After a while, the look of deep emotion in Alice's eyes gradually faded, replaced by one of doubt.
"What is it?"
"Huh? Ah, no, it's nothing."
"Don't hold back. Ask me anything. If it's something I can't talk about, I'll tell you straight out."
"Y-Yes. Um... why did you send a letter to the servants who were at Your Majesty's private residence in Ark Town as well?"
"Ah, that."
I nodded in understanding.
"You're wondering why, while handling state affairs, I also sent instructions to the retainers at the former Thirteenth Imperial Prince Mansion, right?"
"Yes..."
"It's not official government business. I needed them to handle something separately."
"Separately?"
"Even if you supply all the necessary seed grain and farming tools, there will always be refugees who slip through the cracks."
"Who would that be?"
"Children who lost their parents in the flood itself."
"Ah..."
Alice gasped.
With just those words, a clear picture must have formed in her mind.
Indeed, natural disasters struck indiscriminately. There were always cases where parents lost their lives while leaving only their children behind.
Furthermore, when pushed to the absolute brink, a fair number of parents would sacrifice themselves just to ensure their children escaped.
No matter the disaster, a certain number of households where only the children survived would inevitably emerge.
"It's ironic, but children sometimes have stronger vitality than adults. If even two or three boys band together, they can manage to survive. And then—"
"And then?"
Alice tilted her head, hanging on every word.
"By the time the floodwaters have receded and the state begins leading the reconstruction efforts, those children have usually figured out how to barely scrape by on their own."
"Ah..."
Alice gasped again, as if recalling something from her past.
"Yes. They turn into delinquent gangs just to survive. Once that happens, they can manage to feed themselves halfway, but because they're also halfway on the wrong side of the law, standard relief efforts can almost never reach them."
"And that's why you contacted the people from Your Majesty's residence...?"
"That's right. I figured children who have half-turned into delinquent gangs will have a hard time living down the line, so I ordered my people to gather them up as well."
"I see... But why entrust that to your former servants? Wouldn't it be better to issue proper orders to the magistrates?"
I gave a small nod.
I see, so that alone wasn't enough of an explanation.
If it had been Henry or Oscar, that brief remark would have made them catch on immediately. I reflected a bit on having given such a roundabout explanation.
"In the past... during that incident with Albert, I believe. There were children I rescued from illegal slave merchants. Those children have grown up now, and while their circumstances were a bit different, they know what that life is like. 'It takes a thief to catch a thief'—perhaps that's putting it too strongly, but I thought they'd be able to empathize and handle it far better than bureaucrats."
"...Ah, you mean that time."
"Hm? What, you know about it?"
"Yes, I happened to see it back then. If I recall correctly... it was those impostors who falsely claimed to be retainers of the First Imperial Prince, right?"
"...Yeah."
I smiled gently and nodded faintly.
The truth was undoubtedly that Albert had been involved, but officially and publicly, it had been resolved as insolent scoundrels falsely using an imperial prince's name.
The objective truth isn't necessarily what serves best when made public. I lightly brushed past it.
"...That's amazing."
"Hm? What is?"
"That was over ten years ago, yet you still remember those children."
"What, is that all?"
I chuckled softly.
It was a genuine, heartfelt smile, completely different from the one just a moment ago.
"People are treasures. How could I ever forget them?"
"Your Majesty..."
Alice was moved even further, looking at me with pure adoration in her eyes.
Gazing back at her, I thought to myself.
People are treasures, and among them, Alice was a rare, one-of-a-kind jewel.
I had watched her since before her talent bloomed, and I continued to watch over her even now.
A human lifetime.
Watching that talent blossom, and occasionally lending a quiet hand.
Not even knowing if it would truly bear fruit, taking years or decades to observe carefully just to confirm one's own discernment.
Using people for that purpose, leveraging connections, spending money.
Going to such lengths, only for the reward of confirming "my eye was not mistaken."
I believed this, too, was one of the privileges permitted only to the nobility.
☆
Having run out of wine, Alice stepped outside the tent carrying the empty bottle to fetch a replacement.
Aside from exceptions like Noah's covert written orders, the general policy was to keep other people out of the tent as much as possible to maintain the facade that Noah was indulging in debauchery.
