Four months passed by in a flash. It was now December, and snowflakes were fluttering in the air.
As the academy semester was nearing its end, the professors had a common evaluation of Eurius.
âHeâs not just a genius, but heâs a hard worker and a scholar.â
âHis talent for martial arts is outstanding, and thatâs more than enough for a prince of the empire!â
âHeâs not only a scholar, but also a person of great character. How come he had such a bad reputation until now?â
Dipetra, the dean of the academy, also looked at Eurius with a warm gaze as he handed him his graduation certificate.
[Hahahahaha!! What did I tell you? Heâs my student since he was a baby! I know him best!]
Dipetra felt nauseous thinking about how Marius, who he was exchanging letters with, would boast about him to everyone.
But it was true that Eurius had achieved remarkable results.
As an educator, Dipetra naturally felt proud of his excellent student.
âIt was an honor to have someone as brilliant as you at our Savior Academy, Your Highness.â
âDonât say that. I learned a lot from you and this academy, Dean.â
Eurius took the certificate and finally left the academy.
âHuh, that old man Marius. He has quite a lot of luck with his disciplesâŠâŠâ
The dean watched his back with a hint of regret and stroked his beard repeatedly.
Eurius was also in a good mood. What he gained from the Savior Academy was as follows.
First, he attracted many talents to the empire through his speeches and activities at the academy.
In a few years, there would be more graduates from the Savior Academy in the imperial administration and army.
They would have proven skills and help curb the power of the nobles.
That was an undeniable fact!
Second, he recruited Devan Calios, who would become one of the best strategists on the continent in the future. It was his most urgent goal, so Eurius was very happy.
âI didnât expect it to work so well.â
âI feel like Iâve opened my eyes anew, thanks to Your Highness.â
Devan had changed completely.
People who knew him wondered if he was the same person.
Of course, it wasnât that his pride was broken overnight. But he learned that he had to bend when he had to. That was a big enlightenment for him.
âIn his previous life, Devan was also good at dealing with people, but his personality might have been eccentric.â
âI will do my best to help you, even if Iâm not by your side, Your Highness!â
Eurius smiled and patted his shoulder.
âJust graduate first. I wonât accept a dropout, no matter what. Haha!!â
As long as he brought Devan to the empire, Eurius was satisfied.
And thirdâŠâŠ
âŠ
âDo you have anything to say?â
ââŠâŠâ
Wallace, the Count, was kneeling in front of Wilhelm, the archduke, sweating profusely.
âI might really die this time.â
Wallace knew the Grand dukeâs personality well. He became more calm and rational when he was angry.
That meant that the Grand dukeâs rage had exploded.
The Grand duke opened his mouth slowly.
âLately, Iâve been seeing that old fart Marius walking around with pride. It really makes me sick.â
Thatâs right! Euriusâ achievements in the holy kingdom were already a hot topic in the imperial palace.
âWho would have thought that His First Highness had such abilities to excel at the Savior Academy!â
âWell, he was always a troublemaker since he was young, but he never had a reputation for being stupid, did he?â
Marius was so proud of his First Highness that he forgot his manners and bragged about him to every official he met.
The Grand duke shook his head as if he felt disgusted just by thinking about it and said firmly.
âYour plan failed. Do you admit it?â
âIâm sorry.â
Wallace couldnât get up from his kneeling position. His life or death depended on the archdukeâs decision.
âIâm also to blame for trusting you too much.â
The archduke wasnât stupid. He didnât think that all these events were just because Wallace was incompetent.
He thought of three possible causes: The current emperor and Marius, and most importantly, the First Prince!
âIn my opinion, we underestimated the First Prince too much.â
Thatâs right! The archduke believed Wallaceâs words too much and looked down on Euriusâ talent. But the tigerâs cub was a tiger.
âHow could the Second Prince be so brilliant and the First Prince be an idiot?â
There were many clues. He once called his son-in-law, the captain of the royal guard, Count Carlos, and asked him.
âI heard youâre teaching His First Highness. How is his talent?â
Count Carlos thought for a moment and said.
âIf we limit it to martial arts, I donât think Iâve ever seen anyone better than him.â
The Grand duke was quite surprised at that time.
âIs that so?â
He couldnât doubt the insight of a superhuman.
He thought that Eurius had some talent since he trained hard, so he didnât bother to stop him from going to the holy kingdom.
He intended him to waste his time at the academy where he didnât belong, but his expectation was completely wrong.
He pondered for a while and then opened his mouth again.
