Resetting Lady - Chapter 211

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“…Wow, this is insane. Does Your Majesty even know how old Prince Louis is?”

Count Fankair gaped at Prince Louis. It had been a long time since he’d seen his godson. But because he was so shocked, Louis himself felt somewhat embarrassed. And the target of his anger was his grandfather and king.

“Count Fankair, watch your words.”

“Your tone… Hah… Lord Louis, who do you think I am?”

“Didn’t I just say? You’re my godfather and the Duke of the Pankair Border. Don’t act so rashly.”

“Last time I saw you, you called me Pancake. Drawing lines makes things awkward… No, more than that, you’ve gotten too thin. Are you eating properly?”

As the Duke flustered, Louis laughed.

“What’s with that tone? It’s strange.”

“…At least you haven’t completely lost your mind.”

“Duke, even if he’s your nephew, he’s the Crown Prince. Isn’t your etiquette a complete mess?”

Count Fankair sighed as he grasped the shoulders of Prince Louis, his godson and nephew.

“Really, Your Majesty is being too much…”

His height was tall for his age, but his face had no color. The Crown Prince’s face was marked with fatigue inappropriate for his young age.

Because everyone around him was elderly, his speech had changed somewhat, and his posture and behavior felt unsettling for a child not even ten years old. If Count Fankair could notice it, it would be even more apparent among noble peers his age.

Count Fankair thought he understood why the King was doing this.

It was because Prince Guiz, who would become king, was behaving excessively. The corpses in his private space were increasing, and the days Guiz indulged in violence and drugs were growing more frequent.

If he became completely ruined, they could quickly depose him, but that wasn’t the case either, and Guiz was selling positions for money while filling key posts with his own associates. Noble titles were also being stolen by the Crown Prince or sold off.

Voices of discontent were beginning to grow among the common people as well. Fifty years ago their words could be ignored, but times had changed. As railways were laid and industry and commerce began to develop, people among the citizenry had accumulated wealth rivaling that of the royal family and existing nobility.

The voices that couldn’t be ignored were increasing, but Prince Guiz was far too inadequate to deal with them. His flaws were endless – murder, drugs, rape – and there were almost no capable talents loyal to him.

The timing was poor. A wiser and stronger king was needed. The current discontent could barely remain quiet only thanks to the Current King’s long reign. The King had ruled for over fifty years. The people of this country had grown accustomed to the current king for more than half a century.

For that reason, changing kings was unthinkable, and their respect for him was great.

But if Prince Guiz became king, the situation would spiral out of control. And his vile hobbies would provide perfect ammunition for those opposing the monarchy.

This was an era of frequent international wars. Just crossing one mountain range, fierce battles were being fought. The country beyond the mountain range was constantly looking for opportunities to cross the border, and the probability of this country being engulfed in flames was very high. Knowing this, they still couldn’t even attempt to depose Guiz and establish a strong monarchy for a long time. Because Prince Guiz was the only prince.

But now there was Prince Louis.

A legitimate heir, an intelligent boy.

‘But he’s too young!’

Count Fankair sighed. The Current King was too old. And Prince Louis was too young. Only eight years old.

He understood the King’s feelings of wanting to raise and educate Prince Louis as quickly as possible, but this boy who was confined to his room, only conversing with old men and unable to move because he was reading books, didn’t look like he would live long.

‘There’s too little time… Doing this won’t make the child an adult.’

To become an adult and formally begin activities, at least ten years from now would have to pass.

However, even at eighteen, he would have just shed his childish appearance. While young heroes emerge from beyond the war-torn mountain range, to stably receive the throne in this country that maintains peace on the surface, much more time would be needed.

Moreover, in this country the king was old and all the retainers had worked for far too long. The gradual decline of the royal palace could be felt without even looking.

At least twenty years were needed. Prince Louis would need to be twenty-eight to be somewhat recognized as king. Ten years wouldn’t be enough. Only after fifteen years would he barely shed his inexperience. And knowledge from books alone wasn’t enough for the world to be lenient enough to govern a country.

‘Rather… if I took over instead.’

Count Fankair shook his head. Being a close relative, he was next after Prince Guiz, but if he inherited the throne, Prince Louis who would grow up afterward would be the problem.

Certainly if the throne once went to Count Fankair’s line, afterward it wouldn’t transfer to Prince Louis through legitimate procedures, and it would be difficult for Louis to give up the throne.

