Before the start of the second year’s first semester.
Because of an incident in the Papal State, our vacation was severely cut short, but that didn’t mean we had no time to rest at all.
If there hadn’t been any time, I wouldn’t have ended up here.
Political matters can’t take precedence over a student’s education, but Alice wanted to resolve this issue without drawing too much attention from others.
We couldn’t hide the fact that the Emperor’s seat was now empty. Alice had become the Crown Princess, and I had taken the top position in the Empire. In fact, by the time we held the coronation ceremony, news had already spread widely among the citizens, and the nobles were all aware of it too, so there was nothing we could do about it.
The Emperor’s plans had never been publicly disclosed. Probably, they never would be.
He had a scheme to usurp the Goddess’s power and dominate the world? Surely some citizens would be tempted by that story, and if that happened, it could undermine Alice’s political base. The majority of the nobles could also be at risk.
No matter how much the pro-Emperor nobles are, they don’t want to become the Emperor’s slaves, so they won’t support him out of such an intention.
Aiming to control the world through the use of the Emperor as a pawn, they wouldn’t have made nobles into slaves either, so from the nobles’ perspective, the Emperor’s plan was absolutely unsupportable.
On the contrary, considering the Emperor had practically ruled with an iron fist, he would be looking for an opportunity now that he was no longer in power.
However, it would be troublesome to keep the Emperor outside the Empire. While it’s unlikely that the Emperor himself would be used as a pawn in foreign political games, it could establish a reason for anti-government organizations to operate under that guise. If some commoners who’ve never even spoken a word with the Emperor organized a terror group under the pretense of inheriting the Emperor’s body, it would be a real headache.
In the end, our conclusion was to ensure that, at least on the surface, the Emperor could live safely within the Empire.
That way, it would look like we had “inherited” power.
However, we weren’t thinking about throwing a grand welcoming ceremony for the Emperor. We planned to bring the Emperor to a quiet place, and if anyone nitpicked later on, we could use that as justification.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
After a brief visit to Velbur, the day we were returning to the Imperial Capital. Charlotte was there to greet us at the train station.
The train itself was an ordinary one. Even though I was the top person in the Empire visiting Lutetia, it was an unofficial visit, and since it was a top-secret mission, the train shouldn’t stand out at all.
In fact, the time was not even one when trains usually run. It was completely midnight, and although it had passed midnight, it was still too early to be considered dawn. We even chose a day when the moon wouldn’t be out.
Still, the train would inevitably run with its lights on, so it wouldn’t go completely unseen.
Fortunately, there were many freight trains running between the Imperial Capital and the Kingdom. There were postal deliveries on the route too. It wasn’t particularly strange for a train to run at this hour.
“If anything, I want to ask you. Are you okay staying awake this late?”
“Are you joking? I’m not a kid.”
On a winter night, Charlotte came out to the station, dressed in a thick winter coat.
Of course, the fact that Charlotte was there was unofficial too.
“We’ve made significant efforts to prevent information from leaking, but I can’t be certain it was perfect. There are eyes and ears in the Kingdom and the Imperial Capital. The rumor that a crucial prisoner we’ve been managing for a long time has disappeared will definitely spread.”
So we took the train. Among the transportation methods in this world, there are very few that can match the speed of the train, except for planes.
“I’m aware.”
When I replied calmly, Charlotte nodded.
“Well, I don’t think anything major will happen.”
“Still, I’m not going to let my guard down.”
I answered that way as I turned to look back.
“Right, we’ve prepared pretty hard ourselves as well.”
“If such a situation arises, I am confident we’ll be able to face it.”
Claire and Leo chimed in with a word each.
Grace’s Estate was still firmly pro-Emperor despite the change in leadership. Since the beginning, Grace’s Estate has been on the Emperor’s side without paying much attention to such political issues. That’s why they have been able to survive until now.
“Moreover, there are many others on the train besides us.”
Indeed, there were more people aboard who were quite reliable.
“…Focusing too much on what’s outside the train is also dangerous. The people inside the train are also extremely dangerous individuals.”
