Queen Who Lives Here
Queen Sisi slid into the hot bath. It must've felt as nice as heaven in there after being in a rancid sewer for a week. Meanwhile, I sliced up meat. Behind me was Anna, who was in charge of cutting up vegetables. The ingredients were added to a thick broth made from milk, which would be nutritious for Queen Sisi. Queen Sisi didn't have many physical wounds on her, but the enormous psychological blow from the experience would require some time to recover from. She would only be able to return to managing the nation once she recovered from it.
"Sir, I have something I would like to speak to you about, which is about what happened at the imperial capital. The military has usurped power at the imperial capital. They have disowned Her Majesty and want to enthrone Veirya as the new Queen, "reported Anna, as she wiped her hands. She checked her surroundings and elaborated, "Although I know I should not be the one to mention this; however, I am worried Lord Veirya will not tell you. This is of utmost importance. I felt I had to tell you about this since you rescued Queen Sisi."
"I know. I guessed as much when humanity didn't pay the ransom."
If humanity hadn't turned their back on Queen Sisi, there was no way they wouldn't pay the ransom. Humanity had the money; they just didn't want Queen Sisi. End of story. It was the same as what happened with the elves. Humanity could only accept one Queen, humanity's hero, Veirya.
How could Veirya be a Queen, though? She wasn't Queen material. A weapon that only knew how to kill couldn't possibly be a Queen who ruled everyone. A Queen's most crucial attribute is intellect, which happened to be Veirya's Achilles. For them to want to make Veirya humanity's Queen, they had to either be stupid, or they wanted to use her as a puppet for their own ends. Lucia was different to her. The elves were much easier to keep on reins than humanity. Humanity wasn't a simple race. Not even I would want to be King or whatever. Queen Sisi had to be the Queen. She was the best candidate for the throne up to that point.
Anna then inquired, "However, Lord Veirya rejected them, and the military has left the town. Lord Angelina did not allow her daughter to go there. What do you think?"
"I think that Angelina did well. I concur with her stance; Veirya is not monarch material," I answered. "If I truly wanted to instate Veirya as the Queen, I wouldn't have gone to rescue Queen Sisi. Queen Sisi is the best Queen, albeit there being a hiccup."
"Uhm."
As we cleaned, Veirya appeared at the door and stated, "Queen Sisi. Wants to see you."
"Mm, I'll head up once I'm done cleaning."
I picked up a hand towel to wipe my hand and then left the kitchen. Leah placed the walking bird on the table and fed it bread crumbs. As an elven species, the walking bird surprisingly enjoyed humanity's food. I scrubbed Leah's hand before heading upstairs.
Not long ago, Queen Sisi ridiculed, insulted and used the Elven Queen who resided here. Fast forward a short period, Queen Sisi was forced to live with the Elven Queen. The room I never expected to be occupied was packed. How can one not sigh at the realisation? The North was just a corner of humanity's territory that nobody noticed, yet was where several of humanity's biggest events occurred to date.
The elven detergent worked like a charm. Queen Sisi no longer had the weird smell on her by the time she finished her bath. She leaned on the bed and gently combed her long hair. There was no desire for revenge or resentment in her gaze. To the contrary, tranquility painted her face after escaping a peril. She subtly hiked the corner of her lips when she saw me enter the room. In a soft voice, she expressed, "Little Doggy, I'm truly thankful you came to my rescue. I've always considered Veirya to be my knight. This time, however, you were the one who risked your life to rescue me from the jaws of the elves. Unfortunately, I can't reward you with anything at the moment. All I can give you is my thanks."
"You do not need to thank me - not that it is what I want, either. I did not rescue you for your sake, either. It was Veirya who wanted to rescue you."
Queen Sisi supported her face in her hand and chuckled. Sounding as if she had made peace with herself, she conveyed, "I know. Veirya sure is fortunate to have someone like you by her side. Veirya doesn't have many people with her. There's only you, but you were willing to risk your life and do whatever it took to make her happy. I once had so many people around me. Countless people pledged their loyalty to me, but not one came to my rescue when I was locked there. They even gave up on me…
"Little Doggy, to be honest, while I was there, I wondered if I wouldn't be there had I not treated you that way that night."
"I did try to convince you otherwise, Your Majesty. Asking 'what if' is pointless."
"Yes, but, Little Doggy, is there nothing that you need me to do here? I may not be able to perform labour work. I, nevertheless, am confident with my wits," replied Queen Sisi. She whipped her hair and explained, "I am no longer a Queen. I doubt I would be happy when I return to the imperial capital, so I will have to stay here, Little Doggy. I hope you can provide me with a shelter."
"While you are no longer a Queen, I shall still address you as such for I have chosen to side with you. With that said, I must make it clear that I did not and am not helping you for your sake but because Veirya asked me to. At present, our prospects look poor, to say the least. The military has wrestled over control the imperial capital. Although merchants do not appear to be in a good spot, I believe they would choose to help you, a former Queen who might be dead in the elven lands for all they know. We do not have a single soldier. Veirya should avoid getting involved this time. Therefore, the only one you can depend on this time is me."
"I… don't see any chance of success…"
"Did I not tell you that you have me, Your Majesty? As Veirya wishes so, I shall help you take back your throne. You only need me."