Meanwhile, in the ‘Ifranluan Empire’, the Prince was seated in the meeting room, with his deceased father’s Ministers with him.
Some servants were serving tea for them while the Prince was looking at the World Map, and he glanced over the file with the amount of treasury in his safe room.
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He approached the teacup to his lips, pretended to drink it, and then asked, “Tomorrow will be the burial service for my father, mother, and sisters. Is everything taken care of?”
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One Minister slowly nodded after looking at his colleagues. “Yes, we already took care of that. No need to worry, my Prince. I mean, my Emperor!”
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“I am not the Emperor yet; only tomorrow, after my father’s burial.”
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The same Minister made a slight smile as he said, “Of course. Will you… I mean, I hope I don’t sound insulting, but it would be wise to keep us all as your Ministers. We are all aware of the actual state of the Empire, and what needs to be done in the next few days for an easy transition of power to your hands.”
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The Prince pretended to take another sip of his tea and then said, “Of course, and I would be a fool if I didn’t accept your help!”
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The Ministers smiled, pleased by his straightforward answer. It also meant they could bend him to their will, to grant them even more wealth and power, considering he was still very young. They took a sip of their tea and ate some cookies from the tray in front of them while discussing what should be done immediately and what could wait a few more days.
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After noticing that they all ate the cookies and took at least two sips of tea, the young Prince said with a weird smile, “By the way, I hope I don’t sound insulting as well, but the fact that my father died from poisoning, and no one seems to be able to find the servant that gave us that poisoned juice, leads me to believe that one of you, or perhaps all of you, conspired to kill my father, and that makes me worry about my future if one day I do or say something that displeases any of you.”
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The Minister, who was also the Prince’s tutor, blinked a few times because suddenly, his vision became blurred. With great effort, he asked, “My Prince… what… do you mean… by that?”
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“Exactly what I said. Perhaps it would be better if my first decision as the new Emperor would be to choose new Ministers. Perhaps Nobles whom I could trust because you and your colleagues are extremely suspicious after today’s events.”
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As the Ministers were dropping over the table, the Prince signalled one of his guards, who was right behind him near the wall.
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When he approached, the young Prince said, “Call some guards to get rid of them. And tell my herald to make some sort of announcement to my people, saying that the Ministers poisoned my family to get more power for them, and then they all died when they poisoned themselves while trying to get the crown, and I miraculously survived. He should also send messages to the other countries so that they all know that the Empire is in my more than capable hands.”
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The guard made a bow and went to take care of his task while the Prince smiled at the dead Ministers around him, as he mumbled, “Pity that you were all fooled so easily. I had this planned since I was twelve, but I was only waiting for one of you to make a move. Tomorrow, I will be the Emperor. Two years from now, the World will be mine without the need to increase so much the taxes and annoy the Nobles or the people. All in due time, all in due time…”
…
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Some time later, Nozomu arrived at the Castle’s front gate. When the guards recognized him, they opened the large metallic gate and let him in. A stable boy came running from the left of the patio, and he smiled as he walked next to Rampage, escorting him to a free spot in the stable, while Nozomu walked up the four stairs to meet the Princess’ personal servant, whom a guard called as soon as he dismounted.
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The servant made a slight bow and pointed to the open wooden door at his side and greeted him, “Baronet Nozomu Shinchaku, this way, if you please. The Princess is waiting for you in the Throne Room.”
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“Thank you. Do you know why she invited me? Her message only said she wanted to have dinner with me and introduce me to her court, but I found that strange considering that they all know me already.”
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“That is something you have to ask the Princess, Baronet. I can only say that there are a few Nobles she called as well that are not usually here, and they also seemed surprised by the invitation.”
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Nozomu made a slight nod and accompanied the old servant in silence.
At the end of the corridor where they were walking, two Royal Guards were at each side of the door, and after opening it, they stood aside and made a slight bow.
In the spacious room, there was a familiar group of Nobles on the right side of the room, and another group on the left side with people that Nozomu hadn’t seen either in the Academy when the Princess went there to make her speech, or when he visited the Castle last time.
He walked next to the servant towards the smiling Princess who was seated on her Throne.
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Strangely, she didn’t wait for him; she got up, and to the court’s surprise, she walked down the steps, hugged him when he came near, and kissed his cheek. “You arrived early. Were you missing me already?”
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Nozomu answered in a low voice, “I got your message before I went to my last class, and as soon as it ended, I came. It only said for me to come for dinner, nothing more, but I see a few people that I have never met, so I am quite curious about your real intentions.”
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“You only need to smile and follow my lead. I believe you can do that, right?”
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After winking at him, she addressed the Nobles that were staring at them, looking puzzled. “If there is nothing urgent to call for my attention, Baronet Nozomu came to court me, so I must retire to my garden to talk with him and enjoy his company.”
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While a few Nobles gave a slight smile because they fully understood her hidden meaning, others whispered among them, still surprised by what her words implied.
