The Iskarion Empire, with its long history engraved through the ages.
To become the private tutor of the prince born to be its next emperor was a tremendous promotion.
For me, born into a viscount’s house where my elder brother was the heir, it was a stroke of fortune I had gained only because an acquaintance of mine had become emperor.
“Teacher, can you do this?”
That prince asked me politely, despite my being nothing more than the son of a viscount.
Before my eyes floated three fireballs, lined up perfectly straight.
As elementary magic, it was child’s play to anyone who made a living from magic.
The problem, however, was that the three spells had been arranged stably while maintaining the absolute minimum distance at which they would not interfere with one another.
I had heard about it, but whoever had thought to make a child do this must have been either an extraordinary eccentric or exceptionally skilled at handling students.
Even adults would not want to learn such a plain technique that demanded nothing but painstaking control.
Precisely because I understood the effort involved, it was enough to make me sick of it.
“I cannot do it immediately. But with practice, I believe I will be able to.”
Even so, in order not to let this good fortune slip away, I had to do it.
Seeming satisfied with my answer, the prince gave a small nod and extinguished the fireballs.
I had heard that the previous tutor had mocked his acquisition of this technique and incurred the prince’s displeasure.
And apparently the reason the prince was so fixated on this magic was that, when assassins attacked, the First Prince had used that level of control to save him with elementary magic.
“My elder brother controlled even more of them. And in that dangerous situation, he protected us. Next time, I want to become someone who can save others, like my brother.”
“Your Imperial Highness. Such a calamity must never be allowed to happen again.”
“Yes. But preparing for it is not pointless. I want to do what little I can, even if it is only me.”
This prince’s future was assured.
And yet I felt that his opinion of himself was terribly low.
The reason for that was likely this elder brother of his.
The rumors about the First Prince that reached my ears were all dreadful.
Some were vicious—that he bullied his younger brother, that he coveted the imperial throne—while others said he was dull-witted, or a money-obsessed man devoted to alchemy.
Yet the prince before me, who knew the reality, seemed to revere him from the bottom of his heart.
Among the rumors was even one claiming that he had tried to assassinate his younger brother and was now confined to the edge of the palace, but surely that much was a lie.
Still, judging from the circumstances, there was no doubt he was a problematic person.
Keeping out of sight, hiding behind his bad reputation while refining his control of magic—just what was he aiming for?
Once I began to doubt, there would be no end to it, and it was easy enough to imagine things in a bad direction.
Even if that were not the case, considering that he had continued living amid such a mountain of ill repute, he must either be extraordinarily patient or possess a twisted character.
“Excuse me.”
After finishing my work as tutor and parting from the prince, I headed for a room in the palace as instructed.
“How was your first task?”
Waiting for me was a nobleman of around sixty, dressed in clothes that appeared plain at first glance.
But on closer inspection, he wore garments that lavishly used a single piece of intricately woven cloth.
This was Duke Lucaios, who led the largest noble faction in the country.
“Y-yes. His Imperial Highness has permitted me to continue attending him as his tutor.”
“That is excellent. He had grown quite wary of the teachers we introduced, you see. Perhaps presenting you as a school friend of His Majesty worked in our favor.”
As the child of a noble family, I had attended the academy in the Kingdom of Lukiusaria.
At the time, I had not known how fortunate it was that the man who was now emperor had been in the same class as me.
In the old days, I had even called him by the nickname Kei, yet now he was in a position where I needed permission just to raise my face before him.
As fellow men who would not inherit our houses, we had once discussed what we might do with our futures.
After graduation, he went into the military, while I pursued magical research.
Since then, we had met only a handful of times, so I was honestly happy that he remembered me.
But he was far too easygoing.
He had not changed at all from our student days.
“Keep a close watch.”
“Yes.”
No matter what we did, the ties and obligations of noble houses clung to us.
Perhaps the emperor had been fortunate enough to escape them and had forgotten how troublesome they were.
No, knowing his personality, I could also believe that he had trusted me—but unfortunately, I could not answer that trust.
