My Alter Ego’s Path to Greatness - Chapter 188

#188

Imperial Palace of the Empire (2)

The 5th Princess Palace located on one side of the Imperial Palace.

If you returned home after a long time, it was natural to say hello to your parents. If you visited someone else’s house, it was natural to say hello to the landlord.

However, if the other person was the emperor of the empire, even that would not end with a simple greeting.

In that sense, a luncheon with complicated procedures and strict etiquette was bound to be a cumbersome and frustrating event for those who were not familiar with it.

“Sniff, I just hate that kind of position. I want to eat comfortably. “Do I have to go too?”

And in the warrior party, the manly and barbarian warrior Harley was exactly such a case.

“Hmm…”

“Definitely…”

Not only Isea, who had been with him for quite some time, but even Riley, who had only accompanied him briefly, nodded seriously.

The wild image of him eating griffin meat still remained vivid in my mind.

From his personality to his words and actions to his fashion, he was so unconventional that he was completely unsuitable for formal occasions.

“…Actually, it won’t matter if only the saint goes as a representative. “I hate to say this, but the three of us, excluding the saint, feel like we’re on the sidelines.”

Isea, who exchanged glances with Riley for a moment, lightly shrugged her shoulders and continued speaking as if it was no big deal.

“Because our circumstances are different from the irreplaceable saint. “Still, it’s okay to completely ignore him, so I feel like I’m treating him out of respect for the saint.”

Also, unlike the other two, who were at least aristocrats, Harley, who was a complete brute, lacked the so-called ‘class’.

If it weren’t for his background as a member of a death squad, he probably wouldn’t have been able to enter the imperial palace at all.

“Ah, then I’ll leave too.”

Geos, who had been quiet at her words, intervened as if he had been waiting.

Although he was also a nobleman of the Kingdom of Lesk, he was secretly ostracized because he was from a commoner background, so he was not used to this kind of position.

He was so indifferent to politics that he didn’t even meet his country’s king very often.

Of course, Hesperon, which just happened to come along, was not covered in the first place.

“Then can we eat in peace? To be honest, I was curious about what the imperial palace chef’s skills would be like, but it turned out well! Hahaha!”

“Yes, I will inform my palace’s personal chef. “So that you can eat the way you want.”

In the end, it was decided that only Heinrich and Riley Isea would attend the luncheon with the Emperor.

And while they were away for preparations, Harley and Hesperon naturally approached Geos and had a pleasant conversation.

“Now— shall we go too? “What does the meat eaten in the imperial family taste like?”

“oh! It’s my first time in this world eating high-end cuisine, so I’m really looking forward to it. Of course, I took advantage of this and that with my abilities.”

“Now that I think about it, you said your brother came from another world, right?”

“That’s right. But you can speak freely, bro! Just call me Heron. “Ah, can I call you brother?”

“Khahahaha—! Are you a cool friend? “Then let’s do it, Heron!”

“Wow, I feel very reassured that I have such a great brother!”

Two people chatting excitedly, giving and receiving from each other.

If you look at the reality, it was no different from a skit where he was alone with his brother and sister, but on the outside, he looked completely normal without any discomfort.

“Oh, Geos, please feel free to call me Heron. Hey, I’m glad I met good people as soon as I got out of here. Hahaha!”

“…I understand, Mr. Heron.”

And of course, the reason they looked like this was entirely because of Geos Calkin, who was sitting right next to them.

‘First of all, I’ll have to make him and Hesperon a little closer.’

Before moving from the Duchy of Rohan to here, there were words he carefully spoke to Henry.

Among his acquaintances, there is someone who has revealed himself to be from another world, so maybe he can get some information from him.

‘From what I heard, it sounds like he’s been in this world for at least 20 years. Assuming that’s true… is he also a settler who gave up on returning?’

settler.

It refers to those who have given up collecting karma points to return and are completely stuck in another world…

It was a path sometimes chosen by those who had no particular attachment to Earth but became more attached to it.

Of course, he only came into contact with them indirectly.

In some ways, this could be said to be a good opportunity to meet the person in person and obtain information.

‘As an Earthling who has just crossed over to another world. In that sense, it would be best for a close friend, Geos, to introduce Hesperon directly.’

Of course, if it were Heinrich, it wouldn’t be that difficult to face him, but wouldn’t the range of questions you could ask as an awakened person from Earth be on a different level from what you could say as a saint from another world?

“Come on, let’s stop being like this and go eat some meat together! “The belly skin will stick to my back!”

“Hahaha! Brother, it’s been less than two hours since you ate meat as a snack. Oh, Geos, please come quickly too!”

Regardless of time and place, eating together is the best way to build friendships.

Harley, a rough and fierce barbarian man, and Hesperon, a tactless and naive young man, walked majestically into the restaurant.

In the meantime, Geos is following along with an uneasy expression on his face.

***

The current Emperor of the Empire, Gario Carte Azerion.

Now close to sixty, he was a man with faded blond hair and intense light green eyes who looked more like a military officer than a scholar.

“Thank you for your hard work in coming this far. I knew very well that you worked hard to protect the world, but it is shameless to say hello to you now. And this time, you even saved Princess Riley.”

