"Answering your summons, I have presented myself, Your Majesty."
"Mm."
Sitting in my study, I glanced across the desk at the man who had entered.
Opposite me was a very familiar face.
Fourth Prime Minister Don Oates.
He had once served under the First Imperial Prince, but later came under my wing.
Because of his immense loyalty and sharp competence, I elevated him to Fourth Prime Minister upon ascending the throne.
In terms of pure house retainers, Evelyn was the most successful, but under the broader umbrella of personal staff, Don had climbed the highest.
At this point, calling him my right-hand man wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Having been summoned, Don stood waiting in the office.
Letting him stand, I stayed focused on the document I was currently drafting.
It was an official dispatch addressed to a local magistrate. It had nothing to do with the empire's most pressing concerns, but as it was an essential piece of governance in its own right, I finished it first.
For just under a minute, Don remained completely still, silently kneeling on one knee with his head lowered.
Thanks to the lack of interruptions, I wrapped it up a little earlier than anticipated and laid my pen down.
Looking up, I spoke.
"At ease."
"Yes, Sire."
Don rose in response, but as he was still in the presence of the Emperor, he didn't stand stiffly at attention. Instead, he maintained a slightly bowed, forward-leaning posture as he faced me.
Not just Don, but ninety percent of the ministers who regularly dealt with the Emperor adopted this posture when meeting face-to-face.
The only ones who didn't were imperial prince-tier royalty.
Without commenting on it, I got straight to the point.
"There is something I need you to do."
"Sire. Command me as you will."
"The knight candidates—does that ring a bell?"
"The candidates... If I recall..."
Don knitted his brows faintly, tilting his head in thought.
After pondering for about ten seconds, he looked up and answered.
"Are you referring to the ones Your Majesty has sponsored since your days as the Thirteenth Imperial Prince?"
"Precisely."
I nodded and stood up.
Resting a hand against the desk, I paced slowly around its perimeter.
"It all started with Cheryl. Meeting her made me realize there were capable people scattered among the common folk who had failed the Knight Selection, yet were by no means lacking in strength or talent. And among them, some couldn't even afford the travel expenses to return home, let alone sit for the following year's exam."
"Indeed..."
"Leaving them to waste would be a shame. So, We gathered those individuals and saw to it that their basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter were covered."
"Yes, Sire. As always, I am in awe of Your Majesty's foresight."
Offering praise, Don raised his head to look straight at me.
His expression made it clear he remembered the background, but was waiting for the real heart of the matter.
I offered a faint smile, moving on to the main point now that the introduction was out of the way.
"I want you to gather them and hold something akin to a martial arts tournament."
"A martial arts tournament... Sire?"
Don's eyebrows drew together.
His face betrayed his thoughts: At a critical time like this?
A tournament was, in essence, an amusement.
Right now, I was in a crucial period preparing for a personal campaign—marching off to war.
It was only natural to think there was no time for games like a martial arts tournament.
Of course, I wasn't suggesting this out of vanity, whim, or sheer entertainment.
Meeting Don's gaze, I continued.
"Yes. Ideally, I want it held within three days and concluded before nightfall."
"...Lacking in intellect though I may be, might I ask Your Majesty to enlighten me on your reasoning?"
"Nothing profound. Just a sudden thought."
I offered a genial smile.
Hearing it was just a passing thought made Don's eyebrow twitch again.
"The knight candidates. Some among them have failed the formal selection once or twice."
"Yes, Sire."
"The criteria for the Knight Selection shift every time depending on the preferences of the examiners. We do not interfere in that process. For example, Shirley, whom We first appointed as a knight, likely wouldn't have passed if the criteria had centered on army command capability."
"It is just as you say."
"Therefore, even if they've failed a time or two, they are far from weaklings."
"Indeed, they represent the cream of the crop gathered from across the provinces."
Don said, eyes locked on mine.
I pressed on.
"I intend to take them with me."
"You mean to form a unit out of those who prevail in the tournament, Sire?"
"That is correct."
I offered a subtle smirk.
"Under normal circumstances, I would summon them before Us, have them duel one-on-one, and bestow titles like 'champion' before officially organizing the unit."
"So it must be conducted in secret?"
"Yeah. That's why we're framing it as a tournament. You will oversee it from behind the scenes. Any format is fine, so long as you gather those who secure at least one victory."
"Your will be done."
Grasping the objective, Don bowed his head in compliance.
