Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 892

The Sixth Sense Signal

Ian lay sprawled on his desk, watching the mages at work. Since it was the ‘Magic Department,’ he had expected things to be bursting and flying around, but it was surprisingly still.

Most of the mages were engrossed in paperwork, running around to get seals, and arguing over who had made a mistake.

“Are you out of your mind? Who handles work like this?”

“You stamped the seal like it was for decoration, that’s why–”

The two mages, who had been arguing loudly, paused at the unfamiliar presence. They had noticed five-year-old Ian, who was lying on the desk with his eyes sparkling, and their colleagues around him, sending warning glances that said, ‘Cut it out.’

‘You crazy bastards, there’s a five-year-old here.’

‘Shut your mouths.’

‘Don’t act like you usually do. Ian Hadel is listening.’

‘Haven’t you heard that you can’t even drink cold water in front of a child?’

‘If rumors spread that Ian Hadel learned something weird after coming to the Magic Department, we’re all dead.’

Fzzzt! The mages’ eyes flashed menacingly, and the two awkwardly coughed and shook hands, as if trying to make amends.

“…Friend. If you handle work like this, I’m going to be in a lot of trouble.”

“Oh, yeah. I see. Then you should have done it right from the start, shouldn’t you?”

“So, you’re saying, let’s do this?”

“Wanna follow my lead?”

Clench. A silent battle of strength disguised as a handshake quietly took place.

As the two slowly walked away and disappeared, Ian, looking quite intrigued, rested his chin on his hand and watched until the end. So, that’s how they handle work.

He wasn’t assigned any tasks yet, but someday he would have to do his part in the Magic Department. He had to keep everything in his eyes and mind.

“Oh, my?”

Arena, who was heading to the Minister’s office, stopped abruptly when she saw the state of the office.

“Hello, Minister.”

“Oh, yeah. How was school?”

“Yes. Thanks to you……”

Arena narrowed her eyes and looked at the mages. Ian Hadel sitting at an empty table? Okay. A mountain of snacks piled up on it? That was okay too.

But, wait a minute…….

“Why is the desk arrangement like this?”

Originally, the desks were placed facing the walls. They already didn’t like looking at each other, so there was no need to face each other even while sitting, right? The basic arrangement was to be as far apart as possible, with wide gaps between them…….

“What’s wrong with the arrangement?”

At Ian’s question, the mages coughed instead of answering, pretending not to know what the Minister was talking about. As if they were too busy to understand the Minister’s words.

“…Ha.”

Arena looked around at them with a dumbfounded expression. Weren’t all the desks forming a circle around Ian Hadel? What were these guys trying to do?

Only Ian, who thought the office structure was originally like this, blinked as if wondering what the problem was.

“Um— Minister, aren’t you busy?”

“Oh, yeah. I saw another stack of documents being delivered earlier.”

Stop with the nonsense and hurry up and leave. The mages were trying their best to politely send the Minister away. It was in front of Ian. They were trying to maintain their dignity as senior mages, while appearing as calm as possible.

“Busy… I am busy… Goodness. I’m speechless.”

“……”

“Is Ian Hadel going to be here all day today?”

“Ah, yes.”

Ian straightened his posture and answered.

“They said that today I should learn the structure and layout of the Magic Department, then eat all the cake here and go home.”

To wander around and play, then eat delicious things and go home.

“And tomorrow, I’ll learn about the Magic Department’s garden management.”

A sunny day, enjoying the warm sunshine in the garden with a picnic.

“The day after that, I’m supposed to learn how to operate the Imperial Palace gates, how to create and maintain barriers, and how to communicate with each department.”

Go up to the gate and look at the scenery outside, then go around each department and get showered with affection under the guise of a welcome greeting.

“And if there’s some time left, they said they’ll take me to the central branch of the Magic Department to teach me about the profit structure.”

Oh. So, the mages are saying they’ll go out for a picnic when they have time? That’s how it sounded to Arena.

Anyway, they’re going to buy and eat all sorts of delicious things, see fun sights, and they’ve planned a pretty packed three-day schedule, right? Arena raised her eyebrows, looking satisfied, and replied.

“You’re starting off incredibly busy, Ian Hadel.”

“No, I’ll work hard!”

“Oh, you’re full of spirit. Okay! Then, good work!”

“Um, but Minister!”

“Yeah?”

Arena, who was about to turn around with a bright smile, stopped in her tracks.

“Um… I heard that Kkyu caused an accident.”

“Ah.”

That damn dragon. Thanks to him, there was a hole in this quarter’s budget. As Arena’s expression crumpled, Ian carefully asked again.

“I was wondering if Kkyu did that because of me.”

No matter how much he thought about it, it was too strange to be a coincidence. The children who had taken him to that garden were all buried under debris and taken to the hospital.

At this, the mages, who had been pretending not to listen and doing other things, stopped writing and perked up their ears.

‘What is he saying?’

‘I don’t know.’

They whispered to each other with their eyes. Everyone held their breath and eavesdropped on Arena and Ian’s conversation.

Arena tilted her head as if pondering what to say.

‘Because of him.’

So, something had happened.

She couldn’t fully grasp Kkyu’s intentions either, but she thought there must have been a reason. But seeing Ian Hadel’s reaction now, it seemed definitely related to the child.

“No.”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s not. So, don’t worry about it.”

“Ah……”

But Arena ended it there and turned around again. She had a mountain of work to catch up on.

Ian scratched his cheek awkwardly, watching Arena disappear around the corner.

“……?”

And then he noticed the mages staring at him and made a puzzled expression.

“What’s wrong?”

Were they not all working? At Ian’s question, they all finally came to their senses and buried their faces in their documents.