And that was entirely natural.
The Emperor—or rather, a powerful man—was keeping a beautiful, talented woman by his side.
Furthermore, it belonged to the intensely private nocturnal realm between a man and a woman.
Letting no one interfere, refusing to let others intrude—that was something anyone in his position would do, not just Noah.
Even when Alice stepped outside, the eunuchs and soldiers stationed a short distance away showed no signs of suspicion, faithfully carrying out their respective duties.
Seeing that, Alice felt a slight sense of relief.
She was merely a songstress.
On stage, she could carry herself with poise no matter the circumstances, but within Noah's political schemes, she was nothing more than an amateur, an ordinary woman.
She was still terrified that some minor slip might expose the truth.
"Lady Alice."
"Eek!"
Hearing the voice from behind, Alice was so startled her heart felt as if it would leap out of her throat.
When she turned around, a young eunuch was standing there.
"Ah..."
Alice breathed a small sigh of relief.
The face before her was one she had seen just moments ago.
It was the young eunuch who, upon catching Noah's signal, had silently registered comprehension and carried out the command despite his visible tension.
In other words, this young eunuch was an ally.
There was no danger of anything leaking through him.
Reassured by that thought, Alice relaxed slightly.
"Is something the matter?"
"Y-Yes. A refill for the wine."
"Understood."
The young eunuch, Luke, took the bottle Alice held out.
Normally, he would have hurried off immediately to fetch a replacement, but for some reason, Luke lingered, gazing up intently at Alice.
"What's wrong?"
"Um... I've known about you for a long time, Lady Alice."
"Huh?"
"Even before I entered the palace, I heard there was an extraordinarily talented singer."
"Ah..."
Alice nodded in understanding.
She knew very well that she was famous.
The Thirteenth Imperial Prince, the Wise Imperial Prince, the Emperor.
She was well aware that she had constantly drawn attention because of Noah's personal patronage.
Alice never put on false modesty about that fact.
Because her fame was entirely thanks to Noah, and because Noah was truly magnificent, she felt that pretending to be humble about it would be disrespectful to him.
"Thank you."
"That's why I know. We're comrades."
"Comrades?"
What does he mean by that? Alice tilted her head.
"I became a eunuch to pay for my little sister's medicine."
"Ah..."
"Then His Majesty found out, and he assigned a court physician to treat her."
"! He did?"
"I heard about your mother before I entered the palace, Lady Alice. That's why... I thought we were comrades."
"You're right, we are comrades. Let's both do our absolute best."
"Yes!"
Flashing an innocent smile and nodding vigorously, Luke cradled the bottle and trotted off to fetch the refill.
Watching his retreating back, Alice was deeply moved.
An emperor and a eunuch.
That was a chasm in status even wider than that between an imperial prince and a songstress—a relationship where there was virtually no practical reason to offer aid.
And yet, Noah had assigned a court physician without a second thought.
"His Majesty truly is incredible..."
People are treasures.
Past and present, even as his station changed, Noah continued to demonstrate those words through his actions rather than mere rhetoric, leaving Alice all the more devoted to him.
☆
The next morning, inside the carriage.
After departing the imperial capital, I, the Emperor, traveled by carriage rather than a palanquin.
The vehicle was a massive carriage drawn by eight horses, its interior configured like a cozy little room.
Because it was drawn by horses, furnishings were kept sparse with a strict emphasis on utility.
Since I, the Emperor, was the supreme commander of the entire army, this place served as a mobile command post.
Inside the carriage, across a simple table that nevertheless provided ample working space, I sat facing Neil.
"Sorry about that. Calling you back so suddenly, I mean."
"Nah, don't worry about it."
Neil spoke casually, clearly unbothered.
Since I had previously told him, "You can speak casually when no annoying busybodies are around," Neil was doing just that, adopting an informal tone.
"Still, is it really fine? Calling me back, I mean. I thought I was supposed to be running your prized commando unit."
Neil asked with a slightly puzzled look.
Oscar was involved, and politics were at play.
Perhaps sensing that in his own way, Neil asked without using overly direct phrasing.
"It doesn't matter. That issue has already been settled."
"Is that right?"
"Yeah. At least for the duration of this expedition, everything is under control."