I walked over to the window, clasping my hands behind my back as I looked outside.
"If I may be so bold, Your Majesty..."
"Hm?"
"Rather than going to such lengths, would it not be simpler to recall the Imperial Guard Army?"
"No. They cannot be recalled."
"Pardon?"
I stated it with absolute finality.
My uncompromising tone caught Don off guard.
"That force must remain separate from Us."
"I see..."
Don still seemed unable to fully comprehend.
There was only one reason I had sent the Imperial Guard Army to Jessica.
She was stationed outside the imperial capital, possessed military command capability, and was someone I could trust implicitly.
Even if turmoil erupted in the capital, Jessica was the kind of woman who wouldn't be swayed, using the soldiers under her command solely for my sake.
I glanced at the status displayed in the corner of my vision.
―――――――――――― Name: Noah Ararat Emperor of the Empire Gender: Male Level: 17 + 1 / ∞
HP: C+B | Fire: E+S+S MP: D+C | Water: C+SSS Strength: C+S | Wind: E+C Stamina: D+C | Earth: E+C Intelligence: D+A | Light: E+B Spirit: E+B | Darkness: E+B Speed: E+B Dexterity: E+C Luck: D+C ――――――――――――
Her loyalty was confirmed by my status appraisals, and she had passed Audrey's vetting as well.
Jessica was thoroughly infatuated with me.
Having only recently taken the throne, there were very few subordinates I could guarantee would never betray me.
It was easy enough to tell if someone harbored no treasonous intent at this precise moment, but human hearts could change anytime, anywhere.
Even so, there were rare individuals who were undeniably reliable.
Jessica was that kind of woman.
That was why I entrusted my prized Imperial Guard Army to her.
By keeping them away from the viper's nest of the capital, they served as my ultimate trump card in a crisis.
Don couldn't quite see that.
Though he was my trusted confidant and possessed a sharp mind for domestic affairs, his military acumen fell short.
He often struggled to understand strategic deployments like this one.
Well, that couldn't be helped.
"At any rate, even if it's hastily assembled, I want to secretly form a unit through this method and bring them along."
"Understood completely."
Don nodded in agreement.
"Framed that way, it is indeed the best conceivable course of action. Brilliant, Your Majesty."
I gave a light chuckle.
"It is merely a soldier selection rather than a knight selection. Anyone could have thought of it."
"Perhaps, but being able to put it into action immediately is only possible because Your Majesty has steadily cultivated talent from the very beginning."
"Yeah."
I nodded faintly.
Constantly maintaining that people are treasures had finally paid dividends.
"We've strayed from the subject. Regardless, I am entrusting the tournament to you. It doesn't strictly have to be a martial arts tournament—the format is entirely up to you."
"Understood, Sire."
"Gathering them and letting them fight is fine, but the final step—mustering them into a cohesive unit—must be done in utter secrecy."
"In secret, Sire?"
"Yes."
I gave a firm nod.
That was the most crucial detail.
If this were an ordinary personal campaign, there would be no need for such deception.
This was an integral part of my countermeasures against Oscar.
I needed to keep it completely hidden from Oscar's eyes and ears.
"...Understood. I shall inform the imperial princes that this is merely a personal exhibition of my own."
"Do so."
I turned and looked at Don with open admiration.
He might not grasp military strategy, but he understood politics inside and out.
Because I said "in secret"—meaning something I wanted to conceal—he immediately connected the dots.
My confidant understood that most of the things I wanted hidden right now revolved around Oscar.
Keeping it from Oscar was paramount, but hiding every single detail from start to finish would only invite suspicion.
Proactively revealing a calculated portion of information was a far cleverer approach.
"I leave everything in your hands."
With a man like Don, I knew the task was safe.
☆
That night, I stood alone, gazing up at the heavens.
Having dismissed all attendants, I lingered in the garden under the vast sky.
On this moonless night, the stars competed in brilliance, sparkling like a sea of blooming flowers.
As I stood with my hands clasped behind my back, taking in the view...
Master... may I speak?
"Hm? What is it, Leviathan? It's rare for you to initiate a conversation."
A faint smirk played on the corner of my lips as I replied.
Leviathan, utterly loyal to me, rarely spoke unprompted precisely because of that deference.
If I called, she answered instantly, but she never chimed in on her own—that was Leviathan's way.
Why does Master take such a roundabout path?
"A roundabout path?"
Everything Master has done is entirely meaningless. There is no need to form such a unit; Master need only wield me.
