Once the battle against Xerxes was over, we were rescued by the empire's forces.
They came to ask what the hell had happened.
Obviously, no one knew what to answer.
They interrogated us all.
Three days have passed since then.
It took two whole days to carry out the investigation.
Even a few holy mages came in person to find out what happened.
Everything I said was the same as the others.
"It came out of nowhere."
No one could contradict us.
The news of a creature almost reaching the capital to destroy it was undoubtedly a bombshell.
The newspapers are going crazy trying to find out more.
Unfortunately, I can't tell them it was a game event.
No one would believe me anyway.
"Razel, what's wrong with you? Do you need to go to the bathroom?"
Cid, who was next to me, asked.
"No. I'm fine. Just tired. I want this day to end already."
This morning, we came to the imperial palace to meet the emperor himself.
We committed an offense against a member of his family. Against a prince in the line of succession.
Soon there will be a ceremony for those who died in combat.
Their families were compensated the same day.
Many were happy to receive money, others sad to lose their loved ones.
Very early in the morning, the survivors came to give their testimony.
Including the girls.
I, one more nuisance, and Cid came after midday to give our testimony about what happened.
"Of course this day will end soon. But for you all."
Said the most annoying person of all. Regulux, the idiot who accused us.
By accused, I mean he named us as the cause of all the bad things Xerxes did.
The others were in a coma, and not from the blows, the doctors said.
It seems the shock of losing was so great that they refuse to wake up.
He woke up because he only received a little damage.
Right now, the three of us were well-dressed in front of a door so large it looked like the entrance to a castle.
The place was like a British museum.
Everything very clean and shiny.
Paintings of ancient members of the imperial family.
Emperors and their wives.
The white color almost blinded me.
"Regulux, put aside your hostility towards us."
"Shut up, son of a mistress! When father finds out, you'll see what he'll do to you!"
The game prince's face was like that of a dirty, lying bastard.
It was attractive, but it was distorted by how stupid he got.
Meanwhile, Cid was calm.
(My face is already ugly, so there's nothing to do. I combed my hair back so my unruly hair wouldn't look offensive.)
The red door began to open.
The light blinded us, so we covered ourselves.
Once it was fully open, I visualized what I never thought I would see in my entire life.
The interior of the emperor's hall was after the chamber of ministers we passed through.
The last and highest place in this immense castle was destined for the most important man in the country. And, therefore, in the world.
The room was as big as a football field.
Both left and right were the men and women who run this country.
The ministers, officials, and temple members.
To enter this place when the emperor is present, no matter which faction you are in.
You just have to put your ass in the stands that look like huge staircases.
There wasn't a single empty space.
In the center of it all.
There was a red carpet with golden edges. It was so large it almost looked like a highway.
It went up a Mayan pyramid-shaped staircase.
Step after step were decorated with marble statues.
At the highest part, where you couldn't raise your head without permission, lay the highest authority of this place.
The emperor.
"Enter."
Said a masculine, strong-toned voice.
We entered at the same time.
Cid trembled a little, despite being calm.
Regulux was smiling.
I wanted to go to the bathroom.
No joke, I didn't eat anything precisely because of that.
I'm hungry and I need to release a very large brown baby.
We walked almost a block just to stop at the place where an official with a funny hat was standing.
Once we reached where he was, we knelt.
No one raised their head until that person ordered it.
I had no idea what to do, so a few hours ago, a minister took me to a room to practice.
Discourtesy towards the emperor was death itself.
"Raise your heads. I permit you to look at me."
The strong and imposing voice said that.
Slowly I raised my head.
At the highest part, there were some magical spotlights that illuminated everything.
To be able to see his face, they lowered the intensity of the brightness.
There, at the highest part, sitting on a golden throne embedded with diamonds, with one leg crossed over the other and his elbow resting on the armrest so his fist touched his cheek.
The man who never appeared in the game was looking at us.
"Be honored to be in the presence of Emperor Loic V."
He introduced himself as Loic V.
He was just like in the game, but his real name wasn't that.
