Chapter 509

The Emperor’s request was surprisingly simple.

“Help my daughter become a disciple.”

Even so, I had to hesitate for a moment before responding. There were some aspects of his brief statement that were difficult to grasp.

First of all, there was one question I wanted to ask.

“When you say ‘daughter’…?”

It was a valid question.

The Emperor had more than one daughter. An Emperor was obligated to continue his bloodline, and it was common to bear as many children as possible just in case.

The current Emperor was no different.

He had around ten children under his care. Of course, only a few among them could challenge for the imperial throne, but there were several individuals he could simply refer to as ‘daughters’.

Just off the top of my head, there were at least two Imperial Princesses.

Princess Iris and Princess Sien.

So, I needed more specific information. The difficulty of the task would depend on the person I had to help.

Unlike me, the Emperor showed no signs of hesitation at all. The old man’s voice continued without interruption.

“There is only one of my daughters currently attending the Academy.”

“…That would be Princess Sien, I presume.”

The name I instinctively thought of slipped out of my mouth.

At that, the Emperor nodded in confirmation of my guess. For me, it was quite a relief.

To be honest, I had no desire to accompany any of his other royal children aside from Sien.

First of all, their high status was a burden. Furthermore, their temperament was likely to be very unpredictable, raising doubts about how far I could accommodate them.

Before I knew it, I might be wielding an axe in my hand.

Wasn’t Sien someone who had shown an arrogant and composed disposition in the past?

How much trouble I had gone through back then.

The memory of my unfortunate past made my body involuntarily shudder. Meanwhile, the Emperor’s explanation continued again.

“Have you heard that the ‘Great Witch’ is coming here?”

“Ah… yes, I think I heard something about it in passing.”

This was also mentioned in the letter from the future.

The Great Witch was visiting the Academy for some reason. According to rumors, it seemed to be to select a disciple, and in the process, she would engage in a fierce battle with a ‘Vampire’.

This was the rough future I had grasped.

Admittedly, it was a fragmented outline with the crucial parts missing.

I was used to this type of situation.

The love letter from the future was never very detailed. It would always contain only general information, and the task of uncovering the important clues fell on me.

Today was no different.

I intuitively realized that the Emperor was involved in this incident. The letter had also mentioned a ‘Sword Master,’ so it was likely that the Imperial Court would become involved in the events to unfold.

So did he intentionally go so far as to ambush the escorts?

Sure enough, the Emperor began to share the information I had been hoping for.

“Then you must have heard that she is planning to select a disciple. To put it bluntly, I want you to help my daughter become her disciple.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, it depends on how you approach it, doesn’t it?”

Whether as a joke or seriously.

His playful smile made it hard to distinguish his intention.

Of course, it wasn’t entirely unfounded. Most problems one encounters in life are, after all, dependent on one’s efforts.

Still, I had to swallow a bitter sigh.

Even so, the exit seemed too obscure.

The one selecting the disciple was the ‘Great Witch’. It was impossible to entice someone who had turned their back on worldly affairs with money or power. Therefore, there was only one way to make the Imperial Princess a disciple of the Great Witch.

To captivate the Great Witch’s heart.

In other words, it meant that no matter how hard I tried, there would be limits.

Ultimately, the outcome rested with the Great Witch and the Princess.

There was no room for others to intervene in this clear relationship.

It was then that the Emperor’s subtle advice reached my ears.

“By the way, it seems that she has taken quite an interest in you…”

“Pardon?”

That was truly a surprising remark.

I had never actually seen the Great Witch in my life. I had only stolen glances at the memories from ‘myself’ in the future.

And yet, the Great Witch was interested in me.

Was the previous battle with the saint that impressive?

However, the Emperor didn’t bother to alleviate my curiosity.

Instead, he continued with another piece of advice.

“Also, you’re not the only one who wants to make Sien the disciple of the Great Witch. ‘Bulteon’ and ‘Iris’… I heard those two have already arrived at the Academy.”

This too was news to me.

‘Bulteon’ and ‘Iris’ were names I had heard before. As an aristocrat of the Empire, it was only natural for me to have heard of them.

They were the most likely candidates vying for the next imperial throne.

The more I heard, the larger the scope of the situation seemed to become. After all, this was related to the ‘Imperial Court’s secret plan’, so it made sense.

Thus, I anxiously licked my dry lips.

I had faced greater crises in my life before. The difference was that back then I needed a sword, while now I needed my intellect.

I resolved to find Reto as soon as possible.

However, there was someone else who would determine my first step.

“Kid, first you should go and see the Alphenhausen twins.”

The Sword Master said in a plain tone.

