Empathy for the Demon
Hubert's attire was immaculate.
He wore a tailored brown coat paired with matching trousers and polished black shoes.
In stark contrast to Katrin's threadbare dress, it was razor-sharp.
Compared to me, who had thrown on a vest at best, it was incomparable.
For a commoner to dress so sharply was crude to a king.
If the nobles saw it, they would assume he was pretending to be from a noble house.
They would laugh and mock him, calling him a commoner trying to imitate their rings.
"Granddaughter? When did you get married?"
"I'm still a bachelor. The daughter is my stepdaughter."
"Hah, Elize married into some noble house?"
Of course I was not some naive noble spawn with a bias.
I had to accept the facade of a father who knew everything but pretended not to.
The letter claiming adoption of a commoner as a daughter received no proper reply.
But now that we were meeting face to face, I had to force the words out.
There was no choice.
The wrinkle between Hubert's eyebrows remained.
Was the Lusaru royal bloodline something even a commoner could not claim?
As king, I could have said anything, but Hubert was now just a commoner gent.
I was starting to wonder whether I should press him or turn the conversation around.
"Christina? You wanted ice cream earlier, didn't you?"
"Eh? W-well, you bought me one..."
"What are you talking about? Want another? Greedy girl. Hubert? Can you score points with your granddaughter?"
Christina shrank back again.
Even as her grandfather, she still hid her face from strangers.
The sight of my daughter clutching my trousers and retreating behind me again.
This time, she couldn't even manage a fake smile. Damn it.
The wrinkle between Hubert's eyebrows deepened further.
"Once in a while, right?" he said, and I watched him reach into his pocket for his wallet.
If he was exaggerating his reluctance that much, he hadn't been on guard yet.
Or was he deliberately displaying aristocratic behavior for my benefit?
Should I just swallow him whole after all?
Katrin always pushed them aside like this, but right now she was staying silent.
Was there some information between them that I didn't know about?
Status Window?
...Why wasn't she answering now? Was it the kind of info I wasn't supposed to know?
No, stay calm and focus, Gerhardt.
This was exactly the situation I had been hoping for.
Even if I later looked after the daughter, I had to complete this lucky encounter now.
If I didn't make the most of the time, I wouldn't know when the next opportunity would come.
Christina had taken one too many steps back for no reason... leaning against Katrin's wheelchair.
I knew that awkwardness all too well.
An awkward reunion deliberately drawn out by a delinquent and a demon was obviously strange.
The gazes were already starting to turn our way, so I needed to leave the table soon.
-
Christina was completely distracted by my eyes.
Even though the ice cream was melting, she couldn't stir her spoon.
But this time I couldn't be bothered to care.
I had planned to make contact with Hubert.
I just hadn't expected it to turn out like this.
Meeting openly at a downtown coffee house was honestly pretty risky.
If Katrin hadn't been glaring straight out of the shop window, I wouldn't have come here.
"Back in the old days, I wondered where all those intellectuals had come from..."
"Now that curiosity is satisfied, tell me the reason for this meeting."
If it hadn't been my father, I would have said 'next' right away.
"Coffee and ice cream? I bought them for you."
Hubert pretended to be casual while leaning forward and interlocking his fingers.
The rings on his hands came forward.
A ring engraved with a rose and another with a lion's head.
Rings that bound past and present together.
He was still claiming to be the king of Lusaru.
"My son was injured in an accident. I didn't look for him because I didn't want to be a father who couldn't even find his own son."
"I knew you had already suffered enough for that."
He could have come sooner if only he had been hospitalized for two weeks.
Hubert couldn't bring himself to deny it, only answering with, "It's better than not coming."
After the silence, the conversation shifted to, "Did you hear the rumors?"
What rumors? He gave a puzzled look, as if he had already heard "The emperor has fallen."
...I heard it first.
It was clear that two years from now the emperor would die, and there would probably be an imperial election.
It was really damn hard to hold back my mouth from spilling.
Seeing me hold back, Hubert only said, "I see you already know."
Katrin, still maintaining that demon-like silence, gave a slight nod.
I needed to glance at Christina... she was eating her ice cream properly. Good.
"Why, how did you not hear about such news?"
"With money and connections, almost anything is possible."
"Katrin has said some nonsense like that sometimes."
I deliberately planted a false lead.
The Status Window immediately popped up [System: Extremely Displeased] on Katrin's side.
Apart from family ties, what could it be that made her this angry?
"Please don't speak like that in front of my uncle."
Katrin suppressed her anger and gave a polite reply.
Her tone was indeed courteous after hearing the blunt words.
After a moment of silence, my mind started turning.
"Tell me about the emperor. That bastard Sigmund von Chersignon."
No matter what, I had to use this encounter effectively.
-
"The emperor recovered quickly. But he was weakened enough to fall without warning."
True, he was about to die soon, so he had to be weakened from the start.
"Even in secrets, there was a spy among us who knew about it."
Hubert's voice grew lower and more solemn.
"The dukes and foreign dignitaries know the rumors. Pressure for the succession election has already started."
"Quite fast."
Knowing the two-year mark, it was really quick.
Hubert shrugged as if he agreed.
"Sigmund the Third was consumed by paranoia. It makes sense after his son rebelled."
"So there's tension bubbling in Chersignon because of that?"
"I can't guarantee it, but it doesn't matter."
Hubert gulped down more coffee, as if his throat was dry, while I recalculated.
Even the knowledge I already had changed meaning when combined with the Status Window.
So if I just removed Moritz, I would be elected.
