Chapter 49
After almost being assassinated, a weakened Lawrence entrusted his son, Linus, with the task.
If it had been a little later, he would have died, but the way he did it was to make it look like a natural death so as not to cause any external injuries.
The fact that it happened in time also meant that he was weak but not injured.
As long as he survived, all he had to do was rest.
I left Lawrence to his son and headed to Pascal to make him pay for what he had done.
Pascal's mansion was located in the city of Nisir, and it was a rather magnificent building.
There was a gatekeeper at the front of the mansion, but I didn't care and walked up to him.
"Stop! Identify yourself"
The gatekeeper was faithful to his duty, pointing his spear at me and asking me who I was.
"Is Pascal here?"
"Not showing respect to the Governor!? Who the hell do you think you are?"
"Noah Ararat."
"You're Noah – Ararat!?"
The gatekeeper, who had been very energetic until just before, flushed and his face grew pale as quickly as it appeared.
Even if he didn't know my face, he seemed to know the surname of the royal family called Ararat.
And apparently, he knows that I've entered the fief.
"Could it be that ... His Highness the Thirteenth ..."
"Is Pascal there?"
"Y-yes! He's in the residence!"
"Hmm"
I nodded, slipped past the gatekeeper, and went inside.
Leaving him puzzled, I walked closer and closer to the mansion.
When I came to the front of the main gate, I encountered another person, this time a man who looked like a butler from the way he was dressed.
As expected, the butler seemed to know my face, and before I could say my name, he hurriedly kneeled down.
"I didn't know Your Highness was coming, please excuse me…"
"Where's Pascal?"
I interrupted him and asked as I continued.
The butler hurriedly stood up and followed behind me.
"I-In the back here, sir. Please wait in the parlor, I will call him now."
"No need."
I went on my way and entered the house.
Heading towards the "back" that the man had mentioned.
I passed a number of servants and maids on the way, but none of them tried to stop me as the butler followed me with a bloody but noble attitude.
I entered the back room where Pascal was flirting with a half-dressed prostitute.
Drinking, feasting, and playing with women.
He was enjoying himself in a very typical way.
When I entered the room, Pascal looked unhappy.
"I told you not to let anyone in until tomorrow morning. ... and ...'
Pascal looked at me as he said this.
As soon as he recognized me, he was speechless.
"T-This is, this well Noah-sama. An unsightly place…"
"I don't care what you say. You tried to shut him up, didn't you?"
"No, I didn't. Why would I want to shut Lawrence's mouth?"
"I didn't mention Lawrence. Your current relationship with Lawrence is that of a Governor and a criminal. Not a relationship one would normally associate with silence."
"Ugh. ..."
Pascal gulped.
He began to tremble.
"... Bahamut."
{Yes}
"Punish this one."
I said and linked my Armor Ring to make Bahamut materialize.
The room of the spacious Governor's mansion suddenly felt cramped with his appearance.
That's how big it is, that's how much presence it has.
"Just enough to keep him from becoming a cripple."
{His life?}
I shook my head.
"People are treasure ... and hope. Even if they are like this, you can't be sure they won't turn into something else in the future."
{That's my Lord. I apologize for not understanding the depths of the Lord's meaning.}
"I leave the rest to you."
{Rest assured.}
Pascal, who was trembling until the end and couldn't even lose his temper, was left in the hands of Bahamut, and I left the house.
From the mansion, screams that seemed to condense all the pain in the world continued to be heard without interruption.
Night, in the inner garden of the mansion.
I came back and was quietly reading.
Knowledge is necessary in order to do many things.
In my spare time, I read a lot of books.
Across from me sat Audrey.
I had instructed her to sit there between serving.
"Noah-sama"
"Hmm?"
Audrey then called out to me casually.
I put my book down and looked up to see what was going on.
"I have something I need to discuss with you."
"What is it? Tell me."
"My grandfather told me to ask you for a favor. My grandfather asked me to ask you to take my sister Anya to be Noah-sama's concubine."
"Fumu."
Visit readel.me for extra chapters.
I put the book down. I looked at Audrey straight in the eyes.
This is not an unusual thing for a nobleman to do.
Rather, it is commonplace under some circumstances.
Marriage between noble families has another important meaning, to unite the families and to pass on the blood.
When the main family is unable to have children, they often take a sister who is related to the main family as a concubine to increase the probability of pregnancy, or in other words, the chance of having an heir.
It is not an uncommon practice.
"If you incest, then. I have no objection."[TN: He says 'わかった(wakatta)' ]
"Is that true!?"
"Yeah. You'd be more comfortable with your sister as a concubine."
"Thank you very much, ...."
Audrey giggled and turned over in delight.
"So when is that going to happen?"
"As soon as Noah-sama approves, Grandfather will be on his way."
"It looks like Thunder Prince really wants my firstborn to be related to him."
As of now, I have only one regular wife, Audrey, but since I am a member of the royal family, the number of concubines will steadily increase in the future.
Unlike the Emperor, the successor of the Prince is not that important.
They believe that as long as they are clearly blood-related, they are fine.
Therefore, the eldest son is more likely to succeed compared to the successor of the Emperor.
"I felt it when I saw my Grandfather's letter."
"Hmm?"
"Grandfather thinks very highly of you, Noah-sama. He approves of you."
"He approves, huh"
"Yes! I don't know many ... people that Grandfather approves of that much."
Audrey then looked at me with an upturned face and fascinated eyes.
"Noah-sama ... is amazing!"
The Emperor's summer resort is nominally a villa, but there are concubines, eunuchs to look after them, servants to cook and perform other miscellaneous tasks.
And then there were the soldiers on guard.
If you include all these people, the total number of people exceeds 1,000, which is practically the size of a small town.
On the outskirts of the resort, returning to the fief.
Indra, the Thunder King, was riding in a carriage, staring at the horizon with his posture straight.
In his mind, he is thinking about the exchange he had with the emperor at the resort.
"Three people, huh...."
It was a rather roundabout way of saying it, but Indra could tell from the Emperor's tone that he had narrowed down the candidates for the next emperor to three.
Henry, the fourth Prince.
Oscar, the Eighth Prince.
And Noah, the Thirteenth Wise Prince.
He could understand that.
From Indra's point of view, these three were the most outstanding of the nearly twenty remaining sons of the Emperor.
Indra is certain that the next emperor will be chosen from among these three.
And among them.
The 13th Wise Prince is one step ahead of the rest.
Indra thought of him as a great leader.
"You're something else, Boy. It's the first time I've ever seen the Emperor praise a Prince so much from the standpoint of the Emperor, not a Father's."
The successor race, in Indra's eyes, seemed to be in Noah's favor.
So he dashed off his fast horse and wrote to his granddaughter, Audrey.
Anya, his other granddaughter, also moved to make Noah's concubine.
The old man, Indra, had a gambler's temperament.
When he thinks he is in a certain place, he will go all out to win.
Indra was now convinced.
He was sure that Noah would be the next emperor.