Chapter 209

The spirit infusion had finished, and with the support of Jeilliris, I exited the Magic Guild of the Imperial Palace.

The sky was blue, and white clouds drifted lazily.

It was midday.

“I must return and battle with the documents. As punishment for causing misunderstandings among the citizens, I will order you to a two-day confinement; now, you should return and rest.”

I nodded absentmindedly and followed Jeilliris toward the Main Palace.

The Guild was located on the east end of the palace, and the Secondary Palace was on the west; in any case, we had to go together to the Main Palace.

A cool breeze blew, refreshing for summer, and occasionally clouds obscured the sun, keeping it from being too hot.

Naturally, it was Jeilliris’s doing.

Pretending not to notice, I subtly moved closer and saw that her sleeve had been splattered with blood.

“Your Majesty?”

As I pointed it out, she clicked her tongue and waved her hand, and it was completely erased.

“But why are your fingers like that?”

“My fingers are… huh?”

Her right hand’s middle and ring fingers had become translucent.

The ground was visible beneath her fingers.

“!”

I gasped and reflexively recalled the original appearance of my hand, and thankfully, my fingers returned to their opaque state.

“It seems to be a phenomenon similar to that of dark magicians’ spirit forms. There is no major problem, but I shall prefer wearing white gloves from now on.”

“Do as you wish.”

A moment later, Jeilliris muttered.

The roof of the Main Palace became visible ahead.

“I am making you more and more like a burden.”

I pondered for a moment before responding.

“It is an honor.”

After escorting Jeilliris to the office, just as I was about to return to the Secondary Palace to accept my confinement, I encountered a couple in the hall.

“Valenciaunos?”

“You’ve returned safely!”

Helena, clad in brass-colored armor, had red eyes sparkling like jewels, her expression as if she might explode from happiness.

The warm atmosphere of joy rose and swirled above our shoulders.

Having spent nearly a month daily with the central knights, the brass knights, and at the encampment, and engaging in military activities many times, it was understandable.

On the other hand, Hadrian looked nearly dead.

His blue eyes had lost their light and were spinning around.

Even his black briefcase and glasses appeared overly heavy.

I thought it essential to find out what had happened over the past few days, so I asked them.

“Is there a serious problem in the capital?”

* * *

Helena nodded with a bright smile.

“You can rest easy. Valenciaunos. The noble alliance formed by Marcus has been completely dismantled, and everyone has returned to the capital. Of course, the escort only numbers around 100. Duke Seberic and Count Cariosa returned to their hotels and encampments without major clashes.”

I let out a deep sigh of relief.

It seemed that the remnants hadn’t banded together to fight to the end, nor had the high nobles drawn blades against each other in this situation.

“What about the Church?”

“There were no serious issues with the Church either. At least, no military actions were observed. The paladins are quiet. I can assure you of that.”

“And the citizens?”

In an instant, Helena’s face stiffened.

“There was a minor disturbance after Lady Trentia carried you into the Imperial Palace, but it has since been resolved safely. You need not worry.”

It was likely complete chaos.

They might still be gathered in front of the Imperial Palace now.

Having wrapped up the military situation, I turned to Hadrian.

He began to wail half-heartedly before I could say anything.

“I feel like I’m going to die. Valenciaunos. The prices in the capital are soaring like crazy.”

That much I had anticipated.

“The great lords are fighting among themselves, so the merchants are too scared to come, leading to a shortage of supplies, while the citizens are hoarding everything they can at night markets.”

I had expected that too.

“As a result, prices are rising even more, and now the bandits looking to make a quick buck are starting to crawl out. The Black Iron Knights and the constables can barely stop them from being seen by the high nobles.”

…This was still within the realm of expectation.

If the bandits were bold enough to act in such times, they were likely tied to the council members or court nobles.

Thinking I’d need to send a letter to Captain Barbatos, Icontinued listening to Hadrian.

“Moreover, Marcus is currently analyzing the value of the territory he has given, and it’s not an easy task.”

“What’s that?”

Hadrian gave a rough explanation of the procedures regarding noble statuses.

He said they were assessing the value of lakes, forests, villages, and cities, and determining pensions accordingly.

“The bureaucrats he brought are trying to get even a single coin more, while we have to cut it down as much as possible. But we know nothing about that region, so we can only give them what they ask for.”

Thinking back, it still seemed like the right approach.

I frowned for a moment before speaking.

“Can’t we just check the average income from his territory for a year and give him a percentage of that net income?”

Hadrian’s expression lightened as if he had met the God of Radiance.

“You’re a genius! Valenciaunos!”

“What are you making such a big deal out of?”

* * *

I left the Main Palace after receiving the greetings of Hadrian and the bureaucrats.

Next to the Main Palace, a carriage and a baggage cart had stopped, and a familiar face descended from the carriage.

With long navy blue hair and mismatched eye colors, it was Sererassie.

“Sister?”

“Valenciaunos! You’re safe! I’m so glad you recovered.”

Her yellow eyes were beaming, and her blue eyes scanned me from tip to toe.

As a fellow seasoned magician, she must have noticed something different about my energy.

“Thank you for saving me. I must have been quite tense in Marcus’s military tent.”

“It’s okay. I’m a genius magician, so I could recover quickly. Oh, or did you hope to hear an apology for leaving you behind?”

A mischievous smile lingered on her lips.

“You’re overly self-conscious, sister. Fix that quickly. It’ll turn into an incurable disease if it gets worse.”

Sererassie pretended not to hear and turned her head.

“The birds are singing beautifully.”

“I only hear the screams of the bureaucrats.”

