The Baby Raising A Devil - Chapter 312
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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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Chapter 312
Amidst the commotion, the Emperor slowly closed his eyes.
Count Brieuc shouted.
“Lady Dubbled’s arrogance is excessive, Your Majesty. Independence in such a situation! Is this not threatening the Imperial Palace by holding the people’s lives hostage!”
The nobles under Duke Marche agreed.
“Withdraw your petition immediately and apologize to His Majesty.”
“How foolish. The Young Lady is far too immature. This is no different from throwing a tantrum driven by emotion!”
Leblaine glanced at the nobles raising their voices.
“I will do nothing for this Empire.”
“…What?”
“I will neither subjugate those monsters occupying the Empire’s airspace nor fight against the shrine. Whether the Empire falls or the people die, I will not intervene.”
“…!”
Leblaine spoke in a calm voice.
“This is what being driven by emotion means, my lords.”
The nobles stared with wide eyes, their mouths agape. They muttered, “We, we…”
At that moment, Prince Andre, who was attending the meeting, narrowed his eyes.
‘How foolish.’
These frustrating old fools can’t even verbally crush a single young girl.
As he was about to speak, Duke Marche, Prince Andre’s maternal grandfather, quietly called to him.
“Your Majesty.”
Andre grinned at the words meant to restrain him.
“This is an opportunity, Grandfather. If I crush that girl here, wouldn’t it boost the Emperor’s morale and make an impression on the nobles?”
The nobles’ perception of Adrian had already changed due to the interrogation room incident.
There were quite a few praising him as truly the rightful heir to the Imperial family.
If I step forward now and erase Adrian from their minds, it will prevent troublesome matters in the future.
Duke Marche frowned.
“Getting involved in this matter will cost more than we gain─”
“Young Lady, what makes you so wronged and miserable?”
Prince Andre cut off Duke Marche’s words abruptly.
Adrian, who was sitting across from him, furrowed his brow.
“Do not insult her.”
Andre smirked and crossed his arms.
“Duke, what I called childish was the Young Lady’s excessive self-consciousness in thinking only she has been hurt by the world.”
Leblaine’s gaze turned toward Prince Andre.
Andre shrugged his shoulders.
“It’s not that I don’t understand the Young Lady’s feelings. How could I not know the sensitivity of girls… young ladies of that age?”
“…”
“But this is no different from throwing a tantrum, asking the world to understand because you’ve been hurt─”
“Count Brieuc repeatedly sent spies to Dubbled Territory under Duke Valois’s orders while he was alive. My elder brother Isaac Dubbled was severely injured by his sword.”
Count Brieuc’s face turned red.
“Th-that was…!”
“Count Chenus agreed when the shrine stepped forward to search Dubbled Territory. If we hadn’t prevented that in advance, we would have been framed with false charges of trying to summon an evil god and executed.”
“…”
“Marquis Nodelli sent an assassin to my father’s carriage. It’s terrifying to imagine what would have happened if it had succeeded.”
“…!”
“That’s what the Empire is like. A place where great nobles frequently target Dubbled for their own interests.”
Leblaine stared directly at Prince Andre and asked.
“Does Your Majesty consider being outraged by such things to be excessive self-consciousness of a young lady?”
“That was unavoidable because of the shrine─”
“Your Majesty, please clarify the cause and effect. All of this did not happen because of the shrine.”
“Yes, I acknowledge that Dubbled frequently committed evil acts, causing the nobles to be overly wary. But Young Lady, think of it this way.”
Andre spread both arms as he continued speaking.
“If you take this opportunity to deal with the shrine that dared rebel against the Imperial Palace and prove Dubbled’s loyalty, the nobles will no longer be excessively wary of Dubbled.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Because I dislike such things, I wish to become independent.”
“What did you say?”
Leblaine looked around the hall with an icy gaze.
“I dislike that fighting for the interests of our territory residents is called Dubbled’s evil acts.”
“…”
“I dislike the narrow-mindedness that slanders our territory as a den of criminals.”
“…”
“I’m sick and tired of the pettiness that loudly proclaims it disgraceful, claiming that legitimate actions taken for territory residents and parent-child relationships are for the family head’s own advancement.”
“…”
“I terribly hate this Empire that always attached modifiers like ‘mere orphan’ to a child who courageously voiced opinions for the world.”
“…”
“I wish to become independent because I don’t want my beloved family members and the territory residents we must protect to be hurt anymore.”
The hall fell silent.
Prince Andre stammered.
“That’s not what I meant…!”
“Your Majesty!”
Duke Marche raised his voice and cut off Andre’s words.
If he provoked Leblaine any further here, what other nobles had done to Dubbled would be revealed as well.
Andre closed his mouth under his maternal grandfather’s reproachful gaze.
Leblaine bowed deeply at the waist.
“Please make a wise decision. So that I won’t be swayed by emotions.”
* * *
Leblaine and Duke Dubbled left the room, and the nobles spoke to the Emperor.
