The Place Where I Was Sold as a Slave Was the Imperial Palace

(62)

＜ Work of the Golden Slave ＞

* * *

The emperor’s gloomy gaze turned to Reynolds.

“How is the child?”

What the emperor asks is about Norman, the false successor of Watoringu.

A little while ago, Reynolds came to hear about the detailed situation from Pablo, who was in the medical office.

“I’m trying my best, but I don’t think it will last very long. I can do it for a few years, but… He said the wound on his eye was too old.”

When Norman dies too early, the eyes are on Rudy that much.

Rudy is doing simple work in the office for an hour or two a day under the name of start-up training.

Not a big one.

It was as simple as standing next to the emperor, changing ink bottles or pens, or serving drinks.

Because of Boris’s advice, he treats him with the same attitude as he does to any other servant, but people’s eyes are focused on him.

It is often the case that young boots attend on the Emperor’s personal affairs, but because Rudy is too young and a golden slave.

The fact that he resembles Enrico a lot was also one of the reasons that attracted people’s attention.

In the next few years, if you take Rudy as a boot, some people will make strange assumptions.

Norman has to live as long as possible to cover Rudy’s stomach.

“In order to prolong life as much as possible, the part that takes a lot of energy from the body is said to be in a state of adjusting the medicine so that it does not function. Thanks to what Pablo told me, I found out that eating and digesting food also takes a lot of energy from the body. So, the child takes nutrition in the form of porridge or beverages that are as light as possible.”

Reynolds sighed as he remembered the child’s small body.

“Growing up takes a lot of energy. So I’m controlling it so it doesn’t get bigger. Well, as long as I can do this and that, I’m getting my hands on everything.”

Focus only on keeping the child alive.

Reynolds let out another long sigh.

“Pablo is meticulous in his work, so there is nothing to worry about, but he is so sympathetic to children… he complains a lot whenever he meets him.”

But if this had not been done, the child would have died long ago.

The emperor opened his mouth with a bitter expression.

“Please try to make it as pain-free as possible. I know because it hurts. Physical pain is hard for a child.”

“of course. We care about that as much as possible, so you don’t have to worry.”

No one wants to be deliberately cruel to a child.

As usual, Reynolds presented the drugged wine before the Emperor.

Taking a sip of it, the emperor returned his gaze to the papers.

Officials, who had been temporarily absent from their offices because of their visit with the crown prince, began pouring in.

Reynolds went back to work as usual.

* * *

It was spring when the fake successor of the Duke of Watoringu appeared, but the season has already passed into winter.

In the meantime, Boris still receives training every morning, but his lifestyle has changed a lot.

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Dawn training time was somewhat shorter, and in the morning, time was spent in the emperor’s office.

It’s not about playing.

Although he is young, he is working seriously. Even so, it can’t be called work.

Rudy diligently walked down the aisle, fluttering the servant’s clothes that didn’t suit his small body.

Children’s clothes do not exist in this era, so children wear adult clothes in a reduced size.

In particular, Rudy’s clothes had more than one jewel attached to them. I heard that because they are golden slaves, they are used to secretly show the emperor’s authority.

There were many other decorations, and most of the clothes had a lot of unnecessary fabric.

As a result, it is not easy for children to finish anything with their hands, from the decorations on clothes to the strings that are tied and untied every time they are put on and taken off.

In the end, he always gets help from Levin to put on and take off his clothes.

The two head to the imperial palace right after receiving training from Boris. In the room used by the servants, they simply wiped themselves with wet towels, changed their clothes immediately, and headed to their respective workplaces.

Rudy goes to the emperor’s office, and Levin goes to an attendant who has an expertise in using weapons.

Unlike his pitiful appearance, Levin’s forte lies in using his body rather than his head.

It is excellent at handling weapons and suppressing opponents in an instant.

It seems to be because his family is a poor rural aristocrat.

Levin was proudly saying that his body developed instead of his head thanks to chasing chickens from a young age and chasing them to the mountains and fields to hunt.

So, Levin’s new assignment, whether that makes sense or not, is an escort attendant.

I heard that your mission is to protect the emperor and the royal family by sitting together where the guards cannot attend.

However, it is not enough to simply be good at martial arts, and you must learn all the basic duties of a servant.

It is also the position that works closest to the imperial family, so it seems that he has to study more than other attendants. I was desperate to die every day.

As they walked through the corridors of the imperial palace they had become accustomed to before they knew it, they saw the emperor’s office.

As Rudy approached, the expressionless servant opened the door and winked one eye.

Rudy raised his face and smiled.

Every time I met, I pretended to be crazy and laughed at the attendants and officials, but these days, when they see Rudy first, they pretend to know.

Well, that’s a good thing anyway.

Thanks to their friendship, officials and attendants deliberately bring something tasty and put it on Rudy’s desk. Mainly sweet snacks.

They gathered them all and took them to the mansion.

In a mansion where sweets were scarce, the food given by officials and attendants was quite popular with the princess, nanny, and Marie.

I really like it, so on days when I can’t get any of that, the disappointment is great. In particular, the princess used to cry and shed tears.

“…”

Let’s work hard today to sell cute charms and get something delicious!

When I entered the office with a spirited spirit, the room was full of people working frantically. Same as usual. The emperor and officials were all busy.

As usual, Rudy approached the emperor’s desk and checked the arrangement and amount of ink, pens, and papers.

His job is to take care of things so that the emperor is at work without even a moment’s inconvenience.

When the ink is reduced to less than half, quickly replace the ink bottle, put a new one within reach, and check occasionally to see if the pen tip feels strange.

