My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage Chapter 79
Translated by d6y (ko-fi)
Chapter 79
Judging by Lady Artberry’s thoughts, it seems like Lord Carberry has been informed of the Knights' special drill, but he doesn't want to go. So he's ignoring the summons and instead sleeping at home?
What in the world goes on inside his head for him to sleep around because he can't be bothered to gather at the knighthood?
How did someone like that get into the Imperial Knights….
It's the new mystery of the century.
Did Count Vrans bribe the Imperial Knights or something? Even I wouldn't want him in my order for a fortune. I would give back several times that amount of money and say, "I don't want your son, so please go away," and kick him out.
There must be a law that says nobles have to send at least one of their children to the Imperial Knights, otherwise, how could someone so lazy and derelict in his duties be allowed to remain in the Imperial Knights?
Inwardly, I offer my condolences to the head of the Imperial Knights for having to deal with such a bombshell, and check the clock on the parlour wall.
It's almost time to go to the palace to meet the Crown Prince.
"Lancer." As Lancer sits next to me while quietly sipping tea, I nudge him with my elbow.
He sets down his teacup and turns his head toward me.
"I must now go and see His Highness."
"I see." He nods in immediate compliance. He doesn't bother me anymore with words like he used to anymore.
It's reassuring to see him maturing.
"You can handle yourself, right?"
When I ask him in a small voice, he smirks and whispers to me.
"Don't treat me like a child."
As soon as I hear that, I remember the words I once shared with Lancer.
“Don't treat me like a child.”
“Then don't act like a child.”
That was my response to him, who clung to me like a child to a herd.
Hearing it again and looking at the more reserved version of him now, makes me feel strange.
He's grinning up at me, and it's the most relaxed I've seen him in a while.
A ray of sunlight streams through the window, illuminating his silky blonde hair. The blue eyes beneath it are soothing to stare into.
"... Right, I can't treat you like a child anymore," I smirk and slowly rise from my seat. "I apologise for not being able to spend more time with you, Lady Artberry. His Highness the Crown Prince has summoned me."
"Oh, no, it's all right! It was an honour to see you, even if only for a moment."
"I'm glad to hear that. I'll leave you to enjoy some time with Lancer."
With that, I leave the Soli Duchy. I climb into the carriage heading for the Imperial Palace.
He'll take care of himself.
I'm nervous about leaving Lancer on his own, but he has behaved well back there, so surely he will be fine.
"I'm sure Lancer will be fine on his own, too, right?" I ask Phoebe, who's sitting across from me.
She nods. "I'm sure Lord Lancer will be fine."
‘How old is Lancer turning again this year? Yet he can't even handle anything on his own. He's less than a grain of bread. Phew, thank goodness he's the only one going through a hard time.’
"...." Hearing her thoughts, I lower my gaze.
It's my fault for asking.
* * *
"So, Lord Lancer is alone with Lady Artberry now?"
"Yes."
"Well. That's a shame, as I'm sure Hubert was looking forward to it, but I'm glad Lancer could cover for him."
‘It went according to plan. The Imperial Knights did a good job this morning.’
The Crown Prince walks away at a leisurely pace. I cast a sly glance after him.
So it was Ryan's idea after all.
I've always thought it's suspicious that they're having an unscheduled special drill on a weekend morning, but as it turns out, someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes.
"What's going on? You've been staring at me since earlier."
"Oh, nothing, the sun is too bright."
"Maybe you should turn the brim of your hat down a little further."
Taking my haphazard excuses seriously, he stops in his tracks and grabs my hat. He bends down until we are at eye level and adjusts the brim himself.
"Are you feeling better now?"
"I am...."
I can smell his cologne on the nape of his neck.
His gaze on my hat soon drifts slowly downward, meeting my eyes. He grins, his eyes shining. "Good."
I stiffen slightly without knowing at the sudden proximity.
I want to say thank you, but the words aren't coming out so easily.
"I should have given you a hat with a wider brim."
Releasing his grasp from my hat, the Crown Prince holds out his hand to me. "The truth is, I don't know much about women's hats, so I asked a maid, and she said this is the fashion these days."
"No. I should have made arrangements on my end, my mistake."
After a moment's hesitation, I take his hand in mine. We're about to announce our engagement, so it wouldn't be bad to not turn this down.
"No, Kayla. You don't have to apologise. I didn't tell you we were going for a walk by the lake beforehand, so how could you have known?"
