Chapter 59: Scarcity (3) I watched Jun Kandel and Sonette run. For four hours, the two of them did nothing but move in silence. Jun had surprisingly good stamina; he must have trained diligently, as his movements remained steady and unwavering.
"Shall we take a break?"
As the sun began to set, Jun pointed toward a cave nestled within the forest.
"As you wish."
We stepped inside. As soon as they found a spot, Sonette unrolled her sleeping bag and lay down, while Jun sat back against the cave wall.
I started a campfire.
Crackle.
The rising flames illuminated the interior.
I looked back and forth between Jun and Sonette, recalling the Kandel family from before my regression. However, I lacked detailed memories. During the process of their downfall and the family's destruction, I had been too busy running for my life.
I didn't know how Jun met his end. But there was one thing I remembered clearly.
Sonette Kandel, at the very least, had died by hanging.
"Maximilian."
Jun suddenly called my name.
"Yes."
"How did you know... that Pexy..."
He pursed his lips before letting out a sigh-like breath.
"How did you know that thing was the culprit?"
The memory still seemed to cause him pain.
"It was surprisingly simple. It became easy once I assumed the Head-Eater was a mage using a 'Brain Chimera.' Three years ago, when the Head-Eater first appeared, that sub-species had also arrived in the capital."
"He couldn't have been the only one, though?"
This fellow had started speaking informally to me at some point, but I didn't mind. On paper, he was nine years older than me, after all.
"But he was the only noble without any connections. There were plenty of nobles who had a father even if they lacked a mother, or a mother if they lacked a father—or even siblings if they lacked parents."
"...I suppose. That damn bastard probably killed Pexy and her whole family before coming up here. She had such a lovely face, too. What a waste."
Jun bit his lip hard.
It seemed it wasn't pain he was feeling. This man was still lamenting the loss of Pexy's beauty.
"Sigh..."
I stared intently at Jun as he ruffled his hair.
"Sir Kandel."
"...Don't call me that. It's embarrassing."
"What does Kandel want?"
The great House of Kandel was a patron of the Magic Towers and magical engineering; they dominated finance and commerce, and they dictated the direction of art and culture.
Why would such people suddenly coil themselves within the Imperial Guard?
To my question, Jun replied with a smile that sounded like a lament.
"Ask my father."
Jun's words felt strangely familiar, and then he threw the same question back at me.
"What does Ebenholtz want?"
"..."
I used to dislike Jun quite a bit in the past. I felt a sense of rivalry toward him that I never felt toward my peers at Empire Point or other nobles of my age.
I felt like I finally understood why.
"Why don't you ask my father?"
People hate their own kind. Because they see the most pathetic parts of themselves reflected back like a mirror.
"..."
"..."
I looked at Jun. Jun looked at me in a similar fashion. When our eyes met, we both frowned slightly and looked away.
It was a damn annoying face. Jun probably thought the same.
I still don't understand. How can a person's name just be 'Jun'? In this regard, Zebestian Ebenholtz is slightly better than Matheus Kandel.
Meanwhile, Jun stood up.
"Well then, I'll leave my sister in your hands."
"Are you leaving already?"
"I've run enough, haven't I?"
He shrugged and walked out of the cave. He trudged away with his guards, who had approached at some point.
"..."
I looked at Sonette. She was lying down, asleep. She was likely pretending, but I closed my eyes as well, leaning my sword against my shoulder.
Even a guard needs rest.
*
We ran like that for two days. At night, we found suitable campsites to sleep, and during the day, we ran. Monsters appeared occasionally, but I handled them without much difficulty.
During that time, Sonette didn't say a single word to me. I didn't go out of my way to talk to her either. There was no reason to.
In the end, we were children of competing Great Houses—'enemies,' so to speak.
"Hm?"
As we ran, we suddenly discovered the Milk Lake. The deep lake was as pure white as milk.
Beyond that, there was a Crystal Cave and ornamental trees made of gold leaf. These were decorations set up in advance by the organizers. It was a scene of waste and extravagance.
