I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 32

Victoria (2)

The visit to Eton wasn’t something Victoria particularly looked forward to.

She had initially held high expectations, imagining it as a school where the brightest and best of the British Empire gathered.

She had hoped to share stimulating conversations with the students who would one day lead the country, but that, predictably, turned out to be a pipe dream.

As expected, the school visit largely consisted of being greeted by the headmaster and teachers, and being shown around empty buildings and classrooms.

A pang of emotion struck her only when she heard in the welcoming speech how much her father, the Duke of Kent, who had passed away when she was just one year old, had supported the school.

However, after that brief moment, her mother, the Duchess of Kent, took over almost all official interactions as always, and Victoria’s heart grew cold once more.

“Baron, the stairs are quite steep there, please stay close behind Victoria in case she should stumble.”

“Yes, Madam.”

“This meat is rather tough. Would you be so kind as to ask them to replace it with something more tender? Victoria might have trouble digesting it.”

“Yes, Madam.”

“And this is…”

Here we go again.

She never tires of it, starting all over again.

Her mother treats her as if she were a delicate piece of glass, ready to shatter at the slightest touch.

When she tells her not to climb the stairs alone because she might fall, hit her head, and die, all Victoria wants to do is ask if she’s serious. Her imagination is truly astounding.

The Duchess of Kent restricted Victoria’s every move, anticipating almost every conceivable way she could have an accident.

Every time this Duchess of Kent-style ‘considering everything’ routine surfaced, Victoria felt as though she was being reduced to something incompetent, not a person.

“Mother, the meal is lovely. And the students’ classrooms I saw earlier had a certain classic charm.”

“Did they? Well, it wasn’t too bad, but there was a great deal of dust. They cleaned it up because you were coming, but the facilities are so old. What if you become ill from breathing in such stale air? We should spend the afternoon outside.”

“…If I were to become ill from being there for such a short time, then the students who are educated here would already be in their graves.”

“You can’t compare robust male students to fragile you.”

Of course, of course, that’s right.

No matter what I say, it always comes back to taking care of my health, so I’m half resigned to it now.

“What’s on the schedule for the afternoon?”

“There’s a cricket match for the male students. We’ll watch that for a while and then invite a few of the top students to tea. Your mother will take care of everything, so you just enjoy yourself.”

“Yes, Mother.”

To be honest, she didn’t particularly care for cricket.

If she had to choose, she would much rather watch horse racing, and she was even contemplating owning a racehorse in the future.

Of course, at the moment, her mother’s constant fussing meant she couldn’t even get near a horse, let alone own a racehorse.

“Oh, by the way, Mother, did you know? Mrs. Cecilia’s nephew is a student here.”

“Really? Now that you mention it, that’s right. I recall hearing something about that. I should have looked for him when all the students were out there earlier. Since he’s of mixed race, it would have been obvious if I had looked closely.”

“I suppose so.”

She didn’t show it, but she had already located the person she was curious about as soon as she stepped out of the carriage.

She pretended to observe the students, glancing subtly, so as not to make it too obvious.

Perhaps Killian himself didn’t even realize he had caught her attention.

‘He certainly had a striking appearance, as Mrs. Cecilia said. I suppose there’s a reason she’s so fond of her nephew.’

At first, I thought he would look very obviously mixed race, but surprisingly, he didn’t.

Perhaps the Irish blood was more dominant; if you didn’t know, you might not even realize he was of mixed heritage.

If you look closely, it’s as if there are only one or two spoonfuls of Eastern elements added.

Thanks to that, he wasn’t just handsome, but also possessed an exotic mystique.

He’s said to be a year younger than me, so he must be around 13 years old now, but in a few years, he’ll probably turn heads wherever he goes.

After finishing the meal and resting for a short while, John Kit approached and bowed politely to the Duchess.

“The students are gathered on the field. It seems it’s time to go and watch the game.”

“Good. The shade is ready, of course, isn’t it? It’s not particularly hot, but it would be a disaster if Victoria were to get heatstroke.”

“Of course. We have already made all the necessary preparations, so you can enjoy the game comfortably in a cool spot.”

“Good. Victoria, it’s time, let’s go.”

Since my opinion doesn’t matter anyway, there’s no choice.

