TL: Zimming
âMaybe, maybe we shouldnât blame that blondeâ¦â¦ weâre wrongâ¦â¦.â
Sitting on the bed, I looked at Isaac as he talked with a reluctant face.
ââ¦â¦Iâm sorryâ¦â¦ Maybe⦠I donât know.â
âThatâs it for this conversation.â
I quickly lay back in bed posing as a child in a casket. I didnât forget to put my hands neatly on my chest.
âIâm sorry!â
âIsaac is right, Leblaine.â
âYeah.â
ââ¦â¦.â
I got back up again. My familyâs expression was so sad that I felt a bit guilty, but I canât do it.
If I become weak, I have to carry over a hundred escorts in the future.
Itâs terrifying for others to hear, but it was my family members who even brought out mage when I disappeared for about an hour or two.
âIt was Adrianâs birthday today.â
âThe second prince.â
Johann corrected me, so I nodded with a weary face.
âYes, second prince. Itâs the second princeâs birthday today, so I just went out for a while to give him a present. I brought him out, so I should be scolded, right?â
ââ¦â¦.â
ââ¦â¦.â
ââ¦â¦.â
ââ¦â¦.â
The four had a grumpy face, but they couldnât answer because they were afraid Iâd be back in bed without a blanket.
âThis canât continue.â
Because they were too stubborn.
âShould I use the last resort?â
I used the last resort two years ago, which was running away.
I couldnât get any training in the temple, so the mages of Dubbled helped me.
Mana and divine power have similar attributes, but ultimately, it was a different force, so the mage who used mana could not understand divine power perfectly like the temple.
Thatâs why Iâve been on the verge of death for several days with a fever during training.
Dad, Henry,and Isaac had run wild seeing me. When I barely opened my eyes, the mage was in danger of being decapitated. Soâ¦â¦.
âKid. Your body hasnât recovered yet so rest well. What are you doing?â
âIâm packing.â
âPacking?â
âLeblaine will look for my real parents.â
âWhat?!â
âBye, dad. Bye, Henry and Isaac.â
âW, w, waitâ¦â¦!â
At that time they were stunned when they heard it and couldnât do anything.
I only let go of my bag after dad let go of the mage.
âThatâs really tiring. Oh, what should I do?â
As I was thinking about what to do, the quick-witted Henry quickly said,
âYes. We were too much, I admit it.â
Then I got the bag hanging on the wall, which I was looking at carefully, and threw it to Isaac.
It was only then that Isaac realized that I was contemplating the last resort.
I narrowed my eyes and shook my head.
âReally?â
âReally.â
âSo youâre going to apologize for being mean to the second prince?â
At my words, Isaac coughed loudly and said,
âWe didnât say any mean wordsâ¦â¦?â
âYou said I was too good for him, and he cannot be trusted.â
âLook, that wasnât much!â
Isaac nodded with a happy face. Then he said, âIâm glad I held it in.â Hehe must have cursed him inside.
âLooking at the prince like a worm, criticizing the situation. Itâs a bad thing to do.â
When I said so, Henry turned to dad and Johann with a troubled face.
Johannâs eyes were fixed on my bag hidden behind Isaac. He was so expressionless, he didnât show it, but when I saw his eyes trembling, he seemed quite shocked.
Well, Johann was not there at the âIâm going to run awayâ incident, so it would be very surprising for him to go through it for the first time.
As soon as my brother became mute, the adult stepped in.
âWill money solve it?â
What?
I looked at my dad with a dumb expression.
âYouâre apologizing with money?â
âYes.â
âHow?â
âI will compensate the second prince with what he needs most.â
My brothersâ expressions brightened up because of my fatherâs words.
âThatâll do!â
âYes.â
âItâs settled.â
Then he put me in bed and covered me with a blanket. They look very relaxed.
âSleep tight under the covers.â
âDonât kick the blanket.â
âLet me know if you need more blankets.â
When my family who raised the blanket up to my neck left the room, the servants were happy and followed them.
Remaining alone in the room, I looked at the door, stunned.
***
A few days later.
When I heard from the Chairman, I was drinking juice and coughed.
âReconstruction of the Empress Palace?â
âThatâs right.â
Adrianâs mother, Empress Elsa, died and the palace was left unattended for more than a decade. To make matters worse, its appearance was greatly damaged after a typhoon hit the country.
Originally, it would have to be repaired immediately for the dignity of the imperial family, but after the death of Empress Elsa, the center of attention was Empress Yvonne. So the late empress was forgotten.
âThereâs no reason to rebuild the Empressâs Palace right now. What was the emperor thinkingâ¦â
âItâs not the emperorâs idea.â
âNo wayâ¦â¦.â
I looked at the chairman with a troubled face, and he nodded lightly.