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Then, one middle-aged Noble took one step forward and said, “But my Princess, wouldn’t it be better if you enjoyed the company of a more suitable pretender? I am not saying that there is something wrong with Baronet Nozomu, despite his young age and low Noble title, but I think it would be better if you gave the same consideration to some of us who for years came here to be next to you, and you always refused to be courted.”
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The Princess answered with a serious look at the slightly annoyed Noble, who was frowning at Nozomu and measuring him from top to bottom. “I thought my several refusals were a clear sign that I wasn’t interested. I tried very politely, and should I say, more than once, to deny yours and other Nobles advances. I am perfectly capable of choosing with whom I wish to spend my time, and if he and I do everything right, our time together will be a long one. Now, if everyone excuses me, I am going for a nice walk. Feel free to enjoy yourselves or go to the entertainment room, because I only intend to return at dinner time.”
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As they were leaving, with the Princess holding Nozomu’s arm, some Nobles wished them a pleasant walk, while others whispered, and they didn’t look very pleased with the Princess’ choice for company.
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As they were crossing the doors and entering the main corridor, Nozomu whispered, “Is that the proper way to announce you have a boyfriend? Because I saw that some of them seemed willing to slit my throat.”
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“It wouldn’t matter if it was you or one of them. The others would always be envious because I didn’t pick them. Let them discuss, because I talked with the Nobles that are normally here and told them what I decided, and they are for sure discussing matters with the others that I invited today for this announcement.”
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“Announcement? I didn’t hear anything. You said something before I arrived?”
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She made a motion with her eyes to the arm she was holding. “I don’t normally walk around holding a man’s arm, you know? And since you came here for the first time, I have been doing this constantly. The Nobles that are always here suspected that I had a thing for you, and the ones that came today found out when they saw me hugging you. All those things were my announcement. I didn’t need to say anything more, because by doing that, I declared loud and clear that I was interested in you.”
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“Oh, I see. What about the dinner invitation, then? Was that only an excuse, or did you really want to see me?”
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She glanced around, checking if no one was nearby, and said. “Let’s first enjoy the sun in the garden, and I will explain.”
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“Now you got me curious. I wonder if you have a weird plan.”
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“Not weird, but fun. For me and you, I hope.”
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He wondered what she meant with those enigmatic words and saw her glowing with a smile on her lips. She seemed so happy that he didn’t dare pressure her for more explanations. At least, until they reached the back garden.
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In there, Nozomu pointed to the bag he was carrying at his back and said, “Mizukonta gave me some pieces of gold that they had in their lair to pay for the ingredients to make chocolates for them. The problem is that I looked at these, and I think it would be better if they were in some sort of Museum or a School for people to see. They are mementoes from past civilizations, and it would be foolish to melt them to make gold bars or coins.”
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“Well, I think you don’t need to use that gold, considering what you should be earning from your share of the contract licence. Let me see what you have there.”
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When Nozomu opened the bag and took a few pieces, Princess Mere gulped and said, “Yes, it would be a shame to melt this! They are amazing! Leave it here with me, and I will find someone to take it to our Capital’s Museum. Nobles, Merchants, and students are always visiting it, and this will be a tremendous sensation for sure! The craftsmanship to make such fine jewellery is outstanding!”
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“Exactly what I thought. So, what are your plans for today? And what I am supposed to do?”
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As they were sitting on a bench under the shade of a tree, she explained with a kinky smile. “I thought you could come to have dinner and sit next to me this time. I want my court to see us together at all times so that they get used to you. After eating, we could go to the entertainment room to play a game of Battleship. My Nobles went nuts with that simple game. They are always organizing tournaments and betting. Afterwards, you could sleep here, because it will be a bit late for you to return to the Academy. And…”
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She bit her lower lip and said with her cheeks flushed, “I thought you and me… we could… sleep together… as in, not much sleep, but being together…”
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“Oh! Right… What about Miss Koyaga? Won’t she, I don’t know, be jealous?”
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“Maybe a bit, but she knows why we have to be together a few times. Unless… you don’t want to?”
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“Well, I think it is part of our agreement, right? And you are not so bad that I wouldn’t want to. If I recall correctly, the last time we were together, it was fun. At least, until you left, and I had to sleep alone in that huge bed.”
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The Princess nodded and looked at her hands as she said, with her voice failing. “This time, I won’t leave… and I think it won’t hurt that much, according to Koyaga. She said that after my first time, I would enjoy it a lot more because the pain wouldn’t be distracting me, that I could focus only on the pleasure, and you. I just… I don’t want you to feel used, because I prefer to be with Koyaga instead of you, but… we had fun last time… and I kind of… wanted to do it again… with you…”
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Nozomu held her hands and gently kissed her fingers. “I am here, Mere. I know why I am here and what you want from me, so no need to worry about what I might think. Besides, you are a very attractive woman, and I would be a fool if I didn’t want to be with you again.”
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That was enough for her to relax, and she took a deep breath and smiled back at him. She caressed his hands, and she suddenly remembered something. “Oh! I got a couple of new trees since the last time you came here! It was a gift from the ‘Kingdom of Garam’, and a messenger brought them a few days ago. Come, I want to show it to you. We don’t have trees like that around here, so I am sure you will like it!”
…
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