Victoria obediently pretended to follow her mother and rose from her seat.

I wish time would pass quickly and this tedious period would simply vanish from my life.

Victoria eagerly awaited the day she would come of age as quickly as possible.

* * *

Thwack!

“Woo-hoo-hoo!”

“Run! Run!”

“Catch him! Catch him quickly!”

“The Princess is watching! We have to win no matter what!”

As expected, the stadium, resembling a battlefield, was filled with the shouts of male students.

Every member of the British upper class harbored a fantasy of showcasing their best qualities in front of the beautiful Queen.

The students, as if unwilling to squander this hard-earned opportunity, threw balls and swung bats like demons obsessed with victory.

But unfortunately, according to reliable sources, Victoria isn’t particularly interested in cricket.

It is said that she isn’t very interested in active sports in general, with the exception of horse racing.

So, naturally, she probably wouldn’t be very interested in who’s performing well or who’s winning.

In other words, the people who are desperately obsessed with winning are simply wasting their energy and digging their own graves.

Of course, that doesn’t mean they can afford to perform poorly.

Even if someone doesn’t enjoy sports very much, they can generally tell whether someone is doing well or not just by observation.

However, I’m only 13 years old and haven’t been learning cricket for very long, so no matter how much I hire a tutor and train diligently, I can’t transform into a cricket prodigy.

After considering it from various angles, I concluded that it was too much to expect, even if I had enjoyed playing baseball in my past life.

So instead, I chose to focus on something else.

Thwack!

“Good, Killian! Run!”

“Wow, that guy’s swing is really stylish. Did he spend all his time perfecting his swing instead of actually playing the game?”

“No way. He’s not the kind of guy who’s just obsessed with appearances.”

Sorry, but that’s precisely the case.

Since I’m working hard to make a favorable impression on the future Queen, I should naturally choose the most effective method.

There’s no reason to engage in a cost-ineffective endeavor of stubbornly clinging to victory, defeat, and individual performance.

While naive students were engaging in such a futile pursuit, I dedicated all my time to honing skills that could capture her attention.

A clean bat swing, maintaining a composed expression so that it never contorts even while sprinting, and even the graceful movement of wiping away sweat.

The private tutor I hired at a considerable expense reacted as if he had never encountered such a student before, but he faithfully trained me in the direction I desired, as much as he was compensated.

Furthermore, I selected a spot where my face would be as visible as possible from Victoria’s vantage point, and I remained in that area even when playing defense.

It might appear as though I wasn’t concentrating on the game, but I acted as though I was giving it my all, so no one suspected my true intentions.

Honestly, I didn’t expect to gain favor through something like this, but even if I could create a slightly positive impression, that would be sufficient.

I struggled to maintain an elegant and aristocratic demeanor until the very end of the game.

When I glanced over, I don’t know if it was just my imagination, but fortunately, it seemed as though Victoria was looking at me quite often.

Okay. This makes the hard work worthwhile.

“Wow… Killian is really something.”

“How can he not even frown once while playing the game when we’re running around like crazy?”

It was a bonus to hear the praises, or rather, observations, from my classmates towards the end of the game.

Good. It was only natural.

* * *

After the energetic cricket match, the Duchess of Kent and Victoria decided to proceed with the planned tea time.

John Kit reviewed the record book containing the students’ grades and announced the names of the students who had achieved the highest marks in each subject.

“If they are at the top of their class even at Eton, these children will undoubtedly be talented individuals who will contribute to the development of this country, regardless of the field they pursue in the future. If the Duchess encourages these children, they will work even harder than they do now, which would be beneficial for the future of the country.”

“I agree. However, neither Victoria nor I have much time to meet with five children individually. I was thinking of meeting only one or two. What are your thoughts?”

“In that case… how should we select them?”

“Victoria, what do you think?”

I wondered why she was asking for my opinion for once, but Victoria knew the reason well.

She had noticed her covering her mouth and yawning slightly while watching cricket.

She probably doesn’t find the current schedule very engaging.

The reason she suggested meeting only one or two people was likely because she wanted to leave this place quickly and go somewhere more interesting.

Still, it wasn’t a bad thing for Victoria that the choice was passed on to her.

