Chapter 330 - Chapter 322: The Founding Ceremony ①
The ceremony for the granting of the Grand Duchy to Noein and the founding ceremony of the Grand Duchy of Arqvist were to be held on August 20th of the Royal Calendar year 220. About a week prior to that, the attendees for the ceremony began to arrive.
The arrival period was kept flexible because, during long journeys, a discrepancy of a few days in the schedule was a common occurrence.
The guests arriving this time included Queen Anrietta and Viscount Barthelemy from the Lancel Kingdom. From the Rhodeberg Kingdom, King Oscar, Marquis Bechtolsheim, and Count Arnold Koenitz. Additionally, Count Senevoa, the head of the Milleon Holy Church Missionary Society, was invited as the master of ceremonies. Furthermore, Frederick's family from the neighboring Koenitz territory was also scheduled to attend.
From others with deep connections—relatives, allied or comrade noble houses, and major business partners such as the Miles Company—congratulatory letters arrived upon the occasion of the independence. Now that Noein had expanded his network to a reasonable extent, the number of such letters was quite large. Once the ceremony ended, he would likely be swamped with writing thank-you notes alongside Clara.
August 14th. The first to arrive in the territorial capital, Noeina, were the family of Frederick, who was also Noein's brother-in-law.
"Eleos! It's been a while!"
"Samuel! Have you been well?"
Samuel, who had stepped down from the Koenitz family carriage in front of the mansion, and Eleos, who had been standing there to welcome them, rushed toward each other. The two, who met frequently as childhood friends, were already three years old.
"Now Eleos, greetings come first."
"You too, Samuel. It would be rude to His Excellency Arqvist and Clara-san."
Giving a faint smile at the sight of Clara and Renette each admonishing their sons, Noein faced Frederick.
"Frederick-san, welcome to the territorial capital, Noeina."
"I appreciate the welcome, Noein-dono... This city has developed considerably."
After exchanging greetings with Noein, Frederick looked back toward the urban area.
"The last time you visited, the population of the Arqvist territory was still only around two thousand people, wasn't it?"
"Yes. It's been since I came when I was guarding the Bezel Great Forest Road... the Bezel Highway, now, as part of the stationed army."
The current population of the Arqvist territory, having welcomed immigrants and slaves, was estimated to be around 3,800, though there might be some margin of error.
Of those, just over 2,400 lived in Noeina at this point. There was still room within the city limits, but it had become even more vibrant compared to a few years ago. The veteran independent farmers who possessed money were diligently renovating and expanding their homes, making the cityscape appear more prosperous than the simple population scale would suggest.
"I intend to develop it further and walk a path of mutual prosperity with the Count Koenitz territory."
"Hahaha. We are already sufficiently sharing in that prosperity, so that is a grateful thing to hear... Now then, should we stay in the annex?"
"No, until the other guests arrive, please use the guest rooms in the main building. It will be more convenient for your daily needs. Besides, since we are relatives, let us all spend time together harmoniously."
When Noein smiled, Frederick smiled back gently.
"I see. Then I shall do so without hesitation."
The reason Frederick and his family arrived first from Retovik, a half-day's journey away, was due to the situational convenience of being the lowest rank among the guests—meaning they could not arrive late—and because they were to serve as conversation partners for other guests while Noein and Clara were inevitably swamped with hospitality for the royal guests and preparations for the ceremony until the day of the event.
Noein wanted them to spend their time relaxedly, at least until that work began.
...
The day after Frederick and his family arrived, Arnold arrived, and the day after that, the party of Marquis Siegfried Bechtolsheim arrived. Viscount Barthelemy arrived on the same day, and on the following day, the party of Oscar Rhodeberg III, the King of the Rhodeberg Kingdom, entered the territorial capital, Noeina.
When the king of a nation travels, the number of attendants is large. King Oscar and Queen Ingrid, the youngest daughter Margarete, a dozen or so servants, and a guard consisting of over thirty of the royal Guard's finest elites and royal court mages. It was a large household totaling approximately fifty people. Their luggage was also piled like a mountain.
Even so, considering the reception capacity of the Arqvist territory, this was likely a composition close to the minimum for a royal party.
The party passed through the gates of the Arqvist mansion, and the royal carriage stopped in front of the main building. After the Guard knights acting as escorts formed a line in front of the carriage door, Oscar and the others stepped down.
Noein welcomed them with his family, primary high-ranking vassals, and servants, all performing the salute of a subject.
"Your Majesty the King, as well as Your Majesty the Queen and Your Highness the Princess. Welcome to the Arqvist territory. It is my utmost joy to be able to welcome you all to my domain."
"Viscount Noein Arqvist, and your wife as well. I thank you for the polite welcome. Raise your faces and be at ease. This is your territory, after all."
Having received Oscar's permission, Noein raised his face and stood up. Beside him, Clara followed suit.
"This is my first time seeing this land in person, but to be honest, I did not expect it to have developed this far. It is a scale that can be called a city. You have done well to cultivate the wild forest to this extent."
"I am extremely gratified by your praise. As this land will henceforth become the capital of a nation, I intend to put effort toward further development in the future."
"Hahaha, that is a commendable attitude... Now then, I must also introduce my youngest daughter."
As Oscar said this and turned toward Queen Ingrid, the Queen nodded and urged the girl she had brought beside her to step forward.
Along with that, Clara told Eleos, who was beside her, to step forward.
