Water Magician

Chapter 259: Bribed with a Strawberry Shortcake

Chapter 259: Bribed with a Strawberry Shortcake

Editor: Tseirp

Ryo had something on his mind.

“I’m a C-rank adventurer just so you know! And I’m going to inherit a dukedom in the future”, that outburst from earlier.

Ryo is the premier duke of the Kingdom of Knightley.

Even though it’s only a formality...even though it’s an honorary position...even though it’s just for decoration....

Thinking about it, he didn’t know how many dukedoms there were in the Kingdom.

On top of that, he thought that it would be best to do something about the young man that made those narrow-minded threats over mont blanc while they’re still young, if they really are going to inherit a dukedom in the future.

So he thought....

This was his duty!

And, not at all a stunt out of curiousity!

...Maybe.

First, he confirmed the ranks of nobility.

From the top.

Duke, Marquis, Count, Viscount, Baron.

Some countries have a grand duke above the duke...but not in the Kingdom.

Some countries have baronets under baron, but...the rank may only be valid for a single generation or they may not be treated as nobility.

For knights...there is no such thing as knighthood, apparently.

They are not nobility, but a profession of sorts...in the current Kingdom.

Considering that, one could say that ‘Duke’ is the highest rank in the Kingdom, except for royalty.

He somehow felt that Abel wouldn’t tell him jack even if he asked, and it wouldn’t be a good idea to bother someone who had just undergone surgery in the first place, so he decided to ask someone else.

And that ‘other person’ was currently swimming in paperwork due to the conspiracy of the powers that be...even though he’s the second-highest authority in the country, the Prime Minister!

There is only one person whose authority supersedes his!

And this personage, with the honorific title of ‘His Majesty’, followed by his official position that begins with ‘The’ and ends with ‘King’, is the mastermind behind his nightmare of drowning in documents....

Ryo visited the Prime Minister’s abode, prepared to be turned down.

“Your Excellency, Prime Minister. His Excellency the Duke of Rondo is here to see you.”

The guard at the door announced Ryo’s visit.

“Send him in.”

A calm and collected voice was heard from the inside.

When Ryo entered the room, the prime minister was sitting on the sofa and relaxing.

“Whoa, wait a minute? Aren’t you supposed to be swimming in paperwork...”

Looking at the desk, there was a tall pile of documents on the ‘processed’ side, and nothing at all on the ‘yet-to-be processed’ side.

“Ah, Duke Rondo, have a seat.”

Marquis Heinlein then tried to give up the honorary position on the sofa.

“Oh, no, please it’s fine.”

Ryo said, and quickly took the vacant seat on the other side of the sofa.

“I just finished going through the recent documents that needed approval.”

Marquis Heinlein smiled as he said that.

(How excellent! He actually got through King Abel’s paperwork-drowning nightmarish attack perfectly...)

Ryo was astonished.

That was because he had seen Abel’s usual condition in depth and knew how devastating and formidable an attack it was.

“I thought that Duke Rondo’s true love was Lady Sera of the Western Forest...But of course, you’re the premier duke, so there’s absolutely no problem whatsoever with having a second or third wife, as long as your financial power permits. But Lady Faith is from a dukedom lineage and Lady Sera is the next representative of the Western Forest...it will be a tough one to decide which one should be the first wife.”

“...Pardon?”

Ryo tilted his head.

“Since Lady Faith has no siblings, it is almost certain that she will inherit the Silverdale Dukedom. Meaning, the duchess will be the head of the dukedom. It would be realistically difficult to have the head of a dukedom as a second wife. On the other hand, Lady Sera is now the representative of the elves in the Kingdom. Her success in the recent defense of the Western Forest against the Empire has been sung about by bards and spread throughout the central nations. It would not be practical to have such a person as a second wife.”

“Ah, ah...”

Ryo finally realized that Marquis Heinlein had totally gone off the rails in his misunderstanding.

And that the answer he got was not the right one.

“Um, Marquis Heinlein, just to confirm, is that Lord Faith of the Silverdale Dukedom, perhaps a woman...?”

“Yes, a stunningly beautiful one...”

“Is that so...”

Ryo hung his head.

Because little Mont Blanc was definitely a ‘man’.

Seeing Ryo like that, even Marquis Heinlein realized that he had been mistaken about something.

“Let me guess, this isn’t about you looking for a potential partner, or setting your sights on a beautiful woman, is it...?”

“No, I’m looking for a guy...”

“And it’s not a BL or anything like that...”

“Nah, just looking for a little twerp that has been a bad kid...”

Marquis Heinlein drooped his head too.

Then he continued.

“There aren’t any other heirs to a dukedom in the Kingdom around that age...”

“Okay, you would know best.”

“Any possibility of it being a dukedom from another country?”

“Ah! ”

Yup, that was very negligent of him.

The Kingdom of Knightley is a great power.

It is no exaggeration to say that it is one of the countries that attract talented people from all over the central nations.

There are examples such as Prince Willy, who came to study from the Kingdom of Ju.

But if that’s the case, it is certainly an inquiry that even Marquis Heinlein can’t help with.

“If we are talking about the current head of a family, we are aware of the foreign nobles in the country, but as for the next successors to those families, unfortunately...”

“So you know the current head of those families...”

Ryo muttered in surprise at Marquis Heinlein’s words, catching a glimpse of his counterintelligence skills.

“Okay, I understand. Thank you, Marquis Heinlein, I appreciate you taking the time.”

“Is that all?”

“Yeah. I mean, I was just curious.”

Saying this, Ryo got up from the sofa.

But....

“Duke Rondo, there’s something I think you should know.”

“Huh?”

Marquis Heinlein came out and said.

“Actually, His Majesty said he was going to tell you, but...I don’t think he has from the looks of it...”

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