"There are many events."
"..."
Whenever such things appeared, Sonette would stop for a moment and watch intently.
Whether it was because they were beautiful or because they were pathetic, I couldn't quite read her expression.
She began running through the forest again. I followed behind her.
"Let's rest here for today."
By the time the sun had set again, I set up camp near a stream.
I started a fire and was about to prepare some pasta for dinner when...
"Sir Knight, what do you think about the Empire's economy?"
Sonette blurted out something completely unexpected for the first time.
"...The economy?"
"Yes."
"I am not an economist."
"To put it simply, in the Empire today, the top 10% hold more than 80% of the wealth. It is a very unstable structure."
As she said, the Empire's inequality was worsening by the day, and it was likely at an all-time historical high.
"The lower classes are in a situation where they can't even secure the minimum goods necessary for survival. In the lower districts of the capital, subjects are dying of hunger, yet they don't even have the freedom to relocate."
"Is that so?"
I nodded and put the pasta into the pot.
"...That's unexpected."
Sonette looked at me with a peculiar expression.
"Unexpected?"
"Yes. Usually, when I say things like this, imperialists like you retort by asking if I'm denying the Empire itself."
Imperialists like you. Even coming from Sonette, that was a rather dangerous choice of words.
I asked her back.
"Are you not an imperialist?"
"I am a woman of letters who has no interest in politics."
"You are also an Aranian of the Empire. You should take some interest."
An event is currently underway. We don't know who might be eavesdropping on our conversation, or from where.
We must always keep in mind: the Imperial Family is the master of the Empire. No matter how corrupt or tilted they may be, they are the ones who have ruled this nation for a thousand years. They must never be underestimated. The Emperor's eyes and ears are everywhere and nowhere.
"Do you think my words attack the Empire?"
Sonette asked persistently.
"No. If there is someone who thinks that, they are a fraud."
"A fraud?"
"Yes. Denying reality does nothing to help the Empire. In fact, the concentration of wealth is not beneficial to the Empire."
Did I have things like culture and scholarship inside my head?
Certainly, I wasn't without them.
Lately, the thing I felt was the 'best thing I did before my regression' was reading.
After the Empire fell, the New Cabinet talked excitedly about why their Empire had fallen and how they had won. The history of victory and free academic pursuits were published in newspapers, magazines, and countless books. Having escaped the Empire's oppression, they spread highly creative knowledge.
"If the Empire's lower classes cannot function as efficient factors of production and wealth is excessively concentrated in the upper class, it leads to a vicious cycle where reinvestment in human capital naturally ceases."
I read such things while wandering as a fugitive.
I had no choice but to read them.
From the perspective of a 'war criminal' wandering the continent, time was the only thing I had in abundance. Moreover, how could I not read those bundles of paper that I used as my blanket, floor mat, and pillow?
Thanks to that, I was at a level where I wouldn't be intimidated by such a conversation.
"Subjects who have not received education and technical training will decline in quality, which will lead directly to a loss for the Empire as a whole."
An excerpt from a column I read once, titled The Empire Fell Because of Its Economy.
Sonette stared at me intently and asked.
"...If it's a loss for the Empire, shouldn't it be resolved?"
"Yes. I already know the answer."
The nobles who practiced extortion. The bourgeoisie who exploited workers under the guise of being entrepreneurs.
There was an opportunity to blow those pieces of trash away all at once.
"War."
War is a process of tightening internal control to crush the external. Therefore, the vermin eating away at the Empire will be swept away by the war. The power and authority I build up will shatter them.
And thus, the most sharply honed blade will exterminate the otherworldly species hiding in the continent—the Izenheim.
"As the subjects of the Imperial Aranians, we will subjugate all inferior races..."
This was the foundation of the ideology held by the Empire's war criminals. It was the banner of the Empire that the Revolutionary Group despised, and at the same time, the only way to ensure the survival of humanity.
"...and achieve perfect rule."
Sonette nodded quietly.
