Chapter 1: The Carriage Journey with the Exiled Marquise 1
Under the clear blue sky of early summer, swaying in the carriage, I looked at the woman swaying beside me.
…She was completely white. The woman was enveloped in an atmosphere as white as burnt-out ash.
Staring into the void, her well-shaped lips were half-parted, and a meaningless sound leaked from her throat.
No… that’s wrong.
I strained my ears.
“That damn prince, damn prince, damn prince.”
Ohh, I shouldn’t have strained my ears.
Feeling a slight regret, I looked at the woman’s face as she skillfully continued to spin words like curses from her half-parted lips.
Her eyes, which normally held a strength of will enough to make others shrink back, were now dazed and lost. Her well-shaped, assertive lips, which some might even perceive as arrogant, were half-parted. The throat supporting the beautiful line from her forehead to her chin produced meaningless sounds… no, words like curses.
But, but even so, she was still beautiful.
Erika Solntsalri.
The daughter of one of the kingdom’s most prestigious Marquis Houses, and a prodigy of Sword and Magic.
A genius blessed with two, even three gifts from heaven.
And also, someone who had been sentenced to Exile just a few days ago.
Yes, this woman is being exiled.
Also, incidentally, she’s my first love.
Eh? You didn’t ask?
I got carried away and blurted it out, so forgive me, it’s embarrassing.
*
The beginning of it all was simple.
It started when a single girl enrolled in the Royal Academy, a place only the children of nobility are permitted to attend.
The problem was that the girl was a commoner, and that she was the Lady Maiden of Light.
For a son of an Impoverished Viscount Household like me, it was the kind of story that would end with a simple “Huh.” But things aren’t that simple in the world of high nobility.
As it happened, that year the academy was concentrated with prime marriage prospects for daughters: the prince likely to be the next king, the general’s son, sons of powerful high nobles, and so on.
The academy served not only under the pretext of nurturing talent to lead the next generation of the kingdom but equally as a matchmaking venue for the children of nobility.
Normally, the hierarchy of family status would automatically sort things out, and within that, even while the high nobles found fault with this or that, things would generally settle where they should. But this time, it didn’t go that way.
Because the Lady Maiden of Light was at the academy.
Being the Maiden of Light holds a power that overrides everything, even commoner origins.
After all, the Maiden of Light is proof of being loved by God.
If a Maiden of Light is present, that country is blessed with bountiful harvests, damage from Monsters decreases, and what’s more, other countries respect them for that alone.
Because, seriously, becoming the Maiden of Light is the result of God’s own choosing.
Precisely because she cannot be controlled by human hands, her authority is immense.
The reason she was semi-forcibly enrolled in the academy, provided the conditions were met, was, frankly speaking, because the kingdom wanted the Maiden of Light to marry into some noble family.
And so, for the young ladies of the academy, what should have been a miraculous year with a rare lineup of excellent prospects turned into a hellish year where those same prospects ignored them completely, flocking instead to the Lady Maiden of Light.
Naturally, the high noble houses who disliked this wanted to do something about it, but their opponent was the Lady Maiden of Light.
Her free will, allowing her to refuse even orders based on status or from the King, is guaranteed under law. Forcing her to do anything, let alone harming her, would genuinely risk the nation’s stability.
In the past, countries that forced a Maiden of Light into unwanted marriages or relocations invariably declined, and indeed, most of them perished.
The Maiden of Light, loved and chosen by God, is not just for show.
Doing anything to the Maiden of Light was impossible, no matter how great a noble one might be.
And so, the noble young ladies, who usually laughed elegantly with “Ohoho,” “Ufufu,” or “Hahaha,” suddenly found themselves in a less-than-graceful academy life, grinding their teeth, their eyes bloodshot, snorting angrily.
I think it was quite a chaotic academy life.
Enough to make even me, the second son of an Impoverished Viscount Household, go “Whoa.” High nobles scheming to get close to the Maiden of Light, hoping for marriage if possible, and the lower nobles caught up in it all.
Outwardly, things remained barely calm, perhaps for the sake of noble appearances, but a clear rift formed between the noble houses who had enrolled daughters and those who had enrolled sons. It was only a matter of time before this became a source of future trouble.
But then, Erika Solntsalri appeared.
Very naturally, and with a swiftness no one could even check, she became the Maiden of Light’s closest friend.
Whether her father, the kingdom’s Prime Minister, had intended for this is unknown, but having become the Maiden of Light’s best friend, she used her inherent personality and the power of her house to scatter the petty nobles flocking to the Maiden of Light.
The middle and lower nobles who had planned to make their move on the Maiden of Light, relying on the fact that her free will couldn’t be obstructed, were effectively eliminated by the wall that was Erika Solntsalri.
