Chapter: 814
As always, I was busy playing with my triplets, who were happily chewing and sucking on Jangsaeng, when disaster struck—an unimaginable calamity I couldn’t even begin to process with my simple mind.
“Trixie. What did you just say?”
I asked the bringer of this calamity in a quivering voice. Maintaining a smiling face and speaking in a playful tone was my last shred of sanity. I couldn’t let my kids see me in a serious funk.
“Well…”
Trixie glanced around nervously, slowly lowering her gaze.
“She asked how you feel about inheriting the title of Duke Servette.”
Her eyes showed caution, but her words were downright brutal.
“I must’ve misheard you. I hope this is just a joke.”
Did I hear that right? Dreams like this… uh, could it be a dream?
This is definitely not real; it must be a nightmare I’m having after all that commotion during the duke change. Just recently, I went through a major event regarding the ducal title—why should I have to dream about it too? Especially a bizarre one where Trixie replaces the Duke Servette!
“If it were the Vice Captain, that’d make sense.”
If the Vice Captain announced that he was stepping down to focus on his role in the Imperial Army, now that’d be believable. Ewald, the Vice Captain’s successor, is just like my brother, prepared and ready.
But me? I’m no successor. The only thing connecting me to the Duke’s family is that our last names both start with ‘K’.
“What did I do wrong?”
Before I knew it, rational doubt began creeping in. Had I unintentionally wronged Trixie in a way she didn’t like? Was this some sort of payback?
Did I forget her birthday? No, hers is in February, and I was busy planning her party with a racing heart!
Am I neglecting our triplets? Nah, I was actively playing with them! My wives and I all know that!
Then, maybe I didn’t contact her grandma? Wrong again! I checked in right after the New Year.
“Nothing seems off!”
I wracked my brain but figured I had done nothing wrong. My behavior is theoretically perfect! I am an exceptional husband and father, and I’ve played the role of a good son-in-law splendidly!
“…Why?”
So I asked her directly. What kind of wicked joke was this? What horrific sin had I committed to hear about inheriting a duke title?
The thought alone sent chills down my spine. The title of Count weighs heavily enough; how could I even bear the thought of becoming a duke? It’s an unimaginable burden—one that not even in my wildest dreams would I dare to dream!
In the first place, there aren’t nobles in this Empire dreaming of dukedom! For someone from a family without a duke to even think about it is treason against the Empire!
“I wouldn’t want to pass this burden onto anyone else, my heart wishes I could carry it for a hundred or a thousand years without sharing.”
Saying that, Trixie sat next to me, watching Maria play with Jangsaeng.
A smile bloomed at the corners of Trixie’s mouth, as if sheer happiness radiated from her.
“But it can’t be helped. At some point, this weight has to be passed to our Maria.”
“Whaat?”
Maria perked up at hearing her name and turned toward us.
“Maria, come here.”
“Okay!”
With that, she sprung from her seat and waddled over to Trixie’s arms.
Thanks to that, Jangsaeng was set free, but poor Cecilia, who was next to them, got snagged and became a toy again. Not that it was unusual.
“Someday, our Maria will be a duke too.”
“Probably. Passing on parental titles is unavoidable.”
Seeing Trixie’s slightly bitter expression made my heart feel heavy as well.
Some might wonder, what’s wrong with inheriting the responsibilities of a duke? Why would anyone dislike that?
But I knew the real truth about dukes. They aren’t just powerful rulers; they are leaders who bear responsibility. Even the Wise Duke, who seems to live it up, carries a weight on his shoulders like no other.
The Vice Captain manages a million Imperial troops, the Iron-Blood Duke is a deterrent just by existing, the Gold Duke’s slip-ups can paralyze the Imperial economy, and the Wise Duke oversees food security and interspecies relations. Each and every duke has a weighty responsibility.
“That’s a burden too big for a little child.”
I looked at Maria, giggling and grinning in Trixie’s arms. Watching her made my heart ache even more.
Of course, by the time Maria becomes a duke, she won’t be a little kid anymore. Trixie had mentioned she’d pass down the title one day—so decades would pass before Maria takes that position.
“Ugh, there’s the problem.”
Decades. This includes the hundred years Trixie has ruled plus the time for Maria to grow up. While other families might see dukes change several times in that span, Trixie would have ruled all on her own.
And Maria would inherit Trixie’s legacy and accomplishments. Breaking the strong impression of ‘Duke Servette is a magician’ wouldn’t be easy.
“Now, I understand.”
Slowly, a feeling of complicated dread settled in my chest.
Trixie’s ominous mention of passing down the title was to lessen the burden that awaited Maria. It’s better to inherit it indirectly than to have it thrown on her unceremoniously.
Who the patriarch and lord of a house is determines the mood and atmosphere of the family and territory. If an experienced ruler persists for long, all the vassals will grow accustomed to them. Rules transform into the owner’s control or habits, the old customs set by the master stick around even as time flies.
When an old master who had dominated their family and territory steps down and a new master takes over, the previous ruler’s legacy becomes a ghostly barrier. It stifles the new one— in the guise of tradition and precedent. The weight of this title will grow more substantial depending on how involved the former duke was during their time.
