Vol. 3 - Chapter 109.1 - A Quiet Story: The Prime Minister’s Anguish
“Well then, I’ll give you the news.”
His Majesty has called me into his office, and I am about to be handed down a penalty.
“Prime Minister Paul Ford. Although you are the Prime Minister, you have violated the law of this nation, which is a serious crime. Normally, I would have dismissed you from your position as Prime Minister and punished you severely, but my ministers have petitioned against this.”
His Majesty then presented a petition on his desk.
“I have received a plea from my chief ministers,” said the king, placing the petition on his desk, “that if I were to dismiss you, the government would not be able to function. I agree that this is true. Moreover, the documents regarding the engagement of the Crown Prince and Lady Katariona were incomplete. Therefore, it cannot be accepted as an official document.”
Now, a set of engagement documents were presented on top of the petition. Incomplete? It couldn’t be. I’m sure the documents have been checked many times over and kept in a safe place.
“…The day after the Royal Ball, your aide Marcus Wright requested that the documents be returned to him because they were incomplete. When I checked it, I found one mistake. Here.”
I looked at the spot where His Majesty the King had pointed and found that there was no allotted seal. But I’m pretty sure I stamped it……
What’s more, there’s no way that Joseph would have missed such a mistake. Could it be!
“It appears that you have an excellent aide. You should be grateful.”
“Ha–!”
That reminds me, Joseph had another copy of the same document ready when he prepared it. He never put his seal on the other one. That guy. You knew this was coming.
“I know your achievements better than anyone. I think it would be a loss for the country to let go of such a talented person. But you must still be punished. I sentence you to one month’s house arrest. Reflect well on your actions.”
“I humbly accept. Thank you, Your Majesty, for your generosity.”
After leaving His Majesty’s office, I walked to the Prime Minister’s office.
“Prime Minister. How is it going? Are you going to jail?”
The moment I entered the room, Joseph asked me that. What an inappropriate thing to say first thing in the morning.
“No, I’m not going to jail! I’ve been sentenced to a month’s house arrest. During that time, you will have to work as my Acting Prime Minister. I will hand things over now.”
Joseph let out a huge sigh.
“What? Why the sigh?”
“No, sir. Just the thought of not having His Excellency as a shield for a month…….”
“What do you…… who am I to you?”
“Your Excellency, the Prime Minister.”
Truly an impudent fellow. But thanks to Joseph’s quick thinking, he saved the day this time.
“I’m sorry about all this, Joseph. And thank you for–“
“What is it? For what? I feel uncomfortable when you get all emotional.”
I thanked him sincerely, but he dare insult me. I glared at Joseph, but he was completely unfazed.
I am going to recommend Joseph as the next Prime Minister, however. He may be foul-mouthed and brusque, but he’s quite capable.
“Well, okay. I’ll start the handover.”
While giving instructions to Joseph, I voiced a thought that occurred to me.
“Hey, Joseph. Do you believe in time travel?”
“Time travel? Do you mean going back in time? If that’s the case, I’d like to go back to my school days.”
“Ho. Back to your school days? What would you like to do if you could go back?”
I was surprised to hear Joseph say such a thing.
“… Next time, I’m not going to work for the government, but for the Magic Academy. That way, I won’t have to babysit you.”
“…… I see. I don’t remember asking you to protect me.”
“You’re not aware of it, are you? What’s more, why are you bringing this up all of a sudden?”
The day after the Royal Ball, I had visited the Marquis de Grandeur to apologize.
I wanted to know why my niece Rio was refusing to get engaged to the crown prince.
But I was shocked when I heard what happened.
Rio has been sent back in time to start her life over again.
Before she returned to the present, she had met a tragic end. What was I doing at that time?
Then I finally realized the reason why she stubbornly refused to get engaged to the crown prince.
I had proceeded with the engagement talk on my own, wishing for Rio’s happiness, but that action had been a mistake.
I was angry with myself for hurting my precious niece.
So I decided to make amends. I want her to be happier this time.
Today, I truly am glad that His Majesty the King did not dismiss me from the position of Prime Minister. I had planned to make sure that I would not be dismissed, but I did not expect such a large number of petitions.
Perhaps I can protect Rio by staying in my current position.
“…No. If I could go back in time, I would have done so before I made my mistake.”
That night after the handover, there was a surprise visitor.
As I was relaxing on the balcony of my room, something suddenly fell from the sky. I braced myself and looked at the thing that had fallen and saw that it was a cat with white fur.
“Hmm, I’ve seen this cat somewhere before.”
“Prime Minister Paulford, I need a favor.”
A cat that talks. This cat, with its unusual odd eyes, is a holy beast of the Marquis de…… Grandeur. I think his name is Leon.
“A favor? What is it, Cat-kun?”
“I’m not a cat. My name is Leon. I want you to help me get into the Magic Academy. You, as the Prime Minister, can do that.”
Backdoor admission: …… No, no, no. I could make a recommendation. But in the first place, if you have some sort of magical attribute, getting in is easy. However…….
“It is possible, but cats, even if they are holy beasts, cannot be admitted to the Magic Academy. But you can go in and out with your owner. Why don’t you and Rio go to the academy together?”
“I have already done that. I want to enter the academy as a human being.”
“As a human being? …… Isn’t that impossible?”
Leon exhaled as I observed him. He must have given up.
Then I felt a gust of wind blow by, I saw a boy standing where Leon had been. A beautiful boy with silver hair and blue eyes.
“How about this?”
“…… No way……Leon? I know that figure. Rio’s escort knight. Is that you or is that another Leon? It’s possible to change into a human form?”
I’ve never heard of a Holy Beast that can take human form.
“Of course, a holy beast cannot. I can because I am a god.”
“God!? Hold on, wait! Leon is a god? Why would a god be with a human!?”
“Calm down. I met Rio when about the age of seven in the Marquisate de Grandeur. We’ve been together ever since.”
Leon briefly explained everything from the time he met Rio until now.
I had thought that he was no mere holy beast, but I never thought that he was a god. Suddenly my liver chilled and I couldn’t help but kneel in front of Leon.
“Please forgive me for my previous insolence, I was unaware that you are the guardian god of our country.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about. You can treat me as you always have.”
The gods are generous.
“In human form, it is possible. But do you want a special identity?”
“In this form, I shall be the child of a relative of the Marquis de Grandeur. I think it can be done.”
“The world of the nobility is more complicated than the gods think. If you don’t mind, I’ll do it this way.”
I proposed a plan to Leon, a god.