The discussion was over.
It was over, but without the Emperor's permission, a subject was not permitted to leave on their own.
Even if the conversation appeared to have ended, Henry could not move unless I said something.
So Henry waited.
Since I also remained silent, a quiet stillness settled between us.
After a short while, I broke the silence.
"Henry."
"Yes, Sire."
"Do you think I am going about things in a roundabout way?"
"Your Majesty's far-sighted wisdom is beyond what the likes of us can fathom—"
"Brother."
"—!"
Henry caught his breath.
Calling him "Brother" was probably the first time I had done so since my enthronement.
Here, in this arbor where no one else could overhear, I chose to speak that way.
"Do you think it is roundabout?"
"...To some extent."
Henry answered quietly, a hint of bewilderment lingering in his voice.
"You see, Brother, I never desired the imperial throne. At least, not until Albert made his move."
"That is only natural."
"Even afterward, I vaguely considered it, but I still believed either you, Brother Henry, or Brother Oscar would become the Emperor."
"...I suppose so."
"Yet Father handed the imperial throne to me. Brother, did Father ever tell you this? That ninety percent of wise rulers tarnish their later years."
"Ninety percent of wise rulers...? Ah, he has told me something similar, in a roundabout manner."
"He told me straight out, in those exact words. Father was deeply fearful of that."
"I see."
Henry nodded firmly.
"Father's military achievements were tremendous, but he also possessed the disposition of a man of letters."
"The disposition of a man of letters?"
Curious about this impression I was hearing for the first time, I turned to look at Henry.
"A magnificent literary work is only truly complete if it is seen through to the very end."
"Ah... music is the same way."
I said, and Henry nodded.
Alice's figure rose in my mind.
I did not know much about literature, but Alice's songs always left a deep impression on me because of how pleasant the lingering notes were.
Henry continued further.
"Father is undoubtedly a wise ruler seen once in a millennium. If you view his reign as a single story, stumbling at the very end would be far worse than a mere anticlimax."
"Exactly. That is why I cannot hand over the imperial throne to Brother Oscar, nor can I even allow a rebellion to take place. Any of those outcomes would tarnish Father's story."
"If it comes down to it..."
"Hm?"
"Assassination is also an option, however."
I shook my head.
"There is no scheme that remains undiscovered. No, the moment it becomes a rumor, it has already failed."
"People can fall frail at times."
I stared blankly for a moment.
What Henry meant was disguising it as death from illness using a slow-acting poison.
A close example would be the Boyne wine and Dragon's Claw that Gilbert had tried to use on Father.
There were substances like that, with effects that manifested even more slowly.
However...
"That will not do. If someone learns they have little time left to live, they might resort to reckless, desperate actions."
"...You truly are incredible. You have considered it to that extent?"
Henry's eyes widened in genuine astonishment.
"Do you know of any better way, Brother?"
"There is nothing to do but continue walking the tightrope... for now."
I let out a faint smile.
Turning away, I looked forward once more.
Just as Henry said, right now, there was nothing to do but continue walking the tightrope.
There was nothing to do but keep threading the needle.
To that end, I had prepared the "substance" and launched the "feint."
Next would be...
I pondered for a moment just like that.
I had deployed both the "substance" and the "feint."
There was not much more I could do on top of this.
In that case, would it be better not to do anything unnecessary?
Everything I had done so far was meant to keep Oscar in check.
It was a delicate balance.
As the Emperor leaving the imperial capital, taking a certain degree of precaution was only natural, and it was fine if word of it reached him, but provoking him more than necessary was also undesirable.
What should I do?
Perhaps just one more—
"Y-Your Majesty."
"Hm? You are... Luke, was it?"
"Y-Yes! It's Luke!"
Being addressed brought me back from deep thought to reality, and I saw the young eunuch Luke kneeling on the bridge just outside the arbor.
"What is the matter?"
"The, the wind is picking up. Are you still staying—will you be staying here?"
The novice eunuch Luke corrected his speech halfway through.
Even with the correction, it was still far from proper, but I merely let out a quiet chuckle without pointing it out.
He was a novice.
Such matters were things one naturally learned over time, so there was no need to be harsh.
"I do not mind. I shall remain here a while longer."
"I-I understand. In that case, do you need—er, shall I bring you a warm drink?"
"No need. Drinking too much makes one need to relieve oneself."
"U-Understood."
"..."
I gazed at Luke for a moment.
Luke looked up at me with a puzzled expression.
It was just a little amusing.
If this were a eunuch or a lady-in-waiting with a certain amount of experience, they would be worrying, Did I perhaps incur his displeasure? but the inexperienced Luke did not react that way.
"Come to think of it, you volunteered to become a eunuch for the sake of your family, did you not?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Did you never think of running away? If I recall correctly, I remember reading somewhere that even among those who volunteer to become eunuchs, about seventy percent flee right before the castration."
"Ah... well, because I absolutely needed the money..."
"If I remember right, it was for your younger sister's medicine, was it not?"
"Yes."
Still kneeling, Luke looked up at me and nodded clearly.
"Even so, you never thought of running away?"
I pressed him further with the question.
To become a eunuch, one had to undergo castration.
Castration meant, in short, depriving a man of his reproductive capabilities, but what the Empire had been doing recently was complete castration.
