Chapter 54
[Translator – Angel Dust]
[Proofreader – Prototype]
Chapter 54
Thump!―
…What time is it? Who dares to touch the nose hairs of a peacefully sleeping honoree of the Medal of Honor?
I’ll take special care of you, so just say, ‘Oh! I tapped the wrong one! I’m sorry!’ and go away.
Thump thump thump!―
“This is maddening… Who on earth…”
Unable to endure it any longer, Karl cursed as he got out of bed.
There’s a high probability that the humans on the other side of the door are those Four. That’s for sure. They must have something to discuss about yesterday’s patent or pension foundation, or whatever it was.
‘These bastards don’t even sleep in. They’re really off the charts.’
Checking the clock, it wasn’t even 7 o’clock yet. Considering that the first academy lecture starts at 9, they really came early just to wake me up.
Moreover, today was my day off from morning lectures. I was planning to enjoy sleeping in, but now my sleep was disturbed.
Constantly muttering ‘Damn Hydra’ under my breath, I leisurely washed my face, combed my hair, and slowly dried off. Now, I leisurely put on my clothes.
Throughout this, the knocking continued, but I refused to move quickly. Instead, I took my time, almost as if saying, ‘I’m inside, so wait a little longer.’
“I’m coming, I’m coming. You assholes!”
Finally, after preparing myself to meet whoever it was, I sighed and opened the door—
“Sorry to disturb you, Karl. It’s not assholes, but asshole. I’m the only one who came to see you.”
“…?”
Standing there was not those idiot Four, but the Crown Prince.
* * *
What’s going on? Am I still in bed? Haven’t gotten up yet?
Right. That would make sense. Otherwise, why would the Crown Prince be standing in front of me, saying, ‘Good morning, Karl’?
“Your Highness?”
I wish this person in front of me would just split into four suddenly and say, ‘Ta-da! It was just a dream!’
“Yeah. It’s me. But, shouldn’t we go inside first? I’m here early in the morning to avoid being seen by the other students.”
“Uh, yes! Please come in, Your Highness.”
“And don’t shout. Karl. It’d be awkward if someone heard.”
The prince stepped inside and promptly closed the door. Wait, where are his guards?
“If you’re worried about the guards, you can stop. They’re all stationed nearby.”
“Oh…”
Really, it’s harder to adjust to a male character’s passive-aggressive behavior. Was it all written on my face? I thought I was good at controlling my expressions.
“Um, if that’s the case, should the guards also—”
“They were going to come in with me, but that’s a bit much, isn’t it? It might seem like I don’t trust the Medal of Honor recipient. Besides, whatever happens, you can handle it.”
With that, the prince entered alone and closed the door behind him.
What’s going on? This makes me really nervous. The Crown Prince suddenly showing up at the academy, let alone sneaking around, coming into someone else’s room in the morning? Anxiety level increased by a hundred!
“It took quite a while to open the door for someone who just woke up.”
“Because I thought it might be another unwelcome guest.”
“In other words, you were deliberately dragging out the time, hoping to make me wait as long as possible.”
Hmm, that makes sense. Even I would get mad at being woken up like this in the morning. So it’s not Karl’s fault. If anyone’s at fault, it’s mine for coming without even a heads-up! Haha!
The prince suddenly stared at me after saying he had something to talk about.
“….”
“…?”
I thought for a moment, then realized he was waiting for something.
After all, since I’m the host and he’s the guest, he’s waiting for me to say, ‘Please sit.’ Oh my god, a crown prince waiting for a nobleman’s permission. It’s crazy.
“Please, have a seat, Your Highness.”
“Thank you, Karl. And once again, sorry for the rush.”
At the mention of urgency, I involuntarily trembled. What’s going on now?
“Surely, it’s not another Kanfra… I mean, a serious threat to the empire from Luzerne’s side?”
Damn Kanfras. How much longer are they going to bother me, do I really have to kill them all?
As much as it pains me to say this about our Empire’s ally, the Hyzens… but this is why elves aren’t worth a damn. If you have superiority that can’t be matched, you need the humility to acknowledge and accept it.
For now, Lasker, the kingdoms of Knights and Abileshti, the Cradle of Wizards, have accepted without hesitation whatever they deem worthy of learning from the Empire.
In the process, they acknowledged the Empire’s superiority and even bowed their heads. They were wise enough to bend their pride when necessary, even if it wasn’t eternal.
In contrast, elves, apart from living longer and having pointy ears, keep interfering…
“Speak sensibly, Karl.”
