Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 178: The Dowager Queen’s Secret
Celestine had gone out of her way to visit the pioneer village. Of course, she didn’t stay at the same cottage where Rest and the others lived.
It seemed she rented a different cottage, stayed there for a night, took care of some business and then returned to the royal capital.
For a carefree girl like Yuri, it might have been different but for a noble lady, this was the natural choice. A model of modesty and elegance, like the duke’s daughter Celestine would never do something so improper as staying at a young man’s house.
(That aside… what Celestine mentioned still bothers me…)
Sanada Shouko.
This was the false name the Dowager Queen used in a certain region. The name was clearly Japanese, a name that could only belong to a Japanese person.
(Could it be? I had suspected it but… was the Dowager Queen also one of us…?)
It had been on Rest’s mind for some time. The Dowager Queen, Frederica Iwood came from a lower noble family but became queen by catching the tyrant’s favor. After that, she gained the support of powerful figures like Celestine’s grandfather and Marquis Eiger and together, they overthrew the tyrant, laying the foundation of the current Iwood Kingdom.
Her achievements, changing an era despite being a woman. Were comparable to those of historical figures like Hojo Masako or Queen Elizabeth. She could easily be the protagonist of a historical drama.
If someone claimed she was a reincarnated person, it would make perfect sense.
(So there really were others… I never believed I was the only one. I knew there had to be more…)
Rest had always wondered. Was he truly the only special person? Could there be other reincarnated people as well? He didn’t overestimate himself enough to believe he was the only chosen one. It wouldn’t be surprising at all if there were others.
(The Dowager Queen was skilled at winning people’s hearts… catching the eye of the tyrant and rallying influential figures to her side… Rather than possessing infinite magic like I do, could she have had a charm or mind control type ability?)
She was already deceased, so there was no way to confirm this. However… if there was something he could do, it would be to investigate the land where the Dowager Queen spent her final years. The land that Rest was set to inherit which had belonged to the Dowager Queen.
If she had gone so far as to use a Japanese name like “Sanada Shoko,” it must have been a place of great significance to her.
If he investigated there, he was sure to find some clue.
(But still… I can’t act right away. We’re in the middle of the pioneering work, after all… I can’t just move on my own.)
Though he was curious about the Dowager Queen, Rest was now a Count. With the title came responsibilities. He had been granted land so he had to cultivate and manage it. That was the duty of a noble. If he left it would cause trouble for someone else.
He couldn’t make rash selfish moves.
(Even if I can’t act now, I must investigate. Why did Her Majesty the Dowager Queen indulge Rodel? I need to find out the reason…!)
Whether the Dowager Queen was a reincarnated person or not no longer mattered.
Rodel wasn’t rotten to the core. Perhaps only someone like Rest, who clashed with him head-on could say that.
Those who were directly harmed—for instance, the classmate who tried to stop Rodel from making advances on his lover and ended up getting burned alive—would undoubtedly think of Rodel as a devil by nature. Celestine, who suffered for years as his fiancée surely despises him too.
But still… Rest thought.
If only Rodel had been raised a little more properly… if he could see himself objectively, they might have even become friends.
(Well, it’s like that isn’t it? How you feel lonely when even the worst of people are gone…)
Of course, Rest knew.
Rodel was a villain. There was no denying that. Someone who only becomes good in a movie adaptation is bound to be unpleasant in reality.
It’s like how troublemakers who usually cause problems only need to do something good once to be praised, which just feels unfair to people who try to live seriously.
In any case… Rest decided to investigate the Queen Dowager again.
Once things settled down with the land development, he would go to the property he inherited which the Queen Dowager had used like a villa and conduct his research there.
But for that to happen, the land development had to be wrapped up.
In order to secure the central plains, Rest needed someone to establish a barrier there.
(If the barrier is in place and the magic energy in the central plains thins out, it’ll be safe. There won’t be any more new rulers of the magic lands. The barrier can also repel monsters… Once that’s done, I’ll be able to investigate the Queen Dowager’s land.)
And… soon, the court magician skilled at creating barriers was set to arrive. That’s what Rest heard from Andrew.
“So… why are you here?”
Andrew’s words were correct. Within a week of Celestine’s report, the court magician arrived.
“Honorary Viscount Lucas Ebern… I never thought I’d run into you here.”
“Ugh…”
Rest half-glared reflexively, and the court magician, meeting his gaze looked uncomfortable.
The man’s name was Lucas Ebern.
To Rest, he was his biological father. The very one who had abandoned his mother and abused him.