The First Strike
The First Strike
The worst possible answer came out of my mouth.
Erasing the tear-inducing smirk that had briefly surfaced when he bowed his head, the Lord Protector stood slightly behind my left with a faint smile.
A strange silence engulfed the hall, swept up in astonishment and shock.
Unable to even wipe away his cold sweat in such an atmosphere, the Minister of the Imperial Household opened his mouth with a trembling voice.
"Next! Your Majesty shall receive the formal felicitations of Sir Leonius von Chrysoricos, the Eastern Margrave!"
In an instant, an agitation distinct from the previous silence spread across the entire hall.
The same question flashed through my mind.
A Margrave? Not a Duke?
Though I currently knew nothing about this empire, if there was one thing I did know, it was that like a proper rofan, this empire divided noble ranks into the five peerage titles.
I didn't know the exact details of court etiquette, but I knew that in such a grand banquet, it was customary to call people according to their rank, in order of their power.
Yet, the one called right after the Lord Protector—who possessed the greatest power—was a Margrave?
As I harbored such doubts, a man moved.
That man was the old noble at the center of the Anti-Lord Protector Faction I had checked on earlier.
Ash-gray hair that seemed to have weathered decades of hardship, paired with a red gleam in his eyes. Muscles bulging as if they would burst through the fabric of his ceremonial uniform displayed a marble sculpture-like beauty and intensity.
Cutting through the flustered nobles, the Margrave walked straight forward with a momentum perhaps even more imposing than that of the Lord Protector.
Opportunists and nobles of the Lord Protector's faction projected silent pressure, and the Lord Protector beside me also watched him with a peculiar gaze beneath his characteristic genial smile.
However, the Margrave's eyes were different.
Treating the hundreds of hostile glances trying to bind him as nothing more than dust, the Margrave passed them by and fell to one knee before me.
Regardless of their faction, the other nobles were all watching the Lord Protector's reactions. Though their eyes appeared to look at me, they were actually looking at the Lord Protector.
Save for one person.
Except for this man kneeling before me.
Eastern Margrave Leonius von Chrysoricos.
With neither mockery nor sympathy, as if it were only natural, he looked solely upon the Emperor.
The Lord Protector, who had been quietly watching from my side, spoke up.
"Your Majesty has specifically honored the meritorious deeds performed on the eastern front this year, granting Sir Chrysoricos permission to offer his felicitations first."
Why did a Margrave step forward ahead of the Dukes? The Lord Protector's words were an explanation for that. While the murmurs did not fade completely, the atmosphere of shock subsided to some extent.
Even so, many nobles were looking not at the kneeling Margrave, nor at me, but at the Lord Protector.
Right. I had never issued such an order.
In the first place, everyone in the hall knew that I possessed no such authority.
That day when the Lord Protector brought the cake, the report during the imperial audience. There was definitely a report concerning the eastern expedition back then. It seemed the Lord Protector had been designing today's order of events ever since then.
As I wondered just how far back this went, a heavy voice finally flowed from the Margrave's mouth before me.
"I, Leonius von Chrysoricos, Margrave of the East, respectfully congratulate Your Majesty Julian on your tenth birthday."
The heavily uttered voice resonated as if enveloping the entire hall.
"The Chrysoricos family has guarded the east of the Empire ever since the day the First Emperor raised his initial war banner, and today as well, the walls, officers, and soldiers of the East stand solely under Your Majesty's name.
Until the day Your Majesty comes of age and personally wields the Empire's sword, I and the East shall remain as the shield of the Imperial House."
In a steadfast and calm voice, the Margrave was saying, 'I am the Emperor's sword, not the Lord Protector's sword.'
Glancing at the Lord Protector, he twitched slightly around the eyes for a moment, but his smile remained unfazed. He then leaned down toward me and whispered softly in my ear, "You need only accept his felicitations, acknowledge his merits, and commend him."
I gave a small nod to indicate I understood, then opened my mouth.
"Your loyalty makes... um... We happy! We have heard of the East's merits as well! Continue to protect the East under Our name in the future!"
The Margrave did not hesitate even for a moment.
"Your grace is boundless. The walls of the East shall stand unshaken under Your Majesty's name."
After speaking those words, he stood up, took a few steps backward, and only then turned around to return to his original position.
I stared at his back until he reached his spot.
An oath like a sharply honed sword, completely unconcerned with whatever the Lord Protector's intentions might be.
But was that really meant for me? Was it not meant for the Lord Protector instead?
Margrave Leonius von Chrysoricos might be on my side.
However, he might not be my man.
Even if a powerful figure capable of overthrowing the Lord Protector actually overthrew him, would he truly hand power straight back to me?
Is it true loyalty, or is this also an advanced psychological warfare aimed at the Lord Protector? I swallowed a sigh. Clear enemies were visible, but there was no one I could be certain was a definite ally.
If this were a game, it would be an absolute inferno difficulty.
"Next is Sir Sieghardt von Wallenstein, the Northern Grand Duke!"
