I Didn't Want to Become the Emperor of This World

Chapter 74

At the entrance of the Misty Port castle.

Lord ‘Walter’ was waiting for someone, looking quite tense. The reason the lord was waiting outside the castle gates even though it was late evening after sunset was because the person he was waiting for was none other than the Crown Prince.

‘For His Highness Leonardo to visit so suddenly... what could be the matter?’

The news of the Crown Prince's sudden visit had been delivered by a soldier who had escorted him all the way from the royal capital.

Needless to say, Walter was literally ‘startled’ by the news of the Crown Prince’s impending arrival. If pirates had appeared on the southern coast or monsters had attacked from the Monster Mountains to the northeast, he would have been less surprised than by the sudden visit of the Crown Prince.

‘I’ve prepared to receive His Highness in a hurry, but... I’m nervous.’

Walter wasn't nervous because he had mismanaged his territory. He had done his best to recruit new soldiers in the way Leonardo wanted, and based on that military strength, he had organized agriculture and commerce.

As a knight personally recommended by Jereuth to be the lord, Walter was more than capable.

So, Walter had no real reason to be nervous. Nevertheless, he was.

This was understandable because, to reiterate, it was the ‘Crown Prince’ himself who had come.

‘...It reminds me of the time I had a surprise equipment inspection as a junior knight. I got a harsh scolding from Commander Jereuth back then.’

Just as Walter was recalling that faint trauma.

A group of troops appeared over the ridge. It was dark, so he couldn't see who they were clearly, but from the flag fluttering vigorously in the wind, Walter could tell who they were.

‘His Highness has arrived.’

“Everyone, stay sharp.”

—...Yes!

At Walter's voice, which sounded as if an enemy had appeared, the soldiers and his vassals waiting for Leonardo outside the castle nodded. They all seemed so tense that their nods felt creaky.

A moment later, the Crown Prince's party was close enough to see their faces. Walter was about to approach and greet them first, but he was surprised to see the face of the boy riding the horse at the very front.

‘Is His Highness riding a horse? And has he put on some weight since I last saw him?’

The last time Walter had seen Leonardo was at the lord appointment ceremony in the royal capital several months ago.

So, it was natural that he didn't know about Leonardo riding a horse or his body changing from exercise.

‘And isn't the horse His Highness is riding Commander Jereuth's Kartum? That horse is so ill-tempered that it doesn't allow anyone but the Commander on its back... how?’

Although he was bewildered in many ways, Walter did not show it and showed his respects to Leonardo.

Clack!

“Welcome to Misty Port. From here, I, Lord Walter, will serve you.”

“Haha, thank you for the welcome. You didn't need to come all the way out to the castle gate.”

“Not at all, Your Highness. I am rather sorry for not being able to greet you from further out.”

Leonardo's bright voice put Walter a little at ease.

‘Judging by his good voice, it seems he hasn't come to reprimand me for some mistake.’

Relieved, Walter asked Leonardo.

“But Your Highness, why are you riding a horse yourself instead of being in the carriage?”

“Ah, that's a bit of a long story. To put it briefly, the people we rescued from the bandits we encountered on the way here are riding in it.”

“You encountered bandits?”

“Yes. But thanks to Commander Jereuth, it was resolved without any harm.”

Leonardo said it with a smile, but Walter couldn't take that smile at face value.

‘Where did he encounter bandits? Within the Misty Port territory? If so, that is my responsibility for not managing the territory properly... no, more than that, what does he mean he gave his carriage to those rescued from bandits?’

Walter's inner turmoil and worry were plainly visible on his face. Jereuth, who had known Walter for a long time, could read his expression and, to ease his subordinate's burden, stepped forward and spoke to Leonardo.

“Your Highness, I will explain the detailed circumstances to Lord Walter separately, so how about you enter the castle first?”

“Yes, that would be good.”

After replying to Jereuth, Leonardo continued speaking to Walter.

“Then, Lord Walter, please take good care of the knights and soldiers so they can rest comfortably. And please also take good care of the people in the carriage.”

Walter easily understood what it meant to take good care of the knights and soldiers.

However, he did not immediately understand the Crown Prince's words to also take good care of ‘the people in the carriage.’

But in any case, the Crown Prince's word was absolute, so Walter nodded immediately.

‘I'll have to hear the details of what happened on the way from the royal capital to here from the Commander.’

“Yes, I understand!”

***

Elly.

As soon as she arrived at Misty Port, she asked for Leonardo's permission and went straight to her room to wash up. Fresh chapters posted on NoveIＦire.net

It was partly to wash away the fatigue of the long journey, but more importantly, it was to avoid causing any unnecessary discomfort to Leonardo.

