Ch.81Award Ceremony (2)

“The Ka’har have certainly been a threat to the eastern part of the Empire for the past few centuries. However, now that they too have finally declared peace and begun walking the same path as the Empire, this marks a momentous advancement in imperial history.”

The Emperor stepped forward and placed his hand on my shoulder.

“And Aishan-Gioro Princess has proven this through her indomitable struggle, sparing no thought for her own life. Through the incredible achievement of personally subjugating three-tenths of the Werebeasts and even defeating their Champions. Without the princess’s dedication, tens of thousands more imperial subjects would have been sacrificed—she is truly a hero who saved the islands.”

As the Emperor officially confirmed the rumors about me defeating a Champion, admiration mixed into people’s gazes.

Everyone probably knew about my exploits, but many had been skeptical about the information regarding the subjugation of a Champion.

“I shall bestow upon the princess an imperial knighthood, a first-class military medal, and the title of Master. She has proven the birth of a new Master by single-handedly subjugating a Werebeast Champion. This is both a remarkable advancement in humanity’s fighting power and a blessing bestowed upon the Empire by the gods.”

“Thank you.”

The Empire’s blessing. That must have seemed strange to those gathered.

If a Master appeared among the Ka’har, that would be a blessing bestowed upon the Ka’har, not particularly a blessing for the Empire.

“I would like to take this opportunity to announce that, as of today, the Imperial House officially accepts Aishan-Gioro Princess as a true member of the Empire. This decision was made not only out of gratitude for the princess’s achievements but also because we have learned an astonishing fact about her bloodline.”

Sensing people’s confusion, the Emperor continued with an explanation.

“The fact that half of the princess’s bloodline comes from imperial nobility.”

The surroundings instantly grew noisy.

Of course, most people wouldn’t have known that I was of mixed blood, let alone mixed with imperial blood.

My appearance, befitting someone of mixed heritage, showed clear differences from ordinary Ka’har… but I suppose they just thought all Ka’har looked like this?

People from the islands would hardly have seen actual Ka’har, except perhaps those from the eastern regions.

“The princess’s mother was originally a noble lady of House Median, an imperial baronial family. The last heir of the now sadly fallen House of Median… Therefore, I wish to return the name of Median and the title of Baron to Haschal Median Aishan-Gioro Princess. I trust there will be no objections to this.”

There was no public opposition.

Though I couldn’t know what they were thinking inside.

Well, with the Emperor speaking so decisively, who would dare openly object?

Especially over something as minor as a baronial title.

“Then please welcome with applause the birth of the fifty-second Master, one with imperial blood.”

The Emperor raised me up and presented me before the public.

I forced the corners of my mouth upward, trying to appear as friendly as possible.

The returning gazes contained various emotions.

Admiration. Relief. Gratitude. Adoration. Lust. Suspicion. Confusion. Disbelief. Expectation.

Children’s gazes full of adoration, looking at a hero. The eyes of those of Dane origin, deliberately suppressing their lingering hostility.

Women’s praise admiring my appearance. And the half-lidded eyes of some men containing unwholesome desires.

All were bearable except for the sticky lust.

There was no loyalty oath.

Receiving an honorary noble title and pledging loyalty to the Emperor carried different weights.

The latter would be inappropriate for someone with the status of a foreign princess.

And so the conferment ceremony concluded.

With the Emperor’s closing speech, all official events came to an end.

The people gathered in front of the square dispersed in small groups, discussing the day’s events.

What followed would be a meeting exclusively for nobles.

It wasn’t a banquet.

Holding something like a banquet right after a funeral mass would plunge public sentiment into the gutter.

It was simply a time for nobles who had entered the cathedral to gather, discuss current issues, or introduce new faces.

Apparently, there were plans to hold a ball where all the nobles of the islands would gather, but that would happen later, not today.

They planned to schedule it to coincide with the official declaration of the islands’ complete recovery.

For now, they had only finished the immediate aftermath.

—-

We too were invited to the meeting and guided into the cathedral.

The interior of the cathedral was not merely splendid but radiant.

Arched walls rose from each side of the octagonal floor, supporting the domed ceiling.

