The Brave Lion and the Wise Fox
The Brave Lion and the Wise Fox
Daniel had wanted to stay in Bellanos a little longer — even just a few more days, since he couldn't manage months — but regrettably, that wish went unfulfilled.
Because the very next day at noon, the private plane sent by the Imperial Household arrived at Tentarbahém.
Naturally, an order had been issued for him to return immediately, and thanks to that, Daniel had no choice but to board the plane, gritting his teeth as though swallowing a mustard plaster.
With Daniel boarding under Hartmann's escort, the plane immediately took off and headed for the Imperial Capital.
The plane, flying freely through the skies of the Capital, landed at an airstrip near the Imperial Palace.
Daniel, disembarking from the plane, could see the personnel of the Inner Court Office standing against the backdrop of the sunset sky.
The Chief of the Inner Court Office, who stood at their head, loaded Daniel into an Imperial Household protocol vehicle, saying, 'His Majesty the Emperor is waiting.'
Truthfully, Daniel wanted to rest, but he could not refuse a command from the Emperor.
After riding the vehicle to the Imperial Palace, Daniel followed the Inner Court Office Chief's guidance toward a room called the 'Golden Rest.'
When Daniel, who had no idea what kind of room it was, asked cautiously, he received the answer that it was 'a room His Majesty the Emperor visits when he wishes to drink alone or engage in contemplation.'
In short, he had been invited to the Emperor's personal space.
Daniel, who felt an ominous premonition for some reason, moved while maintaining his tension, and was only able to stop his steps once he had ascended to the highest floor of the Imperial Palace.
"Beyond this door, His Majesty the Emperor resides."
The door the Inner Court Office Chief pointed to was lavishly decorated with gold.
Only then did Daniel understand why this room was called the Golden Rest.
"His Majesty dislikes it when questions are not answered immediately, so I believe it would be best for you to respond as quickly as possible."
Daniel, who had straightened his attire, nodded at the Inner Court Office Chief's advice.
Confirming that the preparations were complete, the Inner Court Office Chief knocked on the door: tok-tok.
"Your Majesty! Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Steiner has come to seek an audience!"
Upon that, a voice from inside told them to enter.
When the Inner Court Office Chief, who had shown his respect with a single bow of his head, sent a glance, the Imperial Guard soldiers waiting on either side of the door moved.
As they opened the door to the room, the back of the Emperor, gazing outside from the room's terrace, became visible.
Inside the room, large murals accented with golden embellishments were positioned, and as the ceiling was of a glass dome style, the moonlight descending from the sky was freely transmitted through.
The floor was laid with an expensive carpet, and the glass liquor cabinet decorating one side of the room was lined with high-end whiskeys that one would be hard-pressed to see even once in a lifetime.
It was a place so utterly made of luxury that it was nothing short of paradise, causing his body to shrink back involuntarily.
Daniel, who had been briefly glancing around, walked to the center of the room as naturally as possible and raised a salute toward Emperor Bertram.
"Your Majesty the Emperor! Operations Staff Officer Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Steiner, attached to General Headquarters, has returned from his mission as an official envoy and..."
Daniel trailed off and closed his mouth.
Because Bertram had waved his hand, as if telling him to stop with the formal pleasantries.
Thanks to that, as Daniel lowered the hand he had raised for the salute, Bertram spoke quietly.
"Come over here. There is something I wish to show you."
Daniel nodded and walked toward Bertram.
As the distance closed, Bertram glanced at Daniel sideways, then raised his hand to point at the ground below.
"Do you see them? My people, that is."
Daniel shifted his gaze to where Bertram was pointing.
There, countless crowds who had come out onto the streets were waving their hands and shouting cheers.
An exact number could not be estimated, but it was a crowd reaching at least ten thousand.
As Daniel, looking down at the cityscape, stiffened in bewilderment, Bertram let out a laugh.
"All of these people have come out to the streets to celebrate your survival. There is no separate festival atmosphere. Although, half of them are probably using your survival as a justification to enjoy the festivities."
"...I did not realize so many people had gathered."
"For the survival of a war hero, this is on the smaller side. Looking at this, it reminds me of when I returned to the Capital after leading my first war to victory. Everyone praised my achievements."
Bertram, who had been gazing intently at the crowd, half-closed his eyes.
"And now those very same citizens are praising your achievements. Then let me ask you this. Are these my people, or are they your people?"
It was a placid question, but for Daniel, it was not one that could be easily answered.
Because this was the first time the Emperor had so openly regarded him with wariness.
Sensing a crisis, Daniel immediately knelt on one knee.
"Your Majesty! The people praising me is, in a broader sense, the same as them praising Your Majesty's achievements! Because I am but a single line officer and merely a servant who receives the Empire's orders. Furthermore, as the Empire is none other than Your Majesty the Emperor, how could they ever be called my people?"
At Daniel's excuse, Bertram let out a low laugh.
'He has grown accustomed to dealing with power. The tremor in his voice has diminished considerably.'
If the Daniel he first met had been frantic just to read the room, the current Daniel was aware, yet carried a certain composure.
It was proof that, whether he realized it or not, he had grown familiar with conversing with those in power.
Bertram, who had been observing Daniel intently, nodded.
"If you say so, then it must be so. Rise. Let us have a drink."
As Bertram moved his steps into the room, Daniel rose from his spot.
