How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 421

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I took out my pocket watch from my breast. Under a single ray of moonlight hidden by the ebony bookshelf, I could clearly see the second hand ticking as it moved. Even the darkness was clear tonight. The apocalypse approaches formlessly like Prussian gas, giving off a faint almond scent. In this pre-apocalyptic situation that no one on the continent knows about, and even I cannot fully comprehend, it feels like I’m being rewarded with this brief rest for the fatigue of running around Vienna’s city center all day.

I took a deep breath. The smell of oxidized nuts seemed to brush past my nostrils. I still couldn’t let my guard down. Every minute and second was precious.

Now the importer Hans Gruber would send 16 tons of fake Acqua Panna to retail stores and restaurants throughout Austria.

‘No.’

They’re already sending it. Even at this very moment, freight trains loaded with fake Acqua Panna have departed from the port city right next to Italy, cutting through Hungary’s plains and stopping at the empire’s numerous major cities.

‘It’ll be too late after it’s distributed to restaurants. We have to seize it before then.’

The day before yesterday, that is, it arrived at 10 PM about half a day before the Prime Minister died, so it took time to transport and hadn’t spread nationwide yet.

But from today it’s dangerous. This morning, as soon as restaurants nationwide start operating, this country will be ready to become Pleroma’s puppet state. Since a certain amount of magical power is needed for Acqua Panna to become a ‘mind manipulation potion’ or be ‘Atropos-ized,’ there won’t be immediate harm to humans, but the ruling class Espers becoming Pleroma’s puppets and handing over life-and-death authority to a cult means the empire’s downfall and an era of misfortune for the majority of citizens. All Austro-Hungarians will collaborate as Pleroma. And in this situation, those who would be most problematic if harmed are undoubtedly the Imperial Court.

‘Even if we stop the fake Acqua Panna from being distributed to restaurants, if the Imperial Court goes wrong…’

Unless we exterminate the royal family here by tonight and establish a republic, this anti-Pleroma operation will fail. I checked the time and asked the envoy.

“What’s the status of Austria’s request for assistance?”

[The Imperial Palace requested the Papal States to send 10 special management grade Arcane Mages and 50 lower grade Arcane Mages. The Papal States answered they would open a portal at 9 AM today for humanitarian reasons.]

Special management grade refers to people like Narke and me, and here too the grades are subdivided with Greek letters. Even within that management grade, there’s a division between those who can freely use mind manipulation magic and those who cannot. Depending on what grade and how many the Papal States send, our work will become easier or not. However, worrying about this was a luxury. The problem lay elsewhere.

‘9 o’clock.’

I bit the inside of my lips lightly with my teeth. Too late. Pleroma will hear this news too, and by then the continent’s fate will already be in their hands.

“…Yes, thank you. Could you relay a message to the Papal States?”

[Yes, please speak.]

“Count Farnese of the Allied Association’s 101st, who can use divine power, is already here, so please send only 49 lower grade Arcane Mages. This is not the royal family’s request, but Count Farnese’s words.”

I’m not in a position to interfere with their diplomacy. This was just saying we wouldn’t return immediately, and giving some signal to the Papal States.

No words came from the envoy. After a long while, he gave me his final greeting.

[I hope you return safely.]

Now I’ll go solve the immediate problem. This time it’s simple.

As I’ve been thinking all along, we just need to prevent Acqua Panna from reaching the Emperor and Imperial Court members.

I cast a stealth spell and left the building, entering the back alley as Narke signaled. In front of a shabby residential building, a white hand suddenly popped out and grabbed my robe’s hood.

“Hey, wait…!”

Narke smiled warmly and held out his hand with palm open. I naturally tried to high-five, then realized the other person was unfamiliar and asked awkwardly.

“What.”

