It has been ten days since the Fuyo Cup (Lotus Cup) ended.

　Aldis was relaxing with Moore in the guard's office after finishing teaching Minerva at the Duke's residence.

''Well, the office is just one room in the stuffing room of the grounds.

　With a bitter smile, Moore hands Aldis a cup of water.

'Humility is not like that.

That's right, I don't think too highly of myself to be arrogant enough to be able to stand up against the 'Master of Sword and Magic', 'Defeater of Three Great Demons', 'Magician of a Thousand Swords' and 'Winner of the Lotus Cup'.

''No matter how many aliases you have, you're just a mercenary. In terms of social status, wouldn't the captain of the duke's guard be much higher than that?

That's the kind of line you have to hide behind a teasing look before you say it.

　Neither Aldis nor Moore are serious about each other.
　They haven't known each other for a long time, but they feel close enough to each other to be able to make light-hearted remarks about each other - there was a sense of comfort in the air between them.

'Well, sit down. We're going to have to pass the time until the young lady lets Rona go anyway, aren't we?

　While recommending a long chair for the receptionist to Aldis, Moore also sat down.

'The young lady's endearment of Rona is mostly ......, but it's not a bad thing, and it's not a bad thing. I know it's annoying for you to have to wait, but Rona seems to be happy about it.

"But that Rona guy, ............, he's been getting fat lately.

'Ah ......, that's right ....... No wonder they give you so many treats.

　When Ardis blurts out Rona's depravity, Moore gives her an awkward look.

　He wanted to change the indescribable atmosphere in the Oval Office.
　Moore changed the subject and began to talk about the aftermath of the end of the Fuyo Cup (Lotus Cup).

Did you hear about the Marquis de Olguin?

Yeah, mostly. The Dauphin's displeasure.

I think I overdid it. I don't care how much I want to keep up appearances, those semifinals and finals were just horrible.

　Moore chuckles and continues.

'And on top of that, in the finals, I heard there was some work done on the example bracelet that blocked the magic?

'It's not a crafting, it's just that the bracelet the other person was wearing was a different one that looked the same. It's likely to have the effect of nullifying the magic blockage of the bracelet I was wearing. This one's magic power was blocked, while that one had unlimited use of physical and armament enhancements.

　Moore's expression visibly twisted as if he hadn't heard about it before.

'You, I don't know how you managed to win with that: ......

That's why I struggled so much.

It didn't look that way from the outside. That's one of the reasons why the army's reputation has been tarnished this time. That's to be expected. It's a good thing that the best of the elite were defeated by a magician with a sword technique, no matter how well known the mercenaries were. As a result, it's just what you wanted?

　Aldis did not answer the question, but smiled lightly.

　'Oh scary,' he murmured, and Moore spoke of the Marquis' subsequent actions.

I don't know if I can call it mismanagement this time, but the Marquis was held responsible and retired. It is said that he was ordered to hand over the title to his heir to stay at his estate. Naturally, he has to vacate all his duties. I'm sure that the heiress of the estate is now ......,cheap nfl jerseys from china　It may be that he is young, but he has hardly inherited the power base from the Marquis, who was planning to continue in office for the time being. For the time being, they will do their utmost to establish a firm foothold, and even if they settle down, the power of the Marquis de Olguin family will be greatly reduced.

　The Marquess family has been severely damaged by this one incident.
　Naturally, the trust of the military will not be damaged (there), which will lead to a decline in their voice.

　At the very least, the displeasure of the Dauphin's displeasure would definitely kill off the prince and the marquise's engagement talk.
　That doesn't mean Minerva will not become a potential fiancée again, but since it doesn't seem like he wants to, Aldis doesn't care about that either.

'Is that not enough to disagree?'

No way.

　At Moore's words as if he had read her mind, Ardis immediately returned the denial.

　This is not the same as a demon that can be beaten to death and that's the end of it.

　On the surface, Marquis Olguin's crime is 'excessive interference in the judgment of the Fuyo Cup (Lotus Cup)'.
　The assassination attempt on Minerva, the attack on Ardis and the sabotage in the final are not known to the public and will not be publicized in the future.