It was Wilhelm Malcolm von Bryes.
A man dressed in elegant clothes, rings, an expensive watch, a gold chain with the empire's flag forged on it. The most detailed feature of his body was not his prominent, well-formed muscles nor his hairy, prominent chest, or his large, trunk-like arms.
Seriously, why do parents look like they came out of a martial arts anime?
The detail that amazes you the most is his head. His hair is golden blonde and a long mane.
He looked like a lion instead of a man.
His beard was short but pointed.
His eyes were feline, sharp gaze, and red like fire.
He was an imposing man without a doubt.
And by his side were two equally important figures.
On his left was his escort.
And on his right was the second most important person in the empire.
The emperor's younger brother and twin, the prime minister and only grand duke in the entire empire.
Rudolph Alan von Bryes.
A man identical to the emperor. But he wore more ceremonial and less revealing clothes.
His hair was also combed back.
He had a fine, feline mustache.
His eyes were closed, but they were blue in the game.
His hands were behind his back, and on his left shoulder was a ribbon saying he was the prime minister.
It reminds me of that world's beautiful women contest.
On his right, like the emperor, was a mantle with the empire's flag.
The reason the emperor is called by another name dates back to the first emperor of the Bryes dynasty. A man named Loic.
Whenever there are problems, a member of the imperial family opts to change rulers, but never, ever allow the dukes to enter that position.
The members are from a secret family.
That emperor had an idea so that assassination attempts among them would stop.
This was never addressed in the game, but there was a comment on Kwitter that said the imperial family's lineage was dirty from all the blood spilled centuries ago.
Very terrifying, all of it.
That same emperor made another decision: to choose a new prime minister.
The title of grand duke was only for secret relatives, but he eliminated it.
Instead, he made only one person the prime minister and grand duke, all to avoid unnecessary fights and prevent the ministers from having so much power.
For that reason, only the crown prince and his possible substitute have the right to have a second name.
It's interesting the trouble they go to just to annoy others and save themselves problems.
The emperor looked at us.
He sighed for a long time.
"Boring."
I didn't know what to answer, nor did the others.
"The great me has been listening to testimonies of what happened all morning. It's boring; my life as emperor is being taken up by trifles. For that reason, don't tell me that nonsense about it coming out of nowhere. I'm interested in the duel."
I swallowed a little saliva as he looked at us both.
His beard rose almost forming a mustache; his mouth moved in displeasure. But I don't know what kind of displeasure it was.
"Father, it's very obvious!"
Regulux stood up to blame us.
"The only truth you need to know is mine, that of your beloved son! That ragged nobody and your son without a title were responsible for disrespecting me! They deserve the maximum punishment—!"
Before he finished speaking, an incredible magical pressure surrounded the atmosphere.
My eyes turned to that person.
It was the one causing this.
"You... dare to disrespect me?"
The golden hair swayed like an octopus in the sea.
His golden eyes shone intensely.
The ministers had looks of fear on their faces; the spotlights were going out one by one.
(Does this guy have enormous magical power?)
Regulux was bewildered.
His face showed a little sweat and fear.
"But... father... I am your precious son. The third heir in the line of succession."
"I have many children, unrecognized. Answer, which son are you?"
"Are you the son of Annabelle?"
Regulux didn't answer.
The emperor looked at him threateningly.
Without moving his gaze, he addressed the man on his right with his voice.
"Younger brother."
"Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Tell me, which woman's son is this dandy?"
The prime minister, without moving anything but his mouth.
"He is the son of Alyza, Your Majesty. The children of the late Empress Annabelle are over there."
"I see." Said the emperor without turning to look.
"... By the way, say it again."
"What thing?"
"What this jester said before I interrupted him."
"He said he was third in the line of succession."
His anger stopped.
Regulux seemed happy that his father remembered him.
"Finally you remember me, father!"
"Yes."
His tone was relaxed unlike before.
Regulux smiled as if victory was in his favor.
But then, his father's gaze and tone changed to a threatening one.
"So then, tell me, 'son.' Who authorized you to cancel your engagement?"
