I will be crowned king

Inner city of Clovis, Franz Residence.

As usual, when the little maid Angelica opened the curtains to let the sunshine into the room, Sophia Franz woke up from her sleep.

Get up from the bed, sit expressionlessly in front of the dressing table, let Angelica and the other three maids wash and dress yourself, quietly watching yourself in the mirror gradually change from blurry to clear, simple to simple Exquisite.

The movements of the maids are very gentle and careful, as if they are not serving but creating; every strand of the girl's hair and every part of her skin is a canvas, a blank, a creation that requires careful writing and bold innovation.

When the maids dispersed, the unconscious Sophia disappeared from the clear and bright mirror, and the brand-new eldest daughter of Franz returned again, like a rose flower in full bloom in an enamel flask, combining solemnity and beauty. For one.

But there is not a trace of sparkle in those captivating eyes. They are just simple walking sculptures and talking vases.

vase……

Looking at the diamond tiara that Angelica carefully put on herself, the girl's lips curved into a self-deprecating arc.

"Boom, boom, boom."

With a subtle but clear knock on the door, Archbishop Luther Franz appeared at the door.

Different from his usual seemingly casual but somewhat depressing attire, he specially put on a large and gorgeous bishop's robe, a gold-plated and silver-plated crown inlaid with various gems, and a "Ring of Order" 》Scripture, a gorgeous oak staff with a diamond-carved ring of order on the top.

At first glance, it looks like a bishop from the dark ages who stepped out of an oil painting.

"How are the preparations going?"

Looking at his daughter who looked pale even with the word "gorgeous", Archbishop Luther said softly: "It's getting late, we should set off."

Sofia stood up slowly, but instead of looking at her father immediately, she suddenly grabbed Angelica's hand.

"Miss……"

"sorry."

Before the panicked little maid could react, Sophia spoke without warning and looked at her quietly: "I actually know that you have never betrayed me or spied on me for my father, and you have always been loyal to me. , and did a lot of things that a personal maid should not do."

"To me...you are not a maid, you are more like a younger sister who I grew up with."

"So I'm sorry. As a sister, I not only need to be taken care of by my sister, but I also once doubted you. I vented all my complaints and self-blame on you, which made you bear too much."

"And when I finally realized how shameless I was, I realized that I couldn't give you any compensation." Sophia laughed at herself:

"So I have to apologize, even if it doesn't change anything; and I promise I will never do that to you again; Angelica is my sweetest sister, and if anyone doesn't realize that, I will Let him regret it for the rest of his life."

"Miss……"

Looking at the little maid who was already crying, the girl gently wiped her tears and stuffed the handkerchief into her palm: "Promise me you'll wait until I come back, okay?"

Angelica said nothing, pursed her lips tightly, pressed the handkerchief to her chest, and nodded vigorously.

Sophia looked at herself in the mirror, her gentle smile turned cold again, and then she slowly turned to face her father:

"Let's go, Father... Archbishop."

Luther nodded slightly, stepped back half a step to open the door, and pointed his gorgeous cane at the stairs: "The carriage is ready. You can leave first, and I will arrive soon."

"The...Governor of Ice Dragon Fjord."

……………………

Although they had been prepared for a long time, when Sofia and her father finally arrived at the Osteria Palace, they were still shocked by the scene in front of them.

Not only did the Osteria Palace, which had never been shown to the public in the past, open its doors, but everything around it was decorated; flowers of countless colors still decorated the entire palace in this late autumn season, making it look slightly cold. The biting north wind adds a touch of fragrance.

On the stone steps on both sides, honor guards in red and black uniforms stood on the left and right sides of the red carpet, extending all the way to the main hall of the palace. Looking from a distance, Sophia even saw the military band preparing for the ceremony and the artillerymen manning the salute.

"Here is the ring of order... Is this the investiture ceremony of the colonial governor or the coronation ceremony of the new king?" Sophia couldn't help but said:

"Can I still look forward to a dinner dance and fireworks show?"