"In that case, can the Empire win the war?"
I gave a bitter smile at Sonette's foolish question.
"Naturally, it must."
The Empire, loathed by the continent, is humanity's only breakwater.
The option of defeat does not exist.
Because the moment we lose, every existence will perish.
* * *
Sonette 'crossed' the forest. The finish line was right before her eyes. A marathon was one of the activities she utterly loathed, but it was necessary even if only to grasp the intentions of Maximilian, whose reputation had been rising rapidly lately.
"It's over there."
Maximilian smiled as he looked at the finish line. It seemed he disliked marathons as much as she did.
Many people were already waiting at the finish line.
"There she comes!"
"Ah~ yes! The next finisher is Lady Sonette Kandel of the Kandel family!"
She finished amidst applause and fanfares. Unfortunately, she didn't make it into the rankings, but it was valuable enough.
"Oh? Good to see you, Max!"
While she was being congratulated, someone called Maximilian 'Max.' Sonette also turned to look.
Familiar curly hair and a pale face.
It was Reutern II.
"..."
Maximilian remained silent even as he looked at him. Reutern furrowed his brow slightly.
"Aren't you glad to see me? Why the long face?"
Reutern II's father was a giant in the Empire's political world. He could be called one of the pillars of the House of Nobles residing in the Imperial Palace. This was because he was of a royal bloodline that had been subjugated by the Empire long ago.
"No. Of course not. It is a great pleasure to see you."
No matter how much of an Ebenholtz one was, one had to maintain etiquette toward a 'person of the Imperial Family.'
Maximilian smiled at Reutern.
"Lord Reutern, what brings you here?"
"Ah~ it's nothing else, but that thing called the Aura Sphere! Sell me some! I heard it's popular lately? It seems my guard wants one too."
"...Yes. I will see what I can do."
People of the Imperial Palace often intentionally picked fights with the children of Great Houses, and the children of Great Houses usually just let it slide—Jun was especially like that—but Maximilian was surprisingly good at hiding his true feelings.
"Max, it makes me feel good to see you doing well lately. When we met before, you looked like you were about to die. You've gotten quite plump, too."
"Is that so? I haven't particularly gained any weight."
"Oh, really? No, you have. You're fat."
There was definitely an intent to insult in Reutern II's words and tone.
"Anyway, send them over right away. You know my address, right?"
"Yes. I understand."
"Yeah~ thanks~"
Despite this, Maximilian did not show any sign of humiliation. To Sonette, it was quite an interesting sight.
"Let's go, Sonette Kandel."
Maximilian gestured to her.
Sonette muttered as she followed closely behind him.
"I heard there's a shortage of Aura Spheres. I guess you have stock left?"
"No. There is none. So, even if I wanted to send them, I can't."
A faint sneer hung on the lips of the muttering Maximilian.
"Aha. That's unfortunate for Reutern."
He didn't assert his pride in front of a person from the Imperial Palace, yet he wasn't swayed by their vulgarity either.
He was a solid man.
"Are you an acquaintance of Lord Reutern?"
At Maximilian's question, Sonette looked back for a moment. Her eyes met Reutern II's, who was glancing at her.
"Yes."
She replied quietly, fiddling with the necklace inside her clothes.
"I saw him often when I was young."
...Suddenly, her past came to mind.
Sonette Enciela von Kandel.
Before she was a lady of the Kandel family, she had been raised in the deepest parts of the Imperial Palace since she was very young. She had been arranged that way from birth to grow up as the Emperor's eyes and ears, and now she was tasked with groping through the Empire's shadows to report back to the Imperial Family.
The Imperial Family did not have an official title for such an existence, but all the people of the Empire called them this, likening them to a certain legend.
Agentes Augusti.
* * *
—One month since the publication of Maximilian's "Knight Formula: Aura Sphere."
Chiron's intuition had been correct. The "Aura Sphere" had taken off completely.
Now, not only knights but also mages across the Empire began seeking the formula book, and naturally, a shortage occurred.
