NOVEL NEXT Chapter 294
“Have you been well?”
“Yes. Nothing much happened.”
As I replied flatly, the Adelhaid Duke nodded slightly and tilted his teacup. His neatly swept back white hair sparkled in the sunlight.
‘He used to speak to me in a commanding tone, but now he’s being formal.’
The Adelhaid Duke’s manner towards me had gradually become more polite over time, to the point where he no longer openly treated me as an inferior. That attitude felt rather awkward.
If he just continued as before, it wouldn’t be strange at all, but I couldn’t be sure if he was genuinely apologetic, which made me even more uneasy.
No, more importantly. Didn’t he used to treat me like I was insane?
Suddenly feeling quite bad, I tried not to show it and set my teacup down. The rich aroma of black tea, tailored to the tastes of high-ranking nobles, didn’t exactly please my palate. It felt like my mouth was soaked in the scent of black tea.
I felt strangely compelled by the Duke’s dramatically changed attitude, and I cautiously placed my teacup down. I wondered if I was simply a helpless human.
“Just act as usual. Why are you suddenly being so formal?”
“Ah, no. I just….”
“Weren’t you naturally looking down on me? I don’t mind, so you can treat me as before.”
“…Then, I will.”
Though I doubted whether I should accept it so readily, anyway.
The Adelhaid Duke set his teacup down and scratched his chin. His well-groomed white beard trembled with the movement of his fingers.
“Have you read the letter I sent last week?”
“Yes. I read it carefully.”
“…There wasn’t much need for that. There was no hidden intent behind what was written on the stationery.”
“That’s not it; it was unnecessarily verbose. I couldn’t understand it fully after reading it once.”
“…….”
“Anyway, I would like to hear a detailed explanation.”
The Adelhaid Duke stared at me intently, then let out a small sigh and looked up at the ceiling. A hint of worry and concern was deeply etched in his eyes as he gazed upwards.
“Actually, I don’t think I can give you a detailed explanation. According to national security laws, you’re still considered an outsider in this matter.”
“Then why did you call me?”
“…Well, I wanted your help.”
“Without a detailed explanation?”
“…….”
As I asked in disbelief, it seemed he felt it was unreasonable himself, as his face flushed and paled repeatedly.
“There might be an unprecedented incident at the Academy. Let’s discuss it in detail when we meet again soon. I came all this way to meet you, giving up my only day off of the week, believing the contents of your letter, and now you can’t explain the details… Are you mocking me?”
“…Please understand. Given my circumstances…”
“First, I would like you to explain that there might be an unprecedented incident at the Academy.”
I had no reason to understand. To be honest, I felt overwhelmingly that he was dragging me into a bothersome issue by using a topic that would provoke an immediate response from me. Otherwise, why would I willingly give up my Saturday, which could be called my only day off, to come meet the Adelhaid Duke?
‘I was hoping to get a good rest, at least.’
Though the frequency of my nightmares had significantly decreased, on average, I still wasn’t getting enough sleep. The sleeping arrangement had merely become somewhat more comfortable.
As I was still not fully recovered from exhaustion, being summoned to the house of someone I didn’t even want to see was exceedingly irritating. Of course, I didn’t openly show this sentiment.
“Please explain. Can’t you just omit the parts that are difficult to discuss under the national security law and proceed?”
“That’s true, but when it comes to explaining that way… I just don’t know how to put it into words.”
The Adelhaid Duke’s hesitation grew longer. While he struggled to organize his thoughts, I silently shoved the snacks and black tea in front of me into my mouth.
‘Delicious.’
Who could argue against that? It was certain that the Duke’s household had excellent taste. Even the simple snacks served to guests were so good that it made me think maybe I wouldn’t distance myself from visiting.
I was confident that among those who visited the Adelhaid Duke, there were people who couldn’t break away from this upper-class flavor and kept coming back. I also had a liking for sweet things.
On the other hand, the black tea didn’t suit my taste at all, so I only took sips when I wanted to wash away the lingering sweetness filling my mouth.
Thanks to that, the black tea left in my teacup didn’t differ much from the Adelhaid Duke’s, who had hardly touched it since he tilted it for the first time.
Just as I was considering whether to be grateful for such delicate hospitality, the Adelhaid Duke, who seemed to have finally organized his thoughts, lifted his head and looked at the table.
On the plate laid before us, there were scarcely any remnants of the snacks left.
“…It seems it suited your taste.”
“…….”
As I absentmindedly ate a bite or two, it felt like I was entranced. In return, the sweetness in my mouth was so rich that it felt sticky.
I took a sip of black tea to wash it down. The scent of the undesirable black tea mixed in made me shudder.
“Anyhow, that’s not the main issue.”
“Yes.”
“I will explain. Here’s what’s going on…”
The Adelhaid Duke’s expression grew serious. I found myself unconsciously adjusting my posture.
“You know who the Chancellor of the Academy is, right?”
