34 – Meet the Imperial Sun

“Aww!”

“Are you here, Prince Raiden?”

As I stretched out with all my strength and got out of the carriage,

Someone standing in front of the carriage spoke to me.

“……?”

When I turned my head at the unfamiliar voice, a middle-aged woman wearing a maid uniform was bowing to me.

“Uh… who are you…?”

To my question, the woman nodded and answered.

“My name is Bella, the maid of the imperial family. While Prince Raiden was staying in the palace, I was entrusted with the role of guide to the prince.”

“Aha, that’s right.”

As I let go of my guard and nodded,

The maid, who introduced herself as Bella, smiled and said.

“Then, I will guide you.”

“please.”

“Come this way.”

I entered the imperial palace, guided by Bella who had met me.

Opening the huge door and entering, the inside of the palace came into view.

On the white floor and walls, red and gold solid lines, the pattern of the imperial family, are drawn,

Gorgeous chandeliers hanging from the ceiling reflect the light.

The palace of the fantasy world that I have never seen before in my life,

It felt familiar yet unfamiliar.

This familiarity must have belonged to Raiden.

The strange feeling is what I feel.

As I walk round and round,

Bella, who was walking ahead, turned to me and said.

“Before you eat in the audience room, I’ll prepare it so that you can wash up in your room.”

“Yeah? Why are you washing all of a sudden… Ah.”

At Bella’s words, I finally checked what my body was like.

Because of sleeping soundly in the carriage, my head is depressed,

Clothes splattered with blood from dealing with thieves,

Even the slight smell of blood flowing from the body.

Certainly, entering the throne room in this state would be a bit difficult.

No matter how close the father and emperor are, the minimum manners must be observed.

I thought so and nodded.

“Then, please.”

“Yes, then this way.”

Following Bella’s guidance, I headed for my room.

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When Raiden was washing himself in the room Bella showed him to.

In the emperor’s throne room, a secret conversation was going on.

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The narrators of that secret conversation are two men.

One is the Emperor of the Empire, Milium von Lietro,

And the other was the coachman who drove the carriage that Raiden rode to the imperial family.

The coachman, who had his head bowed toward the emperor, quietly continued his report.

The contents of the report were the observations of Raiden during the day Raiden rode in the carriage.

“So then, Prince Raiden…”

“Hmm…”

The Emperor of the Empire, Millium, listened to the coachman’s report and rubbed his chin in interest.

Usually, he was not very interested in anything other than his children or work, but

The contents of the report that flowed from the coachman’s mouth were the contents that aroused curiosity even in such a Miriam.

“Did you sort out twenty thieves by yourself…?”

“To be exact, you organized 22 thieves in 5 minutes and 38 seconds.”

The coachman answered the emperor’s surprise question plainly.

The emperor brushed his beard and murmured at the coachman’s answer.

“Hmm… As far as I know, Prince Raiden doesn’t seem to have any talent for force…”

“That’s right. That’s why people call him the ‘Lisit family mutant’.”

“Hmm…”

As if lost in thought, the emperor quietly kept his mouth shut.

Seeing the coachman bowing his head in front of him, he opened his mouth again.

“How does Sir Austen look?”

“Are you talking about Prince Raiden?”

The emperor nodded at the coachman’s question.

Then, the gray-haired old man called Lord Austin spoke without hesitation in his evaluation of Leiden.

“Prince Raiden is the most outstanding swordsman under the age of 20 that I have ever seen.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes. Their understanding of weapons is excellent, and their ability to find and penetrate the opponent’s gaps is at a level comparable to that of our Imperial Knights.”

“Is that what you mean?”

The emperor opened his eyes slightly and looked at the coachman.

I never imagined that this level of acclaim would come out of his mouth.

Who is Sir Austin?

As the captain of the Imperial Knights,

He is nicknamed the ‘Ice Knight’ because of his strict personality.

He, who usually did not give even a word of praise to his subordinates,

When evaluating the boy named Raiden, it was generally well-received.

“Hmm… This is amazing… To hear such compliments coming out of your mouth…”

“I just told you what it is.”

“Hmm…”

The Emperor looked at Lord Austin for a moment, then raised a corner of his mouth and said,

“Listening to you, I’m more looking forward to meeting Prince Raiden.”

“Princess Raiden is said to be grooming himself right now.”

“Hmm, then we should prepare for this as well.”

The emperor slightly raised his head and shouted at the maids standing at the door.

“Hello. We’ll be welcoming Prince Raiden soon, so call the princes and princesses in the room.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The maids move their bodies according to the orders of the emperor.

The emperor looked at the backs of the maids and muttered to himself.

“Hmmmm, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you, Raiden.”