Only the sound of pens scratching quietly filled the office. Ian sat back at the table, eating his cake and watching the mages work.

“Ian Hadel.”

“Yes? Do you need me to do something?”

Do something? What could they possibly ask him to do? He was just a five-year-old who had just started his first day! The mage waved his hand wildly and carefully asked.

“Did something happen at Energes?”

“…No. Nothing happened.”

“I’m in charge of the dragons. It would be good if you told me.”

That was a lie. Kkyu had already settled in the Magic Department a long time ago and was enjoying a free life, wandering around here and there. The Magic Department only took care of his food and sleep, so there was no need for a position like ‘in charge’.

“In charge of dragons?”

“Yeah. So, will you tell me?”

Tell me, tell me, tell me! The mages repeated that in their minds, their eyes sparkling, and Ian, looking a little troubled, took a big bite of cake and covered his mouth.

But the mages weren’t going to give up here. The five-year-old’s stubbornness was impressive, but the mages who had survived for years in the Imperial Palace were not to be underestimated.

Swoosh.

The mages pulled up chairs and sat down next to Ian.

Ian was surrounded by mages in no time. He rolled his eyes and put down his fork, but there seemed to be no way out.

“Ian Hadel. This isn’t just because we’re curious about your day.”

“That’s right. Why would we be curious about that?”

“Of course, of course. It’s definitely not just simple curiosity.”

“Dragon duty is a very important part. Telling us about Kkyu and the series of events you know is not gossip or anything like that. Right! It’s a kind of work report.”

“That’s right. A work report.”

“As a member of the Magic Department, you absolutely have to do it.”

“Right! Do you think we want to know? It’s procedure.”

The mages’ pressure was slowly tightening. When Ian leaned back as if a little surprised, the mages quickly changed their attitude. They quickly put on natural smiles and changed the atmosphere.

“Okay, okay, if you’re uncomfortable, just briefly. Okay?”

“Well……”

As Ian hesitated and tried to bring up what had happened at Energes, the mages put up a sign that said, ‘Meeting in progress! No entry!’ and locked the office door. Along with a small note that said, ‘Interference will result in a strike!’

* * *

Thud.

As soon as Arena opened the door to the Minister’s office, she felt the urge to close it again. No, wasn’t it supposed to be ‘a stack of documents’?

The pile of documents on her desk was so high that it blocked the window. She took off her coat and threw it down carelessly, and her aide caught it in mid-air, as if used to it.

“I’m so sick of this. Where did this come from this time?”

“It seems to be from the Imperial Defense Department.”

“The Imperial Defense Department?”

Arena frowned. They were the ones who were most eager to disrupt the current atmosphere of the Imperial Palace.

What was it this time? They were saying they needed to deploy a large number of troops to the north. Just thinking about the officials raising their voices at the conference because of that made her head hurt.

‘His Majesty the Emperor would definitely oppose it, but I wonder if they have any justification…….’

The Imperial Defense Department’s request for additional troop support was a move that threatened the imperial authority. It would be a heavy burden for the Emperor, who was on high alert, trying to slowly shift the balance of power to his side.

Moreover, the Defense Department had also requested support from the Magic Department. It was under the pretext that the minority tribes in the north were a community centered around sorcerers.

Of course, Arena had flatly refused. First of all, they were short on manpower, and it was closer to a simple state of tension than a war or a local conflict.

‘If they send support troops to the north this time, it might really turn into a war. The Imperial Defense Department wants that.’

They would have to participate if that happened, but why now? Arena’s position was that she wouldn’t step into a game they were playing for their own benefit.

She quickly flipped through the papers and frowned when she found something.

“What’s wrong?”

“Am I too tired?”

“Shall I get you some medicine?”

“No, the Imperial Defense Department is asking to draft Ian Hadel?”

“What?”

The aide also checked the documents, wondering what this was about. He read the words aloud, looking dumbfounded.

“Ian Hadel is not a necessary resource for the Magic Department at the moment, so even if he is drafted, there will be no disruption to the Magic Department’s work. It is not a war but a draft for the purpose of strengthening the border in the north, so the risk is low. On the other hand, there will be countless opportunities for growth in magical abilities… Above all, Chrony of the bloodline will be with him to ensure his safety, so the Magic Department should respond to this and take it as an opportunity to broaden his horizons……”

Arena was speechless for a long time before muttering.

“Are these guys crazy?”

The kid was five years old. He had only experienced the flow of the seasons five times since he was born. And they were taking a kid like that, what? A draft? To the battlefield?

“I feel like my common sense is being destroyed.”

“Yes. It seems obvious that we should refuse, but—”

The aide also trailed off, unable to speak easily. He had sensed the Imperial Defense Department’s despicable intentions.

“We shouldn’t answer lightly.”

There must be a hidden intention. If they accepted Ian Hadel’s draft, they would gain something, and if they refused, they would also gain something.

“So, you’re saying that we can’t give an obvious refusal like ‘he’s too young’?”

“That’s right.”

Arena agreed. It smelled fishy. She thought they must have prepared a rebuttal for that.

“Also, I feel like they’re constantly pushing us into a corner. This is already the second request for support, isn’t it? If we refuse this as well, I don’t know what the Imperial Defense Department will do……”

“Ah, this is a headache.”

Arena pressed her temples and narrowed her brows.

“Ha, seriously, those bastards……”

“I’ll postpone the reply for now.”

“No, no, request a meeting with the Imperial Defense Department. Let’s talk it out, with words. It’s a waste of paper to send notes like this.”

It would be easier to meet them directly, figure out their intentions, and cut off any parts that crossed the line right there.

“Let’s go head-to-head.”

At Arena’s instruction, the aide bowed his head and left the room.