The Story Of The Second Son Of The Baron Family [EN]: Chapter 67

“I would like to take one person with me.”

“A person?”

It’s Marquis Zeke, who always maintains a consistent expression. As such, it is not easy to see his expression change. But today, I caught his surprised expression. My request must have been quite unexpected for him.

“Yes. There’s a guy who seems to have a talent for research rather than combat. Upon closer inspection, I think he could produce decent results if guided well, so I’m thinking of keeping him by my side and proceeding with research.”

“What’s his name?”

“He’s called Armin.”

“Armin, you say.”

He doesn’t seem to recognize Armin, which is understandable. He had tens of thousands of soldiers under him, and the number of knights in his direct command alone was close to several hundred.

It would have been difficult to memorize their names, let alone the names of the mages, who were managed separately and in a different domain. Moreover, if it’s a third-year mage who could die at any moment.

“It’s not an unreasonable request.”

“If it were, I wouldn’t have asked in the first place.”

“Good. If he can contribute to something bigger, there’s no reason not to accept. It’s not like losing one mage now will create a gap. Do as you wish.”

“Thank you, Marquis.”

I estimated the probability of rejection to be around 1% at most. The existence of a mage here is like someone who could disappear in a battle that might happen today, someone who could vanish at any moment. Even then, if it were someone else’s request, Marquis Zeke would have likely rejected it outright, given his personality, but I thought this much was okay since I had shown enough results in the meantime.

“Really?!”

“Yes. You’ll be leaving today. Finish your preparations before noon and come to my room.”

“Thank you! Thank you!”

Armin was overjoyed to hear my words, which was understandable. In my opinion, Armin had no talent for combat, if not for theory. He’s been incredibly lucky to have survived here for over two years with all his limbs intact, and now he can leave the Terra Barrier [a dangerous and isolated region], shortening the time by nearly eight years.

Moreover, he’ll be able to conduct the research he’s been pouring his heart into at the Magic Tower, the sanctuary of imperial magic, with full support, so it would be strange not to be happy. Of course, I immediately poured cold water on him.

“Don’t get too excited. I’ve only seen potential in your research, and potential always comes with risks. It’s okay to fail in your research. Failure is the mother of success. But the moment you become complacent and satisfied with getting out of this place, you’ll wake up back here as if it were all a dream.”

“Don’t worry. I will definitely produce results!”

Of course, it seems that even cold water was useless to Armin, who was caught up in the illusion that only a bright future awaited him. Well, whatever. The ‘Titan Project’ isn’t a research that’s impossible without Armin, and if things go as I fear, I just need to keep my word.

#

When I met Armin again at noon, he was carrying an excessively large bag on his back. I don’t know why he had so much luggage, but he didn’t look like a traveler who had to go a long way, so I opened a subspace and threw it in. The look in his eyes, as if he had seen something amazing, was a bonus. But I wasn’t free enough to pay attention to each and every one of those looks.

‘The Emperor has lost consciousness.’

It wasn’t surprising. Of course, it didn’t mean it was insignificant, but it was widely known that the Emperor’s health was not good. It was something that would happen someday, so many people were preparing themselves.

‘Could it be an opportunity, or a crisis?’

The Titan Project, if successful, or even if it only showed potential, was a massive project that could be a turning point in history. As I repeatedly emphasized, national-level support was not an option but a necessity. To that end, I had two methods in mind.

Either pit the competitors against each other to get more support, or give wings to the leading figure and promise future support.

If I had a preferred direction out of the two, it was definitely the latter. It would be much more stable. Also, getting deeply involved in politics was a very dangerous thing in many ways. Especially for someone like me.

Because my personal actions don’t end with me alone, but also involve my family and territory. I couldn’t ask my family, who had nothing to do with it, to take risks for my personal greed. It’s not like death is the only thing waiting for me in a future where I fail to succeed in the Titan Project.

‘Waiting quietly until everything is over might be one way.’

Even with the support of the Magic Tower, I could return to my hometown and continue my research. Inevitably, the scope of the research would be narrowed, but there was plenty of time. There was no reason to rush since there were no competitors.

‘First, I need to go back to the capital and see what’s going on. How the situation is unfolding, how many options I have, and what the best option is.’

#

The Empire was in chaos because the Emperor had collapsed. The Emperor, who still hadn’t regained consciousness, was effectively an old man in the back room waiting for the day he would die, and the power struggle to take the place where the Emperor had been sitting was more intense than ever.

“Which side should I be on?”

“We need to think carefully. A moment’s choice could shatter the entire family.”

“But conversely, we could soar.”

There is only one chair, but there are many who want to sit on it. The most likely candidates were the three half-brothers, the eldest sons of each consort [a wife or companion, typically of a ruler], whom the Emperor had from his three consorts, but just because they were the closest didn’t mean that only those three had a chance.

Their father is none other than the Emperor. Of course, the status of their mothers could not be ordinary. Of course, there were differences, but they had enough background to raise the stakes in this gamble where they had to bet everything.

Of course, the probability of becoming the ultimate winner is not high, and they risk losing everything, but conversely, if they become the winner, they can get everything. If you’re a gambler, isn’t it an adventure worth taking at least once? And all of this was the fault of the current Emperor, Darius III.

