~Chapter 9~
“Your Highness, today you must study Imperial Statecraft, Ancient Languages, and Military Science.”
Crown Prince Michael, destined to inherit the throne, was subjected to high-intensity education from a young age because…
“Make him fit to be a person quickly.”
…of the Emperor’s directive to complete the Prince into a proper Crown Prince candidate as soon as possible.
Prince Michael began his formal Crown Prince education unusually early, studying subjects most royalty would only start learning in their adolescence.
“Ohh, Your Majesty! Crown Prince Michael is undoubtedly a genius.”
“Is that so?”
The problem was that Prince Michael, with his extraordinary talent, absorbed this age-inappropriate level of education entirely as his own. And from a general perspective, that was the beginning of misfortune.
“Then we can move the schedule up earlier.”
“Pardon? But, Your Majesty… His Highness the Prince is already taking on many lessons…”
“You’re noisy. Who was it that just said the Prince is outstanding? Did you dare lie to me?”
“N-no, that’s not it… How could I dare give a false report to Your Majesty?”
“Then there should be no problem. Or is that not the case?”
“…Yes, Your Majesty.”
Emperor Dietrich was a figure who contributed greatly to the creation of Michael’s bleak childhood, and his order to accelerate the Prince’s already early education even faster was the first of such acts.
The Prince’s education supervisor was troubled. The Prince was already spending most of his time receiving an education comparable to that of an adult.
Long gone were opportunities for sufficient sleep or playtime for emotional cultivation, squeezed out without room to spare.
*’It’s a harsh schedule even for a full-grown adult, and to make it faster…’*
His conscience as an educator brought a moment of hesitation, but the Emperor’s command was absolute.
In the end, the education supervisor changed the schedule according to Emperor Dietrich’s words.
“Your Highness. This morning, you have Geometry and Geography lessons. After that, in the late morning, you have a scheduled discussion time with the invited philosopher. From the afternoon, you have Law, Military Science, and Astronomy education. The Military Science time includes a schedule to go outside briefly for cavalry tactics.”
From early dawn lessons to assignments continuing into the dead of night. It was not a schedule a still-developing young body could withstand.
The ruthlessly packed timetable whipped Prince Michael without a moment’s rest.
Due to extremely little sleep, Prince Michael came to accept chronic fatigue as normal. It was fortunate he was born with a robust constitution; if he hadn’t been innately blessed with exceptional stamina, he would have collapsed a hundred times over by now.
*’Still, he’s following along without any problems.’*
At first, concerned people gradually lost interest as the Prince flawlessly carried out the set schedule.
But they didn’t know.
While digesting the excessive academic load, the Prince had missed the most crucial period for learning human emotions.
Prince Michael came to view all humans without emotion, exactly as he had studied in Imperial Statecraft.
For a set objective, he did not discriminate in his methods. His thoroughly efficiency-based way of thinking did not comprehend human compassion or morality.
But because he successfully achieved all the tasks given to him, people did not notice the Prince’s deficiency.
“Your Highness, the answer to this problem is…”
And by the time his long-time tutor vaguely sensed something was wrong…
“Why did you choose such a method?”
“Isn’t the answer to block the information?”
“That is correct. But there is only one spy. Why did you write to annihilate an entire village?”
“That is the most efficient method. There is a clue that rapid information warfare is crucial in this situation.”
“That is so. But, consider if it were a real situation. If real human lives were at stake, what would you have done…?”
“…?”
It was already far too late.
“What’s the difference?”
In the end, Crown Prince Michael grew into the seed of a merciless, cold-blooded ruler.
* * *
“Pardon?”
“Did I not say? Now that you have also completed the Crown Prince’s studies, it is time for you to assist in my state affairs.”
Michael found that not the least bit welcome.
Normally, entrusting actual state affairs to the Crown Prince was no different from a token of the Emperor’s trust and recognition. Therefore, permission to participate in the Emperor’s affairs should have been an honor.
But Michael knew well what the Emperor’s words meant.
“Fortunately, there is a matter that has come up from a local fiefdom as this session’s agenda. Take charge of this matter and resolve it well.”
