Virgin Knight Who Is the Frontier Lord in the Gender Switched World - Chapter 36

I felt nothing.

A beauty so unparalleled it seemed not of this world, verging on the demonic.

A figure as radiant as the sun, muscles bulging in every right place.

A towering figure, over 2 meters tall.

All that Virendorf extolled, the epitome of beauty as far as the imagination could stretch.

Yet, a beauty unreachable.

The embodiment of it.

Faust von Polydoro.

Even upon witnessing his form, I felt nothing.

“The chief negotiator for this session. The second princess of the Kingdom of Anhalt, Georg Valiere von Anhalt.”

I remember hearing that the second Princess Valiere was 14 years old.

So young she seems, that the chief negotiator, Princess Valiere, had to lift her dress slightly off the ground with both hands to curtsy properly.

My 14 years old self.

It was around the time when I had just completed my inheritance duel and became queen.

Back then, Reckenber was 24.

Memories of the past come flooding back.

Then, the greetings.

“The deputy negotiator. Faust von Polydoro.”

In armor, missing only his helmet, he kneels and bows.

His voice, quiet in the Queen’s chamber, yet it resonated throughout.

The assembly was full.

A few knights standing around the two envoys from Anhalt shifted slightly.

Perhaps they felt an odd sensation.

Logically, it makes sense.

This man could be considered the most beautiful man in Virendorf.

But, that’s it.

Ina-Katarina Maria Virendorf felt nothing towards Faust von Polydoro.

She was unable to feel anything.

Perhaps, deep down, something faintly smoldered in her heart, hoping.

Hoping to feel something for the man who defeated her advisor, Reckenber.

Hatred, even.

That emotion would have been acceptable.

Something to stand against the immense sorrow of losing Reckenber.

But, nothing was felt.

Ah, of course.

It’s just as I thought.

I shall remain the cold-hearted queen.

Return to being that logical, emotionless queen.

Forget even the sorrow of losing Reckenber, for now.

Let’s focus solely on Virendorf’s interests.

Seeing Faust von Polydoro as a pawn, and focusing on the current state of the Kingdom of Anhalt.

Observing Lord Polydoro.

His stature.

Not at all neglected, as rumors suggested.

At least, not by the royal family.

The beautifully engraved fluted armor he wore.

An item beyond the means of a minor lord with fewer than 300 subjects.

Though it bore a few marks, it was brand new.

Likely provided by the royal family for these peace negotiations.

At least, Lord Polydoro was recognized by the Anhalt royal family.

But.

“Princess Valiere of Anhalt and Lord Faust von Polydoro. I appreciate the sincerity of traveling such a long distance without rest to reach the palace.”

“We are grateful.”

“And, Princess Valiere. No disrespect intended, but I wish to speak with Lord Polydoro. May I?”

I make a request to Princess Valiere.

She couldn’t refuse.

“Please, by all means.”

“Thank you.”

Now to speak with Lord Polydoro.

Let’s be direct.

Let’s have a thorough discussion.

It’s a challenge, Faust von Polydoro.

Answer all my questions.

Fail to answer even one correctly, and it will mark the beginning of the Second Virendorf Campaign.

“Would you consider serving me, Lord Polydoro?”

“Wait, just a moment.”

An invitation.

I first attempt to entice.

Princess Valiere’s voice is ignored.

Lord Polydoro’s response.

“I must decline. Regardless of the offer, I cannot serve you.”

“Why not?”

“I am the advisor to the second Princess Valiere.”

He’s known to be straightforward.

Yet, he answered clearly.

Faust von Polydoro declared.

“Reckenber, the commander of the knights, was your commander. But during your childhood, she was nothing more than a knight who had inherited her family’s title. Yet, she was your advisor.”

“Indeed, that’s correct. Well informed, aren’t you? And your point?”

“Even if the Anhalt royal family had offered Reckenber, who was then just a knight, a significant reward to entice her, her answer would have been the same. I am the advisor to the third Princess Katarina, and thus, I must decline the offer.”

I see.

It’s a matter of principle.

An advisor chosen by a princess wouldn’t accept such an offer.

