"Princess Mariana, Princess Corelia, and Duke Ashford are waiting outside the palace!”
Just as Mariana was thinking carefully about how to use Lelouch's genetic factors to combine with her own egg and use the test-tube baby technique to cultivate a more outstanding bloodline, a maid's report came from outside the palace, waking her up from her thoughts.
"Yes, I know!"
The banquet should be ready!
Mariana thought to herself and instructed the maid beside her,""Tell Archduke Ashford to wait for a moment.”
"Yes, sir!"
After the maid left, Mariana turned to look at Corelia and Lelouch.
"Go in and change your clothes. Although I don't have many friends, Duke Ashford is like my father. We can't be rude!”
"Yes!"
Cornelia also knew about the relationship between the Ashford family and Queen Mariana. Their financial group was Mariana's backer. However, with Mariana's outstanding military achievements, she was promoted from a sergeant to a knight. The Ashford Financial Group, which was responsible for developing the humanoid combat armor Knight Mare for Mariana, also received the title of nobility and became the Ashford family.
As the empire went into war with other countries, the performance of the Knight Mare became more and more outstanding in the war. It was especially suitable for fighting in modern cities and was an important weapon for the expansion of the Bunitania Empire.
After the Sixth Knight became the Fifth Consort of the Empire, the Ashford family also rose with the tide. They gradually controlled the main production rights of the Empire's Knightmares and many first-line technical developers of Knightmares. The original main battle weapons and armor of the plains were replaced by a large number of human-type free combat armor knights. Currently, most of the humanoid guided weapons in Bunitania's army, the third-generation humanoid battle armor Knight Mare Ganymede, was developed by Ashford Financial Group.
The Ashford family had also risen from the initial count to the current duke. Now, their relationship with Mariana had become one of prosperity and destruction.
At the same time, because the Ashford family and Mariana were too close, the royal family and the old nobles who suspected Mariana's identity as a commoner were also full of hostility towards the Ashford family.
One could imagine that once Queen Mariana lost her current status, the Ashford family's ownership of Kingthmare and the many first-line technical developers would become a big cake for the other nobles and consortiums.
The Ashford Family was also very clear about this, so they spent a lot of money to befriend the middle and lower classes of the Empire and the rising nobles. Among the royal family, there were also royals like Cornelia who had a good impression of Mariana and were charmed by her personality. Therefore, the Ashford family had very good interpersonal relationships at all levels of the empire.
After changing into formal attire, the noble imperial consort and princess brought the main character of the banquet, Lelouch Jr., and left the heavily guarded palace under the escort of maids and guards. They made peace with the Ashford Family's head, the Ashford Guild, who had been waiting outside the palace.
"Greetings, Princess Mariana, Princess Corelia!”
Archduke Ashford, who had been waiting in the cloister of the palace, was slightly surprised to see Princess Cornelia, the second princess of the Empire, who was accompanying Mariana. However, he immediately thought of the relationship between Princess Corelia and Queen Mariana, and felt relieved. He respectfully placed his right hand on his left chest and bowed.
In the empire, the royal family was the noblest. They were the only masters of the country.
"There's no need to be so polite, Archduke Ashford. It's been a long time since we last met, but you're still as handsome as ever.”
Mariana, who had changed into the imperial dress, looked extremely graceful and luxurious, showing the demeanor of an imperial concubine. After a year of living in the palace, she had finally adapted to the change of identity from a knight to an imperial concubine after leaving the battlefield.
Archduke Ashford was affected by Mariana's temperament and became even more humble and submissive. Now, it was no longer the time when Mariana had just graduated from the officer academy and needed to rely on the Ashford family.
Mariana was now the fifth imperial concubine of the empire and the most trusted person of the emperor. She entered the palace as an imperial concubine and Bismarck assisted the government as the first knight. It would not be an exaggeration to say that half of the foundation of Sharulu's personal rule as the emperor was due to these two people.
The more he felt the difference in status between the two sides, the more respectful Archduke Ashford's attitude became.
Princess Corelia, who was standing beside Mariana, turned her gaze from Lelouch, who was in the wet nurse's arms, to Archduke Ashford, who was bent over and waiting respectfully by the corridor.
Just as Princess Mariana had said, although Archduke Ashford was already over 50 years old, he was exceptionally strong both mentally and physically. He was clearly different from the other nobles and the royal family.
It was said that they were once nobles of the Empire. However, they chose the wrong side during the first battle, so they were stripped of their noble titles. Now, it seemed that this was true. This was because the archduke clearly had the aura of a noble that had been accumulated in history.
This kind of temperament could not be accumulated with money.
