Using my presence-diversion technique to draw the entrance guards' attention away, I slipped into the palace without any trouble.
The palace at night was devoid of human presence, utterly still.
Right past the entryway, the lobby led into stone corridors. Because my first step echoed louder than expected, I made a conscious effort to tread even more softly as I moved deeper inside.
This was a palace I had visited continually for decades ever since reincarnating as Noah.
Naturally, I had come often when Father was Emperor, and even after he abdicated to become the retired emperor, I made daily visits whenever I was in the imperial capital.
I navigated the intimately familiar halls, knowing the layout so well I could have walked it with my eyes closed.
First, I made a beeline for Father's bedchamber.
He might not be there if he was truly unwell, but it was the most sensible place to start.
As it turned out, that concern was unfounded.
When I reached the bedchamber, there were no guards posted outside.
Pressing my ear against the door, I caught the sound of voices conversing within.
Two people were speaking, both elderly men.
One was unmistakably Father.
"Next, we have a compilation of Your Majesty's words—an anthology of your sayings."
"My words? That can wait. Compared to what was actually accomplished, such remarks are of little consequence."
"I anticipated Your Majesty might say that. However, a draft has already been prepared."
The other voice speaking with Father was reasonably familiar as well.
On its own, I might not have placed it immediately, but with the prior intelligence I had gathered, it clicked at once.
It was Noisehill, who had served Father the longest—thirty years as First Prime Minister.
I heard no other voices, nor did I sense any other presences.
Given the complete absence of sentries, Father had evidently dismissed everyone to hold a private discussion with his trusted confidant.
"A draft, you say?"
"Yes, compiled by the reigning Emperor."
"Noah did? Ah, now that you mention it, he was indeed putting something like that together."
"The reigning Emperor respects Your Majesty from the bottom of his heart. It appears he has been compiling Your Majesty's great achievements for quite some time."
"I knew he was working on it, but... let me see."
From inside the room came the rustle of paper as Father took the document from Noisehill and flipped through the pages.
"...I never bothered checking the details, thinking my own utterances hardly mattered, but to think he researched them so thoroughly."
"I was astonished as well."
"Even this—'A ruler must harbor hatred toward no one'—was merely something I let slip a few times in my youth."
"That was shortly after I entered Your Majesty's service, was it not? I certainly recall you saying it. Yet until I read this, it had slipped my mind entirely."
"Mine as well. Remarkable, truly. Noah never ceases to amaze."
Inside the room, Father and Noisehill were discussing me.
I found myself hesitating.
Should I stay here, or should I slip away?
The fact that they were talking about me didn't really matter.
What made me waver was that Father sounded remarkably healthy.
Even through the heavy door, his tone and vigor were unmistakable.
It was hardly the voice of a man stricken by severe illness.
Discovering that Father wasn't bedridden was a massive relief.
In that case, there was no need to linger, yet I couldn't help wondering what he was truly planning.
Should I withdraw, or stay and keep listening?
I struggled with the choice.
"And where is Noah now?"
"He appears to still be in a private meeting with Lord Oscar."
"Oscar, is it..."
My heart skipped a beat.
Now that the conversation had turned to that subject, slipping away was no longer an option.
Holding my breath, I strained my ears to catch every word.
"Since I am merely an outsider now, it is hardly my place to say, but..."
"...Mm?"
"I cannot help but wonder if reviving 'that law' during Your Majesty's reign might have served the reigning Emperor well, given his strict adherence to the law."
"You mean the fratricide law?"
"—!"
I caught my breath, a jolt running through me.
Though referred to vaguely as "that law," I knew instantly what he meant.
Centuries ago, during the dynasty preceding the Empire, such a law had existed.
A statute that legally sanctioned the purge of an Emperor's brothers upon his ascension to the throne.
Bloody struggles between siblings over the imperial succession had repeated endlessly throughout history.
The reasoning was simple: to resolve the issue once and for all, one simply had to eliminate every potential rival the moment they took the throne.