This way, she could naturally become acquainted with someone she wanted to talk to, at least once.

“I think it would be beneficial to have a freshman and a graduating student. It would encourage the freshman to excel in their studies in the future, and it would motivate the graduating student to continue to improve even after leaving school.”

“Is that so? I thought so too. Mr. Kit, did you hear that? Let’s meet them that way.”

“Yes. Then I will summon the two students immediately.”

“Ah, wait a moment. I’d like to meet those children separately beforehand. If there are any students who could have a negative influence on our Victoria, I’ll unfortunately have to give the opportunity to another student.”

In some ways, it was an unpleasant thing to hear as the headmaster of Eton, but Kit smiled as if he understood.

The Duchess’s fussiness was something that even the King of this country had given up on, so what could the headmaster or students of Eton do?

“Then I will prepare for you to meet with her in advance. First of all, the most outstanding student among the freshmen is Killian Gore, and this child is a truly exceptional talent. Classics, literature, mathematics – he consistently achieves first place in every subject.”

“What a coincidence. I know that child. He’s the nephew that someone I’m close to always brags about. But just in case, I’ll take a look at him first.”

The Duchess of Kent rose from her seat and went into a separate room.

After waiting for a while, she saw the handsome boy who had stood out in the cricket match earlier carefully entering the room.

The Duchess of Kent was secretly surprised once again.

She had paid close attention to him because his posture and demeanor during the game were so perfect and elegant, and now she discovered that this child was Cecilia’s nephew.

The boy, having closed the door behind him, greeted her with impeccable and polite posture.

“I greet the Duchess of Kent. I am Killian Gore, the eldest son of Earl Aaron Back, Arthur Gore.”

“Yes, it’s a pleasure to meet you. You may or may not know, but I am very close to your aunt Cecilia. We are also neighbors, living in the same Kensington Palace [a royal residence in London].”

“Yes, I am aware. I have also heard my aunt praise the Duchess’s wisdom and intelligence extensively.”

“Oh, really? Hearing you say that piques my curiosity. I wonder what she, who cherishes her nephew so much, has said about me.”

Killian shifted his gaze slightly and scanned the room.

Even after confirming that there was no one else present besides the two of them, Killian scratched his head as if slightly embarrassed.

“Well… this is actually a rather private matter and a bit sensitive, but… would it be alright if I shared it with you?”

“It’s alright, tell me.”

Could it be that she was saying such flattering things in front of me and then gossiping about me to her nephew behind my back?

No, even if that were the case, a talented individual who consistently ranks at the top of his class at Eton wouldn’t thoughtlessly confess such a thing to me.

Just as her curiosity and frustration reached their peak, Killian continued in a hushed tone.

“Although people are concerned because His Majesty’s health is not that good, my aunt said that it’s alright because the Duchess is there… She expressed many thoughts along those lines, suggesting that you are a wise and thoughtful person.”

“Ah… …!”

It was a topic that could be infinitely disrespectful depending on the context, but the Duchess of Kent took a deep breath to prevent the corners of her mouth from turning upwards.

If the current King were to pass away, Victoria, who is first in line to the throne, would become Queen, but there are still several years until she reaches adulthood.

So, if she ascends the throne before Victoria comes of age, the Duchess of Kent would naturally be qualified to serve as regent [a person appointed to administer a state because the monarch is a minor or is otherwise incapacitated].

But of course, few people openly discussed this, and even if they did, they would all speak indirectly.

But to say such a thing so openly, even to a nephew who is like her own son.

Doesn’t it seem like it’s more than just lip service in front of me?

“Okay. Thank you for sharing such kind words.”

The Duchess of Kent nodded, attempting to appear as composed as possible.

But it was difficult to suppress the corners of her mouth that kept threatening to betray her, so she subtly raised her fan to conceal her face.

They are not noble ladies who have been navigating society for years, and she is in the presence of a young student, so her emotions will not be revealed to this extent.

Even though he is a nobleman, he is an illegitimate child with mixed Asian blood. If you add a pretty smart head to that, it’s not a bad condition.

Maybe he’ll be a good tool to handle.

The Duchess looked at Killian’s face, which hadn’t changed at all from before, and gave him a kind smile.