WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ The Reluctant Imperialist

Chapter 146

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A Knight's Authority (2)

One week later.

The appeal hearing began in the criminal case handled by Hanna Usar.

"We... admit all charges."

In the courtroom, the nobles in the defendant's seats had done a complete about-face.

"...Ah, pardon?"

Hanna blinked as she sorted her documents.

"We admit the facts stated in the indictment."

They hung their heads like convicted criminals, and there was no defense attorney.

"..."

Hanna sat at the prosecutor's table and stared blankly at the scene.

It was strange. The appeal had been scheduled far too quickly, and she had spent an entire week up all night, preparing piles of additional evidence and legal analysis to crush their sophistry.

And now they just folded like this?

"Then I will proceed to sentencing."

The judge was no different. Looking vaguely sick, he rushed the trial along.

"All criminal proceeds from the defendants will be confiscated, and they are sentenced to five years of imprisonment..."

The result came only thirty minutes after the hearing opened.

"...?"

After the trial, Hanna Usar staggered out of the courthouse.

The clerks and staff looked equally dumbfounded.

"W, well, it still worked out!"

"Should we go get a team dinner?"

"Let's go, Knight!"

"...Huh?"

Instead of joining them, Hanna shoved her wallet into their hands. She had spotted someone in the courthouse park.

"Go eat without me! I need a minute."

Maximilian. In Sentinel uniform, he stood out even from a distance.

"Knight!"

Hanna called out and ran to him. Maximilian looked back at her and only lifted an eyebrow in silence.

The way this trial had moved, and ended, was deeply suspicious.

If she had to find the reason, no matter how she thought about it, it had to be this man.

"...Whew."

Hanna stopped in front of Maximilian and looked up at him. Facing those cold golden eyes as always, she took a deep breath.

"Was this, by any chance, outside pressure from you, Knight?"

Maximilian glanced at her hands. The materials she had prepared were crushed tight in her grip.

"Looks like you worked hard."

Then he began walking at an unhurried pace. Hanna naturally followed about a step behind.

"I meant to secure a guilty verdict with my own hands, no matter what."

"If that were true, you should have done it in the first trial."

"Even so, the evidence was so clear-"

"The judge had already been bought. An imperial knight's duties are too heavy to waste time on petty criminal court."

Step. Step.

Their footsteps overlapped.

Hanna walked while watching his back, and Maximilian was already headed somewhere specific.

"You are a commoner and a Sentinel knight. If you lose in a trivial court like this, that is not your personal incompetence. It is a problem for the entire Sentinel Order. I have no reason to tolerate that humiliation."

He stopped and turned to face Hanna.

"Knight Hanna Usar. If the result is right, do not be picky about means or method. We do not have time, and you have power and authority of your own."

My own power and authority.

"..."

The defeatism she had carried unconsciously, or perhaps the defeatism commoners could not help feeling toward nobles.

Maximilian had pointed it out, and after thinking it over, Hanna nodded.

"Yes. I understand."

"Then get in."

They had reached the parking lot. Maximilian gestured toward a luxury car.

"Ah, I have a car too."

The moment she pointed at her beloved car parked not far away,

Pssshhhhhhh-.

Thick black smoke burst violently through the gap in its hood.

One look was enough. It was dead. No longer a car.

"...I'll drive."

Hanna bit her lip in embarrassment and climbed into the passenger seat.

"..."

Maximilian stared at her.

"Please get in."

"..."

"Yes?"

"..."

What is wrong with this man?

Hanna's confusion was plain.

"?"

"..."

"Why?"

Hanna blinked and looked around.

She was in the passenger seat, and the driver's seat was empty.

Only then did she realize her mistake.

"Ah, I thought your driver would arrive separately."

She hurried into the driver's seat. Only then did Maximilian sit beside her.

"...Ahem. Where to?"

"Sentinel."

Hanna stepped on the accelerator.

Vroooom!

The moment the car lunged forward, she marveled at its performance.

"Wow..."

She drove with her mouth hanging open. It had been so long since she had driven a car that responded exactly as she turned the wheel and pressed the pedal.

Vooooom.

They glided smoothly across the imperial center and reached Sentinel headquarters before she knew it.

They got out. Hanna followed him out too, with a quiet trace of regret.

"Um, Knight. The car key..."

Hanna respectfully held out the key.

Maximilian looked at it in her hand for a moment, then spoke flatly.

"It was about time I changed cars anyway."

"...Pardon?"

He jerked his chin toward the car and added,

"It means keep it."

"...Pardon?"

Maximilian walked into headquarters just like that.

"...Pardon?"

