothing strange about it. If anything, it is the natural thing to do."

"Exactly. Sympathy money will be sent from many nobles besides me, and of course Ambassador Marie intends to send some as well, yes? Well?"

Heh heh. He had stabbed a sore spot...

"Of course. I had prepared it just as you say."

"Just as I expected. Ambassador Marie looks like a child, yet you understand noble dealings perfectly well. Then what surprised you was not the act of delivering sympathy money, but the size of the sum, was it not?"

No, it was the delivering of sympathy money itself, though the size of the sum surprised me too.

The Prime Minister went on at length.

"In fact, there is a reason behind the large amount."

He grinned.

"Count von Kirchhoff’s wager was two thousand coins. I have that in my keeping. I will return it in full, and add another three thousand gold coins on top as so-called sympathy money. I hear Count von Kirchhoff has been boasting that he bet three thousand gold coins, but only two thousand reached me, so he may have placed bets elsewhere as well.

Think nothing of it. Thanks to Ambassador Marie I made a mountain of gold, so this much neither hurts nor itches. This is exactly the time to sell him a large favor. Even a man as thick-skinned as Count von Kirchhoff will feel indebted to me.

And if the one who brings it is Ambassador Marie, he may feel a little gratitude toward you as well, no? If he still goes on and on after that, try proposing another match. Nobody will want to help him anymore, and he will not have the money to hire a cheering force. Being challenged would only trouble him, so he should learn his lesson and never pick at Ambassador Marie again. If he still takes the bait after that, he will simply be ruined. Well, watching that would be amusing in its own way."

I was not eager, but he had said it, so there was no helping it. I could not picture myself refusing this man’s request.

"Ah!"

Here I thought of a reason to decline!

"What is it?"

"The carriage we came in is already loaded to the brim with gold coins. So I do not think we can load any more. Therefore..."

"What, you need not worry about that. I will have a carriage prepared to carry the gold. I will attach an escort as well. The carriage will bear House Cromwell’s crest. Even with an escort, of course, there is no one with Ambassador Marie’s skill. Ambassador Marie, I will say this. If you worry over small things from a young age, you will go bald early. The world has yet to produce a medicine that cures baldness. You must take good care of your hair while you are young."

The Prime Minister said that while stroking his own plentiful hair. How was I supposed to take care of it? If he did not teach me that, there was no persuasive power at all.

He had changed the subject, but I still did not want to go to the count’s residence.

"What, are you still bothered?"

"Yes. When I think of the damage to the count’s residence and garden, he lost and now faces enormous expenses. I feel sorry for him."

"Ahaha! Ambassador Marie really is a softhearted man. I am starting to worry that swarms of people will take advantage of that nature and try to wring money out of you. You need not worry about the count’s mansion or garden. Between my sympathy money and the income from gathering spectators to watch the contest, he must have taken in well over five thousand gold coins, no? Together that is more than ten thousand gold coins collected. Even after repairing the mansion and garden there should be change left over. There is nothing to fret about! Besides, I hear it was Count von Kirchhoff’s own people who wrecked the mansion and garden, not Ambassador Marie. In other words, he reaped what he sowed, yes?"

"Put that way, I can see it. Yes. Thank you."

"Ambassador Marie, either before you go to Count von Kirchhoff’s residence or after, you should pay your respects at House Schult next door."

"Understood, but why?"

"You cannot tell? Ambassador Marie, who has a reputation for being sharp, should be able to guess. During the contest, House Schult next door set up viewing stands so the count’s garden could be seen clearly. I do not know the price, but they must have made a killing. Their own estate was completely unaffected, and they collected a fortune. I even heard people say the view from the marquis’s stands was far better than from a room in the count’s residence. Marquis Schult received a benefit thanks to Ambassador Marie, so if you show your face he should at least offer words of thanks."

"Understood."

"But you must not say anything that sounds like you are begging. Greet him brightly, leave a good impression, and convey that you wish to deepen relations going forward. There is no harm in increasing Ambassador Marie’s allies even a little. Ahahaha!"

He clapped me on the shoulder again and again. I was being used nicely.

"One more thing, though it is none of my business. I hear noble ladies want to get closer to Ambassador Marie. Ellen over there," he pointed at the woman doing clerical work, "did not go to watch last night, so unfortunately she has no interest."

"Yes, yes."

I was starting to feel that I could take anything he said at this point.

As the Prime Minister had instructed, we set the carriages running (the truth was they moved slowly, loaded with heaps of gold) and went to Count von Kirchhoff’s residence.

Seeing the count’s residence again, I was stunned by how wrecked it was. Several men who looked like contractors had come and were looking around. The count himself was nowhere among them. The entrance had barely kept its original shape.

The gatekeeper saw my face and made a very unpleasant one. Of course he remembered.

"I would like to see Count von Kirchhoff."

The gatekeeper went to announce us, and a steward came out. He too wore a sour look, but I pretended not to notice and asked him to take a message. With an air of performing his duty despite himself, since he had been asked, the steward vanished inside.

I was not let in, and stood waiting at the entrance.

"Whatever the reason, leaving a guest standing at the door is beyond rude!"

Rudolf fumed in a low voice, keeping it from reaching inside the house. We were never going to be welcomed anyway, so being told we would not be received would not have been strange.

Even so, after we had been made to wait long enough, the Countess came out to the entrance. Needless to say, she was not in a good mood. Flames of anger burned in her eyes.

"My husband is unwell and cannot receive Ambassador Marie!"

She said it as curtly as a stick across the nose. Then we led her to the carriage behind us and showed her the sympathy money from Prime Minister Cromwell, and her attitude changed completely.

"My! My! My! The house has hardly been cleaned from last night to today, but please come in and rest!"

Even if her attitude toward me was bad, I was going to hand over what I had come to hand over, so I did not care. Still, since we had been invited, we went inside.

There were more people inside who looked like repair contractors. When they saw the Countess they opened a path and bowed. Doing that every time she passed must have been exhausting.

We were shown not to the room His Majesty had used last night, but to a parlor on the first floor. A smiling Countess was better than a sullen one, after all. There I said,

"I have brought this as well, including the meaning of the various troubles we caused yesterday. Please accept it."

I first produced a glass and slid it forward in front of the Countess.

"Of course, this is free. Come, drink it while it is fresh."

"Oh, how kind."

The Countess put a hand to her cheek, her eyes softening. Today’s dose was undiluted, so the effect should have been strong. Even the diluted ones had clearly worked on the Countess. Rather than looking younger, her skin simply seemed in excellent condition.

The Countess downed it in one go and said a single line.

"Oh, it feels a little stronger than usual? Is it my imagination?"

My heart jumped! But I put on a business smile.

"Does it? Surely it only felt that way depending on your condition, Countess?"

The words came out smoothly even without relying on Deception.

"Oh, is that so? But I can certainly feel the effect myself. It is just as you say, Lord Marie. Ohohoho."

Thank goodness. It was rolling in a good direction.