𝐍𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 (3)
Of course, such nonsensical excuses were not accepted. The nobles came over and started talking.
Like an excellent prosecutor casually throwing out attacks to gauge the opponent’s skills, the nobles here also lightly tossed out questions to get a sense of Johan.
Those hired from outside Vynashchtym may be good at battles but are often greedy and ambitious or ignorant of politics.
Not all virtues desired by the nobles. But if there was one among them that could be tolerated. . .
‘𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴, 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘵𝘰.’
‘𝘐’𝘮 𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴.’
I wish he was at least politically conversant!
Not all elders, nobles, or wealthy commoner representatives wanted to tear down the emperor. Just a few ambitious ones had such dangerous thoughts. Most only wanted to maximize their own interests as long as Vynashchtym was running smoothly.
For that, the emperor had to lend an ear to the words of various groups in the capital and govern beautifully. And for this to be possible, the emperor had to get out more and actively socialize. . .
Gaïaros did not.
━𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞, 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭!
As an army general, not an emperor, he was only training his own troops in the barracks.
At least his younger sister Gaoalkana was sociable and charming, but had no interest in politics. She simply passed on any petition to his older brother.
It was enough to drive the people she interacted with crazy. It was like talking to a wall.
The only option was to persuade the emperor’s aides to prod him out. . . But so far most had failed.
In the case of the Draconian Guards and other barbarian groups, language itself was a barrier. . .
‘𝘖𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵. 𝘏𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘦.’
‘𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥, 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥. . .’?
In that sense, Johan earned points just for knowing the ancient imperial language. Any Vynashchtym noble should know ancient imperial.
And contrary to rumors, he was quite learned in theology and academics. They thought he’d be a typical battle commander noble, but he can actually hold a conversation! The nobles’ faces brightened a bit.
‘𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺?’
Johan noticed the change in the people’s expressions and felt uncomfortable. It was awkward to have strangers strike up a conversation then get happy among themselves.
“It’s nice to meet you, Count Yeats.”
“By the way, I’m hosting a banquet at my estate tomorrow. Won’t you come? I dare say my chef is among the best in the capital.”
“A banquet is nice, but for someone newly arrived, there’s no place more fun than the Colosseum. What do you enjoy? Chariot races? No. You must like fights. Do you want to see battles against monsters? Or fights among warriors?”
The Vynashchtym people indulged in pleasures and amusements on a scale unimaginable in the west like the Holy Empire. Pitting monsters and gladiators against each other in a massive circular arena for people to spectate.
Of course, it was a literal gamble with their lives. The more warriors killed, the more the excitement and thrill multiplied.
‘𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘐’𝘮 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘬𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘭𝘺.’
In the Holy Empire, when knights gathered to compete on horseback, countless people would come to watch. With so few entertainments in this world, such equestrian events were a rare spectacle.
Even such non-lethal competitions saw many knights killed and injured. So fights with real swords. . .
“But what does the Order say about this in Vynashchtym?”
At Johan’s words, the nobles made awkward expressions. The mainland’s unified church and Vynashchtym’s imperial church did not get along but had no major doctrinal differences.
Gluttony, debauchery and killing could hardly be condoned.
“Worry not, Johan. I know a good method.”
“?”
“After enjoying pleasures, I always go to the temple the next day to pay penance money.”
“. . . . . .”
“As expected of Her Majesty!”
“Hahaha!”
‘𝘏𝘮𝘮. 𝘎𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘐 𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩.’
Seeing the nobles laugh happily, Johan could understand why the emperor had withdrawn.
Surely talking to them would cause headaches!
🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸
At first meeting, work was work. Johan gathered the centaurs and dwarves to distribute roles. They were certainly skilled enough not to fail at work.
“Johan. Why do we need more guards?”
“Isn’t it strange to have that level of guard originally escorting someone of high status?”
“I told you to speak comfortably. I allow it. Was it dangerous even with that escort before?”
“There’s no guarantee it’ll stay safe in the future.”
“Haha. . . What foolish person would target me first? They’d target Gaïaros first.”
“!”
Johan was slightly surprised at Gaoalkana’s words. He thought she lived without much thought, but her insight was unexpectedly accurate.
It was true. Even for an assassination, they’d target Gaïaros who held the military and handled politics rather than the powerless Gaoalkana.
“The opponent might be a madman.”
“Ah, certainly that’s true.”
Gaoalkana nodded convincingly.
“Then why are they all dwarves? What about the centaurs?”
“Centaurs aren’t suitable to escort and guard.”
Truthfully, the centaurs didn’t seem to want to associate much with Gaoalkana either.
“Ugh. . . I was trying to talk. Nevermind. Follow me.”
“?”
Gaoalkana started walking towards the kitchen of the mansion. Johan was puzzled about what could be in the kitchen.
“Of course the excellent knight Johan would’ve known as soon as he saw her, but this one is a great artist.”
“Uh. . .”
One of the dwarves was seen tightly stroking his beard. Facial management was also the role of a guard.
“I also sponsor city artists and help them out.”
“Truly admirable.”
“You don’t have to compliment. Anyway, preparing the banquet is also where an artist can show their genius. . .”
Gaoalkana looked at Johan testingly. She’d heard he was an amazing noble knight, but for her, the important thing was his skill in this area.
“I didn’t come as a cook though, I’m a guard.”
“Shouldn’t a noble naturally have an aesthetic sense?”
