The sun shines brightly.

"Son of a biiiitch...!"

The grains of sand sparkle.

"It's not even vacation, why...! do we have to clean someone else's house...!!"

I, walking through a street where lush green algae was blooming, smiled as I looked at the good academy students clearing the collapsed wreckage.

"Everyone, fighting!"

With a drink full of ice in one hand.

"...Should I really kill him?"

"When the stables are cleaned up, I'll give you a sandwich I made myself."

"You put poison in it, didn't you?"

"I did put a few drops of herbicide in the algae one."

"..."

Ruin, filled with anger, shouted and let out his frustration.

"Son of a biiiiiitch!!!"

Full of the will to not do it.

Academy students were clearing the wreckage on the site of the collapsed mansion. Swordsmanship department students were carrying wreckage on their backs with A-frames, and magic department students, letting out heavy sighs, were magically moving the wreckage carried by the swordsmanship department students onto a cart.

The reason they were here was simple.

I had brought in a big shot from the academy.

"It's strange. They're giving 1.5 times the volunteer points, so why do they hate it...? In my day, if an opportunity like this came, I would have begged to be allowed to do it all night."

"I can't understand it either. They're giving generous pay on top of volunteer points, so I can't understand why they hate it so much."

My eternal boss, my shining benefactor, Hystania Malik, smiled slightly and bit the straw of her drink. In a situation like this, the boss was supposed to be lazing around.

"...Hmm, it's delicious."

"I finely ground green grapes and put them in the drink."

"Certainly... the straw is thicker than usual, so is this your idea?"

"Yes, it is."

"Let's make a separate time to talk about this. A new business idea has come to mind."

Malik smiled and took another sip of her drink.

"Hmm..."

After the mansion collapsed due to the heretics' attack, Darbab and I had time to think carefully about the future.

-What should we do?

-Hmmmmm...

It was good that we had demolished the entire building for reconstruction, but we had to think about how to clean up the collapsed wreckage.

The easiest way was to sweep everything away with magic, but the area was not small, so Darbab and I had to think of a friendly method. If we weren't careful, civilians could be harmed.

Moreover, since the Desmunt mansion had been with the beginning of the empire, nobles interested in archaeology had asked to sell a part of the collapsed wreckage at auction, so things started to get more complicated than we thought.

It didn't matter to us, who had plenty of capital, but.

"Desmunt... the mansion is..."

The next emperor of the empire, who loved culture, had expressed his discomfort in many ways about the collapsed mansion, so we decided to adopt a method that could preserve the cultural heritage while protecting the traces of the mansion, even if it took a little more time.

That was to use cheap labor.

"...Son of a biiiitch."

"...Shut up and walk! We're getting 10 gold for every load!!!"

"I have a lot of money!"

"Then give me the money you earn!"

"Why should I...?"

"You said you had a lot of money!"

"..."

As a result of a suitable compromise with the academy students (senior directors), who could provide high-quality labor at a relatively cheaper price than using a professional company, we got the opportunity to use high-quality personnel at a cheap price.

That was why Ruin was working at the Desmunt site now.

Ruin, who had piled a lot of wreckage on his A-frame, cried out to me, asking if this wasn't unfair treatment.

"I'm a magician, so why do I have to carry it with an A-frame...!"

"Well, because you're not a magician, Mr. Ruin, you're algae."

"What does that have to do with anything, you crazy bastard...!"

"It's my choice."

I, who could only watch the hard-working Ruin, cheered for him with his A-frame by blowing air into the straw of my drink.

"Fighting!"

"Shut up!!!"

"Let's do our best!"

"I'll kill you!!"

As the snack time was getting closer.

"Butler-nim!!!"

Hanna, who was moving with a mountain of wreckage on her A-frame, greeted me with a bright smile.

"Hanna-ssi...?!"

"Hehe..."

"Why are you carrying so much? There are a lot of people, so you can take it slow."

