Levian protested this and raised several disturbances in the homeland of Gallico, but Philip IV only sent a telegram with the content saying, ‘I have delegated all powers to Duke Mireiyu, so follow his instructions.’

‘This marriage negotiation must be concluded. If the Etruscan royal family apologizes a hundred times, or even if they just express regret, the homeland will ignore it and move on.’

If only Count Levian would keep his mouth shut, the plan of Duke Mireiyu and Princess Lariesa would not be revealed outside.

The document that the stupid Lariesa signed for Duke Mireiyu was not found on Duke Mireiyu’s corpse. Then it must be stored somewhere in the accommodation of the Gallican negotiating team. All they have to do is find it and burn it quickly.

The Etruscan kingdom apologizes a hundred times to the Kingdom of Gallico for not maintaining security within the palace, and after the Kingdom of Gallico accepts this apology, the marriage negotiations are concluded in a more advantageous form, and Prince Alfonso and Princess Lariesa get engaged this year and marry around the year after next. It was a perfect scenario.

But the world did not flow smoothly according to Count Levian’s wishes.

“Your Majesty the King!”

The captain of King Leo III’s guard approached and saluted.

“Your Majesty, we have a witness!”

“Oh?”

King Leo III leaned forward in his throne with a halfsmile. But even with the king’s eager reaction, the captain of the guard winced.

“But that… is not quite a complete witness…”

“Should we be choosing who the witness is in a situation where we have to grab even a straw! Bring them quickly!”

The king does not usually see the witness directly, but King Leo III wanted to show that he was doing his best to resolve the situation in a situation where the personnel of the Gallican side are watching.

“Obey the command! Look here, bring the witness quickly!”

At the command of the captain of the guard, a dwarf with a hunchback rolled almost dragged into the king’s reception room. The man was no taller than an adult man’s thigh. When the man reached the king, instead of saluting the king, he just rolled his eyes around.

“This man is…”

“He’s a palace jester. No, he was a palace jester. He went mad last fall from eating the wrong mushrooms…”

The captain of the guard reported as much as possible omitting, but people recalled the famous story that had spread widely in the palace.

The story was that the jester confessed his love to some countess and was severely beaten to the brink of death when the lady’s husband came in.

Although it was an incident of assault on a servant of the royal family, the royal family did not side with the jester, and apart from a mild punishment on the count, the incident was largely condoned.

The jester had completely gone mad after eating poisonous mushrooms, and it seems that the palace, where the date of descent to Taranto had arrived, had been left in the hope that the jester might recover.

“While the court was down in Taranto, they treated him in Palazzo Carlo, but it seems they couldn’t drive him out in time for the return of the court.”

It was a rule that those who were not whole could not be in the palace. However, since there was no one who took care of the administration carefully, he had been staying in the palace until now.

The man chuckled as if he had no idea where he was.

“I saw it, the murderer.”

In an atmosphere that was not at all about opening his mouth, the jester spoke at his own pace. It wasn’t a loud voice, but its content was enough to grab people’s attention. People’s eyes were focused on him at once.

Whether he knew he was getting attention or not, the jester continued to chuckle and muttered as if singing.

“The goldenhaired killer. A beautiful blonde made by melting gold.”

Everyone was horrified at the jester’s bombshell remark.

However, unless King Leo III intervened, they dared not to prioritize the king’s safety, so they all merely exchanged glances. In the short, generated silence, the jester fearlessly kept prattling.

“Obsessed with women, indiscriminately wielding the knife. Women are one of two things. They either drive men crazy, or they themselves are crazy.”

The jester laughed and clapped his hands alone.

“I don’t like gold or kingdoms, if I have a woman, it’s enough. Just like a fool like me! It ends up like me!”

He began to laugh, holding his belly and roaring with laughter.

A beautiful blonde made by melting gold, the person who would possess the kingdom, it was a story referring to Prince Alfonso that anyone who heard it would know.

Those who had been silent could not bear it and began to whisper amongst themselves.

“Did I hear correctly?”

“Shh! Be quiet. There’s nothing good to be said right now.”

“Look at the king’s mood.”

King Leo III sat on the throne, clutching the handle tightly, trembling.

“Captain of the Guard!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Take away that madman who keeps talking nonsense immediately, and behead him for the crime of insulting the king!”

The guards rushed in, grabbed the jester’s limbs, and began to drag him away. Even as he was dragged away, the jester laughed and mocked Leo III.

“You who know nothing important! Haha! Your Majesty, are you happy now? Hahaha!”

“Impudent scoundrel!”

Leo III, who was trembling and furious, shouted out.

“Everyone! Do not take the nonsense spoken by the mad jester to heart. Anyone who spreads these nonsense outside will be executed!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

The courtiers in the room all bowed their heads in unison. The count of Levien was among them.

Then a guard officer rushed in and whispered something to the Captain of the Guard. The Captain of the Guard relayed it to Leo III with a troubled expression.

“Your Majesty… A report came in, would you like to hear it separately?”

It was undoubtedly bad news. Leo III nodded his head and called the Captain of the Guard closer to hear the whisper.

“We did not witness the murder scene, but there is a person who saw the disposal of the corpse. This time, it’s a gardener, a sound individual.”

“Who would do such a dreadful thing!”

The Captain of the Guard looked around puzzled and then whispered even more quietly.

“We are not sure who it is, but it was said to be one of Prince Alfonso’s knights…”

“What did you say!”

“He was wearing a blue surcoat and had Prince Alfonso’s poplar emblem on his arm.”

The king’s direct guards wore red surcoats, while the other knights wore blue. It meant that he was either from the queen’s palace or the prince’s palace.

“Moreover… the place where the Duke of Mireille’s body was found was a shack under the management of the prince’s palace.”

Unable to control his anger, Leo III stood up from his seat.

“Let’s go!”

“Where should I take you, Your Majesty.”

“Where do you think!”

As he was about to shout ‘The Prince’s Palace!’, Leo III saw the reactions of Gallico’s personnel and swallowed the last word. Angrier than ever, he jumped up from his seat, took all the guards in the room, and stormed out like a hurricane.