At this point, the high nobles seemed to think, “As expected of the Prime Minister (honorific).”
For the Solntsalri House, which had no male children, this was seen as currying favor with the other high noble houses.
The members of the high noble houses thought, “With this, the troublesome rivals are gone. All that’s left is for Solntsalri’s daughter to act as an intermediary and arrange a marriage with the Maiden of Light…”
However, no matter how long they waited, no such invitation came from the Solntsalri House to any noble family.
There were parties hosted by the Solntsalri House, but the Maiden of Light never appeared at them, nor were there any stories of Erika Solntsalri introducing the Maiden of Light to the son of so-and-so’s house at the academy.
Just as the high noble houses, who considered themselves suitable matches for the Maiden of Light, began to tilt their heads in confusion, shocking news spread.
Apparently, the Prime Minister (honorific) hadn’t known his own daughter was best friends with the Maiden of Light.
There were apparently many who thought, “That’s ridiculous,” but considering the current situation, it was a plausible story.
But regardless of the truth of the matter, upon hearing this news, the high nobles quickly began to move.
Until now, they had held back from acting aggressively, merely keeping other houses in check, fearing they might suffer disadvantages if they moved carelessly. But now, there was no need for restraint.
After all, their rivals were still numerous and strong.
And here, a major miscalculation occurred.
The Maiden of Light herself showed absolutely no interest.
The sons of noble houses who thought, “She may be the Maiden of Light, but she’s still just a commoner; promising her a slightly luxurious life should do it,” quickly dropped out.
So then, those who tried to approach her seriously, inviting her to amusements or parties, would be refused with one reason or another.
More accurately, they were refused using Erika Solntsalri as the reason.
The noble houses, and the prince who was likely the most serious about his feelings for the Maiden of Light, tilted their heads in confusion.
The question arose again: Perhaps the Prime Minister (honorific) knew everything after all and had some plan?
Otherwise, there was no way she could so conveniently refuse every invitation using Erika Solntsalri as an excuse.
But that misunderstanding was also quickly cleared up.
Because, in truth, the Maiden of Light was completely attached to Erika Solntsalri.
For her, a commoner, Erika Solntsalri had become her one and only best friend in the noble-filled academy, the only person she could relax around.
In normal times, it might have been a beautiful sight, but unfortunately, she was the Maiden of Light, and it couldn’t be dismissed as merely a heartwarming scene.
If Erika Solntsalri had acted as a bridge between the Maiden of Light and the sons of other noble houses, things might have been different, but Erika Solntsalri seemed to have absolutely no intention of doing so.
Furthermore, she showed no inclination to find a marriage match for herself either.
It was a complete deadlock.
Attacking the Maiden of Light directly was useless. Erika Solntsalri had no intention of mediating. Using Erika Solntsalri’s own marriage prospects as a foothold to get closer to the Maiden of Light was also difficult.
Additionally, the Prime Minister (honorific) seemed to have no intention of using his daughter for any schemes.
As a result, while the academy appeared peaceful on the surface, beneath it became a swirling vortex of schemes on how to separate Erika Solntsalri and the Maiden of Light.
And for three years, those schemes bore no fruit.
If Erika Solntsalri had been merely the daughter of a lower noble, she would have been eliminated long ago.
If Erika Solntsalri hadn’t been the Prime Minister’s daughter, she would have been eliminated long ago.
If Erika Solntsalri had been a daughter of average abilities, she would have been eliminated long ago.
Unfortunately for them, she was a Marquise, the Prime Minister’s daughter, and possessed talent in Sword and Magic said to be unparalleled.
Combine that with the Maiden of Light’s free will, and well, separating the two through minor
That’s why, with only one year remaining until graduation from the academy, they launched no small amount of scheming.
Erika Solntsalri was framed.
High-ranking nobles, all the way up to the Royal Family itself, conspired together to eliminate her.
Initially, the scheme was merely intended to have her leave the academy for about one year.
That’s how it was supposed to be.
But somewhere along the line, the plan went awry.
No, someone deliberately exploited the plan.
By the time they realized their own plan was being exploited on such a large scale, it was already too late; the scope of those drawn in was so vast that resolving the situation required maneuvering on a comparable scale.
Otherwise, Erika Solntsalri would likely have been sentenced to death.
She was accused by the Church of plotting the assassination of the Maiden of Light, and as a result, she was sentenced to Exile.
This is the reason Erika Solntsalri was exiled.
Hm? You wonder why I, merely the second son of an Impoverished Viscount Household, know so much detail?
The journey has just begun; I’ll explain that too.