Chapter 30: Fourth Episode: Chapter 3 (2/2)

”Your Majesty, I’m glad you’re in good health and mood. I’ve completed your father’s order, look at you, what a great ruler!”

Even though Alfa III was grinning from ear to ear, his heart was in dilemma. As the moment happened, he started being suspicious again. Was it really a coincidence that the Secretary of State had fallen as Duke Kachev appeared? Of course, this is not the time to talk about the issue, especially not in front of this cunning old man. Some other things then! His Imperial mistress, Erdogan, is she spying on him?

The Emperor didn’t want to probe the issue any further, his wariness of the old Duke wasn’t formed in a day or two. He believed the nobilities in the capital city was still in his control. As long as the military, the judiciary system, and the secret service was still under his control, there wouldn’t be anyone in this world who could threaten his Imperialty.

Both of them sat, Erdogan prepared some tea for her father and her lover before leaving the hall. Alfa III observed as the Lady left, she who pleased him for a few times. As the door closed, the Emperor of Titan Empire, Osli Alfa Morisette calmed himself down. After so many years, the Emperor today may still stand a chance against old Kachev.

***************

The Prince’s carriage entered the gates of 31 Penelope Street, the knights greeting him as they passed. Three servants came out and unloaded the carriage. They would be carrying the carriage into the store room as Wokazad herded the Raytheon stallions into the stable.

The first person Oscar saw after alighting was Baron Erbe, the Liar Extraordinaire had an expression that reminded Oscar of every single time he had won over another woman’s heart.

”Your Imperial Highness, did it go smoothly?”

”Yes Erbe, very smoothly. How’s the mansion?”

”Haha, even though you’ve only been out for the afternoon, the house had already changed somewhat. You know, we’re going to be journeying soon, so Lady Duchess Celia and Countess Antonia had already started on the packing with the servants.”

Oscar pulled a face. Packing! The teenager could still remember the scene at Damorga as clear as day.

”One more thing, Your Imperial Highness, the Major General from House Hewitt had returned. Lady Duchess and Young Lady were conversing with him in the living room. I heard a little from the outside, there was nothing of matter, I think they were waiting for your company.”

Oscar hesitated a little, he really shouldn’t take House Hewitt lightly, the incident in the morning was an exception, but if he would visit twice in a day, he should receive him as per the etiquette.

”Notify them, tell them I will not be so soon, my man Vick was still in his sickbed, I am of more concern with a true friend.”

Baron Erbe bowed at the young Prince, ”Of course, you’d never let your friends down.”

Captain Vick had been released and was arranged to be placed in the small mansion behind the Andrew Mansion garden. His room was right next to the young Prince’s.

Oscar’s only miscalculation happened on the captain. At the end of the day, it was the State of Secretary’s fault. Marquis Roment Huga Andeses felt so satisfied working together with the Prince, he released this main suspect of the Damorga incident the day after the raid. Not only that, the Minister of Justice destroyed all evidence against the captain. When Vick was carried out of the jail at the Ministry of Justice, he was still the innocent, careful captain of the guards with a bright future. Aside from the injuries, he didn’t suffer much in this incident.

”Vick! Haha, how are you feeling?” Oscar sat at the side of the captain’s bed right after entering the room. He greeted his friend who was as sick as a dog.

”Thank you, my friend. Oh right, it should be Your Imperial Highness now, I haven’t been able to congratulate you due to, you know, the trial.”

Oscar felt incredibly comfortable when he’s around the captain, he wasn’t sure why it is so. ”Vick, I thought I had discovered all your virtues, but I didn’t expect you to have such good sense of humor!”

Vick raised his arm wrapped in bandage. This lone hero smiled in wryness. His humor wasn’t able to help him feel any better, he knew his family would have been worried sick.

Oscar was observant, even though he didn’t have a family yet, he understood Vick’s concerns.

”Hey! I think you should try and get better soon, I need a Confidential Secretary here.”