"I have to pile it high so that the butler-nim can find me easily."

"..."

At Hanna's appearance, who was working hard as if it were her own home, even though it wasn't, I shook my head with a touched smile.

"Hanna-ssi, you are so beautiful that you are always in my sight."

"Wh-what are you talking about...?!"

"I'm a person who doesn't lie about looks, haha!"

"Butler-nim...."

Hanna blushed and put in even more effort.

"Let's go, let's go!!"

"Take a little off."

"I can handle this much?! Uh oh oh oh..."

Watching Hanna, who lost her balance for a moment and was about to fall, I lightly grabbed her hand.

And.

-Rumble...

"Son of a biiiiiitch!!!"

Ruin was crying, buried under the pouring wreckage.

Hanna, who was staring at me, opened her eyes wide and shyly looked into my eyes, with the inner thought that she hadn't wished for this kind of miracle.

"Th-thank you."

"You'll get hurt. Like that."

"I just misstepped, so I'm fine."

"..."

At Hanna's stubbornness, I let out a faint sigh and checked her ankle, wondering if she had been hurt.

"Are you okay?"

I, who took off Hanna's sock and checked her white ankle, asked about her condition, but.

"...Don't. It smells."

"It smells like flowers, so it's okay."

"Still..."

"Go to Yuria-ssi and get a check-up."

"I'm fine!!"

Hanna, whose face was red with embarrassment, quickly hid her ankle and took a deep breath.

"Hoo...hoo..."

I smiled slightly, approached Hanna, took some of the piled-up luggage off, and spoke in a worried voice.

"You don't have to work so hard."

"...But it's the house the butler-nim will live in!"

"It's not the house I will live in."

"You might live in it someday."

"Is that so?"

Hanna, who was thinking more positively than I thought, gave a bright smile and said.

Even though the owner of this place was lazing around.

-Young lady, would you like to go and clean with me?

-Eek... I'd rather die.

-...

-Ricardo, go by yourself, I'll be playing with daddy at the mansion.

Thinking of the young lady who was playing at the Hamel mansion, a bitter smile formed on my face.

Hanna, who put her sock back on and couldn't erase her red blush, spun around once and asked me.

"How do I look?"

What she looked like today.

Hanna's attire today was a simple work uniform.

I, at the sight of Hanna in blue overalls with her light brown hair tied in a ponytail, expressed my admiration and gave a thumbs up.

"You are beautiful."

Hanna grinned and asked.

"What score would you give me?"

I answered without a moment's hesitation. I knew the answer to this question without even thinking.

"A perfect score."

Hanna frowned at her cheek, which was stained with black, and smiled bashfully.

I said to Hanna.

With the feeling that I was grateful and would definitely repay her later.

"I'll buy you a meal later."

Hanna smiled bashfully and shook her head.

"Not a meal, but a drink."

"Pardon?"

"I want to drink."

A drinking buddy.

"Alright."

Thinking that drinking with a beautiful woman was the best, I thought of a nice bar in my head and sent Hanna off.

"You must get a check-up from Yuria-ssi."

"Yes!"

"It's a promise!"

"Yes... hehe!!"

After Hanna left...

"Shuen-gel's secret technique...!"

Shuen, who had piled up a mountain of wreckage in the sky with a huge storm, looked at me and asked.

"Commoner!"

"Yes."

"This."

"Yes."

"Where should I put it?"

Indeed.

I looked at the human forklift that had piled up a mountain of wreckage and made a troubled expression. I didn't know where to boast of the all-too-competent Shuen's performance.

That much would probably not fit in a cart. If I could, I would want to ask her to drop it on the imperial palace, but.

"Should I leave it at the imperial palace?"

"Pardon?"

"The yard is spacious, so it would be nice..."

At Shuen's wonderful appearance, which matched my thoughts more than I expected, I gave a happy smile and told her to follow Hanna. I thought Hanna would take care of it, whatever it was.

