Ch.140140. Subjugation

Fresia was on the verge of a non-existent headache due to Ian’s unilateral faction choice. Despite repeatedly emphasizing the need for careful consideration, Ian had completely ignored all her advice.

Of course, it wasn’t incomprehensible.

It was understandable that he would be upset when Seraphina used Gilbert, who could be considered Ian’s rival, as a messenger and created a special position of honorary student council member that hadn’t been planned.

But that’s precisely when one needed to think calmly. Especially since the faction would become the foundation for Ian’s future activities in the Empire, it shouldn’t have been decided so emotionally.

From Fresia’s perspective, choosing Prince Richard’s side wasn’t a bad choice. Since the prince was a war hero, gaining his trust would likely mean accompanying him to the battlefield. Traditionally, achieving military merits was a shortcut to success, so if Ian could distinguish himself in war, it could be a good choice.

However, the current imperial sentiment was overwhelmingly against war. The Emperor, who had waged conquest wars in his youth, had grown old and no longer showed his former vigor. He merely wanted to maintain the stability of the Empire, and during his reign, there would be no declaration of war unless something extraordinary happened.

In such circumstances, going under Prince Richard, known as the “War Prodigy,” could be a bad move.

After all, his support base was limited to nobles who had experienced war with him, and their true value would only be revealed during wartime. In peaceful times, Seraphina’s faction, which had gathered talented individuals, was in a more advantageous position.

The downside of joining Seraphina’s faction was that one had to stand out among numerous talented individuals. To surpass those who had served her for a long time and become the best, one would need to achieve significant accomplishments.

Even though Ian was gradually surpassing the level of a cadet, it would still be difficult to catch Seraphina’s eye.

Especially with Gilbert’s presence being a thorn in his side. Gilbert had already far exceeded the cadet level with his achievements and had firmly caught Seraphina’s attention.

Not only that, he hadn’t chosen either faction and continued to increase his own value.

That was what Fresia had hoped for Ian.

Not hastily choosing a faction, but maximizing the benefits from both sides before selecting the most advantageous position—that was what Fresia considered the most desirable choice.

But it was already too late.

Fresia couldn’t help but sigh, though she didn’t show it to Ian. His dormant inferiority complex had already erupted, and showing her disappointment might backfire.

“Fresia. I’m sorry. But I couldn’t stand it anymore.”

[It’s fine. Don’t regret the choice you’ve already made. And Prince Richard’s faction isn’t bad. You’ll have more opportunities to achieve merit.]

“Thank you for saying that.”

[More importantly, we need to plan what to do next. We don’t know when Princess Seraphina will hear about you joining Prince Richard’s faction. When that happens, your position in the student council might deteriorate.]

“I’m prepared for that. I thought I’d be crushed under Gilbert’s shadow if I stayed as I was.”

[That’s better than being indecisive. You’re not wrong. Princess Seraphina does favor that rascal. I suppose it’s because his actions have greatly helped the princess’s progress so far. And as much as I hate to admit it, his Gigantic control skills are truly exceptional.]

In an era where Gigantic machines represented national power, an excellent Gigantic knight was a top-tier talent worth recruiting even at a high price.

A cadet who had already received a 5th-grade knighthood needed to be recruited, even from hell if necessary.

“Yes. But I don’t think it’s an insurmountable gap. There’s one big wall between him and me.”

There was a reason he could speak with such confidence.

He had already acquired a trait skill, which was considered genius-level just for manifesting it.

And it was a trait skill related to Gigantic control.

While the exact details of the trait skill were known only to Fresia, the fact that it was related to Gigantics was already widely known.

A genius born into the Rainbarrel family, one of the wealthiest in the Empire.

A child born to control Gigantics.

These were the descriptions that had followed Ian since he began piloting Gigantics. Until his enrollment at Demeia Academy, he had always been called a genius, and the world’s assessment was that the academy would become his domain upon enrollment.

In reality, his skills had reached nearly the highest level, except for Gilbert. Being able to control Gigantics faster than others meant having an advantageous position.

Although he still couldn’t match Gilbert, Ian thought that with his training in Proisen, surpassing him wasn’t far off.

[Yes. And that’s precisely the problem, Ian.] But Fresia didn’t think it would be easy.

As Ian said, there was an insurmountable wall between him and Gilbert—the trait skill.

Although Ian was still inexperienced in handling his trait skill, it alone made him about 30% faster in reactions compared to other Gigantic knights. Considering other factors, he might not be able to face high-ranking Gigantic knights, but against Gilbert, with roughly similar conditions, the gap shouldn’t be that significant.

However, objectively, Gilbert had superior control skills than Ian. Whether he had a trait skill hadn’t been confirmed, but at least from Fresia’s observation, he wasn’t using a trait skill related to Gigantics.