On the two-story walls, instead of ordinary glass windows, stained glass pieces were joined together to form religious paintings that emitted dazzling light.

The high domed ceiling was adorned with frescoes depicting the achievements of Carlos the Great and his Great’s Twelve Knights.

The long benches that would normally be arranged in two rows had been temporarily removed, leaving the central hall empty, with various nobles gathering in small groups engaged in conversation.

The Emperor had returned to the imperial palace citing health reasons, leaving only the two princes in the cathedral.

Leopold and Ernst—nobles belonging to each prince’s faction gathered around their respective lords, glaring and growling at each other.

Meanwhile, Lord Landenburg and Lord Wien were having a quiet conversation with two archbishops in one corner of the cathedral.

Understandably, no nobles approached them.

Everyone must be curious about what the four prince-electors were discussing… but no mere noble would dare to intrude upon their conversation.

Frider van Faelrun stood in a corner, sipping wine.

Her attitude suggested she didn’t want to get involved in the factional issues of other nobles.

Thus, no one approached her either.

Leaving Faelrun neutral was the wisest decision.

Asha had gone to the newly risen nobles to discuss her business plans.

Good choice. Those who had attained noble status through the power of capital would be sensitive to profitable ventures.

Edgar headed toward the church personnel.

Apparently moved by Lacy’s speech or something. I simply couldn’t understand the sentimentality of religious folk.

I took Demian and Millia to look around the cathedral.

If left alone, strange nobles might target and approach these two. Especially Millia.

Fortunately, no one had approached us overtly yet.

Perhaps thanks to the strong “don’t talk to me” impression I was giving off.

At a ball, there might be persistent men asking for dances, but this wasn’t such a place.

…Still, there were some who kept glancing at me.

“Everything’s so sparkly… it feels like I’m in another world.”

Millia seemed quite uncomfortable in this setting.

She kept fidgeting with her dress and looking around restlessly.

Honestly, it was quite cute.

“It is another world. Except for the cathedrals in the Holy State’s capital, you probably won’t find a more splendid cathedral anywhere.”

According to the setting, that is.

“Really? You know a lot about this?”

“…I read it in a book.”

I made up a convenient excuse.

A book-reading barbarian—as rare an existence as an orc ballerina.

Come to think of it, were orcs already extinct in this world?

“It is splendid.”

Demian was surprisingly calm. Even though such places shouldn’t be familiar to him either.

What an unusual personality.

I was planning to take him along when monster subjugation missions increased, so I’d have more opportunities to properly understand his character then.

For now, I was leaving him be since there weren’t any suitable enemies, but developing Demian was definitely a task for the future.

Thinking of the distant future, a holy sword would definitely be necessary… but only those chosen as heroes could wield holy swords.

In other words, no one but Demian could do it.

And this wasn’t something I could handle alone, relying solely on Durandal.

—-

After sightseeing for a while, Leopold called me over to his side.

Saying he wanted to introduce the Empire’s new Master to everyone.

…Right. I had certainly asked him to pretend to be friendly.

Though calling me over like this with Ernst standing right there was a bit blatant.

Glancing at Ernst’s side, I saw him looking at me with an expression that seemed to say “I knew it.”

Well, I suppose he would have guessed as much, so it doesn’t matter.

“Frider, please look after these two for a moment. Keep the flies from swarming.”

“Huh? What? Hey, wait. Are you asking me to—”

“Thanks, I’m counting on you!”

I quickly passed by the flustered Frider and headed toward Leopold.

If I leave them like that, Demian will know how to conduct himself appropriately.

He’s a perceptive fellow.

As I approached Leopold, he greeted me with a bright smile.

The nobles around who saw my face up close expressed admiration.

“I welcome you as an official member of the Empire, Haschal Median Aishan-Gioro Princess.”

“I am honored by Your Highness’s welcome. If it’s not presumptuous, may I ask why you called for me?”

The nobles flinched in surprise at the fluent formal speech flowing from a barbarian’s mouth.

“Though this is a formal occasion, there’s no need for such rigid formality. The princess is my friend. Feel free to speak comfortably. …Though not too comfortably.”

The surrounding nobles laughed heartily, thinking it was a joke.

It was probably serious, though.