Episode 74
“…is that much?”
“There are worse ones.”
“what?”
I wondered what could be worse than high-ranking nobles fighting with each other at a cabinet meeting.
“It all started when Falun Davis, a member of the 1st Prince faction, became Minister of Finance, and Larry Klett, a rival of the 2nd Prince faction, reported Falun’s corruption to the king.”
– Earl Davis is not fit to be the Minister of Finance, who must be of integrity!
Then, Falun also reported Larry’s corruption, and the revelations eventually led to them biting each other.
The funny thing is that in the process, corruption involving many of the nobles of the 1st and 2nd prince factions was revealed.
The two immediately withdrew their accusations and apologized, saying it was a jealous joke.
They even destroy the evidence presented by each other in a friendly manner.
In fact, it was as if the royal family was being toyed with by fighting factions.
“…There are no such idiots. And yet the royal family remained silent?”
“What can I do? I don’t have the power. Well, it looks like the king is taking advantage of the competition between the two groups. It doesn’t seem like a bad choice for the royal family.”
“You could look at it that way.”
If you think about it, Roger Bipros’ actions could be interpreted in the same way.
Although I confirmed that there was no problem with the king right away. I didn’t feel very fortunate.
Because the road ahead was equally difficult.
‘The problem is that the three human-like princes have no power.’
Logan couldn’t help but sigh.
The current king originally had no heirs when he was young, and as the impending disaster approached, he brought in concubines at the recommendation of the nobles, but that’s where problems arose.
The two dukes’ wish to solidify their power by producing an heir to the king seemed to have reached heaven, as the daughters of the two dukes whom they took in as concubines became pregnant at almost the same time and gave birth to identical sons.
That alone foreshadowed future fortunes, and nearly ten years later, 19 years ago, when the queen was over 40 years old, she became pregnant and gave birth to three princes.
The child of the queen, who has no maternal relatives to support her, but is clearly her confidant.
It was anyone’s guess that the birth would not have been blessed.
Even the military talents and character that the three princes showed as they grew up were so outstanding that one might wonder if they were descendants of the founding kings.
Moreover, the subjects of comparison were the two older brothers who were hot-tempered and arrogant, and who took turns causing accidents as the year went by.
Naturally, rumors were bound to spread that the third prince was the real king.
Of course, the king also loved the 3rd prince, but the two dukes, who were the maternal relatives of the 12nd prince, did not leave the 3rd prince alone.
They used all kinds of excuses to prevent him from expanding his power.
The king tried to use his power to raise the status of the three princes, but even that had its limits.
If the king had lived long enough, it would have been unclear what would happen in the future, but this winter, the king died suddenly just before the third prince came of age, and a full-scale civil war broke out.
From the three princes’ point of view, the worst things happened one after another.
The 1st Prince was receiving the support of his maternal grandfather, Duke Juan Douglas, a 6th Circle magician.
The second prince was backed by the power of his maternal grandfather, Duke Waltermaim of Jordan, who was the kingdom’s largest nobleman and the youngest superman.
In the end, the three princes, who could not compete for power with any of them, were about to be purged first.
– This is the will of the late king. If you will spare the life of the 3rd prince, I will become the new king’s sword.
The declaration of the leader of the neutral nobles, coveted by both major factions, barely saved the lives of the three princes.
Of course, he is locked deep in the palace and cannot leave his room for the rest of his life.
And the 1st Prince and Duke Juan Douglas, who became king by eroding the country’s strength through civil war, purged all the nobles who opposed them and brought the country’s power down to the ground.
A tyranny that continued to ruin the country until the Imperial War broke out five years later.
Even during the Imperial War, the king used Ronian as he pleased, making it impossible for him to even protect his family, and eventually ran away, leaving Gran behind as his shield.
‘He will never become king.’
I could never have the history of my previous life repeat itself.
So it was necessary to somehow twist the existing flow.
‘The second prince is also no different from the first prince. If someone wants to become king, he or she must become the third prince.’
Of course, it was a difficult path, but it was something that had to be done.
1 We must quickly end the three-year war in which the two princes devastated the country.
There was a lot of work to be done to accomplish both.
Of course, I had thought about it, but
…
“yes?”
“No, thank you. Clear up Imporik as quickly as possible and come to Geomgongga. I’ll be staying there for a while.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll tell you what else to do after that.”
