Deception (2)
221
Magna, a wizard directly under the imperial family, came to the fortress of the Frislan family with a few royal guards.
It was to open the warp gate, but Magna asked the Royal Guard Dacaus, showing both curiosity and curiosity at the same time.
“Is there a dear guest coming?”
“I don’t know anything in detail.”
The warp gate wasn’t something that opened and closed just because one person came and went.
However, even though the war has not started now, an order has been given to connect the warp gate for the sake of only one person.
Unless they had some great influence or feat, they could not receive such a privilege.
Of course, Magna had no intention of poking around, so she nodded when Dakaus turned around.
Soon, a person crossed over the activated warp gate.
Magna glanced at the person’s face and withdrew with the Royal Guard.
Rey, who passed through the warp gate, greeted Spera, who came to meet him first.
“Hello, Spera-sama. How have you been?”
“Okay. Welcome, Ray.”
Rey greeted Spera first and then turned to Johana.
Yohana was wearing a light dress she hadn’t normally worn, and was struggling to figure out what to say the first word.
Ray asked with a grin.
“You didn’t cry without me, did you have a good time?”
“…”
I was wrong, heh heh… So don’t leave, heh heh…
It was when I was about thirteen.
When Rei said that she was leaving for a few months to go to the tower, Yohana grabbed Rey’s crotch and cried so much.
Yohana, who remembered the shame of the world, finally came out with a fist before saying hello.
Rey looked back at Darren, smashing Johanna’s fist.
“Are you well?”
“Yes, brother. I did well too.”
Darren sighed and answered, looking at Rey and Yohana alternately.
After that, Rey exchanged brief greetings with the Frislan family officials with whom he was acquainted.
After saying goodbye for a while, Spera approached Rey.
“Your great-grandfather is waiting for you.”
“Ernst… Marquis Frieslan?”
“yes.”
“Ah… Then I’ll see you right away.”
Rey was led to Ernst’s office along the way, and was alone with Ernst.
Rei, who exchanged greetings lightly, was the first to bring up the story related to the civil war in the Rubyha Kingdom.
Ernst nodded briefly after hearing all of Rey’s story.
As for the Rubyha Kingdom, the Empire was also watching.
Ernst, and the Emperor, who knew the long history of mankind, knew that war was inevitable in the end.
The problem was the timing, and it was clear that there was nothing good about wasting time.
Ernst looked at the map on the wall.
“Now is the right time to wage war.”
The current emperor’s authority was exalted.
Moros also filled in the legitimacy that Phoebus lacked.
The nobles who procrastinated while looking at the liver before Phoebus succeeded to the throne were going to bow their heads for a while.
There have also been recent incidents involving demon worshipers.
At such a time, if the emperor ordered a war to eradicate demon worshipers and vicious forces, it was difficult to retaliate.
But as the next few years pass…
The voices against the imperial wielding of force will begin to grow gradually.
“Ignore such public opinion and trample it. But it’s annoying.”
It was much more efficient and wise to wage war at a time when the emperor’s authority was high and it was difficult to speak out against it.
In that respect, Rei, the Emperor, and Ernst had a right interest.
Ernst looked at the map on the wall and looked back at Rey.
“The Empire will not miss the bandit. I will order you to actively review and proceed with the recruitment of the Ranger commander you mentioned.”
“Thanks. And if a war breaks out, the two artifacts must be retrieved. That will certainly eliminate the danger.”
It was referring to the staff I saw in the Count of Osiris and the Spirit Sword used by the 1st Prince.
Ernst replied that he knew and brought up the story of the Count of Phillips.
“It is too inefficient to send troops to the Count of Phillips to form a front.”
Ray also agreed on that.
Perhaps if war broke out, the people of the Count of Phillips would have to evacuate temporarily, but Ernst assured Rey that he would take great care of it.
Having finished talking about the Rubyha Kingdom with Ernst, Rey sips tea and asks indifferently.
“But, Marquis, the Holy Sword in the Imperial Palace, can I draw it?”
Ernst replied indifferently.
“It’s not something I’m going to talk about, but if you were going to draw a holy sword, did you really need to hide your achievements?”
“Is that so?”
Ray laughed lightly.
Ernst thought for a moment, then changed the topic.
“The armor to be given to you will be completed soon.”
It was an artifact that was crafted using fragments of a dragon heart.
Ray was more interested in that.
*
Ray had dinner with Spera after having a solo session with Ernst.
Johanna and Darren were also invited to a meal and sat down at the same table.
Rey exchanged one more formal greeting with Spera.
“How have you been?”
“Okay. But Rey looks a little tired.”
Rey rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged.
“I must have been a little tired from coming by carriage.”
“I’m going to eat and go get some rest.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
Soon the food came out.
Spera sneaked closer to Rey and whispered a small whisper in her ear.
“Can I talk about Yohana over dinner?”
“…”
It was a joke based on a conversation we had in the past.
At first, Johanna was sitting right in front of Rey.
Rey thought about the past for a moment, touched the back of his nose and smiled calmly.
“Of course it will.”
Yohana blinked, not understanding what the two of them were talking about.
Anyway, with Rey’s consent, Spera straightened her back and said confidently.