Next, the Lord Protector's son—a ten-year-old boy of the same age as me—came forward, accompanied by several people who seemed to be his subordinates. Still just a child, he openly displayed an arrogant expression and a look of looking down on me without being able to hide it.
Yet compared to people like the Lord Protector or the Margrave, who looked as if they had swallowed a hundred sly serpents whole, it couldn't be helped that he appeared rather cute.
...Of course, setting that aside, I was a bit surprised that the Lord Protector had placed his own ten-year-old son in the position of Northern Grand Duke.
Because while I knew the Lord Protector was from the North, I hadn't known he had handed the title of Northern Grand Duke over to his son while remaining here himself.
Afterward came the man who emphasized stability while sending a glance toward the Lord Protector.
"May Your Majesty's reign be like a calm sea. My ship does not cast anchor upon stormy waves."
Artur von Lusitanios, Grand Duke of the Western Sea.
And my maternal grandfather, who concealed a tinge of sorrow as he asked me to take good care of my mother.
"In place of this old servant who cannot guard your side from far away in the Southern Sea, I pray Your Majesty remains in good health for a long time alongside Her Imperial Majesty the Empress Dowager."
After completing the felicitations up to Hannibal von Varkianos, Grand Duke of the Southern Sea,
finally, the noble I had been waiting for raised his head.
"Next! Your Majesty shall receive the formal felicitations of Gate Grand Duke Dietrich von Rosencavalier!"
Blazing red hair paired with green eyes reminiscent of a deep, sunken forest. Sporting a red beard matching his hair color, the magnificent man stepped forward, bringing his family along unlike the other nobles.
If his fief were far from the capital, it would have been difficult to bring his young daughter due to the long journey.
Yet seeing that he had brought his young daughter, it was clear that unlike other Grand Dukes or Margraves, his fief was not far from the capital.
My eyes were fixed on that young daughter.
──Found you.
I had forgotten all the minor details, but at least I remembered the characters I had seen.
The girl who popped out in episode 2 of the rofan I read, telling the heroine who was a Saintess to act like a proper Saintess—the one who, in terms of her role, must have been the villainess.
Narea von Rosencavalier.
And the poor child who would be used in the strike I was about to deliver. The variable I had been eagerly anticipating for today.
I timed it carefully. As Grand Duke Rosencavalier, known as the Gate Grand Duke, assumed a respectful posture to offer his felicitations, his family likewise assumed respectful postures.
When should I move? Thinking about that as I stared intently at Narea, Grand Duke Rosencavalier's expression shifted slightly.
......Did he notice my gaze?
As I watched them, they offered their respectful felicitations to me.
"I, Dietrich von Rosencavalier, respectfully congratulate Your Majesty Julian on your tenth birthday. So that all loyalty passing through Rosencavalier reaches solely Your Majesty, I shall continue to guard the gate."
Bowing his head with a pleasant smile, Grand Duke Rosencavalier signaled with a hand to a servant holding a box.
"Furthermore, to celebrate Your Majesty's birthday, I have brought a separate gift to present. This is not an offering from the Rosencavalier family, but a personal gift presented to Your Majesty by Dietrich von Rosencavalier."
At those words, a faint murmur echoed among the nobles behind him.
No one spoke up openly, but judging by their expressions and gestures, this was clearly no ordinary occurrence.
Grand Duke Rosencavalier retrieved a cloth-wrapped box brought by the servant. Opening the box, which was decorated with ornate gold ornaments, he drew out a single sword from within.
Inside the box was a ceremonial sword decorated with magnificent goldsmithing and jewels.
"This is a sword forged by the finest craftsman in the Grand Duchy of Rosencavalier. Engravings symbolizing unwavering loyalty to Your Majesty have been carved upon it."
Just as he held the sword and was about to step toward me, he glanced at me once and then looked at his daughter. It was certain. He had realized that I was continuously looking at Narea. And this was something I could exploit.
"Narea, present it to His Majesty."
Whatever Grand Duke Rosencavalier was thinking, he spoke in a low voice and passed the sword he was holding to Narea.
Having received the sword, she also looked flustered for a moment, but soon nodded, held the scabbard with both hands, and walked toward me.
"I am Narea von Rosencavalier. Respectfully, I present this to Your Majesty."
Though trembling slightly, she knelt in an impeccable posture and held out the sword to me.
Seeing this, the Lord Protector raised an eyebrow slightly as if displeased by something, but soon whispered in my ear, "You need only accept the sword and commend her."
...I had been constantly looking for the timing.
The Gate Grand Duke felt something from my continuous staring at Narea, and judging by that, he pushed his daughter forward to me. What did this mean?
He is targeting me. He intends to fulfill some ambition through me.
It could be wedging himself into the center stage through the Lord Protector's opening, or it could be something else entirely.
Whatever it might be, if there was one thing for certain,
it was that if I threw the bait right now...
he would have no choice but to take it.
"No! I like her better than the sword!"
And with that, a bombshell was dropped from my mouth.