NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 23: If I Had to Pick One Thing
The tenseness of Ritt’s thoughts showed quite obviously on his face, and Sien recognized it for what it was quite easily.
“Hey, don’t be so worried like that; I told you, the Emperor’s not gonna do anything bad to me. Keep making that face, and people are gonna start suspecting you of something!”
Ritt frowned, looking around them to see if anyone was really looking at him suspiciously, but the only one who was looking his way was the mischievously smiling Sien. He took a deep breath, telling himself that what Sien said was right, and did his best to relax while Sien patted his shoulder both comfortingly and encouragingly.
“You really are a worry-wart sometimes Ritt, I swear. Look, I’ll go in there and talk with the Emperor, and you can go back to the room and wai-”
“Ah, cousin Sien! I must inform you, there’s actually been a change of arrangements!”
The Prince, who’d just emerged from the doors to the throne room, loudly interrupted Sien’s words, earning him a harsh glare.
“...What?”
“I just finished meeting with my father the Emperor, you see, and he says he wishes to meet with your little pet first! What a glorious and important day this must be for you!”
Sien almost growled as the Prince turned towards Ritt and gave him such condescending congratulations. His hand itched to grab at his sword, but all he could do was fist at the leg of his extraordinarily expensive pants and attempt to use his own body to block the Prince’s view.
“...And why would he want to do that?”
“Oho, why wouldn’t he want to, dear cousin?”
The Prince's smiled widened, his eyes narrowing in a twisted way as they rolled over towards Sien.
“If I were him, I’d do it too. Who wouldn’t want to learn more about the stranger who wandered over and so easily captured your heart? Your heart, of all people! It’s exceedingly worth investigating, down to the very last speck of dirt.”
Ritt frowned, not understanding why things had come to this. Was it so odd for Sien to have a pet, a friend, or someone who was like family to him? Could it be that this gatekeeping-like activity from his family was what kept Sien so isolated in the first place? If it was, then Ritt wasn’t sure he would be able to keep listening to it all so quietly for much longer.
And besides, the antagonistic way that the Prince was speaking to Sien was making Ritt feel very unpleasant. He felt awkward about stepping into the conversation, but if it was for the sake of helping Sien against this seeming bully of a Prince, then Ritt could do it.
“...Crown Prince, please stop-”
“Reece, stop acting a fool and let the lad in already!”
A booming voice echoed from within the throne room, causing the Prince to flinch and lose all traces of his previous wicked smile. He ducked his head and moved out of the way, looking quite childish for his apparent age, and made way for Ritt to enter while motioning for him to go in. Ritt frowned in worry, completely unprepared for such a meeting with the very man he was so wary of, but when he looked over at Sien and saw him sigh and also motion for him to go in, Ritt nodded and steeled himself, doing as he was told.
The way the doors closed after he entered the throne room was quite standard, and Ritt, having met with the rulers of Brisillica many times when he was still a Paladin, had never once put much thought into it before. Now, however, such a thing felt like he was being trapped into a room with some kind of fierce adversary, cut off from the safety that was Sien. The throne room, although well lit, looked dark and gloomy somehow to Ritt. And even though the Emperor across the room had a handful of servants and aides by his side, it somehow felt like it was only he and the Emperor alone, squaring off against each other.
Ritt desperately regretted not having a sword with him.
“Hmmm… So this is the young man that Sien took in, you say? I've heard that your name is 'Ritt', boy?”
“Ah, yes… It’s Ritter, Your Majesty.”
Whether it was just due to the fact that he distrusted the Emperor, or the fact that he knew the power that the man could wield on Sien with just his true name, either way, Ritt didn’t want the Emperor to continue using the name he chose like that. Something more formal and full, like Ritter, would do just fine in the Emperor’s company.
“Is that so? Well… I suppose it doesn’t matter… Alright then Ritter, I’ll get straight to the point. Tell me, would you like for me to give you your freedom? Perhaps no one else would be able to, but I can give it to you. I’m sure you’d rather live the life of a free man than as some childish Fae-boy’s pet, now wouldn’t you?”