Noble knights repeated like parrots that they were looking for an "Aura Sphere." Some even dared to try and solicit Maximilian, but he turned them all away on the grounds that production took a long time.
"...I couldn't get one either."
"Me neither."
This was Chiron's secret room.
Not only first- to third-year knights but even those entering their fifth and sixth years were making such complaints.
"You know that guy Er-on, right? Every time I see him, he brags about how he got one. It's so annoying."
"...Honestly, it's offensive. I've heard that many former knights especially have managed to get the formula book. They're already in their fifties, so why are they doing that? They should leave some for us young ones."
There was a lot of dissatisfaction particularly toward 'former' knights—those who had retired from the knight orders and opened their own knight offices. Generational conflict manifested in this way, but of course, whether young or old, they were all adults. All adults equally liked excellent things and equally wanted to possess cool things.
The young ones had no right to criticize them simply because they were young.
"Ahem. Stop saying such wicked things and pay attention. I have something to show you."
Chiron pulled a cube from his breast pocket. It was a mana stone cube he had received from Maximilian just last night.
The knights' eyes widened.
"Watch closely."
With it fixed to his chest, he manifested an Aura Sphere.
Whirring—
The strength itself wasn't fully perfected yet, but the shape of the translucent sphere was unmistakable.
The knights wore envious expressions.
"This is why I called you all here."
"...To show us the Aura Sphere?"
The young ones, including Reynel, pouted their lips sullenly.
If he just let it slide like this, his reputation would hit rock bottom.
"Hahaha."
Chiron laughed and snapped his fingers. Servants entered and placed luxurious boxes at each knight's seat.
As they looked on in bewilderment, Chiron's expression turned serious.
"I am well aware. Among the prominent noble families of the Sentinels, I may not appear traditional."
Tradition is time accumulated over a very long period.
No individual can overcome time.
"However, I would like to say this. That is why I am a 'Rising Star.' Because I am new, I can become a power different from those before me."
He then gestured toward the boxes.
"Check them."
The knights opened the boxes one by one. In an instant, their eyes flew wide open.
Inside the box was a top-quality hardcover book that seemed to hold a silvery glow—the "Aura Sphere."
"Yes. From today, we will study this formula book together."
Chiron continued.
"His Imperial Majesty will eventually want war, and we cannot avoid it."
He was skilled at reading the political situation. He had a vague idea of what the Imperial Family ultimately wanted.
"This is my gift to help you play an active role when that time comes. You'll be at least a few months ahead of the others."
"No, Sir Knight. How could you give us something so precious..."
"Is it really alright for us to receive this?"
All of Chiron's subordinates now had moved faces.
"Don't feel burdened. It's just a token of my heart."
"...Sir Knight."
Then, one by one, they stood up from their seats and saluted.
Chiron swept his gaze over their faces.
Among them were many whose families were of higher status than Chiron's—in other words, those who were 'traditional.' Reynel and Zionne were especially so.
Yet, they were expressing such gratitude and loyalty.
"...Good."
Items that can be bought with money are low-grade.
Items that can only be bought with a lot of money are mid-grade.
However, items that cannot be bought with money are called 'treasures' and evoke this kind of loyalty.
"Now, everyone sit down. It's embarrassing."
Chiron himself was the same. He had received as many as ten theoretical books from Maximilian. There had been a clear condition for that favor.
Lately, Chiron had been feeling a certain 'string' shimmering above his head. It was a silver string that resembled moonlight, connected to the greatest family in the Empire.
However, that string was still testing him for now. If he grabbed it prematurely, it might slip away.
Therefore, he had to wait until the other could trust him. He had to solidify his own power even further.
"Thank the original author, Maximilian, rather than me."
Chiron still remembered that day.
The power of authority that had dismissed the Magic Tower Master, Nikolaus, with just a single word. The 'tradition' he had longed for so much.
To grab that Ebenholtz string, to stand more as an equal...
He would first have to take on a 'form' worthy of it.
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