Probably reflecting from her experience as the Princess of Velbur, Charlotte said that.
“My father seems a bit disappointed, but personally, I feel pretty relieved now that it’s come to this. The guy who tried to turn the world against itself and pull it down from under him and his gang are leaving Velbur.”
“I will manage it strictly so that such things don’t happen again.”
“…There’s no need to go that far. At least, we received a reasonable level of compensation, didn’t we?”
And that compensation was decided to be paid from the royal budget, not the Empire’s national assets. They’d pay it not all at once but in portions.
To be precise, it was a premise that “the Emperor smashed the Papal State, so hand over the cost to rebuild it,” but given the Papal State was practically ineffective now, the representatives receiving the funds would be the royal family of Velbur.
Since there was some justification tied to the money, we can’t just throw it around recklessly, but if we make various excuses, it would be easy to change the usage. There were things the Papal State had done to the Kingdom, so it should be permissible to “repair” some of the Kingdom with “Papal State’s money.”
“It’s a bit painful for the royal family.”
“Well, it’s a choice that can’t be avoided if we want to avoid clashes.”
By squashing the incident with the royal family’s money instead of the Empire’s funds, it would be hard for the nobles of the Empire to object. Because the “royal family’s authority” is just as important as the “nobles’ authority.” If a noble meddles in the royal family’s affairs, it’s as if it is saying the royal family can meddle in the noble family’s matters too. Rather, it would provide a rationale for the royal family to meddle even more strongly and crudely.
On the flip side, from the Kingdom’s perspective, after all, they did receive compensation, so it would be hard to complain.
Even among friends, it’s important to separate work and personal matters, so Charlotte responded firmly but soon wore a longing expression.
“Well then… it seems we won’t meet again until April.”
Now that Alice had become the Crown Princess, Charlotte also had to receive matching education. Since Alice would be the next Emperor, having her friend Charlotte as Queen would hold various advantages for both countries. While the Kingdom was considering that, it seemed they were also trying to prevent Charlotte from becoming too much of an Imperial figure.
“On the contrary, once April arrives, we can meet again.”
Upon hearing my response, Charlotte smiled softly.
“That’s true.”
Charlotte also wanted to continue attending the academy she had been going to.
Once Alice and Charlotte both became the Emperor and Queen, the chances of the two of them facing each other would be almost nonexistent.
They might have occasional summits, but personally visiting another country would be tough unless there was someone to fill in the palace later.
…Or maybe not, who knows?
In any case, that’s a matter for four years down the line. Plus, it’s uncertain when Charlotte would become Queen.
So, there’s no need to worry about that now.
We should simply enjoy our remaining school days to the fullest.
We’ve still got three years left.
“Oh right, and since Leo and I can personally drop by again.”
“If that happens, please make sure to let me know beforehand. The Lutetia Palace will always be open to friends.”
“That sounds good.”
Charlotte’s words brought a smile to Claire’s face.
*
“Finally made it in, huh?”
As I boarded the train, the voice of an old man filled with dissatisfaction welcomed me.
“It takes a lot of preparation for a train to depart, doesn’t it?”
“Your answers are becoming increasingly arrogant as the days go by. Have you finally revealed your true colors?”
Well, one could say that, I guess.
There was no longer anyone freezing up at my smiling face.
Or was it? It seems those who weren’t particularly close to me were still a bit scared.
If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn’t have bothered with any concepts from the start.
Honestly, I was a bit deflated because everyone adapted way too quickly compared to what I expected.
“Have you spoken with the persons inside?”
“I spoke briefly.”
Besides the Emperor, three of the Emperor’s children were also on the train. It seemed the Sword Saint took quite a liking to Lucas. It seems he wants to mentor him, but… I’d rather he didn’t take such dangerous actions.
“Lucas’s skill is already better than your master’s, isn’t it? There’s no need to go out of your way to teach him or anything…”
“I think he could use a bit of training in character, though.”
“Not like your character is that amazing—”
Smack!
For a moment, stars appeared.
And it wasn’t even outside the train.
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