"...Is this really all right?"
Several days before the initial members of Third Princess Liliana's camp would assemble.
In the Duke's office, a voice heavy with tension and caution rang out.
The speaker—Albert—finished his words, then fixed his gaze upon Yurugen, the head of the Duke's household, seated before him.
Yurugen, for his part, wore an unruffled smile as he replied calmly.
"Hm? What about it?"
"...In regards to the succession dispute—it is a tremendous honor that your Grace has reached out to me as a direct mage for Her Highness Liliana's camp, which the House of Tracia is backing. However—"
He expressed his sincere gratitude for the circumstances of his summons—for being scouted—and yet, beyond that,
he spoke of what he would not yield on.
"Your Grace surely understands.—
I am—
—
someone who has broken—
once before."
With finality. He dug up his own shameful past.
It was impossible to forget—back when Ermes had first arrived at the academy.
The period when his once-held ideals had been trampled by the academy's prevailing culture, when his overwhelming strength and way of being had been twisted, when his own weakness had left him no choice but to bend.
The days when he could not tolerate Ermes's very way of being—one who refused to be bent—when he had resisted, refused to accept, screamed, and made a pathetic spectacle of himself.
He supposed he had improved, at least somewhat. But no matter how he struggled, the past in which he had behaved that way could never be erased—it was a fact that he was not permitted to erase.
Having acknowledged that truth, Albert pressed on.
"That I—someone who carries the memory of having broken, who cannot claim any particular strength—should have my name counted among the direct-subordination mages, a group that includes none other than Ermes and others of extraordinary prowess... is that something I have the right to ask for?"
It was a sincere question, posed to one far above his station.
Yurugen accepted it without condescension, then spoke in a gentle tone.
"—That is precisely why."
"!"
"I say this myself, but this is truly a remarkable opportunity. As the heir to a viscount's house, being appointed directly under the royal family is without question a tremendous honor. Under normal circumstances, you would seize this offer without a moment's hesitation.
...And yet, you spoke those words just now. You asked whether you were worthy. That, exactly, is what I am looking for in you."
The cold-blooded duke—merciless and without sentiment.
It was here that Albert realized the rumors circulating about Yurugen in the city were utterly off the mark.
"You understand what it means for a person to break. You understand what it means to be weak. ...And yet, you have also cultivated the resolve not to resign yourself to remaining weak. That, I believe, is what we lack most."
"...What exactly do you mean?"
Albert tilted his head at the abstract nature of Yurugen's words, and Yurugen smiled wryly.
"To put it plainly—
They're too strong.
Those kids, I mean."
Even so, he stated his concerns clearly and firmly.
"Every single one of them possesses an unwavering purpose and will stop at nothing to pursue it. That is why they are strong—and that is also why their way of being is, for lack of a better word... sharp. It is a wonderful thing, but it can also, at times, exceed what one might imagine."
With that final remark, Yurugen fixed Albert with a steady gaze.
"That is why I want you. You have a reasonable sense of judgment, a drive to improve, and above all—you are someone who can speak frankly to Ermes. I want you to serve as the one who supports, rather than the one who leads. ...Will you accept?"
"..."
For a brief moment, Albert lowered his gaze in thought.
But it was not hesitation. ...It was time to savor the overwhelming rush of emotions that came with earning the right to stand beside them once more.
And so, to the offer that—in his heart—he would have accepted without a moment's doubt.
He raised his face without hesitation, nodded firmly, and spoke.
"I would be honored. Please leave it to me!"
◆
And so it came to pass that Albert joined as the final member of the Third Princess's faction—the princess's personal mages.
Over the following days, they spent their time deepening their bonds and honing their skills together.
His relationship with the princess was warm with all of them, and as for Liliana—the biting, aggressive manner she had shown Ermes on the first day had mostly subsided, save for the occasional outburst directed at Katia.
His magical training as well—naturally, a few days could only scratch the surface, but he had taken a definitive first step as a wielder of Creation Magic.
Thus, a few days later, on one particular day.
Ermes received an important summons.
"The Princess wants to see us... Ermes is here too, I see. Well then, shall we go?"
In a quiet corner of the Royal Palace, Yurugen approached Liliana and Ermes, who had both answered the summons, and spoke to them. Then he set off, the two in tow.
As Ermes walked with Liliana tugging at the hem of his robe, he posed a question to Yurugen.
"Your Grace. So, where are we headed today?"
"Ah. --The Audience Chamber."
"Guh—"
Just being told their destination all over again was enough to make even Ermes's skin prickle.
The Audience Chamber.
Yes — that meant he was finally, at long last, going to meet the king of this country.
"The King is, naturally, fully aware that a succession dispute among the next generation is brewing."
Yurugen continued, reading the tension in Ermes.
"Knowing that, he has nonetheless turned a virtual blind eye to it. …I suppose you might be tempted to say, 'Why not just pick a Crown Prince and be done with it?' But it isn't quite that simple."
The king's deliberately ambiguous stance up until now. Ermes couldn't help but listen intently.
"If one faction held a clear advantage, that approach might work. The trouble is, at this point the two factions are locked in near-perfect balance. …Forcing a decision on the Crown Prince at a stage like this would only fan the flames of chaos."
