The interior of the palace was just as lavish as I expected. Walking down the corridor alongside Fiona, my eyes wandered over our surroundings. The pillars and walls were adorned with luxurious decorations, candlesticks, and other furnishings all of the finest quality. I couldn’t even imagine how much wealth had been spent on it. Amyu and the others, having forgotten their nerves, stared wide-eyed, pointing at ornaments and furniture while whispering excitedly among themselves.
My own impressions weren’t all that different from theirs. It was more grand than any palace I’d seen in demon territory, or castle I’d seen in my past life. When I had attacked a year and a half ago, I had stopped at the underground dungeons Amyu had been held in. I’d seen the rest of the palace through the eyes of rats, but I was still surprised at how magnificent it was. It showed just how powerful the country was.
However, we weren’t here for a leisurely palace tour.
“Isn’t this a little sudden?” I asked Fiona next to me. “We just got here and we’re already seeing the emperor.”
“It’s what His Majesty wanted,” Fiona replied, keeping her eyes straight ahead. Though her tone was calm, her expression was stiff. “This is how it was originally arranged. If I, who am formally taking over the Hero’s reception from His Majesty’s envoy, were to disrupt the initial audience schedule, it would give the other factions an excuse to intervene.”
“Something that minor?”
“Such minor things become extremely important in the realm of politics. It also concerns your personal safety. In fact, just a little while ago, there was a somewhat dangerous situation,” Fiona said, her expression growing faintly more stern. “If we had simply followed his arrangements for the reception, you would likely have been poisoned during tonight’s dinner.”
“Huh?!” Amyu cried in shock behind us.
“As it was His Majesty who summoned you, you would be left untouched until your audience with him,” Fiona continued indifferently. “Yet it would not surprise me if the anti-Hero faction made a move immediately after. They even won over that envoy. It’s possible they might send assassins after you next. You’ll need to be vigilant, particularly when moving outside.”
“What’s going on?” I asked after a brief silence. “You said in your letter that it was fine for us to return to the capital.” That was the entire reason we had made the trip. If that no longer held true, we would have to consider leaving immediately.
“Yes. Rest assured,” Fiona said with a knowing smile. “I can handle such trifling schemes, as you just witnessed. Neither eliminating threats beforehand nor defending against them once they’re launched poses any difficulty to me. I have dealt with people attempting to kill me in exactly this manner before. Furthermore, the anti-Hero faction faces other opposition as well. In their weakened state, it won’t be easy for them to avoid other factions interfering. You might have been able to live in peace without doing anything at all, surprisingly enough.”
It seemed like what she’d said in her letter hadn’t been a lie. It didn’t sound like there was any need to worry.
“As such, there truly is no need to fear for your safety while in the capital. So long as you don’t make an enemy of His Majesty, that is.” Fiona’s final words almost sounded like a joke, but I wasn’t in a laughing mood.
I decided to voice my concern immediately. “For all that, you don’t seem very relaxed. You haven’t been able to figure out why the emperor would summon Amyu, have you?”
Fiona’s eyes opened slightly, and she turned to face me.
“Like you said, I doubt we have to worry about assassins. But the emperor’s the more important part.” If the emperor wanted to get rid of the Hero, we’d be making an enemy of the entire country, not just a faction of nobles.
Should the plan be to call her to the capital, then mobilize the renowned and unmatched imperial guard to capture her, we’d be stuck. Certainly, the imperial guard didn’t pose any threat to me, but we would be put in a much worse situation. While I had assumed that Fiona, with her future sight, had encouraged us to return because she had at least partially grasped the emperor’s intentions, that didn’t seem to be the case.
“Correct. My ability isn’t all-powerful.” Facing ahead once more, Fiona nodded, her voice faltering slightly. “However, considering the country’s situation both foreign and domestically, along with the state of the assembly, I cannot imagine His Majesty has any intention of eliminating the Hero. Given the timing with the anti-Hero faction being weakened, the more natural assumption is that the empire wishes to officially recognize the Hero.”
I didn’t understand the complex power dynamics swirling around the imperial court and the assembly, but judging by what she was saying, the current situation at least didn’t seem unfavorable to Amyu. If true, it made sense why the emperor would personally summon the Hero to force both the assembly and nobility to acknowledge Amyu. The timing also fit if we assumed he had been waiting for the anti-Hero faction to be weakened so there would be little chance for opposition.
