A New Slave Has Been Added
Daniel entered the examination hall and scanned his surroundings.
‘It’s huge.’
A sense of awe escaped him. The examination hall was so vast it felt almost majestic. To think they had constructed such a massive structure for a single exam—just looking around this space was enough to grasp the dignity of the Empire.
‘Are all these people gathered here to take the exam?’
Daniel’s expression stiffened as he scanned the crowd. Even at a rough estimate, there were thousands. He had heard in passing that the number of applicants alone reached tens of thousands.
After surveying the massive sea of people, he thought:
‘This is more than enough to pass.’
It was immense confidence. But he had no choice; he was a genius.
In Daniel’s own estimation, if one were to pick the smartest person on the continent, it would undoubtedly be him.
And in Daniel’s view, this was the most appropriate time for him to unfold his ambitions.
Since the Imperial Palace happened to be holding a recruitment exam for officials, it was practically destiny from his perspective.
‘The Empire is slowly coming back to life.’
Until recently, the Empire had been collapsing. On the surface it looked fine, but inside, it was rotting and festering.
It was like a patient who could collapse at any moment.
That was how Daniel had evaluated the Empire.
However, the Empire that had been in such a state had recently begun to regain its momentum rapidly.
There was only one reason for this.
‘The Sun of Aquitaine.’
It was because the Emperor of the Empire, Khalid von Aquitaine, had begun to move.
For the past several years, the Emperor had been steeped in debauchery and luxury. Seeing such an Emperor, Daniel could not help but feel disappointed.
How could the Sun of the Empire, the most noble being, be such a person? But recently, the Emperor had changed.
As if everything he had shown until now was merely an act, he had cut out the rotten parts of the Empire in one stroke.
‘As if…’
As if he had been preparing for it from the very beginning.
Daniel was filled with admiration.
‘He threw himself into the trash bin to identify the garbage.’
To understand the physiology of the cancers eating away at the Empire, and to figure out how to strike them down all at once—he must have endured the past years for that very purpose.
Of course, there were parts that made him wonder if it was necessary to go that far, and there were some circumstances that didn't quite add up… but Daniel considered those to be minor margins of error.
Not everything could be perfect.
The Emperor had changed.
The foolish ones still trembled, calling the current Emperor a tyrant. They didn't look at what the Emperor was pointing toward beyond the horizon; they only cared about the weight of the blood dripping from his fingertips.
But Daniel was different.
He knew that the Emperor was no longer just a tyrant and a foolish ruler who only wielded that brutal force.
The Emperor used his power only where it was needed. The Kingdom of Barca was like that, the Holy Kingdom was like that, and so were the corrupt nobles.
‘Of course, it doesn’t seem like his violent temperament has completely disappeared…’
Even if he only used his power when necessary, it was hard to call him "gentle" when he beat the Holy Kingdom’s Knight Commander to death with his bare fists.
According to rumors, his fondness for women remained unchanged as well.
They said he always kept women by his side, and had even created the unprecedented position of Grand Chancellor for one of them.
It was an unpleasant matter, but—
‘It can’t be helped.’
Daniel accepted it. From his somewhat rigid perspective, it was uncomfortable, but he could endure it.
If necessary, Daniel himself could change it. The Emperor would surely recognize his value.
“Phew.”
A shining future was painted in his mind. Daniel took a deep breath and steadied himself.
Soon after, a man who appeared to be an official working for the Imperial Palace stepped onto the podium and spoke.
“All exam applicants, rise from your seats.”
It was sudden. Still, everyone was quick-witted enough to stand up. Daniel noticed that the official’s voice was trembling slightly.
‘He’s flustered. Why?’
He would soon find out why.
“……!”
For a moment, Daniel felt his breath catch in his throat.
The examination hall fell silent in an instant. There was a presence that filled the hall with its sheer existence without saying a single word.
Only the official remained standing, shouting with a trembling voice.
“We pay our respects to the Light of the Empire, the Sun of Aquitaine, the Guide of the Sacred Stars, the Beacon of our path, His Majesty Khalid von Aquitaine……!”
“Enough, enough. Why is it so long? See that you shorten it appropriately next time.”
It was an almost reflexive action. Everyone in the room instantly prostrated themselves to pay homage to the Sun of the Empire. Among those bowed low, only the sound of footsteps could be heard.
“Hmm.”
The Emperor’s gaze landed on Daniel.
Even though he was bowed low with his head tucked, he could feel it. It was such an intense presence.
Cold sweat ran down Daniel’s spine.
Fortunately, the gaze moved away quickly.
And then.
“There are no loaches here.”
With those incomprehensible words, the Emperor left.
