The Heroines Who Framed Me Are Clinging to Me

Chapter 27 - The Gateway of the Empire

\'Was it warehouse cleaning today...?\'

The morning after Yulia left.

Lloyd woke up groggily from his bed and instinctively reached for a broom.

It was a habit, after all.

He arrived at the storage room where various clutter was piled up, only to be interrupted.

"Lloyd! What are you doing here? We need to get going!”

Yulia pulled him outside, dragging him along.

\'Huh? Outside?\'

Why?

It was only as he was being dragged along that Lloyd realized he wasn\'t fully awake yet.

Outside, a carriage was waiting.

"Wow. How can a carriage be this big?”

It was a murmured remark, as the carriage before him was nearly the size of a small annex. The royal family\'s crest was emblazoned on its outer wall.

"Glory to Estrid\'s bloodline. Welcome, Princess Yulia.”

The coachman knelt on one knee, bowing his head.

\'Even the coachman has class.\'

Lloyd, impressed, climbed into the carriage alongside Yulia.

"This must be your first time in a royal carriage, right?”

"I can see now why they\'re so keen on collecting taxes. And why are the seats so ridiculously soft?”

The cushions cradled his back and hips warmly.

Lloyd had only ever ridden in slave wagons or the luggage carts of the Hero Party.

This extravagant luxury was a whole new experience.

He tried not to show it too much, but...

"You can stop gawking and look at me, you know?”

Yulia seemed to have caught on.

She\'s sharp.

—Rumble.

At that moment, the carriage set off, sparing Lloyd from having to make excuses. But again, something remarkable—the ride was far smoother than other carriages. Was there some kind of magic for shock absorption...?

\'Why am I so fixated on this carriage?\'

Lloyd shook his head, brushing away the idle thoughts.

Yulia was staring at him with a curious expression.

Realizing he\'d been lost in thought, Lloyd spoke up.

"You\'re curious about why I suggested heading to Eastan, right?”

The carriage softly rumbled again.

Their destination was Eastan, a city located to the east of the imperial capital.

Lloyd had proposed this location for the research institute.

"That\'s right.”

Yulia nodded.

Lloyd was about to answer when he suddenly grew curious.

"I\'m surprised you decided to leave without even asking why.”

Even though she couldn\'t compare to Aina, Yulia was still a royal, and her workload was undoubtedly piled high.

It could have easily been a waste of time, so why did Yulia so readily agree to go along?

Yulia spoke as if it were nothing.

"You\'re my advisor. Isn\'t this exactly what advisors are for?”

Lloyd\'s eyes narrowed slightly.

\'She\'s trusting me quite easily.\'

No, it wasn\'t trust.

She was testing him.

Even if she appeared more relaxed than during their first meeting, Yulia was still an imperial princess.

In her position, constantly testing and evaluating those around her was essential for survival.

The apparent carelessness and willingness to trust were likely part of the test.

Of course, since Yulia had already bought him, Lloyd\'s primary goal of escaping the Gray estate was as good as accomplished.

\'It\'s better to earn her favor, though, to broaden my range of action.\'

There was no reason not to try and gain points with the princess.

\'Why did I choose Eastan?\'

In truth, one reason was that its location made it easy to flee the continent if necessary.

Of course, Lloyd wasn\'t planning to run away; he intended to fulfill his worth of a billion crone before leaving.

Even so, staying close to royalty meant constantly being exposed to life-threatening situations.

There was no guarantee Yulia could fully protect him, so having an escape route was only logical.

\'Explaining this would obviously land me in a cell.\'

Explanations can change meaning with just a single word.

Lloyd casually began to speak.

"Eastan\'s biggest advantage is its accessibility.”

"...Accessibility?”

"Yes. It\'s close to the imperial capital and has a large river nearby. On top of that, the roads are well-maintained.”

"...That\'s true.”

As they approached Eastan, the ride, which had already been smooth, became even gentler, almost like flowing water.

"Your Highness needs to build your power base outside the imperial palace. But as you know, the Empire has an extremely centralized power structure.”

"There\'s a reason they say power weakens the farther you move from the capital.”