For a second, I felt a cold sweat.
The air felt heavy.
"F-Father, that was because that woman!"
"I said... tell me. Who authorized you to cancel an engagement? That was approved by me. And not just any approval, an in-person one."
This time, Regulux was the one sweating coldly.
"I remember that day. Duke Rosenberg had made many requests for us to meet and sent many gifts. Those gifts were rewarding, so I accepted. You remember, don't you, younger brother?"
"Yes. I remember well."
The atmosphere began to feel heavy.
"You signed a document with your own handwriting and not a magical pen that could recreate it. There was also a photo with the former duke at that time."
"You see."
Once again, the emperor's hair shook, this time violently.
"I, Loic V, signed and approved an engagement. But... what did I find out today? That you, a son of my current wife, annulled an engagement that I, the emperor himself, agreed to."
This time, for some reason, only Regulux's breathing could be heard.
"But... father... I am your son."
"SHUT UPPPPPP!"
The emperor opened his mouth as wide as he could, and a tremor from the magical power he emanated shook the place.
It was very big.
It reminded me when I saw Amy's level 5 magic.
He is a very strong person, it seems.
Not for nothing is he the emperor.
"You dared to cancel an engagement that was signed by my fist, my handwriting, and my presence?! Tell me your reason for doing it before I tear your head off with my own hands?!"
Regulux was scared.
His mouth opened, but no sound came out.
"..."
"WELL, WHAT IS YOUR ANSWER?!"
The emperor was extremely furious.
His red eyes looked like those of a demon king.
"Your Majesty, if you permit me."
The prime minister spoke.
"WHAT?!"
The emperor replied.
"I know the reason why he did it. I conducted an investigation into every detail involved."
"I see."
The emperor calmed down and his hair returned to normal.
"Say it."
"Yes."
The prime minister stepped forward while a magical microphone floated.
"Third Prince Regulux canceled his engagement with the Rosenberg daughter due to the economic problems they have. Everyone should know this."
Some didn't know what they were talking about, but Regulux's panicked face slowly returned to normal.
"It is true that the Rosenberg Household has requested a loan from the imperial family. Which has not yet been paid, in addition to the fact that the former duke fled, leaving a huge debt to his house."
"For those reasons, Prince Regulux made a public clarification about his cancellation of the engagement."
This time, Regulux moved his mouth.
"As expected of my uncle. Always a wise man."
(In my situation, what he said was bad. If they end up saying something that makes it seem like Regulux is right, everything will have been in vain.)
"Therefore, a duel was carried out, with Prince Regulux being the winner. That being the case, the broken engagement with her is official."
(Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!)
(The situation is really unfavorable for us!)
(At this rate... Eli's end and her sensual mother's will surely come!)
(... Even if the worst happens. And the situation is bad. I will never allow anything bad to happen to Eli and her exuberant mother!)
Before preparing for the worst and running out, I heard a strange thing.
"But, the engagement will not be canceled because of that."
"..!?"
We were all bewildered.
"The reason is that in my investigations, I discovered that Prince Regulux has done indecorous things in public. Which have led to disconcerting rumors about the imperial family."
"What do you mean?!"
We all said.
"The rumors are..."
The prime minister said a long list of things this guy has done. All of them are things for which a normal person would be sent to prison.
(... Wow, so he's not a saint.)
"Therefore, the imperial family has been dishonored by his actions. His engagement is canceled so as not to embarrass the Rosenberg Household."
(This... is something I never saw coming.)
"With that said, we will continue with the next ones. The verdict will come at the end. But first, younger brother, were there people who knew about the duel?"
"Yes."
"Did they notify or try to cancel it?"
"I'm afraid not."
"Good. Send them to the gallows and place their heads outside. Their families will be fined for those imbeciles and degraded a rank... no, make it two ranks. There are no baron ranks in the court, right?"
"Yes, there are."
"Good. If there are barons, they will become commoners."
There were several shouts from ministers begging for mercy; the number was not small.
"You! The one in blue! Who the hell are you?"
He addressed Cid.