Johan was about to say that western nobles and knights, unlike the royals who grew up inside the imperial palace, were rather roughly raised, but held his tongue. She probably wouldn’t be interested anyway. . .
Seeing Johan disinterested, Gaoalkana coaxed,
“If you do well, I will listen attentively to what Johan says. Okay?”
“And if I don’t do well?”
“If you don’t do well, Johan has to listen attentively to what I say.”
“I’m already listening attentively though. . .?”
Since he had to keep accompanying Gaoalkana, Johan decided to at least ask first.
“What do I have to do?”
“Think of something more to add to this perfect banquet I have prepared. If you share a good opinion, I will give you a prize.”
Seeing Johan remain seated and fall deep in thought, Gaoalkana grinned gleefully.
If he was another barbarian captain of the imperial guards, he might’ve yelled ‘𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘧𝘧!’ and stormed off, but Johan was seriously pondering it quite unexpectedly. That alone deserved quite high praise.
He certainly had at least a little of an artist’s heart.
“It’s not like some kind of god-given inspiration. . .”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a legend from my hometown. A story where a duke boastfully promised a thousand gold coins if anyone could remove or add even one letter from a book he wrote. . .”
Though it was a legend not from the Holy Empire but Johan’s actual homeland, there was no one who would know that.
Gaoalkana seemed to really like that vigor.
“Great story! I will remember it! If I write a book in the future, I must include it.”
‘𝘖𝘩 𝘯𝘰. . . 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘐 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵?’
While Johan had tried improving the barren Holy Empire cuisine in his spare time, he doubted it would be of use for such a lavish banquet.
“Is this cream? There’s no sweet taste.”
“That’s not for eating, it’s meant to be spread to enjoy. . .”
“. . .”
Johan, who was sampling the cream, quieted and glared at Gaoalkana. His gaze was so fierce that Gaoalkana explained without realizing.
“I-It hasn’t been used yet! Okay?”
Johan found some nearby sugar and started vigorously whipping it into the cream.
Cream was often used as a sauce in Vynashchtym but not whipped with sugar like this, so Gaoalkana was puzzled.
“Hmm. It’s pretty good. As expected, taste improves when ingredients are used extravagantly.”
“Wha. . . Really not bad, right?”
Not expecting Johan to instantly make something, Gaoalkana was very surprised.
“Johan. Think of more!”
“. . . . . .”
“If you think of one more thing, I promise to never make you do this again! I promise!”
“. . . . . .”
“Stop glaring at me! It’s scary!”
🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸
Digging through faint memories, Gaoalkana was very satisfied to take out several luxurious dishes that existed in history. She insisted that Johan was clearly born for art.
Not only that, she shouted loudly that she would introduce him as an artist in front of people, so Johan had to keep a straight face.
“What do you think about the Vynashchtymyu still not perishing?”
The dwarf next to him whispered. Johan chuckled. The nobles of Vynashchtym ate and drank like crazy, to the point that the dwarf said that.
At the banquet Gaoalkana hosted at her villa, the nobles were completely absorbed in making loud noises.
“Well, if they want to do that, there’s no need to stop them. . . Wait.”
“?”
The dwarf was puzzled as Johan frowned.
“Do you not hear any sound?”
“All I hear are big drunks vomiting. . .?”
“No. Monster sound.”
“!”
The dwarf had great faith in his employer’s abilities. If Johan said there was one, there was one.
“Grab your weapons!”
The physical abilities of the dwarves were one of the best among their race. They picked up their shields and battle axes and tensed their nerves. Their eyes seemed to radiate a fierce light.
‘𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴?’
As if answering the dwarf’s question, noisy sounds gradually started to be heard. Screams of people, sounds of things colliding and collapsing were heard.
“Drake! Drake!”
“A drake escaped from us!”
“. . .Don’t tell me these crazy guys had a drake locked up?!”
The dwarves shouted in disbelief, but now was not the time to worry about that. First we had to assess and handle the situation.
“Check which way it’s coming and stop it from rampaging once it gets here.”
“Don’t we need siege weapons for a drake?”
Drakes, which look like two-legged dinosaurs, have low intelligence but strong vitality. Siege weapons were needed to kill them in one blow.
“Your excellency will kill it in one shot.”
“Well, his excellency is. . .”
“. . .It’s not my place, but don’t you think you’re being too casual towards your master?”
Even as he spoke like that, Johan took out several spears and staked them into the ground. He figured one spear would be enough to kill something centaur sized.
‘𝘐’𝘮 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.’
Appeasing the dissatisfaction of the capital was one of the emperor’s greatest roles. If dissatisfaction grew, riots could happen and the emperor could lose his position.
That’s why so many feasts and victory parades were held.
And now an accident like this happened. My luck is the worst for things like this to occur.
“What’s with the noise?”
“Yeah, what’s going on?”
The loud noises seemed to reach the ears of the drunk nobles as well, as people came out from the villa into the courtyard. Johan shouted angrily.
“What are you doing? Get them back inside!”
“We’re sorry!”
The dwarves tried to push the nobles back in. The drunk nobles resisted tipsily.
“Why are you pushing, you midgets!”
“. . .”
“What? Want a beating?!”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier!”
The dwarves immediately swung their axe handles to hit and knock down the nobles. The nobles shrieked ‘Ow ow!’ and scrambled hastily back inside.
Just then the drake appeared from the road below. Fortunately it wasn’t very big. Johan threw his spear down like lightning.