Morning.
Upon waking, I stood as Audrey and the maids helped change me out of my sleepwear.
First, Audrey stripped off my nightclothes.
The morning sun poured in through the window, washing over my toned, muscular frame.
My skin was wiped down and rubbed with fragrant oils.
As usual, I barely moved, leaving the morning routine entirely in the hands of Audrey and the maids.
"Lord Noah?"
"Hm? What is it?"
"Is something troubling you?"
"...How could you tell?"
"Your expression looks a bit more somber than usual."
"You're quite observant."
"It's your face, Lord Noah. Of course I notice."
Audrey answered with a smile, a faint blush dusting her cheeks.
I was used to hearing compliments like that, but coming from my wife, it certainly wasn't unpleasant.
"You're right. I've been thinking about Apophis, which His Majesty bestowed upon me."
"That serpent cane?"
"Yeah."
I nodded.
Audrey already knew about Leviathan and the others, so I skipped the preamble and got straight to what was on my mind.
"It hasn't sworn fealty to me yet. I'm thinking of taking care of that today."
"Is that so? Um... would it be all right if I watched?"
"You want to see?"
"Yes."
Audrey nodded.
Her expression brimmed with yearning and eager anticipation.
"I have heard the stories of your divine artifacts, Lord Noah, but I have never witnessed the moment one submits to your service."
"Ah, true enough."
Come to think of it, she had a point.
Leviathan.
Bahamut—Lutye.
Huwawa.
Behemoth.
All of them had submitted before I ever met Audrey, back when I was still residing in the capital.
"I see... Sure, go ahead."
"Thank you very much!"
Audrey beamed with pure delight.
Before long, the maids finished dressing me, and we moved to the grand dining hall, where I enjoyed breakfast served by a high-spirited Audrey.
Afterward, taking Audrey and the maids along, I headed out to the garden.
I had already arranged for Apophis to be brought out in its box to the gazebo beforehand.
Approaching it, I opened the lid.
I picked up the cane carved in the likeness of a serpent and held it up before my eyes.
"Respond."
Instantly, a telepathic intent surged back.
Not in spoken words, but as raw intent.
"Are you all right, Lord Noah?"
"No problem. It's just underestimating me a bit."
"Underestimating you?"
"It told me that if I want its fealty, I'll have to defeat it. Though it added that it would be impossible for a mere child who is wielded by power rather than wielding it."
"What utter insolence!"
Audrey's brows shot up in fury, getting angry on my behalf.
I looked down at the cane—at Apophis.
I had simplified it for Audrey, but what Apophis had actually conveyed was: A mere brat jerked around by SSS.
Now that I was dismissed from my post as Imperial Prince Prime Minister, my stats had returned to their baseline.
So it looked down on me. That was the gist of it.
On the other hand, that made things simple.
"All I have to do is beat you, right?"
I addressed Apophis once more.
The response was a mocking yet affirmative, That is so.
"Fine. Then I'll lend you this."
Saying that, I placed Apophis back into the box, slipped off the Ring of Armor as well, and set it inside alongside the cane.
The very next moment, Apophis transformed.
Resonating with the Ring of Armor, Apophis morphed into a gigantic serpent.
The colossal snake swallowed the cane whole, gaping a maw wide enough to devour a grown human with ease.
"Come, snot-nosed, brat."
Speaking in broken, halting words, it opened its jaws in a display of intimidation, its tongue flicking and quivering.
"Right."
I drew Leviathan and slashed.
Trailing a wake of light-blue radiance, the magic sword struck, only to bounce cleanly off Apophis's scales.
"So tough!"
A smug look flashed across Apophis's face before it lunged straight to bite me.
Kicking off the ground, I leaped backward.
Apophis pressed the assault.
The snake's long body undulated as it charged forward, coiling around me in an instant—and constricting.
I held Leviathan horizontally.
The crushing coils snagged against Leviathan's blade.
Letting go of Leviathan's hilt, I jumped straight up on the spot, slipping free from the serpent's bind.
