The way she said it almost made it sound like she was joking, but judging by Myuri’s expression, Hyland seemed to understand.
“Very well. I’ll leave the verification of whether or not you can be trusted to the Twilight Cardinal.”
“And me.”
“Of course.”
When Hyland added that, Eve began to walk off, as though signaling the end of the conversation. It was hard to tell who was of the highest standing in the room, but it was clearly Eve who was controlling the space.
Just as her guards opened the door, she turned around.
“Tomorrow at noon, is it? I’ll have a carriage ready for you. All right?”
“I don’t mind. But I’ll provide the driver. I’ll also contact the Golden Fern.”
It was certainly not a precaution against kidnapping or poisoning, but Eve simply smiled and did not answer.
And finally, Eve looked at Col.
“We won’t be alone tomorrow but in due time.”
He responded with a bitter smile, and Eve narrowed her eyes and left the room.
The door clicked shut, and it immediately felt as though the room had gotten bigger.
Col was amused, thinking about how Eve was the same as she always was, but he noticed there were two sharp gazes on him.
“Are you going to explain this to us?”
That was Hyland.
“Brother, you cheater.”
And that was what Myuri said in the end.
They asked about every detail of Col’s relationship with Eve, but no matter how suspicious they were, he could not turn down her request. There was no one else who could be such a reassuring ally in the plot by the Church and the merchants.
“She’s a strange one—I both want her to be in my country and, at the same time, I don’t. I recognize that she is a great woman, though…”
“It does not give you much peace of mind, does it?”
And she had really and surely brought to the table a plan that would prevent them from having a good night’s sleep. Eve’s plan was on a scale big enough that something like it could even be found in an adventure tale, but the world was cruelly large and complicated, one that was not so kind as to let people concentrate on one thing at a time.
There were other things they wanted Hyland to hear.
“So, Heir Hyland, I know we must earnestly examine Miss Eve’s story, but there’s also something else we wish to tell you.”
“What is it? Now that you mention it, you both came back rather early…Have you gotten a lead on something already?”
“Yes. And I believe it’s related to what Miss Eve brought to the table.”
Hyland tensed, not sure what she was going to hear next, but she nodded at him as a signal to continue.
“It’s the true motivations of Miss Sharon—I mean, the tax collectors.”
He then told Hyland what Sharon had told him, and her expression tensed in a different way from when they had been talking to Eve.
“This…is more personal now.”
There seemed to be a lot of overlapping circumstances for her as an illegitimate child, even though she was royalty.
“I think this erases the possibility they are Heir Klevend’s vanguard.”
“You’re right…”
Hyland pressed her fist to her mouth, thinking.
“Is something the matter?”
“Hmm? Oh, uh…,” Hyland responded, then sighed. “I’m deeply shaken.”
Shaken? Col was surprised, but Hyland gave him a rather troubled look. It was almost as though she was still deciding if she should say what she was thinking.
“It’s not unusual for me to see those from those bloodlines around me, you see, but…it’s still different from the world I know, so I’m perplexed.”
Hyland laid her hand over her forehead, took a deep breath to compose herself, and spoke.
“It would not be a lie if I said I wasn’t aware the Church was that rotten. From what I know, I thought the children created by priests were treated as their extended family and given lives that weren’t all that terrible.”
“You—”
“Just listen. It’s not unusual for nobles and the rich to build private chapels and monasteries in their own territories. There, instead of praying for specific things like successful military exploits or one’s family’s health, they foster the little lambs of God. Understanding supporters often even take in people who are on journeys of theological wanderings, don’t they?”
Books were luxuries, pens and ink cost money, and one needed a calm environment in order to think. It was not unusual for the houses of lords or the rich who had a love of learning, intellectual curiosity, or even feverous faith to become little gathering places for study.
“There are also plenty of those who build private chapels and monasteries for reasons other than pious ones, especially affluent merchants. They do it to make others pray for the success of their business and also to earn money directly. I’m sure you’ve heard that running places of worship makes a surprising amount of money.”
For example, by placing a magical holy relic in a small gazebo, people will come just in search of miracles. When people come, they spend money, and shops aiming to get their money pop up, and after a certain amount of donations, the gazebo becomes a shrine and then a large temple, and the whole place gets livelier and livelier.
What was it that brought profits to a purchased wasteland when it grew into a town?
Even if it did not go that well, it was not unusual to hear that there was still a good degree of trade to be conducted just by building inns that also acted as chapels along the highway for the wasteland in the empty expanse.
“And the priests of those private chapels and monasteries are often these ‘nephews.’ One would require approval from the nearest church for the guarantee of permit to construct these establishments, but since they’re private, they have no relationship to the Church, and the Church has no power of appointment over them, so the builder is generally free to choose who to hire. Therefore, it’s quite common to see the second and third sons of nobles who aren’t able to inherit the land, or second and third daughters who are unable to prepare a dowry and thus unable to marry, and these ‘nieces’ and ‘nephews’ who have nowhere to go hanging around these monasteries and giving sermons. These places are often crowned with the name of a noble or a rich person, so mostly all of them are splendid and made to draw attention, and, well, most of them live fun lives. I have several friends like that.”