“What on earth was His Majesty thinking when he hesitated to appoint an heir?”

“Shh! What if someone hears you?”

“What’s with just this much? If I think about my hair that’s falling out because of it, I feel like I could say even worse.”

All of this was purely the Emperor’s fault. The appointment of the Crown Prince, which should have been made as early as decades ago, or at least a few years ago, can only be said to be the Emperor’s fault. Only the Emperor knows what he was thinking, but we can at least guess.

Firstly, it may have been to avoid conflict. Although he is called the Emperor, in reality, he was no more than the most powerful lord in the Empire. Of course, the gap between first and second place was quite extreme, but it was certain that he was not an absolute monarch wielding absolute power.

Therefore, Darius III took in many wives, to lead the entire Empire. In such a situation, rashly appointing a Crown Prince could undermine the Emperor’s own power. Those who were alienated by the Emperor would not be willing to listen to orders as obediently as before.

Secondly, it may have been because the Emperor himself had ambition, to possess strong imperial power. Therefore, after achieving his ambition, he may have wanted to choose an heir in a situation where no one would complain no matter who he appointed as Crown Prince.

There may be various other reasons, but even considering all the reasons, this situation is the biggest mistake the Emperor has made and will lead to results that are far from the expansion of imperial power that he so desired. Since he received the help of the nobles, he will have no choice but to be mindful of them even afterwards.

But until now, everyone was quietly watching only beneath the surface. The Emperor may have become an old man in the back room, but he was a living Emperor. If they moved rashly, they could show an opening to their competitors who were constantly looking for a chance.

And a small stone was about to fall into the calm surface of the capital, which could fluctuate at any moment.

#

“T-This is the Magic Tower…”

“Don’t even think about touching anything out of idle curiosity, and just follow me. If you make a mistake, there are devices hidden everywhere that could send you to the afterlife.”

“I will keep that in mind!”

The capital, which I returned to after a year and a half, could not be said to have a good atmosphere, even as a formality. Ordinary people may not feel a big difference, but right now, even just here at the Magic Tower, it was immediately noticeable that things were more chaotic than usual. Unlike other places, the mages residing in the Magic Tower are strongly connected to the nobles, so they are bound to be strongly affected.

“Wait here. If anyone picks a fight with you, say my name, and they won’t start a one-sided fight.”

“Understood!”

I left Armin in the resting area for outsiders and headed to the top of the Magic Tower, to a place for only one of the many mages, a place where no one should set foot without the resident’s permission.

A tightly closed door. Just as I was about to knock, a voice came from ahead.

“Is that Renil? Come in.”

“Excuse me.”

“I wondered if it was you, and it was.”

It’s my teacher, whom I haven’t seen in a long time. But today, the atmosphere is somehow a little different.

“I felt it when you returned to the capital. A powerful magic that even I can’t let my guard down against. I wondered who it was, but it was you, Renil. What on earth have you been through?”

That was clear jealousy. My teacher didn’t seem to know what emotion it was, but that was understandable. He would never have thought that he was inferior to someone in terms of talent in his life. Therefore, it must have been the first time he felt jealousy.

It was an emotion that any human would feel when they realized that a disciple who was much younger than them had already followed them to where they were standing, but if he was a complete teacher, he would be happy with the student surpassing the master, but I was his first disciple, so it couldn’t be helped.

“…I’ll explain slowly.”

I told my teacher what had happened in the meantime, with some embellishments, and a little lie added.

The departure with a clear purpose was changed to a kind of training, and the effort to find him was changed to a coincidence. The victory I had over him was changed to a hard-fought defeat, and what I had experienced nearly eight years ago was changed to something that had happened recently.

“…That’s what happened.”

“A dragon? If it weren’t for your words, I would have dismissed it as nonsense. But seeing such growth, I have no choice but to believe it. So, did you see where the dragon went?”

“The situation was so urgent that I could barely take care of myself.”

“…I’ll have to go up north right away. I need to check it with my own eyes.”

My teacher seemed quite impatient. Well, he had only been looking at the wall of the 8th Circle [a high level of magical achievement] for nearly half of his life. It wouldn’t be strange to be blinded by the opportunity to jump over that wall. That was also why he started researching imprinting after accepting me as a disciple. In the end, it took a lot of persuasion to calm my teacher, who seemed like he was about to leave for the Terra Barrier right away.

“I’m sorry. You must have had something you wanted to say, but I made you say only what I wanted to hear.”

“No. That’s what I was going to tell you anyway. More than that, what’s been going on in the capital?”

“…Listen to Evan for the details. However, as a teacher, let me give you a word of advice: it would be best not to go outside the Magic Tower for a while.”

My teacher didn’t say much. He just told me to quietly hold my breath. Instead, I went to find Evan. As Evan, who had been working as an adjutant for a long time and was in charge of external affairs, he was more knowledgeable than anyone else.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Evan.”

“Is it because His Majesty the Emperor has collapsed?”

“Yes. Could you please explain in detail what has been going on?”

“It seems like it will be a rather long story.”

As Evan said, the story that followed was by no means short.