“Ah, y-you’ve arrived.”
Dwener and Caron got up from their seats and greeted him.
The main seat at the head of the table naturally went to Duke Zeppelin.
“So Sir Caron was here with you. That’s unexpected.”
“He’s one of the teachers. Even if it’s a hassle, what can I do? I have to help him out.”
So he wouldn’t cause any pointless trouble.
It was meant as a whisper, but they were so close that it couldn’t help but reach Dwener’s ears.
“Fortunately he adapted quickly. Lately I hardly have to worry about him at all.”
“Of course. Do you know what kind of position the academy principal’s chair is? It’s the result of us choosing and choosing again the most capable person.”
Even after that, the mockery and contempt aimed at Dwener continued.
Caron chimed in here and there and played along just enough.
‘Dwener’s true nature must never be exposed.’
Not only that he was competent despite appearances, but that he was the head of the Evil-Slaying Group.
Fortunately, hiding it wasn’t very hard.
In the public eye, Dwener was considered utterly incompetent.
Duke Aziz had valued that very point and seated him as principal of the academy.
The problem was that Caron, dispatched by the Emperor, kept checking him at every turn.
“Then it should be fine for Sir Caron to leave now.”
“How could a teacher abandon his school?”
“Isn’t there a position that suits you better?”
“You misunderstand. I’m a retired man. This is how I repay the Empire.”
“Everyone has things they are better at. Speaking as a parent, I’m deeply worried about the children’s mental health.”
“My face is a bit rough, I admit.”
“It’s not just your torture skills.”
“Hahaha!”
“Hahaha!”
The two of them were trading a refined version of “Get out of the academy” and “No thanks.”
All of a sudden, Dwener slammed his forehead into the table.
With a loud thud, the teacups bounced up into the air and rattled back down.
“You’re looking after me in so many ways that I don’t know what to do with myself! I’ll devote myself even more from now on!”
Tears of gratitude streamed down Dwener’s face.
Duke Zeppelin could only stare, dumbfounded.
Did this man really not even realize he was being mocked?
‘What a pathetic fool.’
Even incompetence had its limits, yet he managed to surpass them.
It made him wonder where in the world they’d dug up a guy like this.
Reading Duke Zeppelin’s thoughts, Caron opened his mouth.
“By the way, what brings you all the way out here, Your Grace?”
“Still pretending not to know when you do. Some things never change.”
“My apologies. Seems I still haven’t shaken the habits of my old job.”
“You’re still active, so it can’t be helped. I’ll overlook it.”
“I only just retired, after all. Thank you for your understanding. If I had to guess with my limited insight… it’s because of the newly discovered top-grade mana stone mine, isn’t it?”
“Exactly. As expected of someone on the front lines of information.”
“At best, I’m second line.”
“If you can still joke like that, you’re definitely still active.”
“I don’t see how that’s relevant at all, though?”
Hahaha!
Laughter bloomed again. It wasn’t a warm, colorful blossom of joy.
It was a flower of ice, colder than anything.
“Sheesh… how does tea get cold this fast?”
Slurp.
Was a truly incompetent man unable to read the mood as well?
Duke Zeppelin looked at Dwener with eyes full of contempt.
He had two reasons for coming to see Dwener.
One was, as Caron had said, to conduct a secret deal regarding the top-grade mana stones.
The other was:
-Principal Dwener has been acting strangely lately. Could I ask you to look into it?
Duke Aziz had asked him to keep an eye on Dwener.
Was he only pretending to be incompetent while siding with another faction, or was he so profoundly useless that he kept causing accidents without realizing it?
Duke Aziz had told him to find out.
Duke Zeppelin studied Dwener with a cold gaze.
“Hehe… my head… hurts. The tea is good… but it’s cold.”
A man who bowed and scraped without a shred of shame, whose fawning skills marked him as a sycophant in a past life, who couldn’t read the mood at all, whose words and actions would lose even to the village idiot.
He was no different than before. He was playing his assigned role of “incompetent” to perfection.
If there was one thing that didn’t make sense.
‘Why has he been acting on his own lately?’
Had two years as principal made him think his little hat of authority meant something?
Or was he trying to show off hidden competence to win the Emperor’s favor?
Or was he simply so useless that he went around causing trouble without realizing it?
‘The last one is the most likely.’
Duke Zeppelin did not leave even a speck, let alone a sliver, of possibility that Dwener might actually be a capable talent.
In any case, he clearly needed schooling. The kind that would teach him his place.
If he added a little force to a healthy dose of fear, this incompetent fool would soon beg for his life and surrender.
“Could you give us a moment? I have something to discuss with the principal.”
“The mine is outside my authority. Please, talk at ease. But could you spare me a little time afterward?”
A private meeting requested by Caron?
That hardly ever happened. Curiosity flickered in Duke Zeppelin’s eyes.
“Can I know the reason in advance?”
“Naturally, it’s because I have business with you, Your Grace.”
“Is that so? Perfect timing. There was something I wanted to ask you as well.”
“May I at least know what it concerns?”
“I have a favor to ask of you, Sir Caron.”
Not casually revealing your hand was the first rule of information warfare.
To give the other as little time as possible to think, neither of them stated their aim.
