Chapter 293

Even if I knew the future, I couldn’t just leave the academy without a reason.

I had to wait for things to unfold.

Of course, I wasn’t just sitting around doing nothing.

I had to take care of things I could do in advance.

“Here, eat up.”

I gestured towards the table laden with delicious food.

“…Why are you acting so strange? It’s making me nervous.”

Camian eyed me suspiciously.

Tsk, tsk, you were so innocent back then. Now you’re all jaded.

Is this a side effect of growing up?

“Dude, what’s so strange about a senior treating his juniors to a meal?”

“Yeah, yeah, Camian. Don’t misinterpret his kindness.”

Annette chimed in.

Ah, my sweet little junior.

If only all juniors were like you, the academy would be a much more pleasant place.

I winked at Annette.

She smiled bashfully, as if to say, “It’s nothing.”

Camian looked at us like we were two peas in a pod.

But he sighed and said, “Alright, alright. I’m not refusing.”

“Good. Let’s eat.”

I picked up my spoon.

And so, the meal began.

The food was delicious, of course.

It was expensive food from a high-end restaurant.

“Wow, this is delicious, senior.”

Annette’s eyes sparkled.

“D-Delicious.”

Camian, why are you stuttering?

After the delicious meal, dessert was served, and I got down to business.

“You guys heard the news, right?”

“What news?”

“About the princess returning to the Empire.”

“Ah.”

Annette blinked.

“So that’s what you wanted to talk about. Do you know something?”

Camian asked, as if he had expected it.

“Well, you guys know it’s not a normal situation, right?”

I said, taking a sip of my coffee.

“I did think it was strange…”

“So what is it, senior?”

Camian pressed me for an answer.

He seemed certain that I knew something.

I chuckled, but then my smile disappeared.

My expression turned serious.

Annette and Camian’s expressions also turned serious.

“First of all, keep your voices down.”

Even though we were in a private room, our voices could be heard outside if we were too loud.

“And this is just between us. Don’t tell anyone.”

“Yes, senior.”

“Understood.”

Annette and Camian nodded.

I began.

“There’s only one reason why the princess returned so suddenly.”

“…”

“The Emperor has collapsed.”

“What?!”

“Collapsed?!”

Annette and Camian exclaimed in surprise, their voices rising involuntarily.

I quickly shushed them, and they covered their mouths.

After a while, they calmed down and spoke again.

“Ah… So she went back to visit him…”

“That’s what it was.”

*Clink!*

I deliberately placed my coffee cup down with a loud thud.

“It’s not that simple. He’s not just sick, he’s critically ill.”

“C-Critically ill?!”

“Is that true?!”

I raised my hand to silence them.

And then I continued, “It’s from a reliable source. And you guys understand what this means, right?”

“What do you…”

“…What do you mean?”

My juniors, who still hadn’t grasped the situation, looked at me with blank expressions.

I said slowly and clearly, “It means that the ruler of a nation is on the verge of death without naming a successor. And it’s the largest and most powerful nation on the continent.”

This time, my juniors understood. Their eyes widened in shock.

But,

“B-But he might recover…”

“…He might name a successor before he passes away.”

Annette and Camian still clung to hope.

I said coldly, “Don’t be optimistic. A storm is coming. A storm unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.”

“How can you be so sure…”

“I have a reliable source. And have I ever been wrong about my predictions?”

“…”

Camian fell silent.

“I-I don’t think so.”

Annette replied hesitantly.

I was a senior they couldn’t help but trust and rely on.

It was all thanks to the things I had done for them.

I sat up straight and continued, “I know you guys are worried.”

Their families were all nobles of the Empire.

If a storm hit the Empire, they would be swept away.

“That’s why I called you here today.”

“W-What will happen to us, senior?”

Annette asked, her face pale.

“You’ll all face a choice. Who will you choose?”

It was obvious that I was referring to Adolf, the First Prince, and Oscar, the First Princess.

“…There’s no neutral option?”

Camian asked.

“There is no neutral option. Those who try to play both sides will be the first to die.”

I said without hesitation.

Because I knew.

That those two siblings wouldn’t show any mercy to those who tried to stay neutral.

“Ugh.”

“…”

Annette groaned, and Camian fell silent.

He seemed lost in thought.

After a while, Camian spoke again.

“But do we even have a choice?”

His question was loaded with meaning.

“No.”

I answered bluntly.

Camian’s family, the Croycher Barony.

Annette’s family, the Lyle Barony.

Minor nobles like them didn’t have a choice.

They would be swept away by the decisions of the powerful nobles they served.

If they chose the wrong side, they would be attacked.

“But humans often make the wrong choices, even when the right choice is obvious.”

The desire to climb the ladder of success by choosing the winning side.

That desire had led to countless betrayals during the Imperial Civil War.

Especially in the north.

Because the Ehrenbert family, the dominant force in the north, had been weakened by their capture by the barbarians.

‘But things have changed.’

The joint extermination of the barbarians by the Ehrenbert and Celtrine families.

It had brought about many changes.

A strong alliance between the Ehrenbert family, a major noble house in the north, and the Celtrine family, a wealthy noble house in the central region.

The Ehrenbert family, now free to mobilize their full strength without worrying about their rear.

Their dominance over the north was stronger than ever, thanks to their overwhelming victory against the barbarians, a feat that no one had achieved before.

Defections from the northern nobles?

It was unthinkable this time.

All of this was a result of the barbarian extermination.

“Is that a warning?”