Col had also heard of something like that, but he was curious to see how that would overlap with Sharon’s story. As he wondered, Hyland carefully, step-by-step, continued speaking.
“I thought these ‘nieces’ and ‘nephews’ were leading normal lives. They occasionally receive an education, and there are even some who end up as priests in higher positions than their ‘uncles.’ That’s because they already have a powerful ‘uncle,’ which gives them an advantage at getting ahead in life.”
She then took a slow, deep breath, perhaps to cool her anger.
“But after hearing Sharon’s story, it sounds like they’re in the minority. In the end…I’m just a noble, and I only ever saw the thinnest, topmost layer. They alter the baptism and funeral records to turn them into someone else’s widow and kick them out, right? If…if that’s an established practice, then I can’t imagine how many people have been made victims of these awful habits.”
There were quite a number of children at the orphanage where Sharon and Clark were. It was hard to think that they came from all over the Kingdom, but it was likely that all of them came from just the neighboring diocese. The dark underbelly was more widespread than even a noble like Hyland, who understood the city life, could imagine.
Among them, it sounded like there were some who were welcomed as blood relatives, given a free life, and who made their way up in the world. But in contrast, that also meant there were plenty of selfish individuals out there w
ho could not be bothered to care for them.
“I…was thinking that if it came down to it, I would stop the tax collectors. There was the chance that they might be Heir Klevend’s vanguard, and they were probably collecting the tax just for money anyway. Like what Eve said, I thought that whatever goals they might have would be inconsequential if they were going to be the spark to start the war.”
Hyland’s sigh was in response to the cruelty of the world and how narrow her insight was.
“…How am I supposed to stop them after hearing that story?”
While there were quite a number of nobles who insisted that the lowly people must not stand up to those in authority, Hyland’s anger was reassuring.
“I agree. However, as someone who loves peace, I would prefer to avoid war.”
Hyland, of course, nodded heartily.
“Emotionally, I am on their side. But to be honest, I think it will be difficult to stop them. Which means we’ll have to do something about the relationship between the merchants and the Church…And if we can’t do anything about that, then we will need a plan to make their intentions ineffective.”
And at this point, the whole train of thought was directly connected to what Eve talked about.
“What Eve brought to the table is a godsend. It will truly be our safety net,” Hyland said with a groan and then fell into thought, her fist still on her mouth.
What Eve talked about was a way to outwit the Church’s plans, but it was that much more questionable because of it.
It was not easy to simply reach out to a sudden ray of hope in the midst of hardship.
“Honestly, in reality, I would have you meeting the king and the first heir right about now, but we’ll have to put that aside for the moment…”
Hyland exhaled the breath she was holding, then spoke, leaning back in her chair.
“This is not something I can make a decision on by myself. I will have to report to the people above me, but then I’m sure this will just fill their heads and they’ll have no room to think of anything else. Not only that”—Hyland looked to Col—“the king is anxious about dealing with the Church, so it’s very likely he will use this idea. We can warn him of the dangers, but it’s much too convenient, and the profits are unbelievably huge.”
That meant Eve had come up with the perfect plan for the perfect situation.
“It’d be nice if it went well, but when considering what would happen if it didn’t, you should be distancing yourself from this incident. That’s because it’s only after everything goes well that we can sell our business as much as we want. The only time we can show ourselves to the king and those of authority is when they’re smiling.”
She said it almost like a joke, but Col had to admire how deep Hyland’s consideration was.
That was because, just as she said, there was no way she could make a decision on her own, since this whole affair dealt with the fate of the Kingdom. She would have to report to the first heir and also relay it to the king; if they decided to accept, then she would have to take on that responsibility.
Not only was the plot itself unbelievable, Eve was also a factor for worry, so none of them could say it was a favorable gamble even if their lives depended on it.
And yet, Hyland was trying to take on all the responsibility herself so that the king and the first heir would not have a bad impression of her.
“Also, I can see that you trust that Eve,” Hyland, turning the conversation back to Eve, said to Col. “Do you have a more concrete basis for it besides the fact that you’ve known her for so long?”
It was a given that Hyland would wonder about that, and Myuri beside him looked at him with jealousy for different reasons.
It might not be as concrete as Hyland was hoping for, but Col gave the reason why he was so positively captivated by her.
“I think we can trust in her…only when it comes to trade.”
“Which means?”
Col ruminated on everything Eve had said, then responded.
“If there’s no other possibility for her to make even more money than what she told us about, then that means we can trust her.”
She would pretend to act as a spy for both the Church and the Kingdom and then single-handedly take over trade when it stopped. It was an entirely foolhardy way to walk the tightrope, but the profits were unimaginably large if she managed to make it across.
