155. Upheaval
155. Upheaval
"...Eliarnes."
The moment I opened the door and stepped in—no, before the door had even finished opening—Fabiana's exhaustion-laden voice reached me.
"Have you eaten? The quality of the meat today was superb."
"I haven't been able to eat, but... what a carefree greeting."
"I'm not the one with much to be busy about."
Giggling, I naturally took a seat across from Fabiana. Then I set down the bitter Americano I'd bought at the café in front of her.
"I figured you'd need plenty of caffeine, so I even added an extra shot. It'll upset your stomach on an empty one, though."
"Right. Pouring coffee into an empty stomach does make it churn. Yet somehow my stomach is churning even without drinking any coffee. Do you know why that is?"
"Why make it so complicated? Since it's come to this, let's just look on the bright side. It's a little complicated and tiring, but it's not a bad thing for you or Her Highness, is it?"
"No. Far from being a bad thing, it will actually be a very... very good thing. I'm certain of it. Which is why I'm not angry with you, nor irritated—I'm simply being petulant."
Fabiana, who had been gulping down the coffee without a straw, laughed roughly.
"You are the first person to ever hear the petulance of Fabiana de Hermann, the First Princess herself, Eliarnes. You may consider it an honor."
"I'm honored."
Slurp—I sipped my mint chocolate latte.
It was wonderfully refreshing and sweet.
"So... can you explain to me what in the world is going on with all of this?"
"It's exactly what it looks like."
I turned my gaze to look out the window.
A sun was rising. Not a sun that had risen because it was midday. A manufactured sun.
A sun created by someone's magic.
I'd asked her to come while making as much of a show of it as possible, but I hadn't expected her to go this far.
"The Flame Emperor has come to the academy, and the Flame Emperor has announced she'll be a professor at the academy. A history professor? Something like that, I hear."
In exchange for my wish voucher, the Flame Emperor had come to the academy.
And she had volunteered to be a professor.
"That's... right. The Flame Emperor, one of the Six Pillars of the Empire, appeared where every resident of the Imperial Capital could see her. And as if that weren't enough... she even used amplification magic to announce that she would become a professor at the academy."
'I, the Flame Emperor, shall become a professor of Karelai Academy as of today.'
'If there is any who cannot accept this, let them come before me and state a valid reason.'
'If that is impossible, then as I have said—I, the Flame Emperor, shall become a history professor of Karelai Academy.'
That was the Flame Emperor's statement.
It wasn't the dorky way of speaking I knew. It was a truly solemn manner befitting one of the Six Pillars.
Well... that was only possible because the Fist Demon—Leona—wasn't in the Imperial Capital. The Flame Emperor had emphasized several times that she would come at a time when the Fist Demon was absent.
"Eliarnes. Is this your doing?"
"Who can say?"
"What's the point of playing dumb now?"
"Bragging about it would be embarrassing."
"You can simply say you don't want to be used as a political tool. I have absolutely no intention of doing so."
"In that case, yes. I won't answer, for fear you might secretly think of me as a political weapon."
Fabiana rubbed her temples.
"But... Eliarnes. Do you know what the name and existence of the Flame Emperor means?"
"It would mean she's one of the Six Pillars."
"Yes. The Six Pillars. Even among the Six Pillars, she is counted among the strongest, yet she takes no interest in imperial politics and chases the traces of the Heroes in the depths of the Demon World—an existence far removed from worldly affairs."
Fabiana drained the rest of her coffee in one long gulp and still smacked her lips as if her throat were parched.
"She was an existence that maintained absolute neutrality. Even when His Majesty issued commands, unless it was an Absolute Command issued to the Six Pillars, she insisted solely on neutrality."
An Absolute Command issued to the Six Pillars?
That was the first I'd heard of it.
It sounds different from an ordinary command.
Judging by the phrasing, to earn the name of one of the Six Pillars... do you have to hand over something like my wish voucher to the Emperor?
And in exchange, the Empire backs the Six Pillars?
Since it wasn't certain, I cut off my speculation.
It'd be faster to ask the Flame Emperor later.
"You brought that Flame Emperor to the academy. Do you realize how absurd that is? You accomplished something even the master of the Empire could not."
"I accomplished such a difficult thing."
