The inner hall of the Royal Palace was brightly lit by candlelight, and the velvet carpet swallowed the sound of footsteps.
Rhodesney XVIII personally led Yuriko through the corridor and into a private reception room.
Servants brought hot tea and fruit. The two brothers took their seats and exchanged a few pleasantries about the hardships of the journey and the course of the war, but the atmosphere remained warm.
Yet Yuriko clearly had no interest in discussing such things. Before he had finished his tea, he set down his cup, his expression darkening as his tone abruptly turned resentful:
"My dear brother, there is something I must report to you."
Rhodesney looked up, his expression calm. "Go on."
Yuriko took a deep breath, his voice suppressing a blaze of anger. "Paul Greiman's subordinates... are simply outrageous! They don't regard me, a prince, in the slightest!"
Seeing that Rhodesney remained unmoved, he continued, speaking faster and faster:
"When I was at Wind's Breath Keep, I had intended to accomplish something important—to hold a banquet and invite the Orcish General who had surrendered to drink a toast of alliance. I wanted to prove to everyone that humans and orcs could coexist peacefully, that hatred could be dispelled, and that the Royal Family was the creator of this peace."
A trace of idealistic fervor showed in his voice, but it soon turned to fury. "But just as the banquet was about to begin, Greiman's men suddenly burst in! They said that the 'troublemakers' among the prisoners were about to riot and had to be dealt with immediately!"
Yuriko suddenly slammed his hand against the armrest, fury bursting from his eyes. "But what did they do? Without distinguishing right from wrong, they slaughtered the Orcish General in front of me—men who had already laid