Supporting Characters Also Need Some Love

CHAPTER 4: EACH TRUTH AND EACH HAPPINESS (X)

Part 076

 

Whether she was surprised or not, the first-class administrator, who was flashier than the golden badge in his hand, continued to give them work instructions in a very skilled manner.

 

“The Ministry of Finance gives top priority to the budget for military supplies transferred from the military. Arranging the goods and supplies must also be done at the same time. The sooner the better. The Ministry of the Interior focuses on securing taxes. Excluding the northwest, allocate financial resources to the southeast. Prepare a plan to stabilize the fluctuating prices of Midok.”

 

Lady Dorote and Senior Tina bowed their heads. Homer, looking at Laurel, clicked his tongue and spoke.

 

“It was reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the most understaffed. There were many people from the northwest who had contact with Taln, so it could not be helped. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is preparing a mission to be sent to the Principality of Cologne from today.”

 

“Huh? Captain, as you said, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has less than 30 people available for work. Taln and Cologne are also problematic, but we are losing our attention from many kingdoms in the southeast who are watching the Laurentian civil war with their swords half drawn from their sheaths. It’s a situation that can’t be reversed.”

 

Without backing down in front of Homer, the dignified first-class administrator, Laurel expressed her opposition. As expected of her friend, she was cool.

 

“We will take out all the men we can and form a division. If Taln insists on a long-term war, our army will have to line up in two places. As long as Cologne hits Taln in the back, they will have no choice but to return.”

 

“Of course, you are absolutely right, but from the perspective of the Principality of Cologne, it is an adventure that does not need to be taken. If the rebels are victorious, it will provide an excuse for a joint attack by Laurentine and Taln.”

 

The rebels were defeated. The Dalgun returns home while sucking his finger. The mission’s job is to persuade them that striking them in the back is the opportunity Cologne has been looking for for a long time. 

 

“He said he believed in the strength of the Laurentian Foreign Ministry.”

 

This time Laurel clicked his tongue with a stern look on his face. The side of his face was full of agony as he lowered his head.

 

“And Lord Ethart.”

 

It was a title she was not used to at all, but she quickly bowed he head.

 

“Yes.”

 

“You must not miss a single thing. Any variables that arise during work must be dealt with first and then reported. All the eyes of the ‘King’s Eyes’ are scattered around the front lines, and I also have to go out on Sundays, so you must be the eyes of the princess. You have to do it.”

 

She thought she should answer, but he said something that caught her breath. She thought she would definitely do anything if it helped, but it was so heavy that I wondered if she could do it well. She glanced around and saw that Lady Tee, Senior Tina, and Laurel had similar faces. Is there any way to know whether you can do well or not? Anyway, for now, I have no choice but to work hard.

 

“I will do my best.”

 

“You can use this conference room as your office. Report the personnel status of each department this afternoon. Well then, I hope you all work hard.”

 

Homer left the conference room, but we couldn’t say anything and were lost in his own thoughts. The one who broke the silence was senior Tina, who was the first to set the table.

 

“First of all, I think we need to move quickly, Lady Ethart. No, Lord Ethart. Less than 50 people at the Treasury Department came to work today. I will organize the situation and report to you at 5 p.m.”

 

“Yes, senior, I’ll see you later.”

 

After Tina left, Lady Dorote, who had been keeping her mouth shut, finally spoke. At once, she asked what was going on and poured out what she wanted to say, but then he sternly asked her if she had a lot of work to do since the Ministry of Home Affairs was the biggest.

 

“I’ll get it all sorted and come back by 5 o’clock. You gave me such precious things, so I have to do something.”

 

Lady Dorote, who had been scolding herself to her heart’s content, got up from her seat. I got worried, so I got up and asked.

 

“Is that okay? Would you like me to come with you and help you with something, Lady Dorote?”

 

She asked this question because the lady had no intention of working from the beginning, but Lady Dorote grinned and gave an unexpected answer.

