The Strongest in Our Neighborhood - Chapter 93

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Our Neighborhood’s Strongest (93)
“Has Your Majesty accepted Lord Morona’s resignation?”
“Yes. Since I accepted it, that’s why I’m here.”
“If you accepted it, shouldn’t you not be here?”
“I’m handing over my duties to my successor before I follow Marquis Gain.”
“Ah! A proper handover is essential, of course.”
“Gain, what are you doing over there?”
Noxkasarsis called out to Jang Gain just then.
“Ah, I was just having a brief word with Lord Morona.”
“Talk here—why are you over there like that? Ah! Is this something I shouldn’t hear?”
“No, it was nothing important. Lord Morona, why don’t we go enjoy the banquet together?”
“The handover hasn’t been completed, so I’m still the Captain of the Guard. Therefore, I cannot drink alcohol.”
“Ah! Such integrity in your profession. Well, there’s nothing for it then. Good work.”
“Yes.”
Jang Gain glanced at Morona Valencia and made his way toward where the king and the dragon were seated. Besides the prime minister Darianmoon Slon, the court mage Yulian Na, and the spirit summoner Simeus, everyone seemed to be sitting in silence, quietly picking at their food—as if cowed by the dragon’s overwhelming presence.
“Welcome, Marquis Gain.”
The king greeted him warmly, and Jang Gain bowed respectfully in return.
“Your Majesty, I am overwhelmed that you would host such a grand banquet in my honor.”
“Grand? If the palace hadn’t been damaged, I would have thrown a truly magnificent celebration. Please forgive me for this modest affair.”
“For me, this is splendid enough.”
As Jang Gain took his seat, the king gestured to the head attendant.
Moments later, the princesses filed in one after another.
“Come here, all of you, and greet Marquis Gain.”
At the king’s call, twelve princesses approached and introduced themselves one by one to Jang Gain.
Since Jang Gain had no intention of becoming the king’s son-in-law, he exchanged pleasantries with the princesses without giving it much thought.
“Marquis Gain, what do you think? They are my daughters, but are they not all truly beautiful? I’ve invited only the unmarried ones.”
“Yes, it’s as though dozens of flowers have bloomed all at once.”
“Haha! A Sword Master like Marquis Gain uses such refined language—the kind you’d expect from a bard! You appear in a different light.”
“I merely spoke what I see before me.”
“Among all the flowers, there is always one that catches the eye as the most beautiful. Is there perhaps a princess who stands out to you in particular?”
“Since they are all equally beautiful, I cannot single out any one of them as special.”
“Even so, I’ve taken great pains to arrange this gathering. If there is a princess who captures your heart, I’d like you to call her over and have a conversation.”
Jang Gain looked at the dragon with a somewhat troubled expression, but the dragon showed no intention of intervening—in fact, he seemed rather entertained by the situation.
“Becoming a son-in-law would mean the king becomes your father-in-law, and that brings all sorts of tedious matters. But on the other hand, you’d enjoy considerable benefits too, wouldn’t you? So you should judge and decide for yourself. If I were you, I’d probably do it. After all, those princesses are beautiful by human standards.”
“Relationships between men and women aren’t something you calculate like that. You need mutual affection, and love has to bloom before marriage can happen.”
“In all the countless humans I’ve observed over thousands of years, I’ve rarely seen marriage happen because love bloomed like that. Especially among the nobility—they almost always married for political calculation.”
“I’m different from other nobles.”
“I know you’re different. But the king has gone to the trouble of arranging this and introducing you to the princesses. It wouldn’t be polite to treat them like livestock.”
“Since when does a dragon care about etiquette?”
“Your convictions matter, but now that you’ve become a marquis, you should be mindful of your position.”
Jang Gain couldn’t dismiss the dragon’s words and let out a short, quiet sigh to himself.
“My position. Being a marquis brings many complications.”
Whoosh.
Just then, a princess dressed in a heavy overcoat—unlike the other princesses in their ornate gowns—suddenly stepped forward in front of the king and Jang Gain and swept her coat off.
