"So, are you ready to have a civilized conversation now?" Rage asked sitting down in the broken-down room with holes all over the 4 walls and almost half of the paladins on the ground, the rest of the paladins backed off raising their weapons in anticipation yet not daring to make a move.
"Y-Yes" The Emperor hesitantly replied.
"I refuse to believe that this is all what's guarding the emperor, a bunch of half-assed poorly trained paladins with zero artifacts, good weapons or even proper armor" Rage said looking around at the paladins who flinched at his gaze, "Where are the royal guards, the sword masters, the archimages, WHERE? the barbarian dwarf I fought in the slavers camp was ten times more powerful than your strongest paladin" Rage annoyingly remarked, "Even Robin isn't here, he looked quite strong"
Caspian gestured for the paladins to leave as he led Rage and the others including the emperor to his office and shut the door.
"To be blunt" Caspian cleared his throat, "My father is incompetent, so all the strong people at the castle gathered around the strong princes who will succeed the throne, they could care less if my father and I died"
"Caspian!" The Emperor yelled before Sensei glared at him making him sink into his chair.
"As you can see, my father is a coward, but I stuck with him despite that because I have no one else, my elder brother, Adrian the crown prince wants to eliminate all competition if it means ambushing a 14-year-old like me, the second princess, Sister Liyah is an adventurer who renounced her royal title and is traveling the continent in search for something that she doesn't want to reveal, that's why I inherited the title of the second prince while in reality I'm the third prince"
YOU ARE LEARNING ABOUT THE EMPIRE'S POLITICS
WISDOM INCREASED BY 2
Rage didn't pay attention to his status window and instead concentrated on what Caspian was explaining.
"So, I have been sucking up to my incompetent father just for protection against my own brother, pathetic, isn't it?" Caspian sighed as he looked down to the table.
"You sound way too smart for a 14-year-old" Rage said rubbing his chin, "So, why don't you have anyone supporting you?"
"Might makes right as you said, Your Majesty, even if my swordsmanship is 4-Star, how can I compete with my brother who's already 7-Star and has a glorious record of being the captain of the first imperial legion, to be frank, he already knew about my father's plans to ambush you here, and he didn't care to stop it thinking that you'll kill my father giving him a chance to succeed the throne and a reason to chase you and the other other-worlders out of the empire, he's always hated all the otherworlders, even the beastfolk" Caspian replied.
"Aren't you afraid that there is a spy eavesdropping on this conversation who's going to report to your brother?" Rage asked.
"He already made it clear that he wants to kill me, would it change anything?" Caspian answered.
"If he's as powerful as you make him out to be, why doesn't he start a coup d'etat and take over the throne" Rage asked yet another question with curiosity.
"What will the people say about the glorious Adrian the crown prince who's a symbol of virtue and compassion if he forcefully takes the throne and kill his father?" Caspian explained.
"And I guess your father is protecting you until you're of age so he can pass down the throne to you peacefully and demand your protection?" Jimmy said as he pulled out a book that caught his eye from one of the bookshelves.
"Yes, My Lord, that is correct" Caspian answered.
"Don't call me that, Name's Jimmy" Jimmy said as he skimmed through the book, "Mind if I borrow this?"
"Oh of course, It's an old fairytale It is quite interesting for the first time" Caspian smiled.
"Alright Caspian, I'll rub your back and you rub mine" Rage smiled extending a hand.
"B-But Your Majesty, I'm still not of age yet, and I'm more interested in wo-" Caspian tried to say before Rage flinched with a disgusted expression.
"IT'S A METAPHORE BOY, IT MEANS I'LL HELP YOU AND YOU HELP ME" Rage put his hand back refusing to shake Caspian's after the awkward thought.
"O-OH, I-I'M SO SORRY" Caspian yelled as the rest of the party chuckled with Sensei grabbing the Emperor by the collar after he tried to sneak out.
"Do you want to be useful for once in your life?" Rage asked the emperor with an annoyed expression before the emperor nodded his head, "Then you'll do exactly as I say"
After a while of chatting and getting to know Caspian, Rage asked one curious question, "Where is your brother right now Caspian?"
"Adrian is on the frontlines fighting against the Thralls of the north, they're barbarians who live off pillaging during what they call 'Harvest Season', They usually take food, slaves, kettle and burn the books and the mages alive, witnesses say that they consider magic and knowledge blasphemy to their god and that the only way to live is by the sword, they are a few of the humanoid monsters that possess intelligence, mostly made up of orcs and trolls" Caspian answered.
"Then why aren't you taking the time that your brother is away and gather the backing and support of the people, create a faction like he did" Rage said.
"But Your Majesty, who'd follow a 14-year-old boy?" Caspian embarrassingly replied looking down.
"You're a smart 14-Year-Old, and I get what you mean, most of the nobles and knights would stick with Adrian as the safer option, but you have a golden opportunity though!" Rage's eyes lit with mischief as he looked to have a solid plan.
"Care to explain, Your Majesty?" Caspian tilted his head.