This had especially become the case since my enthronement.
It was not a matter of my personal preference.
When a new Emperor ascended the throne, particularly to preserve the purity of the bloodline, complete castration—removing everything from the penis to the testicles—was carried out on new eunuchs to ensure there were "no mistakes."
For instance, during Father's—the late Emperor's—later years, when the successor had already been decided to a certain extent, there had been times when removing only the testicles was sufficient.
When it came to complete castration, it was only natural to become even more hesitant upon receiving the explanation, yet this boy had stood his ground.
That made me a little curious.
"My sister living and being happy. To me, that is something that absolutely cannot be yielded."
"Something that cannot be yielded, is it?"
I see.
"How is your sister doing now?"
"She has recovered a little. Medicine is still needed, but I'm barely managing with my wages."
"Is that so...? Bring a pen and paper."
"Y-Yes!"
Luke hurriedly ran off.
After a short while, he returned with a pen and paper.
I took them and set the pen to paper.
After jotting down everything necessary, I used the imperial seal that I kept on my person at all times to sign and affix the seal at the end.
I handed it to Luke.
"Take this."
"W-What is this?"
"Show it to a court physician. That will allow them to examine your sister."
"E-Eeeh?!"
"They should be able to provide far better treatment than any physician among the common people."
"A c-court physician... could that mean, the ones who examine Your Majesty...?"
"Indeed."
"That can't be! Um, I cannot pay that kind of money!"
"Hahaha, what a novel response."
"Huh?"
"To an imperial grant from the Emperor—no, even when I was an imperial prince—this might be the first time I have ever heard someone say 'I cannot pay.' Rest assured, I shall take no money. It is merely a whim."
"..."
After staring blankly for a moment, Luke prostrated himself flat on the ground with a flump.
"Thank you very much!"
―――――――――――― Name: Noah Ararat Emperor of the Empire Gender: Male Level: 17 + 1 / ∞
HP: C + B MP: D + C Strength: C + S Stamina: D + C Intelligence: D + A Spirit: E + B Speed: E + B Dexterity: E + B Luck: D + C
Fire: E + S + S Water: C + SSS Wind: E + C Earth: E + C Light: E + B Darkness: E + B ――――――――――――
In the brief glimpse of the status, the values after the plus signs had risen slightly.
As always, I knew this was proof that his loyalty had been pledged.
The thing that could never be yielded for Luke.
Because I had touched upon that, he had sworn his allegiance.
...
"Your Majesty?"
"Hm? Ah, it is nothing. More importantly, summon Oscar."
"U-Understood!"
Luke hurriedly ran off.
After watching his retreating figure, I remained standing in the arbor and gazed toward the opposite shore.
"Things that cannot be yielded, huh..."
I waited there for a while.
In roughly the same amount of time it took for Henry, Oscar arrived.
Oscar crossed the bridge in a straight line and knelt at the entrance of the arbor.
"In response to your summons, Oscar has arrived."
"Very well, come over here and sit."
"Yes, Sire."
Complying, Oscar entered the arbor.
Even so, without sitting before me, he waited for me to turn around and sit down first before respectfully taking his seat with a slight bow.
Waiting for us to sit, Luke brought over tea.
Placing a cup before me and Oscar respectively, he stepped back respectfully.
With a suspicious look, Oscar watched Luke's retreating figure.
"What is the matter?"
"Ah, no. That eunuch... it felt as though his manner was different from ordinary eunuchs."
"Ho, you noticed well."
"I make it a point to pay attention to eunuchs."
"Ah, that is wise. I have not yet taken an Empress and have no connection to such matters, but it seems one can deduce the mood of the inner palace from the expressions of the eunuchs, can they not?"
"As expected of Your Majesty, it is precisely as you say."
Oscar smiled pleasantly and gave a slight bow while seated.
"A eunuch's primary duty is tending to the inner palace, so they are heavily influenced by moods and the like, after all."
"Indeed, I hear there were cases in the past where a eunuch's extreme fear led to the discovery of an imperial consort's misdeeds."
"It is exactly as you say."
"Mm."
I gave a small nod.
Whether one was the Emperor or an imperial prince, the time spent at home was minimal.
Consequently, empresses, consorts, and imperial prince's wives naturally spent far more time interacting with court ladies and eunuchs.
Castrating the eunuchs so they would not commit misdeeds was one reason, and if the woman committed a misdeed, she herself might unexpectedly possess the nerve to pretend nothing was wrong, but the eunuchs were not like that; their fear and anxiety would show in their demeanor.
From that, one could deduce various things.
Therefore, noticing the changes in the eunuchs assigned to the inner palace was also an important task.
"I heard that eunuch has a sick younger sister, so I assigned a court physician to her. That is likely the reason."
"...Your Majesty is truly remarkable after all. I must follow your example."
Oscar said with a grave expression.
"Do you think so?"
"If you place them in your debt like that, your allies in the inner palace will increase. Just being able to detect at the earliest stage that the women are colluding makes a world of difference."
"Sounds like quite a struggle."
"When women truly collude together, men stand no chance against them, after all."
"Haha, no doubt about that."
I laughed together with Oscar.
After laughing for a while, I prefaced with, "Now then," and broached the main topic.