The next person was Mikhail.

Mikhail, who was carrying a larger amount of wreckage on his back than I thought, was smiling bashfully and working.

"Veilrin-ssi?"

The inconspicuous Veilrin was crying because no one was taking the wreckage she had piled up.

Of course, even at this time, Ruin was...

"Son of a biiiiiitch... save me!"

Buried under the wreckage.

----------------------------------------

At the time when the cleaning of the Desmunt site was proceeding smoothly.

-Slap...!!!

A loud sound that echoed through the imperial palace went around with Theo's neck.

"Leogard Theo."

With the murderous voice of the old lion, Theo's cheek began to swell red.

The emperor said to the little sun.

"...What have you done?"

What have you done now?

"..."

Not only did he save the dying Desmunt, but he also sold slaves, which was a taboo in the empire, so the emperor did not hide his anger and began to pour it out on Theo.

"If you have a mouth, speak."

The emperor's mood, betrayed by the one he trusted the most, was not pleasant.

"If you had just stayed still, the throne would have been yours..."

"..."

"Why... why couldn't you stay still and ruin it..."

The emperor said.

He couldn't stop this.

"Why can't you just stay still and ruin everything?"

Tae-oh, caressing his swollen cheek, bowed his head and replayed his father's words.

'Why are you so restless that you can't stay still...'

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't find a reason for his father to be so angry.

It was one mistake.

Just one mistake.

If he hadn't been caught, it was a chance to control the west as the emperor wished, and to create his own loyal followers.

Of course, that plan had failed, but he honestly felt a sense of resentment at his father's reprimand for a single mistake.

Because his father, too, had killed many to become emperor and rise to that position.

-Grip...

He was angry, wondering why his father couldn't understand that if he did nothing, he would be devoured by his younger siblings.

And yet, the emperor continued to reprimand Tae-oh.

"I didn't ask you to bring me the head of an enemy king."

"..."

"I didn't give you the task of winning over the neutral Duke of Ardella from the north to your side."

"..."

"I simply asked you to accumulate the wisdom befitting the position of emperor... I even granted your request to be sent to the academy because you wanted to delve into more studies..."

"..."

"I asked why you can't just stay still and ruin everything."

At the emperor's seemingly endless reprimand, Tae-oh clenched his fists and mustered the courage to express his own will to the emperor. With the determination that if he became king without doing anything, he would be a king who could achieve nothing.

"I thought... I lacked power!"

"Power...?"

"The weakness of the imperial family, being swayed by Desmunt."

He had seen many things until now.

The incompetence of the imperial family, swayed by a single duke, and the stress of the emperor, who had to be mindful of the nobles' factions.

"The disunited nobles."

"..."

"Seeing the nobles who despise the emperor and repeatedly commit the crime of insulting the imperial family, and our own weakness in being unable to do anything about them, I resolved to build my own power."

Right.

"It's not that I did nothing. My efforts were a courage born from an inevitable reason."

Tae-oh believed that all of this was an action born from an inevitable reason.

"Haa..."

The emperor, who had listened to Tae-oh's words, put a hand to his throbbing forehead and sighed. Wondering how he could say such arrogant things.

"Did I tell you not to build a faction?"

"Isn't that what you're saying now, Father? To do nothing and just eat what I give you."

"..."

"I don't want to maintain the status quo. No. When I become king, I will strive to change this rotten empire even more."

"..."

Tae-oh, looking at the silent emperor, thought he had seized control of the conversation. Because his father wasn't one to belittle his son's efforts.

But.

"Tae-oh. I told you to stay still because you had missed your chance."

"...Father!"

"The tutor I assigned to you in your childhood. He became the youngest Grand Chamberlain of the Empire and a Marquis."

"..."

"That's not all. I made many efforts to give you power. I tried to take you to meetings with the nobles, and I even arranged a schedule with the knight commander to make your face known at the border to gain the trust of the nobles who protect it."

