Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: A Flight with the Emperor
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Preparations for the Ten Thousand Years Festival were far more headache-inducing than I'd imagined.
The tribute gift was one less worry since Her Highness the Princess had promised to handle it herself...
But the etiquette training alone was grueling.
Then one day, the princess appeared and said,
"I've come up with a brilliant scheme."
"..."
This feeling... it was familiar.
It reminded me of the propaganda speech in the capital or the thesis defense where we'd turned that barren mountain into farmland.
What wild idea was she cooking up this time?
The princess continued,
"How about taking a floating stone and flying through the sky with Father?"
"...Pardon?"
"I'm saying we offer the experience of flight as the tribute gift."
"..."
Ignoring my bewildered expression, the princess smoothly laid out her plan.
"Just recite the lines I've prepared for you in advance. His Majesty will know it's all my doing. Meaning, if anything goes wrong, I'll take full responsibility."
"Even so, escorting His Majesty on something so dangerous..."
"Don't tell me you're lacking confidence in your universal gravitation magic?"
"No."
"Then what's the problem?"
"..."
The princess hooked her arm through mine and said,
"Think about it. No one in imperial history has ever done this. Flip through the history books, and the most you'll find are guys who danced alone with a princess. Those are all nobodies. If you're the real deal, you need to fly solo through the skies with the Emperor."
"..."
"What better debut into high society could there be?"
Ha ha ha.
I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.
"You're joking, right?"
"Of course."
"So, what's the real plan?"
The smile faded from the princess's face.
"One flight like this, and when people think of your airship, they'll first recall this special experience instead of a weapon of war."
"Ooh."
This actually made sense.
As cognitive psychology tells us, first impressions are everything.
"If we're lucky, we might even sell pre-paid tickets for rides and use the funds to build the ship before it's even done."
"..."
Insane.
Selling tickets before the thing's even built...
This wasn't some Korean apartment presale.
I stared at the princess with my mouth agape.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"No, it's just... I'm glad you're the princess of this era."
"Hm?"
She was lucky to be born in these times.
With a personality like hers in a chaotic age, who knows what havoc she'd wreak...
Just imagining it made me dizzy.
I said to the princess,
"Alright. If it works, it's a fantastic plan."
We had to avoid the airship being known as a weapon from the start, if possible.
In that regard, I approved.
"But... I'm not sure His Majesty will accept it."
Emperor Pertinax.
Would he go for such an outrageous proposal?
"Everyone seems to overlook it, but I'm his daughter. Trust me. His Majesty will accept without question."
"...I see."
It would've been rude not to believe her after she'd said that much.
But why was she so certain His Majesty would agree?
What was her reason?
I'd hear it straight from her lips a few days later, high in the sky.
"Should I explain it in feet instead of meters, perhaps?"
"...No. That's fine."
The Emperor instinctively knew what kind of person the mage before him was.
Isaac was someone utterly distant from metaphors or rhetoric.
Much like the Emperor's own father.
Was that why?
The Emperor found flying with Isaac surprisingly comfortable.
He vaguely understood why his daughter wanted him by her side.
The Emperor looked at Isaac.
He had removed his glasses, slicked back his messy hair neatly, and was muttering to himself.
"Phew. We've finally taken to the skies."
The Emperor hesitated.
Was now the right time to share this story?
The Emperor slowly opened his mouth.
"What I'm about to say—if you repeat it on the ground, you'll face severe punishment."
"...Pardon?"
"So listen and forget."
"Un... understood."
Good.
That put his mind at ease.
The Emperor spoke.
"My late father..."
"Pardon?"
"..."
He started to speak but paused.
They were above the flowing clouds.
No eavesdropping ears, no recording historians.
For the first time in ages, the Emperor uttered not his official title, but his name.
"My father... loved astronomy. Did you know?"
"Yes. He founded the Imperial Observatory, revealed precession, shattering the geocentric model to pieces. He even precisely calculated the Earth's circumference and created the meter unit."
The Emperor chuckled at Isaac's response.
"You make him sound like a conqueror."
As the laughter faded, a serious light came over the Emperor's face.
"I heard you predicted the existence of a new planet."
"Less a prophecy, more a prediction, I'd say."
"What's the fun in that? I've never understood why my father was so obsessed with astronomy. Do you know?"
"..."
Isaac fell silent for a moment.
"Maybe that's why I threw myself into earthly affairs—because I couldn't understand it."
The Emperor reflected deeply on the past.
He had enriched the Empire's resources and straightened its laws.
He thought he'd grasped everything.
Yet now, all that remained for the Emperor was boredom.