A six-year-old girl and a three-year-old boy—the two who were destined to pledge their futures to one another at this age—met face to face for the first time.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Margarete Rhodeberg. I look forward to your kindness."
"...Nice to meet you. I am Eleos Arqvist. It is an honor to meet you."
Margarete delivered her greeting with movements that were truly befitting a princess, despite her small size. On the other hand, Eleos placed his right hand on his left chest somewhat awkwardly, bowed his head slightly, and replied somewhat clumsily.
Seeing that his child was able to greet her properly, Noein felt relieved inwardly. Given the age, there was no such thing as being punished for a mistake, but it was better to do it well. First impressions are important.
"He was still three, was he? He is quite clever."
"Margarete-sama is also a splendid lady at this age; as expected."
"Even so, until a little while ago, she was still a shy girl who was very timid around strangers. At your son's age, she wouldn't have been able to greet people on her own."
As Oscar and Noein talked about their children, their faces and voices, before they knew it, became those of fathers rather than a king and a subject.
As for the children themselves, Margarete was smiling gently, but Eleos was staring back at her with a blank expression. Noein had told him in advance that she would be his future partner, but he didn't know to what extent Eleos understood.
From now on, they would likely deepen their friendship and mutual understanding little by little while meeting periodically.
"...Now then, shall we take a little rest? I am reasonably tired."
The fact that Oscar brought this up also contained the intent of releasing Noein and his vassals, who were likely busy with various things before the ceremony, from the welcoming duties.
"I have prepared rooms in the annex, so I will have you guided immediately. I will also prepare a modest dinner gathering for tonight."
Leaving the guidance to the annex to the servants led by the steward Kimberly, Noein returned to the preparations for the ceremony.
...
The day after Oscar and his party arrived, the party of Queen Anrietta Lancel, who was also a most important guest, entered Noeina.
Just as yesterday, the vassals and servants were made to stand by in full, and Noein and the others watched from in front of the mansion as a luxurious carriage decorated with ornaments from roots different from the artistic culture of the Rhodeberg Kingdom entered the grounds.
"...If I recall, Her Majesty Anrietta is a monarch of a gentle personality."
"Yes. Since it's a story from His Majesty Oscar, who met her directly, there should be no mistake."
Noein nodded at Clara's murmur.
Clara's way of speaking was very considerate. In reality, the evaluation of Queen Anrietta that Noein had heard from Oscar in advance was that she was "for better or worse, a quiet, ordinary girl." He said she was a queen who was clearly a figurehead, pushed up by the surrounding nobles because of her bloodline.
And the impression of Queen Anrietta as she stepped down from the carriage—was exactly as the prior evaluation had suggested.
Her behavior was impeccably elegant, but one could not deny the feeling that she had "practiced well." Her expression strove to be gentle, but she somehow lacked confidence. Both the tiara decorating her cornflower-blue hair and the dress enveloping her body had a sense of being "worn by the clothes." In other words, overall, she was a bit unreliable.
"This is Viscount Noein Arqvist, who governs this land. Queen Anrietta Lancel, welcome."
Without letting those impressions show in the slightest, Noein formed a smile and bowed deeply to Anrietta. She was the king of a nation, but she was not Noein's monarch, so he did not perform the subject's salute of kneeling.
"...I thank you for the welcome. It is a pleasure to meet you. I am the Queen of the Lancel Kingdom, Anrietta Lancel. I look forward to your kindness."
She managed to speak with dignity. That was the impression of her greeting. For now, she was more settled than the six-year-old Princess Margarete from yesterday.
"I believe you must be tired from the long journey. The guest rooms are ready, so please rest comfortably first. As this is a small territory, I cannot provide grand hospitality, but I will offer a heartfelt welcome so that you may spend your time comfortably."
"Y-yes... then, I shall take you up on your kind offer. Thank you very much for your kindness."
Anrietta's eyes wandered slightly, showing a look of hesitation as to how she should respond, before she nodded. At that response, a wave of relief followed a moment of tension among the attending vassals surrounding her, which reached Noein slightly.
Then, as usual, the movement of Anrietta's party began, guided by the Arqvist family servants. This was also a large household, no less so than Oscar's.
After confirming that the party had moved away from the front of the main building, Noein let out a small sigh. The timing of the sigh overlapped with Clara's beside him.
"...I understand what His Majesty meant."
"She is likely not yet used to diplomacy."
Though she was probably different toward her own vassals, conversation with the head of a foreign state (or the person about to become one) must be nerve-wracking.
He understood well the reason why not only ladies-in-waiting and guards, but also several civil and military officials who seemed to be advisors, were standing by. If the monarch was in that state in such settings, the vassals could not possibly be at ease.
A monarch who was supposed to end her life hiding in some countryside, suddenly pushed up a few years ago, at an age that could still be called a girl for half of it. Truly a figurehead queen. The lucky thing for her was that the vassals who supported her were, for the time being, seriously trying to support their master.
"At this rate, I'll have to be considerate during tonight's dinner and the ceremony starting the day after tomorrow."
With Anrietta in that state, he first had to make an effort to get her to relax. Otherwise, Noein and the others would not be able to converse calmly either.
Fortunately, in terms of age, Noein and his party were closer to her than Oscar was, and Clara was of the same gender. It would likely be easier for her to talk. Thinking such things, Noein dismissed the welcoming gathering.