It was also Rudy’s job to diligently exchange snacks or melt the wax that the emperor would use to seal the letter.

There seems to be nothing to do right now. It was obvious that another attendant had arranged it before he came.

Rudy went to the bookshelf on one side of the office and climbed the small ladder.

There was no ladder originally, but one day it suddenly appeared. It was made for the short Rudy.

Other than that, if you look closely, the supplies for Rudy would increase little by little without your knowledge.

Small cups that are easy to hold, small rugs, small cushions, sweet drinks and snacks for children…

Welfare is pretty good for a black country that makes children work.

Rudy grabbed the thinnest one among the thickly bound books.

After a little whining, an attendant standing against the wall came over and took it out.

When I bowed my head and said hello, the attendant grinned.

The attendant held up the book until Rudy got off the ladder, handed it to her, then turned and stood against the wall without making a sound.

Rudy also carried the book and walked across the carpeted floor. With quick steps, he crosses the space and heads for his seat.

No one cared if Rudy came and went. Maybe it’s because I’ve gotten used to it, but it’s because I’m so busy.

The place where Rudi arrived again was next to the emperor.

A small chair and table were placed next to the emperor’s desk. That was Rudy’s seat.

When I have nothing to do, I look at the books I received in advance or pick them up from the bookshelf and read them.

Sometimes he solved problems that Boris had given him as homework. It covers a fairly wide range from simple arithmetic to subjective questions about politics and society.

You shouldn’t be foolish because Boris meticulously checks whether you’ve read the book the next day and whether you’ve understood and written your homework.

When I was studying addition and subtraction, it was quite difficult because I didn’t know how much I could pretend to know.

Now that I’ve passed that stage, I’m a little more comfortable.

Now it’s multiplication.

“…”

Before taking her seat, Rudy stood on a long platform in front of the emperor’s desk.

It is a stage made so that Rudy can check the things on the desk.

It would be much easier to have an attendant work than to arrange something like this for a child to do, strange people.

The papers the emperor was preparing were almost finished. Looking at the envelope lying next to it, it seems to be a document to be sealed.

Rudy lit a wax candle and placed a melting spoon resembling an ice cream spoon on it.

After putting the small wax pellets in the spoon and waiting for a while, they began to melt gently.

The emperor’s pen, which was running on the paper, also stopped.

Waiting for the documents to be placed in the envelope, he held out a spoon, and the emperor placed the envelope under it.

“…”

In a slightly tense state, tilt the spoon and drop an appropriate amount of wax. The wet wax slid over the perimeter of the envelope.

The emperor quietly pressed his ring sigil over it.

‘ha···.’

I get a little nervous each time I do it.

At first, I failed a few times. It must be that too much wax has been poured or flowed elsewhere.

Even though I practiced beforehand and entered the real world, it was difficult to control because I was young.

Still, the emperor had never been angry. I thought he was just a violent person, but he was surprisingly patient.

There are no mistakes now.

Seeing the Emperor put the sealed envelope beside him, Rudy came down the stage again.

Just as he had just sat down at his desk and opened a book, the door to his office opened and a foreign official entered.

I was walking a little faster than usual, and somehow I was in a hurry.

“What’s going on?”

When the emperor asked, the official handed the thick letter to the attendant and said,

“I have heard that there is a rebellion in Dicoquaria.”

“…”

When the attendant put the letter on a silver tray and set it down on the desk, the emperor winked at the official to continue speaking and then quietly read the contents.

The official continued talking.

“It seems that a few surviving nobles of Dicoquaria stood up. It is said that they raised an army in the outskirts of Dicoquaria, but it is estimated that the news has reached Chania by now.”

The emperor asked, still not taking his eyes off the papers.

“What are the trends in other countries?”

“The news continues to come in, but there was no major change until a few days ago.”

“Has it been confirmed that there was support from other countries?”

“Sorry, Your Majesty. The news has not reached there yet.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s in the middle of the night, so let me know as soon as there is any news.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The official said goodbye and immediately left the office.

Rudy quietly stared at the desk.

‘A rebellion in Dicoquaria…’

I knew that the situation in the country was very difficult.

Boris avoided going into detail, but it’s not hard to guess how hard it must be for the people who live there.

I heard that Dicoquaria is currently lacking enough men to even cultivate properly. This is because a significant number of young people, both male and female, were taken as slaves.

Since there are no men, farming cannot be done properly, and if farming is not done, people will starve to death.

As both men and women were in short supply, the number of children being born plummeted, leaving little hope for future population growth.

Now, even if people die, burial is not possible, and there are also areas where contagious diseases circulate.

It was said that it was difficult to rule in the Kingdom of Cania, so needless to say how miserable it was.

It may be that the time has come to aim for it in other countries.

Originally, because of the war with Dicoquaria, Kania was also in a very dangerous state. If he hadn’t had the background of an empire, other countries would have looked over him already.

Until now, other countries were watching because of the empire.

But in recent years, the relationship between the Empire and the Kingdom of Cania has become distant.

While helping Kania, the empire decided to accept only slaves without paying much in return, but it seems that what they really wanted was noble slaves possessing magical powers.

However, most of the slaves sent from Chania were commoners.

Even so, it was said that the number of people who were supposed to be sent on the first and second delivery dates was not met, and the number of young and healthy slaves was not enough.

If the relationship between the Empire and Kania begins to strain, there is a good chance that the country that has been just sucking fingers and watching will move.

‘What will happen in the future?’

My heart felt tight.

＜Golden Slave’s Day＞ End