I Will Become the Queen of the Enemy Country

Even after waiting for a long time, Karan didn’t say anything. Elise had no choice but to speak.

“It’s the first gate. The scholars haven’t announced it yet, but it’s certain. It will open in three days.”

Karan blinked slowly. Then he pulled out the chair he had tucked between the table legs.

Karan was relieved. It was just about the gate.

It would have been a big issue normally, but for him, who expected Elise to leave, it evoked a feeling of ‘just’.

“Did you want to talk about the gate? Not that you’re going back to Bedrokka?”

Elise’s forehead narrowed.

“Your Highness, I am now your person. There’s no reason for me to go back to Bedrokka. Even if a reason arises… then I will be with you.”

Your person.

At that single phrase, Karan’s anxiety melted like snow. Only then did a smile hang at the end of Karan’s lips. He sat down in front of Elise again.

“Tell me more about the gate, Ellis.”

“Do you believe me?”

“Is it a lie?”

“No, it’s not… but it’s hard to believe, isn’t it?”

Elise had prepared a lot of words to persuade Karan. That is, the phenomena Elise saw in the Bronze District with Kram.

‘Just before the gate opens, the nearby ground shows a big change. Around Gate 1, the ground liquefies. It boils.’

Elise saw that scene exactly.

If Karan doesn’t believe even after hearing it, she was ready to visit the Bronze District with him, even if it was night.

But Karan covered it up and believed Elise’s words.

So Elise wondered if this was a dream now, or if Karan’s judgment was blurred because he was tired.

“Your Highness, did you hear my story correctly?”

“I heard that the gate will open in three days.”

Elise nodded her head.

Karan brought up a map in his head and calculated the time to go to the capital.

He had already started planning for the gate.

Even if he sends an owl, it will take a day, and the slow central administrators will take more than two days to do their work.

‘If you prepare late and come down, the gate will already be wide open.’

Not good.

Even if there is Dex’s territory or Rosh, the problem was Elise.

The gate that was already opened as soon as Elise arrived, if the king catches a quibble with this–

‘It’s a headache. I have to close it no matter what happens.’

Karan decided to conquer the gate for a very personal reason.

‘I’ll be absorbed in doing something from tomorrow.’

There was a high possibility that he wouldn’t be able to spend long nights with Elise until the gate conquest was over.

Thinking so, Karan became impatient.

“Elise, have you finished talking?”

Karan believed so easily that Elise, who was stunned, shuddered as if waking up from sleep.

“Ah, yes…”

There was also something to say about the gate conquest, but it seemed like other words could be said later since the biggest mountain had been crossed.

By the way, why did Karan believe what I said so easily? Is he a person who has extraordinary trust in people?

Elise’s misunderstanding of Karan grew.

In fact, Karan was a person who would believe even if the black dragon Ragnaros was a black angel, as long as Elise was by his side.

But Karan, being a prince of a country, did a lot of calculations in a short moment.

If Elise’s words are not true, the damage to Karan and Dex’s territory is zero.

The prepared materials can be released again, and the warriors can be considered to have trained in real combat.

But what if Elise’s words are true and he didn’t prepare because of doubt?

The damage will be severe.

Believing Elise’s words had less risk, and there was no need to doubt and hurt Elise’s feelings.

And his expectation hit the mark.

“Your Highness…I didn’t know that you would believe my words so easily.”

There was moisture in Elise’s voice. Karan reached out and stroked Elise’s cheek.

“I will continue to believe in the future, Elise.”

So don’t think about deceiving me.

Karan hid the real words he wanted to say and smiled beautifully.

“Your Highness…”

“If you have nothing more to say, Elise, I want to go to bed.”

Karan’s gaze quickly heated up. There were still many words left to say.

But Elise, grateful to him for covering her and believing her, also heated up with gratitude and raised her hand to Karan’s cheek.

And she gently stroked his cheek as he did to her.

“I want to go too.”

That was enough. Karan immediately approached Elise. He, who knelt on one knee at her feet and sat down, put his hand into Elise’s dress.

His hand went up Elise’s calf and headed for a secret place.

“Your Highness, the bed…”

Tomorrow’s to-do list is mountainous. He felt it was burdensome to lift her from this small chair to the bed.

Karan sighed to suppress the desire to embrace Elise immediately. With no choice, he lifted her.

As they headed towards the bed, Karan caressed Elise’s slender waist and kissed her smooth neck.

