The Tyrant Empress is Obsessed with Me

44 – Two Ministers

After their audience with the Emperor, Ascal and Bernstein became fated partners. If one tried to escape from the mess, the other would hold onto their legs with pincers, forming a beautiful and inseparable partnership.

“To be honest, I don’t know how to make a proper airship.”

Bernstein admitted confidently.

“Then what are those airships you’ve made so far?”

“They may look fine on the outside, but they’re defective products with nothing functioning properly.”

“So you really intended to mess up and run away.”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

Ascal mused with a serious expression.

“Then what should we do?”

“Between beheading, being burned alive, and hanging, which do you think would be the least painful?”

“We must avoid being burned alive…… but we shouldn’t be thinking of dying already.”

“If we can somehow find the old airship blueprints written by my former teacher, there might be a way, otherwise, there’s no solution.”

Bernstein recalled his eccentric old mentor. Despite his quirks, he was skilled. If it weren’t for his unfortunate drunken fall into the sea, he might have become the Empire’s top inventor.

As inventors often do, the mentor left behind several unfinished blueprints. One of them was a design for an airship.

“It was an excellent design, but at the time, we lacked capital and technology. But now it might be possible. Of course, since we lost the blueprint……”

“Are these the ones?”

“……How did you find them?”

“They just appeared when I looked for them. You should learn to keep things tidy.”

Upon hearing Bernstein’s words, Ascal searched the lab. It didn’t take long to find a bundle of what appeared to be blueprints. It was like something that wouldn’t show up when you searched for it, but it appeared immediately when your mom searched for it.

Having already given up on understanding, Bernstein pulled out the airship-related blueprint from the bundle Ascal found and read it.

“It is indeed the blueprint left by my mentor. It might be possible with this. But to create a new one now, we lack the manpower and time. Unless a horde of dwarves come to help us…”

“Let me try and contact them.”

“……?”

Ascal contacted the Golden Hammer’s Guild and the Blue Flame’s Guild. Both dwarves arrived at the lab immediately.

The Golden Hammer guild leader, who saw the blueprint, smiled slyly.

“This is exciting! Let’s get started, everyone!”

“Creating the first airship is our privilege! You are truly our benefactor!”

In an instant, the laboratory was filled with a wave of dwarves.

Burnstein was at a loss for words.

However, building the airship was not an easy task. A few days later, Burnstein spoke to Ascal again with a worried expression.

“We encountered a problem. We need to rebuild the engine, but we need a high-purity magic stone. Where should we find it now…”

“I’ll contact an alchemist.”

“What do you mean?”

Ascal sent a letter to the alchemist Tei, politely asking if they could help them obtain the high-purity magic stones needed for building the airship.

The reply arrived that afternoon.

＜Of course. I’m glad I finally have a way to repay the favor. I will immediately send you the best-modified magic stones I have through a special delivery. Naturally, I chose only the highest grade I can provide.＞

Soon, a carriage arrived, spilling out magic stones all over.

Burnstein was astonished when he saw the mountain-like stack of magic stones.

“What is this?”

“Magic stones. We don’t need to worry about the engine now.”

Burnstein was at a loss for words again.

Nevertheless, building the airship was still not an easy task. A few days later, Burnstein’s face grew serious once more.

“We need an emergency power source. If we don’t have a large number of gemstone frogs, we…”

“My family owns a gemstone frog farm.”

“Is the world pulling a fast one on me?”

The airship was successfully completed.

From No ble mt L dot c om

The day of destiny had arrived.

Burnstein swallowed nervously as he saw the completed airship built according to the blueprint. Although the construction had gone smoothly, it was inevitable that there would be concerns. If it failed, both the empire’s sacred treasures and the stealthy dragon would disappear from the empire on that very day.

“Ah! So this is the airship. It looks smaller than before.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Thanks to the adoption of the magnetic technology and magical magnetic materials, the size was reduced while we were able to achieve a much higher performing airship.”

“I see, the magnetic technology indeed.”

The high-ranking officials who usually come to witness new technologies would just admire and nod, doing nothing else.

The Crown Prince was well aware of this, so he nodded his head for now. It was best to act like he knew and move on in situations like this.

“Ascal, didn’t you say you were going to fly the airship? I see, the stealth dragon of the empire might actually get to fly.”

“It’s all thanks to His Majesty and the Crown Prince’s grace.”

Ascal wasn’t just goofing around. During the construction of the airship, he completed a thorough conditioning regimen for pilot training, with three meals a day, eight hours of sleep, and a one-hour walk.

That’s right. He practically did nothing.

‘Anyway, the airship is on autopilot.’

‘Then why the hell did they make me a pilot?’

‘Of course!!! We are a community of fate!!!!’

Ascal was speechless at Bunstein’s brazen response.

In this overwhelming spectacle, where the Emperor, the Crown Prince, and the imperial family, as well as high-ranking officials from various countries were watching, Ascal and Bunstein prepared to board the airship.

Upon seeing that, Yulia prayed quietly.

‘Please return safely, Ascal.’

Serena was skeptical.

‘What is it? It’s a voice I’ve heard somewhere…’

The Crown Prince thought.