The only conclusion that could be drawn from this was clear:

Gilbert Lion Heart was a natural-born genius among geniuses.

[That ruffian doesn’t have a trait skill, yet he’s at that level. I said he was capable, but let me correct myself. His Gigantic control skills are unparalleled. I’ve seen excellent Gigantic knights before, but he’s exceptional.]

“… Is he that good?”

[Ian, I know it’s hard to accept. I feel the same way. But we need to face reality.]

Ian gritted his teeth.

If Fresia said it, it must be true.

Even from his perspective, Gilbert’s control skills could only be described as innate.

“Yes, I suppose so.”

[Of course, it’s not like you can’t surpass him. He may have talent, but so do you. There’s a limit to everything. And your limit is much higher. It’s just a matter of about half a year. It’s not like he’s been piloting Gigantics for over a decade. You can do it. Just follow my guidance!]

“I will.”

Ian made a firm resolution at Fresia’s words.

He would acknowledge what needed to be acknowledged.

That was the attitude of a magnanimous person.

***

Prince Richard’s inspection ended after a week. The only blemish, the attack on Demeia Academy, was concluded with Gilbert as an unbeatable card.

With a cadet who had single-handedly stopped dozens of Gigantics now listed as an honorary student council member, it was unreasonable to criticize further. If dozens of Gigantics attacked the academy, it would be more of a declaration of war against the Empire rather than just an attack.

The inspection team knew this, so they couldn’t use the attack incident to criticize Seraphina’s student council. Everything else was handled perfectly, so there was essentially no basis to continue the inspection.

A week was quite a long time, but inspections often lasted more than two weeks, so this one ended relatively quickly.

Gilbert was somewhat concerned about appearing to have joined Princess Seraphina’s faction, but he was relieved after receiving a message from Prince Richard saying he would wait for an answer.

Regardless of which side he chose, he would inevitably antagonize one side. The struggle between imperial succession candidates often led to bloodshed, so getting involved could potentially develop into troublesome situations.

It was too dangerous for someone like him, who was inept at political battles rather than piloting Gigantics or physical confrontations, to walk on such a treacherous ice. While he wouldn’t mind dying in war, dying due to political entanglements would be a dishonorable discharge he didn’t even want to think about.

Anyway, Prince Richard and the inspection team returned to the imperial palace on the seventh day. The academy officials, who had been anxious because of the inspection team poking around everywhere, could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“Gilbert! Honorary student council member! What’s that all about?”

“Well…”

Just when he thought he could train more leisurely now that Prince Richard had left, Camilla came looking for him. She seemed to think something interesting had happened since Gilbert had been appointed to the unheard-of position of honorary student council member.

“It’s nothing special.”

“How can being an honorary student council member be nothing special!”

Camilla put her hands on her hips and blocked Gilbert’s path.

“I had to temporarily take the position because of the inspection. That’s all.”

“Hmm! I see! Now I understand!”

The gloomy Camilla after Operation Gehenna had regained her smile after having dinner with Gilbert. If it had ended there, he could have felt proud of comforting her, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Comforted by Gilbert, Camilla had become overly energetic.

She kept finding him at every opportunity, pestering him to go find something fun to do.

For the first few times, he went along with the newly energized Camilla, but as one time led to two and two led to five, he began to avoid her.

But each time, Camilla would find Gilbert no matter where he hid.

Today was such a case.

He had gone to a place he rarely visited, but she still managed to find him.

“I’m curious. How did you know I was here?”

“Hmm? That’s obvious, I can instinctively sense where interesting things are happening.”

Camilla smiled brightly and made horns with her hands on her head.

It was as if she was showing that she was looking for something fun here.

“Interesting things?”

“Yes, the most interesting thing to me these days!”

Camilla repeatedly bent and straightened her two index fingers. It seemed she was expressing that she had just received something fun.

Gilbert had a vague idea of why she was looking for him. She must have noticed that he was involved in most of the major incidents that occurred.

“Being around me doesn’t make interesting things happen.”

However, he couldn’t keep her tagging along, so he feigned ignorance.

If he showed an ambiguous attitude, she might follow him even more.

“Even if you say that, I’ve already found something interesting.”

“What?”

“Hehe. It’s truly fascinating!”

Laughing with an “Ahahat,” Camilla twirled around.

Her crimson hair fluttered as it followed her spinning body.

Stopping her rotation and grinning, what she found most interesting was reflected in her black eyes.

Tall stature and a firm body.

Golden hair like melted gold and ruby-red eyes.

Gilbert.

Currently, he was the most interesting thing to her.

After chattering to Gilbert for a while, satisfying her curiosity, she clapped her hands as if remembering something.

“Oh right, Gilbert. I heard it’s starting soon?”

“Starting?”

“Yes. Monster subjugation. I heard it’s starting soon!”

Gilbert’s expression became subtle upon hearing her words.