“If it’s a favor from you, I have to accept. I’ll wait outside.”
“I won’t be long. Please wait just a bit.”
“C-Caron? Wait! If you leave me here like this…!”
Dwener reached out desperately, but Caron coldly turned his back and walked out.
Only Duke Zeppelin and Dwener remained in the tea shop.
“D-d-did I do something w-wrong…?”
Dwener trembled all over. Water sloshed over the rim of the teacup he was barely managing to hold up.
There wasn’t a speck of noble dignity to be found.
Duke Zeppelin did not want to waste time on such an incompetent man. He went straight to the point.
“You presented a different opinion to His Majesty. What was that about?”
“T-that was…”
“Speak frankly. I’m not the type to take my frustrations out over something like this.”
At first he’d considered using force, but even that felt like a waste.
That was how abysmal his evaluation of Dwener was.
After a long moment of watching his face, Dwener finally spoke up, stammering.
“I… thought that with Your Grace’s skills, you would become the owner of the mine without any trouble.”
“Exactly. It’s a mine that would fall into my lap even if I did nothing, so why did you make that kind of move?”
“Because backlash was to be expected.”
“Backlash?”
“Yes, the imperial side’s checks have been growing more intense lately, haven’t they? In this situation, if you just pocketed such a juicy prize, their pressure would only get worse.”
“…So you used fair competition as an excuse and made that proposal?”
“Yes. It means paying more in taxes, but isn’t avoiding the imperial family’s interference the more urgent issue right now?”
“The taxes are a serious problem too. The higher the value of the goods, the more money I have to hand over.”
“If I were to siphon off a certain amount… couldn’t it end up about the same?”
Duke Zeppelin, who had been half listening, pricked up his ears.
Falsify the amount mined and hand that portion over for free?
It was the perfect way to build a slush fund.
On top of that, not only would the imperial family be satisfied, he could monopolize the top-grade mana stone mine without provoking backlash from hostile factions.
‘They’ll put watchers on it, so it’ll be hard. But not impossible.’
With his skills, it was more than doable.
Perhaps noticing the shift in atmosphere, Dwener twisted his body bashfully and gave a shy smile.
“And in the process I thought I might… just a tiny, tiny bit, line my own pockets as well.”
Duke Zeppelin’s eyes cooled.
Incompetent, sycophant, and now a corrupt official. The full trifecta.
He wanted to punch him right then and there, but held back.
From a certain angle, even this could be called a form of “competence.”
‘So his brain works when it comes to this sort of thing?’
Even a grub has its way of wriggling.
Well, as long as he made things convenient, there was nothing to complain about.
“Don’t overdo it.”
“Hehehe! Of course. Greed brings ruin, doesn’t it?”
The very smile of a textbook corrupt official.
He’d been planning to ask Caron to keep Dwener alive as a precaution, but that thought evaporated.
“I’ll rest here for a bit before I go.”
“P-please, make yourself at home! You can pretend I’m not even here!”
The matter ended far more blandly than he’d expected.
As he sorted through what information to pass on to Duke Aziz and what to keep to himself, a certain memory surfaced in his mind.
A memory of tasting the feeling of “humiliation” for the first time in a long while.
“There was a cheeky kid at the academy. Her name was… Rodelin, was it?”
He had heard what had happened while they were away through the rat.
When Dwener heard the news, he’d wanted to fly into a rage, but he couldn’t.
Because right beside him, Caron was swallowing down his own anger.
‘That emotion was definitely… fury.’
The fact that the children were hurt was serious enough, but he’d never imagined Caron could actually get angry.
Dwener wanted to be angry too, but he couldn’t let it out. It felt like Caron might explode at any moment.
Even now he couldn’t make sense of it.
That rat of the Empire, that tool said to be emotionless, had gotten angry over children being hurt.
‘Has he gotten used to playing the role of a teacher?’
He wasn’t sure. But what he had to do, then and now, was clear.
Endure and be patient.
So Dwener smiled.
“Ah! You must mean the vice president of the student council. Duke Luke’s youngest daughter. She’s a truly excellent child.”
“Is that so? Then she needs even more education. You’ll wait for the right timing and punish her.”
“Punish her?”
“Yes. All the kids who talked back to me. Let’s see… six demerit points should do.”
Six demerit points. Enough that you could still rank high on the final exams, but not reach the very top.
It was also an awkward amount to formally protest.
“And the boy named Zero, was it? Hand over every scrap of information you have on him.”
“May I ask why…?”
“I plan to educate him personally. He seemed to have some spine, but… if I put a leash on him and stomp on him for a few days, he’ll learn to heel.”
Like a dog.
Dwener slowly closed his eyes.
The storm called Duke Zeppelin.
Originally, he’d intended to lie flat on the floor and let it pass overhead.
He hadn’t yet built up enough strength to bare his fangs, and he had no reason to stir up extra vigilance with pointless actions.
He should just let the man go.
He could protect Zero and the students from behind the scenes.
That way he could maintain the image of useless Dwener and buy time to grow stronger.
But.
“Shut your dog’s mouth before I make you.”
He couldn’t just let this go.
As principal of the academy, as their guardian, and—
As a bad adult.
–TL Notes–
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