I see emperor stats-Chapter 104
new information
[His Highness Julius, have you been well? I wanted to visit the capital often, but lately, I was pushed back by things I had to deal with, so I haven't seen you even once until the middle of winter.
By the way, this old man is very happy that he has shown interest in government affairs other than foreign activities in recent months. As he always said, what a king needs is armed force... (syncopation)… ]
Here, Julius skims through the letter in an instant. Coolly skip nagging! We corresponded regularly, but after listening to the same thing for decades, including our previous lives, we knew what he was going to say.
Julius grumbled inwardly as he flipped through the letter.
'At that time, I thought I was nagging a lot because I was so incompetent, but now that I see it, isn't this just a habit?'
whisper.
After flipping through the letter like that, I finally got to the main point. First of all, it was about the progress of development in the north.
[As you said, exchanges with foreign peoples are going well. The development situation is also progressing rapidly. The other side is a bit prudent, but I think it will be possible to build a trade road leading to the mountains soon.]
'It seems that cooperation with Nuada is going well. Hey, I've never broken a promise!'
Julius, who was reading the letter while nodding his head like that, suddenly put on a puzzled expression.
'huh?'
[By the time this letter reaches Your Highness, you will be preparing to go to the capital. It seems His Majesty has been needing this old man for a long time. Then I will tell you properly.
-Mareus-]
'Abama's calling him to the capital?'
In fact, Mareus was originally the emperor's reliable right-hand man, so it was not strange to call him again.
However, since northern development is busy and Julius has been helping with state affairs lately, there was no big problem even if he wasn't called to the capital.
In fact, compared to the complicated power struggle in the capital, the development of the northern part has many agendas to deal with, but there are few things to worry about.
For a person specializing in administration like Mareus, it was tantamount to giving the emperor a leave of absence.
'Because Obama might need him... … .'
At least it was clear that it was not a political issue. Lately, the aristocratic faction has greatly diminished, and the Archduke has taken no apparent action.
'It's not unrelated to me that I informed you in advance by letter, but what the hell is going on?'
* * *
At that time, Mareus was really preparing to depart from the North. He was saying good-bye to a clean-looking young man.
“Even without me, you should be able to do all the work. I think my business in the capital will be quite long, so please take good care of me.”
“There is still a lot missing. I am grateful to you for trusting me.”
“Give thanks not to me, but to His Highness the Prince. In fact, if it weren't for Your Highness' consideration, I wouldn't have given such importance to someone from a foreign country, no matter how talented I was.”
"I'll have to say goodbye someday. For now, Mareus-nim, please convey my thanks on my behalf.”
“Tsk! Are you pampering this old man?”
His words were harsh, but Mareus smiled warmly. The target he was taking over was Bayern. He showed amazing ability and was promoted from a low-level management to a management position he could trust.
‘Certainly, His Majesty Julius has an excellent eye. I knew he was a brilliant youngster, but I didn't expect him to rise so fast.'
Originally, no matter how recommended Mareus came in, he tried to make him come up step by step from the bottom. He had such a strong personality that he had no intention of compromising on that point.
However, Julius seemed to think differently.
“If you judge that you are outstanding, isn’t it right to give you more opportunities? You look like a very good person to me, right?”
“Only if Your Highness says so, I will give you a little more opportunity to make achievements.”
And Bayern did it all better than Mareus expected. He is young, quick-witted, and decisive in getting things done.
He saw Bayern's talent from the beginning and was contemplating whether to make him his successor.
Adding to that excellent performance, the two became quite close now and even joked around like this.
"really! Come to think of it, a frozen body was found in front of the government office today.”
Mareus frowned. It was not uncommon for the poor to freeze to death in the middle of winter in cities, but location was a problem.
“Isn’t this the third time this winter? I don't know why he died in front of the government office, not in the back alleys of the city?”
“That’s right. Actually, before you leave, I have something to tell you about this, so I should have visited you.”
“What do you mean?”
Bayon lowered his voice a little here.
“I don’t think this sequence of events is accidental.”
* * *
'First Prince, doesn't that guy have no intention of leaving the capital?'
Three months have passed since Nongonghaengsang. The Archduke attended the meeting in a rare, somewhat nervous mood. For the past three months, he had been looking for an opportunity, so he stayed in the capital without returning to the territory.
'Let the shadows wait around the capital.'
Originally, the Archduke tried to drive away the imperial faction even with extreme means after he decided to take charge of Julius himself.
First of all, all the remaining shadows were put on standby near the capital so that they could target Julius at any time.
However, instead of going anywhere, Julius stayed stuck in the capital under the pretext of learning government affairs. Of course, at first he didn't take the grand duke too seriously.
'There are many methods that can be used without having to directly hit the first prince.'
The first means was assassination.
'First of all, we need to remove the forces of the imperial faction in the north little by little.'
The assassins he secretly ordered headed north. Of course, the name and color were factors of the imperial faction, but there was no way that the guards were negligent.
However, even if it failed, he thought that the effect of shaking Julius and the emperor would be enough.
“I received a call that all the assassins dispatched to the north have been lost.”
“What does that mean?”
