“Master, the carriage is ready.”

“Right.”

There wasn’t just one carriage prepared.

One dazzlingly luxurious carriage and two that looked ordinary.

Five maids were waiting for me in front of them.

‘They’re all on the thin side. Does Adrianne not feed them?’

“These are the girls who will be attending you today. Is this acceptable?”

“These girls… all of them?”

“Shall I recruit more?”

Is Adrianne under assassination threats or something? Why on earth would she take five maids just to attend a meeting at the Imperial Palace?

‘No wonder they prepared two carriages…’

I glanced cautiously into the air. Thankfully, no command appeared

“Reduce it to one.”

“…Pardon?”

“I said reduce it to one, because it’s a hassle.”

The butler, who had been staring at me with an expression of disbelief, hurriedly bowed his head.

“Yes, yes, I understand.”

The butler called one of the maids lined up.

Her face looked familiar.

She was the red-haired girl who had groomed me in place of the maid I’d assigned to clean the laboratory.

“Take this girl. Luna, serve the Master well.”

“Yes, butler.”

Luna opened the carriage door and knelt beneath it.

“Master, would you like to step up?”

“….”

Is she seriously telling me to step on her thighs to get in?

‘Sigh, it’s just one obstacle after another.’

“Stand up.”

“Yes…”

Luna looked up at me with wide, round eyes.

I intentionally hardened my expression to be colder.

“If I were to trip while stepping on those thin thighs of yours, would you be able to take responsibility?”

“I-I’m sorry! Th-then what should I do? Should I lie flat?”

“Go put on some weight.”

“Yes! I’ll put on weight quickly… wait, what?”

“Move aside.”

“Uh… yes.”

Luna stood up hesitantly and stepped away from the carriage door. She kept glancing at the butler, clearly not knowing what to do.

However, the butler was equally flustered. He gave Luna a look as if telling her to figure it out herself.

I boarded the carriage, pretending not to see anything.

After Luna climbed in as well, the carriage slowly departed a moment later.

‘Time to organize the information I’ve gathered so far.’

1. 1. Five years have passed since I, the Hero, died.

 

1. 1. The Demon King will not reappear.

 

1. 1. Therefore, the villain of Part 2 is likely to be human.

 

1. 1. I must find the protagonist, the saintess, as quickly as possible.

 

1. 1. The saintess likely has companions.

Having thought this far, I rested my chin on my hand.

‘There’s too little information.’

Regardless, there was only one goal: to complete Part 2 in the shortest time possible.

“Master.”

Just then, Luna handed me something from a luxurious box.

A top-grade tobacco pipe made of obsidian.

“These are the finest tobacco leaves from Persona; I’m sure they’ll suit your taste.”

“….”

So, I…was a heavy smoker.

I had never smoked in my original world, nor had I since transmigrating into the novel.

No one, including myself, was allowed to smoke in my presence.

It was because of a companion who had suffered from asthma as a child.

“I’m not in the mood. Put it away.”

“Yes, Master.”

The carriage entered the Imperial Palace grounds.

‘This place has changed a lot too…’

Well, it made sense. Many buildings must have collapsed and been destroyed because of the magic beasts, so they had no choice but to rebuild.

Still, the old appearance hadn’t vanished completely. Looking at it, memories began to resurface.

The time I sneaked out of the Imperial Palace with Leonhart to chug beer.

The time I wandered all day after accidentally entering the maze garden with Owen.

The time I accidentally blew up an entire tower while trying to create a magic item with Ruspell.

‘The tower is still there?’

The tower, which had its roof blown off when I left the Imperial Palace with the subjugation force, was now perfectly intact.

‘Why did they leave that as it is?’

Other buildings had been changed to a grand gothic style, but that tower alone remained exactly as it was, built with plain red bricks.

‘My hands are itching for the first time in a while.’

As an architecture student, seeing a building that didn’t fit the atmosphere made my hands itch. I wanted to redraw the blueprints from scratch.