“It’s advice.”

“Regardless, there’s not much we can do.”

“No, you can do more than you think.”

Camian was the second son of the Croycher Barony.

But his older brother had been sickly since childhood, so he was already treated as the heir.

Annette wasn’t the heir, but she was the only daughter of the Lyle Barony and was doted on by her parents.

But that wasn’t the point I was trying to make.

“Do you think your connections to the Ehrenbert and Celtrine families are insignificant?”

Their closest senior was me, the heir to the Celtrine family.

And the best swordsman of the Ehrenbert family, the beloved sister of the acting head, was a professor at the academy.

She was also my fiancée.

And,

“You two were the only ones from other northern families who earned merits during the barbarian extermination.”

The operation had been kept secret until the very end, so we hadn’t requested assistance from any other northern families.

Only Camian and Annette had accompanied me and earned merits.

Those merits were significant.

They had officially caught the eye of the Ehrenbert family.

I knew.

That the other northern families had envied the Croycher and Lyle families.

Camian and Annette were already in a position to exert more influence than they realized.

“Do you still think you can’t do anything?”

“Well…”

“It’s your family’s matter, so you should handle it. Make the most beneficial choice for your family.”

I finished my coffee and stood up.

“…We want to know what you consider a beneficial choice, senior.”

Annette said hurriedly.

It would have been easy to give them the answer.

But it was better for them to think and act on their own.

“You’re adults. It’s your family’s matter.”

“…”

I left my juniors, who were lost in thought, and walked out of the restaurant.

* * *

The Imperial Palace.

The throne, the highest seat in the Empire, was empty.

The throne room was also empty.

It felt lifeless, devoid of any energy.

The atmosphere was heavy and somber.

That atmosphere led to the heart of the palace.

The Emperor’s chambers.

The officials waiting outside were restless.

They gathered in small groups, their faces grim, whispering among themselves.

“…Do you think His Majesty will recover?”

“Sigh, I don’t know.”

“It was so sudden, we don’t even know his condition…”

“Hmm, he looked very ill.”

“I heard the same thing.”

“How could such a thing…”

They had confirmed that the Emperor was in a critical condition.

Their expressions were complex.

Because they were worried about the future.

They were loyal to the Emperor, of course.

But it was loyalty to a healthy Emperor, not a dying one.

The important thing was the next Emperor.

It would have been simple if a Crown Prince had already been chosen.

But there wasn’t one.

Because the Emperor hadn’t chosen one yet.

That’s why the situation was so complicated.

It was giving them headaches.

The First Prince and the First Princess.

They were both capable and well-respected.

It was difficult to choose between them.

So the officials stopped talking and just exchanged glances.

There was no point in discussing it.

It was then.

The door to the Emperor’s chambers suddenly burst open.

“Y-You need to come in now!”

The startled officials rushed into the room.

Inside, they saw the First Prince, Adolf, the Emperor’s other children, and the royal physician.

They had sent for the First Princess, but she hadn’t arrived yet.

“W-What happened…?”

“He’s gone.”

Adolf said in a clear voice.

“Isn’t that right, Physician?”

“…Yes, it is with great sorrow that I must inform you that His Majesty has passed away.”

“Gasp!”

“H-How…”

“Ah…”

The officials feigned grief, even though they had already anticipated it.

Adolf watched them with an unreadable expression.

And then he said, “As his son, I am deeply saddened. But as his successor, I must do what needs to be done.”

Huh?

The officials, their faces still masked with grief, looked at him in confusion.

There was something strange about the First Prince’s words.

He had said, “As his successor.”

Not “one of his successors,” but “his successor.”

It was something he wouldn’t normally say.

They couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease.

“Um… Your Highness, what do you…”

“Your Highness? Are you referring to them?”

Adolf gestured towards his siblings.

They were weak and incompetent, and they hadn’t even been considered as potential successors.

“Huh…?”

“They’re the only princes.”

Adolf smiled, his true colors showing.

“I’m not a prince. I’m the Crown Prince, the Emperor’s legitimate son and the only one worthy of the throne.”

“W-What are you saying…?”

“H-How?!”

*Clap!*

Adolf ignored their shocked reactions and clapped his hands.

Suddenly, a group of people appeared, surrounding the door.

“T-The Imperial Knights?!”

“W-What’s going on?!”

The Imperial Knights.

The Emperor’s personal guard, the most elite knights in the Empire.

They had sealed off the room, their swords drawn.

The officials were stunned, their eyes wide with horror.

They realized the gravity of the situation.

The First Prince had already gained control of the Imperial Knights.

It meant that he had control of the Imperial Palace.

When had he amassed such power?

A chill ran down their spines.

“Now, choose. Will you serve me or not?”

“Your Highness! Such insolence will not be tolerated…”

*Stab!*

“Ugh… Ugh…?!”

Adolf’s hand pierced through the chest of the official who had dared to speak out against him.

Blood dripped from the wound.

The dying official’s body convulsed violently.

“G-Gasp?!”

“Ugh?!”

The other officials trembled in fear, their bodies frozen in place.

Anyone would react the same way after witnessing such a gruesome death.

*Thud!*

Adolf pulled his hand out, and the official’s body collapsed, sprawled on the ground like a dead frog.

*Stomp!*

Adolf stepped on the corpse, as if it was trash.

And then he looked at the officials with cold, reptilian eyes.

“Serve me, and I’ll spare your lives. Isn’t that nice?”

Adolf’s sinister smile filled the room.