Episode 75
âIâm surprised it ended earlier than I thought.â
Iker, who was sitting cross-legged on a terrace on one side of Noble State Fieldâs central square, muttered.
Wearing a uniform of gold and red, he looked relaxed and sly.
Like a lion pretending to enjoy a nap, hiding his claws and then snatching his prey.
âIs that so?â
But I couldnât afford to be so relaxed.
If he was a lion, I was an eagle owl.
I had to be the one who constantly searched around and created the opportunity to escape from that troublesome Crown Princeâs beast.
âYes, I thought the meeting would end much later because the appointment ceremony was delayed.â
Seeing that he had to bring that up again, it was clear that he was thinking of using the help I received today as an excuse.
âYes, well, itâs over early because thereâs not much on the agenda.â
âCongratulations more than that. So, should I call you Duke of Spade now?â
There was some conflict before the appointment ceremony, but the meeting ended without a hitch.
Thanks to this, I was caught by Iker in broad daylight.
I would have been napping in the carriage back to the Academy, liking that the meeting ended earlier than expected.
âThe Housekeeper should be treated like a Housekeeper.â
I kept my mouth shut because I didnât know what to say to him.
âDo you think other family members treat you well as family?â
âYes, I was treated properly as a Housekeeper.â
This would have made him speechless.
Iker told me to become a palace wizard under his direct control to press down on the Housekeepers who donât admit me.
âWell, it didnât look like that to me.â
Then he spoke, glancing at me gently with his golden eyes burning like the sun.
âYouâre not lying to the royal family, are you?â
I didnât answer on purpose.
It was obvious I was going to get caught after putting on a word.
âYou can be honest since you and I are the only ones here.â
For more,
âWell, I think a little differently. Other successors may have made the same choice as I did.â
âUnlike the rest of the family, you are not the only palace wizard. The treatment will be a little better when you enter the palace.â
Thatâs what Iker said, putting his hands around his mouth and delivering in a low voice.
âEspecially Trumpâs treatment. Because Duke of Ace values ââposition and ability very much.â
âNo.â
I opened my mouth in a determined voice to the torrent of conciliatory remarks.
âOh, thatâs very annoying.â
âThe Duke of Ace will look down on me, even if I become a wizard under the Crown Prince.â
I spoke in a clear voice, scanning over the hem of the cape with my fingers.
âBecause heâs already the Emperorââ
Because heâs already the Emperor direct wizard.
Thatâs how I was going to end it.
In any case, the best wizard in the Empire is not the Princeâs direct wizard, but the Emperorâs direct wizard.
The moment I raised my head to turn it around, I froze.
It was because Iker was staring at me with a crumpled forehead.
Did they say Ikerâs eyes resemble the sun?
Frankly speaking, Ikerâs eyes at that moment had a cool glow that seemed to rip open the prey before him.
It was not the light of the sun.
It was a light of anger and murder.
I looked at him casually, with a feeling of hair standing all over me.
Suddenly, Iker, too, seemed to be conscious of my face, and then opened his mouth with the same smile as when he met me.
ââ¦â¦Well, I see what you mean.â
Then he changed his legs that were twisting casually and continued his slow voice.
âBut am I not the next emperor? The Duke of Ace canât play Trump forever.â
Letâs not panic.
So I retorted and clenched my fist.
âYes, youâre right.â
Of course, his words were not wrong.
But the present emperor was still too young to die, and wizards, moreover, had a long life span.
Therefore, it was better to go through formal procedures and become an emperorâs direct wizard from the beginning than to wait until Iker becomes the emperor.
There is no need to work in a lower position by holding hands with the reluctant Iker.
However, Iker responded roughly because of the flesh on his face, thinking that he had to fold his hands now.
âIf you become my direct wizard, Iâm willing to guarantee you a seat in Trump. What do you think?â
I thought to myself, thinking for a moment about Ikerâs question.
âThen, if I work under him with a bad personality and he doesnât guarantee that position, thereâs no reason to do it.â
But the answer was fixed.
In fact, I didnât have to worry about it.
âIâm sorry, but Iâm still not good enough to be there.â
âHuh, really.â
Iker seemed to know that now he had to let me go.
As if dumbfounded, he opened his tongue and twisted his legs, and spoke with his fingers around his mouth.
âOkay. I donât think I can keep you any longer.â
âIâm sorry. Thank you for the good offer.â
âIâm sorry to hear that. You may go back now.â
âThank you for your time, Your Majesty.â
It was finally liberation.
Now I could go back to the Academy and rest well.
I wanted to scream like a high school senior who finished the college entrance exam, but I bowed politely to Iker after enduring the rising excitement.
âGood-bye, then.â
âWait, let me ask you one more thing.â
I gnawed my teeth under my lowered head.
âOh, really, why are you dragging my feet?â
However, I asked with a smile as much as possible because my neck could not be cut off for insulting the royal family.
âYes, please tell me.â
It was full of thoughts to answer quickly and go back.
So waiting for his question, Iker rolled up the corners of his mouth slightly and looked at me with his golden eyes.
âDoes Cassius treat you well?â
The question was totally unexpected and I was unknowingly embarrassed.
âYes?â
âLooks like youâre calling each other by name.â
Iker stood up with a grin showing his white teeth.
His red hair shook slightly whenever he moved his steps with his boots on.
âI can treat you that well.â
A low and deep voice flowed through Ikerâs red lips, looking down at me.
âThen can you call me by my name, too?â
âAh.â
Donât tell me, youâre betting on me.
As I looked up at him, his golden eyes greeted me with a smile.
âCasiusâ eyes donât look so insidious.â
Same brothers, same eye colour, but so different.
Thinking so, I looked at Iker with a look of complete ignorance of what he was saying.
Of course, it was all acting.
âYour Majesty, how can I call you by your name, not just by your name? How can I be so rude?â
Iker frowned at the remark.
âThatâs not what Iâm sayingââ
âI donât want to, Your Majesty.â
âI think you misunderstood somethingââ
âYour Majesty.â
As I called him in a voice that seemed deliberately urgent, Iker kept quiet and waited for my words.
Of course, I could see that he looked stuffy inside.
âWouldnât the Crown Prince deserve to be treated like a Crown Prince?â
ââ¦â¦.â
After a period of silence, his words fell.
âGo.â
Thatâs how Iker and I ended our conversation, and the sun was in the middle of nowhere when I left the Noble State Field.
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