"Yes! I am the fourth prince, Your Majesty! I am Cidfert, son of Marianne!"
"Marianne?"
"That name sounds familiar..."
"Oh, Anne! I see, I see. You are her son; she is a good woman. Much better than the others I have."
That comment made Cid show a vein, but he didn't give it importance.
"And, how is she?"
"She passed away long ago."
"What do you mean?!"
For the first time, the emperor changed his expression and stood up.
"... I see, it was a long time ago."
His serious face showed an expression of sadness that was unimaginable.
"Tell me, son of Anne. Why did you accept the duel?"
"Yes! I couldn't stand what my half-brother, Prince Regulux, was doing to his fiancée."
"They already told me what he said. Continue."
"Yes. For that reason, I decided to fight, so that he would apologize. Even if it's true that it's a house in ruins, she was still his fiancée."
"I understand. That's enough. Now you, son of a toad."
I turned around looking for who he meant. But there was no one.
(Wait, does he mean me?)
(You miserable son of a bitch!)
(When you're dying, I'll make sure no one saves you!)
"Yes. It's an honor and a pleasure to be in front of you, Your Majesty, I am—"
"I didn't ask for an introduction, just tell me why you accepted to fight."
(He was starting to annoy me. You're asking for me to tell Amy to destroy this castle.)
"Y-Yes. As you may have heard, I—"
"Boring, get straight to the point."
Several veins appeared on my forehead.
"... I just wanted to defend my childhood friend from her abusive fiancé. Nothing more and nothing less than that. I couldn't tolerate him insulting her, and especially since we are both men."
"Leaving aside that, according to reports, you defeated the sons of three houses and then lost to this jester. Is it true that you defeated that creature?"
"No, Your Majesty."
"No? You say."
"I mean, it wasn't just me; there were other people who fought bravely against that creature. Many died; the sword saints put up a great fight to defend the ships. And a friend fell in combat to give us the opportunity to defeat it."
"Boring. Just say, who defeated it?"
"The two of us."
I pointed to Cid, who seemed not to want to be involved.
"Hmph."
He made that sound, as if analyzing something.
"Younger brother. Is that true?"
"According to reports, there were strange lights that couldn't be explained, but the truth is that the fourth prince and the young man there were the key pieces in its defeat."
"Good, it's time for the emperor's verdict."
He stood up and took the microphone.
"This is the emperor's verdict. But before that."
His eyes focused on me.
"You, toad-face, answer this curiosity sincerely."
"Yes?"
"What would you be capable of doing for that girl?"
His red eyes seemed to want to devour me, but I would not hesitate in my decision that I told Eli.
"I would take care of her debts if she gave me her title."
For a moment, I thought I saw a mocking smile.
"I will say only three things; the first is..."
He pointed at Regulux.
"This subject will from today cease to be the third prince in the line of succession. At the same time, many of his advantages of being a prince will be taken away. All support for his faction is dismissed at this instant."
Regulux couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Neither could I.
(This wasn't part of the game.)
(At the same time, I didn't know whether to feel happy or sad about it.)
"But, father, I am your—!"
"Silence him."
He snapped his fingers, and I blinked for a moment.
The man on his left disappeared, and when I opened my eyes, he was in front of Regulux.
Not even he himself realized what happened.
Much less Cid, who was still astonished.
The armored man raised his hand as if he were about to ask a question.
"Crush him."
And that same hand came down at great speed, making him disappear; what I could see was that Regulux was hit and his face became embedded in the ground.
A large hole was there, his butt also raised.
When I blinked again, the guy who was in front of him disappeared.
No, rather he teleported or something like that.
(He undoubtedly terrified me.)
(Not because of his red armor, nor that his helmet had bull-like horns, nor that his eyes were black because they were covered.)
(It was because of the speed of what he did.)
(This guy.)
(This individual was none other than the strongest knight among knights, the only sword saint in the history of the empire ranked as the strongest of all.)
(The Twilight Saint. The emperor's left hand.)
(He has never left his post.)