“Marquis Gain, would you look at me?”
“Huh? Gasp!”
“Hmm!”
“Whoa!”
“…”
Jang Gain caught his breath sharply, the dragon gasped in admiration, and the ministers were astonished.
And the most shocked of all was the king.
The king was so startled he couldn’t find his words, when Jang Gain finally spoke.
“Your Majesty, I find my gaze drawn most to the princess before me now.”
“Angelina! Why would you wear such an immodest garment? Have you lost your mind? That vulgar dress—what is this?”
“Ah, Father! That is not—”
The king suddenly erupted in fury, and the princess who had boldly shed her coat was startled, quickly drawing it back around herself and clutching it shut.
“I don’t want to hear your excuses. You there! What are you all doing? This is utterly shameful! Drag Angelina out at once!”
Thud.
As soldiers began to move at the king’s command, Angelina quickly dropped to her knees and pressed her head to the ground.
“Father, I think I was momentarily mad. Please forgive me this once.”
“You’ve dragged not just your own honor into the gutter, but mine and the crown’s along with it. What are you all standing about for? Drag her out at once!”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
As the soldiers moved forward, Jang Gain’s brow furrowed.
In truth, his attention had been drawn to this princess from the moment the various princesses greeted him.
Not because she was exceptionally beautiful—her face was darkened from sun exposure, her forearms bore the lean muscle of labor, and when she’d briefly removed her coat, the dress beneath wasn’t the work of a master tailor but something hastily sewn with clumsy scissors and rough stitches by someone’s untrained hand.
She stood among the princesses, yet didn’t seem to belong among them.
Moreover, the king’s manner toward her differed starkly from his treatment of the other princesses—distinctly oppressive.
‘Whatever her circumstances, if I let her be cast out like this, there’ll be consequences.’
“Wait, Your Majesty.”
“What is it?”
“I’m not certain what offense this princess has committed.”
“What are you saying? Did you not just see her wearing such frivolous attire, attempting to catch the eye of Marquis Gain?”
“It struck me as quite beautiful, actually. Is that frivolous?”
“What? Beautiful? A princess of this realm dressed like a tavern maid, and you call that beautiful?”
“Yes, she is the most beautiful of all the princesses, in my eyes.”
“Hmm, why are you suddenly defending Angelina?”
“Because I truly find her beautiful. Might I have a brief word with Princess Angelina?”
“Eh! Ah! Ahem, yes, very well. If Marquis Gain wishes it. Angelina, come here.”
“Yes, Father.”
At the king’s summons, the soldiers released her and stepped back.
She hesitated for a moment, then hurried forward to stand before the king.
“Marquis Gain wishes to speak with you. Mind your coat. You mustn’t make such a mistake again as you did a moment ago.”
“Yes, I will be mindful. Father.”
“Marquis Gain, speak with her as you wish.”
“Your Majesty, with you glowering at us like that, how could we have a proper conversation? Princess Angelina, would you perhaps walk with me for a moment?”
“Me? Oh, yes.”
“Your Majesty, I shall have a brief word with Princess Angelina and return presently.”
“Very well. Go ahead.”
The king nodded, his expression complicated, then glanced toward the ministers beside him.
* * *
“Am I frightening you?”
Once outside the Banquet Hall, Jang Gain noticed that Princess Angelina, who had followed him out, was trembling visibly, hunched in on herself.
“No. I’m not frightened.”
“Then why are you shaking like that?”
“I was terribly nervous just now. My body still won’t stop trembling.”
“Your Majesty seemed quite alarmed at your… unconventional attire. Surely you didn’t think he’d approve of such a dress?”
“I’m not crazy, and, ahem, I apologize. My manner of speaking is rather unrefined for a princess, isn’t it?”
“You seem quite different from the other princesses.”
“I spend so much time with the attendants that my speech has grown a bit rough. I’ll be more careful from now on.”
“You needn’t be particularly careful around me. I may have the title of marquis, but I know little of aristocratic etiquette.”
“Even so, I’ll try to mind myself.”