"Considering that this is a ceremony held in the palace, there are about a few hundred distinguished guests today, and more than half of them are here to join in the fun, so you are right." Archbishop Luther said lightly:

"Masquerade, a banquet of eighty-eight dishes, hymn recitation, the 'Magic Piano Opera Troupe' that just finished its tour in Snapdragon City and arrived in Clovis City not long ago... Whatever you can think of, it will all be there today."

"So how much did the Franz family spend on today's ceremony?"

"...I can only say that it is a deserved luxury, my dear daughter."

After a slight pause, Luther Franz glanced at the "flowers" that were about to freeze to death in the distance:

"Don't be too burdened. These are all part of the family honor and the royal family's face; a proper display of abundant financial resources can double the confidence of the domestic nobles in winning the war and combat the enemy's arrogance."

"More importantly, even if the expenses for today and even preparations are doubled, compared with the money the family has wasted on your brother, it is only a very inconspicuous number - I mean very."

The archbishop sighed and emphasized deliberately.

The corners of Sophia's mouth trembled slightly, and she almost laughed without holding back.

Not long ago, Ludwig Franz, who had been rejected the genius plan of "uniting the vast territories and launching a surprise attack on the Empire from the south", was once again transferred with full complaints and the reorganized and strong Southern Army. Arrive at the main battlefield on the Western Front.

However, out of dislike for the archbishop's own son, the army still placed him on a very remote front line, relying on the mountains to garrison several temporary fortresses. The task was to protect the forward supply lines and cover the flanks of the main army.

Obviously, they did not dare to send Ludwig to die, but they also did not want to give him any chance to make meritorious deeds.

But if Ludwig was someone who was willing to bow his head so easily, he would not have accepted the southern army to go to the Elf Kingdom of Yser in the first place.

Since his boss refused to give him a chance, Ludwig mobilized all the resources he could get, preparing to open up the situation from the flank that everyone ignored and launch an attack that could reverse the current "sit-in" situation.

Not surprisingly, he is probably in some hidden mountain headquarters right now, formulating a mysterious plan that will excite him to the point of incompetence...

With a little bit of ill-intentioned suspicions about her brother, the girl entered the palace side by side with her father.

As the archbishop, Luther Franz had the right to meet the king directly without prior notification; as an "ordinary noble woman", the girl had to go to the main antechamber to wait for the summons according to tradition.

But just when Sophia and her father temporarily separated and walked along the familiar corridor towards the garden, they were stopped by a familiar figure.

"Viscount Bognar?"

"Long time no see, Miss Sophia." The middle-aged man standing in the middle of the corridor smiled slightly, put the right hand holding the pipe behind his back, and bowed to the girl:

"Or...I should call you His Excellency Governor Franz?"

"You're still joking as usual." Sophia didn't take it seriously. While she raised her skirt and returned the gift, she couldn't help but asked curiously:

"At this time, you should usually be in the smoking room of the Privy Council or a cafe. Why are you here at the palace?"

"If even on the day of such an important ceremony, I, a member of the Privy Council, sit in a deserted corner drinking coffee and smoking a pipe, I'm afraid I will be impeached by the Speaker tomorrow, haha."

"You are so humble. If the speaker dares to impeach the leader of the 'liberal' wing of the parliament, I'm afraid he will be out of office tomorrow."

"No, no, no... that's not the case. The Privy Council is still dominated by their conservative people; we idle people who advocate new things can at most make some noise in the ears of the deaf."

The old gentleman's expression was extremely casual: "Of course, this is definitely not the reason why I stopped the colonial governor here - by the order of His Majesty Carlos, please wait in the royal lounge, which is the Tulip Room, before the ceremony officially begins... Please Come with me."

After saying that, he turned around and led the way for the surprised girl.

As the royal lounge, the Tulip Hall is quite remote, but it is directly connected to the palace, the waiting hall and the main hall through several hidden corridors. Even in the royal family, except for the king himself and his immediate family, it is rarely open to others - —Let alone an outsider like myself.

But when Bognar handed a note to the guard outside the door and pushed open the door, the girl finally understood something: "Carlo...Your Majesty?!"

"Sophia."