There was one most stable method. For him to support Prince Louis and put him on the throne even at a young age.

But he was still too young. Children die even from colds. Prince Louis had reached eight years old, so he’d passed the most dangerous period, but continuing like this, it seemed difficult for him to even reach adulthood.

He couldn’t eat properly, couldn’t exercise properly. Moreover, his social relationships were also problematic.

“What are you thinking about so deeply?”

“I’m thinking about how to raise Your Highness well to be king.”

“It’s still far off… His Majesty and the Duke, you’re all too hasty. Have some patience.”

Count Fankair looked down at Louis, thinking he was being naive. But seeing Prince Louis’s face looking up at him with a stern expression, he realized the Crown Prince was truly much more mature than expected.

“…You understand the situation.”

“I can’t help but know. My teachers keep mentioning it in passing.”

Louis knew the King was preparing to make him king in place of Prince Guiz. The Crown Prince wasn’t foolish enough not to understand what it meant for a grandson to ascend the throne, skipping a generation. Louis knew that his father Guiz was his enemy and they could never have a good relationship, and that if he died, Guiz would rather be pleased. So he couldn’t afford to live like a child.

“I have no choice but to know…”

Count Fankair thought he needed a teacher to handle guns.

“This is Lord Raymond. He’ll be Your Highness’s shooting instructor. How does that sound?”

“Please take good care of me, Your Highness.”

He was a tall, handsome man.

Louis, who had been constantly around only old men, received a fresh shock. There were no young men around Louis. Even Louis’s guard knight was middle-aged, and Count Fankair was also the same age as Prince Guiz.

“Please take care of me, Lord Raymond.”

He extended his hand. The hand that grasped his had strength and was warm. He was a young man who seemed to resemble Prince Guiz around the jaw and eyes, but he was a person overflowing with goodwill. He looked like the definition of an ideal male figure. Healthy, gentle, and full of strength.

It was the image he wanted to become.

Raymond was a decent teacher.

His teaching had no unnecessary elements, and the parts he pointed out were accurate. Even so, it might be somewhat unreasonable to call him a teacher. Unlike the teachers who made schedules and came at regular times, the days Raymond visited Prince Louis were irregular.

He was like a special guest they occasionally met. Unlike other teachers who had worked as politicians or scholars, he was young and handsome, and knew how to maintain appropriate silence.

The older teachers, perhaps due to their previous work, would endlessly pour out words once they opened their mouths, and sometimes would dump all sorts of things unrelated to lessons on Louis. Louis didn’t dislike studying or miscellaneous knowledge. It was fortunate in his misfortune.

But the things the teachers said were often too much for him to accept. Things that should have been explained to a child with appropriate circumlocution were often stated without reservation. Both academically and emotionally. They had stopped treating the Crown Prince like a child within a year.

Louis couldn’t afford to remain a child. He needed to become a political person more quickly. Fortunately, Louis’s mind was quicker than his peers.

Though there was more time for physical exercise, horseback riding time, basic physical training time, and the time Raymond taught were distinctly different.

“Why doesn’t Your Lordship come as often as the other teachers?”

“Self-defense shooting doesn’t require that much learning time. It’s for protecting yourself. I think it’s sufficient that you know how to load and shoot.”

He was saying there was no need to come often. Louis felt somewhat disappointed. Because Louis was overwhelmed with studies, time with Raymond felt like a day of rest.

“I heard Father is good at hunting. He wouldn’t use pistols like this when hunting.”

“It would certainly be difficult for hunting… but hunting rifles are still too heavy for Lord Louis. I’ll bring one when you build up a bit more muscle.”

“What about now?”

“You wouldn’t be able to carry it and move.”

Raymond looked around and picked up a piece of firewood to hand to Louis. When Louis took it, he staggered from the weight. Raymond said while watching him.

“It’s about that weight.”

“Certainly… it’s still too much.”

“Do you like hunting?”

“I’ve never tried it, so I don’t know how it would be. But since Father likes it, I’m curious.”

Prince Guiz liked hunting. Louis was still too young to understand finding pleasure in killing animals, but he understood it as similar to clearing away small insects or pressing them to death with his fingernails.

He tried to understand. So Louis sometimes tried to understand the strange feeling he got when Prince Guiz looked at him. Louis wanted to try understanding his father too. But he hadn’t succeeded yet.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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