Having the Bavarian King's help would certainly allow me to end this situation quickly.
With that kind of backing, it would probably be fine to reveal that my brother has been poisoning me all along. That was my initial thought.
But...
"Now is not a good time."
I have to think long-term.
My brother has been doing this for nearly a decade, something everyone in House Ascania would know about. Would he really not have prepared for the day it became public? There are well over a hundred servants alone.
'He'll use the Imperial Pact as his excuse.'
Even now, I can immediately think of a plausible explanation.
Though it's faded from public memory, the fact that the most magically gifted individual in Ascania's history suddenly became a magicless commoner is suspicious enough on its own.
Some parties to the Pact probably know Ascania has been feeding me potions to suppress my talent.
So, should I reveal that the old murder case was my brother's doing?
How can I reveal that without a single shred of evidence? That won't work, as it's impossible to prove even with the Bavarian King's backing.
If there's no immediate method, I shouldn't publicly hinder him until I have a solid case to bring him down.
'Then, what about revealing myself as Nicolaus while using the King's trust as a weapon, without directly attacking my brother?'
That's also undesirable.
Support isn't something that rises simply because someone is backing you.
If I reveal my identity relying solely on someone else's nameplate, I could easily crumble under the slightest attack.
For a more thorough success, raising Nicolaus's nationwide support base remains an unchanging necessity.
At my answer, the King stared intently at my face, then smiled with satisfaction.
"Good. I thought the same. It's undesirable when the populace trusts Adrian Ascania more than His Imperial Majesty."
"..."
Was he testing me?
I almost let out a hollow laugh, but from the King's perspective, I'm someone he just met yesterday. He can't trust me that much. It's understandable.
Seeing him go this far just makes me curious about the scale and meaning of his actual proposal.
"Now, I suppose it's time to make you my real proposal."
"Please speak."
"I don't know how you plan to reveal your identity or how you'll handle Nicolaus. I imagine Nicolaus's support will transfer to Lucas, and then Nicolaus will be discarded."
So we're talking about post-identity integration. Interesting.
I met his gaze, waiting for him to continue.
"But the validity of the citizenship held by Sir Nicolaus will not disappear once Nicolaus Ernst becomes Lucas Ascania."
"..."
Of course, if no special measures are taken after the reveal, the citizenship would naturally remain.
But he's not saying something so trivial. He's telling me that no matter what choice I make, Nicolaus's identity will not be erased, and the duties of a kingdom citizen—and a kingdom military mage—will be thoroughly enforced.
"You're telling me to live as both an Anhalt citizen and a Bavarian citizen."
I took in the view of the Bavarian palace across the garden and asked with a smile.
"Isn't that more of a demand than a proposal?"
"It's not coercion. Merely a wish."
He smiled back, driving the point home once more.
"But to speak my mind, I have no intention of handing over the achievements you've built to the Duchy of Anhalt. I didn't stamp your citizenship with that in mind."
"..."
"I assume you feel the same, don't you?"
"Correct."
Of course I don't intend to.
Who would I be doing favors for? My father and brother?
Naturally, as long as I bear the Ascania name, Nicolaus's achievements will inevitably serve as a point of pride for Anhalt.
In the long view, that's also a good thing. After dealing with my brother, who will inherit the Anhalt ducal title is obvious, isn't it?
Anyway, regarding immediate matters, it means Bavaria also cannot afford to give up Nicolaus.
They didn't show kindness just to let someone else squeeze out the sweet juice and discard the rind.
"I also have no intention of abandoning Bavaria. I will never forget the grace Your Majesty has shown me."
"Then our discussion is concluded."
The King smiled contentedly.
'...Simple.'
Surprisingly smooth at the decisive point.
It makes sense.
He knows I hold no great affection for Anhalt and no good feelings toward my father and brother. By his calculations, I have no reason to abandon Bavaria.
"As you know, Bavaria has dedicated itself to medicine in the post-magic era. Thanks to magic solving what pre-humanity's medicine could not, we've been able to stand here holding the lives of the Empire and the continent."
I wonder what his reaction would be if I told him he stood there in reality too.
Well, there's no magic there, so comparison is meaningless.
He wiggled his fingers, scattering mana across the table.
Images followed: the interior of the Bavarian Medical Museum, and hundreds of small medicine vials. Things I'd seen before in educational medical texts as materials for the new generation of humans.
"Your body is also a result of Wittelsbach technology. And that's true for most mages of our era. We can now extend lifespan up to threefold and create life using mana. It's been a long time since we turned the impossible into the possible."
He withdrew his fingers, extinguishing the images.
"Now we need a different kind of development."
He must be aiming for development in the field of combat magic.
In truth, Bavaria's magical military power is already at a considerable level.
'And yet he's not satisfied with that.'
I like it.
After seeing only the spineless students of the 2nd Academy, seeing someone like this puts my mind at ease.
Perhaps reading that sentiment in my expression, he curled the corner of his mouth.
"Sir Nicolaus will become our kingdom's greatest mage. If there's anything you need for survival, I will provide support. Whether it's for Lucas Ascania or Nicolaus Ernst."
Our kingdom's greatest mage.
I didn't bother refuting that, simply giving a light laugh.
'High expectations.'
He knows my desperate need to make Nicolaus succeed, so he must have judged it wouldn't be a loss to invest. I'll likely achieve highly visible feats in the future.
Of course, the same goes for me.
Having support isn't bad. I've managed fine so far, but this opens the possibility of participating in large-scale operations as a Bavarian mage.
It also prevents Nicolaus's achievements from being completely transferred to Ascania, while building Nicolaus's support base in both Anhalt and Bavaria.