 

“I will try, Lady Damien. No, Lord Etihart. Don’t worry, my thoughts have changed a bit during my training at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“I found that work was fun, right? I decided to find love and continue working! I’m suddenly worried about the war, and my father is making a fuss about me coming down to the territory, but I’m willing to do as much as I can.”

 

Lady Dorothee, smiling brightly, left the conference room, and Laurel also got up from her chair.

 

“If you don’t have anything to do right now, would you like to go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with me? There are only a few people there, so it will be over soon.”

 

“OK. I don’t think there’s anything to do here now.”

 

She left the palace with Laurel and decided to ride together in Duke Bigor’s carriage, which Ethan had designated as her carriage. Laurel smiled with a bored expression on her face as she crossed the door that Franz opened and got into the carriage.

 

“I heard that you entered the duchy, but the carriage is really huge, isn’t it?”

 

“Have you heard about that already? You came in yesterday?”

 

“You can’t ignore Laurel Communications just because war breaks out. Good luck, Damian. “It’s much better than being alone in the mansion.”

 

Laurel said with a smile and she nodded. Where on earth did she fall asleep? There were some minor problems, but like Laurel said, it’s better than being alone in an empty mansion.

 

“Why didn’t Laurel go down to the territory? Madeira territory is in the south, so it should be safe.”

 

“If Midok falls and the rebels and the Taln army take over the royal family, they will face the same fate no matter where they are in Laurentyne. It is better to help the capital army here. You must be very worried. Count So has gone to the territory too, right?”

 

“Yeah. Adrian said he was going to help, so it won’t be a problem.”

 

“Then. The fact that Duke Bigor is going there in person means that a Taln military cemetery will be created in the west. don’t worry. By the way, there is a delegation to Cologne.”

 

Laurel let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. She heard that Cologne has a friendly relationship with Laurentine, but seeing Laurel’s face full of worry, does that mean that wasn’t the case? This was what she felt during her training at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but she couldn’t  understand the international situation in which many countries were intertwined. The Duchy of Cologne was said to be a friendly country for a long time, but it seemed that the friendly relationship was not everything.

 

“Do you think Cologne will come out cold? Are they going to stay put for fear that we won’t be able to stop the rebels?”

 

“We’ll have to go and find out, but they won’t think we’ll lose either. They’ll know about Bigor’s Mad Wolf because they’ve experienced it too. My father will say he’s going in person, and he said that because he was worried about my younger brother who was alone in the territory.”

 

What? Crazy! She had no idea what she was talking about, but why did she feel like she knew? She didn’t know. She didn’t understand.

 

“Didn’t my younger brother be too foolish? He needs to be alone. Is Count Madeira also included in the delegation?”

 

“You will definitely want to take the lead. It can’t be helped. Still, it is worth a try. Since the Taln army’s main force is in Lorentine, it is a golden opportunity for them to end the long war. If they are rejected, the delegation will pack up well. It will be sent to Taln as a gift.”

 

“A diplomatic mission seeking help is being handed over to an enemy country?”

 

“Rejecting means that we have concluded that we will lose, and that it would be easier to please them than to deal with the combined forces of Laurentine and Taln. We must carefully consider the situation of the war and the timing of dispatching the envoy.”

 

It’s more bloody than a bloody war. This means that they may be holding the delegation hostage. Friends helping each other in difficult times, isn’t there something like that? Diplomacy between countries is truly without blood or tears. She was sitting sullenly, but Laurel then patted his knee and laughed.

 

“It’s okay, I’ll do my best. By the way, Damien, you’ve become a big deal, right? You’ve become the princess’s direct administrator. And the gold plate, I’ve only heard about it, but this is my first time seeing it.”

“It’s my first time seeing this too. I’m scared as to how I’m going to carry this. We’re all working together, so what’s the big deal?”