'Is that why I often think of Father...?'
His father's face, gazing at the stars, always looked happy.
The Emperor continued,
"To be honest... I'm not even sure anymore if I'm truly ruling the Empire."
"Are you implying there's a rebel force...?"
"That's not it...!"
Whew.
The Emperor let out a small sigh.
He muttered,
"Yes. Maybe this is better."
Better to deal with someone who only half-understood than someone who grasped everything too well and grew wary.
Isaac pondered briefly before replying,
"Ah. Is that why Your Majesty agreed to fly?"
"Hm?"
"Care to look down below?"
The Emperor's gaze shifted to his feet.
The clouds that had pierced upward were now far below, drifting away.
All that filled his vision was vast land.
The grand capital's panorama unfolded at a glance.
The impregnable walls, the Magic Tower piercing the heavens, even the majestic Imperial Palace—all lay beneath his feet.
Isaac said quietly,
"What do you think now that you see it? Does it feel real?"
"..."
"The world at your feet. Something like that."
"..."
The Emperor couldn't respond.
He stared blankly at the capital below.
Endless mountains, rivers, and fields stretched out.
It was a fantastical sight.
Things so immense, now captured so easily in one view.
The people scurrying about within seemed insignificant, invisible.
'They probably see me the same way.'
Gazing up at the sky, they wouldn't see the Lord of Ten Thousand Years or the Empire's Sun.
The Emperor felt a sense of relief.
For the first time, he thought he understood his father's feelings while stargazing.
Strangely, his mind felt clearer.
The Emperor looked up at Isaac.
"Come to think of it, I forgot something important. State your request. I'll grant anything."
"Whoa. So the punishment for spilling is off the table?"
"...Yes. It's done."
Isaac faced the Emperor and voiced his wish.
"───"
Whoosh.
The fierce wind mingled with Isaac's words.
Fortunately, they rang clear in the Emperor's ears.
It was a wish he would've dismissed as useless in normal times.
But after ascending to the heavens, his mind had changed.
"You're... quite the greedy one."
"..."
"Very well. So be it. I permit it."
The court mage stared blankly at the sky, muttering,
"Impossible..."
Any Magic University graduate knew the basics.
Humans can't fly.
Sure, mages could levitate.
But that was more like launching than flying.
Calculate initial trajectory and landing, then hurl yourself with telekinesis.
Yet...
"How exactly is he flying?"
Right now, the Emperor had vanished into the invisible heights.
'Recasting spells every instant to adjust position and velocity?'
Even the Dean couldn't manage that.
The human brain simply couldn't.
He'd heard from Isaac's lips that it was thanks to the floating stone, but that was even harder to believe.
Recasting magic constantly was theoretically possible, but freely controlling a floating stone defied principles.
"Your Majesty! Save His Majesty!"
The guards panicked, shouting his name and firing spells wildly across the outdoor banquet hall.
Of course, it was pointless.
They weren't laying stairs to heaven—how could they rescue him?
The court mage and hundreds of nobles gathered at the palace could only gape at the sky in stunned silence.
How much time passed?
Amid the murmuring crowd, a guard shouted,
"Th-they're descending!"
"What?!"
"His Majesty is coming down!"
"Where? Where?!"
Unable to point at the Empire's Sun, he screamed at the top of his lungs, "Clouds! Clouds!"
"Which clouds do you mean... huh...?"
Just as the guard said, two tiny dots pierced through the clouds, slowly revealing themselves.
It was the Emperor and Isaac.
Waaaaaaaaah—!
Your Majesty! Are you safe!
The crowd erupted in cheers mixed with relief and awe.
But their descent halted midway.
"Why... have they stopped?"
"Did something go wrong?"
"Your Maje styyyyy!!"
As the ground grew noisy,
The Emperor's voice boomed across the entire palace grounds.
"Hear me!"
The outdoor banquet fell silent at his imperial decree.
All eyes turned to the Emperor standing in the sky, and Isaac beside him.
The Emperor looked down at the nobles below and declared,
"We, Pertinax Arcanus, share the enlightenment gained at the end of this flight with Our subjects below. This decree shall not be revoked."
The scene was like an oracle from the heavens; the people were entranced.
"From this day forth, the private use of arbitrary unit systems within the Empire is wholly prohibited."
The Emperor's words, amplified by Isaac's sound magic, reached everyone.
"All measures of length, weight, time, and temperature shall use one unified system alone."
The Emperor continued,
"Detailed regulations shall be handled by Isaac Uphills and the Magic Survey School of the Magic Tower."