“The next duke will definitely have a hard time.”
I forced a smile, and Trixie’s face turned downcast.
“I’m sorry. I’ve held on for too long…”
“Why should you apologize? It’s not a crime to have elven blood running through your veins.”
This isn’t Trixie’s fault. Her long life is not something to blame.
“Someone’s gotta step up someday!”
I sighed inwardly. Considering the situation, one of us must be the designated “savior” between Trixie and Maria.
If no one steps up, Maria will face the unprecedentedly challenging task of inheriting the family legacy. No one in history has had a ruler or noble endure for over a century.
And sadly, the only one capable of managing the traces Trixie has left without much fuss is me—her equal in status. The only other person who can adjust things so Maria can inherit more easily is her dad, me.
“Trixie.”
“Mm… speak.”
“Lift your head. You’ve done nothing wrong.”
Embracing Trixie, I let out a chuckle.
“Oppa! You’re suffocating me!”
“Oops.”
I tried to hug her but ended up almost squishing Maria in the process!
“Anyway, I get your feelings. It’s about Maria’s future, so I’d likely think the same.”
“You do understand?”
“I’m her dad too.”
Smiling softly, I scratched Maria’s head, and she beamed back as she hopped back into my arms.
The very thought of this innocent child being crushed under the weight of dukedom is a nightmare I can’t even bear to imagine. If it comes to that, I’d much rather suffer in her place.
“But can I even inherit it?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I’m not from the Katoban family. While there are instances where sons-in-law inherit titles or husbands receive their wives’ titles, dukes typically follow strict parent-child succession.”
I posed my valid question, and Trixie silently nodded in agreement.
Dukes are above nobles and are an eternal pinnacle guaranteed by the imperial family. Whether noble customs apply here is a whole different matter. A comic twist with the royal regime doesn’t sound appealing either.
“Honestly, I can’t be sure. That’s why—if you’re okay with it, I was going to talk to the Emperor about it.”
Fair enough. First, we should gather opinions among the people involved, then discuss it with the Emperor, who makes the final call.
If we hadn’t gathered opinions and just dived right to asking the Emperor about title succession, I’d have been devastated by the sorrow of having Trixie attempt to assassinate me.
*
I glanced at the vodka in my hand.
Then I looked at the Minister before returning to the vodka again, repeating this a few times.
“Minister.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Are you perhaps drunk?”
I’m the one who had been drinking, so why is it the Minister who appears to be tipsy?
I was genuinely puzzled. Is he catching a buzz from the vodka fumes filling my office? Was the Minister really that weak to alcohol?
“If you’re drunk, go home and make a scene there. I don’t want to find myself in danger just because you swung your fists around.”
A mere brush from the Minister’s fist could lead me to the grave before I even fully realized it. It could spark a crazy scenario where I become the shortest-reigning Emperor in history, and the Crown Princess ascends to the throne as the youngest Empress or something absurd happens where a retired Emperor regains the throne!
“I apologize, but I’m completely sober.”
“Sober and saying such things?”
That revelation blew my mind. How different could a sober person be from a drunk one?
In a way, the Minister slightly resembled the Wise Duke—always drunk off liquor but was somehow always composed enough not to act foolish.
“Minister. It’s great for a man to have ambition, but setting your sights on the title of Duke is pointless. You could aim for the rank of Marquis, it’s definitely within your reach during your lifetime.”
That said, I decided to put aside my shock and truly comfort him.
I don’t know why the Minister, who had no aspirations for land or titles, would bring this up at all. If he’d asked for a county, I might’ve tossed one his way for a laugh!
But a duke? How could a man of his wisdom even think about it?
“I’ll fetch the map of the Royal lands, so you can choose from the counties. So stop talking about a duke’s whims—”
“Your Majesty, it’s not unheard for a husband to take on his wife’s title.”
“Oh?”
A sigh escaped me.
This guy is serious. He genuinely wants to inherit the Duke Servette title.
“…Why?”
So I asked earnestly. Why, when I’d consider bestowing upon him something nice, does he decide to desire a duke’s spot instead?
“I want to relieve my daughter of some of the burdens she will shoulder.”
“Relieve her of burdens?”
The Minister’s answer drew a puzzled frown from me.
He’s got more than one daughter, but if we’re talking about inheriting the title of Duke Servette, then he’s likely referring to his firstborn, Maria. Meaning his yearning for the Duke’s title relates to helping Maria out in the future.
“Hmm.”
The Wise Duke… adding the royal family into that equation made me break into a cold sweat.
What if, just what if, His Majesty the Emperor ruled for not thirty but one hundred years? What would happen if that illustrious lord stepped down after a century and I ascended?
The gaze of every noble and citizen across the Empire and the entire continent would fixate on me. Every trivial act of mine would be compared to His Majesty’s standard. If I attempted anything, they’d drag up traditions from the Emperor’s time—traditions accumulated not over ten or even twenty years, but during one hundred years—a historical legacy.
“Enough already.”
It wasn’t even a hypothetical anymore; my instincts made me cringe.
No person could bear such weight from the world thrust upon them.
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