She chuckled, and I motioned at the briefcase she was holding.

“Did you usually carry such a bag?”

Sererassie shrugged her shoulders.

With an expectant smile.

“It’s a list. I’ve brought everything I could get from Marcus right away. I have to report to His Majesty what I’ve brought.”

“Oh.”

“Especially, the spells related to gravity were truly amazing. I’m going crazy wanting to research them as soon as possible! If it’s combined with the Icarus pearl that Count Cariosa gave, it will create the best flying magic tool.”

She seemed quite excited.

Despite her cold and refined beauty, she was even stamping her feet like a child.

I felt a thrill at the contrast with her calm navy blue hair and said, “That’s great.”

She cocked her head like a cat.

“Huh? Is there some scheme behind this?”

Ah… this is why I dislike perceptive magicians.

“What scheme? What do you mean?”

“You’re not exactly the type to say ‘I’m glad to hear good news about me,’ right?”

I conveyed the words I heard from Jeilliris.

“…So after receiving a territory of count status, you absorbed Marcus’s magic engineering division entirely, but we cannot simply leave that in his hands. He needs to learn something else to advance further.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“You’re the only one who can connect Marcus with the Ivory Tower while also understanding and applying his magic engineering techniques?”

In an instant, Sererassie froze like an ice statue.

“…”

I could feel the complex calculations running through her mind just by looking at her eyes.

“If an academic discipline like magic engineering, where magicians become entrenched in manufacturing, develops, it’s likely that magicians will be weeded out like when they created the Magic Chariot back then, right?”

Her mismatched eyes gleamed coldly.

Even though the tension of a first-rate electrocution magician was conveyed, I shrugged and smiled nonchalantly.

“Well, I suppose we’ll have to produce even more than now. We can increase the admission quota for the Capital Magic Academy, provide more funding to hire your students, and find more land to build large guilds. Of course, in that process, individual magicians might be treated more like artisans than scholars, but who knows what the future holds?”

Sererassie bit her lip in frustration.

“And to prevent that from becoming the standard in the magical world, His Majesty would need fantastic results that would encourage him to find quality over quantity in the magic engineering division.”

The magic engineering division was weaker than expected.

In that case, to be of use, they could increase the number of personnel in the division.

Taxes would be invested in related sectors, and more magicians would transform into artisans.

Conversely, if the magic engineering division was sufficiently strong, keeping the numbers wouldn’t matter.

There wouldn’t be additional investments in sectors, and magician artisanization would not occur.

Now seeing that Sererassie was adept at such calculations as well, I felt both proud and bitter.

“Exactly!”

“And even in cases of joint investment or exchanges with the Ivory Tower, controlling Marcus while producing results ultimately falls to—”

“To you.”

“To me!”

We said it simultaneously, chuckling bitterly.

Sererassie gathered blue current around her index and middle fingers.

“Y-You disgraceful bandit of a younger brother! Research is welcome, but why are you throwing this burden at me too?!”

“Uwaaaah!”

“Stop there! Are you going to answer me or not?”

“I’ll share as much as I can! I’ll also work hard!”

“…You know I can’t keep quiet about that, right? Fine. I’m glad you made it back safely once again.”

“Say that again—”

“Right. I thought you’d stop if I said it this way. Now you’re caught, aren’t you?”

“The world!”

* * *

I returned to the Secondary Palace.

Looking at the well-trimmed large evergreen trees reminded me that I had spent more time in the Main Palace without returning home than I had thought.

As I slowly walked through a stone-paved garden on the lawn and entered the Secondary Palace, the door suddenly swung open, and Rudi rushed out.

“Valen-nim!”

Wearing a neatly pressed maid’s outfit without a wrinkle, there were red veins running through her eyes.

She must have been unable to sleep properly and had cried a lot.

Feeling that I truly had returned alive, I hugged her tightly.

“Yes, I’m back. You were worried.”

“Valen-nim, Valen-nim.”

“Thank you. I’m alive because of you.”

“Thank you for coming back.”

I lay on the sofa in the living room of the Secondary Palace and drank the tea Rudi had brought.

I felt completely drained.

Somehow feeling my fingertips and toes becoming slightly transparent, I asked Rudi for gloves.

“Your Majesty Valencia.”

Not long after, my knight entered.

“Lady Trentia.”

She too, likely due to her confinement, was dressed in civilian clothes unlike normal.

Of course, Lady Trentia’s civilian wear looked just as knightly as her armor.

Her short, slightly curly red hair was neatly oiled, and her slightly scratched face looked dignified like a prince from a fairy tale.

She wore a long, stiff white blouse and high boots that reached her thighs, alongside a perfectly pressed red coat.

She naturally wore a belt at her waist and was equipped with a decorative sword and a dagger.

Even from 100 meters away, it was clear she appeared as a civilian knight.

I got up from the sofa and expressed my gratitude to her.

“I heard you risked a lot for me, Lady. I’m truly grateful and sorry.”

She was well aware of her devoutness.

Yet, having fought alongside the paladins for my sake, she had unwittingly caused a great shock.

However, Lady Trentia received my words with her usual, if not more so, dignified demeanor.

“It is nothing, Your Majesty. It was a knight’s duty, and it was a test I must face someday.”

Her words comforted me deeply.

“And I am satisfied with my answer. You need not bear guilt towards me, only as much as one bottle of wine.”

“Hahaha. Very well. I shall bring forth my greatest treasure.”

If loyalty is the knight’s duty, then it is the lord’s duty to willingly accept that loyalty and offer rewards in return.

I decided to willingly accept Lady Trentia’s loyalty.