“Daux and Marie said that they’ve never seen their fathers working, so I convinced them to come take a peek,” I confessed. I knew it was hard to get anything past the astute people who worked high up in the national government, so I skipped over any attempt at lying and went with the truth.
“I see. We’re reviewing the status of preparations for Project Roslan. Would you like to come inside and watch for a few minutes?”
“Is it really okay?!” I hadn’t dared hope for an invitation to come inside and watch, so I was frankly shocked by her offer.
“It won’t interfere with father’s work?” Daux asked, making it clear that he was very conscious of the importance of his father’s work and hesitant to do anything that might disrupt it.
There was something charming about the innocent way he tried to put up a tough front. In reality, I was sure he was struggling to resist the desire to accept the chance to spend time close to his father.
“There’s no need to worry; I assure you it’s fine. Besides, this is also an excellent learning opportunity for you, Prince Dauxrouge.”
“…A learning opportunity?”
“Indeed. Your Highness is a member of the imperial family, so one day, you will inevitably be involved in governing the country in one way or another. I’m certain you can learn a lot by observing your father at work.”
I was pretty sure that Daux still hadn’t come to terms with his position. He seemed convinced a holy beast would never choose to bond with him, but he also wasn’t sure how to proceed if one of his siblings was chosen and became the next emperor.
Other than Clay, all of his siblings either didn’t seem to pay Daux much mind or actively pushed him away, so it wasn’t the kind of relationship where they could freely discuss such things.
It was unreasonable to expect him to be able to smoothly deal with the adults around him at his young age, especially given his timid personality. But the prime minister seemed sympathetic to Daux’s plight.
“Daux, let’s go watch!” I patted Daux gently on the back, encouraging him, and he finally gave a very faint nod.
“It’ll be fine, Daux. Neema and I will be there with you the whole time!” Marie added.
That’s right! You won’t be alone, so there’s nothing to be afraid of. I promise!
Marie and I positioned ourselves protectively on both sides of Daux and followed Lady Zeiatiel into the room.
After leading us to a spot along the wall, Lady Zeiatiel put a finger to her lips in the universal gesture for “Shh!”
A great beauty like Lady Zeiatiel almost makes that gesture look provocative!
“The carpenters’ guild has wasted no time in sending over the first draft of the blueprints.”
I assumed the blueprint was the large sheet of paper spread out on the table.
“This is a blueprint? I’ve never seen one like this before…”
“They said that this is a new style of two-dimensional drafting that the carpenters’ guild in the Kingdom of Gaché has been advocating.”
Look at that! The two-dimensional diagram has made its way to the Linus Empire’s carpenters’ guild as well! Who would’ve guessed? Although, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that the guilds are constantly sharing information amongst themselves. Craftsmen are notorious for being ravenous for new techniques and methods.
“As we expected, the taller we make it, the more reinforcement it will require. It says here that even with an elemental stone eliminating the issue of outside forces, we still have to find some way to contend with the weight of the building itself…”
I thought that might be a sticking point. If only we had materials such as cement in this world. But wait… The architectural style known as “reinforced concrete” incorporates a frame of steel support beams inside the concrete, doesn’t it?
Couldn’t we do something like that here, too? I’ll have to ask about it later.
“There are no particular issues with the other facilities. However, permission has been requested to make the ludan larger than originally planned.”
I have absolutely no problem with that! If they wanted to make it smaller, I would be disappointed, but when it comes to baths, bigger is always better in my book!
The emperor felt the same way because he easily approved that request.
After that, they discussed how the materials would be procured and the general outline of the budget for Project Roslan. I was shocked by the number of zeros at the end of the total figure.
Just then, a man entered through a separate door, and for some reason, he glared in our direction.
“Why is Prince Dauxrouge here?”
Hearing the man say this, the emperor turned in our direction. I was sure he’d noticed us enter the room but had decided that he should prioritize the meeting and had, therefore, ignored us.
“They said they wanted to observe Your Majesty and the others at work, so I let them in,” Zeiatiel summarized.
Perhaps because it was rare for his children to take the initiative where he was concerned, the emperor’s face transformed into a gentle smile upon hearing this.
“It’s rare for you to express interest openly like this, Daux.”
Despite being addressed directly by his father, Daux simply lowered his face, unable to reply.
“Fathers always look so cool when they’re hard at work, so I thought he should see it for himself!” I chimed in.
“Working is ‘cool’?” the emperor asked incredulously, and I emphatically explained the point.
“My father looks really cool when he’s working! Normally, he’s a little dorky, but he’s so serious when he’s working that it’s really cool.”
It’s true, though—when he’s an over-indulgent, soppy parent, he’s totally uncool, but there’s something super cool about the deadly-serious aura he gives off when he’s working!
“You really love your father, don’t you, Lady Nefertima?”
“It’s not just father; I love mother and my older brother and sister too!”
I knew that the imperial family didn’t get to spend much quality family time together, but I still wanted to encourage the emperor to lean into his role as a father a bit more.
“This is a meeting room, not a playground for children,” the man from before said. “You may be a state guest, but even so, you need to be a bit more aware of your position.”
Tch! Unpleasant as it is, he’s technically correct, so I can only accept the reprimand and apologize.
“It’s fine, Sarius,” the emperor said, covering for me, but I was more curious about who this “Sarius” person was. I didn’t remember meeting him at our welcome banquet.
“Lord Sarius is very strict towards Daux and me, and Prince Aisent as well… He’s not like that toward Prince Theoval, though,” Marie whispered in my ear.
It turned out that Sarius was one of the emperor’s closest advisors.
Maybe he just hates children?
Somehow, he reminded me of my private tutor, Annalee.
While the emperor was speaking with Sarius, Marie’s father approached her.
“Long time no see, Marie. So you’ve been playing with Dauxrouge and Lady Nefertima, have you?”
“Good day, Father. Yes, since you gave your permission, I thought it would be all right…”
This was definitely not a normal parent-child conversation. I could feel a huge distance between them by the stiff and formal way they spoke to one another.
“Of course, I’m just sorry for not noticing sooner that Marietta was preventing you from interacting with Lady Nefertima.”