"..."

"At the age of 17. I did my best to give you power..."

The emperor looked at the lazy Tae-oh and spoke.

"Where were you."

"..."

"You went outside the castle, saying you would become a king for the people."

"..."

"Now that your position is in jeopardy, you've done this, haven't you."

"..."

"Did you think that if you just extended your hand, the nobles would rush to take it?"

"..."

"Even Truller, whom you called a scoundrel, participated in official events, and Shartia has been working for over 10 years to build her own power."

The emperor asked.

While they were spending their time like that, what were you doing, playing at becoming a king for the people?

"That's why I told you to stay still."

"..."

"So that when the throne changed hands naturally, the factions that followed me could be transferred to you."

"..."

Tae-oh let out an excuse in a trembling voice.

"Now...! The imperial authority has weakened. It has become a form that is swayed by a single noble, shaken by their whims, and unable to achieve unity!!!"

"And because of that, is the emperor's head on the line?"

"...The master of the Empire is the emperor. It is the emperor's duty and responsibility for the imperial family to become the king of all the people of the Empire and to look after them."

"To protect such an empire, the power of the nobles is necessary, so why did you ostracize Desmunt instead of making them your ally? And the hand you supposedly grabbed... is a pathetic family called Wolfgang!!!!"

The emperor glared at Tae-oh's trembling expression with fierce eyes and spoke.

"You did nothing."

"I did!!!"

"Is a person who claims to have done something selling slaves, which is strictly punished in the Empire, and ruining the relationship between Desmunt and the imperial family?"

"I was trying to create my own people. Just as you have the Histania Marquis family by your side, Father, I was just moving to create my own people."

"Tae-oh."

The emperor called his son's name in a chilling voice.

"Histania is the pillar of the Empire."

"..."

"A family that is absolutely neutral and works only for the Empire.... Not on the side of the imperial family, nor on the side of the nobles...! A family that uses its power only for the Empire."

"That's because the first head of the Histania family and the emperor made a pact..."

"How far do you think a verbal agreement made by mouth can go?"

"..."

"Histania only takes responsibility for the lives of the imperial family. They are of no political help. Why would they be on the emperor's side.... Why...!"

"...I don't know."

"It's balance."

The emperor, with a throbbing headache, looked at Tae-oh with a pathetic expression and continued to speak.

"Darvav of Desmunt, Heinry the Master of the Mage Tower, Rowen of Histania. Think about a future where their military power is tilted to one side."

"..."

"It will collapse. Don't just look at Desmunt!!! Look at the individual military power they possess. A great magician. Not one, but two great magicians are moving in the Empire. The reason Histania is in the Imperial Castle is to maintain this balance."

"If we use the national treasure......!"

"Use the national treasure for a civil war...? I thought your actions were flawed, but are your thoughts also wrong?"

"...Keuk."

"It is the emperor's responsibility and duty to act so that the balance is not tilted to one side."

The emperor looked down at Tae-oh with a cold gaze and spoke.

"Deep-rooted blood."

"..."

"The admiration of the people."

"..."

"Yes, the imperial family is the pillar of this empire, and the real power. But they are not invincible."

The emperor looked down at Tae-oh's red face and sighed.

"If you wanted to do something so badly, you should have struggled from a young age like Shartia."

"...Father!"

"I permitted your outings because you said you wanted to see the outside world."

"..."

"I acknowledged your autonomy in not taking lessons because you said you wanted to become a king for the people."

"..."

"So... what have you achieved now?"

The emperor's eyes were cold.

"If Wolfgang is involved in this Desmunt incident, you, his closest aide, will not be safe either."

"It has nothing to do with me!!"

"...Tae-oh."

"Yes, Father."

The emperor looked at the Crown Prince with trembling eyes and asked.

"Did you know."

"...!!!"

"Speak!!!"

The emperor's shout echoes through the Imperial Castle.