‘...His Highness is a very clean person.’

Having served Leonardo for a long time, Elly knew a few of his habits. Among them, the most peculiar was that Leonardo washed twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, without fail.

Not only that, but his desk and bed were always neat even without her tidying them, and his clothes were arranged neatly in a peculiar fashion.

Knowing Leonardo's clean habits, Elly had been very self-conscious sharing a carriage with him throughout the journey. Because she couldn't wash properly during the trip, her appearance had inevitably become untidy and she had a body odor.

‘That's why I tried to stay as far away as possible in the carriage and discreetly opened the window...’

Of course, Leonardo was so worried about the impending future during the journey that he didn't even notice Elly's body odor. But Elly, who had no way of reading Leonardo's inner thoughts, was conscious of it every moment.

Having to be in the same space for several days without washing with the boy she was so conscious of was an ordeal for the ‘girl’ that was Elly.

‘Hooo... but it should be fine now that I've washed, right?’

Elly checked her appearance and left her room. Then she headed to Leonardo's room nearby.

Although her whole body felt as heavy as a thousand pounds due to the fatigue of the journey, as a maid, she couldn't rest easy before confirming her master was asleep.

Knock knock—.

“Your Highness, it is Elly. May I come in?”

—Yes.

At the low reply from inside, Elly opened the door and entered. She saw Leonardo sitting at a desk, intently reading something.

‘Is His Highness... reading a book as soon as he arrived? He must be very tired too, is he busy?’

“Your Highness, are you very busy? It is late, and it seems you haven't washed yet.”

“Ah, yes. I'm not busy, but I have a few things to think about.”

Leonardo discreetly closed the book and looked at Elly.

“You must be tired too, Elly, so please go to your room and rest. I have a few things to think about, so I'll be going to bed a little later.”

“I will go to rest after seeing you go to sleep, Your Highness.”

“Then you might have to stay up all night.”

“I am fine. But I would like you to go to bed early, Your Highness.”

At Elly's firm words, Leonardo shrugged his shoulders as if he couldn't win and nodded.

“Then at least sit in that chair over there. It's uncomfortable for me if you keep standing.”

“I understand.”

Elly sat in the chair Leonardo pointed to. The action seemed composed on the outside, but Elly's inner thoughts were different.

‘...I think I'll fall asleep if I sit down.’

After a long journey and a warm shower, it was a natural physiological phenomenon to feel sleepy.

But since Leonardo said it was uncomfortable for him if she stood, Elly had no choice but to sit.

‘I'll have to pinch my thigh.’

Squeeze!

Elly tried her best not to fall asleep. But despite her efforts, Elly unknowingly started to doze off at some point.

Elly, whose head kept nodding and then snapping back up.

Leonardo watched her as if looking at a much younger sibling and smiled faintly.

***

Chirp chirp—.

Swoosh...!

The sound of morning birds from somewhere.

And the faint sound of powerful waves made Elly open her eyes.

“Umm...”

Elly was not yet fully awake, but feeling the cozy blanket, she seemed to be in a bed.

‘Why am I in a bed? Yesterday, His Highness told me to sit. ...What happened after that?’

Elly looked around blankly. Then she saw Leonardo, illuminated by the sunlight streaming brightly through the window. He was sitting at his desk, lost in thought, looking at the ceiling.

Seeing that he was still wearing the same clothes, it seemed Leonardo had been sitting at the desk since last night.

Just then.

“Ah, you're awake.”

Leonardo, feeling her gaze, greeted Elly lightly.

At his greeting, Elly's mind snapped to attention, and she shot out of bed, almost shouting.

“...Ah! I-I'm so sorry, Your Highness! I said I would stay awake, but I dozed off and even slept in a bed...!”

“It's alright. It's natural to be tired.”

Fortunately, Leonardo didn't seem to mind at all, but there was something Elly had to confirm.

“Um... did Your Highness perhaps move me yourself? To the bed?”

“Yes. You were dozing off in the chair yesterday, so I moved you to the bed. I didn't have enough strength on my own, so I got help from the other maids.”

Again, Leonardo spoke as if it were no big deal, but to Elly, it was absolutely a big deal.

Leonardo himself had moved her; it was not an incident she could just brush aside.

Elly's face turned beet red as she bowed her head deeply.

“I-I'm truly sorry...”

“I told you it's fine.”

“How can it be fine...! Then, did you not get a proper night's sleep because of me, Your Highness?”

“It's not because of you, Elly. I just had a lot on my mind.”

