"I hear Your Majesty has also been very fond of Shem."
"I wonder about that. I intend to be strict with him."
Father said this, turning his gaze toward the window.
A distant look came over his eyes.
For some reason, the phrase "failure in parenting" surfaced in my mind.
His firstborn, Gilbert; his second son, Albert.
Though indirectly, Father had brought about the deaths of two of his sons.
It was only natural that, in reaction to that, he would be strict with Shem—his grandchild.
"I believe Shem is a fortunate child."
"What do you mean by that?"
Father turned back to me, asking with a slightly surprised expression.
"Your Majesty's 'strictness' is surely meant in an educational sense. For an enlightened monarch like Your Majesty to personally guide him with a firm hand is nothing short of a blessing."
"...I see."
Father let out a soft chuckle.
After a few seconds of silence, I steered the conversation back on track.
"There is one more measure I intend to take. I believe this is something that requires Your Majesty's consent."
"Hmph. Let's hear it."
Father's expression grew serious again.
It was his face for state affairs—his face as the supreme authority of the Empire.
"It concerns the treatment of the imperial family members, whose numbers grow day by day within the Empire."
"...You intend to touch that?"
"I have already sown the seeds."
As Father looked at me in surprise, I deliberately kept my face blank and continued.
"It is about Arlene."
"...I see. So that was your angle."
Father gasped in realization, and I gave a slight nod.
Arlene, the Fourteenth Imperial Princess, is my sister by blood.
A short while ago, bound by tradition, she and her husband, Angus Bull, were struggling because they couldn't live properly as husband and wife.
By breaking that tradition just a little, I enabled the two of them to lead a life like any normal married couple.
Starting with that, I have built a reputation as an "Emperor who touches tradition."
The moment I brought up the subject, an expression of total comprehension dawned on Father's face.
"It is just as you say. The Empire has endured for too long. By now, the allowances paid to the imperial family have reached an exorbitant sum."
Father spoke, and I nodded.
From the moment I was born as the Thirteenth Imperial Prince, I received a stipend of several thousand Rien.
That was simply because I was an imperial prince—because I was imperial royalty.
Merely for possessing royal blood, a fixed allowance is granted by the Empire.
This is not limited to the "current generation" of imperial princes; allowances are continuously disbursed to "former prince households" until the bloodline thins out to a certain degree.
Just as Father had more than a dozen children, an Emperor fathers many heirs for the sake of succession.
That means, in other words, passing down the burden of those stipends to future generations.
In short, it also means the Empire is supporting a vast number of royal households that do not properly work.
Those, too, are "resources"—resources that are being monopolized.
"Impressive, Noah. You truly intend to touch that?"
"I do."
"However, stripping it away out of nowhere will be difficult. Naturally, there will be pushback."
"There is also tradition."
"Hm?"
Father tilted his head slightly.
"The Empire is a nation of warriors. We merely need to take the nominal first battle that imperial men are always made to undergo and turn it into a legitimate one. We declare that as men of the imperial family, never once setting foot on a battlefield is utterly inexcusable."
"The pretext could not be more justified, eh?"
"Yes. In the end, it is simply a license renewal."
"They will be treated the same as the merchants."
Father said, and I nodded.
Even among merchants, a permit system is in place where licenses are issued to those dealing in certain vital goods.
In the same way, the premise is that to enjoy the privileges of royalty, one must achieve military merit and renew their license.
"I understand your rationale. I will handle it. I shall take the resentment and bitterness to my grave."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. However, I will handle this myself."
"What?"
"After this... I will make use of it."
"...Ha, you are truly something, Noah."
Father had grasped everything in an instant, making me think he was far more impressive than I was.
☆
Leaving Father's bedchamber, I slipped out of the palace.
I headed straight for Oscar's estate.
Infiltrating the mansion, I returned to the tower.
Oscar was still waiting inside.
"Good work."
"Welcome back, Your Majesty."
The moment he saw me, Oscar stood up and moved to kneel in accordance with protocol.
Following custom, I caught his arm and stopped him.
The offering of courtesy and the bestowal of grace.
Such was the etiquette and custom.
After going through the motions, I sat down across from Oscar once again.
"How was it?"
"I was able to speak with him properly. There is virtually no chance of anything happening today or tomorrow."