"True, no matter how many failed knight candidates we gather, they wouldn't hold a candle to your power."
I chuckled softly.
That had been true back when she was just the magic sword Leviathan, but now she had awakened into a greater existence.
Her power far surpassed what it once was.
If I drew Leviathan, I could unleash destructive force rivaling at least a hundred soldiers entirely on my own.
If so—
"Leviathan, do you ever get hungry?"
—I possess no such biological afflictions.
Despite the annoyance coloring her tone, Leviathan dutifully answered my question.
Her reaction was rather amusing.
Claiming to lack biological afflictions, yet openly displaying emotion.
Those emotions were the most biological trait of all, I thought, though I refrained from pointing it out.
Instead, I explained the logic behind the question.
"It is a universal sensation among humans: the first bite after starving is always the most delicious."
...
"By that same token, the first strike delivered after being underestimated is the one that lands with maximum impact. True, if I wield you, I could cut down a hundred—no, a thousand men on my own. But a war doesn't end with that."
If a thousand is insufficient, we need only slaughter ten thousand.
"It was a figure of speech."
I smiled wryly.
Sensing from Leviathan's tone that she was about to escalate to "ten thousand, no, a hundred thousand, no, a million—" and derail the conversation entirely, I cut in ahead of time.
"Consider the past rebellion in Almeria. I used your power to snipe the ringleader. That effectively brought an instantaneous end to the revolt, and everyone who witnessed it was terrified. In terms of our current discussion, that single strike achieved results equivalent to defeating ten thousand men."
...
"However, precisely because everyone was terrified, countermeasures against ultra-long-range sniping were developed."
...
"Had you not done that back then, we could have settled this current matter with your sniping as well."
Leviathan fell completely silent.
That incident when I was six years old had sent shockwaves through the empire.
It happened back before Leviathan had awakened.
One day, a rebellion broke out in my fief of Almeria.
The ringleader sent an assassin after me, armed with a weapon imbued with highly advanced sorcery.
That was how serious they were about my death.
Yet Leviathan locked onto the malice directed at me through that sorcery and sniped the ringleader directly at the source.
Pinpointing a target hundreds of kilometers away with magic, she shot him through and suppressed the rebellion in a single blow.
It was breathtaking—unprecedented in its scale.
Because it was so overwhelmingly shocking, countermeasures were inevitably devised.
It was only natural, really.
No one would leave a method that allowed someone to snipe them from anywhere unchecked forever.
Anyone would fear it and take precautions.
That was a loophole, and once a loophole is exposed, it gets closed.
"Sniping will no longer work against the Rebel Army; this time, I have to go there in person. It's the same principle. Cutting down a hundred men on the battlefield for the first time will shock the world, but cutting down ten thousand the second time won't surprise them nearly as much. I want to save that initial shock for where it will be most effective. And until that moment comes, I want to surround myself with dependable soldiers."
Ah... as expected of Master. I am deeply ashamed of my shallow thinking.
"Don't worry about it."
I took a few steps forward, hands still clasped behind my back.
The starry sky had faded from my focus; I was staring straight ahead.
Though looking forward, in truth, I wasn't looking at anything at all.
"Furthermore, I cannot move against Oscar right now either."
I am aware. Doing so now would tarnish Master's prestige.
Strictly speaking, it was Father's prestige, but there was no need to split hairs, so I let it slide.
"And unless Oscar submits from the bottom of his heart, countless trials will continue to befall me."
Taking a deep breath, I continued.
"You are my trump card; at the very least, I have never swung you on an open battlefield. That is precisely why I want to save that first strike for the moment it yields the greatest possible return. Do you understand now?"
I asked Leviathan.
After a brief silence, she answered.
As expected of Master. To possess such farsighted wisdom even while commanding my power... I am profoundly impressed.
Leviathan offered words of genuine comprehension.
Though it was hard to tell just how deep her understanding ran, she possessed far more intellect than one might expect, so I figured she would be fine.
With a faint smirk curling the corner of my lips, I drew a piece of paper from inside my tunic.
It was an intelligence dispatch from a spy I had planted in Oscar's residence.
Following Father's example, I had scattered spies across the capital to build an information network.
This was a report from one of those eyes.
Written upon it was the fact that Oscar's retainer, Isuka, had paid him a visit in secret late at night.
Merely that he had visited, and nothing more.
Utterly incompetent.
Leviathan chimed in once again.