Chapter 12
The words that came out of the mouths of the Eastern Parasites were truly shocking.
They said they hadn’t planned on being parasites when they were first dispatched to the Empire.
But starting with the Second Prince and going all the way to the Grand Duke of the East,
They looked down on the Crown Prince, who was acting as a proxy for the Emperor’s authority, so from their reports to their paperwork,
They started doing everything half-heartedly, and naturally, those below them followed suit.
Just as the Second Prince’s close aides had done.
They didn’t properly fulfill their duty to send the tributes the Eastern Region owed the Empire.
And some of those improperly handled tributes went straight into their own pockets.
If the Grand Duke of the East had paid attention during this process, it would have corrected itself, but the Grand Duke of the East also didn’t see the importance of self-correction and just played around.
“The top go around playing, and the bottom only think about lining their own pockets. Is that it?”
A dream job where they could enjoy all the rights without fulfilling any duties had been realized.
Money? They received it from the Empire and the Eastern Region, and if they needed more, they just had to make demands using the Maselin Kingdom as an excuse and that was it.
Despite all this, I thought it was truly amazing that the National Treasury was marked as 'Normal' in the Empire Status Window.
Just how powerful was it set to be that even like this it could hold out for five years?
Those thoughts only lasted a moment.
“How can those who are not subjects of the Empire… exist in the Imperial Palace.”
I spat out the words that decided the fate of the Eastern Parasites.
“I apologize. I will clean them up immediately.”
“We are sorry! We are sorry! We have committed a crime worthy of death! Just spare our lives! Just our lives! Please! Please! Please!”
The words of the Knight and the Eastern Parasites burst out at the same time.
Did they commit these acts unaware of how it would turn out?
No, these bastards definitely knew.
But they probably never dreamed the Crown Prince would react like this even if they were caught.
Because up until now, they would have surely been spared even if they were caught.
“Do you have children?”
“Yes, yes…! We do! We do! All of us have sons! We will never commit a crime again! So please, our lives…!”
But that wasn’t going to happen.
“That is good. At least your Family won’t be exterminated. Pray again and again in your hearts that your sons will pledge their utmost loyalty to the Empire.”
With those final words, the Eastern Parasites fainted at the Knight’s hand gesture.
It was a very gentle punishment, since they would be forever freed from the pain of death while unconscious.
They would die cleanly without even knowing when they died, and their heads would be sent to their Family.
Because I needed to let the nobles in the Local Region know that the Empire had changed.
Shouldn’t I kindly deliver the news with their heads.
“Come to think of it, did I tell you to call the Executioners?”
“Yes, I intend to dispose of these non-subjects of the Empire and to follow your order immediately.”
The Knight stopped upon hearing my words while dragging the Eastern Parasites away like luggage.
'I’m going for a stroll; there’s no need to drag a whole swarm of those strategic weapons along.'
After a brief thought, I felt there was no need to bring multiple Executioners.
“Deliver a message to the Executioners, and tell them to pick the one person who is most suited to go on a stroll with me.”
“Yes, understood.”
One should be enough.
+++++
Executioner.
The Empire’s Strategic Weapon.
To put it simply, it is an ultimate weapon.
Their total number was five.
While there were those the Empire had poured its heart and soul into raising.
There were also those whose connection to the Empire was a complete mystery.
Although they hadn’t sworn loyalty to the Empire.
They were bizarre individuals who moved when the Empire needed them, and those were the Executioners.
Because they truly only moved when the Empire needed them.
“Ah, I’m bored.”
They usually took it easy and rested in their respective living spaces.
One palace per Executioner.
It was a luxury and treatment only possible for the Empire, which was so vast that the word 'expansive' came to mind, and possessed an insane amount of money.
To those who didn’t do anything in particular even with a palace and just wasted their time day by day.
“His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has stated that he wishes to go on a stroll with just one of the Executioners.”
“What?”
A story that sent dopamine rushing through them reached their ears.
It was a real shame that it wasn’t a war, but a chance to go on a 1-on-1 stroll with the Crown Prince who had recently done a complete turnaround.
The Executioners, who normally rarely came out of their palaces, gathered at The Center point between their palaces for the first time in a while.
“You heard, right? What His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said?”
“It’s not 'said', it’s 'stated'. Use your honorifics properly.”
“Ah! Who cares! Just attaching “Your Highness” means I’ve fixed my habits a lot, you know?”
“…”
The number gathered was five.
The number speaking was two.
Because of that, a process of elimination naturally occurred.
“The three silent ones look like they can’t even properly handle daily life, let alone a stroll, so why don’t you guys just drop out? Do you even think a stroll suits you in the first place?”
“Arveda, aren’t you being too harsh with your words?”
“No. I only spoke the truth. In the first place, from what this one sees, a stroll doesn’t suit you either, does it? You’re over 3 meters tall. Does it make sense for you to walk around with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince looking like that? Do you have a conscience?”