‘I can’t let my skills get rusty…’

I cracked my knuckles and let out a small chuckle.

In Part 1, whenever I had a spare moment, I used to scribble designs on napkins or the dirt ground.

Because I thought I would be able to return soon.

‘And then I ended up in Part 2. Dammit.’

The carriage stopped. Luna hurried out and reached out her hand.

“Master, would you like to step down?”

“Wait here.”

“Pardon? Ah, I understand. Have a safe trip, Master.”

Leaving Luna behind, I headed toward the meeting room.

The exterior of the building had changed, but the internal structure was the same as before, so it wasn’t hard to find.

As I entered the meeting room, the noise vanished instantly.

The people already gathered, stared at me with wide eyes.

“Gasp! Is that not the Duchess Ivrante!”

“Oh, indeed. When was the last time the Duchess attended a meeting? Hasn’t it been quite a while?”

“She stopped visiting the Imperial Palace five years ago. I heard she was in poor health?”

“It seems she has recovered now. Her beauty is as timeless as ever. Doesn’t the nickname ‘Ice Rose’ suit her quite well?”

“I don’t know, in my opinion, ‘Venomous Snake’ seems more fitting.”

“Ahem! You’d better watch your mouths. There are many ears listening.”

Some looked at me favorably, some watched me warily while others sneered behind my back.

The meeting room became noisy with talk of me. My ears were practically itching.

I stood by the window at the edge of the room. I had absolutely no confidence in pushing through the crowd of nobles to reach the center.

After a while, the door opened, and a tall man appeared.

‘Leonhart?’

My first companion and the Third Prince of the Empire, Leonhart Jenetic Filio.

‘When did he get so big?’

Back then, the nickname ‘Leon’ suited him far better than his actual name.

But now…

‘Where did the frail, handsome boy I know go? Men really change drastically as they age.’

In my absence, Leonhart had transformed into the perfect man.

Even through his suit, it was easy to tell that his body was built from solid, well-trained muscle.

His aura had changed completely as well.

Even just standing still, he radiated a refined sense of intimidation.

It was the aura of a masterwork blade, forged through thousands upon thousands of temperings in molten steel.

‘No, seriously… how did he become even more handsome than before?’

Black eyes and black hair that looked like a piece of the clearest, most vivid part of the night sky had been plucked away.

His skin was a flawless cream color, and the bridge of his nose had the perfect angle and height.

He was pretty enough to attract attention anywhere back then, but now that distinctly masculine sensuality had been added to him. It was breathtaking.

For some reason, my nose stung slightly.

‘It’s not like I raised him, but he grew up well.’

With a proud heart, I looked around. Look at this, isn’t our boy impressive?

‘…?’

Why are they reacting like that? Far from admiring Leonhart’s looks, the nobles looked completely intimidated.

There was a palpable tension in the air.

‘Right. I’m seeing him for the first time today, but they must have seen him often.’

The nobles bowed their heads in unison toward Leonhart.

“We greet the Third Light of Filio, His Imperial Highness.”

‘Six years ago, he was the Third Prince who was ignored… You’ve really made it, huh, Punk?’

Leonhart’s gaze, which had been indifferently scanning the nobles, stopped on me.

‘Oops!’

I hurriedly lowered my half-raised hand.

I almost greeted him because I was so glad to see him.

No matter how much Leonhart had changed, to me, he was still that small and lovely friend.

Well… he grew a bit too tall. About 190cm.

‘But did something bad happen?’

Far from smiling, a faint irritation could be felt in his expressionless face.

Why is his expression so bleak?

‘Smile, Leon. You’re really pretty when you smile.’

Leonhart withdrew his gaze.

“We shall begin the meeting.”

‘His voice has become wonderful too.’

My ears naturally perked up at the low, rich resonance of his voice.

Though it had a terribly dry and cold tone, it was probably because he was in a bad mood.

Anyway, I’m so proud that Leonhart grew up this well.

I wonder how much the other companions have changed? I’ll be able to see them someday, right?

