My Disciples Think I’m Strong – Chapter 98

“I’ve heard some interesting hypotheses. So, you weren’t just playing around. Nicely done.”

“Thank you.”

“First, let’s see if abolishing the slave system can truly expand the market. If it turns out to be viable, I might consider siding with you. What do you think?”

“That would be enough.”

Rexton’s words made Seri smile.

I gave her a thumbs up as she glanced my way, signaling that she had done well. Seri’s lips curled up even more.

Seri handed him a rolled-up parchment.

The original objective was achieved. With this, Rexton would side with the Crown Prince, but he would likely oppose the slave system.

A man driven by money would choose to go where the profits were greater.

This small difference in values would surely split the Crown Prince’s faction apart.

Once again, the Crown Prince would have to make a choice. To side with Rexton or to uphold the slave system.

“Duke Aus, did you foresee this and accept other races?”

Rexton asked Tori, who had been quietly listening, while tapping the parchment on the table.

“No, I just didn’t want to indiscriminately reject innocent other races. I never imagined Princess Seri would think that way about Aus Territory.”

“So this idea came solely from Princess Seri’s influence. It’s not that she’s incompetent… rather, she’s showing a level of intelligence that implies she’s been pretending to be incompetent. However…”

His gaze settled on me, as if questioning whether I had informed her of everything.

“Just to ask, you didn’t give her any hints, right?”

I shook my head.

I simply dropped a hint so that she could realize things more quickly due to the lack of time. It was purely Princess Seri who expanded on that word.

If I had informed her of everything from start to finish, I might as well just become the Emperor myself.

What kind of fool sets up a clueless puppet?

Despite all this, I recognized her abilities.

Perseverance and focus are not easy to come by.

“That can’t be the case. From the beginning, Princess Seri must have had the insight to see the flow of the world. The Crown Prince likely should have induced a perception that she was incompetent.”

He spoke the words I needed to say for me.

Thinking back, he had been her tutor for two months.

So he would know better than anyone that Seri was neither lacking in intellect nor effort.

“Is that so?”

Rexton, tapping the parchment, rose from his seat.

“By the way, is the reason you support Princess Seri, indeed… because of Urka?”

Urka, who had been standing dumbfounded, and upon hearing her name, abruptly halted her swaying tail. Tori glanced back at her and chuckled.

“While it’s true that Urka is part of the reason for this line of thought, my support for Princess Seri isn’t solely for her sake. If she were to become Emperor, I believe the Empire would progress in a much more beneficial direction.”

The main reason for his change of heart was likely that he thought negotiations with the Crown Prince regarding the issue of other races would be impossible.

“…Indeed, if having other races makes the Empire safer and expands the market economy significantly, it’s worth pursuing. Of course, this is only if, as the Princess said, they receive slave liberation and gain their freedom.”

He casually remarked before heading towards the meeting room door.

“Oh, Todiah. Why did you stay behind?”

“…I had something to say to that bastard.”

“Bastard? You mean Praus?”

“Yes.”

“Pfft! Sounds like he did something to you!”

Rexton burst into laughter but quickly hushed himself as he noticed Tori’s displeasure.

While Rexton typically exuded overwhelming authority in front of others, he tended to be more relaxed around Todiah.

This was partly because the two shared the same position, but also because they had interacted countless times since childhood.

Even Glair treated him informally.

However, since Rexton often took the position of teasing him, he would sometimes feel annoyed.

“You’re fully aware of the topic. If you’re done here, you should leave. We still have… investigations to conduct, right?”

Todiah spoke while looking at the parchment in Rexton’s hand.

“That’s right. Just tell me that story when you have a drinking session later.”

“I won’t do that.”

“Count Hostis, move along.”

His smile vanished in an instant as he said this gravely. The Count bowed his head and followed him out of the meeting room.

“Alright, then. Now it’s my turn.”

“…I don’t particularly have anything to say to you.”

“You rude piece of—

Even if you have nothing to say, I have things to say!”

Is he trying to hold a grudge over what happened two months ago when Ella got hurt?

“Didn’t I already apologize for getting her involved in that?”

I responded assertively, crossing my arms. I honestly had done nothing wrong.

“You bastard! Thinking back on that, it makes my blood boil. You have no idea how furious I was when you casually said, ‘I’m sorry for what I did!'”

Is this really the reason he stayed behind?

No, but that was a sparring session, wasn’t it…?

“How dare you hurt my precious daughter and think an apology would suffice?!”

Oh dear, who could say he’s not being overdramatic?

“But doesn’t Ella get embarrassed every time you act like that? Doesn’t she say something like, ‘I’m so embarrassed because of dad!’?”

“Our daughter is kind, so she wouldn’t.”

What a confident father he was.