"Exactly. That\'s why Eastan is ideal. It\'s close enough to the capital while also having excellent transportation networks to access power outside the royal family.”

Lloyd shrugged as he concluded.

"It\'s the gateway to the capital.”

Yulia would have to build her power base from the ground up.

The process would be far from easy.

There would be interference from other princes and princesses, and even heroes would have to be dealt with.

She would also need to maintain an ambiguous relationship with Duchess Gray, keeping her at arm\'s length.

\'Of course, I\'ll stay a step removed.\'

An advisor\'s role is to provide counsel.

He had no intention of stepping forward to take action himself.

All he needed to do was...

"We\'ve arrived. This is Eastan.”

...Find a decent spot to lie down and relax.

"Ugh.”

Lloyd disembarked from the carriage alongside Yulia.

The sun was glaringly bright.

Before them stood a small, two-story wooden building.

◆

"I-is this really our research institute?”

Yulia muttered in disbelief.

It was understandable.

The wooden structure looked quite aged.

Ignoring her reaction, Lloyd stepped inside the building.

—Creak.

The wooden floor groaned as if it were in pain.

He heard a squeal from behind him.

Her helplessness didn\'t seem to be an act after all.

Perhaps, to a princess who had only lived in the royal palace, such creaking noises might seem like signs of impending collapse.

\'For me, as long as it keeps out the rain, it\'s as good as a hotel.\'

After spending nights camping out with the Hero Party, this was nothing.

\'...Of course, the bigger the room and the comfier the bed, the better.\'

He made a mental note to ask for a better room.

With that resolved, Lloyd surveyed the building.

It was an old guild building.

While a bit worn, it had everything necessary.

"Though we named it a \'research institute\' to avoid attracting attention from royals and nobles, it\'s actually a guild.”

He opened a large door to the immediate right of the entrance, revealing a spacious room.

A reception desk and several tables lay within.

"This can be used as a reception hall.”

The tables could serve as waiting seats.

There was a bit of dust, but that could be cleaned.

He also inspected the other rooms.

There was a suitable space for Yulia\'s office.

And as befits the name "institute,” there were dim, clean rooms that could be used as research labs.

Two rooms tucked away upstairs could be used as bedrooms.

"...You expect me to sleep here? Can someone even live in a place like this?”

Yulia grumbled, but Lloyd casually pretended not to hear.

"Do you want the big room or the small room?”

"The big one.”

She responded promptly.

With that, her minor complaints were settled.

\'I suppose a luxury bed and blanket would keep her happy.\'

Lloyd checked his own room.

While a bit old, it was definitely a hundred times better than the storage room he had in the royal palace.

"Besides, the materials are quite high-quality.”

Though old, the building was solidly constructed.

With this, it could hold up well even if someone attacked...

—Bang, bang!

No sooner had he thought that than loud noises came from downstairs.

"Who\'s trying to wreck my research institute...!!!”

Gone was the princess who had been grumbling about the place moments before—Yulia rolled up her sleeves and rushed downstairs.

Lloyd followed her.

"Hey! We know someone\'s in there! Come out already!”

Bang, bang. The pounding grew more violent.

Yulia stormed down and pointed at the intruders.

"You people! What\'s the meaning of causing a ruckus at our home?”

Suddenly, the place she had just called uninhabitable was now "our home.”

She\'s quick to change her tune.

Lloyd chuckled as he followed behind her.

Beyond Yulia\'s white hair stood two large men.

They were equipped with heavy gear and positioned as if ready to demolish the building at any moment.

Yet Yulia remained boldly defiant, and Lloyd found himself impressed.

She\'s truly a princess of the Empire.

Lloyd quietly inched closer to her.

This could turn into a problem.

If things escalated, the outcome wouldn\'t be good.

It won\'t be bad for Yulia...

But definitely not good for those thugs.

For now, Lloyd was on the thugs\' side.

After all, those types of goons were valuable.

By following them, he could discover...

The power brokers of this city.

Or something equivalent.

Every journey begins with a single step.

To conquer the Empire, one must first conquer the capital.

To conquer the capital, one must seize the gateway.

Eastan.

The Gateway of the Empire.

And the key to that gate had been placed in his hands.