chapter 110
110. Giraffe (5)
1.
As expected, convincing Elena was the biggest challenge.
I didn’t expect Elena to listen to me right away when I told her that I couldn’t get full on the first drink. It was like setting a kind of psychological limit.
I thought, “Elena, it won’t be easy!” and as I kept hearing things like that from people around me, I realized that maybe I, who was originally not very talkative, was even less able to speak.
“Use it.”
My mouth was watering. Couldn’t I have spoken a little better?
People are said to be creatures who always regret the past, but I couldn’t help but think that if I had explained it a little more logically, Elena wouldn’t have reacted so emotionally.
Or maybe you could try to coax her a little better.
“……Ugh, what’s wrong with my topic.”
He shook his head repeatedly.
As soon as Elena came in, Rasil left the room, and Elena disappeared, looking unusually weak, as if she had been hurt.
In my experience, I had only had one or two relationships that lasted a few months at the age of twenty, when everyone else was dating. There was no way I could do it. If I could have persuaded Elena with my amazing eloquence here, I would have gone to the host bar as a player.
I didn’t have the golden sun talent to seduce women with words. Unfortunately.
No, is it a pity?
I don’t know how I ended up in such an awkward situation that I regret something like this.
Chop chop.
I lightly tapped his cheek twice to get his attention. Actually, I could have just said, “I don’t know,” and run away like a madman, but since it was the path I had chosen, I had to endure it with all my might.
“…It’s a bit excessive, but not everyone is a bad person.”
Sometimes, the weight of unconditional, one-sided favor felt heavy. Even more so because I knew that the reason for it was the feeling of love for me from the last time that I didn’t know about.
But recently, when I was mentally shattered, an incident occurred while I was in a state of soullessness for a while.
When I witnessed Sylphia fighting for her life in a place I didn’t know about, there was something that made me think again rather than simply forgive her.
“I meant it.”
In an empty laboratory with no one listening.
He muttered quietly, out loud.
It’s true that I didn’t really understand it until now. The world is a little strange, but I’ve been living for twenty years with the illusion that it was reincarnation. Just a few months ago, I was living a life that had nothing to do with this kind of thing, so even if they suddenly started talking about regression and such, it wouldn’t really make sense to me.
I’ve had silly thoughts like, “The world has changed this much, so is this a play within a play?” but I couldn’t just accept love that didn’t expect anything in return.
To me, it was just a total stranger until recently. I’m human too, so if you show your affection in that way, it will naturally progress to a certain level of affection, but the relationship that has continued up until now is just that.
I thought it would be most appropriate to say that there was still an invisible barrier blocking the way, and that it had been broken down.
“I don’t know.”
I’m also a bit confused about what I’m thinking, but whatever.
I shrugged my shoulders and placed my hand on the doorknob of my lab.
If it comes out like that, I have to do my best too. It’s the way of the world that if something comes, something goes.
2.
Whether Elena was shocked or not, preparations for Ludrick’s inauguration ceremony proceeded quickly.
The moment Voltaire, the Count of the Palace, who was in charge of the actual work, heard the opinions of the parties concerned, he seemed to have no more hesitation and quickly began the relevant procedures to hold the appointment ceremony.
“I have to break this damn cycle in my generation, okay?”
Thanks to this, the workforce of practitioners was literally being torn apart, but it was as Voltaire, the Count of the Court, had grumbled. In the process of creating something from nothing, after hundreds of years, a formal manual was finally created, and preparations for the appointment ceremony were also progressing step by step.
Since it was a once-in-a-lifetime event, even if Ludrick had wanted a lavish and extravagant inauguration ceremony, it would have been done quickly, but the order to make it as simple and plain as possible was added, so it proceeded with great momentum. The biggest reason was that there was no need to request a budget allocation from the executive branch in charge of the budget.
Of course, a brief event does not necessarily mean one that is hastily carried out.
“The decorations aren’t symmetrical! Hang them straight, straight! Light number three! The magic stone’s lifespan is up!”
The raised voice of Count Palatine Voltaire, who was on the scene and leading the way, showed no sign of abating, but it was tolerable to some extent.
Considering Ludrick’s age of only twenty, this is an event that will not be held again for at least another hundred years.
And the Ludrick known to the world is the line of the second princess, Elena. It’s called a line, but considering their unusually close relationship between a man and a woman, it wouldn’t be strange to mistake them for lovers.
