“Your Highness. Guardian Knight Schneider has just arrived.”
He kneels and pays his respects.
He refers to himself as a Guardian Knight, not the Commander.
He had to.
His lord was before him.
“…Lord Schneider. It’s been a while.”
“My apologies.”
“That’s enough. I know well that the position of Commander is not just a title.”
Second Prince Elius Grandeum.
He speaks while lying in bed.
“It’s not proper to greet you in such a state when you’ve come all this way to see me. I should get up.”
“Your Highness, it’s fine. Please remain as you are.”
“That won’t do.”
Elius was resolute.
With the help of a maid, he lifted himself.
“There are matters more important than my condition. I need to hear it.”
“…Yes.”
Schneider calmly relayed the information obtained through the Astrape Special Forces.
Elius, deep in thought as he listened, spoke.
“The Emperor mentioned four years. I said five, didn’t I?”
“…Yes.”
“We need to hurry.”
“My apologies.”
“I entrust it to you.”
He rose from his bed and changed his clothes.
It was for the sake of attending to his duties.
Since there wouldn’t be many more opportunities to open his eyes, he had to get much done now.
“Your Highness. Duke Tesran has requested an audience.”
“The timing is convenient. What did he say?”
“Nothing specific.”
“It’s obvious. He’s probably scheming to siphon funds from the treasury again.”
Yet, he had fallen victim to those schemes several times.
Though he hated to admit it, Duke Tesran was a step ahead when it came to cunning.
In that case, Elius had to respond at a higher level.
Elius’s golden eyes lit up the room.
Schneider, alarmed, grabbed Elius’s shoulder.
“Your Highness…! You mustn’t! That…!”
“Silence. I am well aware.”
Elius’s voice grew louder. His brows furrowed deeply as he spoke harshly.
“Do you think I am a fool seeking death?”
“…No, it’s not that…”
“How dare you.”
Elius ignored him and moved forward.
He spat blood-mixed saliva that had pooled in his throat.
‘Has it shortened by about a month?’
He felt ecstatic as he sensed his ‘ability’ had activated properly.
‘…Not much time left.’
A smile spread across Elius’s lips.
*****
Some things in this world are inevitable.
No matter how great and perfect you are.
Even if you usually don’t make mistakes.
There are times when something goes wrong.
“Ugh…!!”
“…Mister?”
“Ah… sorry… really sorry…”
But this was really inevitable.
If you move your head while I’m cutting, of course this would happen…
“…What is this?”
The Little One turned her head and looked at me.
Normally, her face would be a bit scary, but not now.
A front fringe cut not straight across, but slightly diagonal.
Seeing it made me.
“Snort…!!”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
The Little One shouted.
“What is this!!”
I really am sorry, but I can’t stop laughing.
Seeing her angry made me wonder if I shouldn’t have done this.
It’s also cute, which made it even harder to stop laughing.
Still, if I keep laughing, she’ll sulk for real, so I said to her.
“Wait a bit. I’ll fix it somehow.”
Although it ended up like this due to a moment’s mistake, it wasn’t completely ruined.
There was still some hair left, so if I tidied it up a bit, it would look fine.
Okay. Let’s focus.
If I made another mistake, the Little One might really try to kill me.
Snip—
*****
Sorry, Little One.
This Mister isn’t good at everything.
“Oh my. But it’s cute!”
“Isn’t it?”
“The fringe is a bit short, but once it’s trimmed, it’ll look nice.”
Phew.
I nearly prepared my own funeral today.
“…Lie.”
“It’s really cute. It looks like it’s meant to be styled this way!”
The hairdresser’s words seemed to work.
Even though she said that, I could see she was still unsure.
“Mister, stop laughing.”
Ah. She noticed.
“Your brother is laughing because you look cute. It’s his way of showing it.”
The hairdresser was kind enough to defend me.
She even called me her brother.
I think I’ll become a regular here.
After a while.
Thanks to the hairdresser’s excellent skills, the Little One’s hair was revived.
Even though I messed it up so badly that it seemed unfixable, the result was pretty good.
The Little One seemed satisfied too.
“I liked it better when I did it.”
“Be quiet, Mister.”
Anyway, since the haircut was done, I needed to pay.
“I’ll pay.”
I handed over a silver coin.
The hairdresser opened a drawer to get the change.
That’s when I saw it.
Hidden under her bangs, a green gemstone gleamed in the sunlight.
The gemstone embedded in her forehead could only mean one thing.
“Are you a Shaman?”
Seven years ago, this question might have been awkward.
But now, seven years after the peace treaty with the Shaman Union, it was okay to ask suddenly like this.
