Chapter 60: Pocket watch

After their conversation concluded, Domenico departed with a satisfied expression, leaving his daughter behind.

He could see that the Princess also had a favorable impression of Miss Livyat.

However, that was no longer his concern to navigate.

‘Daughter, you’ll have to put in the effort yourself!’

Seeing her father leave, Julia turned to Liv with an awkward apology.

“Liv, I’m sorry. This is my fault. I failed to protect you. I truly didn’t know about this; Father never mentioned it to me.”

Liv offered a sweet smile.

“It’s all right, Sister Julia. It seems that until someone leaked the secret this morning, only a few people knew. Mr. Domenico probably didn’t even tell his family just to ensure there were no leaks.”

Tess snorted.

“Tsk, it leaked anyway.”

The problem lay in exactly why it had leaked.

Julia had pressed her father for answers on the way there, but his reply was simply that he didn’t know.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Liv.

She remembered the previous rumors about the Governor accepting favors from the elves.

“Is it possible there wasn’t a leak at all? Could the Kingdom’s spies have spread the information directly through some kind of public channel?”

Julia picked up the thread.

“But who would they leak it to? It spread so quickly that by this morning, the mobs—who were already on the brink of bankruptcy—had already organized themselves.”

Liv followed this line of reasoning, her breathing quickening as she pressed further.

“This morning, who were the people in the first wave to buy significantly more bread than the daily ration from the bakeries? Who were the first ones to buy up the flour and rice?”

Exactly.

If it wasn’t a high-level leak, but rather spies tipped off others…

Those people would have prioritized hoarding food over spreading rumors.

Once she thought of it that way, the entire situation became clear.

Julia stated she would arrange for people to investigate every grain shop in the city.

“Aren’t you going to investigate the grain brought in by the merchant ships?” Tess asked.

Julia looked a bit embarrassed.

“Uh, I already reserved all the grain from the first two merchant ships.”

The other two were speechless.

There was nothing left to say; their big sister was simply that powerful.

With the talk of the leak finished, Tess took the initiative to start a new topic.

“Julia, I’m truly worried about the security in Landingzet, as I’m sure you are. In scarcely more than a single month, we’ve had rebel naval guns shelling Garden Street and a mob storming the consulate.”

“I will inform Mother and have a small squad of the Twilight Gold Guard sent here to protect Liv. This is the only option left. I must ensure Her Majesty is absolutely safe.”

The previously sluggish Julia suddenly stood up to protest, her eyes wide despite the dark circles beneath them.

“Tess, there is no need to call for any Gold Guard. I have already ordered the Republican Guard to station their most elite squad in the nearby apartment buildings for a twenty-four-hour watch. They will handle any sign of trouble instantly!”

Tess laughed.

“The Republican Guard is great at suppressing civilians and massacring Bauer’s family, but when it comes to actual combat capability… I’m afraid they aren’t even as good as mercenaries. If you had said you were bringing in a squad of elite sailors, I might have managed to keep a straight face.”

Julia immediately slumped back down into her seat.

It was true; the Republic’s army was entirely propped up by mercenaries.

Before the Algao Treaty was signed, the Republic didn’t have the Duchy of Tiro as a buffer.

Wars with the Kingdom often took place on the lands of the various lords situated between the two nations.

The Republic could usually sign contracts with numerous mercenary groups, easily pulling together over 10,000 men to form great phalanxes on the vast plains to counter the steppe cavalry.

The Republic could even reorganize the small number of cavalry owned by the mercenaries, concentrating them to face the Kingdom’s riders head-on.

But the Republican Guard?

They would likely fall apart during the march before even leaving the Republic’s territory.

To date, the only recorded instance of the Republican Guard fighting tenaciously was during the ancient defense of Landingzet against the elven invasion.

Back then, the Landingzet garrison wasn’t even called the Republican Guard.

Consequently, many people felt the modern Guard was being quite shameless by forcibly claiming that piece of history as their own.

Julia waited a moment, seemingly regaining her composure before continuing her rebuttal.

“The Twilight Gold Guard cannot come. Even if they enter in civilian clothes, it will provoke resentment among the citizens. Tess, you have to understand that this is a sensitive time. We cannot do anything that puts the elves in a negative light.”

