Chapter 1253

“Y-Your Grace! Why?!”

Baron Raunt had been slapped across the cheek, yet rather than getting angry, he simply looked bewildered.

“You foolish man! Do you not even know how tirelessly the mages of the Empire’s magic academies devote themselves day and night?!”

“???”

Not only the baron, but everyone nearby as well (Professor Garcia included) looked flustered.

Generally speaking, the nobles of the Empire were not particularly close with mages.

And if those mages happened to be from a magic academy?

An already distant relationship became just a little more distant.

Unless the noble house itself was an old and distinguished mage family, this was more or less the usual attitude ordinary noble houses had toward magic-academy mages.

-Ugh! I hear another Einroguard mage caused trouble again! Mages, honestly!

-Did you hear? Apparently His Grace Duke Ikalderen was recently imprisoned at Einroguard and only barely managed to get released after paying an enormous amount of gold.

-H-how could such a thing happen!? Does the Empire have no laws at all?!

-They claim His Grace committed a crime and had to pay compensation, but who would believe that? There is no way someone as generous and benevolent as His Grace would ever commit a crime!

Neither too close nor too distant.

That was the attitude ordinary noble houses took toward magic-academy mages.

They could not deny the necessity of such people, yet at the same time, somewhere deep in their hearts, they feared them and found them unsettling.

Duke Bellaron was a great noble and famous as one of the Emperor’s confidants, but he was neither a mage himself nor a knight known for working closely with mages.

Naturally, everyone had assumed he would generally side with a noble rather than a mage...?

“P-please don’t do this. I was the one making an unreasonable request.”

A flustered Professor Garcia tried to stop him.

Not understanding why the duke was taking the professor’s side only made Garcia feel more uncomfortable.

But Duke Bellaron was sweating profusely and glancing around nervously, as though someone were watching him.

“You! Apologize to the professor this instant!”

“I’m telling you to calm down.”

Duke Bellaron tried to seize the baron by the collar, but Professor Garcia intervened before he could.

The moment the professor grabbed the duke’s arm, his body became completely immobile, as though it had been wedged between massive slabs of rock.

‘????!’

The duke did not train his body himself, but thanks to the alchemical elixirs he regularly drank and the artifacts he constantly wore, his physical abilities were comparable to those of a knight.

Because of that, Duke Bellaron briefly wondered whether he had drunk something wrong or whether one of his artifacts had malfunctioned.

“I-I’ve calmed down, Professor.”

“Ah. I’m sorry. Did that hurt?”

“Not at all! Not at all!”

Duke Bellaron stared in horror at the clearly defined fist mark that had appeared on his sleeve.

He had rushed here in a panic after hearing the news, but had this baron actually looked at the fist right in front of him and still thought being rude was a good idea??

‘The lunatic!’

“Hurry! Apologize right now!”

“I... I’m sorry, Professor. For... the selfless devotion... of magic-academy mages...”

Baron Raunt apologized tearfully.

It was not easy to maintain his pride when the duke he trusted and respected was berating him. It felt as though his entire world were collapsing.

“I-it’s fine. I’m telling you, I was the one making an unreasonable request.”

“Please use the hall we rented as much as you like, Professor!”

Duke Bellaron seized the opportunity and shouted loudly. Sweat poured from his forehead so heavily that no matter how often he wiped it with a handkerchief, more immediately appeared.

“...Your Grace. Has someone been pressuring you from behind the scenes? The Principal, perhaps...”

Professor Garcia was no fool.

With the duke suddenly sweating bullets and behaving like this, there was no way the professor could fail to sense that something was strange.

Duke Bellaron practically jumped.

He was normally famous as one of the most elegant gentlemen in the capital, but right now he looked as anxious as a prisoner about to be dragged to the execution ground.

“Absolutely! Absolutely not! What in the world are you talking about? What do you take the honor of Duke Bellaron for?”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“No! Don’t apologize! Please! Take back the apology!”

“......”

Professor Garcia fell into confusion.

‘What in the world is going on??’

Even if the Skull Principal had gotten involved, it probably wouldn’t have been this bad.

***

-I-I’m sorry.

“How dare he! Your Highness. Tell the duke that every single time Professor Garcia apologizes to him, I’ll report it to His Majesty the Emperor!”

“...A-all right.”

Uman nodded and sent Duke Bellaron a telepathic message.

Even from a distance, they could see Duke Bellaron jump in alarm. Lee Han smiled in satisfaction.

“Now that’s much better. Thank you, Your Highness.”

“Jowrin too! Jowrin shall try it as well!”

“Haha. That’s not a bad idea. Here. Give His Grace a stern reprimand...”

Uman wanted to stop her, but Jowrin had already sent the duke a telepathic message.

After being directly reprimanded by two of the Emperor’s own children, Duke Bellaron staggered weakly like a straw doll.

Since Uman knew just how highly respected this duke normally was in the capital, it was impossible not to feel conflicted at the sight.

...Your Majesty. Duke Bellaron is a highly renowned duke in the Empire and is respected by many people. Uman is not certain whether it is right to order him around so freely like this.

Uman secretly sent his thoughts into the paper. An answer came back almost immediately.

Foolish child! That man comes from a house that was raised precisely to do this sort of work.

!!!!

The Emperor explained coldly.

Unlike the great noble houses that had earned their positions through contributions made during the founding of the Empire, the title of Duke Bellaron was one of several titles created specifically for the purpose of controlling the nobility.

Someone needed to bear the grand signboard of being the Emperor’s confidant, take care of miscellaneous errands, and serve as a spy who gathered information from the loyalist nobles.

-Wouldn’t you, the most dependable young one, like to do it?

-I shall yield the honor to our teacher, who brought the divine relic.

-...If neither of you wants to do it, I’ll simply assign it to someone else. There will be plenty who do. Watching the two of you push the Emperor’s duties onto a dragon and then politely yield them back and forth makes me want to burn the pact and everything else with it.

Remembering an unpleasant old memory, the Emperor scolded the disappointing and inadequate child.

You are speaking of a man who inherited a destiny of living in luxury and enjoying glory his entire life in exchange for handling a few trivial matters like this! You. Foolish Fourth. You do not even know whom you should pity! No wonder you remained ignorant of the evil-god subjugation despite serving as the Inspector!

......

Uman’s face turned deathly pale at the severe rebuke.

The Emperor disliked all nine children to roughly the same degree, but especially disliked children like Uman who said irritating things such as, ‘Uman does not wish to become Emperor, but Uman would still like to help with the affairs of the Empire.’

Was this some kind of joke?

I’m sorry! Uman’s thinking was shallow.

Of course it was shallow! If you are weak enough to be fooled by tears like that, resign as Inspector immediately. What do you intend to accomplish with such judgment?!

Uman sincerely reflected on his mistake.

When they had first approached Duke Bellaron, handed him the paper, and explained the situation, the duke had looked as though the sky itself were collapsing.

Two of the Emperor’s direct children had come in person to convey the Emperor’s order, and that order had been to hurry and stop the noble who had invited him. Of course it must have felt like a bolt from the blue.

But if Uman truly wanted to help with the Empire’s affairs, he could not allow his heart to soften simply because he saw such a reaction.

After all, wasn’t the only reason House Bellaron had been able to live in luxury without any particular justification because the Emperor had secretly supported them from behind the scenes?

To pity him over suffering nothing more than this amount of humiliation.

Even if he suffered a hundred times as much humiliation as this, Uman should not have wavered.

If you waste a busy dragon’s time by sending thoughts about such useless matters again, I will not forgive you. Reflect on yourself!

Yes...!

Having reflected, Uman raised his head and looked at Jowrin’s contractor.

The sight of Lee Han mercilessly hounding Duke Bellaron suddenly looked different.

‘That’s right. Uman should have been that cold-hearted as well!’

Uman was so moved that he overlooked one important fact.

The duke who had been created specifically to control the nobility was currently being used simply to help a single mage...

***

When every noble who had planned to attend voluntarily declared that they would donate the various expenses and materials needed for the gathering, Professor Garcia felt both delighted and frightened.

What in the world was going on??

“Phew. Next is...”

Go to Oculoguard...

“Yes?”

Lee Han, who had planned to check Valdrogard first just in case, paused at the Emperor’s voice.

“Will Valdrogard really be all right? Professor Garcia did write that they would be the easiest, of course, but letting your guard down is always...”

“I think they’ll be fine.”

“Jowrin thinks the Valdrogard people will be fine as well.”

“It would be better to go to Oculoguard.”

Once Uman, Jowrin, and even Professor Voladi said so, Lee Han could no longer argue.

“Ghk. If those Valdrogard bastards betray us, Professor Garcia’s heart will be shattered... But wasn’t Oculoguard already recruited?”

“W-well, about that.”

Paridim spoke up.

The Oculoguard student, who had been left half-stunned after watching a renowned duke of the Empire being used like a chess piece, had only just managed to recover.

“At Oculoguard... there was... some... anger over the threats.”

“Ah.”

Lee Han and the other Einroguard students froze.

Now that they thought about it, what they had done had been less like persuasion and somewhat closer to threatening them.

“It seems less ‘close to threatening’ and more like it was simply a threat...”

“Ahem. Your Highness. Please don’t be so quick to decide that.”

When Jowrin muttered, Lee Han quickly cut her off.

After all, wasn’t truth something that could look different depending on the point of view?

“So, Paridim. Are you saying there may still be some people who are a little angry?”

“I’m sorry. ‘A little’ was something I added myself. There may be people who are very angry.”

“......”

Lee Han reflected deeply.

There was a reason people said those who lived by the sword would die by the sword.

To think something he had done in a hurry would now come back to trouble Professor Garcia like this...

“I’ll go first and apologize.”

“What? That’s, um...”

Paridim wondered whether that was truly a good idea.

The higher their status, the more sensitive Oculoguard mages were to foresight, and the people invited to Professor Garcia’s gathering this time would be at least professor-level...

Would it really be all right for people like that to meet Wardanaz?

That is a good idea. Go...

“Thank you!”

The Emperor’s encouragement gave Lee Han the final push. Lee Han immediately prepared to move.

Wait...

“?”

Take the duke’s carriage... It is comfortable and well cushioned, so it should be convenient for traveling around...

“Th-thank you?”

Even Lee Han had not expected this degree of consideration, so his response came out slightly flustered.

Having taken—no, borrowed—the duke’s carriage, Lee Han tilted his head and asked Uman,

“Isn’t His Majesty being a little too kind to me?”

“No! In Uman’s view, you are more than qualified!”

“What? I don’t think being qualified has much to do with riding someone else’s carriage...”

***

Whenever Oculoguard’s mages arrived in the capital, they preferred to stay in the mausoleum district in the northern part of the city.

There were several spires there, creating an environment well suited to concentrating on foresight.

At the very top of a tower so silent that one could have heard a needle drop, they quietly performed divinations.

“Power. Storm. Approach.”

“Escape?”

“Power. Storm. Capture.”

“Then how should we respond?”

“Apology. Acceptance. Participation.”

“Cryptic!”

The foresight mages focused on the puzzling divination.

Something extremely dangerous, something that would be difficult even to flee from, was approaching them, and yet the only response was apparently to accept an apology and participate?

“Below. Carriage. Stop.”

“Who is it?”

“Duke Bellaron’s carriage. No need to pay attention... It’s Wardanaz! He’s coming this way!!”

Professor Marhajin shouted as the color drained from his face.

That immense sensation that had shaken his foresight when he had seen the Einroguard student locked inside the punishment room during his previous visit was now rising from beneath the tower!