episode_0005

“Fuhap···!!”

I was so shocked that I ended up spitting out all the food in my mouth. Her words were just as shocking.

“What, what?”

“Master’s hometown. I said I would return it.”

She spoke with a calm smile. I stared at her in disbelief. However, there was not a single trace of movement in her expression. It was as if she was saying something like, ‘The sun rose this morning.’ or ‘I sleep at night.’ I was taken aback by her calm attitude.

What on earth is this? Returning the country? That’s ridiculous. It’s already been 20 years since the country was destroyed. 20 years is a very long time, long enough for a child who can walk to grow up and become a proper head of a household. The younger generation probably doesn’t even know that such a country existed. Only the elderly will say, “Oh, there was a time like that…” and reminisce about that time. But how on earth can we return the country? It’s impossible. That region has already been completely assimilated into the empire. To the point where it has lost its sense of belonging as a nation.

And even if it wasn’t possible in the first place, I don’t need it. Didn’t I tell you? Did you forget? I brought up the subject cautiously.

“Hey, hey··· Don’t joke around. I told you before. I don’t want to bother the people who are living well···”

Her answer to that was:

“It will return to the original owner, so what does that matter? And there will be no harm to the people as you worry about. It is simply that the current system will be maintained, and the owner will become the ruler of the region. It is easy to think of it as establishing a principality within the empire. The owner will become the grand duke.”

A very specific plan. She was seriously thinking of giving me back my country. She was out of her mind. And she was even talking about such an absurd idea while eating at a restaurant. It was not the right place and attitude to discuss national affairs.

I looked back at the maids behind me, wondering if this was okay.

As expected, they were also shocked and gaping. It seemed like it was her own idea, something that had no meaning at all. Of course, there was no way that it had any meaning, this crazy plan.

I opened my mouth to try to convince her, because I felt like this was a bit off. But…

“That’s the problem. What separates you and me.”

Her cool words silenced me.

“The mistake made by the author, whose face I don’t even know… I can’t cover it up with a piece of land and a title, but please allow me to apologize like this. I will slowly pay for the rest throughout my life.”

It was an atmosphere in which I could not possibly refuse. The look in her eyes was as if she was threatening to kill me if I did not accept the title of Grand Duke.

Terrified, I nodded my head absentmindedly.

She smiles with satisfaction.

***

The next thing happened very quickly. She declared that she would appoint me as the Grand Duke in front of all the imperial officials. The ministers did not oppose her crazy decision. To be exact, they ‘could not’. If they did, they would be beheaded, so who would oppose? In fact, there was an incident where a loyal subject vehemently opposed the decision, shouting ‘One Empire…!!’, but his head was cut off before he could finish his sentence. After that incident, everyone became a yes man and congratulated me on my appointment as the Grand Duke.

It was a strange inauguration ceremony for the Grand Duke, which was unwanted by neither the parties concerned, the people, nor the ministers, and which was the only one desired in this vast empire.

Anyway, from that day on, I became a grand duke.

However, I could not leave the palace right away. I thought I would be going straight to my old hometown, but I had to receive education. Although it was an unwanted position, I accepted it because I thought it might be a burden to the people.

The educational content included basic knowledge and basic culture that a monarch should know.

Since I was educated, I didn’t have much difficulty. If I were to recall the past and feel depressed, I would say it was a problem. I remember running after my older brothers to take classes and listening to them together. Well, maybe because it happened 20 years ago, it didn’t really move my heart. It just made my heart ache a little.

Suddenly, I thought that going back to my hometown wouldn’t be bad. It wouldn’t be all bad. If I went back to my hometown, wouldn’t I be able to enter the palace where my family’s memories remained? Since that day, when I was chased out of the palace engulfed in flames, I had never been back there. I hadn’t even been able to collect the bodies, let alone make graves. I thought it would be meaningful to go and make graves for my family members.

Besides, I wouldn’t have to see her anymore once I got there. That was a huge advantage. My motivation was boosted, and I became more enthusiastic about my classes after that. All I wanted to do was finish my education quickly and get away from her.

The classes were fun, especially the science class. The Empire’s magical science was truly amazing. When I was in the kingdom, I didn’t even know that the land we were standing on was round, but the world that the teacher taught me was very mysterious. The reason why the night sky is dark, why the energy of the land decreases after farming, and the methods and principles for restoring it.

