"...All right, do it."
Early the next afternoon, standing in an open clearing in the estate's garden, I took a deep breath to steady myself before giving the order to my partner.
Poised before me was a dragon cloaked in fire.
It was the Ring of Lutye given physical form via the Ring of Armor—the awakened Bahamut.
Bahamut unhinged its massive maw and unleashed a swirling vortex of flames straight from the depths of its gullet.
An instant later, I was completely engulfed in fire.
"Ngh..."
Bathed in the inferno, I burned the sensation deep into my flesh and memory.
Enduring the searing heat prickling across my skin, I counted silently in my head—one minute.
"Haah!"
Drawing on Leviathan's power, I blew Bahamut's flames away.
A scorched odor filled the air, and the ground smoldered where the heat had turned the soil to molten sludge.
Now that I had the hang of it, time for the next—
"Eek!"
A sharp scream cut through the air.
Looking toward the sound, I saw the maid Gigi collapsed on the ground, her mouth opening and closing like a landed fish.
Beside her lay what looked like an envelope.
"What's the matter?"
"A-Are you all right, Master?!"
"Hm?"
"Those... those terrifying flames..."
"Oh. That was Bahamut. I was burning myself."
"Whaaaat?!"
Gigi was utterly flabbergasted, staring at me as if her mind couldn't process the words.
"Y-You burned yourself? B-But why?!"
"Figured I'd take the hits while I still can."
I stole a glance at the status window hovering at the periphery of my vision.
―――――――――――― Name: Noah Ararat Imperial Prince Prime Minister Gender: Male Level: 10 / ∞
HP: D+SSS | Fire: E+SSS MP: E+SSS | Water: D+SSS Strength: D+SSS | Wind: E+SSS Stamina: E+SSS | Earth: E+SSS Intelligence: E+SSS | Light: E+SSS Spirit: E+SSS | Darkness: E+SSS Speed: F+SSS Dexterity: E+SSS Luck: E+SSS ――――――――――――
Imperial Prince Prime Minister—the one who oversaw the empire's administration in His Majesty's stead.
Having been entrusted with that role, my "+" modifiers were likely being boosted by the collective strength of the entire empire.
To put it plainly, I was practically invincible right now.
That was why I wanted to take full-power attacks from Bahamut and Leviathan while the window was open.
"Why while you still can?"
"Gigi, have you been vaccinated for smallpox?"
"Huh? Ah, yes. All of Master's maids have received it."
"It's the same principle. Smallpox inoculation is done through a method called variolation, where you intentionally expose someone to pus from a patient—a weakened form of the illness—so their body learns how to fight it. This is no different."
"Ah, I see..."
Hearing my explanation, Gigi finally grasped what I meant and nodded in understanding.
She slowly picked herself up, though the lingering shock hadn't entirely vanished from her face.
"E-Even so, enduring such a fierce attack... such dreadful flames..."
"Thanks to that, I learned something valuable. When your whole body is engulfed in fire, it's hard to breathe. Now, if the worst ever happens in real combat, I won't panic."
"Phew... You really are extraordinary, Master..."
"More importantly, what did you bring me?"
"Ah, right! A letter for you, Master."
Gigi hurriedly scooped up the fallen envelope and offered it to me.
"Who is it from?"
"I don't know."
"What?"
"The person who delivered it didn't say a word. They just said, 'For the imperial prince.'"
"Hmm..."
I took the letter and inspected it closely.
At the very least, there didn't seem to be any harmful intent behind it.
Breaking the seal, I pulled out the sheet inside.
"This is..."
"What does it say?"
"Take a look."
I held the letter out for Gigi to see.
"This is... a menu. Whoever this is, they have quite the voracious appetite."
Just as Gigi could tell at a glance, the contents were a meal plan.
Three standard daily meals, occasionally interspersed with what looked like snacks.
Roughly a month's worth was laid out in an exhaustive list.
Aside from the menu, there was only a brief line: To my savior.
It was written in the clumsy hand of someone unaccustomed to putting pen to paper.
I stared intently at the parchment.
Could it be some kind of code? I tested various angles, from simple acrostics taking the first character of each line to intricate ciphers.