Bertram walked to the mahogany solid wood table situated in the center of the room, where high-end whiskey and two crystal glasses sat.
As Daniel drew near, Bertram sat down and picked up the whiskey bottle.
"Do sit."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Once Daniel, having given a nod of his head, seated himself on the chair, Bertram poured him a whiskey.
The hue of the whiskey emerging from the bottle was an amber tinged with gold.
The thought that it was the finest whiskey made his heart flutter, but that was momentary.
"Your Majesty?"
A flustered Daniel stared at Bertram.
Because Bertram had poured the whiskey until the glass was completely full.
Whiskey was not originally drunk like this.
Especially in cases of the highest-grade whiskey, it was normal to savor the taste and aroma by drinking it little by little.
Bertram, who would know this as well, had nonetheless filled the glass to the brim with whiskey.
"Drink up first."
"But..."
"I shall drink as well."
Bertram filled his own glass to the brim with whiskey as well.
Daniel, upon seeing that, exclaimed in horror.
"Your Majesty! I heard your condition has improved, but if you drink like that, it could become a serious matter."
However, Bertram merely laughed it off lightly.
"I know my own body best. Drinking like this won't kill me, and not drinking won't save me either. So, lift your glass."
Bertram, having finished pouring the drink into his glass, pushed the whiskey bottle to the side.
Bertram raised his glass, and Daniel, also unable to refuse, raised his own.
The two briefly met eyes before emptying the whiskey in their glasses down their throats in one go.
Bertram let out a groan and swallowed the liquor, but Daniel burst into a continuous coughing fit.
For while this was an act Bertram often performed in his youth, for Daniel, the act of filling a glass with whiskey and downing it all at once was a first.
Bertram, looking at Daniel who was coughing as if he was about to die, soon burst into laughter.
"I heard you liked alcohol, but you're not good at all. Must you not even be able to handle this much?"
"This is... cough! The first time this has happened... I apologize."
Daniel, having barely caught his breath, straightened his hunched back and wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.
Bertram, who had been looking at Daniel meaningfully, quietly let out his voice.
"Looking at you, a particular fairy tale oddly comes to mind."
"...You mean a fairy tale?"
"Yes. Do you know the tale of the Brave Lion and the Wise Fox?"
There was no way he wouldn't know.
Because that fairy tale was a famous story that parents tell their children in the Empire.
The content was simple.
A brave lion, having succeeded in protecting the forest from humans, summoned all the forest animals.
The lion declared that there was an animal here who had colluded with the humans, and proceeded to interrogate and devour them one by one.
The story went that, among them, only the fox managed to escape alive.
Daniel, who had no parents, had also heard this story through the abbot.
"Anyone who doesn't know that fairy tale must be a spy."
"Then we'll speak the same language. In your opinion, what kind of trick do you think the fox used to avoid becoming the lion's meal and escape?"
There was a fairly interesting aspect to this story, which was that how the fox used a trick to escape was interpreted differently by each household.
So, adults would often make up their own stories to tell their children what sort of trick the fox had used.
'Of course...'
Daniel knew that Bertram was not asking because he was genuinely curious about that.
'...Just how long does he intend to keep testing me?'
It was only natural to keep a war hero who had piled up excessively great achievements in check.
Daniel also understood that the elderly Emperor's paranoia was growing.
However, understanding it and accepting it were two separate matters.
As the effects of the hastily consumed alcohol began to take hold, emotion started to take precedence over reason.
'The Emperor cannot find fault with me, who successfully concluded the treaty in Bellanos. So this conversation right now is...'
It was nothing more than simple fault-finding.
"Speak. About what trick the fox might have used."
The second question came with a sharper edge to his voice.
The Inner Court Office Chief's words, telling him not to remain silent at a question, made his heart grow impatient.
Daniel, who was engulfed in worry, ultimately decided to relay to him exactly what he had heard from the abbot.
He figured that speaking words he had actually heard would cause less trouble down the line than rambling about foolish thoughts.
"Your Majesty. May I substitute my answer with the words the abbot who raised me once told me?"
He expressed that this was, only and up to the point, something he had heard from the abbot in his childhood.
If that was true, it was the same as Bertram being unable to find fault with Daniel no matter what he said.
Bertram, thinking it was indeed a well-executed escape, nodded.
"Do tell."
"Yes. The abbot first mentioned the rabbit the lion met before seeking out the fox. Your Majesty would also know how the rabbit died."
"Of course. The rabbit, not wanting to be eaten by the lion, prepared a bribe. As I recall, it filled a basket full of blackberries and handed them over..."
"Regrettably, the lion suffered from a severe blackberry allergy. Believing itself to be mocked, the lion devoured the rabbit in a single mouthful on the spot."
"Right. That is what happened."
When Bertram assented as if remembering, Daniel spoke.
"The abbot said that upon seeing that, the fox would have eaten a massive amount of blackberries the day before. He even said it would have left blackberries all over its house."
Bertram looked at Daniel meaningfully.
Daniel continued his speech.
"When the lion came to its house the next day, the fox is said to have spoken thus: 'Great lion, great lion. Oh, magnificent lion. You would be able to swallow me in one gulp, no doubt. But you must keep this one thing in mind. Because the blood of the blackberry flows within my body, if you eat me...'"
After a short silence, Daniel faced Bertram directly.
"'...You, great lion, must also be prepared for death.'"