　Being ordered to be replaced and ordered to stay in the estate for the Fuyo Cup (Lotus Cup) alone seems like too harsh a punishment, but perhaps the crown prince and the country's higher-ups made the decision after taking into account the undisclosed crimes.
　Perhaps the Duke of Nilesteria had a hand in it behind the scenes.

'It's too good to be true,'

　Aldis describes the result as such.

　With a power as strong as Aldis's, it is possible to take direct retribution against the Marquis.
　If Minerva's life had been taken, even if the Duke or the Moors had stopped him, Aldis himself would have had his revenge meted out to him in person.

　But Aldis does not want to make enemies of the state or the royal family.
　If they are willing to judge the marquis, Aldis will not go out of his way to become an enemy of the system.

''Well, there's the matter of the young lady, and I don't think the master is going to keep quiet about it.

　Moore reads Aldis' inner thoughts and speaks of an expected future.

　If it's the new Marquis of Olguin, who has lost much of his power base, the Duke of Nilesteria will be able to beat him without hesitation.
　''Leave it to the nobles to beat the nobles.

''You can do what you want with that part. The Duke's anger is justified, and he has every right to retaliate.''

　If the son who succeeded him was not involved in the attack on Minerva in any way, he would be nothing more than a blunder.
　But that can't be helped when you inherit the title.
　I'm sure the heir to a high-ranking nobleman knew that.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this.

　Moore shrugs as he says it.

'What?'

"The Lotus Cup was essentially hosted by the Marquis de Olguin's house, wasn't it?　It's like it's all in the hands of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince before you know it.

　According to Moore, it seems that during this mess, the Dauphin has taken over the real power of organizing the Fuyo Cup, including the concessions.
　The next year onwards, the Lotus Cup will be held with the support of the Crown Prince.

　I see, Ardis is convinced.
　I don't know where the man who declared the winner of the final match came from, but he was called 'the assistant'.

　When declaring Ardis's victory, the man emphasized the phrase 'By the decree of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince' incessantly.

　That phrase may not seem like much, but it was actually significant.
　It resolved the dissatisfaction that had been swirling around the audience due to the one-sided and unfair judgments that had been made up to that point, as well as exposing the former organizers' untruths to the light of day and giving the impression that the Dauphin was the one who would correct them.
　The reputation of the old organizers, the military and the Marquis of Olguin, was tarnished, and the crown prince's reputation grew in proportion.

　In addition, if the future Lotus Cup will be organized by the dauphin, the dauphin's influence over the army will also increase.
　It could be said that the power of the high aristocracy was reduced, and the power of the crown prince was incorporated as it was.
　It was a pretty strong move, taking advantage of Aldis's rapid progress and the Marquis of Olguin's blunders without missing a beat.

"I see he was cleverly taken advantage of.

Are you mad at me?

No, no. We've reached our goal, and as long as the Dauphin doesn't mess with us, the rest doesn't matter.

That's a relief to hear.

'What?　Did you think I was going to get mad at you for using me and cause a ruckus against the Crown Prince?

"You could get in trouble with the royals and smash them in the face, right?

Don't be silly. It's not the same as dealing with demons. It's not the same as dealing with a demon. If you take his head off, it will only lead to more trouble. It's better to keep your distance from powerful people.

You spend a lot more time with the young lady than you care to admit.

"Are you trying to tell me that Minerva is in power?

'You might be in power at some point, right?　At least you couldn't say that you're a power wife ...... either.

　Moore weakens his speech as he is about to say it.

　It's Minerva, who didn't appear in public for a year after the attack, due to the fact that she was recuperating.
　Not only did she recuperate, but she was sent to another world and didn't exist, so that in itself is inevitable.
　However, the rumor that he was turned into a wounded object by the attack has made it difficult for him to get a good match.

　Of course, no matter how bad the rumors are, she's a duchess who even has the right to inherit the throne.
　If you don't have to choose, there may be plenty of matchmaking opportunities, but as expected, you can't marry into an earl or viscount family.

　When it comes to Minerva's circumstances, Aldis is not at all responsible.
　On the contrary, if it wasn't for Aldis, Minerva would either have died in the first attack or gone to the other world and never returned.

　Even so, Aldis was still feeling slightly distressed.
　Now that he was more or less involved, he couldn't dismiss it as something he knew about.

　It was probably because of such a state of mind that he couldn't refuse Minerva's request a few days later.