429 – Anyway, the year passes – 5
I felt someone gently stroking my head. Thanks to the careful hand that was filled with affection and at the same time a lot of consideration, my eyes slowly opened.
“Karl, are you awake?”
Then I saw Mar’s smiling face.
As soon as I opened my eyes, I blinked blankly at the beautiful sight I saw. It’s a nice sight, but why am I doing this? I was clearly sitting on the sofa, but before I knew it, I was lying down and looking up at Mar.
As we looked at each other in silence, Marr smiled and opened her mouth.
“Karl was sleeping, so I laid him down for a moment. It’s better to sleep lying down than sitting down.”
‘Ah.’
Only after hearing those words was I able to regain my lost memories. Although it was cold winter outside, it was extremely warm inside the academy. It is a place where students with noble status or outstanding abilities burn with a passion for learning, but it would be even stranger if the heating was not even working properly.
This is even the student council president’s office and where the duke’s youngest daughter lives. It looks like a blinking zone thanks to the perfect temperature that is neither too much nor too little.
After understanding the situation, all the senses in my body became activated.
‘Soft.’
I felt the ultimate happiness running down the back of Marr’s head as she was cutting into her thighs. I was sleeping on a pillow that was more perfect than any pillow in the world. Although I am indebted to this pillow every time, it is new every time.
That’s why I inadvertently turned her body 180 degrees rather than looking at Marl, who was still stroking my head.
“Ka, knife!?”
Mar’s voice was heard in panic, but she held firm. Because it’s too warm and soft to just give up to the back of my head.
“I’ll stay like this for a moment.”
Then, even though she didn’t know what to do, she finally seemed to give up and stroked her head again. Of course she did get scolded a little after she got up.
Still, I have no regrets. Isn’t there no such thing as happiness without a price?
I believe so.
There was a bit of a fuss, but soon Mar was making her tea with a smile on her face. Since I just woke up, she said I should at least drink something warm.
The consideration is so warm that I feel like crying. I don’t regret the 180-degree turn, but I reflect on having embarrassed such a kind lover even for a moment.
‘I was always shy.’
When I thought about it, when I touched a little too much skinship, Mar seemed both happy and embarrassed at the same time. To free her Mar from her shame, she must cut off her skinship itself.
For Mar, that would be even harsher. Let’s embarrass her hard in the future.
“Oh, by the way, Carl.”
“Huh?”
As soon as she could think of such a thing, Mar opened her mouth and was shocked. I wondered if he had read my thoughts.
“It’s time for the executives to arrive soon. There’s no rush, so I told them to take their time and have lunch before gathering.”
However, fortunately, it was not a method of interest but rather ordinary information.
“Really? Then I guess I’ll have to get ready soon.”
Leaving behind her strange sense of relief, I took out the business card from her arms.
The executives that Mar is talking about are student council executives. In other words, it is time to see the green sprouts who will receive my letter of recommendation and take the path of civil servants. Last year, executives got jobs after receiving my letter of recommendation, so you can think of them as second-generation students.
‘There are five people this year.’
If there is something a little disappointing, it is that the number of student council executives this year is one less than last year.
Originally, there were seven executives in the student council, including the student council president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, secretary, leadership manager, and public relations manager. Among them, the vice president position is held by a second year student, so there are still six left, and this year’s president is Mara. There is no need for Mar to become a civil servant, so there are five executives left who need my letter of recommendation.
It is a pity that there are fewer young people who will devote themselves to the imperial family and the empire, and to my peaceful future, but that is okay. What is better than having five at all?
‘Hmm.’
While I was trying to think positively and sign my business card, a different thought suddenly occurred to me.
‘Do I really have to send it to the administration?’
Is there a need to put the precious stones I discovered into the administration?
Of course, it is true that I feel more comfortable as the number of people flowing into the Ministry of Supervision increases, but the Ministry of Supervision, which is the final order of the emperor in this situation, is a department in which various departments will be merged and the emperor will pay special attention and invest manpower and budget. There is no need for me to exert any more effort here.
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Isn’t it right to put talent into a place that I need to manage personally, rather than a department that will receive support from the emperor even if I leave it alone?
‘Even if we gathered 100 people, they wouldn’t even let us retire.’
When the emperor was still the crown prince, he once made a provocation that was not a provocation, saying that if I could gather 100 talented people, he would consider my retirement.
It was a joke to anyone who heard it, but at the time, I was so desperate for retirement that I put my hope in the teasing. I really thought it would be a good thing if we gathered 100 people and the crown prince allowed them to retire, but even if not, we would have 100 new passionate people, so I thought it would be a good thing.
‘Retirement is freezing.’
Now even that earnestness has died. The Crown Princess’s godfather, the first minister of the Inspector General, the faction leader of the Northern faction, and a confidant who faced the Dragon Lord.
Even if you bring 100 corps, let alone 100 people, your resignation letter will be torn up before your eyes. You can be sure.
…
After thinking for a moment, I took out another business card from my pocket.
Still, I can’t forcefully change the future of children who dream of becoming civil servants, so I’ll have to give them one of the options.
***
I took several deep breaths to calm my pounding heart. It seems like my fingers are still slightly shaking and the tension hasn’t completely disappeared, but that doesn’t mean I can take any more time.
Beyond this door, the head of the inspection department—no, the minister of the inspection ministry—is waiting for you. Because there is someone who will take care of me and Olivia so that we can go without starving, and now give us the grace that will change our lives.
So, with one last deep breath, I knocked on the door of the president’s office.