“Yes. I’ve been running this place for three years.”
“Three years ago? That must have been a big decision… You’re remarkable.”
“Not really. I just followed my husband.”
“You have a husband.”
“Yes, thanks to the peace treaty.”
The peace treaty between the Grandeum Empire and the Shaman Union.
Though it started with war, it eventually led to significant exchanges between many humans and shamans.
The Empire learned superior mana control and magic from the Shaman Union, and the Shaman Union adopted many scientific and cultural aspects from the Empire.
Moreover, the Shaman Union supported the Empire’s conquest wars unreservedly, earning the Empire’s trust.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the Shaman Union’s support was crucial for the Empire’s victory over the other three entities.
This support allowed the Empire to maintain friendly relations with the Shaman Union even after the war ended.
“Is that man your husband?”
I nodded towards the man drying the Little One’s hair.
He looked to be in his late twenties and was quite handsome.
And he was a man I had seen many times before.
“Yes, that’s right. We’re getting married soon.”
“Congratulations. It’ll be a great blessing in both the Empire and the Shaman Union.”
While we were talking, the Little One, her hair dried, came over to me.
“Excuse me, do you have any Shaman acquaintances?”
“…Pardon?”
The hairdresser glanced at my feet and said.
“The way you walk feels a bit familiar to me.”
“I don’t have any Shaman friends.”
“Then I must be mistaken.”
We left the hair salon.
Perhaps it’s because she’s a Forest Shaman.
She has sharp observation skills.
I’ll have to be more careful in the future.
*****
Five Days Later.
At last, a message came from the Second Prince.
However.
It came through an entirely unexpected route.
“Why are you here?”
I wanted to tell him that he shouldn’t be here.
But I couldn’t bring myself to say it.
“Why am I here? I’m handling a bomb.”
“…”
Imperial Secret Service.
Special Task Force Commander Valtean Edrick.
Three years ago, he retired and disappeared, only to reappear as a hairdresser.
“How… you need to explain.”
“Of course.”
Why was a retired officer a hairdresser?
Why had he come with a message from the Second Prince?
The answer was surprisingly straightforward.
“Schneider, that old fellow, came to me about a year ago, knelt, and begged. He asked me to take on a few more missions even if I retired.”
Schneider and Valtean were inseparable friends.
Some said they had been rivals since their knight trainee days?
In the end, Valtean couldn’t refuse his friend Schneider’s plea.
“Oh, and by the way, my relationship with my wife and my intentions are genuine. We’re really getting married soon.”
“That’s a relief. Otherwise, I might have punched you a few times.”
“Hm. I appreciate that.”
The hairdresser, who was soon to marry Valtean, genuinely seemed happy.
If his feelings were false.
That would be too sad.
“Well, love is all that matters. Let’s move on.”
“You mean the mission I’ve been given?”
“You must have something to tell me as well.”
“Indeed. I’ll tell you everything I know.”
The explanation began.
*****
After Valtean finished his explanation.
“Wow. It’s a mess.”
I expressed my thoughts.
I wondered if the Empire might truly collapse.
“The Emperor and the Second Prince are terminally ill and can’t have heirs….”
It was a confirmed situation where the imperial lineage would end.
But as they say, even in hell, there’s a way out.
This was precisely such a moment.
“What do you mean there’s a hidden imperial descendant?”
“I was confused at first, too. But there’s some truth to it.”
A third imperial descendant of unknown existence.
This person was connected to the Eastern Principality.
The Eastern Principality is ruled by a duke under the Empire.
Thus, the duke was a public king, and for some reason, they were annihilated by the Empire.
I didn’t know the reason, but.
Now, Valtean revealed it.
“Fourteen years ago, the newborn princess was kidnapped by the Eastern Principality. Enraged, the Emperor declared war immediately, leading to the current situation.”
It didn’t make sense.
I thought.
Because.
“How could such a significant fact not become public?”
Most of the Empire’s citizens, including myself, were unaware of this.
Not knowing about the kidnapping is one thing, but not knowing the princess’s existence at all is unbelievable.
“I don’t know the details. But we have more important things to deal with.”
Valtean continued calmly.
“The Second Prince has tasked you and me with finding the Empire’s last royal descendant. And if we successfully complete this mission, he promises us a full retirement.”
The mention of full retirement piqued my interest.
The Second Prince knew precisely how we would interpret the words “full retirement”.
Although I had many personal reservations, we had always carried out missions without sufficient reasons.
I calmly extended my hand to Valtean.
“Let’s do our best.”
In hindsight, it was a rather naive thought.
Fate often brings about dramatic results in retrospect.
I missed that dramatic result.
