episode_0111

“I take responsibility for the promise made with my only disciple. How do you intend to compensate for my time, Count Ganurabra?”

“D-disciple, you say…?”

Count Ganurabra asked the Emperor in a trembling voice.

Count Ganurabra must have realized that I was the Emperor’s only disciple he just mentioned.

The reason he was asking again, despite that, was…

‘He must be denying reality.’

However, the Emperor shattered that desire to deny with a short remark and a small action.

“There he is, isn’t he?”

The Emperor pointed at me with his finger.

It was merely pointing at one spot with a single finger, but even that small gesture overflowed with dignity and majesty.

Not only Count Ganurabra, but everyone present followed the Emperor’s finger and looked at me.

I placed my right hand on my left chest and bowed my head towards Count Ganurabra.

My signature greeting, by now.

“Yes! Your Great Imperial Majesty, the great Emperor of the great Kroa Empire. I am none other than the disciple of that great Imperial Majesty!”

Count Ganurabra’s jaw dropped wide.

It was wide enough for Daron’s fist to fit inside.

Why Daron’s fist, of all things?

Because I don’t want to put my hand in there.

‘By the way, is this really that surprising?’

The handsome Clown notices that the Emperor of the great Empire is, in fact, a phantom thief who has never been caught.

The fact that the Emperor was impressed by the Clown’s appearance and took him as a disciple is a famous story, known to everyone living on the continent, to the extent that it’s even written in the [Clown Chronicles].

‘Or not, whatever.’

The people present here could be divided into two categories.

Those looking at me, and those looking at the Emperor.

Of course, many people were probably looking at me because they were hearing for the first time that I was the Emperor’s disciple.

There were a few people who knew I was learning from the Emperor.

Lucas, the Emperor’s son, naturally knew.

Professor Alicia also found out because of what happened at Baron Ashro’s last time.

Johanna likely knew as well, having heard from Duke Freya or Ascal.

Oh?

Counting them like this, there were more people who knew than I thought.

If I added those not present, the number would increase further.

Of course, far more people didn’t know.

A prime example was Sepia, who was tugging at my clothes next to me with incomparable speed compared to before.

“Hogu, are you really His Imperial Majesty’s disciple?”

“Didn’t I tell you, Sepia-ssi?”

I tilted my head and asked.

“No, you didn’t! I’ve never even heard anything similar!”

“Really? I’m sure I dropped a hint to Sepia-ssi at least once, you know?”

“When did you ever do that!”

“Isn’t it that Sepia-ssi’s observation skills are lacking, so you didn’t notice? It’s famous enough to be written in the Clown Chronicles…”

“What in the world are those Clown Chronicles?!”

Even as Sepia and I were amicably whispering to each other, Count Ganurabra was still kneeling at the Emperor’s feet.

“Originally, I had planned to quietly meet with my disciple and talk after the disciplinary committee ended. However, Count Ganurabra rushed inside, so I, too, grew curious and entered.”

Translated, it means, ‘I, the Emperor, remained quiet without interfering until the disciplinary committee for my handsome disciple was over, so who are you to cause a fuss?’

‘Or not, whatever.’

“Furthermore, before I entered, I heard an interesting remark. Someone called the time I spend with my disciple a trivial promise.”

“My sincerest apologies!”

Count Ganurabra slammed his head hard against the ground with a bang.

Although I couldn’t feel it, I could tell just by looking at Count Ganurabra’s state.

That the Emperor was currently using ‘Domination’ only on Count Ganurabra.

As evidence, sweat poured down Count Ganurabra’s face, making him look like a drowned rat.

“Count Ganurabra. Just because you are an academy sponsor does not mean you can interfere with academy affairs.”

“Yes! I temporarily lost my mind!”

“If you expect something in return, it’s merely a transaction, not sponsorship. Sponsorship only holds meaning when done without expecting any reward.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“Surely, the Count isn’t thinking of reducing his sponsorship to the academy over such a trivial matter.”

“Of-of course not. Rather, I felt the amount I’ve been sponsoring the academy recently was insufficient, so I was planning to increase it.”

I watched Count Ganurabra, who was being unilaterally beaten down, with a smiling face hidden beneath my mask.

Count Ganurabra, now committed to increasing his sponsorship, fled outside as if escaping, and the disciplinary committee proceeded as usual.

I received no disciplinary action, while Daron received a suspension.

Daron, having heard that I was the Emperor’s disciple, stared blankly into space with an expression far more dazed than before, regardless of what the professor said.

Now, the news that I am the Emperor’s disciple will quickly spread throughout the Empire, no, the entire continent, and Daron will become as famous as I am.

“Ugh! It’s finally over. It took longer than I thought.”