“Today I won.”
A proud smile crept across Spera’s lips.
Rei and Johanna understood the meaning of Spera’s words a little later.
Belatedly, Johana shouted.
“Supera-sama! Yesterday I won!”
“Anyway, I won today.”
Hearing the two of them arguing, Ray burst into laughter.
Rey, who smiled and bowed his back, adjusted to Spera’s rhythm.
“Congratulations.”
“thanks.”
Spera was proud and Johanna had a dissatisfied expression on her face.
Ray was happy to see him, and he smiled once more.
Yohana was arguing with Spera and shredded the meat without being able to pick it up.
Rei saw that, and realized that Yohana’s cut of meat had become much more elegant than before.
Read at n̲o̲b̲l̲e̲m̲t̲l̲.̲c̲o̲m̲
Now, the way Rei cut meat was more clumsy than Yohana.The etiquette of the nobles of Reiya was learned for a while when necessary, so it was a natural result.
Rey followed Johanna and Darren as they sliced the meat and asked Spera.
“What is the Aegis admission process?”
“Um… There are several ways to enter, but…”
Aegis was more of an academy, training elite troops for the imperial family.
Even if their status was a bit sagging, the talented people focused on selecting them.
Of course, no matter how much talent was emphasized, it was extremely rare for a person with a status of less than a commoner to enter Aegis.
In the first place, commoners were not given a chance to bloom enough to show their talents to others, and it was difficult to identify and verify their identity.
For this reason, noble sons and gentry families, mainly from Korean-American families, knocked on the door of Aegis.
Of course, the sons of the imperial high ranks would also enter Aegis.
In some cases, children of the central nobles who were close to the emperor were admitted.
The sons of powerful aristocrats entered Aegis in order to build friendships and make connections with those who would later belong to the imperial armed forces.
“There’s a bit of a hierarchical dichotomy.”
Spera blinked for a moment before adding an explanation.
“The admission method is largely divided into special admission and general admission, and Johana and Darren will take the entrance exam and enter general admission.”
Johana was going to enter Aegis, pretending to be guaranteed her status by a suitable noble family in the Empire.
After that, the imperial family confirmed Yohana’s potential and actively supported her to make her talent bloom…
Of course, after a while, everyone who knows about Yohana’s origins will know.
Read at n̲o̲b̲l̲e̲m̲t̲l̲.̲c̲o̲m̲
Nevertheless, in politics, how to decorate externally was important, so it was necessary to follow such a frivolous procedure.Some would think it was a bummer, but Rey knew that sometimes blindfolding was necessary as well.
Ray asked as he cut the meat.
“Then am I a general admission?”
“Let Rey do what she wants. Even Rey doesn’t have to deceive her origin and identity, but…”
Ray from the Earl of Phillips.
Externally, ‘Rei from the Count of Phillips’ was known as a man coveted by the Imperial Swordmaster and who might become the fiancée of Spera Frislan.
Of course, Ray’s name was not widely known.
This is because the empire was confused over the succession issue before the rumors about Rei spread in earnest.
Except for Count Phillips and the imperial family, the only people who knew Rey properly were the Frieslan and Alstein families.
‘Aside from that, where have I ever exposed my identity…?’
In the Kingdom of Alimo.
When he contacted the Imperial contingent, his face was exposed once.
By the way, that was right after Meteor had fallen, so his face was a complete mess.
At that time, it was safe to say that no one had properly checked Rey’s face, except for the Royal Guard who spoke face to face.
“Well…”
Rey, who had thought about it once, opened her mouth.
“Leave the name and come from, but please decorate it in a suitable place and make one.”
The title of Spera’s fiancée was too aggressive.
Rey intended to stay quiet at Aegis and take a look at the overall educational environment.
I was going to quit if there were no major problems beyond a semester or so.
Spera nodded her head.
“Okay. I’ll tell you that.”
“But what about the entrance exam?”
“…well? I’ve heard that the exam assignments are confidential and change slightly every time…”
Spega tilted her head slightly.
“Can I find out?”
Ray smiled and shook her head.
Having prepared Rey and the kids for their entrance exams, neither Ernst nor Spera cared about anything else.
Rey and Johanna, as well as Darren, were born with great talents enough to be admitted to Aegis.
I was able to pass any task that came up.
Ray also had to get a passing score in a way that was not too conspicuous.
In a friendly atmosphere, Ray brought up a different topic.
*
Some time later, at the place where the Aegis entrance exam is being held.
Ray, who took the first test, looked back at the examiner and asked, just in case.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Shoot the sword and destroy the target. A strike must be considered effective when it leaves a mark of at least 5 cm in depth.”
“…”
Rey looked at the vacant lot the examiner was pointing at.
On the vacant lot, a target made of solid rock was erected at a certain distance.
The nearest one was at a distance of 30 m.
“…is there any target closer than 30 m?”
The examiner took a deep breath and looked at Rey with a pathetic face.
“If you can’t hit a target 30 m away, you fail.”
“…”
Rei, who had been aiming for a target for a long time with her sword, muttered abusive language with a sense of shame.
“Ha, f*ck it, f*ck you.”