Chapter 89: The Prince and the Pauper, the Real and Fake Little Emperor
General Budou was actually dead?!
That powerful Great General, who was called the Empire's Strongest alongside Esdeath, whose every move held immense power, was assassinated silently last night?!
And in the Imperial Palace courtyard, of all places?!
You've got to be kidding me!
Unbelievable!
When the Prime Minister heard this news, he was completely dumbfounded. His first reaction was that it was absolutely impossible!
But when he rushed to the courtyard and saw General Budou's corpse, he swore that he had never been this panicked, not even when he learned of his own son's death!
This is bad, this is bad, this is bad! I never thought the enemy would be this formidable!
A sense of crisis instantly consumed his entire mind. Right now, the only one in the Imperial Capital with the strength to resist the enemy was General Esdeath, but the assassin could take his life at any moment.
In that case... although it's a bit early, I have no choice. I'll have to use my final trump card!
He strode quickly towards the royal palace.
"Minister." x4
At the main gate, four people were half-kneeling to welcome him.
It was the Rakshasa Four Demons.
He was now extremely glad that he had made the decision to transfer the four of them back to protect him before the public execution.
"You four, come in with me."
"Yes!" x4
He felt very unsafe right now. To prevent being assassinated, he decided to keep these four men by his side at all times.
The Minister stood before the door.
He wiped his face, put on a panicked and frightened expression, and even squeezed out two lines of tears.
Superb acting.
Like this, he pushed open the main door, staggered into the great hall, and cried out hypocritically, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty! General Budou... General Budou, he's... dead! Sob sob sob~~~"
"Dead?!"
The little Emperor on the throne widened his eyes, looking very surprised.
Was he frightened?
The Minister thought to himself. After all, His Majesty had a good relationship with General Budou. It was normal for him to be surprised upon learning of his death.
But this was also within his calculations.
Provoke His Majesty's anger and make him use the Teigu!
The Minister wiped away his tears and said with indignation, "Your Majesty! The Empire is now at a critical moment! The rebels are rampant! They must be sanctioned!"
"What the Minister means is..." the little Emperor asked uncertainly.
"I implore Your Majesty to use the [Ultimate Teigu]!" the Minister said viciously. "A stronger, secret trump card will surely scare the rebels into pissing themselves and restore the former glory of the Empire!"
"—!"
Hearing his answer, the little Emperor was so scared he swallowed hard.
Still hesitating?
The Minister frowned slightly. The little Emperor seemed a little afraid. He had to appease him.
He put on the air of an elder and said with a smile and a gentle tone, "Your Majesty will surely be fine. I will be by your side to attend to you. Alright?"
The corner of the little Emperor's mouth twitched, and he resolved to agree.
However—
"Igi ari! (Objection!)"
A sudden shout interrupted the Minister's persuasion.
A wave of anger surged in his heart. He snapped his head around and glared at the person walking in from the door, but when he saw who it was, he was full of confusion.
"Kobayashi?"
He didn't understand his motive for stopping him. Kobayashi was Esdeath's subordinate, and Esdeath was his ally. There was no reason for him to object. Furthermore, the little Emperor was completely obedient to him. No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't possibly succeed in stopping him.
The Minister questioned, "Commander Kobayashi, this is the throne room. You should not have the qualifications to enter."
"I am the Commander of the Imperial Palace. Of course I have the right to walk in the palace," Kobayashi retorted.
Then he knelt on one knee and shouted, "Your Majesty! You must not use the [Ultimate Teigu]! Because your subject has just learned that in order to make the Teigu more powerful, the Minister had an alchemist named Dorothea modify it! If Your Majesty pilots it, your mind will surely be controlled, and you will be reduced to a mere killing machine!"
"That is slander!"
The Minister quickly retorted, "That master has superb skills. She only made some minor modifications. After the modification, there will be no effect on Your Majesty. Please believe me, Your Majesty!"
"Is that so..."
The little Emperor began to think and hesitate after hearing this.
—No problem!
The Minister was not flustered at all.
Even though I don't know how he found out, His Majesty has always trusted me. As long as I say a few nice words, His Majesty will eventually sit in it obediently. At that time, I will kill you all, one by one!
He grinned, revealing his pale teeth.
But then he heard the little Emperor say, "Then I won't use it."
"Gak—?!"
The Minister's expression froze. The sound was stuck in his throat; he couldn't speak.
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Kobayashi shouted, and at the same time said, "Your subject wishes to impeach the Prime Minister! During his tenure, he has committed numerous evils, carried out endless tyrannical acts, framed loyal and good officials, treated the national treasury and the people's wealth as his own, taken bribes and bent the law, sold official posts and titles, causing the people's grievances to boil over and the nation's strength to decline, and finally brought the country to the brink of collapse! His crimes are appalling! Your subject implores Your Majesty to have him arrested and subjected to the supreme penalty!"
