“Could it be that you’re also a Lord of Leveling, Your Majesty?”
“Please listen carefully. The king and the Lord of Leveling are not the same thing,” the king said very seriously. He seemed as serious as someone who’d had their palace taken over and was about to be overthrown.
I guess they are different. The Lord of Leveling has considerable aptitude, but one of its cons is that it doesn’t give you any right to rule over a kingdom, which means that they’ve got to be separate positions. As I stood there, impressed by the king’s ability to compare the two so quickly, he continued without a pause.
“It is an undeniable truth that there are possibly some members of this kingdom’s aristocracy who are Lords of Leveling but have neglected their duties.”
“So you understand!” I’m glad. Those who get it, get it.
The king, who clearly deserved to be the one at the top of this kingdom, relaxed his expression a bit. He seemed relieved, as if he’d just been about to be dragged down from his throne but had been saved at the last minute.
Since it had become the official view of the kingdom that there were hidden Lords of Leveling, I could rest assured of the accuracy of my arguments as I continued the discussion.
“Which means that the Lord of Leveling, who advocates for leveling, should naturally raise their own level to level 99, correct? After that, they should devote themselves to supporting those around them, and they should create an environment in which as many people as possible can level up. I believe that is the true objective of the Lord of Leveling.”
“Countess Dolkness, the Lords of Leveling are...”
“Yes, there are several who are present right here,” I said, turning around and scanning the chamber.
One person who did actually make eye contact with me turned blue and shook his head from side to side. He seemed very suspicious. There was another man trying to hide behind the man shaking his head. That person seemed even more suspicious.
Actually, now that I’m paying attention to it, everyone in the room is facing this way, but I can’t seem to make eye contact with anyone else. There were even some people shutting their eyes tightly, like they were waiting for a storm to pass. Could it be that...they’re all Lords of Leveling?!
The mission of a Lord of Leveling was to help others, and those who were helped could then in turn help more people—mutual support was important. I needed to start the cycle of happiness. Who should I help... In other words, who should I bring into a dungeon with me?
I tapped the shoulder of the person beside me.
“Eek?!” he shrieked.
“Wait, Countess Dolkness.” The king brought me up short. “First we must unravel who the Lords of Leveling are.” It seemed that I had been too hasty—that was my bad. The king cleared his throat to give his decision. “Regarding the positions aside from the Lord of National Affairs, we will launch an investigation into whether there are other positions that are actually Lords of Leveling. If they appear to be Lords of Leveling, instead of punishing the person who holds the position, we will handle it by instead changing their title.”
That’s fair. I’m sure there are a lot of people who were unaware that their job was actually to be a Lord of Leveling, just like Count Archiam. It wouldn’t be right to punish someone who wasn’t willfully neglectful, I guess... The king is a kind man.
“Regarding who will take over the position of Lord of National Affairs,” His Majesty continued, “we will postpone the decision until next month. This future discussion will examine whether it will be dissolved, whether the title will be changed, and what the position will be if the title for the position is changed.”
It was a wonderful decision. I got on my knees and bowed deeply to show my loyalty.
“And finally...” The king rounded on the marquess. “Marquess Prynan, this was all started by you.”
The court conference concluded on a deeply satisfying note, with the king scolding Marquess Prynan.