"I see."
It made sense. The side that wasn't chosen would revolt, and the side that was chosen would try to suppress them — which would only accelerate the conflict. Even Ermes could imagine that much.
"Still, telling them to 'do as they please' would be equally problematic. That's why he's setting up this audience — to lay down what amount to ground rules, I expect."
To put it bluntly in the coarsest possible terms, the whole point of this summons was to give a 'rules-of-engagement briefing' for the succession struggle.
And that, in turn, meant —
"The First Prince and the Second Princess will both be in attendance as well, won't they?"
"That's right. For you, Ermes, this will be the first time you've met either of Their Highnesses. That's the reason you were called here today. We can't exactly bring everyone, but you, at least."
At that, Liliana — who had followed along wearing a visibly tense expression — flinched, her body stiffening. Her grip on the hem of Ermes's clothing tightened.
Even so, she didn't stop walking. After giving her a brief glance, Yurugen spoke again.
"…Let's take a moment to confirm the two Their Highnesses you'll be dealing with this time around."
"Yes."
This was vital information for Ermes. He sharpened his focus and listened carefully.
"First, the First Prince—His Highness Herc. At this point, he's the candidate who has gathered the most noble support."
"…Does he personally have the caliber to hold that much support?"
"I wouldn't say he doesn't… but do you remember? It was mentioned that behind him lurks a terrifyingly brilliant strategist."
It was a piece of information mentioned briefly before Liliana's audience. Ermes nodded.
"Once that person's existence was hinted at, the First Prince's faction clearly expanded. That individual is likely the core of the faction alongside the Prince themselves— and above all, the astonishing thing is how little information there is about them."
"!"
A mysterious and powerful strategist that even Yurugen couldn't obtain information about.
Indeed, caution was warranted. After double-checking the most critical information regarding the First Prince's camp, Yurugen moved on.
"Next, the Second Princess—Her Highness Lyra. She is the candidate who has secured the support of the 'Church,' an organization with significant influence in this country, and Her Highness herself seems eager to engage in this struggle."
"Oh?"
"…In my opinion, I believe she may be the one to be more cautious of. The Church already has many troublesome rumors associated with it, and if they are seriously backing a candidate, there must be some deeper reason."
"Understood."
If it was Yurugen's assessment, Ermes would keep that in mind as well.
Now, all that remained was to see and confirm with his own eyes. Thinking this, Ermes finally looked up at the door to the audience chamber before him. They had arrived.
"…"
Bracing himself, he opened the door— and before doing so.
Ermes once again checked on the girl beside him.
He looked at Liliana, whose face was even more filled with tension than his own.
"…Lady Lily. Are you ready?"
"Yes. …I have steeled myself."
The details of Liliana's relationship with the two Highnesses hadn't been made entirely clear to him, but piecing together the fragments of what he'd heard, he could infer that they had been on reasonably good terms until now.
—And that those ties had surely been broken once the succession dispute began.
Liliana probably wouldn't say she wished it had never started—that is, that it would have been better if Aster had remained on the throne. After all, she herself seemed to think there were problems with the way Aster conducted things.
Still, regardless of the reasons, what lay ahead was certain: a confrontation with siblings she had been close to all this time.
Before Ermes and Yurugen's watchful eyes, Liliana made her declaration.
"I cannot afford to lose my nerve now. For my brother and sister's sake—I will face my brother and sister... head-on."
After gazing up at the doors of the audience chamber and speaking those words with conviction—
"So... um, Master..."
She turned back toward him once more, then hesitated slightly.
"One last time... just once more. Would you give me... courage...?"
She tentatively extended both arms forward, her cheeks flushing prettily as she looked up at him with those timid, pleading eyes.
...With a wry smile, he understood what she was asking for.
As she wished, Ermes slowly approached Liliana, drew her small body close, and enveloped her in a gentle embrace.
"...!"
Instantly, Liliana clung to him with every ounce of her strength. The elevated body temperature and soft warmth characteristic of a child spread throughout his arms.
...Something he had learned over these past few days was that she was, in a sense, every bit as lonely as a child her age naturally would be—or perhaps even more so.
"...You must think it's improper. Even though you're my Master, and we've only known each other for a few days..."
"No. Strangely enough, I don't really think so."
Part of it was probably because Liliana was still an eleven-year-old child...
But above all, for Ermes, she simply didn't feel like a stranger—owing to any number of reasons.
"…It looks like they've gotten closer than I expected."
Seeing the master and disciple like that, Yurugen said softly.
"That's because she really reminds you of her, isn't it?"
"Yes. …Come to think of it, Master—were you like this when you were a child too?"
"Hmm, I wonder. I'd like to think I was a bit more adorable than that, at least."
They exchanged wry smiles, and after a few seconds, Liliana was released. It seemed she hadn't been listening to the conversation at all, too absorbed in clinging to Ermes.
In any case, with this, Liliana's resolve had finally solidified.
She walked to the front, placed her hand on the door of the audience chamber, and in one motion, pushed it wide open.
Split into two parts due to length.
Next chapter coming soon!