The Prince Wants To Retire

11. The strongest knight I met again (3)

On a particularly pleasant day, things were progressing smoothly as if to welcome Kariel’s retirement.

Contrary to what was expected of the last swindlers, there was no opposition from the nobles to the grand duke’s push, and with the emperor’s permission, administrative work also progressed quickly.

Kariel, who had a high tension, greeted Glenn and the Grand Duke, who were coming to the Crown Prince’s womb with a bright smile.

“See you, Your Majesty.”

“Did you finish your work?”

Ducal looked down at Kariel’s question and said with his head down.

“That’s right. All of this comes thanks to Your Majesty. Once again, on behalf of the Grand Duke, I would like to thank you.”

Cariel smiled as he looked at Ducal who spoke sternly.

“Of course, this is the reward you deserve. You can’t eat it for free, can you?”

The Archduke who was in charge of checking Belpurs.

As he was going to suffer a lot of sacrifices in the future, he had to give him a lot of support.

“Still, thank you.”

Cariel smiled at Ducal’s thanks.

“The public reward is over… … Now only my personal reward remains.”

Kariel looked at Glenn quietly.

Then Glenn’s face began to color with excitement.

Kariel, who smiled at him, turned her head and looked at Ducal.

“Then will you move for the reward you promised?”

“… … Has His Majesty permitted it?”

“I just came here with permission.”

Kariel smiled and said, then headed for the carriage.

“It is difficult to take it out.”

“… … It is enough just to see.”

Instead of Ducal, Glenn answered instead.

‘Is it the confidence of a genius?’

Kariel thought to herself and smiled.

It was like that in a previous life.

After reading the martial arts of the first grand duke over and over again for several hours, he practiced alone.

It is a talent called a monster beyond genius, so it will be restored.

The problem is that Glenn is too young now.

In a previous life, the Grand Duchess suffered a near-death blow and wandered the West alone, accumulating practical battles.

In addition, as the empire fell into crisis and went through all kinds of wars, they were ready to accept fear.

But now, beyond being young, there was no actual combat itself.

‘Hmm, I’m a little worried.’

Glenn in his previous life said that if you were not prepared and received the master’s attention, you could easily fall into the wrong path.

But he’s a genius, so he’ll come back to his way again.

‘Well, there’s a grand duke in this life… … .’

Thinking so, Kariel brushed off her worries and headed to the Imperial Palace Library.

As if the chamberlain of the imperial palace had told them beforehand, the librarians had already come out and were waiting.

“See you, Your Majesty.”

“Have you heard His Majesty’s orders?”

“Yes, Your Highness. You can go inside.”

One librarian bent down and said, and Kariel took the lead.

As we reached the door, one of the eunuchs waiting in front of the door spoke cautiously.

“Which one of you two is going to come in?”

“What do you mean?”

Kariel looked at the interior with an incomprehensible expression.

“According to the imperial law, only one person except the royal family can enter.”

With those words, Kariel glared at the insider who provoked the law, and he hurriedly opened his mouth as he broke out in a cold sweat.

“I, the one remaining, will enter the Imperial Palace Treasury.”

At the insider’s words, Kariel sighed.

It was a law that had disappeared in a previous life, so I had forgotten about it.

As the empire began to crumble, I forgot about it for a while because I opened the library to try to save it somehow.

Originally, any aristocrat had to follow strict rules when entering the palace treasury and library, so he turned around and looked at the grand duke with an embarrassed expression.

Then the grand duke laughed and said.

“I will leave the fear to Glenn.”

Ducal looked at Glenn as he said that.

“Are you all right?”

When Kariel asked with a worried heart, Ducal nodded calmly. Kariel winked at the librarian.

“I’m going in with Glenn Soga.”

At Kariel’s words, the door to the huge library opened.

“I believe.”

“Yes.”

Glenn lowered his head at Ducal’s words and spoke.

Ducal, who looked at his son with confidence, greeted Kariel once more and walked over to the eunuch.

Then, Kariel took Glenn and entered the library.

After passing through the library for the immediate imperial family, they arrived at the deepest place where they found the martial arts.

“Are you here, Your Highness?”

“Long time no see.”

At Kariel’s greeting, the old librarian carefully lifted the old book and brought it to the desk.

“The fear is ready.”

The old librarian carefully put the book of the first grand duke on the desk.

Then Glenn’s eyes were fixed on the old book on the desk and could not fall.

“Please read comfortably.”

When I told Glenn, who was anxious to read the old book, to read it comfortably, he hurriedly lowered his head and sat down at his desk.

The old book of the first grand duke was quite thick, and it described in detail how to use mana and how to move the body along with pictures.

An old librarian approached Kariel, who was looking at the books around her, leaving behind Glenn, who had begun to concentrate so quickly that it didn’t matter if he was noisy around him.