The emperor gently raised the corner of his mouth and waited for Raiden to come to the throne room soon.

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“Whoa, I feel better now.”

After washing myself in the room and changing clothes, I

I headed to the audience room again with Bella’s guidance.

When the smell of blood that permeated my body disappeared, I felt like I was going to live a little longer.

I moved on, adjusting the style of the suit I had changed into.

“Damn it, I had to bring Rachel, too.”

I muttered, untying and tying the loosely tied tie several times.

It’s very difficult to tie this guy’s tie.

I did exactly what Rachel told me to do.

It’s strange that one or two places are crooked after you’ve put them all on.

How does Rachel tie it so neatly?

Is this the power of an exclusive maid…?

As I wrestle with the tie,

Bella, who was walking ahead, turned to me and said.

“If your tie is uncomfortable, can I fix it?”

“Ah… well, no. I’ll try it myself.”

“all right.”

“Thank you for your words.”

I shook my head at Bella’s question and started wrestling with the tie again.

It’s kind of hard to tell someone you’re 18 to hang a tie on who you’re seeing for the first time today…

‘And then…’

—-This is true, as expected, Bocchan-nim wouldn’t be able to do without me!

ㅡI hope you never know how to tie a tie for the rest of your life~

It’s Rachel’s job to fix my tie…

I thought so and nodded my head to myself.

“……”

It felt like my cheeks were burning for some reason,

I guess it’s because of my mood.

Let’s walk around, fiddling with that crappy tie,

Bella’s steps, which had been walking before, stopped in front of the huge door.

“I have arrived in front of the audience room.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

I thanked Bella for her hard work in guiding me, then moved my gaze to the huge door in front of me.

Wow… how can even the door be fancy…

I stared at the glaring door, finished tidying up my tie, and stood at an angle.

“Huh… I’m ready.”

“Yes, then. I’ll go right in.”

ㅡkii profit

The huge door hinge opened with a heavy sound.

And through the cracks in the doors, the interior of the splendid audience room comes into view.

Golden columns and a long red carpet on the floor.

At the end of the carpet there is a short stairway,

At the end of the stairs, a throne was placed.

“Whoa…”

I took a deep breath and stepped into the audience room.

The feeling of the soft carpet touching my toes relieves my tension a little.

I stopped at the end of the carpet and leaned towards the throne at the end of the stairs.

Then he calmly got down on one knee and bowed his head.

“Meet the Sun of the Empire.”

To my words, the person sitting on the throne replies.

“Raise your head.”

A soft voice that flows through your ears.

It was a low-pitched voice, slightly higher than Raiden’s, but slightly lower than that of ordinary people.

As I looked up, the person sitting on the throne looked at me and smiled.

“It’s been a while, Prince Raiden.”

With blond hair shining bright like the sun,

Blue eyes resembling the sea,

middle-aged appearance,

Even when sitting still, the atmosphere flows with dignity.

It was the Emperor of the Empire, Millium von Rietro.

“I heard that you came back about a month ago… but this is the first time I’ve seen you since you disappeared.”

“I have no face, I should have come right away…”

“No, no. I’m not blaming you. I’m just happy to see you.”

Milliam laughed and continued talking as if it were true.

“Yes, I heard that you saved my daughters. How can I really thank you…”

“I just did what I had to do.”

“Hmm, hmmm.”

I said that and bowed my head.

Milliam looked down at me happily.

“Well, the children haven’t come down yet, so let’s talk about the prize after they do.”

I was a little surprised by his words.

“Apart from the prince… are the princesses in the palace…?”

Why are they here…?

I’m sure I’ve seen it at the academy until then.

“Of course, as soon as we heard the news of the terror attack, we sent a wagon to get them. Both Lucy and Anna arrived yesterday.”

“……”

It’s also out of hand.

I muttered that to myself and looked at Milliam.

“It will take some time for the children to come down, in the meantime, would you like to tell us a story about the terror attack?”

“Haven’t you already heard everything?”

“Even so, I wonder if it would be a little different to hear from the person concerned.”

Hmm, is it?

I thought for a moment, then nodded.

“Yes, I understand. Then where should I start talking…”

“Oh, let me tell you from the beginning.”

“Yes, then…”

Calmly, I began to unravel what had happened that day.

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Inside the palace, the first princess’s room.

Lucy, who was washing her body and drying her hair,

He tilted his head at the sudden call from Millium.

“Yes? Father is calling us?”

“Yes, lady.”

“What are you doing…?”

Lucy muttered that while changing her clothes, and the maid who was waiting next to her answered.

“From what I hear, it seems that Prince Leiden has visited the palace.”

“Yes…? Raiden…?”

At those words, Lucy stiffened slightly and turned to the maid.