I stretched as I walked out of the classroom where the disciplinary committee had been held.

I felt like I had just stood still and talked, but my whole body was stiff.

‘Was I lying on Johanna’s lap for too long earlier?’

The club representatives and professors nearby seemed eager to talk to me.

Indeed, it made sense, as talking to me was far easier than talking to the Emperor.

“Loki, what is all this?”

“His Imperial Majesty’s disciple, you say? This is the first I’m hearing of it.”

However, the Special Class students approached me one step faster than the club representatives and professors.

“Lucas, you knew, didn’t you?”

“I only heard that you were learning, not that you were a disciple.”

“Doesn’t ‘learning’ imply being a disciple?”

“Is that so? Don’t ‘just learning’ and ‘being a disciple’ have slightly different connotations?”

I looked at the Special Class students who had approached me.

They had all come after hearing that my disciplinary committee was being held.

It would be a lie to say I wasn’t touched.

Shouldn’t I give them something as a gift?

“You all came to visit me, so I can’t send you away empty-handed, can I? How about I give you the handcuffs I used earlier as a souvenir?”

“No, we’ll decline.”

Hmph. That’s harsh.

The professors seemed to have decided they could talk to me later and went their separate ways, but the club representatives were still lingering around.

However, they were all just watching, no one approached me, probably because of Lucas, Clara, and Sepia who were around me.

-Stomp, Swoosh.

But there was someone who ignored all that and came straight towards me.

“……………”

My personal pillow, no, Johanna, with a somewhat sullen expression, grabbed my hand that was amidst the Special Class students and pulled.

As I was being pulled away by Johanna.

-Grab.

Sepia pulled my other hand.

“……………”

“…………….”

I stood in an awkward position, holding Johanna’s and Sepia’s hands with both of mine.

I looked around for help, but the Special Class students were nowhere to be seen, having apparently fled in that short time.

‘These disloyal rascals.’

Their perception had only gotten disgustingly sharper from fighting with Professor Alicia.

Vowing revenge someday, I looked at Sepia and Johanna, who remained silent.

Among Johanna and Sepia, Sepia was the first to speak.

“Princess Freya, what are you doing? Why are you suddenly grabbing someone else’s hand so carelessly?”

Johanna bit her lip as she looked at Sepia’s hand holding mine.

“…Let go of his hand.”

“I can’t let go, because I promised Loki to have tea together after the disciplinary committee earlier, you see?”

Come to think of it, I did say something like that during the disciplinary committee earlier.

That the tea had run out, so we should drink it together after the disciplinary committee ended.

Upon hearing Sepia’s words, Johanna gripped my hand even tighter.

“I also decided to be alone with him after the disciplinary committee earlier.”

“Hogu, what is this about?”

Upon hearing Johanna’s words, Sepia glared at me, and Johanna flinched when Sepia called me Hogu.

“…Loki isn’t Hogu.”

“It’s my choice how I call Hogu. It doesn’t particularly concern Princess Freya what I call Hogu, does it?”

“…………”

“…………”

Both of them, seemingly realizing that a resolution wouldn’t be reached this way, looked at me.

As if telling me to choose.

‘I’m doomed.’

When you think about it, it’s my fault.

I never thought the words I’d blurted out to lighten the mood would strangle me.

Before I possessed this body. My friend’s advice to watch my mouth came to mind.

As I was caught between a rock and a hard place.

A savior appeared before my eyes.

The person who suddenly appeared before me was…

One of the Emperor’s Shadows who had helped me at Baron Ashro’s last time.

“Sir Loki has been summoned.”

He spoke briefly, and now that I thought about it, this was the first time I was hearing his voice.

I didn’t ask separately who was calling.

After all, he was one of the Emperor’s Shadows; who else would have summoned him?

“His Imperial Majesty has called, so it seems we’ll have to postpone our plans for later.”

Using the super-special Imperial Shield, I was able to escape the situation.

Neither Sepia nor Johanna could stop me when the Emperor called.

‘Next time, I should think before I speak.’

Following the Emperor’s Shadow, I arrived at a classroom deep within the academy.

The Emperor’s Shadow, who had guided me here, told me to go inside and then disappeared.

-Clank.

I opened the door without hesitation.

“…………”

I was startled when I saw the person inside.

Golden hair and golden eyes, proving imperial lineage.

However, unlike the Emperor, their golden hair reached their waist.

A face I had only seen every night through the communicator.

The face seen through the communicator was also beautiful, but there was an atmosphere and aura that couldn’t be felt through the communicator.

“Clown-nim, it’s truly been a long time since I’ve seen you in person.”

It wasn’t the Emperor who called me, but Yerika.