Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: The Other Club
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Thus concluded the perilous dinner, and Beonald's party returned home in the carriage kindly prepared by the Imperial family.
Only Princess Zelcy remained in the imperial palace. As she gazed out the window from her room, she soothed her disappointment, thinking that she had actually wanted to talk more with Beonald.
However, her time soothing that disappointment did not last long before a knock was heard.
"Your Highness the Princess, it is us."
"What is it?"
"We have come by His Majesty's command to perform the 'measurement'."
"Enter."
Princess Zelcy granted permission without any reaction, as if it were a routine matter. The door opened immediately, and about ten maids swarmed in, began undressing her, and started 'measuring' her condition for the day.
They meticulously recorded her height, weight, bust, waist, and other measurements, as well as her health status.
Then, an elderly woman who appeared to be the head maid examined the figures while frowning, as if conducting a strict quality inspection.
"Your weight has increased by 500 grams."
"It is because I have not yet completed the scheduled evening exercise after the meal."
"I see. Please ensure you lose it. You are a precious asset of the Empire, Your Highness. And what about the Academy assignments?"
"They are fully manageable."
"Good."
With an expressionless face, as if such things were routine, Princess Zelcy answered and impassively accepted the hands touching her body.
This treatment as an object was already a familiar experience she had received since childhood.
Though a princess, she was ultimately little more than a 'commodity' for the Imperial family. A thing to be bestowed upon high nobles or generals and knights who had distinguished themselves with merit. Therefore, maintaining its 'commodity value' through strict management was a natural course of action.
"And there is a message from His Majesty the Emperor. You are to continue approaching and monitoring that person, Beonald, for the time being."
"...Understood. However, please inform His Majesty that I will undertake that task after taking the midterm exams, as they are approaching."
"Yes. Then we shall take our leave."
After the 'measurement' ended and the presence of people had completely disappeared, Princess Zelcy clenched her fist very slightly and rejoiced inwardly.
Regardless of the purpose, she now had a pretext to meet Beonald again. And the fact that she could have normal-level conversations and interactions with him was, for her, like an oasis in her current life.
Following the head maid's instructions, she then headed to the training grounds with her sword to lose the 500 grams of weight.
At the same time, the Emperor of the Calleum Empire was in his office reading the report on his daughter's physical measurements that had arrived today and asked the head maid.
"Hmm, she has indeed gained a little weight. You haven't forgotten to tell her to take care of it and rest, have you?"
"Of course, Your Majesty. As commanded, we will continue to manage Princess Zelcy's physique and beauty."
"Good. And what was the child's reaction when she heard my message?"
"As always, there was no reaction."
"Is that so? That's fortunate. I was a bit concerned, but it seems there are no signs of her developing any strange affections or fondness, so that's a relief."
"Haven't we been educating and monitoring her thoroughly all along for that very reason?"
"Hmm, that's right. Still, one can never be too sure. She's the most valuable commodity to be sold at the highest price. It would be troublesome if she got damaged by some scoundrel before being sold."
Stories of princesses eloping with knights or nobles after falling in love weren't just found in commoners' gossip or bards' songs; they actually happened quite often, so the Emperor had to monitor her meticulously.
Zelcy, in particular, lacked nothing in looks, intellect, or talent, and having now entered an age appropriate for marriage, her value was skyrocketing even at this very moment.
"Marriage proposals for Princess Zelcy are pouring in from countless nations, which is only natural now that she is over twenty."
"You are right. Hahaha, this is the case where one well-raised daughter is worth more than ten knights."
While forming ties with the Imperial family was one thing, possessing beauty that could topple nations along with various talents, and especially having awakened Aura, made Zelcy a prime target for military families or mage households seeking to produce offspring with excellent qualities. The level of marriage proposals had been such that they came and went daily since she turned fifteen.
Moreover, was it just proposals? To secure a marriage alliance with Princess Zelcy, all sorts of behind-the-scenes maneuvers and wealth flowed into the Imperial family, and they even fought amongst themselves to eliminate competitors. Thus, one well-raised daughter was influencing the strengthening of imperial authority.
And to enjoy this privilege for as long as possible and to sell her off at the peak, continuous management was necessary.
"Anyway, she is an extremely precious child. Nurture her with all your might."
"I shall gladly do so, Your Majesty."
The head maid bowed and withdrew. Left alone, the Emperor thought about Beonald, whom he had seen today.
He was certainly a child worthy of being recommended by Sir Repart for entry into the Academy, but the problem was that despite being such a significant figure, his flawed bloodline made him ineligible to be taken as the Imperial son-in-law.
'No, given his value, we should force it and bring him in... Hoo~ I have nothing to offer, nothing... There are almost no children of the right age, and no families that match.'
Princess Zelcy's case was unusually a late child, which was peculiar, but he was already over sixty, and most of his children were already married.
The only thing worth considering were his granddaughters, but that would be difficult to persuade from the start. The families of his married children would not like it, making persuasion twice as hard, and even the in-laws' or maternal families' standings would become additional issues to calculate.
'But giving Zelcy to him is too wasteful... Giving her to another country would likely become a huge problem...... Trying to arrange a marriage alliance with a knight or retainer family on our side also runs into the bloodline issue... Uuuuuh! What a waste. A waste that's driving me mad.'
If only his bloodline were normal, he could have proceeded with marriage talks anywhere without hesitation, but with this issue arising, it had become extremely tricky.