“Your height is also a bit much, isn’t it? I believe you’re barely around 150cm.”
“Th-This one…! It’s because this is this one’s taste…! Do you think I’m the same as you? You crazy Tin Can!”
Whack, whack.
The girl called Arveda mercilessly kicked the shins of the person wearing steel armor who was over 3 meters tall.
Even though Arveda knew it wouldn’t hurt them, she felt her anger would only be relieved by doing this.
“Your taste is truly peculiar. A short height, pigtails, skin reminiscent of a Dark Elf… but you make certain parts of your body white. Just what are you intending and what kind of taste is that?”
“There’s such a thing! Such a thing! There’s a profound world that an ignorant Tin Can like you doesn’t know about! What do you know! You don’t know anything about this one’s Noble and deeply profound tastes!”
Clang, clang, clang.
Amidst the continuous ringing sound of a tin can being kicked.
The remaining three Executioners, who had been silently watching the situation, turned their backs.
To be honest, they were also looking forward to the stroll with the Crown Prince.
But just as Arveda said, they lacked conversational skills or, due to special circumstances, were far removed from the concept of a stroll.
“Everyone’s leaving on their own? Tin Can, if you have any tact, you know, right?”
“Arveda, you’re the only one who acts like such a spoiled child at your age. You’re not the only one curious about His Royal Highness the Crown Prince’s changed appearance…”
“So what! So what! So what! What about it?! Should we settle this right here, then?! We’re playing a game of chance! This one is definitely throwing a rock, so you have to throw scissors! If you don’t, I’ll seriously!”
“…There’s no getting through to you. Understood. I will also give up. You go.”
“Of course, this one was originally going to go anyway! Then the conversation is over! This one has to get ready to go out with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, so this one will be going now!”
“…”
The one called Tin Can watched Arveda’s back as she entered her palace with joyful steps.
Come to think of it, Arveda was indeed the most suited for a stroll.
“Whether she”ll match with the changed His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is questionable, though.'
Please let the stroll end safely, without any incidents.
Tin Can offered a small prayer like that before entering his own palace.
It was the moment the plan for the Executioner to go on a stroll with the Crown Prince was decided in an instant.
+++++
Information about the Executioners had never appeared in detail in the parts of the novel I had read.
This was also absent even when I searched through the Crown Prince’s memories, the original owner of this body.
It seemed the Empire had never properly utilized the Executioners all this time.
“Are they just… like those legendary figures of immense power created solely for the purpose of being the ultimate support for the Maselin Kingdom?”
What this meant was:
“Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince! This Humble Woman is the Executioner who will accompany Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince on the stroll. I am Arveda, Your Highness!”
It meant that when the little girl in front of me came claiming to be an Executioner, I couldn’t tell if it was real or a joke.
But of course,
'There’s no way an Official who could play a joke on me exists in the current situation.'
Since there was no way this was a joke, it meant that one of the members of the veiled Executioners was a young girl.
I didn’t think she was just a simple girl, because just by looking at her, she was exuding an incredibly dangerous Aura.
If one puts aside her clumsy way of speaking, that is.
“I look forward to working with you. I am the Crown Prince, Bellon.”
“Your grace is immeasurable!”
“…”
Seeing a girl who had been killing people all this time suddenly appear before me, showing such a clumsy appearance,
I felt my tension easing.
But then,
“Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince, are you truly certain you do not need any other escort personnel? I understand the journey to the Eastern Region is quite far…”
At the Chancellor’s words, my tension flared up again.
To be precise, it was closer to work mode than tension, though.
“It is fine. More importantly, the journey to the Eastern Region is far. So, will it be alright for me to leave my seat vacant for that amount of time?”
“All of us are aware of Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince’s will. Please do not worry.”
The Chancellor said he understood my will, and promised to continue cleaning up the Imperial Center while I was away.
I had actually made an example of a few people, so there shouldn’t be any major worries.
“If the country had been fine, I wouldn”t have even needed to go on an Eastern Region stroll.'
The journey to the Eastern Region was far.
It was far, but the reason I still had to go personally was that there were things I wouldn’t know if I just stayed inside the Imperial Palace.
There were things I had to see and feel personally to understand, and I also needed to see what the Local Nobles were up to along the way.
I also needed to personally experience the movements of the Eastern Region, so personally going on the stroll was essential.
Still, there were a few things I needed to confirm before leaving.
“The Second Prince?”
“We will ensure he absolutely does not participate in the Empire’s state affairs, and even if he expresses such an intent, we will thoroughly ignore him.”
“The First Princess?”
“We are treating her the same as the Second Prince, but since she has never actually been directly involved in state affairs… we are allowing her a certain degree of luxury as long as it does not cross the line.”
It was the treatment of the Second Prince and the First Princess.
