Chapter 9
Blair and Aaron quietly closed the office door behind them. Aaron patted Blair’s shoulder, whose mood had sunk after what had just happened.
“You did well.”
“I didn’t intend to speak about it like this, without any preparation or plan.”
Blair sighed deeply, covering his face with his hand. He had wanted to bring it up when his heart was fully prepared, but everything had gone to waste.
“At least you said it. You would have had to talk about it sooner or later anyway. As I said earlier, it’s better to face the rod sooner.”
“Hmm, I suppose.”
Although he just nodded in front of Aaron, he didn’t feel fine at all. No matter how much he trained, his heart remained undisciplined and was now wounded by his own words. It was amazing that despite being battered and bruised all over, there were still places left to hurt. It was strange even to himself. Though the words were his own, his heart was still wounded.
Perhaps the heart has an incredibly strong regenerative power.
Let’s part ways and live independent lives without each other. It’s time for us to graduate from one another. We need to move on to the next stage now.
This was something he was saying to himself, not to Kyle. Blair was brainwashing himself.
“Anyway, you’ll be busy if you want to wrap everything up and leave before the end of the year.”
“The same goes for you. With only a month left until the Founding Festival, you must be exhausted preparing the budget and working.”
“Damn, I want to quit being Finance Minister too. I also have a title and territory! This guy, the most enviable person in the world. A prospective man of leisure!”
Aaron mumbled with his head buried in Blair’s shoulder. Due to their height difference, Aaron was half-hanging from Blair’s shoulder, chattering non-stop as he fluttered along. He walked quite well on his tiptoes.
“Be sure to contact me when you’re settled down there. When I get a long vacation, I want to come to your territory and laze around like an unemployed person for a month. I really need a vacation. You wouldn’t kick me out if I came, would you?”
“You’re always welcome. Come anytime. You can stay for a year or even ten years, Mr. Finance Minister.”
Blair winked slightly.
“Let’s have the farewell party at Lily’s pub. We need to finish the remaining Hoberlon.”
“Sure. Lily was asking us to come anyway. And give up on the Hoberlon. You were carried out unconscious last time. You might die from that. We’re not that young anymore. It’s time to take care of our bodies.”
“No way. I can’t give up on the last chance to drain your pockets. This time I’ll really scrape your pockets clean with a rake.”
“Hehe, sure.”
Aaron must surely know that Blair wasn’t feeling good. That’s probably why he was acting more exuberant than usual. Blair appreciated his friend’s thoughtfulness.
After that day of light arguments, Kyle and Blair’s opinions never reconciled, but time flowed as always. Blair stopped caring about Kyle’s opinion and began reorganizing the Imperial Guard and the Military Affairs Department as he saw fit.
Since both the parliament and the nobility committee welcomed Blair’s resignation with open arms, there was nothing to hold him back. Thanks to this, the work was proceeding smoothly even without Kyle’s official permission. Far from being sad about Blair’s departure, stories only spread about how everyone was frantically working behind the scenes to place their own people in the soon-to-be-vacant General position. It was a welcome development for everyone to clip the wings of the overly powerful General.
Behind the scenes, there was another kind of tension. Rumors had spread that Blair was looking for a marriage partner. The eyes of women with good backgrounds and confidence were focused on one place.
The social circles were in a complete buzz. Among the numerous rumors, there were also rumors about the Emperor. It was said that his mood was very bad, and that he wasn’t seeing his favored Leonard or his concubines, making their relationship quite distant. But Blair was so busy that he had no time to pay attention to such matters.
“The General hasn’t been coming lately.”
“He seems very busy, Your Majesty.”
“He’s always the busiest person in this country.”
Kyle softly complained to the head attendant.
After the lush, vivid summer passed, the Founding Festival quickly arrived. It was a Founding Festival blessed with the abundance of autumn. While officially called the Founding Festival, it was also a Thanksgiving festival celebrating the joy of harvest. The people of the Crassia Empire traditionally gathered the abundantly harvested grains and fruits during Thanksgiving, prepared luxurious food, and shared their affection.
As it happened, the founding of the Crassia Empire coincided with the harvest season. The country designated this period as a holiday to commemorate both the harvest and the founding. Shops energetically prepared for the Founding Festival, beginning to showcase their best products. The country was bustling in many ways, as criminals were pardoned and the national treasury was opened for public giving. The entire Crassia Empire began to buzz with excitement.