“no. Doesn’t everyone in the world know that the emperor is busy? “It is also more important than anything else to keep the great empire steady during this tribulation.”

It was natural, but a luncheon with the emperor of the Azerion Empire, which could be said to be the greatest power of Outerica, and the saint of the main church could not have been just a meal.

It was a bit less so now that Heinrich was in his position as the leader of the organization rather than the representative of the religious order. Otherwise, it would have been difficult to even think about meals due to the suffocating tension.

‘Ugh—should I have just fallen for it too? I participated because I thought I could be of some help to Riley… but how can I eat in this atmosphere!’

Of course, the current situation was not a very good environment for eating.

Ise-ah, who sighed inwardly, glanced at her surroundings and gnawed at the silverware.

I wasn’t in the mood to eat anything right now, but I couldn’t just sit by myself while everyone else was eating normally.

“Viscount Isea Pristine.”

At that moment, her body became rigid.

Although I didn’t do anything wrong, I was momentarily taken aback by the emperor’s sudden call while I was very nervous.

But that time was only a moment.

“Your Majesty the Emperor. “Please order.”

She used to be an ordinary girl on Earth, but now she is a great wizard who goes beyond extremes and knocks on the wall of transcendence.

The tension up until now was only due to her ego as ‘high school girl Lee Se-ah’, and when the situation actually came, she calmed down and was able to observe the situation from a step back.

“The situation is moving so quickly that it’s only now that I’m speaking out. Thanks to the Viscount’s actions, our empire also stood up. Once the situation is somewhat resolved, there will be good news for the Viscount soon. So please continue to take good care of me.”

He was talking about joining the hero’s party and being active as a saint’s companion.

Although he had no choice but to step forward to save Riley, there was no need to reject the offer of praise and reward.

“I bow to you, Your Majesty the Emperor. “I just did what I had to do.”

The Emperor nodded slightly at her humble words and then turned his gaze back to Riley.

His always solemn expression wavered for a moment when he looked at her, but he quickly regained his composure and soon spoke calmly to her as if nothing had happened.

“It’s good that you’re back now, Princess Riley. “It’s been a lot of hard work.”

“…Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“But there’s one thing I’d like to ask you…”

The conversation felt stiff, not something a father and daughter would exchange after meeting for the first time in a long time.

As if it wasn’t just because it was a public place, they talked naturally as if they were used to it.

The question the emperor asked was, of course, one that everyone would have wondered about.

The question was how she was able to escape ‘alone’.

‘It’s definitely a problem that can’t be easily overcome. ‘Because this is a case that is difficult to understand.’

Heinrich internally agreed and slowly moved the knife to cut the steak.

If it weren’t for the saint who saved the princess this time, she wouldn’t have found her place as easily as she did now.

In fact, even now, because of the saint’s prestige, she is not able to come forward openly, and her political opponents are spreading all kinds of rumors.

From the claim that she was a fake transformed into a princess, to the concern that Riley was planning to unleash the fatal curse hidden in her body in the midst of the leadership, to the conviction that Riley had already been brainwashed and became a stooge of the Immortal King.

All of them were speculations based on the assumption that Hans had released her on purpose.

“The reason I was able to escape was entirely thanks to the ability of another person who was trapped with me. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have even dreamed of escaping. “I was just lucky to be around him.”

Then she began to tell the situation in a calm voice.

The crown prince has been unable to communicate with her since he was imprisoned. Meanwhile, a man with special abilities appears, continuing magical education, and a sudden appearance of hope.

Of course, the conflict with the crown prince at the end was intentionally left out in the explanation.

There was no need to leave room for confusion by mentioning that part.

“Hmm—.”

As the story ended with the crisis that occurred immediately after escaping from the immortal castle and the sudden appearance of a saint who saved them, the emperor fell into a heavy sigh and quietly closed his eyes.

I wondered if it was possible, but listening to what she said, there was almost no chance that the crown prince could escape in the same way.

I didn’t even think I could use it in reverse.

Princess Riley’s escape was a combination of many factors and was full of coincidences and luck.

A weak possibility that feels artificial in some way and cannot be expected in general.

But since it actually happened, it was something that couldn’t be denied.

Coincidence becomes inevitability, and probabilities that seem so small as to be impossible become reality.

…We usually call it ‘fate’.

Sigh—

The Emperor slowly opened his closed eyes and turned his gaze back to Heinrich.

“…Now that I think about it, the second continental summit is not far away.”

“That’s right. “There’s less than two weeks left.”

Unlike the first meeting, he was busy with the warrior party, but he was consistently receiving news from the church.

There is also a rumor that the saint is being divided again because of that incident.

“We will send Fifth Princess Riley as the representative of the Azerion Empire’s delegation.”

The emperor continued speaking in a calm tone.

When Prince Simon and Princess Riley were kidnapped, the 2nd and 6th princes were fighting each other for the position they were aiming for… but

now that she had returned, it was meaningless.

‘at las…!’

Riley and Isea clenched their fists at the same time.

Although he was only a representative of a delegation, these were the words spoken by the emperor himself in the presence of the saint of the main religious order.

It is natural that there is more meaning than just the meaning of the sentence.

Riley’s War, which had been a temporary truce, resumed and immediately began laying waste to the rivals’ camps.