Leaving Philip behind with startled eyes, Logan led the group to the Sword Duke’s mansion.
* * *
“Identification has been verified. Let’s take you inside.”
Logan nodded at the knight’s words and walked after him.
The knights, including Henderson, were busy looking around the place after hearing that it was the mansion where the swordsman spent most of the year, but Logan did not necessarily blame him.
‘Any knight of Grandia deserves it.’
That’s what my past self did when he came to me with an imporic to try to form a relationship.
of course.
“Prince. If the duke’s maid and I get along well, wouldn’t it be helpful to the family too? If you ask that pretty maid over there to help me… Oh, it hurts! Son hand! It’s a joke, a joke!”
Rick, who was fascinated by other things, needed to be disciplined a bit.
Not long after I followed the driver, I saw someone walking across from me.
A man in his thirties with a gentle appearance that matches well with the knightly uniform he is wearing.
He received a salute from the preceding knight and then slightly bowed his head in front of the group.
“Are you Prince Logan? Please follow me. The Duke is waiting for you. The others can just follow Lord Erman.”
It was someone I hadn’t seen the last time I visited the mansion.
But even so, the moment I look at him closely, I feel that strange feeling that definitely feels familiar.
“ah…!”
Logan let out an exclamation without realizing it.
“Why are you doing that? Am I being rude?”
“Oh no. You look a lot like someone I know… Maybe your name is…” “
Oh no! You forgot to introduce me. Louis Highon. I am Duke Felix’s lieutenant. Please forgive my rudeness.”
“As expected…”
“Yes?”
“No. Please guide me.”
“then.”
Logan looked at his back with an emotional expression as he turned around with a soft smile.
The Louis Hyon that Logan remembers had a firm and solid impression, unlike his present limited impression.
When I think of this hero, the first thing that comes to mind are the two long sword marks crisscrossing his face.
‘Captain Lewis. He didn’t say anything, but he said he was from here.’
Logan’s thoughts transcended a distant time and unfolded in his mind as a memory.
– What would a knight who could not protect his lord say about his origins? I simply dedicate the rest of my life to the independence of Grandia. Aren’t you like that too?
Logan couldn’t bear to say no at the time.
The leader of the Grandia Liberation Front, who had ideals unlike his own, which was fueled by revenge.
And the circumstances of the day I last saw him came back to me as vividly as if it were yesterday.
– Please. Currently, you are the only person who is knowledgeable about ancient languages. Make sure to memorize it. Even if you have to burn the book, you must keep the contents in your head and pass them on to someone with talent. In case even that doesn’t work….
the other one he handed over at that time along with the new sword vision…
‘Hmm? Another item?’
Jjiiing.
“Ugh!”
“Hmm? Confucius! Why are you doing this?”
Lewis, who was walking a little ahead, supported Logan with a surprised look.
Soon, the same person’s body temperature and voice covered old memories, and the memories that were trying to come to mind disappeared in an instant.
“Ah…”
“Are you okay?”
It seemed like it was an important memory, but as the headache disappeared, the memory was erased like a blank page.
“Ah, thank you. Lieutenant Lewis. I guess it’s because I had a hard time sleeping.”
“…You need to take better care of your body when you are young. Even if it seems fine right away, it all comes back with aftereffects as you get older. Take good care of your body.”
The distant future or should I say the past.
This was something he often said even during that time in his past life when it was unclear what to say.
I see that Louis, who is much younger than he was then, says the same thing, so I guess that was his speaking habit.
When I heard those words, my dazed mind seemed to come back.
‘Whatever memories you have, they are now things of the past. Just don’t let it happen in this life and that’s it.’
There is no reason to be regretful or to think about it.
With a light sigh, Logan shook off his regrets and followed Lewis again.
Without even noticing the strangely pulsating response of the force core.
“I’ll see you later then.”
“yes.”
Before I could finish greeting Lewis, a loud voice came from inside the door.
“What are you doing by not coming in!”
Eat.
Logan barely managed to stop himself from laughing and opened the door to the swordsmith’s office.
Sigh.
As soon as I opened the door, what I saw was a middle-aged blond man with a bright smile and a pregnant lady standing next to him.