If Eve was going to betray them, then that would be when riches even beyond the scope of her unimaginably large profits appeared.
“…I can barely picture that in my head.”
“Neither can I, of course. But…”
“But?”
Hyland looked at him, and he knew there was no way he could stay silent.
“I can’t imagine that Miss Eve is trying to trick us.”
Perhaps he had that feeling only because she was an old friend. Hyland seemed to hesitate on whether she should point that out to him or not, but it was Myuri who interjected.
“…I kind of get what my brother’s trying to say,” she grumbled. “I feel like she’s an evil fox…But that’s exactly why we can trust her.”
She was right.
There was an animallike quality to Eve, and she gave others an impression that was beyond logic. Though everything that came out of her mouth was an icy calculation, there was a firestorm of whirling passion underneath that charmed everyone. It almost seemed like she had not even thought about such an obvious betrayal.
“But all the same, I just can’t see how she can be honest. We don’t even know what sort of trap she’s set for us tomorrow.”
“It is true that she is treacherous. I know you’re nervous, Heir Hyland, but—” He continued. “Miss Eve planned to come into contact with us because she likely estimated that there was value in using us. Then, that would mean there should be some room for us to negotiate as well. If she’s planning something bad, then…we might be able to act as a seawall in that case.”
She would probably say, Are you stopping me?
But there was a reason why he had made up his mind.
“I do not want the Kingdom to negotiate with the Church in their conflict, for Miss Sharon’s sake as well.”
Myuri’s eyes widened, and Hyland nodded slowly.
“A legendary merchant who helped the Debau Company seize hegemony in the northern region runs the bathhouse Spice and Wolf. I hear that an elite and renowned mercenary company comes and goes from there and that a notorious slave trader on the mainland has admitted the bathhouse’s superiority. And you are their dear child. Just as she said—she must understand what sort of retaliation is coming for her if she lets you get hurt.”
While Lawrence, their support, was someone to mind, the one who Eve was really worried about was Holo.
Truly angering Holo the wisewolf was the same as setting free a legendary beast trapped inside thick parchment. An army of tens of thousands would still be eaten alive.
And of course, it seemed Eve had realized that Myuri had her own fangs.
“I don’t trust the evidence that the plan this woman is preparing will go well.” Hyland looked straight at Col. “I trust you, and I’m letting you handle it.”
He thought he saw Hyland exactly for the noble she was for a brief moment.
When Hyland found out that Col and Myuri had not eaten at the Golden Fern, she treated them to a feast that night in order to energize for their meeting with Eve the next day.
They were amazed by the quail seasoned with saffron and other similar dishes, but perhaps the second-biggest city in the Kingdom was just the place for rare meats and spices, things that could easily be collected with the right amount of money.
If the merchants stopped all trade and war broke out, people would no longer be able to have regular meals, much less fancy meals like this.
Col was not so softhearted as to think that Eve had brought up her plan from such a humane perspective. But at the same time, he could scarcely imagine that she
was deliberately trying to trick them.
If there was anything they needed to fear, it was that if they were at the level of disappointing Eve, then she would surely and relentlessly try to deceive them.
He wanted her to praise him because he knew she was such a terrifying individual.
Only Eve could draw out those conflicting feelings inside him.
That was why it was rather different from what Myuri was suspecting him of.
“Do you like bad older women like that, Brother?”
Hyland’s hospitality restored their energy, and it was when Col was cutting the wick for the candle as he thought about the coming day. Myuri looked at him like a traitor, asking him a demanding question for the umpteenth time.
“No.”
He snipped the wick with the scissors and responded clearly. He did not admire Eve as a woman.
“But you liked Mother a long time ago, right? That just means you like the tricky ones.”
“…”
When Holo had told Myuri about the past, she occasionally told her stories like that.
It felt like she was prodding a healing scab, because he could not entirely deny it.
“Ms. Holo and Miss Eve are completely different. To me, Ms. Holo was like…a dependable older sister.”
“Mother always tells Father that you might overtake him someday.”
It was nothing but the usual loving quip Holo said to her dear husband, but Myuri took it seriously for some reason.
But at the moment, Myuri might have just been strung up from seeing the great woman who was Eve in person. At their princely meal not too long prior, she did not seem to be enamored by the delicious food as she usually was but seemed more like she was stuffing herself to get ready for the fight tomorrow.
Of course, it was not as though Col was thinking lightly of tomorrow’s affairs, either. They could find out if Eve’s plan was trustworthy enough, and then if it went well, they could turn the Church’s plans into wasted effort, and then the Kingdom could stand up strongly to the Church as they always did. Futhermore, even if they could not clear up the hatred that Sharon and the tax collectors had, it would still give them a reason to continue fighting against the Church.
Wolf & Parchment: New Theory Spice & Wolf, Vol. 4 Page 13