Haaah—!

After finishing his words, Leonardo stretched widely and stood up from his desk. Then he made a request to Elly, who was still unable to look at him properly with her beet-red face.

“I'm going to wash up, so could you bring me something simple to eat?”

“Yes, yes! I understand!”

Elly replied loudly and immediately fled the room as if escaping. Embarrassment had reached the top of her head, and Elly wanted to get out of the room as quickly as possible, even for a second.

***

Watching Elly hurry out of the room, I headed to the bathroom to wash up. I hadn't been able to shower yesterday because I was reading the <Future Diary> and thinking about various things, so my body felt stiff.

Swoooosh—.

Warm water trickled down from my head, over my body, to my toes.

Along with it, the fatigue seemed to be washed away. My complicated thoughts also seemed to get sorted out.

I fell into thought, feeling the water droplets tracing down my body.

‘According to the <Future Diary> I read yesterday, a gale and storm will soon hit. Five days after that storm ends, the pirates will appear on the coast.’

The fortunate thing was that there was no mention of me being harmed by the gale and storm. It seemed it was because I had entered the castle.

However, there was something strange. There was no mention in the <Future Diary> about any damage to Misty Port castle or the nearby villages.

‘It's possible that there was no mention because there was no significant damage to the villages or the castle, but I can't be complacent. For now, since it's a 'gale' and 'storm', it would be better to make some preparations.’

While worrying about Misty Port and the nearby villages, I suddenly found myself worrying about the royal capital as well.

‘This gale will likely blow across the whole country. I wonder if the royal capital and other cities will be alright. I should have sent people to each city to warn them to prepare for the wind before I left the royal capital.’

As I was mulling over this, I noticed something strange. I was worrying not just for ‘myself,’ but for various parts of the kingdom.

Me, worrying about others. Is this what they mean when they say the position makes the person?

Anyway, I once again recalled what I had read in the <Future Diary> yesterday.

‘Five days after the storm ends, the pirates will appear on the coast. As soon as he heard the news, my future self went to the coast to meet the pirates... but it said the pirates had already left their ships and disappeared somewhere.’

According to the <Future Diary>, my future self, disappointed at having missed the pirates, ordered Jereuth and Walter to find them.

—This was the extent of the new entry in the <Future Diary>.

In other words, my future self failed to meet the pirates and missed them.

‘So, I'll have to go to the coast and wait there before the pirates arrive. That way, I won't miss them.’

Creek—.

I turned off the water and roughly dried myself with a towel.

First, I would eat, then call Walter and Jereuth and tell them to prepare for the gale.

‘After that, I should get some sleep. I'm so tired because I couldn't sleep yesterday after giving the bed to Elly.’

***

Walter, the Lord of Misty Port.

Today, too, he was on his way to Leonardo's room to give his morning greeting.

‘It's already been ten days since His Highness came here.’

When Leonardo first visited the territory, Walter had been extremely nervous. He had wondered if the Crown Prince had come all the way from the royal capital for a surprise inspection.

Contrary to his worries, the Crown Prince didn't particularly mention anything about the management of the territory.

Instead, the Crown Prince gave Walter a very useful piece of advice-cum-warning.

He had said, 「”It seems a gale, or perhaps a storm, is coming, so prepare for it.”」

‘When His Highness first told me to prepare for a gale, I wondered what he meant. In the entire history of the Misty Port territory, there had never been a storm in November.’

Nevertheless, since the order to prepare for the storm came from the Crown Prince, Walter went ahead and prepared for the gale. He evacuated the residents of the coastal villages into the castle and also organized things within the castle.

Then, just as predicted, a few days later, it began to rain heavily, and the wind started to blow.

Soon, a storm struck the coast.

If it hadn't been for Leonardo's warning, the damage would surely have been much greater.

For Walter, it was naturally astonishing that Leonardo had predicted a storm that had shown no signs, and he asked how he had foreseen it. However, Leonardo simply replied that he had just had a ‘feeling of unease.’

‘Perhaps that 'feeling of unease' is a sense unique to those who have inherited the royal blood. A noble ability that I, a commoner, would not know.’

Even Walter, a high-ranking knight, had the common sense of this world ingrained in him: ‘the noble are born with special abilities.’

Walking while lost in thought, Walter soon arrived in front of Leonardo's room. But there was someone who had arrived before him.

It was Jereuth.

‘Did the Commander also receive a summons from His Highness?’

“Good morning, Commander.”

At Walter's polite greeting, Jereuth smiled faintly and shook his head.

