âThen tell me. What had happened at the night?â
By the request of the Emperor, Ian took a breath.
He started his report, which only contained a story that would be of benefit to Ian.
A perfectly manipulated story, so that wouldnât cause any suspicion about Ian.
âAt night, it was right after the sun had set. Suddenly, continuous explosion sounds were heard. Since one of the sound had come from the ballroom, I rushed to the room and protected the Crown Prince, princess and my mother with my shield. Soon, I and sir Oliver found something suspicious. Firstly, the scale of explosions were too small to damage the royal palace directly. SecondlyâŠâŠ..â
Ian continued his story.
Most of his story was based on facts.
Except that he already knew the existence of the Coldwalkers.
Without that critical fact, he summarized the situation.
ââŠâŠ Although we had suspected the situation, we couldnât decide any further action. When I said it to the Crown Prince, he ordered me to chase the suspicious cluesâŠâŠâ
It wasnât on the previous report.
Suddenly, everyone looked at the Crown Prince.
âD, did I?â
The Crown Prince also looked embarrassed.
He never did it.
âDidâŠâŠ.. I order him to?â
The night was full of confusion.
Maybe he forgot that fact due to the confusion?
âPrince.â
âDid I really dâŠâŠ.?â
âPrince!â
âY, yes! Father!â
âIs it true?â
âYes?â
âI am asking you, did you order Ian to do so?â
It had to be confirmed by the Crown Prince.
Every talk in this council was recorded as document.
Numberless liege men were listening.
Naturally, they would say what they heard here outside.
Which meant, it was chance.
âAn easy chance which was given to the Emperor.â
A good chance to solidify the relationship between the Crown Prince and Ian.
With a shiny eye, the Emperor looked at the Crown Prince.
With a short hesitation, the Crown Prince opened his mouth.
âI, I thinâŠâŠ.. Y, yes, thatâs right!â
With the Crown Princeâs reply, the council room was swayed for a moment.
It wasnât a negative reaction though.
They were just surprised.
That Crown Prince really did?
âStop.â
The Emperor had let them talk each other for a moment.
Then with his order, everyone became quiet again.
âAlthough the Crown Prince had ordered Ian to do so, obviously It was Ian Page who distinguished himself to the empire the most. Without him, we would let our unknown enemies steal our precious information, and we would be laughed by the whole world.â
When the liege men were listening the word âlaughâ, they turned down their head for shame.
âSince Ian Page has prevented such tragedy at an early stage, I will never forgot what he did for us. For this time, I would like to reward him by my very hand.â
It meant the Emperor wouldnât ask Ian for his reward.
âThe reward I will give is.â
Quickly, maids and servants started to move quickly.
Ian already had been rewarded gold and a mansion before.
Since what he distinguished himself with last night was quite the huge one, he would be rewarded by something better.
With that Ian was excited.
âThis.â
It was a robe.
New, the robe with cobalt blue color had no wrinkles on it.
It wasnât decorated luxuriously, but it had some precious aura.
âThe robe is my ancestorâs, who was the only mage of royal blood, Michell Greenriverâs only inheritance. Originally, It is not supposed to be given to non royal blood. Actually, I better say I lend it to you, rather than give it to you.â
As he explained. Even Ian wouldnât have that much chance to see it in former life.
The first and last mage of royalty.
The one who was talented in magic, so became the Tower Lord.
â The robe of Michell Greenriver.â
In former life, Ian had received various treasure of royalty.
Nevertheless, he couldnât have ever had a chance to see it directly.
It was a testament that they didnât reward it to non royal blood.
âDuration of lending will be, until Ian Page is deceased. Or, until you donât want to possess it anymore.â
But the Emperor broke the testament, by excusing he was âlendingâ it to Ian.
It was an unusual reward.
âTry it on. You wouldnât need to take off your clothes since its robe.â
With the Emperorâs order, maids helped Ian put it on.
The problem was its size was way too big for Ian.
The size of robe was designed for adult, but Ian was still a young boy.
Nevertheless, the Emperor still wanted him to put it on.
âItâs okay, please just put it on to me.â
It was hilarious to watch Ian with an unfitted robe.
It looked like a kid who tried his fatherâs clothes.
Liege men turned their face away to stop laughing.
âItâs quite big for you. How long will it take to fit on your body?â
The Emperor joked to Ian.
Soon Ian realized the true meaning of his joke.
After he wore it, he could felt it.
One of the spells that was casted on Michell Greenriverâs robe.
âI will fit it straightly.â
Ian injected his mana to the robe slowly.
Soon, a surprising thing happened.
The robe, filled with mana, started to stick on Ianâs body.
In addition, it started to worm around by itself.
As if it measuring scale of its new ownerâs body.
Whirr â !
With a small noise of extracting mana.
Michell Greenriverâs robe started to change.
Its length, width and size, and everything else was changed for the young owner.
âWowâŠ..â
âHow could it happenâŠâŠ.?â
Without dignity, the liege men started to admire it.
The Crown Prince stood up straight and watched Ian as well.
It was such a rare scene.
âIt suits you better than I had thought. Especially its blue color.â
A light impression from the Emperor.
Ian now could feel something clearly.
Every power of the robe of Michell Greenriver.
It was much more than Ian had ever imagined.
âSo this might be the reason why he left a testament to not reward it to a stranger.â
Satisfied, Ian fixed his sleeves and collar.
While bowing to the Emperor, Ian said.
âI appreciate your grace, your majesty.â
Ianâs second meeting with the Emperor.
The council meeting ended well.
âIt is an amazing robe indeed.â
The robe kept whispering to Ian.
Ian wanted to check its power quickly.
âI can feel a few formulas.â
Clearly, it was some specific âformulasâ.
It tempted Ian greatly.
He couldnât help himself but to test its power.
âIt has been long since I feel excitement.â
It was an unexpected luck.
For a while, he would focus on investigating this robe.
A mysterious robe that he hadnât seen in his former life.
There must be many things to investigate.
âHmm?â
At the moment, there was someone who was caught in Ianâs eyes.
A lady who was watching Ian from far distance.
It was the princess, Hyree Greenriver.
âIt seems she still feels uncomfortable.â
Yet, nobody knew she was a mage.
When the mages of the Ivory Tower had arrived, she had already spent her whole mana, so the shield was gone. It was a too high class spell for her to maintain it for long.
âAnd injecting mana isnât that much of a sight taking action.â
The room was full of confusion.
Nobody found out what exactly the princess had done.
Even the Crown Prince and Vanessa who was very next to her.
âIt is not my business.â
The reason she was watching Ian was obvious.
The princess hid her magical talent on purpose.
She was learning magic, while hiding it to the Ivory Tower.
If it revealed, it was one of the most heavy crimes.
And âIanâ knew the fact.
The boy who was one of the Ivory Tower members.
The 12th arch mage.
âShe chose to be.â
Ian had no idea why she had hidden it.
Of course, he wasnât interested in it.
It was time wasting for Ian to care about what happened to the princess.
âBut,â
Ian gathered mana on his right finger.
With index finger, Ian drew something on the air.
Since it was quite small gesture, no one realized it.
âI can do this for her, at least.â
By his gesture, the mana was shimmering.
And Ian sent it to the princess.
By riding the wind, a chunk of mana had been sent to the princess.
Soon, it had been released on the princessâ face.
It was blue letters, formed by mana.
The biggest relief that Ian could do for her.
The princess looked more comfortable.
It seemed to be enough for her.
âNow I had to do..â
Of course, testing the robe of Michell Greenriver.