Furthermore, the more infuriating thing was that the lad had already formed some kind of connection with the Valderian family, the nature of which was unknown, creating a sense of urgency that he might be snatched away.
'What a waste. Too wasteful to give to others, yet absolutely not a size we can take for ourselves... Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuh!'
Feeling this level of regret likely meant he was more than just favorably impressed.
In truth, during the dessert incident, he had noticed everything and subtly crossed the line in defiance, but that actually allowed him to see a still immature recklessness and inexperience in Beonald, who had otherwise shown a too-perfect, razor-sharp demeanor for a young man, which conversely increased the Emperor's fondness for him.
If he had truly been wary due to perfection, he would have ordered an assassination by an Imperial knight the moment he grasped something unattainable.
Anyway, for now, the Emperor concluded his thoughts on the matter, thinking it better to attach Zelcy as bait and observe the situation rather than attempting a forced assassination.
A week later.
For nearly a week, the Imperial Academy held one of its events: the midterm exams.
Beonald took the exams but settled his grades by finishing in the upper-middle ranks.
In truth, if he put his mind to studying, achieving higher grades was possible, but he only wanted to obtain grades sufficient to erase his reputation for an unserious class attitude. He had other things to do and didn't want to waste time, so he was satisfied with this level.
"But you are different, Sain. I will give you the exam papers as they are, so check them separately."
"Yes, Lord Beonald."
"Hoo~ Anyway, peace is so good. That merchant fellow is gone, and everything I'm doing is progressing according to plan."
The only regrettable point, if one had to name it, would be his swordsmanship, which remained at a standstill.
He trained daily on that point, and now that his skill was roughly on par with Heidi's, he was trying to improve his shortcomings even through sparring, but the path still didn't open easily.
'Do I need to deepen my Aura training further? Or is there a mismatch between the Neumel style and the Imperial mana breathing method? The roots should ultimately be the same, so there shouldn't be a problem... Uuuuh......'
"Congratulations on finishing the exams."
"Ah, is that you, Senior? What brings you here?"
While moving to find a way to improve his swordsmanship, an intellectual-looking young man in a white uniform and glasses approached Beonald.
Kedron Valderian. A child of the Valderian family and a student who was essentially the leader of the Academy's noble faction.
After a brief exchange of greetings, Kedron immediately got to the point.
"Do you have time right now?"
"Hmm, if Senior is asking, I can hardly refuse."
"I like that attitude. Anyway, follow me. There's a place I want to introduce you to."
"Ah, just a moment. My employees have separate tasks, so I'll send them off first."
"Do so."
After instructing Sain and Heidi to return home first, Beonald followed Kedron somewhere.
"Have you heard about clubs?"
"No. I have other things to do, so I always just go home. That's why my reputation is even worse. They say, 'What on earth did you come to the Imperial Academy for?'"
If he wasn't going to attend classes properly, he should at least build connections at the Imperial Academy, but Beonald, appearing lazy on the surface, merely attended the Academy, which gave him a poor reputation.
At least, the suspicion had subsided somewhat because he achieved above-average grades in this midterm exam.
"That's quite fortunate. If you had already joined a club, you would have had to write a withdrawal notice."
"Are you trying to get me into a club, Senior?"
"You've grasped it precisely. And not just any club. I intend to have you join one of the only two knight clubs in this Academy: 'The Garden of Swords'."
'Ah... The noble faction.'
From the fact that there were only two knight clubs, Beonald could immediately deduce it.
The membership requirements were likely 'knight' or 'knight family of repute' or recommendation by a member. Surely, the core of the club would follow the composition of the currently divided political factions, engaging in power struggles within the Academy.
"According to Sir Repart's recommendation, you have undoubtedly awakened Aura and formally hold the family name of the Callermain Earldom. That alone sufficiently meets the membership requirements. And with my recommendation on top of that......"
"Won't they say something about the black uniform?"
"Of course there will be some opposition, but it probably won't be too significant, as having more knights than the opposing faction is advantageous."
"You there, stop for a moment!"
At that moment, a woman's voice came from behind Beonald and Kedron. The two stopped simultaneously and turned to look.
There, they saw Princess Zelcy in a pure white uniform, her silver hair and red eyes glinting as she ran towards them.
She ran diligently, even drawing up her Aura, and stopped in front of the two men.
Beonald and Kedron didn't understand the situation but first paid their respects to the Princess with proper etiquette.
"What is the matter, Your Highness?"
"Beonald, I came because I have business with Beonald."
"Another test?"
"No. Today it's something else. I came to invite Beonald to our club, 'Sword and Shield'."
Now that it was awkward to keep using pretexts like Sir Repart's honor, Princess Zelcy had pondered during the midterm exams how to get a chance to meet Beonald. She thought of bringing Beonald, who had knightly qualities and used Aura, into the club she belonged to.
She had come for that purpose, but through other students, she heard that Kedron had summoned and taken him away a step ahead. Regardless of the Princess's dignity, she had run swiftly to stop the two men.
'Uh... This is quite awkward.'
While Kedron wore a shocked expression, Beonald, who had never imagined such a situation occurring, observed the two figures, pondering what to do.
For now, Princess Zelcy's face was expressionless, but her eyes were blazing, full of determination to invite him. Kedron, on the other hand, looked at Beonald with eyes that seemed to demand an explanation, unable to understand why she was here.