It was the Emperor, reluctant to leave the capital where his lover resided, dumping all external affairs onto his young son.
“Seeing the results of how you handled the last agenda, it seems the Prince can sufficiently handle this level now. Isn’t that so?”
And the Emperor began to increasingly pass on all the tasks he found bothersome to the Prince.
The Emperor did not want to spend much time on state affairs. Claiming that early experience would be good for the Crown Prince, he used Michael as a proxy to perform his own duties.
That day, too, he had called the Prince to pass on such trivial plans.
Summoned to the Emperor and his consort’s teatime, Michael was blankly staring down at his teacup without any particular expression.
“I hear you’re already doing a lot of work assisting Dietrich these days? You’re amazing for such a young age.”
In this boring time, the only one who spoke to him was the Emperor’s lover, Anat. The Emperor had no particular interest in the Prince as an individual.
Unable to ignore his father’s lover’s words in front of the watching Emperor, Michael answered briefly.
“It’s nothing.”
“So humble. Ah, in that regard, you don’t take after Dietrich.”
Anat, as if trying to be considerate to her lover’s child in her own way, would act overly kindly during these times. But Michael did not find her attitude particularly welcome either.
“You really look exactly like Dietrich when he was young.”
Because when she looked at Michael, her gaze was always superimposing something else over him, not seeing him.
When her gaze scanned his face, as if overlaying a familiar face, the Prince rarely felt a distinct sense of displeasure.
“Who is that?”
“Dietrich.”
“Anat, you must not let your eyes wander to other men. You promised to look only at me, didn’t you?”
“Oh, honestly. Another man… He’s your son.”
Especially when his father regarded him as if he were some man eyeing his lover, Michael felt like spitting out his tea.
Although his own father’s gaze toward him was never normal, at times like these, his father’s appearance was even more disgusting.
“By the way, Anat. I’ve decided to free the beastkin slaves as you wished.”
“Oh my, really? Thank goodness. After seeing that play last time, I felt so sorry for them.”
“Of course. Is there anything I wouldn’t do for what my angel wants?”
And this was precisely the reason the Emperor had called for him.
“Therefore, Prince, immediately investigate the situation of the beastkin slaves and come up with a plan.”
* * *
*’The animals in the cage are pitiful, so let’s free them.’*
*’The beastkin slave from the play is pitiful, so let’s free them.’*
Unlike a simple spoken wish, how much time must be spent to implement such a thing.
Moreover, there isn’t even a proper justification that this task *must* be accomplished. They show no concern whatsoever for the consequences that would arise from it.
Although it wasn’t the first time he had been mobilized like this for the whims of the Emperor’s woman, seeing right before his eyes just how meaningless the process of being assigned this task was, Prince Michael felt a faint irritation rise.
*’Such a useless task…’*
For him, who usually had almost no emotional fluctuation, it was a considerable displeasure.
Due to the suddenly thrown topic of abolishing beastkin slavery, he had come out to investigate the current situation to implement gradual changes so the sudden systemic shift wouldn’t cause a major shock to the empire’s economy and environment.
He hadn’t anticipated that, while visiting a shop to verify firsthand the realities that might be missed in reports, he would encounter a peculiar white-haired girl.
* * *
The girl gave off a unique atmosphere somehow.
She was different from the other slaves who tensed up at the appearance of the high-status person who entered with the caravan master. It wasn’t just because of her rare hair color.
While everyone else cowered with fearful eyes, she was looking straight at him.
*’…?’*
Michael felt strange. As if she had been waiting for him, a sort of welcome seemed to pass through the girl’s round eyes. Even though that was impossible since they were seeing each other for the first time.
*’…Was she waiting for someone?’*
Perhaps she had been waiting for someone who resembled him. Maybe a childhood friend left behind in her hometown. The act of superimposing another person onto him had become quite familiar, thanks to the damn Emperor’s teatime.
“……”
Somehow, just the assumption that the girl was looking for someone else in him made his mood sour. Perhaps the previous teatime at the Imperial Palace had spoiled his mood more than he thought.
Crown Prince Michael spoke in an uncharacteristically sulky voice.
