The Thousand-Year Capital (5)
The current crown prince of the empire was the First Prince, Orphin Eternor. He maintained a friendly public image, which had earned him considerable popularity among the empire’s citizens. Having already been named the official heir and enjoying such widespread support, it was all but certain that Orphin would ascend to the throne—if nothing unexpected happened.
But the world is full of variables. And there were two massive ones standing in the way of Orphin’s succession.
The first was the Second Prince, Isaac Eternor, who had achieved great military feats in the conflicts against the southern barbarian tribes and now commanded the fierce loyalty of the empire’s southern army. The second was the Third Prince, Neot Eternor, who had obtained a unique magic at a very young age and held the strong backing of the mage community.
Those were the two major variables. Of course, the other princes were probably burning with ambition as well, but for the average citizen, that was all the information available. To be blunt, most people didn’t even know the names of anyone beyond the First, Second, and Third Princes and Princesses.
“Is it true that the Second Prince has obtained the Holy Grail?”
“The circulating rumors are quite detailed. Besides, other paladins besides me have been moving around the capital as well.”
“Hmm.”
I had already expected that the Holy Grail would belong to someone. Leon had unconsciously assumed there would be no owner when he drew up his exploration plan, but I had judged that possibility to be low. After all, a treasure like the Holy Grail always dragged blood and conflict in its wake.
Still, the idea that the Second Prince was the one holding it was hard to believe. It felt too sudden.
Logically speaking, it made perfect sense. All the wealth in the world flowed into the empire, and the imperial family sat at its very peak. So if the imperial family possessed the Holy Grail, that would actually be the natural order of things. Yet somehow, I just couldn’t buy it.
The reason was simple. It was the image.
“What image? Lady Ruina, you really fixate on the strangest things.”
“A military type like the Second Prince gives off the vibe of someone who would pick up an ego sword, not the Holy Grail.”
“That’s complete nonsense… but it somehow makes sense. What about the First Prince?”
“He feels like the type who would get a dragon’s egg.”
“Yeah, that tracks. Totally tracks.”
Chris burst into laughter, clearly enjoying herself. She and I shared a strangely similar sense of absurdity. I continued in a low voice.
“Even if it’s a dragon, it should be a young one—not too powerful. The kind that flies down from the sky during a speech to receive cheers, not something used in actual combat.”
“And then in a moment of crisis, the young dragon sacrifices itself and the First Prince awakens?”
“The current trend is for the young dragon to awaken instead. Getting stronger from someone’s death? What is this, a funeral director’s story?”
“……”
“Sir Leon? Do you have something to say?”
I felt an odd gaze and asked, but Leon simply shook his head. He seemed to have nothing to add. What a boring guy.
I raised my index finger.
“Additionally, the Third Prince gives off the vibe of someone who owns forbidden tomes.”
“Lady Ruina, are you deliberately picking out statements that could get you charged with lèse-majesté?”
“That’s why I cast the soundproofing magic so thoroughly.”
I tapped the lantern on the table with my finger. In response, the flame that had been devouring sound flickered as if patting its own belly. After confirming the magic was working properly, I wrapped up my thoughts.
“A major incident will occur because of a forbidden tome possessed by this Third Prince, and that’s what will truly kick off the succession war. The final winner will probably be the quiet Fifth Prince who’s always been chasing after women, don’t you think?”
“When is the next volume coming out?”
“Should we turn it into a play and sell tickets? You like money, don’t you, Lady Chris?”
“I want to live a long, long life.”
“Me too.”
That was enough idle chatter. I finally brought up the biggest question on my mind.
“What is the source of these rumors? Even if the Second Prince really does have the Holy Grail, he wouldn’t have gone around bragging about it. Or has the imperial family officially acknowledged it?”
“No. There has been no official statement.”
“Then what is it?”
“The source of the rumor is… ahem.”
Leon cleared his throat. I narrowed my eyes, wondering what he was up to. He slowly began to speak.
"It was a dark night. Only moonlight illuminated the world as I staggered down the street, thoroughly drunk on liquor. This shitty world—why am I the only one living like this—"
“Wait a second.”
I cut Leon off. There was something I couldn’t understand.
“What part don’t you understand? I haven’t even started yet.”
“From the very beginning. What is this? A play?”
“…This is how I heard the story, so I’m just repeating it exactly as it was told to me.”
“The pubs in the imperial capital must be very entertaining places.”
If you just sat around in a pub long enough, someone would perform a play or sing a song. It didn’t seem like you’d ever get bored.
“I’ll start over.”
“Please do.”
