Chapter 295 (2/2)

「I don’t completely understand, but personally speaking, I don’t see anything that strikes me that out of the ordinary. However, if there is an important meaning to any what you are trying to say, then I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate for me.」

「Oh, um, well… I thought you’d be more surprised over my ears.」

Vermudol once again looked at her ears.

The contrast between her elegant blonde hair and the black ears poking out of it was quite beautiful.

Wait, now that I think about it, the ears and hair being different colors might have been a rare pattern.

Even so, cases of half-beastmen or even quarter-beastmen weren’t that uncommon. It wasn’t something that he would ever think to point out.

「They seem to be wonderfully maintained ears. If you’re referring to the Demi-Human Argument, there’s no need to have any concern over that. We have a friendly treaty with the Jiol Kingdom, and besides, we’re Mazoku, remember?」

「Y-You have a point. Oh, but, um… well… y-yes, you’re right.」

Vermudol made a dubious face, seeing that she was about to say something.

Witnessing that, Reina opened her mouth in order to help her out.

「Celis was born from two human parents. It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to know that many people had something to say about that. It’s even become a bit well-known among the other countries, which is why she is a bit self-conscious about them.」

Essentially, she was scared that people might show contempt towards her for over the chance of being an illegitimate child.

In a political sense, it meant she was always working with a disadvantageous risk on her shoulders.

「I see. However, the fact is that you were born that way, and there’s no point in arguing against that. There’s no need to humor whatever ridiculous delusions the low-lives might throw at you. And most importantly… to me, you are one of the leaders of humanity’s greatest countries, the Third Princess Celis. Any information other than that is irrelevant.」

「I-I suppose so…」

「But still, even if I were to have just met you as another person, there still isn’t really anything about you that would particularly bother me. Like I said earlier, your ears are very well maintained.」

Those words drove straight though Celis and caused her to go silent. Eventually, she turned her eyes down.

「I-Is that so…」

「Yes.」

Celis continued to keep her eyes down, but after a while, she rubbed her hands against her eyes and once again looked up. Vermudol felt that her eyes might have looked a little red, but it was not something that he would spend much time thinking about.

「Please excuse me for that. Once again, I formally welcome you to the Canal Kingdom, Lord Vermudol. We welcome you all as representatives of your country.」

「Thank you. Now, I’d like to get our discussion underway as soon as possible… However, there’s something I need to address first. It seems there are just two of you. If Reina is but a friend to you, does that mean you are just by yourself?」

In response to Vermudol’s query, Celis made an odd expression as if she had difficulty explaining herself, and then turned to Reina for help.

「To put it simply, when the cabinet minister heard you were coming, he locked himself up in his room. The captain of the Swordsmen of Light is still trying to persuade him at the moment, but it’s likely he’ll stay in there until our meeting is over.」

「How embarrassing. And he calls himself the minister?」

「Those that normally strive in their work do not necessarily do the same during times of emergency. Well, I suppose he isn’t the best at his job even when the danger has passed.」

Celis showed a wry smile upon hearing the sharp words of the two of them.

「Um… to be fair, we were indeed attacked by Alva the other day. Seeing as he had just been exposed to danger, he’s feeling rather weak-willed at the moment.」

「Surely it wasn’t nearly the level of danger you were exposed to, though… Well, I get what’s going on. He must have the wild idea that I’m the one controlling the Alva, correct?」

Upon seeing Celis make another wry smile, Vermudol guessed that his assumption was correct.

「Hmph, I knew people would come to that conclusion, which is why I specifically told the other countries that I was unrelated to the Alva in advance. Goodness, this is troublesome…」

「I’m very sorry. This is all because of my lack of power.」

Vermudol thrust out his hand to stop Celis as she was about to bow her head.

「You have no need to apologize. I’m sure I could have done a better job handling public relations, in either case.」