“……You may be seated again!”
The official, wiping away sweat that poured like rain, said. Soon after, the exam began.
‘…….’
However, the intense sensation from earlier would not leave Daniel’s mind.
I had scanned the room just in case there were any spies, but there were none.
The "spies" I’m referring to here aren't foreign agents. How would I know if there were spies just by looking at them? That’s a job for Elizabeth and Lily later.
The villains in this world are basically Black Mages, cultists, and demons. You might ask, "Why villains all of a sudden?"
Actually, cultists and demons are just "filler" villains. If you follow the Lucius route—the sub-male lead I beat to death—the main villains are Black Mages or cultists. If you take the Northern Grand Duke Siegfried route, demons appear as the main villains.
Do the detailed factions or settings for these villains appear in each route? Do you really think they would? They just appear as devices to add to the male lead’s backstory.
So they aren't that important, but the problem is this:
"Why isn't there a single Black Mage?"
At this point, I’m starting to doubt if Hecate is even a real person. I didn't dream that day, did I?
I looked at Elizabeth.
"……Is there something on my face?"
Pale pink emotions were bubbling up between her usual green ones.
"You have a sense of gloominess on you. Wipe it off."
"Huh? What are you suddenly talking ab—"
I poked her cheek with my finger and rubbed it. It was soft.
"Ugh, ah, uh?"
Anyway, I confirmed that the gift I received from Hecate was working well. "It definitely wasn't a dream."
Then what the hell is it? This is the perfect time to plant a liaison for them to contact each other in the Empire. But why?
I didn't care if they were Black Mages as long as they were competent. If I threw them to Elizabeth, she’d know how to remodel them and work them like slaves.
"……What exactly do you want, Your Majesty? It’s not like those reclusive people would come out in the open. Especially since the Empire has a fairly strong influence from the Goddess Church."
Elizabeth clicked her tongue. "We’ll handle this side of things, so please, Your Majesty, just follow the protocol we’ve prepared in advance."
I ended up getting kicked out. Being told not to move around as I pleased during the ceremony was a bonus.
"This time, Your Majesty is in the wrong."
Even Lily wasn't on my side. Well, it was my fault for slipping away alone after they had gone to all the trouble of preparing the protocol.
"I went because I had something to check for a moment, but I suppose everyone must be tired of waiting."
"No, no, no, not at all."
Hmm. If I slip away one more time, Elizabeth looks like she’ll glare at me until I die.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
In the end, the rest of the schedule was carried out according to protocol.
While the exam was in full swing, I sat on the prepared seat of honor, looking down at the training ground with a bored expression.
“Haaap!”
“Haat!”
Clang, ting, the sound of swords clashing. What is this? It’s an exam observation. It wasn't just the desk-bound officials whose heads rolled during this purge. In particular, the vacancies in the Imperial Knights were significant. So, we decided to hold the knight selection at the same time.
“Boring.”
It’s not fun. For some reason, the power balance in this worldview is very strange. Sometimes it’s high-power, other times it feels like low-power.
For example, there’s a description of a Magic Tower Master who can easily wipe out a mountain with magic, yet they get cursed because they let their guard down. Or the Northern Grand Duke, a Sword Master who can supposedly handle a thousand or two thousand regular soldiers alone, gets poisoned by a stray, blind toxic arrow.
It’s something like that. I understand it. You have to show the male lead getting weak like that so the "nursing event" can happen. Honestly, I don't know why I have to watch the scene of someone nursing those men back to health. If choosing a romance-fantasy game is a sin, then that’s my sin.
Anyway, for that reason, they should be somewhat skilled if they’re applying to be Imperial Knights…… but maybe it’s because I had high expectations, it’s really not fun.
That was when it happened.
“Ugh!”
“Oh, that swordsman is unrivaled among the candidates I’ve seen so far.”
The Vice Minister of the Ministry of War was evaluating a man along with his adjutant. He was a swordsman who had taken down his opponents in succession with rapid, precise strikes.
He had a somewhat familiar face. Who was it again?
And right after he took down his next opponent with a single blow, the swordsman, who had sheathed his sword, turned his head toward me.
“Your Majesty the Emperor!”
“Hmm?”
“Th-that insolent……?!”
The surroundings turned upside down. The swordsman didn't care and said confidently:
“Please spar with me just once.”
“H-huff…… Ugh, ugh. Ugh.”
“V-Vice Minister!”
The Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, who was next to me, couldn't handle the sudden rage and collapsed, clutching the back of his neck.
“Oh.”
I laughed with interest. I see a lot of familiar faces. I hadn't recognized her because she was dressed as a man.