“It’s filthy big.”

“It means that it is described in such detail.”

The old librarian grinned while looking at the old book of the first grand duke.

“From the librarian’s point of view, what is the first grand duke’s fear?”

“I do not know. Sosin manages the book, but does not know the details.”

Kariel narrowed her eyes at the librarian’s words.

It was the same when he came to look for strong physical training, but the old librarian he saw again today was unusual.

“Could you please explain?”

At Kariel’s words, the old librarian said as if he couldn’t do it.

“There is no essence of the swordsmanship invented by the first Grand Duke, so it will not be of great value.”

“okay?”

“Also, warriors who have reached a high level will not have much meaning either. Although it contains some of the enlightenment, it is because it was thoroughly written for the direct descendants of the grand duke’s family.”

Kariel asked with a serious expression at the old librarian’s words.

“Then, what about the direct descendants of the grand duchess?”

“It must be a wonderful martial arts.”

At his words, Kariel smiled.

Then the old librarian, who was watching Glenn closely, smiled and said,

“You are the one who will become the new sword of the empire.”

Kariel nodded at the old librarian’s words.

“I guess. It will become a new pillar of the empire.”

While saying that, Kariel looked at the old librarian and asked.

“Is His Majesty aware of your existence?”

The old librarian’s eyes widened at Kariel’s question.

The old librarian, who had a surprised expression on his face as if it was an unexpected question, said with a smile.

“You know and come.”

“Not everything.”

At Kariel’s words, the old librarian only smiled instead of answering.

Seeing that, Kariel tilted her head.

‘Why didn’t I know this in my previous life?’

The more I looked, the more unusual it was.

Glenn, who was quietly reading the book, seemed to have sensed it too, and glanced at the old librarian.

– You are unusual.

Surt, who appeared translucent, said looking at the old librarian.

Then the old librarian looked straight at Surt, who suddenly appeared, and said,

“It doesn’t seem like a spirit, but… … .”

“It’s Surt.”

Kariel had a surprised expression on his face as he immediately recognized Surt, which was invisible to others, but the words of the old librarian that followed were even more surprising.

“Are you contracting with Surt’s fragments?”

At the words of the old librarian, Kariel widened her eyes and nodded her head slightly.

Then the librarian gave a look of admiration.

– Author, you are at least equal to the four chiefs.

At Surt’s words, Kariel looked at the old librarian with a surprised expression.

“I see what he said.”

At the words of the old librarian, Kariel asked with a serious expression.

“How many more people like you are in the Imperial Palace?”

“There is one more like me, and there are about ten worse than me.”

“That may not be all.”

At Kariel’s question, the old librarian just smiled and didn’t answer.

Kariel asked him.

“Come to His Majesty… … How much do you know?”

“You even know that you are from the shadows.”

At his answer, Kariel made a serious expression.

‘Why weren’t there people like that in my previous life?’

Even the emperor couldn’t exactly know their existence.

Even if you climb to the highest position in the empire, if you do not qualify, their existence will not be known until death.

Then I suddenly remembered something.

“Are you keeping the secret of His Majesty the first emperor here?”

In response to Kariel’s question, the librarian bowed his head silently with a firm expression on his face.

A book containing the secrets of the first emperor, presumed to be somewhere in the library.

Iza seemed to know what the successive emperors searched for here countless times to find it, but couldn’t find it.

Knowing this far, I was able to find out their identities.

‘Is it the Imperial Secret Guard?’

The secret guards of the imperial family, which had long been said to have disappeared, were being handed down in secret.

An organization dedicated solely to protecting the most important secrets of the imperial family.

A group that I once saw when I read all kinds of old books to fix my body.

‘Was the chamberlain also a member of the Secret Guard?’

The old chamberlain who guarded his deathbed.

He was the one who saved his life by appearing like a ghost whenever he was coughing up blood and dying.

After Tarion’s death, when no one could be trusted, he remembered the old servant who showed up as an attendant of the emperor and worked silently from the lowest position to prove his existence.

The old chamberlain, who served Kariel’s body-suitable food and tea to the extent that even the doctor admired him, eventually conformed to Kariel’s faith and kept it until his death.

At the time, I thought that he had a lot of knowledge about medicine as he was from a vassal of the emperor who was ill, but now that he thinks about it, he doubts that he may have come from this area.

“Huh, what more do I need to know?”

As Kariel said so, he turned to the old librarian.

It was meaningless to dig up the secrets of the Secret Guard from a position nearing retirement.

Knowing it for nothing can only make your head complicated, so not knowing at this time was medicine.

– Still, that’s great.

At Surt’s words, Kariel nodded slightly.

Only those who protect the peace and secrets of the Empire.

Therefore, they are not loyal to the emperor.

‘Would it have been different if they had existed in a previous life?’