âItâs His Excellencyâs idea.â
âOh, my headâ¦â¦.â
I held my forehead.
They will apologize to Adrian with money. Oh, this is it.
It seems that he incited the nobles with money to put the reconstruction of the Empressâs Palace as their agenda.
âDonât tell me the cost of reconstructionâ¦â¦?â
When asked, the chairman replied, âYes.â
This was an advantage for Adrian in many ways.
Anyone who hears the news that the empress Palace will be rebuilt will think of Adrian, the empressâs son.
Adrianâs status would be elevated just because he was firmly embedded in peopleâs minds.
Of course, the emperor will think of Adrian in connection to the empress.
Moreover, since Adrian has earned the rebuilding cost from Dubbled, how happy the old emperor must be.
With this attention, Empress Yvonne couldnât touch him easily.
Above all, it was important that Duke Dubbled brought up the whole thing. Itâs as if weâre hinting at supporting Adrian.
âDad compensated him too much.â
But itâs a good thing for Adrian
âWhat a foolâ¦â¦.â
I was surprised.
I really didnât think they would apologize this way. I was just trying to make it difficult for them so that they would realize to not offend others just for my sake, but how much did they spend?
âI guess they really didnât want to apologizeâ¦â
As I muttered, the chairman added, âNever.â
âItâs good for Adrian, but did it have to be rebuilt?â
There could have been ways to spend less money and bring about better effects. Giving them many teleportation scrolls, or increasing the transaction of suwon with the imperial family a little more!
The emperor is a formidable old man, but thatâs enough.
âA friend is a friend, and money is money.â
I donât want to buy a friend with money. I stared at the chairman,
âIâll have to do something.â
âHuh?â
âThe money my father sows, Iâll reap it for Dubbledâs benefit.â
ââ¦â¦How will you do it?â
It was time to step up my preparation toward Dubbledâs independence.
âHereâs a problem: What should we do with an empty palace?â
âIt needs an ownerâ¦â¦ no way!â
I grinned as the chairman realized.
âYvonne needs someone to fight against. It would be even better if I could make her empress.â
âBut donât you already have the support of Duke Marche? With Duke Marcheâs support, Empress Yvonne is ours.â
âThat was only until he found Mina.â
If Mina comes, Duke Marche will notice that I am not the real child of fate heâs looking for.
Even if Dubbled emerges as a powerful family beyond Marche until Mina arrives, as long as Marche has Andre, a prince who was likely to have the throne, their situation might be reversed.
âI will make Adrian emperor. Andre canât do it.â
That Andre is a crazy guy.
Unfortunately, even if Dubbled becomes independent, that madman will wage war against us when he becomes emperor.
âWe need an empress to support Prince Adrian.â
âYes. Letâs give the emperor a present. Itâs time to distribute the power of the inner palace.â
The chairman grinned with a wicked look on his face.
âIâll have a list of candidates ready. Oh, by the way, lady.â
âHuh?â
âI received a bill of payment from the fountain pen shop in the shopping district to the hope mercenary guild.â
âOh, thatâs what I bought.â
I sent it to the palace.
Adrian was very happy.
The chairman left to make a list, then, with a bright light the deer, Pur, appeared.
[How long are you going to hold me back! I have to make your wish come true so I can go back!]
I had forgotten about it. Because Adrian transferred me some divine power, it was easier to keep the devil.
âWhatâs your wish?â
When asked, Purâs face brightened up.
[Your heart.]
âNo.â
Having said that, I swung my hand to make Pur disappear.
âThink of another wish.â
A few days later, the chairman made up a list and brought it to me. Swish, swish, flipping through the paper, I saw many ladiesâ information and tilted my head.
âShe doesnât have enough backing. Itâs so different from other candidates. Why did this person become a candidate?â
âShe is an influential lady in the East. Although she is not a priest, she has divine powers to heal sick and poor people. After all, no lady comes from a family comparable to that of Empress Yvonneâs. The support of the people is great. Wouldnât she be great?â
[Cecilia Olga]
Looking closely at the name, I nodded, âAha.â
âItâs Saint Cecil.â
I couldnât think of it right away because she was more often called âSaint Cecilâ than her name.
I read her information slowly. She was a really good person.
âSomeone who would love to be Adrianâs protector. A great candidate⦠⦠huh?â
âDoes this person have a relationship with my dad?â
âYes, she was a knight who worked under the command of master when she was young.â
I hardened and looked out the window at my dadâs office.
âRecently, sheâs looking for a child by visiting the orphanage. The name of the child Iâm looking for is⦠⦠.â