"Shrink."
Once clear, I commanded Leviathan to contract.
Growing it would turn into a raw contest of strength, but shrinking it was effortless.
Reduced to the size of a needle, Leviathan dropped to the ground.
The constriction crushed empty air. The snake recoiled for a fraction of a second, then snapped straight forward to attack again.
Dodging the strike, I scooped up Leviathan and restored it to its original length.
"You, weak. Cannot, cut me."
Saying that, the snake flicked its tongue and let out a grating, cackling laugh.
"Deliver, final blow. Swallow, whole."
The serpent lunged, jaws agape, snapping to swallow me.
Bracing Leviathan, I parried the strike.
Deflected, the snake immediately wheeled around and charged again, but I smoothly brushed it aside once more.
"Ooooh!!"
Cheers erupted from Audrey and the maids.
I see; they understood what they were witnessing.
I had cast aside brute force, relying entirely on pure technique to deflect the blows.
It was the "non-cutting" swordsmanship against the banyan tree that had become my daily morning regimen.
Martial arts generally split into hard and soft styles.
What I had been honing was a technique that could be called the absolute pinnacle of the soft style.
Using it, I parried the serpent time and time again.
"You, coward. Be man, attack more."
"Heh."
I didn't take the transparent bait.
As I continued to deflect its strikes, I noticed that whenever I parried at a specific angle, my blade caught on a subtle point of resistance along the snake's body.
I tested it a few more times.
The catching point became unmistakably clear.
I decided to strike right there.
After parrying its charge, the serpent whipped around and lunged straight for me.
Timing my move to match its rush, I charged forward as well.
"—?!"
Having done nothing but deflect up until now, my sudden offensive left the snake visibly shocked.
Its own forward momentum combined with my own force.
Angling the blade with absolute precision, I drove it into that single catching point.
Then, what had been rock-hard, slippery scales that rejected every edge gave way as effortlessly as slicing through tofu.
Maintaining my momentum, I drove Leviathan all the way through.
As we passed each other, the serpent's body split clean open, butterflied like a prepared fish.
"That settles it, doesn't it?"
Since this was a manifestation through the Ring of Armor, it likely felt no actual pain, but being cut down so decisively left the serpent dumbfounded, its movements freezing completely.
After a brief pause...
"You, strong. Will become, servant."
Its demeanor did a complete turnaround, becoming thoroughly meek and subdued.
Is this a trap? I wondered for a second, but—
――――――――――――
Name: Noah Ararat
Imperial Prince Minister of Justice
Gender: Male
Level: 10 / ∞
HP: D+E | Fire: E+A MP: E+E | Water: D+S Strength: D+A | Wind: E+F Stamina: E+E | Earth: E+D Intelligence: E+D | Light: E+C Spirit: E+D | Darkness: E+C Agility: F+E Dexterity: E+D Luck: E+D
――――――――――――
The Darkness modifier in the corner of my vision jumped straight to C, confirming that it had truly submitted from the bottom of its heart.
"I'll be counting on you from now on."
The snake bobbed its head in a proper nod before releasing its manifestation.
Where the giant serpent had coiled, only the Ring of Armor and the serpent cane—Apophis—remained on the ground.
I bent down and picked them up.
"As expected of you, Lord Noah!"
Sensing the battle was truly over, Audrey, who had maintained a respectful distance until then, hurried over with eyes full of awe.
☆
A few days later, in the study of the outer court.
Though I had been relieved of my duties as Imperial Prince Prime Minister, I kept the study I had rearranged for administrative efficiency, figuring it would remain useful going forward.
Inside, I was receiving a report from Don.
"What's all this?"
After listening to his briefing, I looked over the registry and asked Don.
"These are gifts sent jointly by the magistrates of Ararat Province. Every item is a local specialty of Ararat."
"Ararat, huh."
"Tribute for Your Highness, who has become their new sovereign."
"Ah, the usual formality, then."
