[Translator – Angel Dust]
[Proofreader – Prototype]
Chapter 176
Scratch Scratch—
Late at night, the office was still lit.
Inside, Shulifen was busy moving his pen.
“…”
There was so much to do. As the heir to the Marquisate and as a key member of the Pension Foundation.
He had so many responsibilities in various areas that he often had to sacrifice sleep and meals.
With a sigh, he put down his pen and leaned back in his chair.
Staring blankly at the flickering mana lamp, he muttered to himself without realizing it.
“I miss it…”
Yes, he missed it. The academy. Those moments when he was a student there.
He missed it madly, terribly. To put it bluntly, he missed it damn badly.
As soon as he graduated, Shulifen immediately started working as the Heir to the Marquisate of Adria.
He would succeed the Rosenberg family, either next year or two years later at the latest.
He would follow in his father’s footsteps and become the Marquis of Adria. He would become one of the pillars of the Empire.
Therefore, he had to maximize his capabilities as a lord before then.
He had been preparing for it, but after graduating from the academy, the intensity of his work more than doubled.
Documents poured in every day, and Shulifen was constantly tempered in the fires of real-world experience.
He steeled his resolve. It was something he had to do, a duty placed upon him.
It couldn’t be enjoyable. It was a duty, a job, and at the same time, an ordeal.
His father, too, would groan and clutch his head whenever a mountain of documents piled up.
He had to do it. He must accomplish it. It’s not just him who’s struggling, everyone is.
His father. His grandfather. His friends, too. Isn’t it a duty they all must bear?
‘…But this is a bit much…! It’s too hard. It’s too boring! And most importantly, I can’t even relieve this stress!! If this were the academy, I would have endured it, no matter how difficult or tiring the assignments, exams, or anything else.’
When things got tough, he could talk to his friends, joke around, and then go back to focusing on his work.
Because that cycle repeated itself, he could endure it. He could always withstand it.
But now, He’s no longer an academy student. He’s a graduate who has left that place.
‘I can’t go back. I can visit the academy again, but I can’t turn back time.’
“…”
Shulifen suddenly felt melancholic as he remembered this fact.
It had only been a few months, but it already felt like years had passed.
He suddenly felt a large hole in his chest, a vast emptiness filling him.
He tried to dismiss it as a fleeting emotion, a sentimental feeling that comes with the dawn.
So, Shulifen decided to call it a night and went to bed.
* * *
“…But it doesn’t get any better.”
[ …. ]
The next day, Shulifen contacted Wilhelm, the heir to the Fritz family of the Gramstad Marquisate and his friend, through the magic communication device to pour out his woes.
Knowing Wilhelm’s personality, he would probably retort, ‘Stop whining and just admit you’re calling because you don’t want to work.’
Even during their student days, they had countless bickering and arguments over such things.
Shulifen regretted bringing it up. But he felt that venting like this would help him feel better.
[ Sigh. ]
Wilhelm let out a sigh. Shulifen gave a wry smile.
Here it comes, he thought.
‘He’s about to bombard me with how I’m being useless. And I’ll just grumble back, saying, ‘What are friends for? Just listen to me!—’’
[ I feel the same. ]
“Wait, what? What are friends for… Hold on, Wilhelm. What did you just say?”
[ I said I feel the same way as you, Shulifen. ]
“…”
[ As I work until dawn, I remember. It’s only been a few months, but the past already feels hazy, like it happened years ago. Back then, I felt like I could do anything, overcome any obstacle. But in just a few months, I’ve become someone who just reminisces about those memories. ]
Anyone listening would think they were old men who had tasted all the bitterness of life.
In reality, it was a conversation between young men barely in their mid-twenties.
“I never imagined you’d feel that way too.”
[ Damn it, I didn’t expect to feel like this either. But when did it start? About two days ago? I suddenly started thinking, what am I doing with my life?]
“You, We… We’re fulfilling our duties.”
[ Yes, that’s right. Duties. I have no intention of running away from them. You know, right? The rights we hold come from fulfilling our responsibilities. I don’t plan to give those up. But still. ]
‘But still.’