"This shitty world—why am I the only one living like this? I let out a sigh. Every day was nothing but work, so the only pleasure left in my life was alcohol. When I lifted my head, the splendid imperial palace came into view. The home of the bloodline of the great founding emperor. I didn’t dare dream of living in a place like that. But at the very least, I wanted to live in a mansion—"
"That was what I was thinking when someone entered the palace grounds. Other people might not have known, but I recognized him. I had seen him once by chance during a victory parade. He was one of the Second Prince—Sir Isaac’s—attendants, wasn’t he? Why was he wandering around at this hour? I absentmindedly moved toward the palace. Half because I was drunk, and half because I had a strange premonition."
"And then Sir Isaac’s attendant tripped, and the box he was carrying tumbled across the ground. And I saw it. The world that had been filled only with moonlight suddenly grew bright. The attendant frantically picked up the glowing cup that had spilled from the box and hurried back into the palace, but I knew what it was. The companion of the great founding emperor. The chalice made from that person’s bones. The Holy Grail had appeared in the world—!"
Clap, clap, clap.
When Chris and I applauded, Leon sat back down with an embarrassed expression.
“What do you think?” he asked.
“Your acting is a bit subtle. It might be good to learn how to put more emotion into it. Also, the story structure drags. If it were me, I wouldn’t have filled the beginning with the irrelevant monologue of a drunkard. I would have started the story sharply and concisely from the part where the Second Prince’s attendant falls over.”
“…I didn’t make up this story. And that’s not what I was asking. This is the source of the Holy Grail rumor. What do you think?”
“Even if I stood on my head, it still sounds like the Holy Grail.”
“Right?”
“If it’s true.”
“There are quite a few other witnesses besides this person. All of them gave similar testimony. You still can’t believe it?”
“Yes.”
I didn’t think the person who told this story was lying. However, human memory had a way of rewriting itself. It tended to reshape events in whatever direction was most convenient for the person remembering them. This wasn’t a matter of whether someone was truthful or deceitful. That was simply how the human brain worked.
They all gave the exact same testimony? Well, they probably did see something glowing fall. That part was likely true. But the certainty that the glowing object had been in the shape of a cup was highly likely to be a fabricated memory. It meant that after watching a play about the Holy Grail later, they thought, ‘That’s right. I saw something cup-shaped back then too.’
“Why would they do that?”
“It’s not intentional. It happens naturally. Even if you ask why, there’s no real answer.”
“…Then does that mean this story is false?”
“I don’t know that either.”
I was merely presenting possibilities. If a succubus came to me and said, ‘Lady Ruina. The Second Prince either has the Holy Grail or he doesn’t. Choose one. If you’re wrong, you lose all your magic,’ I would bet on him not having it. But unless I was in that kind of situation, I didn’t want to make any definitive statements. There simply wasn’t enough evidence.
“Besides, wouldn’t it be inconvenient for you, Sir Leon, if the Second Prince really has the Holy Grail? How would you obtain it? You can’t just steal it.”
“……”
Leon fell silent. He had finally seriously considered the possibility that the Holy Grail already had an owner.
“Even if it’s not the Second Prince, I’ve always thought the Holy Grail would belong to someone. What would you do in that case?”
“I suppose I would try negotiating first.”
“And if they refuse?”
“…Then I would negotiate again, more persuasively, so they couldn’t refuse.”
“That’s somewhat better.”
If he had said something like ‘The Holy Grail originally belongs to the Holy Kingdom, so we must take it back,’ I would have immediately switched to the Chris route. It was better to cut losses quickly on stocks with no future. The fact that he wasn’t that kind of person was exactly why I was still holding onto the Leon route.
“Are there any other rumors?”
“None.”
“Then our immediate course of action is decided.”
We would gather rumors related to Isaac and prepare negotiation strategies in case he really did possess the Holy Grail.
“Negotiation is my specialty, Lady Ruina.”
“Then please handle that part, Lady Chris. We’ll focus on gathering more rumors.”
With that, the roles were divided. Since there was no more secret information to discuss, I dispelled the soundproofing magic. Sound immediately returned. Inside the now-noisy inn hall, I put a pipe to my lips.
Rumors, huh. Where should I gather them? Leon could take the pubs, so I would wander around the chess clubs collecting—
“Do you really not know who we are?”
“Stop it, Jerry. These guys couldn’t even recognize us after seeing the robes. There’s no way they’d understand even if we told them.”
The sudden noise pulled me from my thoughts, and I scanned the inn hall. Three men in robes were facing off against a man who appeared to be a mercenary. From the conversation alone, it seemed the argument had been going on for a while. I must have missed it because of the soundproofing magic.
Why were they fighting? It didn’t look like anyone had spilled alcohol on the other’s clothes. Maybe they knew each other?
That was what I was thinking when the man wearing a robe mixed with black and blue shouted.
“I am a disciple of Lady Adelian Croft! My position and talent are on a completely different level from a worthless mage like you!”
Adelian Croft?
The extremely familiar name made my eyes sparkle. So that’s what it was. He was a disciple of Kelton’s master. To think I would run into a fellow disciple here. Nice to meet you.