Paperwork.

That is the backbone of running an empire, apparently.

It’s all rather tedious, but not exactly difficult. Most of the work is delegated to subordinates selected a long time ago by my father. Subordinates already used to their responsibilities, who all know to deliver proper results.

Indeed, just that the seat of ‘Emperor’ has fallen onto my lap doesn’t mean that the entire hierarchy and command structure is going to change. That would be ridiculous. Since everything already works pretty well, there is no real need to replace people left and right. At most, I only need to clean up those who suddenly get it into their heads that I might be an easier target than Father, and try to rise above their station.Continue reading

I’ve only taken a few steps toward Fushia City when Sanae’s voice appears in my mind.

<Regroup?>

[…No. Stay in position.]

Even as the words leave my soul, Haris’s huge, four-meter-tall form appears in the distance, walking toward me. I suppose it was too much to hope for, to permanently disable a god specializing in close combat so easily, but my attack did have some effect. Even though Haris looks angry and eager for battle, his face is still pale and covered in sweat, and his gait is obviously pained.Continue reading

I land heavily at the bottom of the mine, the ground underneath my body shattering, a spiderweb of cracks spreading out from around me.

Quite painful…

Kukuku…

My head feels like it’s splitting open. My thoughts are sluggish. My vision is blurred. I can only hear a high, tinny, constant whine in all four of my ears. My throat is filled with blood.
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Haris’s punch landed firmly on the side of Akasha’s face.

The impact rang out like an explosion, and the little girl was sent flying across the room, crashing through the wall there, and the wall after that, and the one after that again, the sound of destruction and crashing rubble following her all the way.

Haris stayed in this position, with his fist raised, stone dust obscuring his sight.

He blinked.
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When I open my eyes, I’m still inside the capsule, soaking in the healing solution that fills it to the brim. Even though I’m completely submerged, I have no trouble breathing. It takes me a moment to shake off the daze hanging over my mind and remember why I’m here at all. Those several rounds of treatment have been quite exhausting.

But at least, my wounds have closed.

I managed to escape from that explosion alive, but not unscathed. But I suppose I shouldn’t complain, simply surviving the blast could already be considered some kind of miracle.

A miracle that cost me a shielding artifact and three Rebirth pills…Continue reading

Hahaha…

At least three out of the four pieces of scum who captured me when I was a child are dead.

Of course they’re dead. 300 years have passed, and idiotic peasants could never hope to become gods. There was absolutely no chance of them becoming immortals.

They’re dead…
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“Is there something wrong, your Grace?” Viktor Odhran asked as he watched the strange young maid fly off into the distance.

“I’m not quite sure myself,” Duke Solaire replied. “Finram, do you know?”

Lord Finram shook his head, looking even more dumbfounded than everybody else here. “I don’t have the slightest idea.”

“Well, I assume Akasha will come back if she wishes to. In any case, few of us could catch up to her and ask her what happened, now. Oh, I’ll be sure to reimburse you for the damages your courtyard sustained, Earl Odhran,” the duke added after a moment, looking at the shattered ground where the young maid had jumped. “I’m terribly sorry about this.”Continue reading

“Akasha? Ah, there you are! Could you come with me?” Father asks, beckoning to me from the doorway to my bedroom.

“What is it?”

I raise my head from the open book in my hands to look at him. He seems about to collapse from exhaustion, like always, dark circles drawn under his eyes, and heavy eyelids half-closed over them. He’s probably stayed up all night again, working in his lab.

I’ve long since given up discouraging him from doing that, since he’ll go right back to it just after telling me he’ll stop.
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“Here is Fushia City,” Solaire says, pointing through the train’s window at the buildings rising in the distance. “It isn’t actually the capital of Tonarr, but it certainly is its economic center. It’s a young city, too. It was built just a bit more than two centuries ago, and since then, with shrewd planning from its ruling family, it has developed up to this state.”

It looks different from any other city I’ve ever seen – admittedly, I have seen few of them.

Mostly, Fushia City distinguishes itself by being grayer and dirtier.

Another difference is that, while a thick wall encircles most of the city, the west side of it actually isn’t protected like this. There, bordering the city, I can see the edge of a very wide hole.Continue reading

Inside the locomotive.

I can’t help but salivate at the sight in front of me.

Dozens of magic cores are embedded in sockets of various sizes, all over some sort of altar. And all those magic cores are of quite high quality, too. They would make for a very nice meal after those days of fasting.

But if I did eat them, the train would stop moving…Continue reading