Aaron, who oversaw all movement of the country’s budget, and Blair, who had to stabilize the uneasy public security of the capital due to the influx of people, were both so busy that they had no time to see each other.
Blair in particular was so busy resolving the minor inconveniences and problems arising from the reorganized Imperial Guard and Capital Guard structures that even having two bodies would not have been enough.
Blair was originally a very handsome man, but recently he had become even more attractive. Deep fatigue had hollowed his cheeks and eye sockets. His once solid, muscular body had lost some weight, adding to his aura. His appearance caught the eyes of passing women. The image of the handsome man in a black uniform with a sword on his left side was a picture in itself.
Blair couldn’t even enjoy a single beer on the day of the festival. It was obvious that if any unexpected major incident occurred, Kyle would use all sorts of excuses to keep him in the capital. He really wanted to leave the imperial family, to leave Kyle now. As he busied himself trying to sort out his feelings, he felt like his heart was gradually wearing away. Before that, Blair was exceedingly busy. He didn’t even have time to indulge in idle thoughts or luxurious sentiments. It was truly time to end everything and leave.
After the long Founding Festival ended, there was only one event left before Blair’s official retirement. It was an entertainment for the imperial family and nobles before winter came—opening the large mountain near the capital owned by the imperial family for hunting.
Even noble ladies unfamiliar with hunting would ride horses and, with the help of knights, catch small rabbits and the like to take home. The hunting competition was an opportunity to get some fresh air before it became very cold, even for those who didn’t particularly enjoy hunting. It also provided a chance to build relationships with influential nobles in social circles, so attendance was very high. Powerful nobles never missed it.
The weather had turned cold. The hunting competition was approaching. The time to finish everything was coming. After the hunt, he really intended to put everything down and go to the pleasant Gladius territory to have fun. Before that, he planned to visit the Monetery Trading Company to meet his older sister Clara and his brother who had become the Count of Monetery. He should also see his aged parents.
Blair planned to stay in the Monetery territory where he was born and raised for at least a month. Blair really wanted to do nothing but have fun and rest while playing with his nieces and nephews. He had never seen his niece born to Clara. If she resembled his sister, she would be quite a beauty. A smile formed automatically as he thought of his eldest brother Theodore’s children.
Blair had never truly rested since he had resolved to make Kyle emperor. He deserved to rest. He was one of the hardest working people in this empire.
The day of the hunting competition dawned.
Blair dressed in his black uniform. He had lost a bit more weight recently, as the waist of the uniform made specifically for his body was slightly loose. After neatly arranging his attire, he combed his hair and tied it in a single ponytail. His long, black hair fell down his back. After fastening a purple brooch symbolizing the General on his chest, he removed the sword he usually carried and instead strapped five daggers at a position where his right hand could reach them.
When hunting, he preferred shooting targets from a distance using a bow, daggers, and throwing stars rather than engaging in close combat. He picked up a bow made of buffalo horn hanging on the wall and slung it over his back. It had been a while since he had plucked the bowstring, and the buffalo muscle vibrated with tension. After cleaning and arranging well-sharpened arrowheads, Blair wore a black frock coat instead of his usual cape. The only colors on his entire body were his purple eyes and the brooch of the same color. The luxurious and dark attire added a highly dangerous and precarious atmosphere to Blair.
Blair wasn’t particularly fond of meaningless slaughter. But this time, he intended to show off his skills a bit. There was something he wanted to catch one last time.
Blair slowly rode his horse to the hunting grounds. Nobles young and old, adorned so lavishly that it seemed impossible for them to take even a single step, were gathered in one place, chatting. It was an excessive outfit ill-suited for hunting grounds. It was a relief that they had the sense to avoid dresses that would make movement difficult. As Blair appeared on his black horse, everyone’s eyes fixed on him. A silence fell over the previously bustling hunting grounds.
Blair’s horse was much larger than ordinary horses. The horse’s wavy, glossy black mane, well-maintained coat, and clear, black pearl-like eyes made Blair stand out even more. Blair scanned the crowd with indifferent eyes. He was someone who drew attention wherever he went.
“Loyalty!”
As Blair arrived, the entire lower knighthood formed a fist with their right hand and placed it on their left shoulder, shouting their loyalty. Blair nodded lightly and raised his right hand slightly to let them relax their posture. As the knights relaxed, only then did all the nobles move as if released from a spell. The hunting grounds buzzed with activity.
[To be continued…]
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