“I want to try it like Julia too~”

“…”

I pressed my hand against Narke’s hand as his eyes sparkled. Narke laughed brightly out loud. He didn’t have the mysterious divinity he had radiated when acting as a ninety-year-old man. He felt like a student his own age. Of course, he was always a high school student, but strangely, he seemed even more so than on that first meeting when he jumped down from a building at midnight and greeted me spiritedly. Compared to the beginning, at some point I had often seen an indescribably subdued smile from Narke. I don’t know what he can’t tell us, but he became like that at some point. When I smiled back at his brightness after facing the quiet darkness, Narke momentarily averted his eyes, then grinned again and patted my shoulder.

“Good work.”

“Isn’t it a bit early for that greeting?”

“That’s true, but~”

Narke acted cheeky. I asked about the work he had handled while I infiltrated the Trade and Economic Affairs building.

“How was it?”

“He’ll sleep soundly for about 12 more hours. I wrote down the formula, so check it later.”

Narke said while pulling at his Roman collar to loosen his breathing. Now I noticed his clothes were different from before.

“You changed clothes.”

“Changed, right? I didn’t change them, I just really put them on.”

“You changed here?”

“Yeah.”

Buttoning would take a long time, so he probably didn’t want to be distracted outside, but he must be confident he could win even if someone followed him. He would have cast stealth magic anyway, but still.

Narke was wearing a black cassock with trim decorations. His hair was the common low-brightness blonde you could see anywhere, and his eyes were blue. He didn’t seem to have cast much magic on his features, but strangely he didn’t look like Narke and seemed like someone I was seeing for the first time. Unless I knew he was a master of divine power and made a conscious effort, he didn’t look like Narke Farnese at all. However, since I knew he was using divine power, I quickly adapted to him like that. It was a type of cognitive disruption magic. When I was about to snap my fingers thinking of a face to change to, Narke pointed to a suitcase and said.

“I brought yours too. Change clothes.”

I looked up at the residential area’s sky. I asked with such an incredulous expression.

“Here?”

“Yeah~”

“Huh…”

I chuckled and looked around. It would be fine since it’s a narrow alley between houses. It’s not impossible. A cassock just needs to be put on and fastened anyway. Thinking that, I opened the suitcase lid and tilted my head.

“Huh.”

* * *

“Huh.”

The chamberlain standing before the Oberhofmarschall of Hofburg Palace blinked rapidly and slightly curled his lips inward. In a clear Central German accent, he reconfirmed what he had heard to the Austrian before him.

“You’re saying that today, at 9 AM no less, Arcane Mages from the Papal States are coming?”

“No. Before that, the Archbishop of St. Stephen’s Cathedral will come to bless the Habsburgs and the empire first.”

The Oberhofmarschall answered with an annoyed expression and waved his hand, meaning to leave quickly now that he understood.

At 6 AM, the Archbishop of St. Stephen’s Cathedral would come to bless the Emperor and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The chamberlain only heard this fact at 4 AM. He left the room holding the list the Oberhofmarschall had given him and hurriedly took out his pocket watch. Had he misread the clock? That’s what had to be the case. But the hour hand cruelly pointed to 4 AM. That fact made everything before the chamberlain’s eyes utterly dark.

‘The Papal States.’

Investigators constantly going in and out of the Imperial Chancellor’s office right in front of the Emperor’s bedchamber was just half a day ago, right before putting his head to the pillow. But now guests from abroad? If they’re special management grade Arcane Mages, aren’t they cardinals?

Even if it’s a working visit, they’re distinguished guests. Only 5 hours remained until they arrived. Not 5 weeks, not 5 days, but 5 hours!

The chamberlain quickly crossed the black and white marble hall laid out like a checkerboard. His heel sounds were becoming undignifiedly fast, but he couldn’t care. Actually, there was no time to be walking. In just 5 hours from now, he had to decorate this palace without shame before the Oberhofmarschall, His Majesty the Emperor, and the Vatican, and prepare appropriate reception for a secret visit.

‘…No, how happy I’d be if even 5 hours remained.’

Less than 5 hours remained. The most crucial preparations had to be finished within 2 hours. The Archbishop of St. Stephen’s Cathedral was also a clergyman of no different rank from Vatican dignitaries. Even though he was Austrian, he couldn’t be treated carelessly just because of the same nationality. In effect, everything had to be completed according to the schedule of the distinguished guest arriving in 2 hours. Unless he wanted to show His Grace the Archbishop of St. Stephen a procession of servants busily moving around the palace.