Ritt’s eyebrows came together in confusion. If anything, he never would have imagined that this would be the first thing the Emperor would question him over. It was so similar to what the Duke had said to him when they'd first spoken alone, and being brothers, the two looked quite similar to each other as well. Inexplicably, Ritt started to feel a bit like he was talking with the Duke once again.
It had been almost a week since Ritt had been informed about the fact that he was Sien’s pet, and Ritt had come to accept that fact with a small bit of mental work. Perhaps being a pet meant that he’d lost his chances at freedom, but Ritt could accept such things. He viewed himself very much as an animal that had been kept in captivity all its life; Once released into the wild, it wouldn’t know how to survive on its own at all. Sure, he was certain that he might live, but now that he was here, he couldn’t picture very well what he would have done if Sien had simply let him go instead. The only possibility that came to his mind was the calm picture of the people they’d passed by on the way here, farming and living simple yet meaningful lives. Yes, such scenes were sweet and appealing to him, and yet having never had very much of an imagination, Ritt couldn’t easily imagine himself in such a role. Compared to such imagined happiness, the current happiness that he was experiencing now that he’d gotten used to living in such a pampered and pleasant way with Sien was far greater, and Ritt believed he had no need for such a dreary ‘freedom’ anymore. In the first place, the brief taste of freedom he’d already gotten had been quite grueling and had ended with him almost starving, although in the end it had happily led him here, to Sien’s side.
“...No, Your Majesty. I think I’ve had enough freedom to suit me for now.”
“Hrmm…”
The Emperor stroked his beard with a perplexed face, looking as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. He was silent for quite a while as he repeatedly combed his fingers through the hair, only stopping once he’d turned his beard into a slightly frizzy mess, and then suddenly let out a long weary sigh, slumping down into his throne.
“...I wonder if I should be happy for my nephew that he was able to find such a willing captive...?”
Looking far less regal than when Ritt had first come in, the Emperor placed his elbow on the arm of his throne and rested his face in his hand, showing the fatigue of his age. His eyes looked almost wistful, as if he were looking off into the distance, through Ritt, and onto someone else.
“Tell me, what exactly is it that you like so much about him? What is it that compels you so to be with him?”
Ritt blinked, looking at the odd scene that the Emperor made, and then turned his gaze to the floor as he thought. After a small moment he nodded to himself as if he’d come to some kind of decision, and then looked back up to the Emperor, confidently stating his reply.
“Because he’s strong!”
The Emperor froze for a minute at the unexpected reply, but soon he leaned back into his throne, laughing at the absurdity of Ritt’s answer.
“Is that so? Hoho! Yes, you’re right, my nephew is indeed quite strong, isn’t he?”
Ritt calmly watched the Emperor and nodded along in agreement, not caring at all if his answer seemed absurd or amusing to the old man.
“Yes, he is... Of course, there’s plenty of other reasons, too; Like how kind Sien is to me, how Sien smiles and acts like a kid even though he’s actually very smart and skilled, or how he let me, who is undeserving of it, become his family. But in the end… If it wasn’t for his strength, then the two of us would never have met, and I would have remained stuck in that terrible place… So if I had to pick one thing, then I would definitely say I like his strength the most.”
The jubilant smile on the Emperor’s face steadily faltered, slowly being replaced with a bittersweet smile of acceptance instead. His hands held onto the ends of his throne’s arms tightly, as if they might slip and fall if he eased up on them.
“Family, you say… I see… Yes, I truly understand. I still don’t know if you fully grasp what you’re getting yourself into, but I won’t think little of your feelings any longer, young Ritter… But should they change, know that my offer to liberate you still stands.”
Although his eyes never came up enough to meet the Emperor’s, Ritt gave a firm nod in reply.
“Thank you for your kind offer Your Majesty, but I have no plans to take you up on it in the future.”
The Emperor chuckled, letting himself sink back into the throne comfortably, and waved dismissively at Ritt.
“I’ve heard all that I needed to… You may go now, boy. Send that pesky nephew of mine in after you.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you for this meeting.”
Ritt quickly made his way out of the room, feeling relieved as he turned his back on the Emperor’s sadly smiling face.