Tess thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

“But the consulate really isn’t safe anymore. If another rumor about elves ruining the Republic comes out and brings another 100 or 200 thugs to storm our consulate… to be honest, the maid corps won’t be able to stop them. Liv and I would probably be thrown out the window just the same.”

Julia nodded, reluctantly admitting the point.

“Yes. That’s why I will immediately arrange for a squad of guards to keep watch outside the consulate every day; they will serve as the first line of defense and can hold out for a while. Additionally, I’ll have two elevated falconets installed within the city walls that can fire directly onto the street. Honestly, they shouldn’t be able to climb the consulate’s high walls anyway. The Kingdom’s consulate was only overrun because their gates were wide open and they were completely unprepared.”

“If that’s still not enough, I will persuade my father to move you and Liv to a safer location—next to the Governor’s Mansion, for instance.”

Liv chimed in at that point.

“If it really comes down to it, let’s just move into the capital ship. I heard the luxury lounges are finished. Hehe, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to live there?”

Living and working on a ship sounded rather romantic.

Julia crushed that beautiful fantasy.

“It’s hot and humid inside the ship. You won’t be able to sleep well at all. Even for a captain, the happiest days are the ones spent with feet on solid ground.”

By this point, they were all feeling quite drowsy, as these matters were rather tedious.

Tess asked a maid to bring some snacks and honey water.

The three of them sprawled across the sofa, munching on sugar cookies.

None of them wanted to move, practically sinking into the cushions.

It was as if the sofa were quicksand, slowly sucking their bodies in.

Julia was the first to startle awake.

She hastily pulled herself out and looked at the sofa with lingering fear.

‘Does this elven sofa have some kind of magic?!’

She then looked at Liv and Tess, who were already buried deep in the cushions.

They were about to be devoured by the sofa monster!

Liv’s hair was completely embedded in the inner edge of the sofa, and her upper body was being slowly absorbed by the backrest, her suspended waist gradually collapsing.

Her hips and thighs sank inch by inch, like a fawn trapped in a swamp.

Julia turned her gaze toward Tess, who seemed to be gripping the armrest with all her might to keep herself from falling in.

As Julia watched, her mind became more and more muddled, her vision blurring until she finally let out a scream.

“Eh? Sister Julia, what’s wrong?”

“Julia, have you lost your mind?”

Julia felt the world spinning.

She was currently slumped on the sofa, looking at a concerned Liv and a disgruntled Tess.

‘Was that a lucid dream just now?’

She didn’t even remember closing her eyes.

Or had everything changed after a single blink?

Julia felt so tired and sleepy that she could barely pull herself up from the sofa.

‘If only I could stay in this cozy nest forever… even with that idiot Tess, it’s better than being alone.’

Liv had a servant bring some mint drinks and handed one to Julia.

Julia greedily inhaled the scent of the prepared mint, feeling her mind clear significantly.

It also reminded her of what she still needed to do; they had been so caught up in the discussion that she had forgotten the most important thing.

She pulled an exquisite, silver-white circular box from her coat and handed it to Liv.

“Liv, this is a pocket watch I had custom-made in the Duchy of Tiro. As Her Majesty the Queen, you must be meticulous in handling official business, and you can’t do that without knowing the time. Take this pocket watch for now. Its daily error isn’t much; just remember to adjust the time in the morning based on the bell from the mountain. And remember, you have to wind it every day!”

Liv took the smooth, egg-like watch and clicked open the gold cover.

Fixed to the inside of the lid was a winding key that could be pulled out.

Next, a vibrant enamel dial came into view, with every marker inlaid with a different colored gemstone.

The delicate hour hand moved as gracefully as a musical note, and its tip was also set with a tiny gem.

In the very center of the dial, Liv Livyat’s name was engraved.

Most ingeniously, the back of the pocket watch also had a hinged cover that could be opened to reveal a small mirror made of mother-of-pearl.

The pocket watch was as dazzling as a gemstone necklace.

“Thank you, Sister. From now on, I can be like those important people and tell everyone exactly what time it is in the morning.”