Since it was a secret visit, he couldn’t arrange elaborate ceremonies like mobilizing military bands or renting squares. The distinguished guests had to be received solely through the capabilities of those managing the Imperial Court’s household. Such major events being held urgently had often occurred when the chamberlain himself served in small German principalities, but experiencing it in such a large empire was his first time, so sweat began to form on his forehead. The massive palace grounds with over 2,000 rooms felt burdensome.

The chamberlain walked quickly to the left wing of Hofburg Palace, the Leopold Wing. Going down one floor, he knocked on the room his subordinate chamberlain used as a bedroom. When the subordinate chamberlain, who had been called around everywhere due to the Prime Minister’s death and was just about to close his eyes, came out with a bewildered expression, he widened his eyes and poured out words like a machine gun.

“Ring the bell in the servants’ quarters and tell everyone to get up immediately. At 6 o’clock, the Archbishop of St. Stephen will come to this palace to give blessings. And at 9 o’clock, the Holy See decided to send cardinals and priests. Go tell the supervisors about the upcoming distinguished guest visit and prepare!”

“What? Archbishop? Wait…!”

The chamberlain quickly left. He had to go to the kitchen. After that, he had to have coachmen on standby, and find scribes. Finally, he had to inspect servants—especially Kammerdieners and Lakais—reorganize guard positions, and deploy interpreters. And he had to keep the palace chapel open. The order didn’t matter, but these were all tasks that wouldn’t be enough even handling one every 5 minutes.

The chamberlain spent the next hour searching throughout the vast palace. One hour remained, the appearance still wasn’t proper, but the instructions were being completed. Following the unreasonable orders left only the servants’ incredulous expressions asking ‘how do we do all this in one hour,’ but that wasn’t for the chamberlain himself to know. The chamberlain pointed to the servants gathered in the Leopold Wing’s basement in turn.

“You find rooms we can offer when guests need a place to rest. It should accommodate at least fifty people. And chef, can I leave the meals entirely to you? The Archbishop might decline the meal, but we must prepare. Since there was a poisoning incident, tea should be strongly fragrant and not dark in color, alcohol is unnecessary.”

“Of course.”

The chef temporarily brought from another noble house answered while trembling, having turned pale. It was probably because he thought he too would be investigated after this work ended. The chef who had been working couldn’t come because he was under investigation since the Prime Minister’s death. There were countless missing personnel like this.

‘With all the middle managers gone, this is really…’

He had to handle distinguished guests with personnel who had just started working in the court. The chamberlain held his forehead and slowly looked around. His head hurt and he couldn’t immediately think of what to do.

“And… now…”

“You’ve almost finished everything. If there’s anything to assign to the Kammerdieners, please give instructions.”

The Head Chamberlain spoke politely. The chamberlain finally realized he now had to manage the servants. He gestured to the Head Chamberlain and said.

“Bring the Oberhofmarschall’s Kammerdiener.”

“He’s currently being interrogated.”

“Then where is the Kammerdiener who helped with my work?”

“Hans is also being interrogated at the Ministry of Magic.”

“Then His Highness the Prince’s Kammerdiener?”

“He’s also being interrogated.”

“…”

“I’m sorry to say something that makes you feel bad, but most Kammerdieners had some connection to His Excellency the Prime Minister, so there aren’t many.”

That would be the case. Kammerdieners are servants right beside their masters. They don’t often encounter other Kammerdieners’ masters, but anyway, Kammerdieners work in the palace connected to the Chancellor’s office, and due to the investigation bureau’s suspicion that poison flowed into the Chancellor’s office through some exchange between them, most were currently being interrogated. There was no objection to the interrogation, but Esper nobles couldn’t do without Kammerdieners. At least several Kammerdieners had to be stationed where they would receive the Archbishop. Fortunately, not all Kammerdiener masters would participate in today’s schedule, so he could bring those with nothing to do as temporary Kammerdieners, but he definitely had to secure backup personnel. If there were no Kammerdieners, he could search for lower-rank servants. The chamberlain checked his watch and asked anxiously.

