[This was a special opportunity that Agrippina fought for Nero.]
[Frankly, a young woman of her age shouldn't have had the possibility of giving a speech in the Senate like this.]
[But Agrippina was simply too persistent.]
[She used exaggerated words and fabricated facts to portray her daughter as a precocious and accomplished young woman.]
[You knew it was a lie, but you were helpless.]
[After all, if you were to expose Agrippina's pretense at this time, Nero would definitely be affected as well.]
[That was not a situation you wanted to see.]
The night before the trip, Ian was lying in bed, thinking about whether there was anything he hadn't told Nero yet.
And at this moment, there was a knock on the door.
Although he didn't really want to receive anyone at this time, Ian still called out to the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Teacher Seneca, can I come in now?"
It was Nero's voice.
After a moment of hesitation, Ian agreed to her request.
"Yes, come in."
With a soft sound, the door opened.
Nero appeared in Ian's sight, wearing clothes so thin that he could see through to her body.
But the man was already used to this—she was always this mix of cute and sexy in front of him.
"Nero, what's wrong?"
"Teacher," Nero said with a troubled expression, "I can't sleep."
"Huh?"
Ian was a little surprised.
After all, he rarely saw Nero have trouble sleeping—even when her father passed away, she was fast asleep.
"Teacher, can I sit next to you?" Nero continued to ask.
"Of course."
Ian sat up and made some room for Nero so she could sit down.
"Nero, what's bothering you?"
"That..." Nero looked at her teacher, her green eyes already full of worry.
"Teacher, you remember that I'm going to give a speech at the Senate, right?"
"Of course," Ian nodded. "This is an opportunity your mother fought for, isn't it?"
"Hmm..." Nero's voice was a bit quieter.
"I'm a little worried that I'll waste this opportunity."
"..."
[You suddenly realized something.]
[That as she grew older, Nero's innocent understanding was also gradually maturing.]
[Compared to her confident self as a child, she was now a bit hesitant because of the heavy studies.]
[This was not a good thing—at least not for becoming an emperor.]
[You realized that as her teacher, you absolutely couldn't stand by and do nothing.]
"Why are you worried about this?"
Ian stroked Nero's head.
Although she had matured a lot, her hair was still as soft and smooth as ever, like the finest wool.
"Is it because you haven't prepared anything?"
"No, it's not!" Nero shook her head repeatedly. "Ever since Mother told me, I've been preparing!"
"I've already—"
"I've already made a lot of effort!"
Knowing that Nero wouldn't lie about this kind of thing, Ian continued to ask.
"In that case, what do you have to worry about?"
"Is it because you feel your status isn't high enough, or something else—I think those worries are meaningless."
"No, it's not that," Nero continued to shake her head.
"Then what is it?" Now it was Ian's turn to be curious.
"I..." The young woman looked up at her teacher, her eyes reflecting only his figure.
"I'm afraid of losing face for you."
"..."
Ian was first stunned, then he started to laugh.
He knew this was a thought she would have.
"I see—"
"Then Nero, do you know how your teacher sees this speech?"
Ian reached out and gently caressed Nero's fair and smooth cheek, comforting her tenderly.
"I... think this is my time to become famous—because you will definitely give a beautiful speech, won't you?"
"..."
Nero's pupils widened slightly.
It was clear that this encouragement from her teacher gave her a great deal of motivation.
"Teacher... do you really think so?"
"Of course," Ian nodded.
"Nero, don't forget what you said seven years ago—you want to become the emperor of Rome, and you want to earn everyone's respect."
"In that case, your teacher will naturally believe in you, so please believe in yourself as well."
"Hmm!"
Nero regained her usual confidence.
"Teacher, you're right—!"
"I'm someone who's going to become an emperor, how can I be stopped by a mere speech!"
"That's right."
Seeing the lively Nero again, a faint smile appeared on Ian's face.
"Hurry back to rest—we'll be leaving soon, and you can't be tired now."
"Hmm~"
Nero stood up, ready to leave Ian's room.
But after a few steps, she stopped and then returned to her teacher's side.
"Teacher—!"
"I suddenly feel like there's a better way to regain my energy."
"What way?"
"It's to rest with you!"
"..."
To be fair, Ian knew that he should refuse Nero's request at this moment.
But he had been saying things like this for seven years—and he had never succeeded.
"Okay, get on up," the man gave up lecturing. "And go to sleep obediently, don't make a fuss anymore."
"Hmm~"
And it was indeed the case.
Aside from that one restless hand, Nero slept very peacefully in Ian's arms, just like when she was a child.
The only difference was perhaps her figure, which had become quite exaggerated for her age.
And looking at her like this, the man felt a little nervous for some reason.
He had a feeling that things wouldn't go smoothly all the way.
[You and Nero made a series of preparations.]
[With Agrippina's farewell, you temporarily left Ubiorum and headed to the Roman capital, where the Senate was located.]
[This was not a journey that could be completed in a single day.]
[You and Nero witnessed many things on the way.]
"Teacher," Nero looked at the scene outside the carriage, her green eyes filled with a bit of thought.
"Why are these people still working outside even though the weather is so hot?"
"Because life is not easy, Nero," Ian gave his explanation.
"If they don't work like this, the only result waiting for them is starvation."