"The Flame Emperor said that if anyone tried to use her for politics, she would drop that sun on the Imperial Palace. She's stubborn... and she has her own 'line' that must never be crossed. Have you entered within it? How did you win over the Flame Emperor's heart?"
"I wanted to help estranged sisters, so I brought in the most effective means at my disposal. Though if I'm going to be interrogated like this, I suspect I'll be too upset to sleep tonight."
I said it with a beaming smile, as always.
But Fabiana understood my words properly and let out a small sigh.
"That... I apologize. I showed you an unseemly side of myself."
"It's understandable in the current situation. There's no need to apologize. I understand this much. I'm the junior who accomplished such a difficult thing and is even this magnanimous."
"But I must say this. Right now, Eliarnes, you are very, very infuriating. I don't think even punching you once would satisfy me."
"However magnanimous I may be, I can't offer myself up for a punch."
"Watch yourself on the streets tonight."
Heh heh—Fabiana laughed.
Then she leaned back in her chair and gazed out the window.
"Is this... a way for Silina to be safe? Or is it simply... a disruption to ruin the Puppet Emperor's plans?"
"Both."
Fabiana's eyes narrowed.
She wasn't glaring out the window. Fabiana gets that look in her eyes when she's lost in thought.
"No matter how I think about it... I can't find a reason why Silina would be safer because of the Flame Emperor's appearance."
Just as Fabiana finished speaking.
Bang! The door to Fabiana's office was flung open roughly.
"...What in the world is going on?!"
"Sister. You've certainly failed to become a noblewoman."
"I'm royalty, so I don't need to become a noblewoman. Anyway, what in the world is going on? Why... is the Flame Emperor becoming a professor at the academy?"
Unlike usual, Silina's voice, without a shred of composure, rang through the office.
And slowly, her platinum-colored eyes moved toward me.
"...Huh."
Silina, whose eyes met mine, cleared her throat and forced composure into her voice.
"...Wh-why are you here?"
That didn't actually give her any composure.
"Did you do this?"
Without answering, I raised a finger and pointed at the door. Silina understood my meaning and quickly slammed it shut.
Only then did I nod.
"Yep."
"Good heavens..."
Silina stumbled into the office, sat down beside me, and gulped down the mint chocolate latte I'd been drinking.
Her mouth must be dry enough for her to chug something she'd disparaged as garbage.
"How...?"
"Trade secret."
"Even in this situation, you're playing word games... Have you thought about how the Empire's political landscape could change from a single word from the Flame Emperor?"
"That's not my business."
"...What? You think about one thing and not the other? If the Empire's political landscape is thrown into chaos, Eustetia will inevitably get caught up in—"
"That's not for me to worry about—it's for you, Silina. No, it's a problem for the princess sisters who received my help to handle."
As if dumbfounded, Silina's mouth fell open.
Fabiana smiled bitterly, as if she'd expected this answer.
"Listen carefully. The Puppet Emperor decided to come to the academy, right? I don't know the exact reason, but I concluded it was to warn you, Silina—the existence interfering with his plans. So you had to hole up in the Imperial Palace for a very long time to secure your personal safety. But you said you didn't want that. Fabiana didn't look too pleased about it either. Why? I have a rough guess, but I won't say it since my head might roll for insulting the imperial family."
I'd been about to wet my throat with the mint chocolate latte, but this girl Silina had drunk every last drop.
Clicking my tongue, I smacked my lips and continued.
"Anyway, if the Puppet Emperor comes to the academy and puts pressure on you, the chances of our plan going awry increase. So, to protect our plan, ruin the Puppet Emperor's plan, and leave the princess sisters with an enormous debt, I made a move that would be extremely troublesome even for me."
I extended my index finger.
"Here are the results that will come of it. First. The Puppet Emperor is one of the Six Pillars. If another of them is at the academy, then even if the Puppet Emperor comes to the academy, he won't be able to move however he damn pleases."
In truth, the academy already had Leona, the Fist Demon, said to be the strongest of the Six Pillars.
But Leona wants to hide her identity.
So I called the Flame Emperor.
If I'd told Leona, it likely could have been handled more easily and quickly. But doing so would put Leona in danger.
If I told Leona about the current situation with Eustetia and what the Puppet Emperor was scheming? That ill-tempered lion would immediately go to smash the Puppet Emperor and the collateral branch.