“Good, that’s exactly it. From now on, you do not need to listen to the orders of any Imperial Family member other than me.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Hearing the Chancellor’s definite answer, my mind was put at ease.
The possibility of them doing some bullshit behind my back while I was gone, I could practically consider it non-existent.
Because the Second Prince was being closely monitored by the Grand General.
And the First Princess was just in a position of acting like a spoiled child toward the Crown Prince even in the original work.
“It won’t take long.”
“Please take care of your precious health, achieve what you desire, and return safely to the palace.”
“Your greetings are excessive; it’s merely a stroll.”
The conversation with the Chancellor ended there.
I gave a look to the girl in front of me. No.
I looked at Arveda and started walking.
“So this small child acts as a nuclear weapon when unleashed on the Battlefield.”
Just what kind of power was she hiding?
With those thoughts, I walked out of the Imperial Palace without a word for a while.
Right at the moment we crossed the gates of the Imperial Palace.
“Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince the Crown Prince! Come to think of it, it seems your identity must not be discovered, even if it is a stroll. Is this one correct, Your Highness?”
Arveda opened her mouth as if she had been waiting.
“…That is correct.”
Just what did she want to say that she was bringing this up?
I actually had a rough guess, though.
“Then! How about we disguise the relationship between This Humble Woman and Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince as a fictional relationship, Your Highness!”
“For example?”
“In my opinion, since this one wanted to have a dad and an older brother figure, I would like to call you dad or older brother, Your Highness.”
“…You want to go with a sibling concept, but aren’t our skin colors and hair colors too different for that?”
“It is a half-sibling concept, Your Highness. The sperm and the egg are completely different, but through the remarriage of our parents who met as if by destiny, we became step-siblings; that is the setting, Your Highness.”
I never dreamed she would have come up with such a meticulous setting.
But I had been feeling this for a while now. What’s with her way of speaking? Just how awkward she is with honorifics.
“I quite like the setting itself, but unfortunately, there is no need for us to use such a setting.”
“Wh-Why is that, Your Highness…?”
“Because we won’t be heading to the Eastern Region at a normal speed.”
It was truly a shame that I couldn’t fulfill her expectations.
The stroll I had in mind wasn’t a journey where we leisurely rode a carriage or walked all the way to the Eastern Region.
It was heading to The Center of the Eastern Region at full speed, top speed, while minimizing breaks.
If a large Territory appeared along the way, we would stop briefly to observe its ecology, but.
If we only counted the travel time itself, it wouldn’t exceed a day.
Considering the ridiculous physical specs of the Crown Prince’s body.
It was safe to just consider him a Human express.
In fact, there were only a few rest stops on the map I had packed.
If the level of the Territory I had received reports on differed from the actual Territory at these rest stops, problems would arise.
If nothing major happened, we would arrive at Marinapolis, known as the capital of the Eastern Region, in the blink of an eye.
“Even so, this one… if, by some real chance the opportunity arises, I would really like to… call Your Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, dad or older brother, Your Highness.”
“…Alright, if such a situation arises, use the setting you mentioned and call me older brother.”
Dad is a bit much.
“Thinking about it again, I feel like a formal “Older brother” would give off more of a step-sibling vibe than just a casual 'brother', Your Highness. Please reconsider, Your Highness.”
Arveda said so and bowed her head with clumsy etiquette.
Now that I look at her, she has pigtails. No, why does she have pigtails anyway?
Various thoughts surfaced and disappeared.
Honestly, I wondered what the point of nitpicking such things was.
“Anyway, the first place we will arrive at is the Verda Marquisate.”
“You mean the Verda Marquisate, Your Highness.”
“…Yes, it’s a place like a crossroads connecting the Eastern Region and the Empire, a Strategic Stronghold… and a place like a comma, you could say.”
Arveda was pretending to listen to my words while staring at an ant crawling on the Ground.
“Right, the Empire”s nuclear weapon should have this kind of eccentric side to it too.'
Honestly, this kind of attitude from the Executioner wasn’t a big problem at all during the stroll.
Since the core issue was “how well the Territories of the nobles we stop by during the stroll are running”.
“Still, I hope only the Imperial Center is rotten. There”s no way it’s completely rotten overall.'
The nobles in major positions should still be in their right minds.
“Let’s go.”
“Yep!”
With those thoughts, I began the stroll.
+++++
We had been strolling for about 5 hours.
“Ah.”
I sighed the moment we arrived at the Verda Marquisate.
If it’s a Strategic Stronghold, the condition of the soldiers should normally be extremely good.
'I’m sure when I received the report… Didn’t they say that even the regular soldiers were wearing good armor from top to bottom?'
Why am I seeing soldiers wearing rags and holding shoddy wooden spears right in front of my eyes?
Just how was the Empire able to hold out for another 5 years in this situation?
“Good job, Empire. Your foundations are truly sturdy.”
It seemed like a lot of blood would be shed during this Eastern Region stroll.