After a brief moment of shock, the Minister came back to his senses. Hearing his words, he revealed a contemptuous sneer.
Idiot. How could His Majesty possibly listen to you?
"Guards, seize the Minister!"
"...Eh?"
With a single order from the little Emperor, the surrounding guards immediately stepped forward and restrained the Minister.
"—Prime Minister, for the crime of disrupting Our policies and delaying government affairs, We sentence you to be torn apart by oxen."
"...What?!"
The Minister couldn't understand why the little Emperor would say such a thing. And the judgment was too fast; it was not logical at all!
Kobayashi let out a light laugh. "Minister, your next line is... 'Impossible, how could His Majesty listen to you...'"
"Impossible, how could His Majesty listen to you... Ah!"
The Minister's jaw dropped. The successive sudden changes had left him completely unable to figure out what was going on. He could only glare, his eyes about to split, at the little Emperor and Kobayashi.
Then he saw the little Emperor stick his tongue out and make a face at him. That playful and coquettish look did not match His Majesty's behavior at all!
...N-no way!
Although he thought it shouldn't be, it wasn't impossible!
That... that little Emperor sitting on the throne was actually a fake! Not the real one, but an imposter?!
How dare they deceive me?! Are you kidding me!
The Minister flew into a rage and shouted, "Guards! The Emperor on the throne is an imposter! He is not His Majesty at all! Seize him, quickly!"
But not a single person moved.
Are they afraid of the Teigu? Since that's the case...
The Minister used the gem-type Teigu on his forehead, [Erastone], and aimed it at RyuZU beside Kobayashi.
With a crack, the gem shattered.
The Minister, however, laughed and shouted, "Rakshasa Four Demons! The Teigu has been destroyed by me! Seize him, quickly!"
Thank goodness I brought my personal executioners, the Rakshasa Four Demons, in with me. The four of them together can kill a Teigu user, not to mention that Kobayashi no longer has his Teigu. He's just fish on a chopping block, for me to do with as I please!
But still, no one moved.
"Hey! What are you doing?! Rakshasa Four Demons, seize... him, quickly?!"
The Minister scolded his subordinates.
But then he saw the four of them kneeling before Kobayashi, their hands clasped and their eyes lowered, like pious believers.
Kobayashi slowly walked to his side.
He patted his shoulder and said to the stunned Minister, "Minister, you've gotten two things wrong. I never said RyuZU was a Teigu, not once. You can go back and check if you don't believe me. The other is that this whole play was specially arranged for you. How about it? Are you satisfied, Minister?"
"You bastard...!"
The Minister's shoulders shook, and he threw off the spears that were pinning him down. He wanted to grab Kobayashi as a hostage.
Don't be fooled by his round, fat figure. In reality, his martial strength was not weak. As long as he could grab Kobayashi, he would still have a chance to escape.
Unfortunately, his every move was seen by Kobayashi. After letting him pounce, he kicked him in the chest, sending him to the ground.
"You dare to cause a riot in front of His Majesty?" Kobayashi slandered him again and ordered, "Rakshasa Four Demons, take the Minister away! Lock him in the dungeon under heavy guard!"
"Yes!" x4
In the end, the subordinates he had relied on became the shackles that restrained him. Wasn't that a kind of irony?
After the Minister was taken away.
The little Emperor on the throne let out a light laugh. "You really have a wicked sense of humor. You could have easily killed him, but you still had to deliberately humiliate him like this."
"Consider it his punishment."
Kobayashi looked at the Minister's retreating back and said, "He used his schemes to frame countless loyal officials here. In the end, this is also the place where he became the one who was framed. This should be the punishment he is least able to accept, right?"
"Perhaps."
The little Emperor waved his hand, looking unconcerned. Then, he asked, "That [Ultimate Teigu] the Minister mentioned just now... it doesn't really exist, does it?"
"It's real. And it's precisely because of that that I asked you to disguise yourself as the little Emperor to confuse the Minister, Chelsea," Kobayashi said softly.
"Is that so."
Chelsea, disguised as the little Emperor, nodded, then said flightily, "This seat is quite comfortable. No wonder so many people want to sit on it."
"If you like it, the chair is yours."
"Really?! Thank you!"
She looked very happy.
Oh well. Consider it a reward for her hard work these past few days.
When exactly had he been replaced?
Was it when Kobayashi became commander and could freely enter and exit the royal palace?
No, it was much earlier.
With rebellions breaking out all over the Empire, General Budou had to deploy troops to resist the invasions and was often not in the palace. This was what had given Kobayashi the opportunity.
He was quite interested in getting his hands on the [Ultimate Teigu], so he had designed this whole scheme. He didn't know if the Minister liked it.
It would be great if he did.
(End of Chapter)