”Oh? I don’t mind, Mr. Percy said my injuries should not impede me from working, but my family is still at Damorga city, I’m not so sure if my wife would be agreeable at my working here.”

”Goodness! Don’t tell me you wanted go back to that hell hole? Do you want to stay in that nightmare cursed by God of Light himself?”

”Of course not, but you know, this is the capital, and I…”

”No ‘buts’! Your family… oh, forgive my capriciousness, I already sent for your wife and the kids in your name. They’re still on their way here to Dulin, I think, but I have no doubt she’d convince you to stay here and work once she sees your new home.”

”Oh… Well then, what more can I say? Please give me my first task!” Vick finally grinned in sincerity. He knew his actions had earned its payback, and just as he understood, this teen Prince is fairer than a saint, he didn’t even have to thank the Prince, because he deserved all these.

”My friend, now, all you need to do is to get better, your sickly condition is not suited to become my Confidential Secretary.”

Upon hearing that, Vick got excited again. He knew how important a role such as a Confidential Secretary is. ”Yes sir! B-but… maybe…”

”You think your rank is too low? To be honest, don’t worry. Do you know who I’m going to meet in a little bit? Hoho, he’s the grandson of the Military Affairs Chancellor, Marshal Alan. Tell me, do you need to be a Major, or should it be Lieutenant Colonel? Hmm, a Colonel may be a little harder, but it shouldn’t be too much of a difficulty.” Oscar was like a peddler, trying to convince the children to buy sweets from him.

Vick didn’t know how to answer, he dropped his jaw wordlessly.

Oscar waited for a little, he thought Vick was too shy to request for a rank! ”Oh whatever! I’ll decide for you, you’re now a Colonel! I am Prince O’Neil of the Titan Empire, I need at least a high-rank officer to be my Confidential Secretary!”

Seeing as the young Prince left the room, Vick finally managed to close his gaping mouth, he doubted the reality of it all, he only really got released from jail a few days ago. Vick stared as delicately prepared dinner was placed in front of his bed by the pretty servants. He prayed. The God of Light had bestowed him with far too much on this day.

***************

”The gifts of the God of Light are fair.” Alfa III said to Kachev, unannounced.

Old Kachev sat a little straighter. He knew His Majesty was no longer the Emperor who chased after fashion and pretty girls.

”Yes Your Majesty, only the God of Light could achieved complete fairness. It is a trait only Gods could possess.” The old man pushed the remaining chess pieces aside.

”I may still have a chance to win.” The Emperor looked at the Duke, confused.

”Hoho, Your Majesty, if I recall correctly, that was what you used to do.” The old Duke smirked.

”Oh! Right! If it were me in the past, with chess like that, I would have pushed it aside and walked away.”

”Yes, playing chess with you used to be such a chore.”

”Oh my teacher, are you mocking me?” Alfa III laughed, the old man and him still had some happy memories together.

”No, Your Majesty, haven’t you realize where the fun is in chess?”

Alfa III gave it a thought, ”If it’s the chess, I’d say it’s the tactical rivalry between the offense and the defense. What do you think?”

”Incorrect. I’ve played chess for a whole half of my life. Rivalry? Do you think an old man would be interested in the rivalry and the pursuit of victory?”

”What is it then?”

”It’s that the game could go on forever, and you would never know how it would turn out the next game.

”The victory doesn’t matter?” Alfa III stared into old Kachev’s eyes, voicing his question.

”There’s only one way to play, as the Emperor of Titan, how would you have played it? For example, if you’d overturned the chessboard as you used to, and claimed that it’s a way to play, would anyone have objected to it?”

Alfa III was utterly confused. ”What are you trying to say?”

”I was trying to tell you, you can change your way of playing the game, use another method to bring about your victory.”

A fat old cat ran across the window sill, not before staring at the Emperor, who glared back. The old cat leapt away, and the Emperor turned his attention back to the chessboard.

”You can win with a lot of ways, but I don’t wish to attain victory with bloodshed. As you know, what the Empire needs is not invasion or expansion, nor is it an earthshaking exodus. I have already lost my Secretary of State, I don’t know what went wrong, but I think this is already enough.”