Carlos II, wearing only a coat, was sitting on the sofa next to the fireplace, holding a newspaper in his hand. He smiled at the girl and said, "Sit down, it's still some time before the ceremony officially starts."

He glanced at Viscount Bognar next to him. The understanding old gentleman bowed, took a few steps back, and left.

Looking at the closed door, Sofia, who was slightly nervous, curtsied and saluted, and carefully sat down in a position where the other party could see her when he raised his head, but at the same time, he would not be looked at directly.

"Want something to drink?"

"No, thank you."

"Really, I just got a batch of good Hantu coffee beans recently...Ah, sorry, I forgot that Ludwig came back from Hantu before. You are probably tired of drinking Hantu coffee."

"..."

"Sorry, no more joking."

Carlos put down the newspaper in his hand and his expression finally became serious: "Dear Sofia, do you understand why I called you here at this time?"

"I don't know, but it's definitely not for tasting Hantu Coffee." The girl narrowed her eyes slightly:

"So I make a bold guess that what His Majesty wants to talk about is probably about the New World Colonies - to be more precise, it has something to do with a certain Army Colonel."

"You should call me Carlos. There are no outsiders here anyway." Carlos smiled bitterly and waved his hand to the girl:

"I don't mean anything else, but I always feel particularly ironic when I hear the honorific title from you; just like every time she uses this title, it must be because I made her angry again."

This "she" should be Her Majesty the Queen... Sophia nodded slightly:

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Carlos looked pale for a while and sighed helplessly.

"Since you understand, I don't need to say anything more." He pointed to the newspaper on the table:

"In order not to overly stimulate domestic emotions, news about the colonies has been suppressed so far. You must also understand the reason - the war with the empire is not over yet, and Clovis cannot devote too many resources to the remote areas. On top of the colony facing the sea.”

"But paper can't cover up the fire. No matter how much the news is suppressed, at the latest by the end of the year, the whole world will know about the rebellion in the imperial colonies, and the garrison annihilated Bernard Morweis and his army under the city of Sail. This news.”

"Even in the most conservative way, it is not difficult for me to imagine the terrifying fanaticism that will arise - countless Clovis people will desperately support the colony, and the Hereid Emperor will mobilize unimaginable troops , to regain his lost dignity."

"And this kind of irrational fanaticism is the same as the current war between Clovis and the Empire. Apart from the waste of supplies and precious lives, there will be no reward; compared to the Empire, Clovis did not continue to invest in another bottomless pit. capital.”

"So..." Sophia finally became serious:

"What do you want me to do?"

"This award ceremony is a very good opportunity to express your stance." Carlos got to the point:

"I hope that when you are awarded the honor, you will mention as much as possible the independence of the Ice Dragon Fjord colony, and how Clovis and the royal family respect the colony's right to self-government; but at the same time, you must also firmly state that Ice Dragon Fjord An integral part of Clovis, the Unicorn King's flag will never fall from Moby Harbor."

"Not only that, you must... must not let the commander of the garrison stationed at Beluga Harbor know that Clovis will not send any reinforcements. You must also make him believe that as long as you hold on, reinforcements will come sooner or later. .”

Carlos's expression became colder: "Tell him that Clovis will not pursue his unauthorized deployment of troops or interference in the rebellion of the empire's colonies."

"Even on the contrary, the Privy Council will exempt the colony from taxes for the coming year, and the proceeds can be divided among Anson Bach and all the officers according to their positions and ranks as an encouragement and reward to them; and at the latest in the 100th year of the Calendar of Saints Three years ago, they were transferred to Clovis City to report on their duties and be promoted.”

"As for the equipment issue he has been emphasizing, I have already ordered several arms factories controlled by the royal family to fully liberalize arms trade with the colonies."

"In short, you have to let him keep the colony regardless of the cost and consequences, and attract the attention of the empire as much as possible!"

Taking a deep breath, Carlos IIka looked at the girl in front of him who was gradually turning cold and trying to stay calm: "So, dear Sofia, please help me, okay?"

"Help me defeat that arrogant empire!"