Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: You Can Enter Freely, But Leaving Isn't
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"Fuck off?"
...Silence.
It was a silence so thick it felt like it was choking the air.
"......"
"......"
Right in front of Taurus von Leonhardt himself...
In front of the emperor, the symbol of the empire and the living sun incarnate...
Veronica unleashed her infamous, wicked tongue without a hint of hesitation or restraint: "Fuck off, you bastard."
Swish.
I casually raised both hands.
A gesture to say, 'I didn't do it,' to prevent any needless misunderstandings. Even through the mask, I desperately proclaimed my innocence.
And right away...
Whoosh.
My head locked toward the emperor. My finger quickly pointed at Veronica.
There wasn't a tremor in that fingertip as I conveyed with my whole body, 'This wicked viper did it.'
No matter how crazy I was, I wouldn't lose my mind to the point of cursing the emperor to his face.
"Haa... Lady Veronica. This is getting troublesome if you keep it up."
"The one in trouble here is me, you bastard?"
...I was sure of it this morning.
I'd clasped my hands together and prayed to Veronica's photo, which hung on the dormitory wall like a talisman.
Please, just let today pass quietly... without any incidents.
But how...
Did that exact day get shattered by Veronica's hand?
"If word gets out that you've come to the Cradle, your kid can just ignore it, but I can't."
"......"
Meanwhile, Veronica was still propping her chin on my head, boldly holding up the whiteboard.
And on that whiteboard...
[🖕]
Those two crude lines were still there, and Veronica didn't stop.
Scribble scribble scribble.
She turned the whiteboard toward herself, adding a few more lines. Then she spun it back to show the emperor.
[🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕]
The emperor, seeing the added middle fingers, pressed his forehead and let out a sigh.
"You're right, Father. She does seem in need of some reflection."
"...Elise. Can't you at least take my side?"
"Why?"
"......"
It was the moment the emperor's patience frayed.
Still wearing that uncomfortable-looking mask, the princess betrayed her own father without a shred of sympathy.
She just... sent him a look of pure curiosity, like a reader following the story to see how this mess would unfold.
"You've already been given plenty of leeway just by stepping foot in the Cradle."
"Yes......"
"Because I'm the one pitching a fit, you can't pitch one back."
"Yes... yes... Quite right, Your Majesty."
I watched the emperor like that and slowly lowered my hand.
And... hid my pity behind the mask.
Was the emperor always this kind of character...?
I recalled the emperor from my memory, the one I'd bumped into in the alley with Carnel last time.
...The pitiful emperor despised by Carnel over a few pieces of chocolate.
...The pain he endured not as an emperor, but as a father.
And now... tormented by this wicked viper.
'...Tch.'
Maybe it's because he's the emperor. His immense dignity comes with proportionally immense suffering, it seems.
"Haa......"
The emperor sighed, lifted his head, and stared at the ceiling.
...A face wishing for God to descend with a miracle. No, more like hoping for a downpour to wash it all away.
"...What did I do so wrong?"
"Huh? Father, did you do something wrong?"
"......"
The princess tilted her head as if genuinely curious.
Even through the mask, her attitude was utterly nonchalant. I wondered how someone could be that oblivious.
Swish.
At that moment... Veronica stealthily turned the whiteboard.
She erased the crude lines with a scribble...
Thud.
She placed her hand over mine, shoved the marker into my grip, and forced my hand to move.
"?"
"There, that's how you answer."
Scribble scribble scribble.
The drawing was complete in an instant.
Veronica let go of my hand with a flick and casually turned the whiteboard toward the emperor.
[🖕😘🖕]
"......"
The emperor stared at the drawing in silence for a long while...
Then hung his head low.
"...Guess I can forge a nail out of this."
"Exactly, Father. The human body has iron in it, so refine it properly and you can make a nail, at least."
"...Elise. Whose side are you on, exactly?"
"I'm your daughter, Father."
"...No, you're not. Not starting today."
The emperor finally pressed his forehead and sank deep into the sofa backrest.
The sparkling imperial majesty from when he first entered the headmaster's office was gone. All that remained here was one weary middle-aged father, worn down by exhaustion...
"Well then, shall we continue the discussion?"
As the emperor lost his drive, the princess naturally took over.
She poked the sprawled emperor beside her, nudged him aside a bit, and hopped around to face me.
"So... I'll call you Adel, okay?"
[🖕Yes]
I snatched the whiteboard from Veronica's hand, roughly erased her doodle, and wrote my response.
...Two half-erased middle finger lines remained, but fortunately, the princess brushed it off.
"My father might've worded it oddly, but basically, he just wants you to stay in the empire."
[Yes]
"And in return, status, titles, that sort of thing..."
[Don't need it]
"Pardon?"
Blink blink.
The princess blinked for a moment. As if caught off guard by the response... she tilted her head.
[Don't need it]
"Hmm... So you don't need status or a noble title at all?"
[Yes]
The princess tapped a finger to the mask's mouth area, seemingly lost in thought.
And then... cautiously asked.
"Um...... Why? Status is pretty important, you know?"
[If I take it, I'll end up as an imperial citizen.]