With all this scientific knowledge and magical technology combined, it was only natural that the empire would rule the continent. Of course, it was a shitty situation for those on the receiving end.

Anyway, I took the class eagerly. It was bittersweet yet interesting to spy on the knowledge of those who defeated us.

She was also very pleased with my attitude. She would come to check on me periodically, even though she was busy, and she would constantly ask me if I liked the teachers she brought and if I had any inconveniences in the palace life.

I used to reply that it was no problem at all, hoping that it would disappear as soon as possible.

Of course, that didn’t mean she disappeared. No matter what I said, she would sit right next to me and take the class with me. If I asked the teacher something I didn’t know, she would answer for me. Without any hesitation. I’ve always thought I was smart since I was young, but I don’t know how I managed to cram that much knowledge into my head in just four years. I heard that there was a lot of power struggle. Did she study hard in the midst of all that? She wasn’t normal.

Most teachers found her very burdensome. Especially when they saw me speaking informally to her and her calling me master, she would tremble as if she was in culture shock and the class would not proceed.

However, the teacher who taught magic had a slightly different attitude. The teacher didn’t care at all whether I spoke informally to her or whether she called me master. The only thing that bothered the teacher was her magic. The teacher worshipped her as if she were a living god. When she demonstrated magic, he would cry and be moved, and when she answered my questions, he would take notes in awe. Out of curiosity, I asked her if she was really that great of a magician. Then the teacher looked at me like I was a bug and started a long speech about her greatness. Basically, she was a great magician who had opened up a new realm of magic, and you had to worship her. I took it to mean that if I rebelled against her, I would be in big trouble.

Time passed like that.

***

I was able to enjoy palace life to some extent. She would come to visit me out of the blue, and I was still scared, but I had gotten used to it.

If there was one thing that was inconvenient, it was that no one would listen to me.

Now I was living alone, as if I was being bullied.

Of course, the maids and teachers don’t ignore what I say. When I talk to them, they all answer sincerely. However, they never engage in private conversations.

I was lonely. I was human too, so I needed human interaction. The science teacher and magic teacher were the only ones who had casual conversations with me.

My science teacher was happy to see my enthusiastic learning and was willing to share his knowledge with me. His attitude of considering me as a worthy student impressed me quite a bit. I had a good relationship with him.

Strictly speaking, the Magical Master and I weren’t on good terms. He just kept on talking nonsense to me so much that I started to hate him. It was like I was unconsciously attracted to the neighborhood crazy guy I saw often. I also liked the fact that he didn’t care about the Archduke or anything.

Anyway, these two were my only respite from this stuffy palace life. (She often came to me because she wanted to be my new respite, but she was not a respite, she was something to escape to.)

But at some point, those two became impossible to see.

One day, the science teacher was suddenly fired. When I asked her what had happened, she made excuses, saying that there was something wrong with the teacher. Honestly, I thought it was ridiculous, but what could I do? I had no choice but to accept it. And the new science teacher wasn’t as cheerful as the previous one.

Next, let’s talk about the magic teacher. Strictly speaking, this guy wasn’t fired. It’s just that at some point, he suddenly switched personalities and stopped talking to me. He didn’t say a single word. Normally, if I made a slightly belittling remark about her, he would get angry and retort with an attitude like, ‘How dare you insult God!!’

As if he had received some order from God, the magic teacher now didn’t react at all to anything I said. I was a little disappointed, but I couldn’t understand the crazy man’s mentality.

Anyway, my life in the palace was difficult without my two resting places.

Even though I wanted to finish my classes quickly and leave the palace, there was still a lot to learn. The classes kept increasing, saying that there was some kind of education, but I wondered if there was really this much to learn.

Her frequent visits were also one of the factors that made my mind worn out.

A truly lonely palace life with no one to rely on···

For me, that’s the case

The apprentice maid, Lily, was like a rope dropped from the sky.

“Ugh!!”

“Why are you doing that?”

“His Majesty the Emperor told me not to speak to His Highness the Grand Duke!”

“······Really? But isn’t that what you just said?”

“Oh my gosh!! Can you keep this a secret?”