There was a glimmer of excitement in his blue eyes as he looked at me. It seemed he was quite eager to see how I would navigate through this predicament.

In reality, I was more burdened by that excessive attention.

But the Sword Master didn’t care. His cheerful voice continued without restraint.

“I heard Iris is preparing something according to her instructions. She happens to know those two, right?”

Of course, the Sword Master’s intentions did not seem entirely innocent.

It briefly echoed in my mind as he had suggested before that I take the Alphenhausen twins as my wife.

That was no laughing matter.

But I currently had no alternative, and thus I had no luxury to turn down the Sword Master’s advice.

This was the reason I had to take a step I wasn’t inclined to take.

However, there was one unexpected point.

The irritating senior Shiene was acting surprisingly meek today. I was in a position where I had to ask for her favor, which made me fearful of what humiliation I might face last night.

Even now, look.

Her silvery-gray eyes were glancing nervously at my expression.

She had proposed what she thought were outrageously good terms and seemed anxious that I wasn’t falling for them.

“Uh, are you perhaps dissatisfied? Our Luna is beautiful, smart, and has an excellent memory! Not to mention her wealth, marrying her means you wouldn’t have to worry about money for a lifetime!”

“No, no… Senior Shiene, isn’t the premise incorrect?”

As I said this, I discreetly glanced behind Senior Shiene.

There stood Luna, whose ears had turned bright red.

It was understandable. Out of nowhere, her older sister was deciding on a partner in front of a strange man.

It would have been stranger to keep her composure.

It seemed she was so embarrassed she couldn’t even find a chance to stop her sister.

Or perhaps there had already been an agreement between the two.

This was an absurd assumption. No matter how reputable the Alphenhausen family was, they wouldn’t hastily decide on a marriage like this.

I only felt pity for Luna, having such a foolish sister.

In sympathy, I ended up raising my tone.

“What kind of object is Senior Luna? To suddenly decide on a life partner like this…”

“And if you marry Luna, you can also have this Shiene as a concubine!”

Of course, Senior Shiene didn’t listen to what I said.

She was a woman with a temperament that wouldn’t be easily restrained. At this rate, even a conversation wouldn’t be possible.

In the end, I sighed and shot a sorrowful glance at Luna.

It was a signal asking for help.

However, Luna seemed equally troubled. With her eyes tightly closed, the lady with a gentle demeanor managed to piece together a few disjointed words.

“S-sorry… Sir Ian, my sister… has a bit of a…”

“How about it? Isn’t it wonderful? You can brag about it anywhere, Aran Koinus! After all, it’s a matter of becoming my brother-in-law!”

Regardless of what was said, Senior Shiene only continued to talk smugly. With her posture standing proudly, her chest emphasized her confidence.

Eventually, unable to withstand the shame any longer, Luna began to tremble. She was so embarrassed that her hands clenched tightly.

I couldn’t help but let out a sigh mixed with reproach.

“You can’t even remember your brother-in-law’s name properly, how can you…”

This was a futile attempt.

Senior Shiene ignored my words and instead proceeded to negotiate as if caught up in the atmosphere.

“S-so, are you really dissatisfied? Hmph, turns out you have quite a bit of greed… Fine, let’s do it as a concubine instead! I heard you have a lover in the Holy Kingdom…”

Bam!

Ultimately, unable to hold back any longer, Luna’s palm struck the back of Senior Shiene’s head. Did she take self-defense lessons? The sound of the wind cutting through was quite lively.

At least it wasn’t strong enough for a merchant to endure without flinching.

Senior Shiene’s focus shook violently before it never returned. Her body wobbled, losing balance, and then fell heavily to the ground.

And then, stillness.

Without even having time to rejoice in restoring peace, Luna let out a deep sigh.

“My sister can be a bit ignorant of etiquette…”

I didn’t say a word.

I just looked at Luna with a sulky expression. Luna then cleared her throat, trying to smooth things over.

This was a useless attempt.

In the end, Luna drooped her eyelashes and asked.

“What can I do to make you forgive her?”

My eyes inadvertently turned to Senior Shiene.

“…Can I just hit her once?”

As I fidgeted with the axe handle, Luna sighed once again.

“I’ll give you all the necessary information, so please, just one slap…”

She couldn’t even bring herself to ask me not to hit Senior Shiene.

Thanks to that, I achieved my objective.

“I’ve heard that the Great Witch has recently shown interest in the unusually high temperatures.”

“And?”

“It seems the Great Witch thinks the source is at the Academy.”

I opened my mouth to speak, only to shut it again.

“We need to find it first.”

Strong words filled with determination followed.

“…Before Bulteon does.”

The dispute for the imperial throne.

It was the moment when a topic I had had no interest in at all took center stage.