"Hmm, well, if you say so..."
Neil still looked unconvinced.
The matter with Oscar wasn't something that could be summarized in a single sentence, so leaving him to his doubts if he couldn't grasp it, I moved to the main topic for which I had summoned him.
"How is the Duelist Unit?"
"A bunch of wild horses. Honestly, it's nothing but anxiety."
"Oh? In what way?"
Even as Neil used the word "anxiety," he wore a distinctly amused expression.
It was rather entertaining.
"Your Majesty called it a unit, but that ain't a unit. To begin with, none of them are 'soldiers.' It's the first time in my life I've ever seen a unit without a single soldier in it."
"Ah."
I nodded in comprehension.
"Well, they were all originally candidates for the Knight Selection, and the cream of the crop at that."
Indeed.
The unit I entrusted to Neil had been formed by having my confidant Don gather candidates who had been "intentionally" dropped from the Knight Selection, and among them, selecting only those who had secured "at least one victory" in the duels.
Because they were aspiring knights, they were fundamentally different from common soldiers.
Since the unit was comprised entirely of such men, calling it a "unit without soldiers" was spot-on.
"Honestly, it'd be better to break them up and assign them to various units as junior commanders. Leaving them as they are is a waste of talent."
"Once this is over, that's exactly what I intend to do."
"...Once it's over?"
"Yeah."
I nodded and looked straight at Neil.
"Of course, it's merely a secondary objective, but—"
After offering that preface, I continued.
"Whose orders do those junior commanders you mentioned obey best?"
"Well, their superiors—hm?"
About to answer, Neil furrowed his brows and stared at me.
"Whose orders... best...?"
Catching on to my phrasing, Neil pondered for a moment.
"The main house...?"
I gave a small nod.
"Main house" was a colloquial term used in tandem with "retainer."
Sometimes referred to as the "true master," it denoted the master of a retainer.
In other words, it referred to the various imperial princes.
"If you can arrive at that answer, then you understand. The imperial princes send their retainers not just to the upper echelons, but into the ranks of low-level bureaucrats and junior commanders as well. The web of relationships has become hopelessly tangled like a spider's web."
"Ah... what a massive pain."
"It can't be helped."
I chuckled softly.
This was a practice that had begun after the Restoration.
In the past, the emperor's sons were raised such that only the crown prince received an elite education, while the other imperial princes were raised with complete neglect.
However, when the nation nearly collapsed because of that, the loss of the crown prince left the other imperial princes utterly useless, which only accelerated the empire's ruin.
Fortunately, the Restorer appeared.
Reflecting on that failure, all imperial princes were subsequently given elite educations and granted fiefs to gain practical experience in governance.
It was a measure to prevent the empire from faltering again due to a collective lack of competence among the princes.
Consequently, having received elite educations, the imperial princes inevitably realized the paramount importance of "information."
Information was heavier than any gold, silver, or treasure—something that could not easily be bought, no matter how much coin one piled up.
As a result of that realization, the imperial princes began infiltrating their own people—their retainers—into every conceivable post.
Raw, firsthand information from the front lines was something everyone desperately craved, so it was only natural.
"Of course, in ordinary times they obey their superiors and commanding officers, but when push comes to shove—"
"They move on orders from their main house... naturally."
"That relationship can be overwritten with a different one."
"Huh?"
"Peers who aren't bound to a main house, who once ate from the same pot."
"Ate from the same pot..."
"A close neighbor is better than a distant relative, as they say."
"..."
Neil's jaw dropped, utterly speechless.
"Handle them well. Once you rise through the ranks, you'll have a circle of men who will act like your retainers without actually being retainers."
"To think that far ahead... that's incredible..."
Neil's eyes widened further, stunned into silence.
"Still... will it really go that smoothly?"
"Hm?"
"Your plan assumes those guys won't get swallowed up by power or influence after they scatter, right? Aren't you overestimating them a bit?"
"No, it'll be fine."
"Why's that?"
"Because you're the one at the top."
"...!"
Neil blinked in surprise for a moment. Realizing I was telling him, "You're someone who can firmly capture the hearts of your subordinates," he made a conflicted face.
"That's a little unfair, you know,"
he protested.