Unlike our country, the succession of the Anhalt kingdom isn’t determined by duels.

“One more question.”

“Ask away.”

“Valiere von Anhalt, the second princess, likely has no chance of succeeding the throne of the Kingdom of Anhalt. Why then do you serve her?”

“There’s no benefit to you in it,” I pressed.

“Do you not understand?” Lord Polydoro replied, frowning.

“I do not,” I admitted honestly.

“I, too, have what one might call feelings,” he said.

That answer was beyond my comprehension. Feelings. Was he suggesting it wasn’t logical? What is this? It’s as if—as if.

It’s as if I’m not talking to Reckenber at all.

“How far my feelings reach the second Princess Valiere, I cannot say. Whether she will respond to them, I do not know.”

He added with a wry smile, yet Lord Polydoro’s words continued. Ah, Reckenber. For some reason, that name comes to mind when I talk to Lord Polydoro.

“However, that and my feelings are entirely separate matters.”

Reckenber. That name wraps around my sorrowful heart. The only emotion I know is sadness.

“This emotion is all I have.”

“Queen Katarina, I do not know much about you. I learned of you before this negotiation, from tales told by bards, including episodes with Lady Reckenber, the captain of the knights. But,”

Lord Polydoro paused for a breath.

“But, that’s all it is.”

Just that. Indeed.

Just hearsay. That alone cannot reveal a person’s true nature. It’s logical.

“Therefore, I believe we need to have a discussion, Queen Katarina.”

“Very well.”

I responded.

“I will accept. It was I who proposed this meeting. I shall engage in a one-on-one dialogue with you, Faust von Polydoro.”

“Then, let us continue the conversation, Lord Polydoro. Your domain is quite close to the border with Virendorf.”

“You are well informed.”

“I acquired a map when we razed a town near the border during the Virendorf campaign.”

A slight click of the tongue.

That probably didn’t come from Lord Polydoro’s mouth.

But I definitely heard it, the click of your heart.

“If I were to initiate a second Virendorf campaign and march into the vicinity of your domain, what would you do?”

“I would become a death soldier.”

Indeed.

“To become a death soldier, defeat dozens of your knights, and meet a grand death on the land of Polydoro that has been passed down through generations.”

“Do you not cherish your life?”

“I do cherish it.”

An unexpected answer. Life is precious.

He is as valiant as to challenge my hero, Reckenber, to a duel. And yet, he cherishes his life.

“If my bloodline does not continue. If I cannot pass on to my descendants the people and the land of Polydoro that I must inherit from my ancestors, that is why I cherish my life.”

“So, if you had offspring, you would not find your life precious?”

“Exactly.”

A perfect response from a lord knight.

I can understand the logic.

“Would you bow your head to Virendorf, even if it means stepping foot on your domain?”

“Rather, I will show no mercy to anyone who dares to reduce even an inch of my land and invade it.”

“Hmm.”

I ponder the other side.

Faust von Polydoro is a lord knight.

A hero of Anhalt, but he considers profit.

No, it’s impolite to call it profit.

His property, the land and people he owns, he intends to hold onto until death.

From our conversation so far, it seems Lord Polydoro speaks his mind.

Thinking again.

Would Faust von Polydoro not be hostile as long as we don’t step foot on his land?

Lord Polydoro’s military duty.

Likely, if Virendorf does not step over the border, next year’s military duty would be against the nomads of the north.

If the military duty ends, Anhalt must fulfill the protection contract for its territories.

And since Lord Polydoro would have completed his military duty, he wouldn’t appear in any battles along the Virendorf border.

Targeting this slight gap.

To leave Polydoro’s domain alone and seize other territories instead.

No.

To rethink.

“Let me ask, Lord Polydoro. Will next year’s military duty be against the northern nomads?”

“If this peace negotiation concludes successfully, that will be the case.”

“Do you have confidence in defeating the nomadic tribes?”

Of course.

A needless question.

“I will annihilate them in one encounter, just like the heroic Reckenber, the captain of the knights of Virendorf.”

So it will be.