“Walter. I've told you that you, as a lord, don't need to be so formal with me.”

“Haha, my apologies. But what brings you here, Commander?”

“His Highness summoned me. He said he has something to say to you and me. Perhaps he intends to do something while revealing the 'real reason' for his visit to Misty Port.”

“The 'real reason' His Highness came here...? I thought he came to warn us about the gale.”

At Jereuth's words ‘real reason,’ Walter asked back in surprise, and Jereuth gave a bitter smile.

“If he had intended to warn you about the storm, he wouldn't have come in person. His Highness is a very busy man.”

“That is also true. But did His Highness not tell you why he came to Misty Port either, Commander?”

“He did not say.”

“Hmm... I see.”

Walter nodded with a somewhat stiff expression.

‘The real reason His Highness came to Misty Port. Perhaps His Highness has inspected the state of the territory without my knowledge. And if it didn't meet his expectations, he might be planning to reprimand me and the Commander, who recommended me as the lord, at the same time. ...What if that's really the case?’

While Walter was worrying more than necessary.

Click—.

The Crown Prince's door opened, and the Head Maid, Elly, came out and said.

“Lord Walter, Commander Jereuth. Please come in.”

“Hmph.”

“Let's go in.”

Walter followed Jereuth into Leonardo's room. He tried his best not to show his nervousness and walked in with confidence.

‘If His Highness reprimands me for any problems in my management of the territory, I will accept it gladly. With that reprimand, I will be able to govern this territory even better.’

Befitting a knight recommended by Jereuth, Walter steeled his resolve. The way he straightened his shoulders and held his chest high towards the sky was like that of a man going to receive his knighthood.

Leonardo called out to Walter first.

“Lord Walter.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Walter looked straight at him, as if ready to accept any reprimand from the Crown Prince with dignity.

However, Leonardo's first words were completely unrelated to his zeal and resolve.

“I came to Misty Port but haven't seen the sea even once yet. I would like to go to the sea for some recreation, could you guide me?”

—...?

—...?

—...?

No one had expected Leonardo to talk about going for recreation, so everyone, including Elly, was dumbfounded.

But Walter, who had been more nervous than anyone, unconsciously let out a dazed sound.

“...Pardon? Did you say recreation?”

***

Swoosh— Shwaaaaa—!

The waves crashed against the white sandy beach, making a refreshing sound. The sky, cleared after the storm, was clean, and the sea also felt even more transparent thanks to the storm.

“H-how is it, Your Highness?”

Walter carefully asked Leonardo, who was gazing at the sea from the shade. At the absolute ruler's sudden desire to see the sea, Walter was trying hard to grasp his intentions.

Belying Walter's efforts, Leonardo gave a short reply and continued to look beyond the sea.

“It's beautiful.”

“Haha... I'm glad you like it.”

While replying awkwardly, Walter continued to watch Leonardo's expression.

‘I don't know if it's just my feeling, but... it seems His Highness is looking for something.’

Walter looked in the direction Leonardo's gaze was fixed. But he couldn't see anything special.

All he could see was the clear sky of late autumn, or early winter, and the faint boundary where it met a sea so clear it was indistinguishable from the sky.

But just then.

‘...What is that?’

A black dot appeared on the picturesque sea.

The dot gradually grew larger, and soon took the shape of a ship. One, two, three... a large fleet of nearly twenty ships. The shape and size of each ship were different, but it was clearly a single group.

‘There are no ships scheduled to come to the coast from that direction today. Does that mean, could it be...?’

Suddenly, Walter recalled what he had read about ‘the pirates who rule the southern seas near Misty Port.’

It was written in a work log he had read to study about Misty Port after becoming its lord. It was a work log written by the previous lord of Misty Port, who had now been purged by Leonardo.

‘If those ships are really the atrocious pirates mentioned in that record...!’

“Your Highness! You should evacuate first—!”

As Walter was speaking.

Leonardo, who had been quietly watching the coast, spoke as if he had been waiting.

“The guests have arrived.”

“...Did you say guests?”

“Yes. They are pirates, but for now, they are my guests.”

It seemed Leonardo already knew they were pirates.

Before Walter could be surprised by that, Leonardo added another word.

“Send the knights and soldiers to invite the pirates. I repeat, you must say that I am ‘inviting’ them. There must be absolutely no armed conflict.”

“Ah... I understand.”

Although Leonardo's command was somewhat strange, Walter decided to follow his orders, as he had done until now.

Meanwhile, Leonardo's eyes were shining with anticipation and tension.

The reason he had traveled the long road from the royal capital to Misty Port was right before his eyes.