"Your Brother didn't come to meet me nor did he leave an envoy in his stead, you on the other hand were generous to me, and so I'll publicly declare that we have a positive relationship, you and me, this will get a lot of the pla-.. Otherworlders who look up to Highthorn to be on your side, and it will also improve your image among the locals" Rage started to explain, "But might makes right as you said and so, you will need protection!" Rage looked at Caspian with a malicious look that brimmed with the plans that were boiling in his head, "I can't lend you Highthorn guards, people would think that you're using otherworlders to start a Coup D'etat, Your image would be in tatters, so, you need to make your own Knight order, as a noble, you have the right to, correct?" Rage held both Caspian's arms getting uncomfortably close.
"Y-Yes, and No in the same time" Caspian looked the other way as Rage sensed his discomfort before pulling back with a chuckle.
"Sorry i was just riled up, but what do you mean yes and no" Rage sat back down by the window.
"Knight orders are for noble families that rank from Archdukes to Counts, we the royal family, have Imperial Legions, they are not the army, but Knight Orders that directly serve the indvidual Royal that created it and his descendants, The First Legion was created by the founder of our Empire, the first Emperor Aurelius Ironhelm, and the legion's authority is passed down to the next emperor, technically they follow father's orders, but in reality they are led by my brother and follow HIS orders since they see my father as incompetent, There are seven more Imperial legions that were created by Emperor Aurelius's siblings and they follow his descendants which are my distant relatives, Knight orders on the other hand, follow a specific family and are led by the family senate, they consist of the prominent heads in the family and do not directly take orders from the family head" Caspian explained as Rage was taking all this information in.
YOU ARE LEARNING ABOUT THE EMPIRE'S POLITICS
WISDOM INCREASED BY 2
"I see, and you can't create an Imperial Legion because there is already one that directly belongs to your family" Rage replied, "Isn't there a way around this?" He asked.
"There is but It's not as effective" Caspian answered making Rage more confused, "Let me explain, while I can't create an Imperial Legion to serve me, I can create a Royal Guards squadron, it is a squadron i can create that directly serves me and protects me and only takes orders from me, but they are controlled by the crown, meaning the emperor can move, assemble and dismiss the entire squadron at will" Caspian looked at his father.
"And if Adrian pushes your father, or takes the throne, your squadron is basically in shambles" Rage added, "But so what, these people will remain loyal to you"
"But if that happens, and the squadron is dismissed, they are not allowed near me anymore, and trespassing on Royal Grounds is a crime that is punished by a death penalty"
"Hey, Puppet" Rage looked at the Emperor, "What's your name?"
"J-Jude, Jude Ironhelm" The emperor replied.
"Alright, Judy, looks like you'll be useful sooner than i thought" Rage smirked, "Caspian, create a Royal Guards squadron, I'll make sure this puppet does his part" Rage looked back to Caspian whose eyes lit with hope for a moment before his face turned into a frown, "What's wrong?" Rage asked.
"Even if i do, who'd serve the 14-year-old pathetic second prince with no achievements?" Caspian's sad voice answered.
"I don't want sword masters or veteran knights, for all we know they might be sent by your brother to kill you" Rage nonchalantly answered.
"Huh, then what was your plan?" Caspian asked in a confused manner.
"What's the most important trait in a guard beside being strong?" Rage asked not waiting for a reply, "Loyalty!"
"I don't understand" Caspian's expression grew more confused.
"Let me demonstrate" Rage snapped his fingers summoning Varon.
"I heed my lord's call" Varon bowed his head.
"Varon, take out your sword" Rage said as Varon immediately unsheathed his sword presenting it to Rage, "Aim it to your throat" Varon immediately turned the sword's tip towards his throat, "Now push" Varon pushed the sword into his throat as he started bleeding violently on the ground, in an instant, Jimmy pulled out the sword and started rapidly healing Varon as he stood back up on his feet bowing his head.
"Th-Tha-" Caspian stuttered.
"Loyalty comes from trust and trust comes from Loyalty, Varon knew i wouldn't let him die and so he followed my orders blindly, good job Varon" Rage made a thumbs up as Varon smiled before taking his leave, "You need people who are as loyal as Varon"
"B-But what if he died?" Caspian asked.
"Then he dies, he served his purpose and he died following his master's orders, that's a knight's highest honour" Rage explained, "In order to get someone as Loyal as Varon, you need to save them, see their potential and grow it yourself, it's like nursing a baby, being a royal guard is equivalent to being a noble for commoners, which is something they wouldn't dare dream of, and for nobles, it's a chance to gain the royal family's favour by sending one of their own to serve as a royal guard" Rage explained, "You're still young, find young talents like yourself and take them in, change their life and raise them under your wing, they'll be undyingly loyal to you" He looked out the window, "Do you have an estate?" Rage asked.
"Yes, it's a remote town at the borders between the empire and the Sahara, it's a desert filled with very high-ranking monsters and sand mages who're a branch of dark mages" Caspian sighed, "It's been in a very poor state and I can't do anything to the people there since I'm stuck here in the palace"
"Because you're afraid your brother would send someone to kill you if you go there without the palace's protection?" Rage asked.
"Yes"
"That'll be solved with your royal guards squadron, so then, Dear Caspian, should we get to work?"