“A son. I definitely want a son.”
This is one thing I can answer with absolute certainty.
There are no exceptions.
Of course, if I were to have a child, I would care for and love them, whether a son or a daughter. But if I had to choose between the two, I would definitely choose a son.
“Why?”
— I can answer this question with a clear rationale.
“Sons are easier to raise.”
“Aren’t all kids hard to raise?”
“I know from experience that daughters are more challenging. A son seems like he’d be easier.”
“…”
Even though I could hear Epherna cursing me under her breath, my conviction remained unshaken.
Over the nearly year-long period that I spent teaching and raising Epherna, I went through many hardships, feeding her, putting her to bed, and taking care of her, as if she were my own child.
These memories are etched deeply in my mind.
Epherna spoke up.
“Really? I don’t mind whether it’s a son or a daughter.”
“If it’s my child, they’ll be lovable and beautiful no matter what. That’s just how it is.”
A smile spread across Epherna’s face.
She must have been imagining something happy.
“I suppose I’ll have children one day too?”
“Probably.”
“I hope it’s a beautiful child.”
Epherna took my hand.
Was she about to teleport us?
Just as I was thinking that—
“Mister, if I ever have a child, I’d like it to be one that looks like you.”
At Epherna’s words, I felt a strange emotion.
“…Yeah.”
That would be nice. Really.
*****
After arriving at the Imperial City, Epherna first informed the Second Prince of the attendance of Duke Lemea and Duchess Katia at the New Year’s festival.
Though the New Year’s festival was under Epherna’s jurisdiction and not the Second Prince’s, she knew he was curious, so she sent a letter to his palace as soon as she arrived.
The next thing Epherna did, naturally, was to lie down on her bed.
“…Home is the most comfortable, after all.”
She had lived in her palace for three years, and it had come to feel like her true home.
Though she had a lot of work to do regarding the New Year’s festival, Epherna decided to rest for just two more hours.
However, a visitor arrived, preventing her from resting.
“Princess, the Minister of Finance has requested an audience at the Princess Palace.”
It was the Minister of Finance, who had eagerly awaited her return.
*****
The Minister of Finance didn’t belong to any particular faction, but the royal family he had served most loyally was the Second Prince.
In the minister’s eyes, the Second Prince possessed outstanding strategies and abilities to govern the nation and, more importantly, was not a stubborn dictator like the First Prince.
About a year ago, the Second Prince had instructed the minister to discuss matters regarding the New Year’s festival and the state of the country with the First Princess, Epherna.
At first, the minister was puzzled about the intent behind this.
There was no way the Second Prince, who was about to become Emperor, would share power with the First Princess.
But then, the minister heard it directly from the Second Prince himself.
Not only was the Second Prince terminally ill, but he also planned to entrust power to the First Princess.
After that, the minister’s allegiance became unclear.
He was supposed to discuss the future direction of the Empire with the First Princess, Epherna.
But implicitly, he was seen as following the Second Prince.
This created ambiguity about from whom he should seek approval for retirement.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that the First Princess and Second Prince were using this ambiguity to push the decision back onto each other.
If he asked the First Princess for permission to retire, she would tell him to ask the Second Prince.
If he asked the Second Prince, he would be told to request it from the First Princess.
The authority to approve the retirement of the Minister of Finance, aside from the Emperor, lies with the imperial family member representing him. However, both sides are pushing the minister away, saying, ‘Aren’t you on their side? You can’t ask me for permission.’
So, the Minister of Finance made a decision.
Today, he would swear allegiance to the First Princess, prove his loyalty, and finally receive approval for his retirement.
“…It’s clear what’s going on in your mind.”
“…”
“Swearing allegiance is all well and good, but isn’t your intention a little too transparent? You should at least pretend to hide it if you want me to be fooled.”
Two beads of sweat rolled down the minister’s forehead.
“I accept your oath. And I thank you for trusting me.”
The minister made three mistakes.
First, while one year was enough time for the minister to understand Epherna, it was also enough time for Epherna to understand him.
However, this wasn’t a major issue, as the minister was well aware that Epherna could see through his intentions.