"Then is no one helping them?" Nero continued to ask. "They're all people living on Roman land, aren't they?"
"I don't know about that," Ian rubbed Nero's head.
"But Nero, you can be the one to help them in the future, can't you?"
"That makes sense."
Nero turned her head and looked at her teacher.
"Hmm, but I want to help them now too, is that okay?"
"Of course."
[Nero was kind-hearted—which was quite rare among young ladies of her noble background.]
[After all, girls who had been raised in luxury couldn't imagine what kind of life the common people of Rome lived.]
[Or rather, they were very disgusted with these dirty and smelly workers.]
[Only a person like Nero, who had the ambition to become an emperor, would notice such things during her journey.]
[With this thought, the young woman spent all the money she had brought with her on the way.]
[But you didn't blame her. Instead, you thought it was an act worth encouraging—after all, considering the people's situation is a good quality for an emperor to have.]
[Amidst the praise of the people, you and Nero arrived at the Roman capital where the Senate was located.]
[The young woman's first speech was about to begin.]
As Nero's only companion and attendant, Ian was arranged a seat in the Senate where he could directly see Nero.
The man didn't know whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.
But one thing he was certain of was that he, sitting in this position, absolutely could not show any signs of panic.
Only by doing so could he give Nero enough confidence and support for her speech.
And it was indeed the case.
The young woman in the center, facing the numerous senators, once again felt that deep-seated nervousness.
The eyes of people from various noble families and different factions were now all focused on her.
Honestly, the pressure was immense.
Even though she had been mentally prepared by her teacher beforehand, Nero still felt a little overwhelmed at this moment.
However—
This feeling didn't last for too long.
Because she soon saw Ian.
Their gazes met in the Senate at that moment.
And then, the man gave a nod of encouragement.
In an instant, Nero felt like she had been cast under some magical spell, and she was no longer nervous at all.
"It's okay, there's no need to be afraid."
"Teacher said—I'm going to be the emperor of Rome, so I absolutely cannot be tripped up by something like this."
Nero convinced herself, and then she felt a great deal of courage well up inside her.
[Your presence was indeed very important to Nero.]
[Feeling your gaze, she began to speak about her views on Rome in a normal way.]
[Just as the young woman had promised earlier, she had indeed prepared quite a lot.]
[Not only you, but everyone present was surprised by this young woman's unique ideas.]
[After all—]
[The way Nero thought about problems was indeed different from the norm, and it was difficult for ordinary people to reach her level.]
[But at the same time, she also had an outstanding talent for debate, which made it possible for others to think that these were indeed good ideas.]
[Everything seemed to be going smoothly until someone began to target her.]
The Senate was not as calm as it appeared on the surface.
There were intricate power struggles and, naturally, some conservative figures who would target outsiders.
Nero's speech was indeed very good, far exceeding the awareness she should have at her age.
But for the conservatives, these were overly radical ideas.
Soon, someone stood up and started to attack Nero personally, targeting her background.
A nobleman stood up.
"Miss Nero, your views on Rome are indeed insightful."
"Policies like implementing a series of policies that benefit the common people are particularly refreshing."
"However—"
"It seems a little unreasonable for a person of your age to have such knowledge—could it be that you drew on your mother's wisdom with the power of a demon during your difficult birth?"
"..."
"..."
The entire hall fell silent.
Everyone knew that this was a blatant attack, but no one dared to say anything against it.
The reason was simple: a difficult birth was an absolute bad omen in Rome, and it was impossible to refute this as an outsider.
After all, this would be going against the beliefs of the Roman people.
Ian was worried at this moment.
This was something he had never taught Nero before—he had underestimated the malice hidden in the Senate.
Would she... have a problem?
However, the man knew that he absolutely could not panic, so he just watched Nero silently, giving her spiritual support.
And this gaze did indeed affect her state of mind.
Facing the question, Nero answered calmly.
"You're right, my mother did have a difficult birth when she gave birth to me."
"But for her, this was actually a form of protection."
"Protection?"
"Yes," Nero spread her hands, making a declaration-like gesture. "Because during that time, my hometown of Ubiorum encountered a demon."
"Countless mothers had difficult births because of it—and only my mother survived."
"Isn't that... my credit?"
"..."
"..."
Another silence.
While Nero's statement was indeed shocking, it was also impossible to refute.
After all, to deny her words would be to blame the children of those mothers who died from difficult births for not being strong enough.
This was a brilliant answer!
Looking at Nero, Ian felt a bit of relief.
She... was indeed growing.
[The speech ended smoothly.]
[This was destined to be a prominent event in Roman history.]
[She returned to your side.]
"Teacher, how was my performance today?" Nero asked, with her hands behind her back, though she already knew the answer.
Ian, of course, didn't mind satisfying her vanity at this time, so he played along.
"Your performance was great—to be able to think of that kind of counter-argument."
"Hmm~" Nero put her hands on her hips. "That's something you told me, Teacher—of course I remember."
"All in all, Teacher, I did very well today and didn't lose face for you, right?"
"Yes."
"Then—" Nero licked her lips.
"I should get a little reward, right?"
"A reward?"
"Hmm." Nero grabbed Ian's arm and pointed into the distance.
"Teacher—!"
"Will you accompany me to the Roman baths?"