"That is wonderful news."
A look of relief washed over Oscar's face.
"In that case, why did the Retired Emperor do such a thing?"
"It is true that his health is failing. So he summoned Noisehill, shut out all outside distractions, and set about organizing the records of his own achievements."
"...The history books, then."
"Precisely."
"That is a relief to hear."
"I spoke with the Retired Emperor for a bit. Oscar."
"Yes... Your Majesty?"
I called Oscar's name and looked at him with an earnest expression.
Though he replied normally, Oscar noticed the look on my face and showed a flicker of surprise and bewilderment.
"I have made a decision."
"A decision, you say?"
"Yes. A decision to become a hated figure as Emperor of the Empire."
"A hated figure?"
"..."
I nodded and explained the plan to "tighten the screws" on the imperial family that I had discussed with Father.
Though Oscar was surprised at first, he was, after all, the most exceptionally talented among our brothers when it came to domestic affairs.
His expression quickly grew solemn as he listened intently.
"Naturally, people will emerge who seek loopholes."
"Naturally. While those of the 'current generation' like Brother Henry and myself possess a sense of responsibility and duty, those born into collateral royal branches tend to do nothing but reap the benefits."
"Indeed. Setting up body doubles, or buying severed heads. In any case, people looking for loopholes will appear."
"Yes, certainly."
"And another kind of faction will appear as well."
"...I would like to believe they will not."
"They will. Without fail."
I declared it flatly.
Oscar furrowed his brows, but he could not deny it.
Even without putting it into words, both of us understood.
That other faction meant those who would openly rebel.
It was easy to imagine that such people would make various political maneuvers.
In fact, it was practically guaranteed.
"Indeed... they surely will."
"So, I have a request for you."
"Should I conciliate them? Or suppress them in advance?"
"No."
I shook my head.
And with a serious look—the most serious look I had ever worn in my life while facing Oscar—I stared directly at him.
"I want you to play a game of political deception with me."
"A game of political deception?"
"There will certainly be those who try to hoist you up as their Divine Palanquin."
"—Kh?!"
Oscar caught his breath.
His complexion drained, and with a pale face, he shot to his feet.
Once standing, he took a step back.
That was how heavy the statement was.
Oscar was my political rival.
Even if we had both recognized that until now, we had never confronted it directly face-to-face.
Rather, we had gone out of our way to avoid stating it out loud.
Yet my words acknowledged it, anticipating that people would approach him to use him in that manner.
It was only natural that Oscar stiffened.
It was the moment I stepped the deepest into my relationship with Oscar.
This was what I had meant when I told Father, "I will make use of it after this."
"Your Majesty, that is..."
"As Emperor of the Empire, I cannot tolerate those who do nothing and merely gorge themselves on their stipends. Therefore, I will legally smoke them out and eliminate them in the halls of the court."
"...Why are you telling this to me?"
"Just this once, I am laying all my cards on the table."
"Wh-what...?"
"What I am attempting to do is consolidate power into the heart of the Empire, and ultimately, into the hands of the Emperor."
"...Yes."
"It also means purging those who resist in the process."
I paused, looked Oscar straight in the eye, and continued.
"They are people who intend to challenge the authority of the Emperor. When it comes to this matter alone, I trust you more than anyone else."
"—Kh!!"
Oscar gasped, recoiling once more.
What followed took place in the span of just a few seconds.
A whirlwind of expressions and emotions flickered across Oscar's face.
His hesitation passed in an instant, hardening into resolve.
Oscar dropped to his knees.
"Leave it to me. I shall thoroughly clean out the gutter,"
he declared.
I did not doubt him.
―――――――――――― Name: Noah Ararat Emperor of the Empire Gender: Male Level: 17 + 1 + 1 / ∞ HP: C+S | Fire: E+S+S MP: D+A | Water: C+SSS Strength: C+SSS | Wind: E+C Endurance: D+A | Earth: E+C Intelligence: D+SS | Light: E+S Spirit: E+S | Darkness: E+B Speed: E+S Dexterity: E+S Luck: D+A ――――――――――――
Because, visible only to me, the stats trailing behind the "+" had grown explosively, proving that Oscar had become cooperative from the bottom of his heart.