“Isn’t it Chancellor Damian?”
“Yes. Then you know what sort of situation Chancellor Damian is in?”
“I’m not sure. Chancellor Damian said something meaningful to me, so I’ve been trying to find out more, but it hasn’t been very productive… Wait, is this related?”
“It is indeed. You see, Chancellor Damian suddenly went on a business trip around last fall, right?”
I involuntarily flinched. I didn’t know how the Adelhaid Duke was aware of the internal matters of the Academy, but I had a bad feeling about it.
“Yes. I know. My desire to figure out what happened to Chancellor Damian is also due to that.”
“In that case, the story gets faster. From now on, stay sharp and listen closely to what I have to say. Damn it, talking about this freely is a violation of national security laws…”
“…Are you going to tell me or not?”
“I will. Ugh… You, keep your mouth shut. Don’t go blabbing about this somewhere.”
I couldn’t tell how many times he was warning me, but that must have meant it was an important story. Typically, hearing such tales leads to troublesome circumstances, but if the Academy’s future was uncertain, it was worth listening to.
As I nodded absentmindedly, the Adelhaid Duke, now reassured, carefully began to speak.
“The war might break out.”
“…….”
I slowly raised my body. The Adelhaid Duke looked up at me with slightly surprised eyes.
“If you’re planning to joke, I’ll take my leave.”
“Ah, no. What makes you think it’s a joke?”
“Then, is it not? Wars don’t just break out easily. There’s economic mobilization, or conscription, or at the very least, the media that has an incredible sense of smell hasn’t stirred anything up yet, and there are no signs of it either.”
Wars aren’t a child’s play. The weight behind such words is unimaginable.
The Adelhaid Duke was at a loss for words for a moment, merely gaping, before he sighed and gestured for me to sit again.
It didn’t seem like he was joking around, so I had no choice but to sit back down with a sense of uneasiness.
“So, what is the source of that information?”
“…The intelligence agency. Federal Intelligence Agency.”
“Is it Chief Curbin?”
“Don’t ask for the exact source. It’s really dangerous. You might not see the sun tomorrow morning.”
“I’m not asking for that much. Please explain it a bit more understandably.”
An exasperated sigh slipped out. I wanted to smoke a cigarette right away, but no matter how I thought, as a guest, it felt out of place to openly smoke in the parlor.
“I can’t give you detailed information, but the elf society has been getting quite noisy lately. There are talks of needing to overthrow the king, or going to war with the Empire again to nullify the reparations….”
“…Reparations.”
The victorious nation in war can enjoy immense wealth and economic prosperity, while the defeated nation is forced to pay colossal reparations that can break their backs. Even an average soldier knows this fact.
Especially since a portion of the pensions paid to war veterans like me comes from these reparations, I cannot be oblivious to the source of the money I receive.
But the elves are refusing to pay reparations and are coming at it with such attitudes?
‘Dangerous, but does it really have to come to war?’
I’m not someone involved in politics, nor am I a strategist skilled in the power plays between nations. Unlike the Adelhaid Duke, I can’t devote my full attention to national affairs and access information unknown to ordinary people. Therefore, the Duke’s words were enough to generate pure curiosity.
“Would the elves really want to wage war?”
“…If they were sane, they wouldn’t.”
“Are you saying that the elves are not sane?”
The Adelhaid Duke merely nodded quietly. His dark expression showed no signs of deceit.
If the war were to break out again, the Academy would certainly not enjoy peace as it had before. Students who graduated last year might experience the horrors of war firsthand.
In whatever way, being caught up in war means that.
“This is not pleasant news at all. But can’t it be prevented? For instance, temporarily easing the reparations…”
“…The situation isn’t that simple. Within the Empire, there are many discontented with the peace treaty from the past.”
“…….”
In that case, I had nothing to say. Naturally, the heads of state and military would only pursue their own interests.
It was a war from which countless young people were lost. Those few who knew the sacrifices involved would not be satisfied unless they wiped the elves and dwarves from the map.
Of course, it’s not that there are large numbers of overly patriotic lunatics. Therefore, considering the Adelhaid Duke’s political stance, I thought it could be a negotiable matter.
However, the following words from the Adelhaid Duke completely overturned my thoughts.
“The real big problem is that, if the situation worsens… conscription might take place at the Academy.”
“Ah, no.”
At the Caldera Imperial Academy, conscriptions would occur.
Not only that of the professors, who are adults, but perhaps even the upper-year students, one by one…
“…Such a thing cannot be accepted.”
It doesn’t make sense. It’s absurd to drain the Academy, which encompasses the Empire’s talents, like that. They can’t freely conscript an Academy under royal authority.
Unless there’s an exception, of course.
“Chancellor Damian agreed to conscript the Academy in case of emergency.”
The Chancellor, who is the overall responsible person of the Academy, would not comply unless the nation called upon him.
“…What?”
I stared blankly at the Adelhaid Duke.
Hoping that my ears had deceived me.