The critical mistakes were the second and third: Epherna was a ruler who rewarded loyalty appropriately, and she possessed the wealth and power to bestow suitable rewards.
“Viscount Leus, I will elevate your rank to that of a count. Depending on your future performance, we might even discuss a Marquis title, and I promise you a domain and a ten-year tax exemption.”
“Your Highness…! This is an exceedingly generous reward!”
The minister exclaimed as if he were having a seizure.
A ten-year tax exemption.
It sounded generous, but the hidden meaning was, ‘I’m going to work you for ten more years, so here’s your bonus in advance.’
“I have deemed you worthy. Do you dare to disregard my judgment?”
“…N-No, that’s not what I meant….”
The minister realized his mistake.
He never imagined that the First Princess had already been entrusted with enough power to make such significant decisions on her own.
Even the Minister of Finance, who had worked closely with her, hadn’t known.
‘Did she intentionally keep it to herself… Or…’
Was she hiding it for moments like this?
If she was indeed hiding it, then a truly fearsome princess had been born in the Empire, the minister thought for a moment.
“I was so overwhelmed with gratitude… that I momentarily lost my senses. Please forgive me.”
“You are forgiven.”
The Minister of Finance thought to himself.
Once again, his retirement was out of reach.
And perhaps, he had fallen into a swamp from which there was no escape.
“Now, let us discuss the future of gold distribution in the Empire. Minister of Finance, how do you foresee those with gold mines fattening their pockets?”
“Yes… Regarding that, Duke Tesran is indeed a central figure in the distribution of gold…”
The minister began to speak, his words trailing off weakly.
*****
After dealing with the Minister of Finance, the two hours Epherna had planned to rest were long gone.
With less than a month remaining until the New Year’s festival, Epherna had to spend the entire day and late into the night reviewing documents and stamping them.
Late at night.
Epherna was busy writing new invitations to send to the two dukes who had confirmed their attendance at the New Year’s festival.
As the quiet sound of her quill pen scratching against the paper filled the room, Ern Astra, who was assisting her, was reviewing a few documents nearby.
Supporting the imperial family was the duty of the Personal Guard.
His role wasn’t limited to merely protecting the royal family.
“Your Highness.”
Ern called out to Epherna.
When he used such a formal address, it meant there was someone nearby.
That someone was usually more of a threat than a friend.
“It’s Duke Tesran.”
“Haa…”
Epherna sighed deeply.
Of all the people to come at this most exhausting hour, it had to be the most troublesome one.
“Does he intend to come in?”
“It doesn’t seem so. He only asked that this letter be delivered.”
As soon as Ern finished speaking, a servant knocked on the door.
Epherna summoned the servant and received the letter.
When she opened it, the contents were truly outrageous.
“What does it say?”
Ern asked, but Epherna’s expression soured so much that it was clear her mood was far from good.
She bit her tongue as she responded.
“It seems he’s not pleased with the idea of me being engaged to you.”
The letter began with a sincere congratulations on her engagement to Ern.
However, the rest of the content was filled with worry and concern—in short, Duke Tesran was clearly not happy about her engagement to Ern.
Whoosh!
Epherna burned the letter.
“There’s a limit to how much someone can try to use me as a puppet. When it’s this obvious, I can’t ignore it anymore.”
Duke Tesran hoped for Epherna to ascend to the throne instead of the Second Prince.
He believed that she, with less experience than the Second Prince, would be easier to manipulate.
To add to this, Duke Tesran was under the thumb of the Second Prince.
If the Second Prince became Emperor, the Tesran Duchy would become little more than the Emperor’s servants.
Duke Tesran feared this happening in his generation.
“Mister, it seems there are some people who need a bit of discipline.”
“As you command.”
“There won’t be any bloodshed. I just want to scare them.”
“How would you like to proceed?”
“By any means necessary.”
Ern silently nodded.
By any means necessary.
It was his favorite phrase from his time in the Special Forces.
While Epherna said she preferred not to spill any blood, that trivial detail didn’t concern him at all.
There was a highly effective method used long ago by the Corps to subdue opponents without spilling a single drop of blood.
Ern went to see Valtean.
It was time to call in the Kyne Special Forces.