We walked around a man-made lake inside the palace. If you ask me how we come to be out on the lake, I suggest you ask the Crown Prince.
As I had done in the past, I arrived at his office to give him a report on Lancer.
When he saw me, he offered me a hat instead of a seat. I expected to be seated and chatting over tea as before, but I was a little taken aback when that wasn't the case.
"It's a beautiful day," he said as I stood there accepting the hat. "Winter will come after my sister's birthday, and I wanted to show you the lake before it freezes.”
The lake in the palace was a gift from the last emperor to his empress, who ruled over a hundred years ago. At that time, the Empire was not on good terms with the Hernia Kingdom, and as a result, they were unable to obtain wizards from there to help build the lake, so they had their workers fill it with water from a river close to the capital. The lake was magnificent for an artificial one.
It had been a long twenty minutes since the Crown Prince and I had walked around the lake, but we were only halfway across.
"Isn't this a beautiful lake?"
I nod in response to his question. "More beautiful than the lakes outside the palace."
How much tax and manpower must have been wasted to make this?
No matter how beautiful the Empress is, I can't believe they thought of digging up the land in the middle of the palace to make a lake.
If my parents had been the Emperor and Empress, they would have done much more than this.
Thank goodness they were only dukes.
If their reality were as the Emperor and Empress, the imperial treasury would have to be in the dumps and declare bankruptcy long ago.
Whether or not he knows how I feel, the Crown Prince continues. "Kayla, there is one thing I would like to ask you."
"Ask away."
"What would you do if one of your servants was unenthusiastic, negligent in their work, and disobedient to their superiors?"
"I would fire them immediately," I state without missing a beat.
If there is such a person in the Kaerun Duchy, I will drive him out at once, even if I have to visit him personally and pack his belongings for him.
After hearing my answer, the Crown Prince seems to find my knife-like reaction quite interesting.
"You're going to fire them immediately? But other servants are watching this situation."
"That's all the more reason to fire them." I cut him off. "If they see someone who's not doing their job, and they're getting paid to do their job, they're going to be furious, and they're going to be less efficient."
"You have a point." He nods. I can feel the warmth of his hand in mine. "But what if the servant comes from a good family? What if I'm worried about the consequences that will follow after I fire them?"
I'm tempted to ask, "If they're from a good family, why are they a servant in the first place?" but I don't say anything.
I realise what the Crown Prince is hinting about. "You mean, what do you think I would do with Lord Carberry?"
"Yes. Kayla, you are as perceptive as ever."
The Crown Prince lets out a shallow sigh and turns his head toward the other side of the lake. His brows are furrowed slightly, whether from the sun or worry.
Lord Carberry, brother of Lady Artberry.
Though I've never met him in person, I can tell from the rumours that are circulating what an insincere knight he is.
I can't imagine a member of the Imperial Knights taking a nap because he doesn't want to go to an urgent, special drill ordered by the Crown Prince—though I'm still not sure what the point of that drill is.
It doesn't make sense that a knight who is supposed to protect the Emperor's life in times of danger would take extra care of his own comfort on a weekend.
I'm someone who believes that for an organisation to be strong, its pillars must be good as a foundation.
Therefore, while I bear him no ill will, I feel that he should be removed from the Imperial Knights, even if it means incurring the wrath of Count Vrans.
"Wouldn't it be a good idea if you used your authority as the Crown Prince to expel Lord Carberry?"
At my suggestion, he lets out a laugh and shakes his head. "Of course, I would like to do that, but it's not so easy."
"Why?"
"There was a time when the First Emperor received great help from the Counts of Vrans, and in return, he promised a place in the Imperial Knights to a member of the Vrans family."
He then went on to tell a more detailed story.
It goes a little something like this:
The Emperor's offer of a knighthood to a member of the Count Vrans was not simply a return of favour.
At the time, the second son of Count Vrans was said to be skilled in swordsmanship and capable of command and leadership.
The Emperor had taken a liking to him and had promised him a place in the Imperial Knights.
However, Count Vrans's eldest son was unexpectedly killed in a horseback riding accident.
Unable to send his eldest son to become a knight, Count Vrans asked the Emperor to postpone the promise, and the Emperor had no choice but to agree.
And so the years passed.
A generation later, Count Vrans asked the current Emperor, Ryan's father, for a place in the Imperial Knights, and they gave him their second son, Carberry.
When I hear the crown prince's story up to this point, I can't help but groan inwardly.
What the hell, Carberry got in just because of that?
