episode_0061

A few days after Eric’s wedding.

Ed visited the Duchy of Carpeter after being introduced by his Aunt Julia. This is because my aunt’s husband—Viscount William Reinhardt—was an official of the duke. To be exact, it is a slightly special bureaucrat called a deputy… In modern times, he could be said to be a civil servant equivalent to the position of prime minister.

The difference is that the person who appoints the absentee is the head of the duchy – that is, the imperial family, not the Duke of Carpeter?

To understand this, you have to explain quite a bit, starting with the history of the imperial aristocracy, but it wasn’t really that important. Just think of it as a kind of wedge-like position to prove that the duchy belongs to the empire. Although the duke was the secular owner of the duchy, it was the imperial family that recognized that right.

So there was a lot to do in absence. To be precise, he had exactly the same workload as the duke.

Taxation, diplomacy, customs, military affairs, administration, customs, law enforcement─.

If the duke’s job was to review the feasibility of all these matters and devise policies, the deputy’s job was to find the problems in all these matters and request solutions. It can be said that it is a relationship in which each party copies each other’s work.

In particular, they have been in trouble recently due to the untimely run away from home by the Duke of Carpeter.

Duke Carpeter’s son ‘Anthony’, who was acting as the Duke’s representative, was a talented successor, but he lacked much experience. This lack of experience was especially fatal due to the nature of the duchy where most policies were determined by ‘custom’. Naturally, Viscount Reinhardt’s work was also piled up like crazy.

What does this mean?

“Stop! stop! Please tell us the purpose of your visit and your name!”

“This is Ed from the family of Count Frieden. I came here at the invitation of Viscount Reinhardt. I was told to stay here at the embassy for the next few days.”

“Please wait a moment. Let me check.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Um, I’m sorry, but I don’t think anything has come down. It’s not even on the list.”

“Yes?”

It meant that he was so busy that he put off the ‘personal work’ that his wife had asked him to do and then completely forgot about it.

That was the reason why Edgar was caught and could not enter the Duchy of Carpeter’s official residence.

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“Uh, then could you ask the Viscount to check for a moment?”

“I think you will have to wait until the Viscount returns from his residence.”

“When will you be back?”

“Originally, you would come back around sunset, but… Recently, many people work overnight at their official residence, so you may have to wait a few days.”

“Aha… .”

“If you have no urgent business, we will introduce you to a place where you can stay for a few days.”

It seems like this isn’t the first time something like this has happened.

The staff guarding the embassy spoke in a polite manner, but the content was ultimately an order to congratulate the guests.

“Um.”

Actually, there was no need to be that urgent. Just because it’s outside the embassy doesn’t mean there’s anywhere to stay.

The only thing that could separate the inside and outside of the official residence was the existence of a fence close to the castle wall that separated them.

So, it would be okay to take your time and wait… .

‘I’m a little tired.’

Right now, I was more tired than usual.

This is because it was traveled by carriage rather than train. I read a book on a shaking carriage and felt like I was going to throw up at any moment due to motion sickness. I feel nauseous and my head hurts, so I don’t think I can read a book.

I heard there was a library at the Cafeter official residence… book… I need to read it… .

Anyway, I wanted to go inside and sleep as quickly as possible.

“Can’t we just stay in the annex for today? I was too tired to take any more carriages… .”

“Hmm, it would be okay if I just recorded it as a simple visit… In that case, we will check the luggage you brought, and if there are potentially dangerous items, we will have to store them separately. Do you mind?”

“Yes, yes. Please do so.”

“Okay. Then, I will check my luggage for a moment.”

I handed the bag I had on my shoulder to the employee. When the employee placed the bag on the wooden table, there was a thud. It was a little heavy because there were a lot of books in it.

“You have a lot of books.”

“Yes.”

The employee took out books from the bag and opened them one by one. It’s not that they’re trying to censor the book, but they’re probably trying to check if there’s something hidden between the books.

Then a thin metal plaque fell from between the books.

Oh, that’s my bookmark. I roughly remember how far I read, so it’s okay if I skip it… .

“Hmm? This card… . Excuse me, but what is your relationship with His Excellency, the Duke of Carpeter?”

“Yes?”

Come to think of it, I got that from Duke Carpeter.

It was said that it was a card that could be borrowed from the knights of the duchy. The thickness was just right, so I just thought of it as a bookmark.