Naturally, the practitioners had no choice but to put in their best efforts, and as a result, they were able to complete all preparations in just two weeks.
It was unprecedented.
“You’re already done with the preparations?”
“Won’t the courtier collapse from overwork like this? It’s going too fast.”
The speed at which the appointment ceremony was set was so fast that some nobles who heard the news were puzzled.
It is normal for events hosted by high-ranking officials to take a long time from preparation to execution. In fact, in the case of the coronation of the current emperor who was bedridden, it took over a year just to prepare, so much so that the coronation ceremony was held a year after the ascension.
However, this time, preparations could be completed quickly because Ludrick wanted a simple ceremony.
And at that time, Eileen had secretly spread a rumor that, without much thought, would be good if Rudrick’s abilities became widely known and he became famous. This quickly encroached upon the political world.
“Why, didn’t you hear when you were young? That a long time ago, a dragon lived in the Norse Mountains beyond the Wall.”
“Is that the legend of the dragon with a fondness for treasure and an eccentric personality? I think I heard it from a bard from the Norse duchy.”
“Yes. This time, the court wizard went on an expedition beyond the barrier and fought the dragon and won.”
“What? You little punk! How can a human wizard fight a dragon and win?”
“But there are more than a few witnesses. Rumor has it that the disturbance beyond the wall was instigated by that dragon, who was angry, and that even His Highness the Grand Duke witnessed it.”
Just standing in front of Ludrick, Eileen’s expression changed and she became more hesitant and shy. The three letters of her name had that much ripple effect and trustworthiness.
A human who fought and defeated the blue dragon that was only mentioned in legends.
It was comparable to the achievements of the heroes of the mythical era, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was the reincarnation of a hero from mythology.
When the name of the Empire’s Black Lion, Archduchess Aileen, began to be sold in a story that was not believed to be complete nonsense, the nobles began to believe the rumors, although they were half-believing it.
The person involved, Ludrick, showed an absurd reaction, saying, “Is that how it is with just one successful spell? I guess I could win if I attacked first and fought by surprise… ” However, in these kinds of stories, the reaction of the person involved is not important.
From Ludrick’s rise to obscure Sylphia’s existence, to Eileen’s rumors, to the preparations for the appointment ceremony ending with unprecedented speed.
The result of many adults’ circumstances becoming intertwined is what happened now.
On the day of the inauguration ceremony, the number of people who gathered at the palace was several times larger than usual. Even when the emperor held a meeting with his vassals to discuss state affairs, there were some who did not attend, but now it seemed that all the nobles of the empire had gathered together due to their interest in Ludrick.
And of course, family couldn’t miss out on such a glorious event.
“……Ahem, the palace is truly splendid.”
“Honey, are you going to wander around like a country bumpkin?”
Count Alin Weiss, Ludrick’s mother, was dumbfounded by the grandeur of the palace she had never seen before, and Ludrick’s father scolded her from the side.
The youngest son, who had been a headache for not marrying even after turning twenty, was personally scouted by Princess Elena and came to the capital, but in just a few months, he rose to the position of court magician of the country. To Ludrick’s family, it was like a wall between heaven and earth.
Furthermore, with the rumor that he had fought and won against a dragon spreading, interest in the person behind the rumor exploded.
The Hall of the Sun, where the appointment ceremony was held, was larger than two or three of the Imperial Knights’ training grounds combined, but now the vast hall was crowded with nobles from all over the place. From Ludrick’s parents’ perspective, they couldn’t help but feel bewildered at the thought that all these nobles had come to see their son appointed as a court magician.
An appointment ceremony held with the approval of all and with the blessings of all.
And in the waiting room inside the hall, Ludrick was adjusting his clothes.
“……Fuck. Why did it turn out like this?”
Naturally occurring swear words.
Clearly, he had ordered a simple ceremony from Count Voltaire, but no matter how you looked at it, the crowd in the hall outside now seemed far from simple. No matter how much you tried to steel yourself, it would be strange not to tremble in front of such a large number.
The yawning cat, Arwen, responded as if it didn’t matter to her since it was none of her business.
“You brought this upon yourself. Take responsibility for it.”
“Can you stop telling me it’s none of your business?”
“Isn’t that right? I can say that because it’s not my job.”
Suddenly, Ludrick felt the urge to punch Arwen in the face.