“Well, suit yourself, then.”
“The truth is, I knew Father would be upset if I dressed like this.”
“And yet you wore it anyway? I confess, I was startled.”
“Well, I do have a figure worth being startled by.”
“Ah? That’s not what I meant.”
“So you weren’t affected by my figure?”
“No, I didn’t mean that either. I meant the dress itself was so striking that it caught me off guard.”
“Right. If a man weren’t affected by this figure, he’d be half-dead.”
“Ha, you certainly speak your mind for a princess.”
“Oh! I’m sorry. I keep letting my uncouth words slip out.”
“Never mind. But if you knew your father would be angry, why wear such a dress?”
“The truth is, I’m in rather desperate circumstances at the moment. Somehow, I had to catch Marquis Gain’s attention.”
“Desperate circumstances? Hmm, what sort of desperation?”
“I know it’s odd to speak like this to someone I’ve just met, but… please, save me!”
He stopped mid-step.
Jang Gain found himself halting his walk without thinking.
“Sa-save you? Is someone trying to kill you, princess?”
“If I stay in the palace like this, I think I’ll die.”
“It seems a bit bleak, but surely not deadly?”
“Drab, you say? Well, I suppose when you’re a marquis of Jang Gain’s stature, even my poverty becomes visible. Not a decent jewel to my name, and these clothes…”
“The other princesses were all dressed in splendor. Is there some reason Princess Angelina alone could not do the same?”
“The truth is, my mother—that is, my mother, the royal concubine…”
Princess Angelina spoke of how her mother had been falsely accused, deposed to the Separate Palace, and how she herself had been discovered while trying to help her mother, resulting in her allowance being cut off, leaving her to live worse than a servant.
Jang Gain listened to the whole of her story, then released a short sigh.
“So that’s why you asked me to save you.”
“Yes. If I stay in the palace like this, my mother will waste away, and I’ll go mad.”
“But how exactly do you expect me to save you, Princess?”
“The servants told me that today’s banquet was arranged by the King to make you my father’s son-in-law.”
“I’m aware of His Majesty’s intentions, but I have no intention of marrying any of the princesses.”
“Won’t you marry me?”
Angelina’s expression grew desperate, but Jang Gain shook his head.
“I just told you I have no intention of marrying.”
“Please marry me and count it as saving my life. Then I’ll treat you so well, Marquis Jang Gain. And I won’t be jealous if you take other wives, and I’ll work as diligently as any servant.”
“That doesn’t sound like marriage to me.”
“Marriage is only a formality. If you’ll take my mother and me away from the palace, I’ll do anything.”
“Now I see—what you’re really asking isn’t for me to save you, but to save your mother.”
Upon hearing his words, Angelina swallowed hard without thinking.
“Yes. My mother and I… No, it doesn’t matter what happens to me—please, just save my poor mother. She’s not the kind of person who would poison anyone. And as I said before, this is clearly the machination of that cruel queen.”
Jang Gain gazed quietly at her desperate eyes for a moment, then nodded.
“I understand. I will tell His Majesty that I shall take Princess Angelina as my wife, and then return to my territory with her deposed mother.”
“Th—thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you for saving my mother and me.”
“But I’m not certain His Majesty will grant my request.”
“I think he will. And even if he doesn’t, once Marquis Jang Gain declares he will take me as his wife, His Majesty won’t be able to treat my mother as he does now.”
“I understand. Let me go speak with His Majesty about this.”
“Yes.”
Jang Gain returned to the Banquet Hall, pondering how best to approach the King.
As he entered, he felt the gaze of the princesses who had not been chosen, watching him and Angelina with peculiar intensity.
Jang Gain went directly to the King and spoke.
“Your Majesty.”
“Ah! Marquis Jang Gain. Well, did you have a good conversation with Angelina?”
“Yes. I will marry Princess Angelina. And I shall take her and her mother, the Lady Orpiena, back to my territory.”
“What, what did you say? You know that Orpiena was deposed to the Separate Palace on suspicion of poisoning the princes, don’t you?”

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