âFrom now on, assume that the First Princeâs talent is at least equal to the Second Princeâs, and proceed with the plan accordingly.â
Wallace felt relieved. He was sure that the archduke wouldnât kill him here.
âBut! There wonât be a third time.â
The Grand duke looked at Wallace with an icy glare.
He had failed twice so far.
The first time was when he failed to make Eurius a problem child in his childhood.
The second time was when he generously invested in Euriusâ knight lessons, allowing his talent to blossom.
âI will definitely meet your expectations this time, Your Grace.â
âI survived!â
He barely saved his life. Wallace felt relieved, but the archduke thought he was pathetic.
âWe donât have enough talent here, we have to rely on someone like him.â
The Grand duke saw Wallace as a cunning and talented merchant, but a petty person at heart. He only cared about his own profit and couldnât be trusted.
âBut he still has a lot of use.â
He was still the owner of the largest trade company in the empire. And he was still a spy for the emperorâs faction. That was another reason why the archduke spared him.
The Grand duke thought of his lifelong enemies.
The emperor and Marius were formidable opponents. They turned that bastard prince into this in just a few years.
âBut they only made up for half of it, Your Majesty.â
While Eurius was making a name for himself in the holy kingdom, Leonhart was also not idle.
Leonhart had achieved great results in the south, helping the archduke and other nobles. He also distributed charity to the people, so he had a lot of popularity in the south.
âI wonât let my guard down anymore! Never!â
He would definitely make his nephew the emperor.
While the archduke hardened his expression, Wallace also racked his brains desperately.
âŠ
Eurius also pondered on that point.
âI wonât be able to avoid the Grand dukeâs interference when I return to the empire.â
The third thing he gained from this trip was his external prestige.
He went from being a slightly odd prince to a strong contender for the throne, who excelled in both civil and military affairs.
âBut itâs a double-edged sword.â
The Grand duke would never let him continue to rise without any obstacles.
Eurius muttered as he left the academy.
âThis is just the beginning.â
And finally, the day came for Eurius to return to the empire.
âIt was a short time, but Iâm sad that youâre leaving, Your Highness.â
Dios, the duke, came out personally to see Eurius off with a regretful expression.
âI also learned a lot from you, Your Highness. Thank you very much.â
Beatrix also bowed politely.
Eurius smiled brightly and accepted their greetings.
âDonât say that. Youâre the one who did me a great favor, Duke.â
And he turned his gaze to Beatrix.
âLize, you were also a good stimulus for me. As I said before, Iâm really grateful to you.â
Eurius and she had been taking swordsmanship lessons together for months, as the duke intended.
He was far ahead of her now, but she also improved rapidly as she watched him and the duke train. She had a natural talent for it.
âIf I slack off in my training, she might catch up with me. Itâs not a joke.â
She blushed slightly, unaware of his thoughts.
âNo, not at all. Itâs me who should thank you.â
The duke watched the two of them with a pleased look.
âSee? Itâs not ineffective to put them together.â
They had become quite close after spending months together. They werenât in a romantic relationship yet, but the duke was satisfied.
He was also a sharp-eyed warrior, so he sensed the faint affection that Eurius showed for his daughter.
Beatrix also seemed to like the prince, even if she didnât show it outwardly.
The duke nodded inwardly.
âWell, heâs a prince, but my daughter is not lacking in anything either.â
But there was something that bothered him a bit.
âLize might not know, but isnât the prince too indifferent? Does he just think of her as a friend?â
Of course, Euriusâ true thoughts were like this.
âBut this time, our first meeting was really good. I never called her by a nickname in my previous life.â
They were tied together by a political marriage, and he was nothing more than a wimp in his previous life when they got married.
They naturally had some friction at first, and they only developed some feelings for each other because he crossed the line so often.
Their relationship was more like trustworthy comrades than loving partners in their previous life.
Of course, the dukeâs worry was unfounded.
Eurius wanted to keep her by his side as soon as possible.
âItâs too dangerous to take Beatrix to the empire right now.â
Eurius decided that it wasnât time yet to gather his forces officially. She was already an outstanding talent, but she wasnât fully matured yet.
âNot now, but someday Iâll definitely bring her with me.â
Eurius shook off his lingering feelings for Beatrix for now. He couldnât afford to be distracted by trivial emotions for his future plans.
His eyes were already looking north of the holy kingdom.
âSoon, the construction of the northern road will be completed.â
Eurius had planned to start his first external activity in the north long ago.
He didnât know what the outcome would be, but the important thing was that many things had changed from his previous life.
And the real wind of change would start blowing from the north.