There was a high likelihood the upcoming audience would improve our situation—but it wasn’t guaranteed. That still worried me.
“Hey, I’m not really following, but...does this all depend on me?” Amyu, walking behind us, suddenly spoke in a tense voice. Fiona and I turned to look at her as she continued, her expression still hardened. “It’d be really bad if I screwed up and made him mad, right? I don’t really know proper noble etiquette, though. Am I gonna be okay? Maybe I should’ve dressed better...” Amyu said, looking down at her clothes nervously.
“You’ll be fine,” Fiona said with a reassuring smile. “There’s no need for citizens to be so formal before His Majesty. The emperor is not like the nobility. Simply showing proper respect is more than sufficient. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Really? I’m still kinda worried. None of the noble kids at the academy liked me.”
“Isn’t that because you were so unfriendly at the start?” I asked.
“I don’t wanna hear that from someone who screwed up his own academy debut in a different way.” Amyu glared at me, then turned back to Fiona. “What’s the emperor like? Does he get angry easily? Does he dislike adventurers?”
Fiona appeared to be at a loss for a moment, then responded with a smile. “That’s a good question. At the very least, I’ve never seen him raise his voice. Nor do I believe he holds any prejudices or discriminatory attitudes toward specific groups.” Fiona’s voice trailed off for a moment before she hesitantly continued. “To be completely honest, I’m not sure what he’s like.”
“Isn’t the emperor your dad?” Amyu looked confused. “You don’t know what kind of person he is?”
“He may be my father, but we lived separately for a long time. I have no memories of him doing anything people would consider parental.”
“Oh... Sorry for asking.”
“That said—” Amyu wore an awkward expression, but Fiona spoke with a serious look on her face as though completely unbothered. “Even if that had not been the case, I don’t believe I ever could have understood His Majesty.”
✦ ✦ ✦
The audience chamber was even more luxurious than the hallway. It was a vast room with a high ceiling, a vibrant red carpet laid out across the floor, and sunlight streaming through expensive glass decorated with lustrous fabric. The throne was especially lavish, adorned with gold that showcased the wealth that had been poured into it. The emperor himself, however, was a rather unremarkable man.
“This guy’s the emperor?” I couldn’t help but mumble to myself with a frown.
The emperor of the Urdwight Empire, Gilzerius Urd Alegreif. The air about him was quite unlike what I had imagined. He was utterly ordinary. Brown hair, an average build, a face that was neither particularly ugly nor handsome. Nothing about him made an impression.
Still, he was the emperor, and his hair and beard were neatly groomed, yet it didn’t aid him in seeming dignified or refined. He was the plain sort of man one might pass in a crowd, then forget the very next moment. He possessed none of the presence expected of an extraordinary leader or ruler. The emperor appeared to be an ordinary middle-aged man. Having braced myself for this meeting, I felt a little let down.
“Umm.” Amyu took a step forward, standing before the emperor. “I’m Amyu. I’ve come with my companions.” I glanced over at her face. Her expression was certainly stiff with nervousness, but her bright green eyes were locked firmly on the emperor. She would be fine.
I then stole a glance at the other two just to be safe. Mabel seemed the same as always, but she wasn’t the type to show her emotions on her face, so it was hard to tell how she truly felt. Yifa, on the other hand, looked hopeless. If she were asked a question in that state, I doubted she would be able to answer. But, at the end of the day, Amyu was the star of the show here. It was unlikely to matter.
We were only here because the emperor’s invitation had been addressed to the Hero’s party. It wasn’t clear to me what his aim was. The Hero aside, I couldn’t see what purpose there was in meeting her companions, who were essentially outsiders. That said, it was extremely convenient for me. If anything happened, I could immediately intervene.
“Hmm.” A faint smile appeared on the emperor’s lips. “No need to humble yourself so,” he said calmly, as though he was speaking to a friend’s child. “It’s often misunderstood, but the emperor is not a ruler like the nobility. He is, above all, a citizen just like yourself—simply the one standing at the forefront.”