Then, Anhalt will have to return its regular army from the north to the Virendorf border.

That would make the forces equal.

Even if Virendorf commits its full military strength, the outcome would become unpredictable.

A stalemate.

The hero, Faust von Polydoro, will not bow to me unless I surround his domain.

But with time, he might decimate the northern nomads.

Peace.

That word slightly, just slightly, comes to mind.

But the conversation continues.

Lord Polydoro, I am a woman who, due to not understanding emotions and things well, often gets persistent in my inquiries and was beaten many times by my father for it.

The only one who never hit me was Reckenber.

She patiently, without emotions, reasoned with me time and again.

What is acceptable to do.

What is not acceptable to do.

She was the only one in this world who taught me those things.

Reckenber made me able to be a queen through logic.

She taught me that killing my sister and father was acceptable.

My relationship with Reckenber is not sweet.

I will demonstrate relentless logic.

And exploit any weaknesses in Anhalt to subjugate you and carve out territory from the Kingdom of Anhalt.

Such thoughts swirl in my mind.

“Queen Katarina, here is a gift for you. I forgot it amidst our conversation.”

“A gift?”

Well, it’s a negotiation between nations.

Such things are to be expected.

Next to Faust, kneeling in the same way, someone carefully holds something wrapped in cloth.

Was it Martina von Bösel, as the pre-information stated?

The daughter of a traitorous lady lord knight whom Faust defeated in a duel, who begged for mercy with her head to the ground.

That child.

Stubbornly standing her ground, setting aside her pride to overturn a royal command.

In Virendorf, such an act is praised as a beautiful stance.

But it’s something I cannot comprehend.

“Then, I shall present it.”

Martina approached, cradling something wrapped in cloth as if it were precious. The surrounding royal guards were on alert, but the opponent is a child of nine.

I, too, am armed.

Even if there were a hidden blade beneath the cloth, I could easily cut her down.

“Stand down,” I ordered the royal guard who was about to inspect the contents of the cloth.

During this, Martina silently approached and, upon reaching me, unveiled the cloth.

“What is this?”

“It is a rose.”

A deep red rose.

It appeared to be a fresh cut flower, possibly just taken from a pot that day.

For a gift, it seemed overly simple.

Neither in Anhalt nor in Virendorf does the gift of such a flower carry any special meaning.

At most, it is used by a woman when courting a man.

Receiving this from a man would make one think.

“I heard some peculiar episodes from the bards of Virendorf.” 

“Oh?”

Martina handed me flowers.

After all, it was a gift from the envoy.

No matter how simple, I must accept it.

Have you heard from the minstrel of Virendorf?

Heard what?

“Faust!”

A voice that interrupts my thoughts, scolding Lord Polydoro.

The scream of Valiere’s second princess.

“That! Could it be from the rose garden of Anhalt’s royal palace?”

“Yes, I stole it.”

“Don’t say it so nonchalantly as if you’ve stolen it! Don’t answer with such a calm face!”

The face of Valiere’s second princess turned pale as she screamed out of place, even though this was the Queen’s chamber in Virendorf.

“That’s the rose from the rose garden my father made, and my mother cherishes it as if her life depends on it! You praised its beauty too! Why would you…!”

“Ah, that’s why I thought it had value.”

“Yes, it has value, but! You can’t just steal it silently! Stealing it! How are you going to excuse yourself to mother?!”

It seems to be the rose that the consort of the rumored-to-be-poisoned Queen Liesenlotte cherished greatly.

To steal that.

Why would it be suitable as a gift for me?

No.

Once before.

Just once, something like this happened.

Recall, Ina-Katarina-Maria Virendorf.

This is.

This must be a precious memory from my childhood with Reckenber.

“What are we going to do! Mother is desperately searching for the person who stole the roses by now! How are we going to apologize?!”

“I heard from Martina that you would apologize with me.”

“I said it, yes! But I never imagined it would be about something like this!!”

Noisy.

Bothersome.

I am trying to recall a memory with Reckenber.

Do not disturb me.

As if forcibly blocking out my hearing.

I closed my eyes, quietly trying to recall that precious childhood memory.