I thought so, but maybe I died protecting the secret.

It was not strange to assume that the warlocks, monsters, demons, and rebellion were all wiped out in the process.

‘I’m still curious.’

Kariel looked at Glenn, suppressing the constant curiosity that was about to come out of a corner of his mind.

Seeing that he was reading an old book in a trance, he seemed to have gained something.

“It’s good that the purpose of coming here has been achieved, but… … .”

“If you’re bored, how about reading the last book you read?”

“Rigid body magic?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

At the librarian’s words, Kariel nodded as if that was okay.

After some time, the librarian brought me an old book containing the ancient werewolf’s rigid body technique.

But it wasn’t just one book.

“This?”

“I brought books that I thought might be helpful.”

Kariel smiled at the old librarian’s words.

“Thank you.”

“No.”

The old librarian shook his head, smiled, and quietly withdrew.

In the library, only the sound of Kariel and Glenn turning the pages could be heard.

As Kariel, who had been reading frantically while relying on a mana lamp, woke up rubbing her dark eyes, the librarian quietly approached.

“How much time has passed?”

“Half a day must have passed.”

“Well… … .”

“If you’re sorry, you can stay a little longer.”

The old librarian explained that there was a place to wash and rest inside, and that food could be brought in.

Then, Kariel, who looked at Glenn for a while, asked the librarian to do it, and he himself fell into rigid body technique.

The basics of rigid body art were created by Iris, and the method of controlling firearms was specified by Arsuna.

As a result, I began to see things that were different from before, and when I referred to the materials the librarian brought me, my understanding of rigid martial arts increased rapidly.

When rigid body technique, which had been a little sluggish, started to show results, Kariel fell into rigid body technique without taking a break.

Later, when the old librarian persuaded him to take a break, Kariel took a break and read the old books again.

And after so many days and nights in the library devouring body art, I was finally able to achieve satisfactory results.

– The skeleton is made.

“okay.”

At Surt’s words, Kariel smiled satisfactorily.

Although he couldn’t completely remodel his body art, he seemed to have built a framework for his body art that fit his body.

Now, attaching muscle and flesh was something that would be left up to the SS.

“Are you done?”

“… … Yes, Your Highness.”

Glenn bowed his head in response to Kariel’s question.

He glanced at the first archduke’s horror as if he had no regrets, but the contents were already clearly engraved in his mind.

Seeing the genius who understood everything and engraved it on his head, Kariel smiled bitterly.

‘You’re a genius… … .’

Even in his previous life, Glenn had no choice but to understand the current situation because he showed deceitful abilities that made him envious.

Now that you’ve done your chores, it’s time to leave.

As soon as I moved out of the library, the old librarian stood at the door to see me off.

“As long as you stay, you are comfortable.”

At Kariel’s praise, the old librarian just bowed his head without saying a word.

“It helped me a lot.”

Glenn was also very grateful for the occasional hot tea and food from the old librarian.

“I hope you both accomplish what you set out to do here.”

At the librarian’s words, Kariel and Glenn smiled and nodded, then quietly left the library.

Following the road made up of numerous books, when we arrived at a place with a huge door, the door opened by itself.

“majesty!”

When I left the door, Tarion, who was waiting impatiently outside, hurriedly approached me.

Then, Kariel raised his hand to stop him.

“Your Highness, I will never forget this grace.”

“It’s done. You must be in a hurry, but go quickly.”

Kariel told Glenn to go, knowing that he needed to move his body to confirm and correct what was imprinted in his head.

Then, bending down once again to express his gratitude, Glenn hurriedly moved towards the carriage of the Grand Duchess waiting in the distance.

“It’s much later than expected.”

“I thought something happened inside.”

“No way.”

At Tarion’s worried gaze, Kariel laughed, saying that it couldn’t be like that, and climbed into the carriage.

“Are you finished with what I ordered?”

“That’s right.”

Kariel smiled at Tarion’s answer.

“It’s over now.”

The retirement plan he had planned after returning was now approaching its final destination.

“As soon as I arrive at the palace, I must report my letter of abdication to His Majesty.”

***

As he said, as soon as Kariel arrived at the palace, he went straight to his room to write a letter of resignation.

“Your Highness, you don’t have to be in such a hurry… … .”

“This has to be done right. You never know what will happen if you wander.”

Saying that, Kariel quickly wrote down the letter of resignation.

Read at readwn.com

Just then, an attendant came.

“Your Highness, a eunuch came from Daejeon.”

“Introspection?”

When Kariel tilted her head and allowed her to visit, the official delivered the emperor’s order urgently.

“Your Majesty’s orders come to Daejeon right now.”

“now?”

“It is. You said it was a fight for wages.”

At the insider’s words, Kariel’s expression frowned.

Because his senses had informed him that something unusual had happened.