Tae-oh knelt.

"Please spare me."

"..."

"I did not know."

"...Speak clearly."

"...!"

Tae-oh changed the subject with a trembling voice. Bringing up the matter of the cultists now was the same as walking into the execution grounds himself.

"The matter of the slaves can be buried like Desmunt's. Didn't they also bury it when the Olivia incident happened?"

"That damned Desmunt! Desmunt!!"

"..."

"Do you say that knowing how much Desmunt conceded because of that incident?"

"..."

"To save his child's life, he gave up the influence of the east and a weakness that could bring down the imperial family."

"A weakness..."

"Don't try to know.... It is the shame of the Empire."

Tae-oh's face gradually began to be colored with horror.

The emperor said to Tae-oh.

"Speak clearly. So that you can save your own life."

"...F-father. I am the Crown Prince of this Empire..."

"Who says you're the Crown Prince?"

The emperor, full of disappointment, looked at Tae-oh and spoke. With a heart full of a father's concern.

"Leogard Tae-oh."

"..."

"This is not the time for you to be worrying about your position..."

"..."

"The Desmunt that was falling to black magic is you right now...!"

Tae-oh's face gradually began to harden.

----------------------------------------

Another peaceful day in the student council president's office.

"The tea tastes good."

I, sitting with my legs crossed, looked at Shartia with an arrogant smile.

"My..."

Shartia was smiling as she looked at me.

"How beautiful you look."

"I have the looks."

"I know."

Shartia was staring at me, her chin propped on her hand.

"Heehee..."

"Do you like me that much?"

"Yeah."

"You're also a good liar."

Shartia smiled brightly and replied.

"It's the truth."

Oh my.

The reason Shartia was looking at me so lovingly was simple. The biggest obstacle on her path to becoming emperor had disappeared.

The Empire had not yet made an official statement about the slave ledger, but judging by the atmosphere, it seemed that Tae-oh's position as Crown Prince was over.

With a small smile, I asked Shartia.

"Still, you're suddenly being so friendly, it's a bit disappointing."

"Hmm?"

Shartia shook her head with a smile, as if it didn't matter.

"I'll just continue to be this friendly from now on."

"Haha..."

Shartia didn't back down an inch.

I, who had lifted my teacup, asked the brightly smiling Shartia a question. A question about what to do with Tae-oh and Truller from now on.

"What do you plan to do with the two princes?"

Shartia, who was holding her teacup, let out a sneer as if to announce the prelude to a counterattack, with a thin smile, and said.

"I'm planning to make them fight."

"...A fight?"

"Yeah."

Shartia neatly placed two forks on the table.

"This is the Crown Prince."

"..."

"This is the 2nd Prince, Truller."

"..."

"From now on, I'm going to pretend I'm not interested in the throne and stay out of it."

"Wouldn't it be better to seize the opportunity now? With our family, I think we can win it all."

"Father's principle is primogeniture."

"..."

"He won't easily break that stubbornness. If Tae-oh is not an option, he will make Truller the Crown Prince. Even if he's a scoundrel, Truller's faction is large."

"...Then."

"Do you think Tae-oh will stay still?"

"..."

"He'll try to grab it somehow. Saying that he must be made the Crown Prince."

Shartia let out a lazy yawn with a smile.

"I'll wait."

"..."

"Just as I was ignored by my brothers."

"...You're scary."

"Am I?"

Shartia said with a mischievous smile.

"It'll be even scarier when I become emperor."

"Uh..."

"Look forward to it."

I asked with fear.

"You have to protect the polygamy system."

"Puhaha!!! Of course, of course."

Shartia said.

"I have to leave room for myself to squeeze in."

"What?"

"Hmm? I didn't say anything."

Shartia thought that she wished Ricardo would grow up quickly. To become a person who wouldn't say a word even if she gave him everything in the Empire.

-Lick.

Of course, even if he did say something, she had no intention of giving up.