The couple’s expressions looked so bright. In particular, the 70-year-old man, who only looked middle-aged, seemed more energetic than when I had seen him before.
“It’s been a while since I saw you. I’m glad you’re healthy.”
He bowed his head politely, but it was his wife, not the swordsman, who responded first.
“You are that Prince Logan. I’ve heard a lot about you from my husband. My husband and I are indebted to you.”
The duchess, who had a round and gentle appearance, had a slight blush on her face as she said those words.
I know she’s almost 40, but she still looks like a girl when she’s shy.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am. You are as beautiful as I heard. Now I understand why you were so proud of me.”
“Oh my? Is this you?”
When I looked at my husband with an expression of disbelief, he screamed with a slightly red face.
“As soon as I saw this guy, he started talking nonsense! Don’t flatter him. He’s a heartless guy who wouldn’t have come if I hadn’t acted like that.”
“Oh, no. Still, he would have come. Just not now.”
When the wife was taken aback by the sight of the priest glaring at each other for a moment, the two burst into laughter at the same time.
“Hahaha. So, what did Roger look like?”
“You should have seen it for yourself. It was the best. Kkekeke.”
This is at best our second time meeting in person.
The decision to become teacher and disciple was a one-sided relationship created through magical communication, but the imprint they left on each other’s lives was so great that they felt a deep affection regardless of the period of time.
“Anyway, congratulations on having an heir once again. Ah, the gender of the child is yet to be determined…” ”
That…”
“It doesn’t matter. What if it’s a boy? What if it’s a girl? Thank you for healing our couple’s resentment. It’s a child. I will raise you with respect.”
The swordsman only smiled happily as he comforted his wife’s hand. It was
a difficult story for a noble of the Kingdom of Grandia to say in this era where there is a strong preference for boys.
However, the warm expression on the swordsman’s face was filled with sincerity. The Duchess’ face also looked happy.
‘It’s a good thing.’
It still gave me a strange feeling that something I did simply for my own purposes brought about such unexpectedly good results.
‘Well, is everything ultimately the same?’
His goal is to save his family and preserve his family name.
Just by achieving that, the people of this country will have a higher chance of being happier than in their previous life when they were sold as slaves and wandering as refugees. A
new perspective. That small realization will inevitably put a smile on your face. I made it.
The happy appearance of the swordsmith and his wife seemed to convey hope to Logan that he was doing well now and that he could do well in the future.
“As expected, you have different thoughts. “You’re awesome, Master.”
“Uh-huh. Even if I tell you not to flatter me. This guy’s level is rising day by day, but the attitude he should have as a knight is gradually disappearing. If you want to reach a higher level, try to adapt your daily actions and habits accordingly. Be a little more sparing with your words.”
That hopeful feeling was immediately followed by the swordman’s advice, which made my heart ache.
“In that sense, there is something I would like to ask Confucius for.”
“Yes? “Oh, please tell me anything, ma’am.”
“This baby will be born soon. Can Confucius name this child?”
“…Yes?!”
Logan’s eyes widened at the unexpected words.
“This is something my wife and I have been discussing. Since everything is thanks to you, I hope you will also open the fate of this child who will be born. How do you feel? Surely you won’t refuse?”
In Grandia’s culture, it is said that giving a name opens one’s destiny.
The people of the kingdom believed that the power of a name would create and reveal the path of a child’s future destiny.
That’s how important it is to give a name . The nobles thought so, so they arranged for a famous person to give the child a name as soon as it was born, and even prepared a party called a name ceremony.
But would they entrust such an important matter to themselves?
Even though the child was born thanks to Logan(?), in reality, the child was born thanks to Logan(?). It was no different from a gift of sorts.
A gift that would elevate Logan’s status in the social world.
Although it was burdensome, there was no reason to refuse.
“Of course.”
Logan’s complexion was tense. A smile of relief appeared on the faces of the couple who had been expecting them to see it. .
“okay. thanks. You should go back and rest now. “I said I didn’t have to come out.”
“Still, I’m polite. When you ask for a favor…”
“The favor is ultimately repaid… After all, I’m not very good at speaking. Let’s just talk with our bodies.”
“Yes?”
“It’s amazing how your skills have improved so much in such a short period of time. Let’s start with your skills.”
Logan also smiled and answered at the sudden display of fighting spirit in the swordsman.
“Yes! ”