I ran through several possibilities, but no hidden message emerged.
Then, something struck me.
The texture of the paper.
And the moment I registered that texture, the pieces fell into place.
A whole chain of deductions unraveled in my mind like pulling a single root.
"Cruz, huh."
"Eh? You figured out who sent it?"
"Yeah. This is His Majesty's... likely his personal menu over the past month."
"I see. It certainly looks like royal palace dining... Huh? But isn't His Majesty unwell right now...?"
Gigi's eyes went wide with realization.
Every maid in this mansion knew that because His Majesty's health had taken a turn for the worse, he had appointed me Imperial Prince Prime Minister until he recovered.
"Precisely."
"What do you mean?"
"First, I recognize the texture of this paper. It's the exclusive stock supplied directly to the royal palace for His Majesty's personal use."
"Oh..."
"That's how I knew it was His Majesty's menu. And the only person with access to it who would call me their 'savior' is Cruz."
It went back to the incident with the illiterate eunuch, when I had advised a lighter penalty.
Depending on how strictly the law had been applied, Cruz could have faced execution back then.
Calling me his savior wasn't an exaggeration in the slightest.
Furthermore, as the Emperor's close aide, Cruz was almost certainly under strict orders from His Majesty not to breathe a word about his true condition.
In fact, he hadn't let slip a single detail when delivering the imperial decree.
However, it seemed His Majesty hadn't thought to censor his daily menus.
What Cruz had delivered was, by all accounts, the diet of an exceptionally healthy man.
No one suffering from summer fatigue could put away this much food.
Cruz, and before him, Low Consort Ada.
With the discreet clues provided by the two of them, I was now utterly convinced that His Majesty remained in peak health.
"Wow... That's incredible. To identify the sender just from the quality of the paper... Master, you truly are amazing."
Smiling back at the awe-struck Gigi, I made a mental note to thank Cruz the next time our paths crossed.
After changing out of my singed clothes, I set off for the study I had built in the outer court to get to work on the day's administrative affairs.
On my way, I spotted the gatekeeper arguing with someone at the main entrance.
Curious about the commotion, I walked over.
"What's going on here?"
"Ah! My deepest apologies, Your Highness! I'll drive him away this instant!"
The young gatekeeper panicked.
Bracing his hand against the man's chest, he prepared to shove him off the premises then and there.
"Hold on. What are you two arguing about?"
"Your Highness? So you're the Thirteenth Prince, eh?"
The man confronting the gatekeeper addressed me in a cheerful, easygoing tone.
To put it mildly, he looked like a beggar.
His hair was a tangled mess, and his clothes hung in tattered rags.
He was caked in mud from head to toe, and standing near him sent a sharp, rancid stench stinging up my nostrils.
"Perfect timing. I've got a little proposition for ya. Care to hear me out?"
"Watch your tongue! There's a limit to how insolent you can be!"
"...No, it's fine. You have something to say, right? I'll hear you out."
"Huh?"
The gatekeeper gaped at me, his face blank with utter confusion.
"Follow me."
"Now you're talkin'!"
Leading the man along, I headed back inside the residence.
Once indoors, I had one of the maids brew some tea and personally showed the man into the reception room.
I sat on the sofa, and he took a seat across from me.
"Well, well, as expected of an imperial prince—you sure know how to treat a guest!"
"Flattery aside, what business brings you to me?"
"Right, right. The name's Rion. I brought a profitable venture to Your Highness today."
"A profitable venture?"
"A business proposition, see."
"I see. And what kind of business might that be?"
"Now that's a secret, ya know. Your Highness has plenty of servants around, don'tcha? Walls have ears, as they say."
"Meaning you'll lose your profit if word gets out?"
"Well, that's pretty much the long and short of it, yeah."
"Hmm. And how much capital do you need?"
"One hundred Rien. That'll be plenty."
"Hmm."
I studied Rion carefully.
He held my gaze, watching me intently.
"If I provide the funds—in other words, invest in your venture—what return can I expect?"
"In one year, I'll pay ya back tenfold."
"Is that so?"
Glancing toward the doorway, I caught the expression on the face of the maid who had brought in the refreshments.