Old Kachev laughed. He knew his action right now seemed insolent to His Majesty, however he couldn’t control his urge, His Majesty’s words were exactly as he thought.

”Your Majesty, I have to say, what you said is incorrect. The taxation of the Empire had not changed for almost a century, the imperial army had not had a drill after my retirement, and the bureaucrats… Your Majesty, have you not realized all of them were old faces aside from the imprisoned old Robs?”

The Emperor retreated into his own mind. He thought something seemed wrong, but he couldn’t identify where.

”Your Majesty, I’m an old man who’s about to expire. My presence here in Dulin, aside from seeing a doctor, roots in my wish for this meeting to happen. I wanted to tell you, stability is indeed the foundation for an empire’s lasting harmony. However, this stability you’re observing is a false impression based on your willful ignorance of the truth.”

”Take the imperial tax for example. Your Majesty, if Marquis Godzilla was here, I’m positive he’ll be able to give you a sufficient explanation that I can’t, however, I can tell you the Empire is only a step away from bankruptcy. Wealth was congregated in the hands of a few people and not in the Empire. Due to the rigidity of business activity, the Ti had been lost to other nations. Can you imagine if Faran, Italia, West Percy, and Hoilland decided to launch an economic war against us, what would happen to us?”

The Titan Emperor was very creative when it comes to spending, but he couldn’t conceptualize the things old Kachev had mentioned, like ‘economic war’, the Emperor had never heard the word before.

Old Kachev wasn’t expecting the Emperor to have an answer, he continued.

”The army, Your Majesty, our army, look at your guards. I don’t doubt they were all skilled as Paladins, but have you seen their moves in all the years you’re in your throne? Forgive me, my analogy involves you, but you need to to understand, the military power of the Empire has the same issue like your guards. An abundance of peace will cause their practice to plateau, their vigilance to lax. Forgive me again for bringing you into my example, but let’s visualize an assassination that had been brewing for a long time, would you trust the guards by your side to protect you with their pretty clothes and unsharpened sword? Similarly, this is the situation with the Empire. I still tremble recalling the allied forces of the five nations after the Munich Invasion, so will we be able to withstand that at our current state?”

The Emperor fell silent. He knew, even now, the five nations were still not friendly to Titan.

”Your Majesty, I’m not trying to exaggerate things, no one is more knowledgeable about our military than Marshal Alan, you can ask him to verify this. Finally, sire, I sincerely hope you could thoroughly investigate Duke Brickfield and the case he was charged for. If Count Rudolf Hoss of Secret Service tried harder, he’d find all sort of things your former Secretary of State had done in the dozen years he had controlled the State Council! With that out on the table, compared to the Brickfield’s, Your Majesty, some of the nobles, and even some larger families had already controlled a ministry for generations, don’t you think they have even more capability to do such a thing?”

Alfa III really wished there was something he could do at that very moment! But he knew, in front of this old man, he would never really be successful, it was because of that that he abandoned him without hesitation in years before this. Now, the feeling of uselessness came crashing back after years of being kept at bay.

Titan’s Emperor, Osli Alfa Morisette flashed back to the past, when his then-Secretary-of-State reprimanded him like no one was around. It reminded him of O’Neil Andrew Morisette, that little guy made his enemy swallow his own flesh, the Emperor released his neck from the suffocating collar.

”Then… according to your opinion, the Empire… this Empire… what should we do?” Alfa III forced these words out with difficulty. He was terrified at old Kachev’s narration, but as the ruler of Titan Empire, he had to say it. This was not the hardest part, however. What he couldn’t bear was that he would never be rid of this old man whom he wanted several pierce wounds on once he uttered the words.

Duke Kachev Drakas Ferdinand straightened his waist. To him, the conversation had only began.

”Your Majesty, are you familiar with the cabinet system of Engels Kingdom to the west?”

Alfa III’s eyebrows twitched. This old man was really hoping he would change up the gameplay!