Karan felt the strength in Elise’s arms as she embraced his neck.
Words were no longer necessary. Just exchanging warmth and caresses was enough.

After a while, Karan gazed at the disheveled Elise on the bed.

****

The next day, Karan, who got up lightly, called a meeting at Elise’s request. And he made those who attended the meeting nervous.

“Your Highness, what do you mean? The gate is opening?”

Rosh’s eyes widened.

‘The signs of the gate were strange, but it’s going to open?’

Rosh recalled the content she had reported to Tyllo in secret.

‘It’s different from previous years, but it’s too much to see it open with just that evidence.’

Rosh didn’t believe it. Trish and Haltbin also couldn’t easily believe it.

But Karan summed up their doubts in a single sentence.

“If you say it’s not and the gate opens, are you going to take responsibility?”

Those who imagined the disaster that would happen if the gate opened in an unprotected state closed their eyes tightly and shook their heads.

But Rosh, the lord of Dex’s territory, was cautious.

“Your Highness, we need more explanation.”

Karan looked at Elise. Elise explained the phenomena she had seen in the Bronze District.

It was the same as the signs scholars expected to show before the gate opened.

And she also brought up Besti’s story to add credibility.

“Are you talking about the shaman Besti? The shaman predicts the future, but isn’t that a matter of probability?”

Haltbin came in rationally. Then Kram stepped forward.

“I’m not one to believe in the shaman’s foresight. But we can’t overlook the fact that we were able to go and rescue because Besti foresaw the danger of Your Highness and Lord Rosh.”

Kram emphasized the word ‘we’ and then made his political statement.

“As Your Highness said, the damage caused by not believing and it happening is greater. Mathematically speaking.”

Kram was a quick-witted person. There were many people who wanted to form a conquest team.

‘From the moment Your Highness ordered to form a conquest team, the decision was made. But Your Highness respects Rosh, the lord of Dex’s territory.’

Elise thought to herself.

Karan will become a successful military commander.

The decision-making power went to Rosh. Elise hoped she would make a wise choice.

Rosh, with her gaze on Kram, scratched the table. The small but definitely attention-grabbing noise made Kram tense.

Originally, Kram should not have been here.

Because of the sins committed by Kram’s father, he was stripped of his noble status.

And he blurted out that Besti’s words were correct…

‘The countess might issue a ban and drive him out.’

Kram swallowed his saliva.

“Sir Kram.”

Has it finally come? Rosh called Kram with a much lower voice.

“Yes, yes! Did you call me, Countess?”

Kram answered, almost shouting.

“I want to hear your opinion. You are good at mathematical calculations, can you explain the financial burden that can occur in various situations depending on the opening of the gate?”

“Countess, why don’t you call the administrator separately for that?”

Trish spoke with a displeased expression, glancing at Kram.

“If it’s as His Highness said, we only have three days. Are you saying to waste time calling the administrator, explaining the situation to him? There’s a prepared person right in front of us.”

Rosh sent a confirming look as if to say, weren’t you prepared? Kram waved his hands wildly.

“No. I didn’t dare to interfere with the countess’s affairs, but I automatically calculated while listening to the situation.”

“Then you can explain.”

At Rosh’s permission, Trish sighed a small sigh.

“Me, me?”

“If there’s no one else named Kram here.”

This was an opportunity. If he did well here, he might be able to work for the countess again.

Perhaps because he got an unexpected opportunity, Kram was more nervous than ever in his life.

“Aren’t you going to do it?”

Rosh urged him.

“No, I have to!”

Kram jumped up and dragged a large board from somewhere. Then he took out stones of various colors from his pocket. When he scratched the board with a stone carved long like a wooden stick, a line appeared as it was.

“There are four situations that can occur to us related to the gate opening. Whether the gate opens and how we respond.”

Kram drew a four-cell chart. Kram’s explanation drew people in. The numbers he wrote sometimes represented money and sometimes people.

Rosh and Trish, who were listening to his explanation with a nervous expression, were completely immersed in just a few minutes.

They were half-leaning on the table. Karan, who saw their appearance, chuckled.

“Well, it’s as if Elise were prepared.”

Elise blushed. In fact, before entering the meeting, Elise had given Kram a hint in advance.

She said that Rosh might give him an opportunity.

“Really? Is, is it true?”

Kram was surprised and wanted to confirm. But Elise couldn’t answer that it would definitely be so.

Elise recalled her conversation with Rosh this morning.

[How about giving Lord Kram an opportunity, Countess?]

Rosh immediately showed a sense of rejection.