[ Sometimes, the past, which was much more fun than now, comes to mind, and it’s unbearable. ]
To be precise, it wasn’t the entire academy he missed, but the time spent with someone he met there.
Perhaps it was more accurate to say that he was longing for that.
“What about Karl?”
[ He’s going to Hyzens, then the Holy See, and to Lasker in the summer.]
“Lucky him. We’re stuck in our rooms, wrestling with paperwork.”
[ Won’t he be in the same boat as us in two years anyway? ]
“I don’t mean to belittle Karl, but the workload of a County is different from that of a Marquisate.”
A Marquisate holds immense power, even able to command Counties.
Excluding Dukedoms, the Marquisate boasts the largest territory.
Precisely because of this, the responsibilities are far greater.
Karl, too, will one day sit in the same position as them and carry out the same duties.
But the amount of work will differ.
Perhaps half, or even a quarter of the hardship they endure?
“…I suddenly feel like teasing Karl.”
[ Me too. If we were still at the academy, we’d be right there, messing with him. ]
If the heads of their families heard this, they might scold them, saying, ‘You’re still acting like children even after growing up!’
But there were no family heads here, only friends who knew each other’s true selves.
[ Me too. ]
“Hey, Wilhelm. Hold on a second.”
Shulifen picked up another magic communication device. Wilhelm did the same.
A moment later, Shulifen was face-to-face with Alexander, and Wilhelm with Joachim.
And they came to one conclusion.
“I’m going crazy with boredom.”
It seemed they needed a change.
* * *
“…So you came to me for this?”
“Hey, let’s ask you something.”
How should I deal with these Hydras who came to visit me on a weekend morning?
I pondered whether I should give all four heads a headlock again as I spoke.
“So, you woke me up on this beautiful weekend morning because you don’t want to work?”
“Hey now, Karl! That’s not it!”
“Yeah! We just…”
“Don’t deepen your voices. Before I shave your Adam’s apples with a planer.”
“Yes, sir.”
I know your true colors, so don’t try to imitate some historical drama tone on me. You’re asking for it.
“If you have that much free time, go do more work.”
“How can you say such harsh words! We’re dying here!”
“You’re not dead, since you made it all the way here. That means you can work more.”
“No! We can’t take it anymore! We need a change!”
So, you damn fools. What kind of change do you want that you came all the way here for?
You’re alumni, but the heirs to marquisates and counties who barged into the academy.
The students are already whispering, wondering if something’s happened again.
Sighing, I looked at the four sitting in front of me.
Shulifen, Wilhelm, Alexander, and Joachim. My proud Hydras.
I haven’t exterminated them yet because they occasionally do good things.
If these guys were troublemakers, my greatsword would become a disciplinary tool. Absolutely.
I haven’t said it out loud, but I’m always grateful to them.
I just did my job, nothing more. I didn’t really have any other intentions.
But it was these guys who did the heavy lifting. It started with the Pension Foundation.
Maybe it was thanks to them that change began. It would have been difficult without them.
And they helped me a lot in other areas too.
‘I should do something for them.’
Let me think. What was the first thing I did for these guys?
Headlock? No. A greatsword drenched in Kanfra blood? Not that either. Mint chocolate bungeoppang… Oh, for f*ck’s sake.
I quickly shook my head to scatter the demonic thoughts.
I could still vividly recall the chocolate, strawberry, and mint chocolate ice cream they sold at the southern beach.
‘Not that either. Not that either. The first thing I did for these guys was…’
Ah, I remembered.
‘Military enlistment.’
…Thinking back on it now, I might have been a bit of a bad guy.
Suggesting enlistment to these guys who were relatively well-behaved and kind-hearted.
And they even readily accepted and went, didn’t they?
If I did that again, I wouldn’t be a human, but a beast.
So, what these guys who keep clamoring for change really need is…
“Hey.”
No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed like the right answer.
“Go date someone.”
[Translator – Angel Dust]
[Proofreader – Prototype]
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