I don’t know about this era, but at least in the world I lived in, if a father acted this way, his child would definitely shout, ‘Oh dad, so embarrassing!’

“Oh really?”

“This guy… Are you disappointed? Do you want Ella to hate me? Now the split of the Todiah family comes after the royal family—”

“So what’s your point? You’re not really suggesting you want to hold a grudge over a sparring match from two months ago, right?”

Not wanting him to spiral into useless fantasies, I cut him off.

He was great in many ways, but he completely lost it whenever Ella was brought up.

“…”

He looked at me disapprovingly and sighed.

“Praus, how did you manage to woo Ella?”

“…?”

Woo her? What do you mean?

That came out of left field.

I had never wooed Ella. I can firmly say that.

I rejected her when she confessed, so why would I woo someone I’ve turned down?

“…What do you mean by that?”

“After the Princess’s annulment, Ella urged me to support Praus. I don’t know the details, but she said if it were him, he wouldn’t do anything that would harm the Empire.”

Oh, so Ella was supporting me?

This certainly made things much easier.

“That’s not incorrect.”

Creeeak.

Seeing my nonchalant demeanor, he gnashed his teeth. He stared at me like he would kill me, his expression igniting flames of rage.

It was quite intimidating.

As I subtly averted my gaze, a sigh escaped him.

“Ugh, that girl… said, ‘If Seri becomes Emperor, I’ll be sure to devote my loyalty to the Royal Family!'”

Ella, that’s impressive. She really knows how to use her father’s weaknesses. I definitely need to praise her next time we meet.

“If what you’re saying isn’t because you wooed her, then how can those words come about? Explain it to me, what did you do?”

“…I didn’t do anything in particular.”

“Don’t lie.”

“Seriously. If I had done something, Ella would probably be sleeping in my bed by now.”

…?

I couldn’t grasp what I had just said for a moment.

Panicking, I glanced at the others, and their eyes were all wide open.

“Y-you bastard!!”

Glair conjured a high-level fire spell in the air. It gradually morphed into a concrete shape and then shattered into dozens of smaller ones.

The temperature inside the meeting room shot up with the intense heat.

“I’ll kill you…!”

“…Don’t get worked up. That’s just how it is.”

Even though Todiah had unleashed his magic, my calm voice and demeanor left everyone puzzled.

[Women should be treated kindly, Praus.]

Pasma’s advice seemed absurd.

I want to treat them kindly too.

But how am I supposed to say what I want when it feels like I speak against my will at crucial moments?

“Truly, I have no feelings, so just put the magic away.”

I had entertained the thought that using Ella could make it much easier to win over Todiah, and I intended to use that method.

However, separate from that, I would never be monstrous enough to deceive the feelings of someone who genuinely cares for me.

“Wait, bed…?”

Seri, who was closest to me, muttered in disbelief. What’s wrong with her now?

“Um… Praus.”

“…What is it?”

“I must ask, are you and Ella… in a relationship?”

My head began to throb.

I had no idea how it ended up like this.

…Well, it’s all because of that cursed filtering.

“No. There is no relationship between me and Ella, and I have never wooed her.”

“Then why is she siding with you?”

Because she likes me.

Despite not having romantic feelings, she believes I wouldn’t harm her or the Empire.

“I don’t know.”

“‘I don’t know’…? That girl doesn’t trust anyone for no reason. Sometimes, she’s colder than I am. Do you think it makes sense for her to trust you without knowing the reason?”

“…If she likes me, then maybe.”

Seri suddenly chimed in.

A heavy silence blanketed the meeting room for a moment. It was Seri who first broke the silence she had created.

“When emotion takes precedence over reason, even flawed logic becomes persuasive. Right, Lord Praus?”

“That isn’t incorrect, but why are you seeking my agreement?”

“Well, why is that?”

I couldn’t discern her intentions.

She was clearly hiding something behind her smile, but I couldn’t be sure.

She couldn’t possibly have feelings for me, could she? What on earth was her intention?

“Like… like? Ella liking Praus…?”

He appeared to receive a monumental mental blow, his spells fading away into nothingness. His trembling fingertips pointed at me.

“When did this happen?”

Is it acceptable to expose such personal feelings when the parties involved aren’t present? I hoped Ella would prefer that others didn’t know.

“I think I already said it wasn’t like that.”

“If it’s not, then explain why Ella is siding with you.”

“…How would I know her feelings?”

He gazed intensely at me.

In moments like these, my expression management skill really came in handy. It kept my feelings from showing on my face, preventing others from grasping my true thoughts.

After staring at me for quite a while, he finally asked in a low voice.

“Then let’s propose a hypothesis. What if Ella told you she liked you? What would your response be?”

…How about we all respect Ella’s privacy, hmm?