“Independence is impossible.”
“Why do you say nothing, Your Majesty!”
The Emperor slammed the table with a bang!! and said.
“Then do you lords have a solution? Is there another way to stop those monsters and the power of the Child of Fate that the shrine has put forward!”
The nobles fell silent.
Then Marquis Schuheil, who had been standing with his arms crossed, spoke.
“There is no other way for now.”
“So you’re saying we must allow Dubbled’s independence! That cannot be! The Empire suffers frequent droughts. Even in summer, we can’t see a single raindrop. If they become independent, the water supply we’ve been receiving will be cut off.”
The other nobles nodded their heads.
“Who do you think ended the wars 8 years ago? Foreign countries and foreign tribes fear the long-distance teleportation circles that Dubbled possesses and dare not pick fights with us.”
“Who will bear the losses if the distribution network created by the long-distance teleportation circles that Dubbled provided disappears!”
“What about Blue Spinel? If Dubbled withdraws from the Blue Spinel business, the prices will skyrocket again.”
“Cheap Blue Spinel has become the foundation for most magical tools. If Blue Spinel prices rise again, the Magic Tower forces that produce magical tools will gain power.”
“Most importantly…”
Duke Marche’s son, Eslon Marshu, continued speaking.
“Isn’t it amazing? Lady Dubbled’s power.”
“…”
“…”
The nobles cleared their throats awkwardly.
Her power, which they had seen directly or through demon realm viewing, was truly tremendous.
‘The power to stop and bring rain.’
It was an indispensable power for an agricultural society.
‘With ghost soldiers, one could conquer not just the continent but the entire world.’
‘Immortal soldiers’ that didn’t require raising troops or investing fortunes in national defense.
‘That tremendous divine power as well…’
It was power that could rival even the Pope’s level.
A living symbol of divine power and a ‘crystallization of divinity’ that could create new religions and unite the people’s hearts.
“We cannot let such a treasure slip away. Absolutely not.”
Most of the nobles nodded at Eslon Marshu’s words.
“Just thinking of having her as an enemy is terrifying.”
Marquis Schuheil opened his mouth.
“Then what shall we do? Dubbled’s will is so firm.”
“That’s…”
“Without the Young Lady’s power, we cannot defeat the shrine. What if she truly lets her emotions get the better of her and refuses to eliminate those monsters?”
“…”
“Don’t you understand? Dubbled is the one holding the sword handle.”
Groans erupted from various parts of the hall.
If only they had known this would happen, they would have allied themselves with Dubbled in advance.
Who dared to look down on her as an orphan?
The Emperor fell into deep worry upon seeing the nobles who were only now regretting their actions.
* * *
A few days later, I looked outside the window.
The number of sacred beasts from the shrine was steadily increasing.
Flying sacred beasts could be seen frequently in the skies of various regions, and giant sacred beasts that appeared along mountain ranges often invaded civilian areas.
An enormous number of sacred beasts appeared in flocks above the Imperial Capital and its surroundings.
The common people trembled with anxiety. Both commoners and nobles felt the same way, and thanks to this, land prices in the vicinity of Dubbled Territory had risen like crazy.
“Little One.”
It was Seria.
The people from Hope Trading Company no longer avoided people’s eyes and came and went from the mansion.
Seria was staying in Dubbled Territory altogether.
She poured me tea and asked.
“Are you really not going to step forward?”
“I will step forward. If they grant independence. What’s the shrine’s situation?”
“The Imperial Palace keeps demanding their attendance, but not a single priest has shown themselves. Won’t the Imperial Guards step in soon?”
“They can’t.”
I shrugged my shoulders while sipping my tea.
What could be the reason the shrine released so many sacred beasts?
‘It’s intimidation.’
Intimidation that if they interfere, it means immediate war.
“What about the shrine’s spies? Haven’t they reported any movements?”
“Well, about that… Something seems strange.”
“Strange?”
“They say Mina is getting suspicious wounds.”
“Suspicious wounds? Not injuries from the interrogation room battle?”
“After the Pope meets with Mina and leaves, new wounds appear on her.”
I frowned.
“Physical abuse… or experiments.”
“In any case, Mina must be cornered.”
I slowly blinked my eyes.
And flash. A light bulb went on in my head.
When I covered my mouth with both fists and giggled, the butler who had just entered the greenhouse frowned.
“What wicked thoughts are you having this time?”
“A very good thought. Butler, call my brothers.”
“No, you need to meet a client first.”
“A client?”
“A client has come from the Imperial Palace.”
The butler said with a stern face. I widened my eyes.
“Could it be that…”
“It might be talk of independence.”
I hurriedly rushed out of the greenhouse and headed to the central courtyard. Father and my brothers were receiving a guest from the Imperial Palace.
‘Prince Andre came in person?’
He looked up at me on the stairs and smiled wickedly.
“I will marry Lady Dubbled.”
…What kind of nonsense is this now.
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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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