“This is regarding the creation of the golden statue of Hero Adella Helsington to be erected in the Grand Plaza. The documents being distributed now contain the overall details of the production, so please refer to them.”

An attendant distributed documents to the nobles.

The documents listed the budget, production period, and other details.

Since it was a special production, there was also a regulation stating that it would only proceed with a unanimous vote.

After giving the nobles a moment to review, Leonhart continued.

“We will now begin the vote. Those who oppose, please raise your hands.”

‘Eh? You said it was a meeting! Weren’t we supposed to debate the pros and cons first?’

And is it okay to hold a vote this openly?

I looked around at the nobles. Naturally, everyone would oppose-

‘Wha-what!’

Absurdly, not a single person raised their hand.

‘Why aren’t you opposing? The budget is way too high! Are you really going to approve this  ridiculous plan of using diamonds for the eyes and rubies for the lips? This is a waste of manpower and taxes!’

If I stayed quiet, a jewel statue about six times the size of my former self as the Hero was going to be created.

‘H-horrific!’

“There is no opposition. Then I will approve this matter unanimously—”

“I oppose.”

Everyone’s gaze pierced through me. Leonhart’s as well.

“…What did you say?”

“I said I oppose. I simply cannot agree to this.”

“Please state your reason.”

“First of all, the budget is too high. It’s unbelievable for the cost of creating a statue.”

“Look at the documents. This is no ordinary statue.”

“Exactly. What on earth is the reason for making a statue out of jewels? It is a highly inefficient choice.”

“Inefficient. Is that the only reason for your opposition?”

His tone was cold. As I thought, something must have happened to put him in a bad mood.

“Of course not. There’s more.”

“What is it?”

“I also don’t think the choice of subject for the statue is appropriate. If you insist on making a statue, it would be better to find a subject that offers greater aesthetic or artistic value.”

“…!”

The nobles gasped with expressions of horror.

‘Why are they so surprised? I’m making sense.’

Leonhart narrowed his eyes and asked.

“I would like to hear what Your Grace considers to be an appropriate subject.”

“Places like the Grand Plaza have a lot of foot traffic. I believe it would be much more efficient to install medium-sized sculptures that stimulate artistic inspiration or curiosity here and there. Oh, and some creatively designed benches would be nice too.”

“…Are you saying that Adella Helsington is not a suitable choice for a statue?”

“Isn’t that obvious? Who would like something that will only be an eyesore once made? It would just get in the way of people walking.”

Leonhart took his eyes off me and scanned the room.

“Is there anyone else who opposes?”

As if they had made a pact, the nobles shook their heads.

No, what is with these people? Do they really agree?

“It seems only the Duchess Ivrante opposes. Is that correct?”

“….”

Even the sound of breathing vanished from the meeting room. The nobles couldn’t even meet Leonhart’s eyes.

‘Like a mouse in front of a cat…’

I could understand why the nobles feared Leonhart.

It was because Leonhart’s aura was excessively overbearing.

To the point where one would be overwhelmed by the atmosphere before even recognizing his beauty.

Ah, what a shame. If you just smiled once, everyone would love you.

“Then, with a majority in favor, the proposal will pass.”

Huh?

I hurriedly raised my hand.

“Wait a moment!”

“…What now.”

“The documents clearly state that the proposal only passes when it is unanimous. I wonder if it’s acceptable to ignore regulations like that…”

Now the nobles all looked at me at once.

If they showed horror earlier, now they looked as if they were begging me to please stop.

“…I’m curious if it is.”

I shut my mouth, pushed by the desperate gazes of the nobles.

The more I spoke, the more it felt like I was bullying them, which left a bad taste in my mouth.

Thud!

Leonhart dropped the documents as if throwing them.

“Duchess Ivrante.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Come see me for a moment.”

“…Pardon?”

“Follow me out.”

Without another word of greeting Leonhart left the meeting room.

I stared at the violently swinging door before turning my gaze.

The nobles were looking at me with pitying eyes.

…Did I perhaps make a mistake?