The archduke had the standard Britania face, standard white skin, standard blond hair, blue eyes, and shoulder-length hair that was slightly curly. He maintained the hairstyle habits of the ancient nobles, and his bright eyes were filled with wisdom. Although his fair skin was well maintained, a few wrinkles could be vaguely seen. The luxurious duke's clothes did not have any unnecessary decorations, but they were abnormally well-fitted and filled with a classic charm.
The archduke was also holding a walking stick in his hand. It was made of the best pine wood, and the top of the walking stick was inlaid with a gem with the Ashford family's seal. It was the symbol of the archduke as the head of the Ashford family.
This was a true noble Grand Duke who was impeccable in both temperament and appearance.
" I'm sorry," Cornelia commented to herself. At the same time, she raised her hand gently like Queen Mariana. She had accepted the archduke's greetings. As the second princess of the Empire, this was enough for her.
It not only displayed the pressure of the royal family, but also reflected the demeanor of the second princess of the Empire.
"This must be the main character of our banquet, Prince Lelouch! What an adorable prince. I hope that His Highness will be as brave and strong as you, Princess Consort!”
After meeting Princess Mariana and Princess Cornelia, Archduke Ashford straightened his body slightly and looked at the baby in the nurse's arms. Needless to say, this baby was the son of Empress Mariana, the 11th Prince of the Empire, and the 17th heir to the throne.
Lelouch VI Bunitania.
"Haha…Lelouch will definitely be happy to receive the Duke's instructions! However, I just hope that he can grow up healthily. I really hope that the war will be over when he grows up.”
Mariana covered her mouth and smiled. With a doting expression, she gently stroked Lelouch's head in the wet nurse's arms.
Lelouch opened his bright eyes and looked at his mother. He giggled as if he was echoing Mariana's words.
"It should be about time. We can't let the guests wait!”
"Yes, Princess Mariana and Princess Corelia. The carriages and guards are ready. We can set off at any time!”
A female attendant who was waiting with Duke Ashford stepped forward and bowed to report. Although Archduke Ashford was waiting for them personally, Mariana and Cornelia still had to travel in the royal family's own convoy.
As a member of the royal family, the tools, guards, and various aspects of defense were naturally handed over to the royal personal guards.
The huge royal convoy left the palace in a grandiose manner and headed towards the Empire Hotel. Archduke Ashford, who had booked the Empire Hotel as the host of the banquet, followed behind with his own convoy.
The Empire Hotel was a hotel directly controlled by the royal family. It was a place for nobles and the royal family to hold banquets. Without a certain status, no matter how much money one spent, it was impossible to get the reception of the Empire Hotel.
The hotel had a combination of modern and classical architectural styles. It only had ten floors, but it was as tall as a 100-meter-tall building. The huge circular building looked like an ancient Roman arena. There was a circle of white marble carvings standing outside. On it were paintings of various victories and successes since the establishment of the empire. Bamboo green plants covered the entire exterior of the hotel. Looking down from the sky, it looked like a mysterious symbol.
This hotel was one of the top three hotels in the world. Even a duke would not be qualified to book the entire restaurant. Moreover, the money required was not something an ordinary duke could afford.
In the entire empire, there were only a handful of people who could do such a thing.
The Ashford Family happened to have such terrifying financial resources. In addition to being the fifth princess of the Mariana Empire, as well as Lelouch's status as the 11th prince and the 17th heir to the throne, they definitely had the qualifications.
Stopping at the entrance of the magnificent Empire Hotel, Duke Ashford was the first to get out of the car and wait in front of the seats of the imperial consort and princess. He was lucky that he could rush from the back of the 100-meter-long motorcade to the entrance of the hotel so quickly.
After waiting for the maids and guards at both ends of the convoy to get off, they added another layer of impenetrable defense to the already heavily guarded Empire Hotel. The Imperial Concubine's personal handmaidens, Chief Officer, and dozens of handmaidens lined up and opened the doors of the Imperial Concubine and the Princess.
The red carpet was made of the best satin and was laid all the way to the innermost part of the hotel. Night fell, but the colorful lights illuminated the place as if it was daytime. Under the illumination of the lights, the beautiful imperial consort and the noble princess each supported a maid who was guiding them. They carried the little prince in the wet nurse's arms and slowly walked into the hotel.
All the nobles and officials on Mariana's side rushed forward to meet the Imperial Consort and Princess. They also gave their blessings to Prince Lelouch.
Of course, this kind of blessing was not just verbal. It also included an extremely expensive material 'gift'. Among them, the most generous one was naturally the host of the banquet, Archduke Ashford. He gave Lelouch a huge amusement park worth billions and a sky garden that was about to be built in the Palace of Aries as a full moon gift.
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