“Well, it’s just a little bit of face-to-face.”

“I see… ?”

The next thing that came out of the bag was a fountain pen made of gold. It was a fountain pen with the meaning of ‘distinguished guest of the imperial family’, and the imperial seal was engraved on the lid. My name was not written separately.

It was a gift from ‘Princess Is’ to show consideration for me, who uses various identities such as ‘Homer’ and ‘Herodotus’.

“… … .”

Besides that, a lot of other miscellaneous things stuck out.

The silver and jade Rosary bracelet sent by the Vatican as evidence of ‘bishop’, the Gray Magic Tower and White Magic Tower freedom passports that can be used as a status badge in all countries where teleportation gates exist, and the ‘Sage’ arbitrarily sent by the Royal Society. The symbolic ring, the Haren Seal given as a souvenir saying that the Sloth King will no longer be used in the future, the platinum card issued by the merchant alliance, and the shepherd’s golden staff that says he can receive help from all beasts at any time.

Since they are all small items, it seems like I just put them in and forgot about them.

I guess I’ll have to clean out my bag later. It felt a bit heavy for some reason.

“I think I took out all the items in the bag… Is there anything I need to leave behind?”

“Ah, ah, no! Yes, we will guide you to the embassy right away!”

“Can I put the items back?”

“Okay, I’ll put it in! Please wait a moment!”

“Ah, I’ll put it in. If you just put it in, the book cover may tear… .”

“Yes! Sorry!”

The staff guarding the embassy were very friendly. Thanks to the staff directly providing directions, I was able to find my accommodation right away without getting lost.

First of all, I will sleep in the annex today and go to see my aunt’s daughter tomorrow.

Normally, I would have fallen asleep while reading a book… .

I was so tired. My head still throbbed because of the motion sickness.

“Why does my head hurt so much… .”

I was so upset that I couldn’t read the text.

I’ll have to think about the rest when I wake up tomorrow.

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Maybe it was because I was tired from reading in the carriage.

After a long time, I had a dream from my childhood. It was a dream from when I was very young—that is, before I met Isolet. In my dream, I, a young child, was sitting in the study reading a book.

I opened the door to the study and my aunt came in.

– “Oh my, my nephew. You were reading a book in the study? But that book seems too difficult for my nephew to read. Hehehe. What do you know that makes you so absorbed in watching it?”

– “… … .”

The ‘me’ of childhood… I don’t think he had a very friendly personality. Normally, when a person dies once and lives twice, his/her personality becomes a bit eccentric.

Isn’t adapting to a new ‘life’ not as simple as immigrating to another country?

– “Nephew? Can I talk to your aunt~?”

– “… … .”

– “Nephew… ? Can you hear your aunt’s voice?”

To me, the ‘new world’ felt like an afterthought that was difficult to even move. This is the item that Crown Prince Sado puts in. Being born as a child with the memories of an adult did not simply mean that one had become ‘younger.’ It’s kind of… It was torture. The kind of torture that locks people in solitary confinement and robs them of their humanity.

All I can do all day is lie down, cry, eat, swaddle, and give up.

It was a similar situation to when people were locked in solitary confinement and brainwashed in the former Soviet Union, but in this world, there was no Big Brother or O’Brien who would free me just because I said 2+2=5.

For a few days, I couldn’t see the world because my eyesight wasn’t developed. I was constantly hearing foreign words around me that I couldn’t understand. Since I died once and woke up, I thought I was in hell.

For several weeks, I was unable to speak because my vocal cords had not developed. Screaming and crying were the only ways I could express myself.

For several months, I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t urinate, I couldn’t eat the food I wanted to eat, or read the books I wanted to read. To get through that time, I had to give up quite a lot.

For example.

– “Hehe, if you keep ignoring your aunt, she will tickle you? Yap!”

– “… … .”

– “… Doesn’t it tickle?”

Things like reactions to stimuli.

I was resigned. I gave up all sense of reality that a living, breathing person should feel. Now the world was no different from literature without substance. This is the kind of literature where once you close the bookshelf, everything ends and it is just a mirage in the form of lines of text.

As a child, I adapted to this world in that way.

[The witch said.]

[“You have to give me that voice. Now, stick out your tongue, I need to cut it out and make a potion.”]

[The witch cut off the Little Mermaid’s tongue. Now the Little Mermaid has become mute, unable to sing or speak.]