It was something I had stumbled across recently while researching history—something that had chilled me back then, and chilled me once again now.
If that law still existed...
Back then, and right now.
A cold sweat crept down my spine.
"Indeed, had it been in place, Noah would have been able to dispose of Oscar by the letter of the law. However..."
"However?"
"Noah has already been forced to kill one of his brothers, driven by sheer necessity."
"...Yes."
"I have no desire to witness that again, nor will I force his hand."
"I see..."
"..."
Listening to them, a sudden wave of calm washed over me instead.
They were undoubtedly speaking of Albert.
When Second Imperial Prince Albert attempted a coup against Father, I stopped him and granted him the "mercy" of ending his own life.
They were referring to that incident.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Forgive me, Your Majesty."
"...Think nothing of it. Leave me alone for a moment."
"Understood."
Noisehill answered.
Footsteps drew near the door.
I swiftly backed away and melted into the shadows of the corridor.
Noisehill stepped out of the bedchamber and walked off down the hall.
As I stood there wondering what my next move should be...
"One hundred."
Hm?
Inside the room, Father muttered something.
The number one hundred—what could that possibly mean?
"Noah. If you are there, come in."
"—!"
Shock coursed through me.
Where had I slipped up?
I hadn't made a single misstep, so how had he noticed me?
Questions raced through my mind, but since Father had called me out by name, I couldn't simply ignore him.
Pushing open the door Noisehill had just shut, I stepped inside.
Father sat on the massive bed, propped up against the headboard with a sheet drawn over his legs.
In that posture, he turned his gaze toward me.
"...Hmph."
"Please forgive my intrusion, Father."
"Think nothing of it... Remarkable, Noah. Truly remarkable."
"Pardon?"
What was this all about? I blinked in bewilderment.
Unable to fathom what he found so "remarkable," I furrowed my brow.
"A perfect one hundred points. You landed at the very peak of my expectations."
"Ah..."
So that was what he had meant by muttering "one hundred."
Even so, on what basis was he awarding full marks?
"You have the look of someone wondering what earned you a hundred points, do you not?"
"I do."
"There is no need to explain that I was well aware of your return to the capital, correct?"
"None at all."
"I received the reports. I was told your movements were being tracked at all times, down to the finest detail. 'Nothing abnormal,' they reported. Yet knowing your objective, you would never be satisfied without personally confirming my condition. Otherwise, there would have been no reason for you to return in secret."
"Just as you say."
"So I considered various possibilities, and out of all of them, the timing that would outmaneuver me most completely was right now."
So that was why I earned a hundred points. I nodded, understanding his logic.
I grasped what Father was saying.
While being awarded full marks was gratifying, I felt a twinge of disappointment knowing that I hadn't truly outsmarted him—I was still operating well within his predictions.
Not wanting to let my frustration show, I changed the subject.
"I am relieved to see you looking so well, Father."
"It is premature to judge by appearances alone, you know."
"No, I am not judging by your appearance."
"Oh? Then by what?"
"By the fact that you are making your final preparations, Father."
"Hmph?"
Father nodded, looking straight at me, his eyes silently bidding me to go on.
"You have always said, Father: 'Ninety percent of those hailed as wise rulers tarnish their later years.'"
"Indeed."
"It is no exaggeration to say that you have poured every ounce of your energy and devotion into ensuring you do not suffer the same fate."
"That is true."
"If I were in your position, when would I make those final arrangements? When I am in peak form. To put it more precisely, at the moment when 'I realize my strength is waning, but my judgment remains sound.' If I believed my faculties were entirely gone, I would do nothing at all."
"...That, too, earns a hundred points. Remarkable, Noah."
Father praised me once more.
Evidently, his health was "not so dire" after all.
Reassured by that realization, I pressed further.
"However, that leaves one thing puzzling me."
"Why I kept this quiet, distancing the consorts to create an air of mystery, yes?"
"Yes."
I nodded.
Father gave a faint smirk and tossed a question back at me.
"What do you suppose happens when my true condition is shrouded in mystery?"