And the Puppet Emperor and the collateral branch would be utterly wrecked.
But there's a very high chance that the First Prince, highest in the line of succession, is standing behind the Puppet Emperor.
In that case, Leona, having smashed the Puppet Emperor and the collateral branch, would become the First Prince's enemy—and if things went a little further, she could become the enemy of the entire Empire.
No matter how strong Leona is, fighting the entire Empire while also dealing with the forces of Ge Vihenum isn't just difficult—it's nearly impossible.
I guarantee it: if she made the whole world her enemy like that, Leona would die.
And I don't want to lose my master, the existence who remembers our history from four hundred years ago.
So I called the Flame Emperor to the academy.
I didn't hide these thoughts from the Flame Emperor. I told her everything.
And despite that, the Flame Emperor chose to grant my request.
The princess sisters now owe me a great debt, but I, too, owe the Flame Emperor a great debt.
The Flame Emperor herself... says it was a light matter, but to me, it isn't light at all.
I extended the next finger.
"Second. As you said, the Empire's political landscape will be thrown into chaos. If that happens, the imperial family will naturally have to rack their brains and work hard. They'll be too busy looking after themselves for a while, so even in that situation, those bastards won't be able to scheme the thing you and Fabiana are worried about. They probably won't even think of it."
Silina's assassination.
I don't know the reason, but the imperial family seems to be full of plots to kill Silina.
But with this incident as a catalyst, they won't be able to scheme such plots for a while.
Why? Within the imperial family, there are figures of Anton's faction—the First Prince who backs the Puppet Emperor.
And those bastards are probably the ones trying to kill Silina.
But the Flame Emperor has revealed herself in the Imperial Capital.
And as if that weren't enough, she announced she would become a professor at the academy, speaking with the nuance that she was involving herself in imperial politics.
Of course, the Flame Emperor won't actually do that.
That's why she said she would teach history, not practical skills or magic.
Even if it sounds like a light remark at first glance, it's a statement from the Flame Emperor, who has stood neutral until now.
The Flame Emperor, who has never extended a hand to any faction and never received any support.
That's why the Flame Emperor's statement cannot be taken lightly.
A golden opportunity has come to factions that had no backing and thus could only grow weaker.
So Silina and Fabiana's faction will throw firewood onto the small spark that has flared up this time.
Even if the Flame Emperor shows no reaction in the process, each of those actions can have the effect of suppressing the opposing faction's power.
I extended a third finger.
"Third. Because of this incident, not only other existences but the Puppet Emperor himself won't be able to lay a hand on you carelessly, Silina."
There was a fourth reason too, but I didn't say it.
The fourth reason wasn't related to the princess sisters—it was related to Stella.
"I've done all this. So should someone like me have to worry about the Empire's political landscape and move cautiously? If so, I'll retract all of this and focus solely on protecting Eustetia."
Silina wore a dazed expression, while Fabiana, who seemed to have understood everything I said and drawn a picture of what was to come, carefully parted her lips.
"I will protect Eustetia by any means necessary, staking the name and position of Fabiana de Hermann. But I don't understand the last reason—that the Puppet Emperor won't be able to touch Silina. Why would that be?"
"Ah, that."
I turned my head and looked out the window.
At that moment, the Flame Emperor's gaze, still floating at the center of the sky, turned. Our eyes met.
Grin—I smiled.
Beam—the Flame Emperor smiled.
—Hm.
The Flame Emperor's lips parted.
Her voice is a little louder than average, but not enough to resound throughout the Imperial Capital.
But if it passes through amplification magic, it can resound throughout the Imperial Capital—perhaps even the entire Empire.
"She's speaking now."
—And I hear that Silina de Hermann, the Second Princess of the Empire, is enrolled at Karelai Academy.
"...Huh?"
"Wha...?"
When Silina's name came out of the Flame Emperor's mouth, Fabiana's eyes went wide, and Silina's mouth fell open even wider.
—I, the Flame Emperor, desire an audience with her.
The two sisters' gazes gathered on me.
Among them, my eyes were drawn to Fabiana's expression.
"Could you make such a stupid... no, dazed expression too, Fabiana?"
"Keu-heu-heu, keu-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
Over my muttering, Fabiana's refreshing, hearty laughter overlapped.