 

“Lady Dorothee, Senior Tina, and I were all chosen because we are friends with you. It was supposed to be easy for you to work with. Otherwise, does it make sense for a commoner administrator to have a private room with the princess when they are chicks who haven’t even been promoted to level 3? The position is to supervise the deputy administrators. Although it is temporary, it is extraordinary.”

 

Uh? Since the remaining administrators have to do their regular work, she thought the trainees who had not yet been appointed were selected for temporary positions? Because that’s what temporary jobs were. Wasn’t that true, including senior Tina, who was said to be capable of helping even high-ranking administrators? No. Laurel spoke so well that if you listen to her, everything you say makes sense. She was the administrative officer directly under the princess’s control. Wow, it’s too grandiose. How could you go so far as to give me positive feedback when we worked together last time?

 

* * *

 

Arriving at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she stood clapping behind Laurel, who quickly caught up with the many seniors, and then accepted the documents that were being sorted out. She decided to focus on forming a delegation of eighteen people, minus the ten men responsible for the southeast, to be sent to Cologne. She parted ways with Laurel, who seemed busy, and returned to the palace, then turned the carriage to Midoc 3rd Street. She wanted to check whether the price stabilization policy mentioned by Homer was already necessary. Last time she came to the festival, the streets were noisy and lively, but today it was somehow sunny. The expressions on the faces of the people passing by were dark, and their gazes at the large, out-of-place carriage were not bright either.

 

She wanted to get off the carriage and check the market price, but Franz was against it. Instead, he ran slowly to the end of the street and came down to the entrance of the temple. There are four walls in Midok. The inner palace, which protects the king’s residence, and the outer palace, where royal buildings are located, are the royal palaces that serve as the last stronghold. Additionally, there are internal and external characteristics surrounding the residential area of the residents. Inside the castle, there are nobles’ mansions, government offices, hospitals, temples, and shops and merchants. Among the commoners, those who were financially well off had set up residence in the inner city. And the area from the outside of the inner castle to the inside of the outer castle was called the outer castle area. She had never been outside the inner castle except when traveling to and from the Ethart territory, but she knew that the outer castle area was where most commoners live. The atmosphere inside the inner city was already gloomy, so I thought I should find out what the situation was like in the outer castle area, but Franz shook his head again. Adrian or Franz, even if she got pricked by a rose thorn, the royal palace would come back. The overprotection was too much.

 

She knew how worried they were, so she couldn’t be stubborn. Instead, she thought to herself that she would have to use Jenny Chance sooner or later. When she returned to the palace, Adrian was sitting in the small conference room designated as her office. She wondered how she wasted time just because it was lunch time. They decided to have lunch in the small dining room where they had eaten together before. Now that she had to go to the main palace every day, she no longer had to worry about whether Adrian was eating or not. Unless something serious happens, he would come pick up their meals and eat with her.

 

“How many hours did you sleep last night?”

 

“Thanks to Damien, I slept very well.”

 

Adrian’s brightly smiling face definitely looked better than yesterday. His eyes were less bloodshot and prettier. He had to go to bed early again today.

 

“Do you have a meeting late today as well?”

 

“Yes, we have a meeting at headquarters today and tomorrow.”

 

“Okay. Are you going out on Sunday? I’m sure you’ll continue to be busy in the meantime.”

 

She was going to have a scratchy face again. She decided to put him to bed early again today, but she became sullen because she couldn’t tell a busy person to do this or that according to her desires. As the corners of her eyes drooped, Adrian added hastily.

 

“I’m leaving on Sunday, so I’ll have all day on Saturday.”

 

“I’m not asking you to make time to play with me. It’s because Adrian looks so tired. That’s good. On Saturday, you eat healthy food and sleep all day. If you need anything, just let me know and I’ll take care of everything.”

 

Adrian laughed as if he were blooming at her words. She was so happy to see Adrian so brightly beaming after a long time that she smiled at him and he said something meaningful. 

 

“You can just stay there.” 

 

‘Oh, my pretty man, you speak beautifully.’ she nodded loudly.

 

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Translator Note: