“Hmmm.”
I left the Emperor’s residence feeling rather complicated. In my hand was a scroll passed to me by the Emperor.
▶ First, become stronger than Ether.
▶ Second, become more precious than Hedera.
▶ Third, become more devout than Solana.
▶ Fourth, acquire more wealth than Chain.
▶ Fifth, reach a higher magical realm than Neo.
When broken down simply, the Emperor’s options came down to two: either solve the prerequisites and escape from being a ‘pathetic man’ or just die.
Excluding the fifth item, the difficulty level was bordering on impossible, but what could I do? If I didn’t want to die, I had to try. I couldn’t just let my terminal illness end in vain.
I chewed on Sunweed and muttered,
“…In the end, I couldn’t even mention just letting it go.”
There was, in fact, one even more important fact at present.
─How on earth did I manage to win over the hearts of all the daughters?
Yes, the Emperor certainly said it.
The five prerequisites were presented not by the princesses but by the Emperor, and he suggested conditions instead of attempting to kill me… The implication of such clues could only point to one possibility.
‘Are the princesses positively considering this marriage?’
…All five of them?
In terms of circumstances, it certainly seemed so. Quite enough.
While it could be extremely good news, I felt rather complicated at the moment. After all, the Emperor was already far beyond the realm of human thought.
What worried me most was the friction that might arise between the princesses and the Emperor. If they, who could be said to be at the top of their respective fields, were to oppose the Emperor, the aftermath would…
Imagining the chaos it would cause in the continent was nothing short of horrifying.
Somehow, the future of the continent rested on my shoulders.
It was too late to back out, and I couldn’t just brush it off, so the only way to wrap this up without any damage was to successfully complete all the prerequisites. That was the situation I found myself in.
“Hah.”
I let out a deep sigh and shook off my worries.
There was no point in fretting over concerns and anxieties; it’d be a hundred times more helpful to recall what I needed to do and the positives instead.
The Emperor once said,
─If my daughter gets a husband, well, he probably won’t be terminal.
Although he said it indirectly, the meaning behind the Emperor’s words was clear.
If by chance I were to marry a princess, it meant he would help with the terminal issue I was currently experiencing.
“Well, it’s not impossible.”
Muttering this to myself, I headed back to my accommodation.
Huuuh
I let out a long puff of Sunweed smoke.
Tomorrow was going to be a very busy day.
The next day.
“We have arrived!”
Nodding at the cab driver’s shout, I got off. The ground beneath my feet was in the Imperial Capital, near the Imperial Magic Tower in the bustling district.
The Magic Tower was so tall that I couldn’t even see the top with my naked eye, towering buildings, floating objects in mid-air, and passersby dressed in robes and hoods befitting mages…
It was certainly an ambiance brimming with magical charm.
Chewing on Sunweed, I checked my schedule tucked inside.
“The Inspector of the Magic Tower’s inauguration ceremony is tonight.”
While I didn’t intend to make it a grand affair, it wouldn’t make sense to show up without knowing anything. After all, it would be my workplace for the time being, so I wanted to survey the area.
But then…
Clunk!
As soon as the carriage that brought me here took off, a much larger carriage replaced it.
And then, out stepped a very familiar figure.
“Solana?”
The Face of the Empire, the Angel of the Empire, Solana.
She too widened her eyes when she spotted me.
“Oh, Teacher?”
Trying to hide her identity, she had her hood pulled tightly over her head, but it was no match for her unique sun-colored brightness. I asked her,
“What brings you here? What about the Sanctum?”
Solana was undoubtedly the greatest Saintess of the Empire. No matter how many external activities she had, it still couldn’t compare to the days she spent in the Sanctum located within the Imperial Palace.
But Solana just smiled.
“There are plenty of other priests in the Sanctum, so it’s alright. Someone has to go around relying on the Sun God’s mercy and doctrines. I’m just the one doing it this time.”
“I see.”
“By the way, Teacher, what a coincidence to run into you!”
“That’s true. But you must be busy too. Let’s catch up again when there’s a chance.”
As I turned my body, suddenly…
“Wait, just a moment! Teacher!”
Solana quickly blocked my path.
“This kind of coincidence is rare…! Have you had a meal?”
…
“…Ah, that’s great to hear that the conversation went well.”
In a restaurant in the bustling district, while chewing my food, Solana quietly nodded her head. I had just finished telling her everything that happened with the Emperor.
Of course, I couldn’t tell her everything verbatim.
I put it as simply as “The conversation itself wasn’t bad,” with a few conditions attached.
It wasn’t exactly a lie. Considering the Emperor’s temperament, the conversation went quite well.
I spoke while munching on Sunweed.
“Why? Were you worried about me?”
“It’s only natural for me to worry about you, Teacher. Isn’t that right?”
Solana asked me with an unexpectedly bold tone.
It was as if she was stating something as obvious as the sun rising in the morning and the moon at night. Her confidence made me feel a bit embarrassed for joking.
“Well, still. What if you chase after me, setting your work aside?”
“Ah, no. We ran into each other by chance. You clearly saw it with your own eyes just a moment ago, right? I just happened to get off the carriage.”
The world doesn’t call that chance.
I was about to say just that when I chuckled instead.
Every time I observed her obvious lies, I felt like I was looking at the younger version of Solana, which warmed my heart.
‘It seems like she was really worried.’
While pretending it was a coincidence, Solana must’ve come chasing after me because she was genuinely concerned about my conversation with the Emperor.
Solana cleared her throat a couple of times.
“More importantly, I have something important to tell you. About two things.”
“Alright. Speak comfortably.”
Thanks to her hood being pulled snugly, thankfully, no one in the restaurant recognized her. I had plenty of time until dinner, anyway.
“First of all, you might find your situation difficult.”
“Not situation, but residence.”
“Residence. Residence. That’s what I said. Was my pronunciation weird?”
Solana awkwardly laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. She probably didn’t realize her face was as red as a tomato.
“Why would the residence be difficult? Isn’t there a dormitory in the Magic Tower?”
“Oh, I do have something to say about that.”
Solana pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket.
“I checked how many spots there are in the dormitory and how many rooms are left… I investigated everything beforehand. Now that the topic has come up, let’s take a look at it again.”
As she began to read the paper from top to bottom, her eyes gradually narrowed.
“…Uh? This can’t be.”
Finally, her expression grew serious as she spoke in a very earnest tone. Her eyes were filled with shock and concern.
“Teacher, what do we do? There are no rooms left.”
How could that be?
Solana smiled brightly.
“But don’t worry! I just got a house nearby because I have so much to take care of, and it turned out to be unexpectedly spacious. If it’s alright with you, let’s stay there together.”
“Let me see that.”
“…”
Lick Solana quietly licked her bottom lip.
Switching her gaze back and forth between the paper and me, she suddenly started to look twice as shocked as before.
Her hands trembled, and her eyes widened almost double in size.
“What should we do…? Teacher, there really are no rooms in the dormitory.”
“I told you to let me see.”
“…”
In the end, I used telekinesis to yank the paper over.
Upon looking at it, I saw that the dormitory wasn’t just full; it was practically empty. I wondered why on earth there were so many vacancies.
“There’s plenty of room.”
“…”
Solana sneaked a glance away from my gaze.
It’s not that I didn’t want to stay with Solana.
But there were simply too many factors to consider before rushing into such a situation.
What would happen if it became known that the Saintess, with nicknames like the Face of the Empire and the Angel of the Empire, was living with a man?
…The repercussions would undoubtably be enormous. Also, I had pressing prerequisites to solve, leaving no time to waste.
“Let’s think about living together later. For now, the Magic Tower matters come first.”
Surprisingly, Solana blinked her eyes as though she heard something unexpected.
“…Oh? Have you become interested in the Magic Tower matters now?”
“Somehow, it ended up like that.”
I found myself in a position where I had to solve the Magic Tower issues with plenty of interest. Otherwise, I would end up dead.
My gaze turned toward Solana, who was now sparkling with curiosity.
“So, what’s the second story?”
“Oh, the second story.”
Solana nodded as though she remembered something.
“The second is about the inauguration ceremony happening tonight.”
“My inauguration ceremony?”
“Yes. While the residence issue is important, it was also this that made me determined to run into you by chance. It seemed like an important matter.”
…Determined to run into me? She’s confessing that she deliberately chased after me; how can she not realize that? It seems she no longer has any intention to hide it.
Anyway, this time Solana pulled out something from her pocket.
“…”
Before I knew it, I narrowed my brows slightly.
What she pulled out was nothing less than an envelope.
“Look here. Two letters for you, Teacher.”
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