Hanna stood there blankly, staring down at the top-of-the-line key in her hand.

* * *

The Most Holy Sanctum deep within the Imperial Palace.

Beyond dark red curtains, the Emperor on his throne slowly read a document someone had handed him.

"It is a law to protect the purity of Aran."

A refined voice, offering a proposal for new policy, brushed the Emperor's ear.

“Mm.”

The Emperor gently set down the document, looked ahead, and smiled in satisfaction.

“Explain it to me in that beautiful voice of yours.”

The woman smiled faintly and began.

"At present, inside Your Majesty's great Empire, Mer, the Sled tribe, and countless foreign peoples from beyond the border live mixed together, along with subspecies..."

...The Empire is the most superior nation, so we can tolerate that they live and breathe within our territory. But is there truly any reason they should be granted equal 'citizenship' with Aran?

If those inferior breeds ever marry Aran, Aran purity will be damaged forever. Therefore, in the name of law, we must refuse and block such filthy mixing at the source.

Not only subspecies that do not even approach true humanity, but also black-skinned people.

And those whose religion is too alien to the Empire, those for whom religion has become life itself, are no different...

The Emperor slowly closed his eyes. As if savoring the lyrics of a beautiful opera, he listened to every word she recited.

"I wish to name this law the 'Imperial Civil Law for the Protection of Aran Bloodline,' a law that establishes the foundation of the Empire."

The contents of the bill flowed from red lips like poetry.

"Article 1: Marriage between Aran bloodlines and other races or subspecies is strictly prohibited. Article 2: Extramarital sexual relations between Aran and them are likewise defined as racial contamination and punished severely."

Officials standing behind them exchanged glances.

"Article 3: Inferior races may not employ Aran bloodlines under age forty as private servants such as house aides."

It was meant to cut down vermin who dared wield money to command Aran.

"Article 4: They may never use colors symbolizing the sacred imperial flag or anthem. Article 5: Other races and subspecies are obligated to pay taxes to the Empire, but their right to hold public office is permanently revoked... In this way, I submit this proposal to protect Aran purity."

Though the law was still incomplete, the smile did not leave the Emperor's lips.

"Now only those of Aran bloodline, those who prove through their actions that they have the will and ability to be loyal to the Empire, will earn the qualification of true 'Imperial citizens.'"

“Then who counts as an inferior race?”

"I also intend to define that vague standard clearly."

The Emperor listened quietly, then smiled.

“With whom will you establish that standard?”

"There is an academic society I have had my eye on. Your Majesty already knows it."

“...How lovely, that heart of yours that thinks of the Empire and its people.”

At the Emperor's praise, she bowed and answered gracefully.

"Not at all. All this wisdom and resolve..."

As the eldest daughter of the eldest son, she possessed the bloodline with the most perfect legitimacy in the Empire.

The Emperor's only blood relative.

"...exist only by Father's great grace."

Princess Justine smiled a vivid crimson smile.

* * *

There is a place in the Empire called the Kaiser Society.

On the surface, it is an academic organization that studies civilizational history and anthropology, but in truth it is a breeding ground of madness, secretly backed and favored by the Imperial family.

War criminals who will later drench the continent in blood swarm there, obsessed with ranking races. They want to grade humans like livestock.

"Ah, welcome, Knight Maximilian. Thank you for honoring us. This way, please."

Wilhelm, president of the Kaiser Society, a man with neatly parted hair, guided me with a tense expression.

"Please, have a seat."

I sat while casually pulling a book from his shelf.

[On the Hierarchical Structure of Mammals]

A zoology text.

"...Dr. Wilhelm. I heard you study race."

"Yes. Of course. Ah, perhaps you are interested too, too, Knight? Naturally? I have heard many rumors."

"Of course. Not only am I interested, I strongly agree with your views."

I smiled to ease Wilhelm's tension.

"Just as animals have rank, races also clearly have rank. It is obvious."

"Ah, exactly! Exactly right!"

Wilhelm suddenly pulled several books from beneath his desk and piled them up.

"I wrote these. I still have a lot of stock left, so..."

"Explain it in words."

"Y, yes. First, first of all, Aran is the top priority. Someone with perfect traits like yours is the Empire's ideal. Blond hair, golden eyes, tall stature..."

Wilhelm looked at me with an ecstatic expression.

"Ah, anyway, to explain-"

The racial hierarchy is fixed. Aran stands at the top. Right below are the Gennen, who share roots, and the races of the western kingdoms. Their history alongside Aran runs deep, so they can be called 'quasi-Aran.'

But Mer, the eastern Sled tribe, Edellem, and other subspecies buried in the mud at the bottom of the pyramid are so inferior they are not even worth handling.