“Marghetta, it’s me. Other executives are here too.”
I knew the minister was inside, but I didn’t mention it. We gathered because we were officially called by the student council president, not by the minister.
“Come in.”
However, the answer that came back was the minister’s voice, and I could feel even the other executives behind me flinching at that voice.
This is a strange thing. The Minister is not a cold or cruel person. He is rather a person who is closer to the gentle side based on his past experience, but he is intimidated by every word he says, perhaps because of his title as Minister.
‘If it had been last year, it wouldn’t have been this bad.’
Without realizing it, I remembered last year when I first met the Minister. At that time, he was also the head of the inspection department, so he was a person that no one could ignore, but in just one year, the position of director became a minister, and he also held several titles. Moreover, he is the godfather of Her Highness the Crown Princess, who will become the next emperor.
I suddenly became envious of last year’s seniors. They must have seen the Minister when he was the head of the department, not the Minister who has made such tremendous progress.
No, I didn’t even have to go to last year, the minister in the first semester was fine.
“I’m going in!”
I barely suppressed those thoughts and carefully opened the door.
‘…I should have gone to accounting, not general affairs.’
And as soon as I could suppress it, another thought crept out.
The general secretary, who can be said to be the leader among the executives except the chairman and vice president, has never been more resentful of that position than he is today. If I were another executive, I would have entered the chairman’s office as one of the party members, not as a representative.
When I sat down, the princess herself handed me tea. Only within the academy does she call her Marghetta because she is her classmate, and as soon as she graduates, she is treated with a welcome treatment by a being she cannot even dare to look at.
That alone made me feel like I was going to die of a heart attack, but the minister’s next words attacked my heart in many ways.
“I have watched you closely, so I know your abilities very well. It is a waste to leave only one future open.”
With those words, the Minister handed the executives a business card with his signature on it.
A whopping two sheets.
“One is a letter of recommendation written by the Minister of Inspection and Inspection. If you visit the administration or other organizations with that letter, they will give you a suitable position. For me, it is better for you to come to the Ministry of Inspection and Inspection, but that is your freedom, so go where you want.”
I know that very well. Last year, the seniors who received this business card from the Minister who was head of the Inspection Department danced wildly and turned the student council room into a ballroom. He even showed off a letter of recommendation to us, who were his juniors at the time.
I didn’t really plan on watching it, but since it was such a long prom, I ended up watching it on my own.
“And the other one is a letter of recommendation written by the great lord—it would be better to think of it as a letter of recommendation rather than a letter of recommendation.”
When I heard the word ‘recommendation letter’, I glanced down at the business card. A business card that says, not Karl Crasius of Tilglehen, Minister of Inspection, but Carl Crasius of Tilglehen, Count of Tilglehen.
“I am an administrative official and a great lord at the same time. As a bureaucrat, I have a duty to devote myself to the imperial family and the empire, but as a great lord, I also have a duty to take care of His Majesty’s subjects.”
As soon as those words were finished, the executives stared intently at the business cards they were holding in both hands. They all seem to have good sense and intelligence, so they seem to have realized what the Minister was talking about.
Of course, so do I. It would be even more strange if you couldn’t understand the minister’s true intention after hearing those words.
“The County of Tilglehen lacks nothing due to the 300 years of Crasius’ history, but Wiridia has just changed from a direct territory to a county, so it has many shortcomings.”
Nevertheless, the Minister personally explained it.
If we decide to follow the Minister as the High Lord, we will head to Wiridia in the north rather than the capital, County of Tyglehen.
You will be working in a somewhat desolate outskirt rather than a busy metropolitan area.
However, because it lacks many things and is a young territory, it is a golden land full of opportunities.
‘Wiridia.’
I swallowed my saliva without thinking. Rumors about Wiridia spread widely, not only to commoners like me but also to noble students.
To be exact, there are rumors about Viscount Kisele, the head of the County of Wiridia.
‘Land of opportunity.’
A place where the chief provincial officer, who had a castle but was hardly a nobleman, was appointed a viscount overnight. A place where countless positions and titles are still vacant.
‘Me too…’
My hands were shaking again. But the trembling had a different meaning than before.
I became greedy. If it was something I couldn’t dare aim for, I wouldn’t have been able to draw it in my dreams, but I can aim for this. The Minister showed hope to people like me.
If I catch the Minister’s attention, if he is satisfied with what I see…
Me and my younger siblings…
‘Is it possible to live as a noble…?’
Can you live well and warmly?
***
Three out of five chose Wiridia instead of Gamchalseong.
Considering that among the executives, the leader of the leading department is more suited to the military than an administrative civil servant, in fact only one chose the administrative position. Even his only friend wanted to live in the system because his family was based near the system.
I am satisfied. Except for those who clearly had to choose a different path, everyone had come to Wiridia.
‘I need to catch my breath.’
He bowed repeatedly, and in some cases even shed tears of gratitude, before sending away the executives and sighing.
Although we have secured a special talent called the head deacon, Wiridia is still suffering from a manpower shortage. In such a situation, even though it is small, three young talents with administrative work experience are brought in? It may have some positive impact on the lifespan of the deacon.
“Congratulations, Carl. Your territory will develop further.”
Mar seemed to have the same thought as he smiled softly and congratulated me.
“This is the territory that my children will inherit, so of course it has to develop.”
When I smiled and responded to Mar, Mar also smiled even brighter.
My future son or daughter. Are you watching? This father is working so hard for you.
So please be a peaceful unemployed person.
Please.