Stranger's Handbook

“Were you able to sleep last night? Don’t push yourself too much, all right?”

“Thank you, master. There is nothing to worry about.”

Because of the Emperor’s letter, Suu turned ghastly pale last night, and I also took great damage.

I wanted to talk about it again, now that the night passed.

“Can you arrange a meeting with the Emperor?”

“An informal one is possible. In the evening, I’ll make plans for you to visit his Majesty’s residential area to discuss young lady Tsubaki’s marriage. This should work.”

It’s perfect.

She truly is excellent at this sort of things.

“Please do it then. Also, write to Katalina and tell her to make preparations as well. And send a secret messenger to the Frontier Count. “

“Certainly! What are the contents of the message?”

“......The fairy-tale might repeat. He’ll understand.”

“As you wish. I’ll make the necessary arrangements....... What about Lamia-sama?”

She probably felt uneasy because I didn’t mention my mother-in-law at all.

But it’s all right.

“I’m sure that Bea will go visit mother-in-law. She’ll tell her then.”

“That’s right. If we make too much of a commotion, it will become suspicious.”

Suu agreed, then left the room.

Today will be a very busy day......

I entrusted Bea with contacting mother-in-law.

The daughter will visit her mother after a long time......There’s simply nothing out of place with that.

Much less since Bea is pregnant. It is the perfect reason to go see her.

In the meanwhile, I summoned Kalfa.

The pretext......To choose a present for my pregnant wife who is in a bad mood.

However, the reality was different.

“Kalfa, if I were to ask you to prepare food for me.......How big a quantity can you make preparations for?”

“Food......If you want it at this time, I can make arrangements for an amount that could sustain his Majesty’s entire army for a year.”

“You don’t have to start gathering right now. I asked just to be sure.”

“Understood. You can call me anytime.”

In case a war would start, this is essential.

Katalina would take care of my soldiers, and the Frontier Count’s army would come to my help as well.

As for the food, I can guarantee a certain amount.

........Still, the most important thing is whether I can get my hands on it or not.

It all depends now on the meeting with the Emperor.

I took all the measures I could, and I decided to take a nap until evening.

There’s a chance that after I meet with his Majesty, I’ll rush straight into a meeting with the elf prince.

I must rest when I get the chance.

As I fell in a doze on my chair in the office, I felt Suu shaking my shoulders.

“Master, it is time. Please get ready.”

“Understood......What about Bea?”

I asked her as I rubbed my eyes.

“Madam said she will return after dinner. It’s been a while so she stayed longer to chat, I figured.”

I see.....But this is my mother-in-law’s way of protecting her.

I must send her another present later.

I washed my face and changed clothes.

For the time being, I am meeting the Emperor, so wearing ordinary clothes is no good.

I put on my black military uniform and walked towards the imperial family’s quarters.

“Oh! Zest. I’m glad you look good.”

“Yes, your Majesty. I’m relieved you look the same.”

A retainer maid of the imperial family guided me to the room where the Emperor was waiting.

The Empress in not present......Is there a reason for that?

Once the maid prepared the tea and left the room, the smile disappeared from his Majesty’s face.

“Since you hurried to come see me......does it mean that you got the meaning of the letter?”

“Yes, it’s about the fairy-tale matter, right?”

“Ah, such a bothersome story. Were you able to arrange somehow your end and the Frontier Count’s?”

“It depends on how settled we are when it comes to the elves. Should time and circumstances permit, I could involve Lilac as well.”

The Emperor’s face was bitter but he made his decision having no other choice.

There are all sorts of rumors about the Holy Country of Lilac, so it’s not really all right to involve them, but......

“It’s better than losing.......”

“We still don’t know if a war will start, do we?”

“Yet, supposing the worst is necessary. The elf prince will arrive soon as well. He’s truly an amazing guy.”

“The elf prince? What on earth is he coming here for?”

He dares to feign ignorance.......

After I asked that, the Emperor looked at me reproachfully.

.......Did he find me out?

Does he know that I consider the prince to be a very sharp person?

Or maybe he’s only suspicious.

“Enough with that. Let’s take our time until he arrives.”

“As you wish.”

‘You knew about it, right?’

‘I don’t understand.’

If you wanted a free translation, this is what we talked about.

After I chatted with the Emperor for a few moments, that guy finally arrived.