Though I brushed it off casually, it was actually my first time experiencing it firsthand.
When Almeria was granted to me as a fief, I had just been born, so the adults around me handled all such matters.
In truth, this was the very first time tribute had been delivered directly into my hands.
"No, no, this is far from a mere formality."
"Hm?"
"This registry is nearly twice as lavish as standard tribute. I have never seen such an extraordinary list."
"Is that so?"
"There even appear to be offerings sent by the common folk. Having heard the rumors of Your Highness—your governance as Imperial Prince Prime Minister, and your flood control efforts in Almeria and Nisir—they must have sent them of their own accord."
"I see."
"Back during Lord Gilbert's time, it was barely a third of this."
Don, who had previously served under the First Imperial Prince, remarked with a wry chuckle.
"Good grief, there is a limit to how impressive someone can be."
"Even so, there's no point in letting it sit around. Is someone outside?"
"Did you call, my lord?"
The door opened, and a young boy stepped inside.
Unlike the inner court, the outer court around this study did not strictly bar men, so male servants were stationed here.
His was an unfamiliar face, meaning he must have entered the estate recently.
"Distribute these among my retainers. Evelyn enjoys a drink despite how she acts, so send her one barrel each of brewed and distilled liquor. Shirley, who is in the imperial capital, gets two of these cold iron swords, while Foster and Howard get one each. Dylan has a daughter, right? Send him the entire bolt of silk. Brewed liquor for Byron, and one jar each of all four varieties of honey for Cindy."
I divided the gifts according to the tastes and standing of my retainers.
I prioritized distributing them to those stationed outside the estate rather than within.
Having finished listing them off, I was pondering whether I had overlooked anyone when—
"Understood, my lord. One barrel each of brewed and distilled liquor for Miss Evelyn. Two cold iron swords for Master Shirley, and one each for Master Foster and Master Howard. The silk for Master Dylan. Brewed liquor for Master Byron, and one jar each of all four honey varieties for Miss Cindy. Is that correct?"
"..."
Slightly taken aback, I stared at the boy.
Under my steady gaze, he shrank back nervously.
"D-Did I make a mistake?"
"No, quite the opposite. Impressive that you memorized all of that instantly after hearing it only once."
Realizing he wasn't in trouble, the boy let out a visible sigh of relief.
"What's your name?"
"I'm called Gran."
"How long have you been at this estate?"
"About a month, my lord."
"Why did you come here?"
Right after I began questioning the boy, Don looked as if he wanted to interject, but watching me rapidly inquire into Gran's background, he closed his mouth, deciding it best not to interrupt.
Gran, though visibly bewildered, answered my question.
"My parents fell ill, and my older brother doesn't earn much. While I was looking for any way to make money, I saw an opening for eunuchs."
"I see."
Aside from a monthly wage, eunuchs received a substantial lump sum upon entering service.
Castration—the severing of the male genitalia—came with financial compensation, or rather, a gesture of imperial benevolence.
"How are your parents doing?"
"They've gotten a little better, but still..."
Gran lowered his head, his expression clouding over.
"Hmm. How much are you currently paid?"
"Five Rien a month."
"I'm raising it to fifty."
"........................Huh?"
Gran's face went completely blank, unable to process what had just happened.
"And from now on, you will serve under Don. Understood?"
My final words were directed at Don.
Don gave a solemn nod.
His expression showed he understood perfectly that I valued Gran's memory and intended to groom him for greater responsibilities.
"Th-Thank you very much! Thank you! Thank you so very much, my lord!"
Bowing frantically over and over, Gran hurried out of the study to distribute the gifts.
Once we were alone, Don turned to me.
"As expected of Your Highness. After such generosity, he will surely feel indebted enough to serve you with his very life on the line."
"He doesn't need to risk his life."
"Oh?"
"People are treasures. Devotion is fine, but I need them alive to serve me."
"Truly magnificent, my lord."
Wearing an expression of absolute, unreserved devotion, Don bowed deeply to me.