“It is as I said. It disappeared like a ghost.”
"No way… … .”
The Grand Duke put on a puzzled expression before getting angry. The place where he requested the assassination was not so lax.
It wasn't that he wanted to eliminate even a high-ranking official like Mareus, but it was normal when he heard that something happened in the north.
However, it is not enough that the news has been cut off at all, and it is said that the north is extremely peaceful.
'What kind of means are you using to manage that vast northern area?'
The Grand Duke's worries deepened. The more time passed, the more the nobles who followed him would falter and Julius' position would solidify.
'We have to break the momentum of the imperial faction somehow. At this rate, the worst could happen.'
* * *
Meanwhile, Julius was visiting the Blue Dragon Merchant again. There was someone who opened the door and greeted him as he entered.
“Lord, long time no see.”
“How is the training of the knights going?”
“It's still going smoothly. If we keep going like this, after a few more months, it will be at a level that is not too much to use in real combat.”
“I’m glad you did.”
“The talents of some of the young people who are undergoing private training are truly unusual. I feel like I have broadened my eyes.”
Jegal Unhyeon was genuinely admiring. In fact, the reality was that most of the West Continent's knights looked clumsy when viewed through his eyes, one of the leading warriors in the East Continent.
Didn't the real Julius also go through a lot of trials to gain his approval?
However, after the scuffle with Nuada, Jegal Unhyeon became interested in the warriors of the West Continent. They had been bickering ever since the first day they met, and they ended up facing each other in the underground gymnasium of the Blue Dragon Merchant.
'There's still a difference in level, and since I told you, he won't get seriously hurt.'
The result was as expected by Julius.
“Damn it… I will admit defeat.”
“From now on, call me senior. Anyway, we share the same position, but since I'm older, shouldn't there be a hierarchy?"
“Okay. But I will definitely take revenge later!”
“Heh heh, do as you please.”
It was the second loss in his life after the duel with Julius, so Nuada seemed to be very upset, and Jegal Unhyeon, who responded leisurely compared to that, was quite surprised inside.
'her… A friend who has just turned 30 has achieved that much. I might have to revise my prejudice against the western continent.'
Nuada was not a man who lacked talent and sense of competition anywhere, but it wasn't long before Julius restored the white tiger self-defense machine and started to learn it in earnest.
Crucially, even though Jegal Unhyeon learned the martial arts of the same four martial arts, he was overwhelming Nuada in the degree of perfection and skill of each technique.
In other words, considering the training time, it was a natural result, but considering the age, Nuada did a great job.
'My lord, even if you can understand it because he is a legendary spirit of death, that friend's talent is really surprising. I might catch up soon.'
After reminiscing for a while, Julius smiled at him and asked a question.
“When you say some young people, who do you mean?”
“You mean the young man who flirts with that young Sojeo.”
"iced coffee… … .”
Since Jegal Unhyeon had only one body and nearly a hundred knights, there were only three knights who had the opportunity to receive individual training with him in addition to group training, even with the help of other masters.
Julius asked again with a slightly regretful expression.
"You're saying that the leader, Sir Haines, doesn't like it."
"It's not that he's not particularly lacking. I was just talking about the possibility of development according to age.”
“Well, in terms of talent, it should be like that. But even he is second to none in terms of effort.”
“I know that. It's just an honest judgment, and I'm not favoring anyone, so please rest assured.”
Beatrice, Keynes, and Haynes passed the strict examination and were receiving personal guidance from Jegal Unhyeon.
Among them, in the case of Beatrice and Keynes, even Jegal Unhyeon was surprised by their talent.
“In fact, I think that these two are so good that they don't need a teacher if they put in the effort. but… … .”
"but?"
“After training, there are a few things that stump me, but I think I need to talk about that next time.”
Julius quickly realized the intent of this ambiguous answer.
“Let’s see if there is any new information from the Hyeonwol War.”
“Actually, that's why Hwayeong asked for a meeting with her lord.”
After a while, Julius was alone with Jegal Hwayoung in a secret room.
“Meet the lord.”
“It’s been a while, Lord of the upper ranks. You said you asked for me, but do you have any urgent information?”
Because of his status, they rarely communicated information by letter, and rarely called him directly.
[Jegal Hwayoung]
Current status: tension, agitation
'It must be a pretty urgent matter. I don't think I've ever seen her shake like this.'
First, after examining Zhuge Hwayoung's condition, Julius listened carefully to the story.
“First of all, there was an assassination attempt by some members of the imperial faction in the north.”
This was what was expected so far. Three months had passed since the incident, but the Grand Duke could not stay still. If it had been quiet, it would have been suspicious.
“Seeing that there has been no news of the damage, it seems that they blocked it well. Good job.”
However, even under his rule, Zhuge Hwa-yeong's tension showed no signs of easing. Julius couldn't help but be more curious.
'Where did these people make mistakes?'
With his doubts, she continued to speak.
“But researching the route to the assassination has yielded some new information.”
“New information?”
“… … .”
She paused for a moment, then continued with a serious expression.
“Her Highness, have you ever heard of a group called [Illuminati]?”
“Illuminati?”
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