"I want it clear that I'm not doing this out of the kindness of my heart." Arnold said coldly.
"If what that knight reported to me is true, it's obvious he was planning something rotten. But if I publicly treat him like a criminal, my father will hear about it. I avoided this by using the scheme you are no doubt behind."
"Got it. Thank you."
Arnold had even realized that Rishe was behind the fireworks. She doubted the knight had given him a very detailed report, but the excuse Arnold gave Lawvine—that Coyolles was displaying its advanced technology—was the exact story Rishe had been ready to feed Arnold herself. If they could get everything settled, she planned to come clean to him.
"I'll explain Michel's original plan later, Your Highness."
It was just an attempted crime, but if he had succeeded, the results would have been grave. They were concealing the truth, but they couldn't act like he was innocent.
"Then you can decide what to do with him."
"Hah. That's generous of you." Arnold laughed impishly. "And you were trying so hard to keep him away from me. You even got Theodore involved."
He noticed!
But of course. Michel's tails were Theodore's subordinates stationed around the palace, posing as servants and gardeners. Theodore had originally used them to gather information on Arnold himself, so it was only natural he'd be sensitive to their presence.
I suppose that means Arnold always knew his brother was gathering information on him. He let him do it this whole time… He really is rather soft on him.
She decided to tell Theodore about this as well. He'd helped her out a lot lately. She'd thank him in any way she could.
"Honestly, I'm as guilty as Michel is. Instead of stopping his plan, I took it over to teach him a lesson…and you too. I wanted you to see those fireworks."
She'd known the timing for each device would be slightly off, and that when Arnold heard the first detonation, he would look up at the sky. That aspect of her plot had gone swimmingly.
"Fireworks contain dangerous substances, but as you saw, they can create scenery unlike anything you've ever seen. I hoped that once you witnessed it, you might use that knowledge in exciting new ways."
Rishe wasn't limiting gunpowder to one peaceful use either. There were so many possibilities for Coyolles's manufacturing techniques—particularly in Arnold's future.
"You believe you only possess abilities specialized for war, but…"
She wasn't concealing gunpowder from him—she was choosing to trust him with the knowledge instead. That was Rishe's decision.
"I know that someday, I'll prove to you that isn't true." Rishe declared, confident.
Arnold frowned. After a brief silence, he said, "You may regret that, you know. I can do whatever I want with Michel Hévin as long as I'm not public with it."
Rishe pursed her lips at Arnold's characteristic antagonism.
"All I'm saying is, don't get angry with me if I kill and dispose of him in secret. Is that still fine with you?"
"Prince Arnold."
Rishe tugged on his sleeve, and Arnold bent down obligingly. They had about twenty centimeters' difference in their heights.
"What is it?"
Rishe stretched up as tall as she could and whispered into his ear, "Believe it or not, the man standing right in front of you is the inventor of the pocket watch."
She couldn't see Arnold's face, but Rishe knew he'd be frowning. "He created it to keep track of time during his experiments, or so I hear."
"…"
"He doesn't like attention, so it isn't public knowledge, but there's plenty of proof that he created it in Coyolles. For instance, craftsmen from Coyolles have molds for the device's components."
"…"
"I believe Michel's knowledge will be indispensable when it comes to joint research between Galkhein and Coyolles."
Rishe let her heels settle back on the ground, then tilted her head. "What do you say to that?"
"…I can't believe you." Brow scrunched, Arnold heaved a little sigh. "From the very beginning, you always planned on talking me into this, didn't you?"
"Of course not! I just knew you would be interested in Michel if I told you who he was."
That was the truth. Rishe would never be so bold as to think she could manipulate Arnold. Judging by the awkward scowl on his face, though, her plan had paid off.
That was a real gamble. There's no way he planned to send his imperial knights to Coyolles before our meeting this evening. If they were mustered beforehand, I don't think it was for our alliance. He probably meant to wage war.
That sent a shiver down her spine.
I'm curious, though. Earlier, Lawvine had claimed he couldn't obey Theodore's orders because of the emperor. He disobeyed the prince by citing his allegiance to Theodore's more powerful father. Yet Prince Arnold merely threatened to tell his father about this incident. No one's actually reported it to him yet.
If she recalled correctly, Lawvine only stated his allegiance, not that he was under orders at present.
Strange. You'd think if a guest of the royal family caused so much trouble, the emperor would hear about it. Especially since Lord Lawvine is so famed for his loyalty.
Rishe felt deeply unsettled. She knew the future, after all.
The count will attempt to counsel Prince Arnold, and he'll be executed for treason.
Rishe looked up at Arnold. It was impossible to read any emotions on his countenance. His face was beautiful, but in the way that a sculpture was beautiful.
"What's wrong?"
She gave a slow shake of her head. "Nothing. I'm sure the people in town saw those fireworks too."
Glancing at Michel, she saw that Kyle was still scolding him. He got scary when he was angry, Rishe knew, but she left Michel to deal with it on his own.
"When people learn that it was Coyolles's technology that made that display possible, I believe there will be public support for the alliance."
No one knew what gunpowder was, and it was unlikely they would glean its purpose and power from seeing the fireworks. She hoped the display would remain in people's memories only as a beautiful work of art—a stepping stone to an equal relationship between the powerful nation of Galkhein and the small country of Coyolles.
"You're…probably right."
"Heh heh!" She was pleased that Arnold agreed with her.
Rishe was still ignorant of many things, but she now knew exactly what she had to do. With a deep breath, she renewed her determination, moving forward toward the future.