If he couldn't trust even his own grandson and didn't support him in the election, should I be grateful?
"Katrin, aren't you interested in the grand duke election? We're both grand duke grandchildren anyway-"
Katrin shot me a look of pure disgust, as if she would rather curse.
Even Christina pulled away from the wheelchair with a, "Ugh, Father..."
This relationship needed to be sorted out later, no question.
I was on edge, but Hubert remained calm.
"Of course not. Then you came just to see your injured son."
It was the typical politician's deflection.
No matter what, the former king Hubert seemed to be weaving complicated schemes.
But the situation didn't allow for much leeway.
"What kind of big injury? The emperor was on the verge of burning to death with his son and granddaughter."
I dropped a bomb-like statement that felt unnatural.
Before Hubert could react, I poured out the rest of my words.
"Sorry for the lie, but let's aim for the rivalry between Sigmund and Moritz."
"Suddenly-"
"I'm serious. I swear that fire was the work of Sigmund."
This time I matched Hubert's cunning tone.
Combining the information with the content of the "Grand Duke's Game," Sigmund was the most likely culprit.
Of course it was baseless speculation, but it was a possibility that even Hubert couldn't deny.
"What are you talking about-"
"Let's not be childish, Your Majesty. How would I know?"
I had made up the "King's Tale" but in an instant Hubert's gaze sharpened.
"Then loosen up and talk comfortably. You have connections and ties, right?"
I had deliberately said nonsense, but he didn't swallow it. He was indeed experienced.
Instead, he immediately calmed down and answered, "What do you mean? The electors will provide the votes."
This level was exactly what was expected from a former king.
"And the electors will be staring at your money pouch and business card. Don't put on airs."
"Even if I butter up a few electors, it won't change anything."
"In my opinion, there might be something that can change even your succession."
"You bastard!"
Without warning, Katrin shouted.
Damn it, had I made a mistake? At least her family relationship didn't suffer much.
She was probably enduring it while thinking it was political maneuvering... but it was a dangerous remark.
Even worse, Christina let out a "Heeek!?" as if she might cry.
"Ah, it's fine, it's fine, Christina. Come here, Father."
When my daughter, barely holding back her tears, finally leaned into me, Katrin started calming down too.
"W-well... sorry, nephew."
The words finally formed.
If political dangerous remarks were the opposite of accurate, then accurate statements were the ones that could explode before I threw them.
Since it was accurate and dangerous, I had to fire it before it blew up.
"Since he didn't kill the defeated king and only deposed him, how do you feel about that?"
In logic, after the Lusaru War, the treatment for Hubert should have been one of two things.
Submission to the empire as a duke or death. Nothing in between.
But right now Hubert was in that middle ground.
"What kind of talk is this?"
"Since I'm still alive, you already know it yourself."
Hubert suddenly locked and unlocked his fingers urgently.
"The current emperor and the grand dukes must have needed bombs to mutually target each other."
Even with his face completely flushed red, he couldn't stand up. That was the correct answer.
"I didn't want to end it with a bomb that would explode and disappear, right? I can stop that for you."
"But I can't become emperor. Right now I'm just a commoner."
"That's right! But the son of the electors standing in front of you is different."
He was finally showing that he understood. Probably deliberately.
"I'm dreaming of the future right now, and I can make you a new crown.
I will ask the grand duke to place the crown on your head. I'll give him the Lusarius crown as a reward."
This was still profitable business, Hubert.
-
Something was adjusting in Hubert's mind.
When he learned his son was a delinquent, one step down.
The news of adopting an unknown orphan last month dropped two steps.
And the fact that his son was making such gambling-like remarks was a chaotic sign.
The grand strategy was good, but it was a thought anyone as a grand duke could have.
His own existence being the flaw was why he was still immature.
He couldn't even read that Katrin was managing her expression while looking at the maid beside him.
Yet Hubert's own presence was causing problems.
Of course, Hubert's intuition was screaming for me to accept the proposal.
A premonition he had waited fifteen years to see, the one he had to recover.
At the same time, Hubert's rationality pointed out the flaws.
There were many wrong ones, but there were also flaws that weren't completely incorrect.
Perhaps his son was still rebelling against his father.
The way Gerhardt was forcibly straightening his face, Hubert didn't understand.
That demonic suppression felt like it was mocking him even more.
"Eating ice cream again?" I said.
"No more ice cream. What should we eat for dinner, Son?"
"Damn son. Or should I say Demon-nim?"
"Aigoo, why call me demon?"
"Because that's how demons act."
The maid who was only supposed to be my granddaughter finally calmed down but then startled again.
Whatever, Hubert reluctantly unlocked his fingers and extended his hand.
"Will you accept the proposal of the Grand Duke, Hubert the subject of Lusaru?"
I chose a tone that deliberately mocked him to the maximum.
Formally, it was a commoner receiving a command from a grand duke, which was itself a risky resistance.
Katrin lowered her eyelids slightly before deliberately turning her head.
Of course, neither of them would be swayed by such formality.
"Even though you still have noble blood, why are you talking like a commoner? At least you're a gent."
"As expected."
"If I like it or not, isn't it already good?"
It was really hard to answer someone who wouldn't listen to even one word.
So Hubert barely grabbed his son's hand and shook it.
"Even if it's cooperation, I'm not your subordinate. Don't forget that."
"It's not like that yet. I won't exploit you, so don't worry."
"Then that's what demons are like."
The hand of his son, who was truly demonically arrogant, was sticky and disgusting.
More disgusting than that was nothing but Katrin's anger.
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