The Low-Ranking Civil Servant Wants to Achieve Success - Chapter 20

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 20
Kiaros met the Emperor that night.
The Emperor appeared somewhat weary, yet not exhausted.
“Kiaros, how is your body? Are you well?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Kiaros responded with proper courtesy.
“According to the Royal Physician, there should be no problem using my arm after a few more days.”
At this, the Emperor let out a hearty laugh and waved his hand dismissively.
“No, not your arm. I meant you.”
Only then did Kiaros realize the Emperor had been asking about his Dark Period.
Kiaros spoke in a dejected voice.
“I am not well, Your Majesty. And my heart is troubled. The moment I disclosed my Dark Period, this incident occurred.”
“Ha ha, but you gained something from it, did you not?”
The Emperor spoke with his characteristic kindness.
“Had you not been attacked, we would have gone to the Capital without ever knowing there was a group conducting such horrific experiments on magical beasts.”
“Ah…”
“Experiments on magical beasts… how fortunate that we were able to stop them.”
During the process of destroying the hideout, the Emperor had also injured his leg and bled considerably, yet he remained unscathed as befitted an Emperor.
“The Dark Period… it must be suffocating and agonizing. My Dark Period came when I was twelve years old, and I still vividly remember that sensation of having my limbs severed. I suspect I shall never forget it for the rest of my life.”
The Emperor gently patted Kiaros’s hand.
“Even when misfortune befalls you, there are things to be gained. In the long view, you will even come to be grateful for them.”
“Ah…”
“When you come to understand how the world works, you become humble about life. It may be difficult for you to grasp now, but such is the way.”
The Emperor was a man incomparably stronger than anyone else. Yet in his ordinary demeanor, he was unfailingly gentle with everyone.
He continued speaking with affection.
“Now then, let us ascend to the Capital. It is time we began to consider your betrothed…”
Kiaros blinked slowly.
Traditionally, the Empress would oversee the Crown Prince’s betrothal. However, his mother—the Late Empress—had died giving birth to him.
Even now, at ten years old, the position of Empress remained vacant.
The affectionate Emperor appeared intent on personally overseeing Kiaros’s betrothal.
“Is there perhaps a girl you have taken notice of? Anyone at all will do, so speak freely and honestly.”
Kiaros understood the reason behind the Emperor’s words.
The Emperor had been betrothed to Kiaros’s Mother at around his current age.
She was a princess from a distant foreign land. It was said they saw each other’s faces for the first time on their wedding day.
“Truly, anyone will do.”
Yet before his marriage, the Emperor had harbored a woman in his heart for a long time.
He had been forced to abandon those feelings because of the betrothal made in his childhood.
“If you wish to wait longer, that is acceptable as well. I merely mention it because the time has come, so do not feel any pressure whatsoever.”
The Emperor’s request to break off his betrothal and marry the woman he loved was extensively recorded in historical documents.
But the woman the Emperor’s heart had chosen was a commoner orphan and a knight of mercenary origins. The Imperial Family’s opposition had been fierce.
The Emperor had mentioned in passing several times that he hoped Kiaros would have a marriage born of love, at least.
“Ah…. Your Majesty, the truth is….”
Until recently, I would have answered, “There’s nothing in particular, so let’s proceed according to precedent.”
But now Kiaros found himself unable to give that answer.
Somehow, I had become bound by a promise.
Seeing Kiaros hesitate, the Emperor’s eyes gleamed.
“…There is someone.”
The Emperor’s mouth began to slowly open.
“There’s a woman, isn’t there, there is…. Honestly, I thought there wasn’t one, but parents don’t know everything about their children.”
The Emperor spoke with his characteristic gentle laugh.
“I thought you’d say, ‘There’s nothing in particular, so let’s proceed according to precedent, Your Majesty.’ But here you are—a boy who barely has his wits about him at ten years old, and now he’s taken an interest in women.”
“Your—Your Majesty! But you told me to speak freely first!”
Kiaros cried out in panic before he could stop himself. The Emperor answered warmly.
“I never expected to actually catch you in it. This father of yours finds it absolutely hilarious. I’m holding back now out of consideration for your embarrassment, but once I return to my chambers, I plan to laugh until my sides split.”
The Emperor’s eyes gazing at Kiaros were filled with mirth.
“At your age, I didn’t even understand what a betrothal meant…. Children these days truly mature quickly.”
“Your—Your Majesty! That’s—that’s—that’s not it!”
“In any case, who is this girl? If you don’t tell me, your father will be too curious to sleep tonight, and the effects of insomnia will plague this already weary, aging, sickly body, leaving me bedridden and groaning tomorrow. So, who is she?”
Faced with the Emperor’s gentle and soft words, Kiaros felt more bewildered than ever. In a half-dazed state, I mumbled.
“That…. The girl who saved my life yesterday…. That girl and….”
But what was I supposed to say?
That the girl said she wanted to marry a wealthy man, and it seemed that man was me?
As Kiaros fell into thought, rolling his eyes, the Emperor laughed softly.
“Ah, a spoiled brat who carried himself as though the world belonged to him, tasting life’s bitterness for the first time, and then—like fate itself—a savior appears…. Yes. That’s a fine narrative. One could easily fall head over heels.”
“Your Majesty, I didn’t fall head over heels…. I haven’t even seen a single strand of her hair!”
“Is that so? Our son doesn’t judge by appearances. You’re exactly like me.”
Kiaros tried to argue but simply closed his mouth instead.
In any case, this matter would be settled once I found that girl.
She might refuse to marry me. So there was no need to pile on more words.
‘If I can just find her…. Things will work themselves out somehow. If I can just find her.’
So Kiaros spoke with his shoulders drooping.
“So, Your Majesty, until I find that girl, could you perhaps postpone my betrothal…?”
“Of course, naturally. I had no intention of pressuring you about marriage in the first place.”
The Emperor smiled benevolently and patted Kiaros’s shoulder.
Kiaros looked at the Emperor and smiled brightly.
A father who cherished even the child born of a woman he did not love—the strongest and most tender father in the world.
There was something I too wished to say to that father.
“Then, Your Majesty, please don’t worry and remarry.”
“…What?”
“I mean Count Fron.”
“You, you… what…”
His long-time guard, gravely injured while rushing to save him.
A towering Female Knight of remarkable skill, though her movements would never again match her former grace—a warrior whose days were, in essence, numbered.
The Emperor’s Beloved: a commoner orphan turned mercenary knight, cherished in his heart for years untold.
The Emperor had naturally kept this truth hidden from Kiaros.
Yet the whispers of the Imperial Palace could not be silenced. Kiaros had already pieced together the fragments and discerned the truth.
“I am well, Your Majesty. Truly.”
The Emperor’s expression betrayed rare bewilderment.
Kiaros swallowed the words: *I am not so starved for women that I would fall at first sight for a girl whose face I cannot see and whose voice I can barely hear upon our first meeting.*
Instead, he spoke gently to ease his father’s heart.
“You protect my first love, Father. So I too must protect yours.”
Though truthfully, he did not think of her quite as his first love…
Yet he wished to comfort his father’s heart.
That was the moment his first love became official.

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