She was staring at the back of Rion's head with a wry smile.
Her look practically screamed, Nobody in their right mind would fall for such a blatant scam.
A perfectly reasonable reaction.
"Very well. Bonnie."
I called out to the maid standing by.
"Yes?"
"Go tell Dylan to hand this man one thousand Rien."
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
Rion and Bonnie cried out in unison.
"What is it? Is one thousand Rien not enough?"
"N-No... it's not that it's... not enough, but..."
"Then there's no problem. I have high expectations of you."
"Y-Yeah."
Wearing a look of utter bewilderment, Rion allowed himself to be led out of the reception room by Bonnie.
A short while later, Bonnie returned.
"Master. I gave that man the money and saw him out."
"Good."
"Um... why did you give him the money? And ten times what he asked for, no less. A swindler like that will never return once he has the coin."
"Did you look at that man's head?"
"H-His head?"
Bonnie looked at me blankly, clearly wondering why I was asking something so bizarre.
"His head."
"Well... it was unkempt and messy, but..."
"Not the hair itself. True, his hair was disheveled, his clothes were in tatters, and he was filthy and smelled terrible. However..."
"H-However?"
"His scalp was clean."
"Eh? T-That's impossible."
"You of all people should understand why, shouldn't you?"
"Yes! I was an orphan saved by you, Master, and became a maid here, so I know."
I gave a faint nod.
Most of the maids in this residence came from similar backgrounds.
Either they themselves or their families had been saved by me, which led to them entering my service.
Bonnie was one of them.
"If he were truly living like that, there's no way his scalp could be clean."
"Exactly. Which means it was a disguise."
"...I see."
Though still looking somewhat conflicted, Bonnie nodded in understanding.
Besides... though there was no real point in mentioning it to Bonnie, Rion had looked at no one but me from the second he stepped into the room.
This was the reception room of the Thirteenth Imperial Prince Mansion, appointed with exceptionally lavish furnishings meant to entertain the highest nobility.
Even an amateur could tell its staggering worth at a single glance.
Yet Rion hadn't spared the room so much as a wandering look, keeping his focus locked squarely on me.
"He went through the trouble of disguising himself just to demand money from me, which means there is more to this than meets the eye."
"Yes..."
"I don't know what his true aim is yet."
I turned my palms up and gave a light shrug.
"However, people are treasures. Think of it as an investment in a man bold enough to go to such lengths just to stand before me. Even if nothing comes of it down the line, all I've lost is coin. But if something does come of it, I will have gained a capable man who dared to throw himself right into my presence in that guise. That is the true value of that money."
"I understand now... You truly think of everything, Master!"
Outside the Thirteenth Imperial Prince Mansion.
Having departed the estate, Rion slipped into the shadows to regroup with another man who had been waiting for him.
This second man was impeccably dressed—a handsome young man of refined bearing.
"How did it go?"
"...I got the money."
"Why do you have such a strange look on your face?"
"See for yourself."
When Rion produced the heavy leather pouch, his companion's eyes went wide.
"This is... how much is in here?"
"One thousand Rien. That lord handed over ten times what I asked for."
"...Why?"
"Beats me. He just stared right into my face for a moment, and then ordered his maid to give me a thousand Rien."
"Your face?"
"Yeah."
The young man stared fixedly at Rion for several seconds, then gasped in sudden realization.
"...Your head."
"My head?"
"He saw right through you. He realized you were in disguise because of your clean scalp."
"...Ah."
Rion reached up and touched his head—feeling the clean skin beneath the tangled mess of hair—and gasped with the same sudden clarity.
"That's why he figured there was something deeper going on."
"Something deeper? There's nothing deeper to it. We just wanted to see what kind of man the imperial prince really was."
"And yet, he laid down ten times the requested sum without batting an eye. It seems that prince is a far more formidable figure than we anticipated."
"Yeah..."
From the cover of the shadows, the two young men gazed back at the Thirteenth Imperial Prince Mansion.
Noah had put up one thousand Rien hoping to reel in a single intriguing figure.
Yet, far exceeding his expectations...
He had hooked two promising young men instead.