Ah, I must have been mistaken. It seems there are no major issues regarding the Empire’s security.
“The remaining leadership of those scoundrels has almost been wiped out. And there’s… Well, hm. Your sister has returned to the scene. What serious threat could there be if they’re facing a serious threat to their lives?”
The prince looked at me with trembling eyes. Why? Why are you doing this? It’s scary if the next emperor looks at me like that.
“Karl.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“The reason you received your first Medal of Honor. The miraculous event that happened that
day.”
Ah… Is he talking about that incident where I inadvertently saved our allies?
“Have you reported everything about that?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I reported every important detail without leaving anything out.”
I’m not stupid. Reporting is the most important thing in the military.
Even though I didn’t even receive orders and acted recklessly on my own, it was even more imperative to report properly. It’s probably because I’m a noble that I got away with it. Otherwise, I would’ve been disciplined.
“Karl. It doesn’t have to be something super important. Anything else?”
But the prince kept asking if there was anything missing from that report. Why is he doing this?
“Um, uh… Oh. Wait a moment, Your Highness.”
Come to think of it, the journalist that interviewed me yesterday wrote an article and had it published in the newspaper within a day. I didn’t read it properly, but I still remember the interview, so it might be helpful.
“If you look at this article, there are some parts that I didn’t include in my report.”
“…Are you sure? There’s nothing different from what I know.”
Huh? Wait a minute, Your Highness. …Oh, damn journalist! Seriously! They left out everything I said in the interview?!
They just faked it with a bullet and slipped past in the meantime! Did they really refuse because they couldn’t believe that an imperial hero was hiding like a mouse and sneaked past?
Sighing, I reluctantly relayed what I had said to the prince at that time.
“…So, Karl. Before rescuing our troops, you happened to pass through one of the Luzerne camps to shake up their defenses, fired a shot, and immediately left?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I wasn’t caught. I also pride myself on my concealment skills… Your Highness?”
The prince’s mouth was open, and he was staring blankly at me. No response. Just staring like that. Why is he looking at me like that? It’s scary!
“…Karl.”
It was over three minutes before the prince spoke.
“Even if you don’t want to receive the Medal of Honor, you absolutely can’t refuse it, Karl.”
“Your Highness?”
“If you truly have a conscience, you must never refuse it. Even if you receive three, or four.”
What’s he suddenly talking about? Three Medals of Honor? Four Medals of Honor?
“In fact, a report came up yesterday, strictly confidential. It was confirmed through cooperation and investigation with the Hyzens side by your sister. She reported that the leader of Luzerne, Darnang Navar, was killed.”
“Uh… I heard from Eloise Loengrand, a contact from the Hyzens side whom I met last time, that their leader was killed. What a coincidence.”
I replied, and suddenly the prince burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Hahahaha!!”
“Your Highness? Did I commit some impropriety…?”
“Ahahaha! Hahaha… Haah. Honestly, the Adelheit family really keeps surprising the Empire. I thought it was just Count Friedrich, but it’s not. Like father, like son, huh?”
The prince is saying something incomprehensible. Why is he bringing up my father, and what does ‘like father, like son’ mean?
“Karl. Listen to me carefully. The leader of Luzerne. Darnang Navar. It seems… Karl, it seems like you’re the one who killed him.”
“…What?”
“It’s the unanimous testimony of the surviving members of the leadership present at the time. A single gunshot, and a single hit. And, a bullet that pierced the leader’s heart in one shot.”
Uh… Um, wait a minute? Just a moment?
“At that moment, there was one imperial soldier who was perfectly placed in that situation. And even more coincidentally, one shot fired. All the circumstances point to you, Karl Adelheit, being the protagonist.”
“Isn’t that just a simple conjecture?”
“Yeah. Technically, it’s conjecture. But, Karl. When almost all the circumstances fit the conjecture, its credibility increases dramatically. Especially when it’s none other than you, Karl Adelheit.”
Only then did I understand why the prince brought up my father.
During the time when my father was actively serving, he had a record of engaging in duels during battles with Lasker, and he once killed a master who had challenged him to a duel.
Moreover, that guy was quite important from the Lasker side, so I heard their morale was greatly affected…
Thup—
The prince placed his hand on my shoulder and spoke in a solemn voice.
“You can’t complain that you don’t like receiving medals, Karl. You must never refuse it. If we don’t give it to someone like you, our imperial family will be criticized for for as long as the empire lasts.”
[Translator – Angel Dust]
[Proofreader – Prototype]
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