(In the game, it was mentioned that he was fighting the main demon king when the chaos in the capital happened.)
"Good. Next. Son of Anne."
Now Cid's punishment was coming; he was terrified.
"I take away your title of fourth prince."
(Ahh, it's worse than I thought!)
"To grant you this: the third prince in the line of succession."
"You have deserved it, for defending the daughter of a duke's house because of a jester. At the same time, you will have your own faction in due time."
Cid couldn't believe what he was hearing, much less me.
The emperor now addressed me.
"Your punishment will be..."
(Uwah, they're really going to punish me?!)
"To get engaged."
"Huh?"
Both I and the others made the same strange cartoon face.
"You heard me, your punishment will be a reward. Both you and the son of Anne I recognize as knights for defending not only a figure of our nation, but also for defeating that thing."
"So, congratulations, I, Loic V. Recognize and declare in front of everyone that you, toad-face, will be the new and official fiancé of the Rosenberg daughter!"
(Wait... what did he say?)
(Is this real, right? Is it real?)
"Wait, what was your rank?"
"Son of a baron, Your Majesty."
"Really? Of such a low rank? Anyway, I first name you an official baron. That way, if you have a male relative, he will take over the future of your house, and you will take the reins of the Rosenberg duchy. Congratulations."
(Wait, he's not joking!)
(I... am really going to get engaged to Eli for real?)
"If we're done with this, I want to sleep."
The emperor touched the muscles on his neck due to the pain he felt.
"Oh, that's right, I almost forgot."
It seemed he had something else to say.
"The reward for defeating that monster, do you want to split it or just one of you?"
He asked us such a normal question in such a casual way.
Cid replied without hesitation.
"I want to leave it to him."
I looked at him because I didn't understand why he did it; we defeated it together.
"Consider it my gift for your engagement."
I wanted to cry and hug him, but that wasn't manly.
"Younger brother. How much is the reward worth?"
"Yes... the value of the recovered and undamaged materials is..."
The prime minister's mouth moved to say a figure that almost gave me a heart attack.
"It's 550 million crystalia."
"And the debt of the Rosenberg Household, how much is it?"
"It's 350 million."
The emperor looked at me as if it were obvious he helped us.
But that was impossible.
"Tell me, toad-face, what will you do with the reward?"
"I..."
(The answer is obvious, but for some reason it terrifies me; it feels like a joke or a trap.)
"I ask to pay the total debt of the Rosenberg Household."
"Younger brother."
"Everything is ready; the debt will be paid by tomorrow along with the news. The duchy can be returned if they pay what was invested in them, which coincidentally is the 200 million that are left over."
"I-I also choose to pay them."
"Good. The debts along with the duchy's properties will be returned by tomorrow after drawing up a document approving it."
My heart is racing like crazy.
(This is so unreal it seems like fiction.)
"One more thing."
Said the emperor.
"To avoid further inconvenience, the palace, in charge of the useless people who allowed that duel which stained the reputation of the imperial family to occur, will have to pay for the engagement ceremony."
"Ceremony?!"
"Yes. A ceremony of recognition and showing remorse to the Rosenberg Household for what that idiot did."
"It will be this very week. So preparations will begin today; send someone to notify the duchess and her daughter of everything that happened."
The emperor stared at me.
"Welcome to the world of the nobility, toad-face. Gurararara."
He laughed in an almost feline way.
It was strange.
But stranger was what happened in the last few minutes.
"Razel."
Cid approached me to congratulate me.
"Congratulations on your engagement."
He patted my shoulder.
But internally I was bewildered.
(What the hell?)
(No, seriously. What the hell just happened?)
(But more importantly...)
(I'm going to get engaged to Eli as soon as possible!)
(I should be happy; I want a harem and riches.)
(Being a future duke is good, and my little brother will take care of the future of my landless house.)
(That's good, but...)
(My legs are shaking!)
(I'm only 16 years old!)
(Something like an engagement never crossed my mind!)
(No, it did cross my mind, but not like this.)
(Amy... help me. I'm getting engaged, and I'm scared of marriage.)