I Reincarnated as a Noble Girl Villainess But Why Did It Turn Out This Way?

Chapter 19 - The House of Lords is like the sea

Chapter 19 – The House of Lords is like the sea

Several chandeliers crafted of exquisite gold dangled from the ceiling of the great hall, even though it was crowded right now, looking at their luxuriousness, if there were fewer people here, this place would make a fine place for dancing.

The House of Lords is located in one of the royal palace's castles, the Arktoria Castle, and my mouth was wide agape at seeing how high the ceilings were. There were also stained glass windows with religious drawings and silver frames, giving various colors to the sunlight hitting the hall. This castle was only meant for national politics, and so because nobles are the ones who use this place the most, even the conference hall had such sparkling beauty and extravagance.

"Is it that unusual?"

"Well, a little."

Earl Terejia's voice from next to me brought me back to my senses. We're not here to take in the sights, and I hurriedly refocused myself.

"Marquis Rittergau has arrived. It will begin soon."

The earl pointed at the innermost desk. When I looked over there, besides Marquis Rittergau who was just about to sit down, there was also the commander-in-chief of the kingdom's armies, Marquis Rolentsor, the highest ranking noble, Archduke Dovadain, and various other high-ranking economic ministers and priests, all the prominent leading figures from the royal palace were there. Also among them were Margrave Genas, and the one in charge of Fort Jugfena, Earl Einsbark.

I'm not sure exactly just how nervous I was, but my palms were becoming damp with sweat. Even though I had known it could happen, I had always felt it was only a concept, only now was reality rapidly setting in. Even after living in this world for six years, I still hadn't gotten rid of my impression that "this is an otome game's world."

There was a quiet buzz around the hall before the meeting started. To me who was seated almost completely in Earl Terejia's shadow, as expected, many curious looks were cast my way, it seems that "a child being in the House of Lords" was quite the news. It was different from the clearly disrespectful looks I had gotten at my birthday celebration.

Finally the nobles quieted down, and the clanging sound of a bell was heard from the center. It was as if ocean waves had calmed down and become like a still pond. Maybe it's because most of the stained glass was blue, so that's why the sea was the first image I thought of. Maybe he's an official of some sort, a man rose up from the seats in the center and announced the beginning of today's meeting, and that there were two items on today's agenda.

"The first item, is with regards to refugees from the former Artolas Kingdom that are under temporary protection in the Jugfena royal domain, and what we should do with them. The second item, is going on military alert with regards to the conflict between the Shiru tribe and the Densel Dukedom's army. Senior Earl Einsbark, please let us know about the refugees currently under your protection."

"- At Fort Jugfena, there are approximately twelve hundred former residents of Artolas that are under our protection. We've loaned them tents to camp outside of Fort Jugfena with, and provided them with supplies from our stockpiles, but Fort Jugfena does not have enough food in reserve to keep this up for long. The number of people will probably keep increasing until autumn, and according to the refugees the women and children of the Shiru tribe are behind them and on their way. If another one thousand people arrive, our food stockpiles will be completely exhausted by the end of summer. We also don't have enough tents. It's already a situation where people are sleeping outside, exposed to the elements."

Earl Einsbark was a tall, stocky figure in the prime of life, and his deep voice resounded throughout the entire hall, such as even I who was sitting in the back could hear him clearly.