‘I want to try it, too. The airship.’

The airship began to rise.

It was flying.

The airship was in the air.

Ascal calmed his trembling heart as he saw people getting farther and farther away through the window.

A lot had changed.

Originally, a pilot with a fake career would have boarded, and the airship would have flown a little before crashing into a mountain. Fortunately, the pilot would escape, but afterwards it would be revealed that he had been drinking, and he would lose his life.

But now, the pilot is him and Bunstein.

And the airship had changed as well.

“We won’t crash, will we?”

“We’ve done our best. Ascal. If we die here, it’s our fate.”

Bunstein made the sign of the cross beside him.

“Lord, I’ll be joining you soon.”

Ascal resisted the urge to press the emergency escape button in the cockpit.

Fortunately, their efforts had not been in vain as the airship was flying perfectly fine. Now, the ground was barely visible.

“Oh, oh… Am I really the one who made the airship?”

Bunstein shed tears.

Askal clicked his tongue.

These fools. They don’t even know that their noses will soon be forever tied to the empire.

“Hold on. Aren’t there too many clouds? It’s strangely excessive.”

“Calm down. At this altitude, the clouds should be…wait, were the clouds always this color?”

The two people stared at the unusual scene before them. The clouds were blue, and lightning crackled around them.

“This should be enough. Lower the airship!”

Burnstein hastily switched to manual control, but the airship would not respond.

“I can’t control it!”

“What do you mean…”

Sizzle!

– So, you two humans are the ones who dared to disturb my slumber?

They had long forgotten.

The original rulers of the sky were none other than the dragons. But they had all vanished, living on only as legends.

“A cloud dragon…”

A dragon that controlled clouds and lightning.

Askal instinctively uttered its name.

– You know my name.

The cloud dragon coiled around the airship. As if bewitched, the airship came to a complete stop in midair. If the dragon were to exert even a little force, the airship would shatter into pieces.

“We know of the pact between you and the empire.”

– That happened hundreds of years ago. What significance does that pact have now?

The cloud dragon had once been the empire’s guardian dragon.

However, after the contract period ended and the dragon became disappointed with the empire, it did not renew the contract. Although the empire did not officially announce the end of the contract, people could feel it.

The cloud dragon no longer protected the empire.

“We humans have tried. We created this airship to reach you and apologize for our failings.”

– So you’re saying the reason you built this is to apologize to me?

It was a blatant lie.

Askal kept a straight face and acted.

“Yes, O Cloud Dragon. Please release your anger and protect our empire once more.”

-Hmm. I left the empire not only because you disappointed me but also because I could no longer prevent the flow of events.

“Do you mean the fall of the empire?”

-He knows it well. One cannot easily change the flow. Why should I use my precious strength for a nation that’s doomed to fall anyway?

Ascal couldn’t readily respond.

After a long thought, Ascal spoke.

“But, is the empire truly going to collapse?”

-What do you mean?

“Well, I thought so too, but lately I started to doubt…”

-…A ridiculous man you are. Let’s try divination then.

The Celestial Dragon fetched a bead from somewhere and started to fiddle with it in midair.

In the meantime, Ascal looked at Burnstein, who had fallen silent, but Burnstein was as still as if time had stopped.

The Celestial Dragon said,

-I shall renew the alliance with the Empire! I, the one who brings rain and clouds, 🝲🝪🝨🝠, shall protect the Empire for a thousand years!

“?”

The weather cleared up.

And the Celestial Dragon’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

“Phew. It’s working now. What on earth happened back there, really…”

Burnstein wiped the sweat off his forehead.

“Let the Empire’s Azure Dragon and the Holy Spirit of the Empire hear!”

On behalf of the indisposed Emperor, the Crown Prince read the proclamation.

“You have achieved something that no one in history has ever managed to do! To conquer the sky itself! Not only the empire, but the whole world is indebted to you!”

Kneeling down, Ascal felt an ominous atmosphere.

This flow… It was undeniably the flow of a promotion.

“Ascal, will you continue to serve the Empire in the future?”

“…Yes.”

“My hands tremble with emotion. From now on, you shall become a minister and lead the Evaluation Department!”

“Thank you for the honor. However, Your Highness the Crown Prince! Such a day would never have been possible without my friend Burnstein!”

Seeing Burnstein secretly smiling beside him, Ascal took the initiative. Burnstein hurriedly denied.

“I beg to differ. I am merely an inventor who contributed a little to Ascal’s leadership and command. On the contrary, I learned a lot this time. Compared to him, I am just a firefly in front of the moon…”

“Look at this humility! He is the embodiment of talent to enlighten the Empire!”

“If it weren’t for Ascal!”

“If it weren’t for Burnstein!”

The crown prince spoke with a touched expression.

“How humble you are. You all are indeed the path ahead for the empire, the future of the empire. Naturally, Bernstein, the empire has prepared a place for you as well. I hope you continue to serve the empire as the minister of the newly established Development and Innovation Department.”

“Your, your highness’s grace… is immeasurable.”

Overwhelmed with emotion, Bernstein even shed tears.

The youngest minister of the empire and the Development and Innovation Department, this was the moment of their birth.