Chapter 80 – Funeral and new Ministers

Early in the morning, Nozomu hugged the Princess from behind, as she was trying to fix her hair. She kissed his earlobe and pushed him away with a smile so that he could get dressed as well.
When they went to that bedroom to pass the night, a few servants saw them in the corridor, holding hands and whispering, and they all suspected what they were about to do. So it was no surprise that when they left the bedroom, every servant and guard they crossed paths with were trying to disguise a smile.
The Princess shrugged when Nozomu whispered they had given an excuse for a few gossips, and when they entered the dining room for breakfast, the Princess’ court was already there, and they all bowed with a disguised smile at the late couple.

As they both sat at the table, one Noble said with a slight smile, “Princess Mere, allow me to be so bold as to point out that you look very happy this morning. I hope Baronet Nozomu can come for a visit more often, to lighten your mood like that.”

The Princess answered while smiling at Nozomu and received a smile back. “I think we will all be seeing him a lot more often, from now on. He is studying in the Academy and I know that after graduating he wants to work as an Adventurer to help our people, but three years from now, he will start living here.”

The Nobles were all surprised, and one of them asked, “Princess Mere, that means… You chose Baronet Nozomu? Isn’t that a bit, I don’t know, sudden, at least?”

“It could look that way, but the fact is that he conquered me the first time he came for a visit. After that, it was just a matter of letting things go naturally.”

“Then allow me to be the first to congratulate you, Princess. Despite my worries about such a dangerous line of work, the Baronet chose to follow.”

Princess Mere answered with a shook of her head, “It won’t be as dangerous as it sounds! He has a nice group of friends with him, two Unicorns and two Dragons! I honestly doubt he will face any peril in that company!”

The Nobles raised their glasses, and even though some of them were disappointed because they hoped the Princess would choose one of their sons, they all congratulated the couple and wished them happiness.
…

Nozomu returned to the Academy after giving his farewells to the smiling Princess, and he arrived there just in time for the first class.

He sat at his desk in the Potions classroom, and Taisetsuna whispered to him from her desk, which was right next to his. “So, how did it go? No problems?”

“No, but she introduced me as her partner to her court and other Nobles that she invited. It seems she wanted to make sure they got used to seeing me there frequently.”

Taisetsuna made an awkward smile and faced forward again, waiting for the Teacher to start class.
She suspected he had the company of the Princess in his bed, but she wouldn’t ask and risk becoming sad. She knew what Nozomu was supposed to do, and despite understanding the reasons, she didn’t like it. Especially because she wanted to be the one with whom he shared a bed. Considering that she had told him directly that she was interested, she needed to step up her game in order to conquer him.
…

In the ‘Ifranluan Empire’, the body of the dead Emperor was burning on a funeral pyre with his wife and daughters, right in front of the biggest Temple in the Capital. For generations, that type of service was reserved for the Emperors and their families, while the Nobles could only use the space near the Capital’s smallest Temples, and the common people were permitted to use the back of the Churches spread throughout the Empire.
While a group of women were screaming and crying for losing their Emperor, the Prince kept a stoic face, watching the tall fire.
He knew those women were not crying for pity; it was because they were paid to do it. It was an old tradition to have a group of women cry at the funeral of an Emperor, because, more often than not, his family didn’t shed a tear. And the Prince didn’t intend to cry. He would rather jump and laugh with happiness, but that would raise too many suspicions, so he had to keep a serious face and let the women do all the noise and cries.
When the bodies burned completely and the wood was almost all coal, the Prince returned to his Castle in the Emperor’s carriage, leaving the guards with their last work for the fallen Emperor: to use big hammers and sledgehammers to crush the bones and turn them to powder, which would then be mixed with the ash and used to fertilize the soil of the fields around the Capital. That was also a strange tradition because it was believed that a dead Emperor would take care of his people by making sure the crops were plentiful in the next harvest.
As he was looking through the window, he saw some of his people bowing at him and then rushing to get something from the ground because a few Nobles that were travelling in the carriages behind were throwing copper coins at them.

The Prince sighed and mumbled, “Stupid tradition… Throw coins at the people, as if the Emperor was apologizing for dying… This is something I need to change. Together with a bunch of other useless stuff.”

When his carriage arrived at his Castle, two lines of guards awaited him, and they all shouted as he left the Carriage, “The Emperor is dead! Long live the new Emperor!”

The young man made a slight smile, and walked straight to the main door, followed by all the Nobles that had attended the burial.
In the main corridor, a line of servants and guards bowed as he walked by, greeting the young Emperor.
The Throne Room received him with open doors. On the Throne, his father’s crown awaited him. Without hesitating, he grabbed it, faced the crowd of Nobles in the room, and put the crown over his head.
He sat and remained silent for some seconds, looking at the Nobles and watching as they became nervous at each passing second.

Then he finally spoke, and they all held their breath. “Today, a new era begins. My family is all dead. My father’s Ministers betrayed him, and they also died. All this puts me in a dilemma. I need ten new Ministers that will not only help me rule my Empire but also receive the lands and wealth of those traitors. That task includes great sacrifice and responsibility, so think very well before applying, for I am not as lenient as my father. If during your work as a Minister any of you advises me wrongly, or tries to gain more wealth than I am already giving, you will be immediately sentenced to death, condemned as a traitor, and your wealth and lands will be confiscated.”

After a few whispers and talks, one older Noble took one step forward and said, “My Emperor, I humbly offer my services.”

After him, more Nobles offered their help. The new Emperor grinned and continued, “I am counting thirty of you, but I only require ten. So, decide who will be those ten, or if you wish, fight for the position.”

One Noble blinked and asked, “My Emperor, did you say fight for the position? How?”

“You all have swords and daggers, so you either use your voice to debate or use your weapons. As I said, I only need ten. The best of you.”

While most Nobles were wondering what he meant, five were pulling their swords and looking around. Before any of them attacked, the new Emperor gathered his Magic and shot Frozen Spears at them, killing them instantly.

Before the surprised Nobles, he explained, “I hid my Magic all these years because it was safer for me if everyone thought I couldn’t use any, like my father. Those Nobles died because I don’t need Ministers that use violence to advise me, for I could never trust them. I need voices, strong and wise voices at my side. And let’s not forget, the ten ministers will receive the lands of those who have died yesterday. And as a warning to the other Nobles here, if you are on my side, great wealth and prosperity awaits you. If you plot against me, only death is in your future, and your families will be sold into slavery. I intend to lower those stupid raised taxes that my deceased father created, and instead, I want weapons, horses, soldiers, and loyalty.”

His words gathered a lot of smiles because of the lowered tax announcement, and that made them forget the direct threat he had made before.

The new Emperor stood up and spoke, gesticulating to maximize the effect of his words. “I have grand plans for the future of the Empire, and I want you all to join me in my dream. As you may have suspected, my father wanted to invade the Principality, but we don’t need to increase our borders for now. We need to get ready to do that later because right now, we need to train all men to fight for the Empire if needed. And we will need it because I intend to make us all-powerful, respected, and feared by every country in this World!”

His words came as a surprise to all the Nobles, but his enthusiasm was so overwhelming that when he finished talking, they all cheered for their new Emperor and wished him long life and wisdom to rule, completely forgetting the fact that he had so easily killed five of them with his Magic that no one even knew he could use.
…