I smiled and replied.
"I will live up to Your Majesty's expectations."
"Good. Very good."
He answered in a refreshing tone and extended his hand.
As we shook lightly, mana flowed into my wrist, tightening around my blood vessels.
A pact made in lieu of an oath of fealty. A common magic in Ascania, so I knew it well.
"Now, look at the time. Shall we discuss the issues discovered in the Strauch matter?"
"Issues, Your Majesty?"
"I heard all the recordings. I assume you've also figured out the problem by now. I'd like to hear your opinion."
I didn't expect to get situational advice too.
I already have an idea of how to proceed, but two heads are better than one.
I nodded and opened my mouth.
"The negative image of Lucas Ascania is overwhelming that of Nicolaus Ernst. We now need to find a way to improve Lucas Ascania's image."
* * *
The next day, I sat in an empty classroom, scribbling my next plan in a notebook.
Today, everyone had moved to the restricted zones around the capital for the end-of-month evaluations, but I was left in the classroom due to my core disqualification verdict.
'Peaceful with no one around.'
Only the noise from other departments preparing for the festival served as background sound.
Our class was noisy practicing a play, but at least today I could focus on the problem.
'First, Lucas's impression score.'
The antipathy toward Lucas is still greater than the favorability toward Nicolaus, enough for enemies to use it as an attack vector.
'I need to raise the impression score to a certain level.'
The target score is -8.
I used the expression 'improve the image,' but I don't expect the score to skyrocket.
What I'm aiming for is a concept the status window's numbers can't capture.
Even at the same -10 points, a -10 out of fear and a -10 out of pity are different.
At this point, I need to reiterate the conclusion from my conversation with the King.
Creating commonalities between Nicolaus and myself will later reduce the gap the public perceives and provide a thread to connect the two, who currently seem completely unrelated.
What I'm considering now is the extraordinary image stemming from Nicolaus's magic and deeds.
Outstanding aspects in a certain field, unusual skill—these traits connect across different areas more easily than one might think. Regardless of reality, people easily make connections like, 'Of course, if they're good at one thing, they're good at another.'
'Then I just need to create a similar image for Lucas.'
Establishing a similar image in a specific field will only add positives in related areas, not negatives.
Especially since Lucas's image of incompetence and powerlessness is deeply ingrained not just in 2nd Academy students but in the public, breaking that will have a significant transformative effect.
Since I can't compete in practical skills, I need to expand the field beyond the school to a national level in non-magical academics.
'He said he'd prepare the stage.'
He mentioned thinking about it by year's end, so I just need to wait.
'Now, next.'
Since Strauch is dealt with, it's time to prepare for the next plan.
This plan concerns the missing persons. It's also a case Elias solved after the barrier compatibility incident.
'This is when Elias started becoming famous.'
I don't intend to change direction, so this time too, if possible, I need to actively put Elias forward.
Just then, a repeated clanging sound echoed from far down the hallway. Faye, who had stayed behind without following Narké, lifted her head.
'What's that?'
Bang—!
"Hey, you're still here~"
Elias, who kicked the door open and entered, chewed on something and perched on the desk next to mine.
Not just me, but Elias, with his leg still being treated, also received a disqualification verdict and stayed behind.
After spending all morning going up and down seeing students off, he finally returned to the classroom, though who knows what he'd been doing.
Elias whistled at Faye, who had jumped up to my neck.
"Hey there, bunny~"
Faye just blinked, not answering.
She doesn't seem to dislike him, but whenever she meets Elias without Narké around, her ears flatten tight. For some reason, she seems scared of him.
To divert Elias's attention from Faye, I gestured toward the small bucket in his hand.
"What's that?"
It was a bucket I'd never seen before, no idea where he got it. Seeing it filled with fruit, I had to ask.
"This? Cherries. The kids running the snack booth tomorrow left them."
"You didn't just take them, right?"
"Hey~ I'm not the type to steal other people's food, no matter what! I was hanging around watching, and they gave them to me?"
Elias held the bucket out toward me.
I took a couple to eat and passed one to Faye.
Meanwhile, Elias shoved a handful of cherries into his mouth, cast a preservation spell, and muttered.
"Man, how is the school this quiet? Too bad. I wanted to hear the kids talking about Strauch."
I already heard it before morning assembly.
Not just students, but even professors brought up Strauch, so I witnessed Leo's spirit deflating in real-time.
"Unnecessary. You heard it this morning."
"Hearing it is always thrilling. Don't you want to tell them the person who took down that Pleroma is right here~?!"
True. I am curious about the reaction.
I just smiled at his words, and Elias continued.
"Let's talk about what we're doing next. There's an area I've become interested in anyway. The festival's tomorrow, you'll probably be too busy having fun."
"Doubt I'll have time for fun. After finishing my tasks, I plan to go to the library."
"Right, you have no friends. Hahaha! You have no choice but to talk about Pleroma with me!"
Hitting right where it hurts...
I chuckled at Elias's hearty laugh and tidied my seat.
If I really had no friends, he wouldn't joke like that. Sighing and giving me a worried look would be the real red flag.
Sure enough, Elias immediately winked.
"You know I'm joking, right? You have like ten friends right here."
He's talking about the secret gathering friends. We've become reasonably close, so it's true.
Of course, outside the gathering, everyone thoroughly ignores me, so it's not like we can hang out together.
But fun aside, around that time I need to find a moment to talk with Narké, so it's true I won't have time.
"Alright, let's talk. Let's move somewhere else first."
—-----------
T/N:
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