"What do you think?"

Their insane theory will become reality. Seventy percent of Mer will be slaughtered, and more than half of all subspecies will die in camps.

I cannot stop that wave of madness alone.

No, I should not stop it either. If this is a sacrifice that must be paid to eradicate Izenheim, the greatest evil...

Still.

"Chairman Wilhelm. You are neither blond nor golden-eyed, so does that make you inferior?"

At minimum, selection and control must be carried out.

That is why I am building my power.

"Huh? Ah, those physical traits are... well..."

Wilhelm hesitated. Flustered, he stroked his black hair.

"This is what I think."

I tapped my temple with my index finger.

"What matters more than appearance is the mind. Of course, if appearance matches too, that is best, but even if appearance falls a little short, if one is a noble-minded Aran born and raised in the Empire, then he is Aran. Like your exceptional and brilliant mind, Dr. Wilhelm."

"Ah...! Correct. The mind! That is exactly it!"

Wilhelm nodded hard.

I continued, as if persuading him.

"That is why I believe even among subspecies there is hierarchy, and each has a different use."

I took a photograph from my coat and handed it to him.

A photo of Leo, an Aran Shepherd, sitting proudly. Even his bearing was exceptional.

"This is my dog."

"Ah, a splendid dog."

"Yes. Among subspecies, the Yaken tribe is like this dog. Their senses are sharp, and they are loyal to their master. If properly trained, they can become excellent hounds for sniffing out impure elements hidden in our society."

"...Pardon?"

At Wilhelm's question, my expression hardened.

"You heard me. Do not ask again."

"Ah, s, sorry. You mean use subspecies as livestock, like dogs?"

"Exactly. Those descendants of dwarves are useful too, since they are skilled with their hands. But there is one race I consider the absolute worst."

Wilhelm blinked, then answered quietly.

"Could it be Izenheim?"

"..."

I looked at him in silence. An unbidden smile touched the corner of my mouth.

"Mr. Wilhelm. You are a genius."

"Y, yes?"

"That is right. If we investigate impure elements involved in the Revolution, the proportion of Izenheim is unusually high."

The actual data already says so, but I am still building the statistics and figures to make it airtight. Ideological criminals who die in prison or are executed are marked as 'Izenheim' whenever possible.

That is why I bribe prisons.

"They are targets for eradication and cleansing. No room for compromise."

At that moment, Wilhelm swallowed dryly.

"E, eradication, c, cleansing?"

It seemed he had not gone that far yet.

I asked coldly.

"Chairman, do you not agree?"

"Uh, uh... yes. Yes. I agree."

Wilhelm nodded reflexively.

"In that case."

I set the bag I brought onto his desk.

Click.

Blue light spilled out from inside.

High-purity mana stones. A bribe more reliable than cash, with funds impossible to trace.

"...K, Knight?"

"It is sponsorship."

"Y, yes?!"

"Use it however you need for your research."

Wilhelm stared at the mana stones with overflowing emotion. More than greed, he looked purely happy to have research funding.

I watched him indifferently, then stood.

"Then I will take my leave. Good talk."

"Y, yes! Loyalty!"

Wilhelm gave an awkward salute.

Escorted by them, I left the Kaiser Society.

Night had already fallen, and cold air pushed deep into my lungs.

...Yesterday, a rumor spread through the Imperial Palace.

It was about a policy called the "Imperial Civil Law for the Protection of Aran Bloodline."

Before regression, that law had also been enacted, and I thought it was Johann's policy, but I was wrong.

"Haa..."

Maybe a monster had already coiled itself deep inside the palace. Maybe it had been there since birth.

Johann may only have refined that person's will, Justine's will.

I quietly closed my eyes.

Even I cannot fall out of the Emperor's favor yet.

Sebestian is my father, but he will choose the Emperor over me, so I too must pretend to be a loyal subject of the Emperor.

House Ebenholtz becomes mine only when Sebestian allows it.

"What a damn mess."

I opened my eyes again and looked up at the night sky.

Stars shone coldly from an immeasurable height.

"...Why."

A primal question suddenly rose in me.

"Why should the Empire belong to you?"

A dark ruler from a future that has already fallen.

You will drive the Empire to ruin through your own obstinacy, and you are no help to humanity at all.

You are nothing but a broken clock, so why.

Why should I, the most accurate prophet and pioneer on this continent, serve you?

"...The sky remains in the sky."

Even so, the sky is still there.

And I am still beneath it, stuck to the ground.

Grow your power further, Maximilian.

Only you can fulfill humanity's grand ambition.

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