That would tie me to the empire's framework.
Under the name of 'belonging.'
That name would eventually turn into 'responsibility.'
'You're one of us, so...' 'You have to fight for this country.'
All those words would become shackles binding me.
I just... wanted to cut down the immediate disaster, not bear the duty of saving the world.
"I... see? Yeah, you could look at it that way."
The princess seemed a bit surprised but ultimately nodded in agreement. She had a far more open mind than expected and was trying to respect my answer.
"......"
But on one side, the emperor was still clutching his head, while on the other, Veronica was still propping her chin on my head, pondering how to add more '🖕's to the whiteboard.
I glanced back and forth between the emperor and princess...
Then quietly lifted the whiteboard.
[How about this?]
The initiative in this conversation had already shifted to me.
The choice, the decision—all in my hands.
And they... had no choice but to accept my choice.
[My proposal]
With 'me' as the commodity, they set the price. They want the commodity and must have it.
And... I just need to raise the asking price.
A very simple game, straightforward as could be.
On the way out of the Cradle.
"Hmm......"
The emperor and princess had reverted to looking like 'Ordinary Person 1' and 'Ordinary Person 2.'
Having set aside their immense authority and dignity for the moment, they stared blankly at each other until Elise swallowed first.
"Hmm...... Feels like we got played."
"...Played how?"
The emperor furrowed his brows as he asked, but Elise just tilted her head slightly.
No certainty, but a nagging sense of unease.
"That kid never intended to leave the empire in the first place, right?"
......What?
Adel had clearly said she'd 'think about it.' She'd stay in the empire until graduation from the Cradle—a grace period.
But looking back, wasn't that 'grace period' already laced with an implicit promise to stay?
"......"
And in exchange... Adel had obtained the Imperial Seal for a temporary period.
A token granting authority nearly equal to the imperial family.
She'd snagged it quite naturally during the negotiations.
"Haa...... She's staying anyway, so she grabbed the maximum benefit."
"Right. 'Don't need it, won't take it'—all talk, but she picked the spot most advantageous to her."
"...With the seal, she won't need a noble title."
"She never let the other side take the lead from start to finish of the negotiation."
A wry smile crossed the emperor's lips.
Adel had acted from the beginning like she wouldn't accept any offer...
But maybe it was all calculated.
Holding firm to 'no intention of accepting' to make the other side anxious, ultimately leading them to propose what she wanted herself.
"What a sly little fox......"
In the end, it was the emperor who gave the seal. The emperor who begged her to stay.
And as a result, the emperor got an intangible promise...
While Adel clutched the one-of-a-kind tangible gain.
"But it's not bad. The empire could use a schemer like that."
Elise lifted the corner of her mouth slightly, clearly intrigued.
"Should I check out the Cradle myself?"
"...Don't say such frightening things, Elise."
"Why? It looked pretty interesting up close."
"Tone down that 'interesting' talk of yours......"
Thud.
Elise silently raised a hand and removed the mask covering her face.
"Hmm... How does she wear something this uncomfortable every day?"
"Looks good for hiding emotions."
"Less hiding emotions... more like being unable to show them at all."
"What do you mean by that?"
"She can't even speak, right? And if she can't show emotions either..."
Elise looked down at the mask in her hand.
An emotionless, cold mask devoid of warmth.
"That's... not something you can call human anymore, is it?"
"......"
"Wearing this every day... means denying your own emotions to live."
Elise tried placing the mask back on her face.
Her breath caught.
The inside was stifling, her exhaled breath layering up and fouling the air.
"Hard to breathe. Even a little makes it stuffy. Face itches, but can't scratch."
"...That bad?"
"Feels like it'd drive you insane."
"........."
"...Or maybe it already has."
A life with both words and emotions sealed away.
A silence no one had ever truly tried to understand...
Through just a few minutes of experience, she felt like she understood it a tiny bit.
"Sly bastard."
Veronica clicked her tongue as she watched me fondle the Imperial Seal in my hand.
Tsk tsk—the sound bouncing off her tongue was full of disdain, but I didn't care.
Hmm....
The symbol of the imperial family.
With this one shiny seal, I could bypass most restrictions in the empire.
Swish.
I tossed the seal I'd been holding into a corner of my inventory. It'd come in handy someday.
Better than a title.
Far better than some flashy, useless noble title—this was the real deal.
And above all...
I'll be in the empire anyway, for the most part.
The main stage for the 'Academy Calamities' is the Cradle.
And the Cradle is smack in the middle of the empire.
In the end... I'm stuck on this land until the disasters are all gone.
"......"
Of course... once the disasters are all gone.
That'd be a different story.
"You owe me for this."
[What for?]
"I helped drag them into your pace."
[.]
...Fair point.
Thanks to Veronica taking the lead and shattering the emperor's mental state, the negotiations went much smoother.
As a result, I got the Imperial Seal from the emperor.
[Thanks?]
"Thanks, and you'll be stuck in the Cradle for life?"
[How'd it turn into that?]
"Because I say so."
[What about what I say?]
"Didn't you know? You can enter freely, but leaving? Not so much."
Ah.
Yeah.