Prince Alfonso, who fully understood his mother’s words, was staring blankly ahead with a lost expression. Tears welled up endlessly in his bluegrey eyes, which strongly resembled those of his mother.

“You are the future ruler. You have duties to your people. Prudentia (prudence), temperantia (restraint).”

Prudence, courage, restraint, justice. These were the virtues of the monarchs who followed the Yeopsapgyo of the central continent.

‘Prudence’ commanding appropriate behavior, and ‘restraint’ demanding not to succumb to desires. In this case, it would mean the attitude of not being distracted by a mere woman and dedicating oneself for the needs of the state.

But Alfonso could not help but rebut his mother.

“According to the philosopher Bonifacio of the Latin Empire era, ‘the wife of a monarch is also a monarch.'”

Sparks flew from the prince’s tearsoaked bluegrey eyes.

“The person standing by the monarch’s side should have wisdom and insight like the monarch, see the big picture, treat subordinates with tolerance and virtue, and assist the monarch with boldness and courage.”

He clenched his fist tightly.

“Ariadne is the most fitting person for that position. She has the potential to elevate the power of the Etruscan Kingdom to a higher level.”

There were words that he could not dare to convey.

And. I, your son, want her.

Last night, hearing Count Cesare’s proposal, Alfonso felt as if he had been struck on the head with a hammer.

Someday, Ariadne would become someone’s wife. She would stand by that man’s side, prepare his meals, bear his child. It was a future that would occur if he did not reach out to her.

Alfonso continued to speak without stopping.

“I have met the Grand Duchess of Valloa, Larissa. She may have great qualities, but she is not the companion I am looking for.”

She was impatient, stubborn, and overly focused on herself. No matter how he looked at it, she was not the person to peacefully govern the Palazzo Carlo and help with the internal affairs of Etruscan.

“The Queen of Etruscan must be Ariadne.”

Only then, she can stand by my side. Only then, I don’t have to see another guy touching her hair, feeling her skin, tasting her lips, greeting the morning with her.

Upon hearing her son’s firm declaration, Queen Margaret looked at her son blankly. Seeing his mother’s unreadable expression, Prince Alfonso felt his mouth go dry with tension.

The story Queen Margaret brought up after a long silence was shocking.

“If Asereto invades, we will collapse within half a year without Galico’s aid.”

Asereto was a grand duchy located on an island at the very southern end of Etruscan.

Island nations are always behind the mainland’s development, and Asereto is not even half the size of Etruscan, so Etruscans did not consider Asereto as a competitor.

The situation that the Etruscan Kingdom is currently facing was serious enough to be threatened even by Asereto.

“Etruscan has no decent navy. The peace of the sea is maintained by the Republic of Porto. With their own money. Will the Republic of Porto come to aid us if we are attacked by Asereto? It would be fortunate if they don’t applaud.”

The queen looked sharply at her son, who was greatly surprised.

“You’ve heard of the newly built galley fleet of Asereto, haven’t you? At this rate, the number of Asereto’s galley fleet will double in five years. If Asereto blockades just three of Etruscan’s ports with that fleet, we will be subjected to a forced siege throughout the country.”

Queen Margaret’s sharp prediction for the future seemed to know no end.

“If Asereto invades from the south, the army should stop them. The Duke of Taranto had always played that role. Now, his twelveyearold Bianca, who has lost her mother, is alone in defending Taranto.”

“What about the other southern nobles?”

“Didn’t your father, full of doubts, personally disarm the other nobles and drag them to the capital?”

She was referring to Leo III’s policy of steadily reducing the power of feudal lords and reducing the right to have an army.

Under the reign of Leo III, the old nobility transformed from feudal lords who directly ruled their own land into court nobility, that is, servants of the king, who serve in the capital’s court.

“The feudal lords who can mobilize military power are now few and far between. If you look for those who are loyal to the king among them, they are virtually extinct. Is that all?”

Queen Marguerite did not look at her homeland with any affection.

“The biggest problem is the Kingdom of Gallico to the north. No one can deny it. The Kingdom of Gallico has been pressuring to return the Gaeta region for the past three years.”

Three years ago was when Marguerite’s older brother Charles VII passed away, and her nephew Philip IV succeeded to the throne.

“That’s the land you received, isn’t it?”

“I know Philip well. He thinks that everything within the border when Gallico’s border was most expanded is all his. Philip will not hesitate to wage war to regain the land he lost.”