I felt the presence of two people outside the door.

“Excuse us. The eldest son of the elf king, Mars-sama is here.”

“Enter.”

The door opened with the Emperor’s words.

A young man with long silver hair entered after the maid.

He had long, thin slit eyes and a slim physique.

He gave the impression of a beautiful youth......Still, his ears were long.

His outward appearance would fit perfectly in a Japanese idol band.

“It’s been a long time, your Majesty.”

He sent a fleeting glance at me, but the first one to greet is always the Emperor.

“Prince Mars, I’m glad you look good. Well, sit now.”

Prince Mars did as the Emperor told him and sat on the sofa.

I casted some magic to check him out as I stayed vigilant.

The maid prepared more tea, and once she left the room, his Majesty began to talk.

“Prince Mars, this man is Duke Zest. Did you know him?”

“You are......It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Mars.”

“Nice to meet you too, prince Mars. Or, I shall call you son-in-law-dono.”

It was a greeting full of smiles, but I didn’t let my guard down not even one bit.

This prince Mars.....He’s quite formidable.

I prepared myself in case he would stand up at any moment from that sofa where he sat so comfortably.

“Now......that we finished with the greetings, let’s get to the main topic. Prince Mars, you have some magnificent acting skills.”

“I was frequently impolite towards you, so I must humbly apologize.”

He stood up and propped one knee to the floor.

My vigilance ascended in level.

From that position, it was possible to attack the Emperor.

“Son-in-law-dono, sit down on the sofa right away. In that position, you’re too close to his Majesty.”

I unleashed my magical power, as I warned him strongly.

It’s not like I swore absolute loyalty to the Emperor, but if prince Mars would do it in this situation.......

Without any question, I’ll be made an accomplice.

“What’s wrong, son-in-law-dono? Sit down on the sofa.”

“.....Yes sir! As...as you wish.”

He sat on the sofa, his face sort of stiff.

After I confirmed that he did what I said, I restrained my magical power.

“Zest is prone to worrying. But he doesn’t have ill will towards you, prince Mars.”

“Your Majesty. I apologize for my son-in-law’s discourtesy.”

“Hahaha, that’s because he’s your son-in-law. Don’t worry about it.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Good. A splendid monkey show.

‘Prince Mars, if you get cocky, I’ll kill you!’

‘You understand who is superior here, don’t you? You’re a prince, you say? Your country is in a state of chaos, so that title means nothing to us. You’ll be treated like nothing more than Zest’s adopted son.’

That was the hidden meaning behind our exchange.

Prince Mars seemingly understood it, so he quietly sat down on the sofa, his body trembling.

“So, what’s the situation like in the elves country?”

His Majesty took a mouthful of tea, then asked the prince.

His answer was, in all honesty......obliquely above my expectation.

“Yes......My father, the king is already dead......The Prime Minister seized the power. He plans to.....”

He probably did it in order to motivate himself to continue.

Prince Mars stroke his face with both hands, then informed us.

“The Prime Minister plans to revive the legendary magic science. That abominable devil king......He intends to become the king of magic science!”

So by devil king.......they meant the king of magic science.......?

So this is how it is...

The room become completely silent.

Even the Emperor was speechless.

My heart was thumping as well.

In this tensioned room, the sound of violent knocking reverberated.

His Majesty returned to himself and started to speak.

“What! What’s wrong!?”

“This is Tsubaki! I’m coming in!”

The answer to the Emperor’s question was a simple ‘I’m coming in’.

With a thick sound, the door collapsed.

“Prince Mars! I’ve come to save you!”

Exactly like a hero from legends, Tsubaki stood there with a smug face.

The Emperor and the prince froze in place in a second, as I started to beat Tsubaki, being careful not to break her neck.

“You stupid girl! What the heck are you doing!? You came to help him? You fool! You made it worse instead!! In the first place........”

“Zest, Tsubaki can’t hear you anymore, you know?”

“Fa...father Zest......Tsubaki is spouting foam and she’s cramping.”

I looked at my feet and saw that Tsubaki’s eyes turned white.

“You dare falling asleep!? You stupid daughter!”

“Zest, she most likely fainted.”

“Tsubaki......Tsubaki........”

This chaos continued until the Empress arrived, alarmed by the noise coming from this room.

........I might die from worrying too much.