“What about Lakais?”

“The Lakais only received simple investigations and were released, so they’re all here.”

“I’ll have to go see them myself.”

“Yes, I’ll guide you.”

The Head Chamberlain went up to the ground floor and headed quickly to the central Swiss Court. There was a room used as a gathering space for Lakais. Even on the way, the chamberlain kept instructing the Head Chamberlain.

“Since there was a poisoning incident, we absolutely must not show anything that could threaten the distinguished guest. Select only young men handsome enough to expect a positive effect. You must understand what I mean.”

“I clearly understand. However…”

“Absolutely people worth presenting. Since high-ranking people from the Papal States are visiting, we must keep only those who can represent Austria’s face. Send back anyone whose first impression is even slightly poor.”

“I’ll try my best. However, if we’re considering impressions, there won’t be many people left even among the Lakais…”

The chamberlain grabbed his neck and exhaled deeply. The Head Chamberlain stopped in the Swiss Court’s hall and answered the chamberlain respectfully.

“Understood. Tell me the number of people needed and I’ll select and bring them.”

“Select ten people. Eight of them will be stationed on site, and I’ll choose two to accompany the distinguished guest.”

“Please wait a moment.”

The Head Chamberlain entered the room at the end of the corridor and soon came out with ten Lakais. Perhaps considering it one of the opportunities to be promoted to Kammerdiener, the human young men’s faces were bright. However, the chamberlain watching them didn’t look the same.

“Isn’t there someone a bit taller? We need to match the height of Espers.”

“There aren’t many Humans over 180cm. There are about two, but you won’t be pleased with their appearance, Your Excellency.”

“Hmm….”

The Chamberlain was not satisfied with this current selection. If only the Esper Kammerdieners hadn’t gone for investigation, they could have placed Espers throughout the Imperial Palace, but those before him now were only Humans. Being Human wasn’t the problem. No, it was actually welcome since they couldn’t use magic, but unfortunately their first impression was poor compared to Espers. They might look handsome from a Human perspective, but to Espers, they appeared to have the faces of an immature period when hormones weren’t even properly regulated yet. The Chamberlain knew this perception of young Humans was his own prejudice, but he had no intention of withdrawing that prejudice now. Those the Lackeys had to serve were all Espers, and those Espers would generally think like the Chamberlain himself, so he had to match their perspective. The Head Chamberlain cast a sound-blocking spell and spoke carefully.

“Your Excellency, these are men who have already been selected through many conditions when hired as Lackeys. There is no one in the Imperial Palace with a better impression than this.”

“Aren’t there many Humans who are like Espers? But you’re saying there isn’t a single such person among our Imperial Palace’s Lackeys? I’ll take a look myself.”

“But….”

The Head Chamberlain led the Chamberlain to the Lackeys’ room with a troubled expression. When the Chamberlain burst into their room, the Lackeys who had been sitting at the table hurriedly stood up and bowed their heads to greet the Chamberlain.

The Head Chamberlain spoke carefully under the sound-blocking spell.

“As you can see, this is all the personnel we have. The Humans who can substitute for Kammerdieners are only the Lackeys I showed you earlier.”

“…Sigh….”

It looks like we’ll be giving the Vatican the impression that the Imperial Palace is run by commoner Humans. The Chamberlain closed his mouth with a regretful expression and turned his head. Then, he suddenly whipped his head back toward something that had caught his eye.

“Wait.”

One Young Man caught his attention. The Chamberlain slowly furrowed his brow and parted his lips, then stood up and gestured to the tallest Young Man standing there. The Young Man looked bewildered, then quickly stood before the Chamberlain with the composed expression befitting a Lackey.

“Did you call for me?”

When he called him out, the Head Chamberlain looked at the Chamberlain with a puzzled expression. The Chamberlain pointed at the blue-eyed Young Man and asked his name.

“What’s your name?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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