“You are there to give him breathing room. Keep him in good humor by offering moderate affirmation.”
“Yes.”
Duke Lucaios, the prince’s grandfather, was rumored to dote on his grandson.
But seeing him now, the instructions he gave seemed better described as manipulation.
No, he probably did find the boy dear.
After all, the prince was someone who would enhance his own power.
That was precisely why I could understand that the eldest son, the First Prince, was an eyesore to him, and why he would be wary.
“To think he would exclude those from houses that will form the future ruling faction. Honestly.”
The duke gazed out the window and let out a grumble.
For stable national governance, the power of factions was useful.
It was understandable that people were being placed around the prince even now in order to form a faction around him.
And yet, beginning with my predecessor, the prince had apparently begun to be choosy about his tutors and those who served at his side.
That was why I had been given this position after being told to make sure I was not disliked, and also not to make public my connection to the duke, which was likely one reason the prince would reject me.
The people from whom it was to be hidden were, of course, the imperial family, including the prince himself.
“In order to keep him from driving the others any farther away, measure your position very carefully so that you can admonish him when needed.”
“Yes.”
I had been approached. It was a tremendous promotion. For me, the son of a viscount and not even the heir, it was good fortune.
After all, Duke Lucaios had personally entrusted me with work like this.
“It may still be too early, but would it be better to teach him a little of what it means to practice political artifice?”
The figure of Duke Lucaios, seriously considering the matter, certainly showed concern for his grandson’s future.
At the same time, I could also sense his determination to raise him as a future emperor.
Keeping away those he disliked, refusing to make use of them—doing that would create bias.
For one who would lead this Iskarion Empire, formed by six races and numerous nations, it was hardly praiseworthy conduct.
Duke Lucaios, who was trying to correct that, surely did care for the prince, his grandson.
“It may be necessary to subtly suggest patience in human relationships and how to use people in society. Once he has taken a certain liking to you, I will leave it to you.”
“Yes.”
This was by no means bad for the prince.
More than anything, for the sake of the elder brother he was so proud of, things could not remain as they were.
The First Prince was no longer in the palace.
He had been sent to the frontier, to an insignificant backwater with no prospect of resolution.
He commanded troops and had imperial guards assigned to him, so on the surface it looked impressive, but politically speaking, being driven to such a place was no different from being discarded.
This outcome was likely because the prince had leaned too heavily toward the First Prince.
That was why they had been forcibly separated.
Precisely because they had been close, it had invited an unfortunate result.
Because of his youth, the prince had not understood the position he occupied, and his misjudgment had brought about the present.
“Using past examples from the imperial house would likely make it easier to understand. Cite emperors who were skilled in negotiations, compile materials on them, and hand them over to him.”
One of Duke Lucaios’s subordinates in the room stepped forward.
“From now on, rely on this man. Submit your reports through him as well.”
“Yes.”
The duke’s subordinate and I confirmed each other’s faces.
Once his business was done, the duke left the room.
I had a brief discussion with the duke’s subordinate, and in the end, I was left alone in the room.
“…………Phew.”
I was not used to court service.
But by doing this, my family—and my parents and elder brother—would benefit.
It was a rare opportunity to secure my future as well.
I stopped pointlessly overthinking things and left the room.
Then a small shadow moved at the far end of the corridor.
The twin princes, with identical faces, were staring fixedly at me.
“Well, hello…”
When I called out, unable to bear the silence, the twin princes left without saying a word.
They were quiet for children, but perhaps that was what princes were like.
Honestly, I could not afford to worry about the other princes as well.
From now on.
From now on, I would pretend to be the emperor’s ally.
“But I will not become his enemy.”
That was the least answer I could give to our friendship.
I was not so noble as to reject the duke’s faction, nor so reckless as to stand against it.
Even so, in order to answer the man who had once been my friend and was now emperor, this was the one choice I could make.
Telling myself that, I began walking through the palace, whose ceilings were pointlessly high.
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