The Prince Wants to Retire

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The Crown Prince Wants to Retire

5. The Rampaging Crown Prince

Finally, the Inspection Department began to move in earnest.

Under the pressure of the Crown Prince’s orders, the Department could no longer hold out and commenced a large-scale investigation as directed by the Crown Prince.

They began capturing spies hidden within the Imperial Palace based on all the data they had gathered so far.

“Is it really okay for the palace to be this way?”

“There are just too many! I can’t tell if this is a nest of spies or the Imperial Palace!”

“Professors claimed, ‘All this is the Emperor Faction’s fault! It happened after they took control of the palace!’…”

“A public sentiment formed, saying, ‘We must drive out the Emperor Faction that has bewildered His Majesty’s eyes!’…”

Sensational newspapers were bombarding the public every day, and the Emperor Faction began to feel cornered.

After all, they had done all kinds of misdeeds while using the Emperor’s influence, and the negative emotions had finally erupted after this incident.

“Good job.”

Kariel praised the Inspection Chief in his heart as he worked diligently with a smile.

The Chief was handling things with notable flair.

Having been with the Inspection Department for a long time, he was now poised to crush the Emperor Faction, to the extent that even the nobles pursuing stability had to warn him to take it easy.

“His Majesty’s orders were directly given to me by His Highness the Crown Prince.”

However, the Chief acted as if he could not be dissuaded from pressing the Emperor Faction even harder, performing even faster and stronger.

Eventually, he even threatened that the Emperor Faction could be dragged down from their positions right then and there, but even that was nothing.

“I have no power. If I’m ordered from above, I must comply. Please persuade His Majesty.”

With this, he left them with nothing they could do.

In the end, the only hope left for the Emperor Faction was the Emperor himself, yet even he couldn’t completely ignore the heated public opinion.

Though he was called a tyrant, he lacked the courage to become one, merely keeping an eye on the shifting sentiments, which caused time to slip by and further isolated the Emperor Faction.

The Chief of Inspection, being decisive and thorough, had nothing to do but present himself for show at the Department occasionally.

Thanks to that, the halted exercise was also resumed.

“Heave… heave… okay, that’s enough…”

“One more set, Your Highness.”

“Isn’t this too much for today?”

“You’ve been resting, so it can’t be helped. Look, your Fire Energy is already starting to rise, isn’t it?”

Watching Toto’s expression as he pointed out Kariel’s slightly reddened skin, Kariel had nothing to say.

He had skipped his Body Technique and exercise while being slightly busy, but he never expected to pay for it in this way.

Even Talion, who took great care of him, avoided looking his way, causing Kariel to sigh and start exercising again.

Thus, the hellish workout came to an end.

But the real training had only just begun.

He had to practice Body Technique.

Though it was now ingrained in his body, he couldn’t take the next step.

Body Technique was tailored for werewolves and didn’t suit Kariel’s physical framework.

More importantly, the deeper implications of Body Technique on the Fire Energy were unknown, so he couldn’t hastily move on to the next step.

“How long do I have to keep this up?”

“You must continue this way until the stage of adapting Body Technique to your body is complete.”

“And what if it doesn’t work?”

When Toto asked that, Kariel anxiously inquired with a worried expression.

Toto looked at him as if to say, ‘Why are you asking me when it’s all your fault?’

Kariel drooped his head.

“Ha…”

“This life isn’t all bad. Every day, this workout routine is quite regular and enjoyable, isn’t it?”

As Toto flexed his muscles, Kariel shook his head in revulsion.

Though he had gained Body Technique and could live no longer in a frail body thanks to the contract with Surth, he was now stuck leading a life full of exercise every day.

Didn’t the growth of Body Technique and strengthening of Surth mean he would improve?

As Kariel grew, so would his Fire Energy.

Therefore, unless there was a groundbreaking change, he would continue to live a life dedicated to exercise forever.

“Talion.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Talion looked at Kariel, who called him with a weary expression after finishing his Body Technique training, with pity.

To him, Kariel firmly commanded, “Bring them here.”

“…Yes?”

“Find the ones I mentioned. Right now!”

“Yes, Your Highness. They will come, so now you should wash up and prepare for your studies.”

Hearing Talion’s words, Kariel, who had been agitated, smiled.

Soon, it was time for Kariel to study.

Since he had learned everything in his previous life, that time was little more than a break for Kariel.

When Kariel washed away the sweat from his exercise and entered, an old political science professor flinched at the sight of him.

“Well, shall we start the class?”

Kariel beamed a bright smile as he regarded the old professor.

As the Crown Prince Kariel began to recover physically and become more active, the Emperor thought of a way to restrain him: education.

The problem was…

“Is this the right theory?”

“Yes?”

“No, is this theory valid? This is a diplomatic method centered on Ignit, isn’t it? This has been broken for over 30 years!”

At Kariel’s words, the old professor, who came to teach diplomacy, began to sweat profusely.

He was teaching from books that had all undergone a certain level of censorship.

Given his position as a professor through connections from the Emperor Faction, he couldn’t teach the current Emperor’s achievements poorly.

In the end, he had to mix in some lies, and each time he did, Kariel shot sharp looks and pointed it out.

“How much are we losing to foreign nations right now that you’d bring such disgrace? Professor, are you joking?”

“T-That’s not the case…”

The old professor looked as if he was going to cry from Kariel’s accusations, but the more he showed weakness, the angrier Kariel became.

‘Ah, this stress is really getting released.’

Kariel thought this inwardly while outwardly reflecting a furious expression as he methodically countered the old professor’s words.

And this was the case with other classes as well.

Kariel had already studied the general knowledge in his past life, so if someone dared to criticize him, he would show his knowledge and refute each point, grumbling that they brought such trivial things as teaching materials.

But these were nothing compared to what followed.

“Professor.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

“Do you think I look like a fool?”

“W-Who would think that?”

“Then what’s with this pathetic study guide? Are you joking?”

Kariel threw the book titled “Theory of Balance” to the floor.

The book outlining the balancing theory between the current and previous emperors rolled on the floor.

“Shouldn’t we be learning about the First Emperor’s imperial doctrine or the methods of employing the great emperor instead?”

“T-That is…”

The young professor was left speechless, completely taken aback.

Indeed, as Kariel said, what they should first learn in imperial doctrine were the teachings of the First Emperor, while transitioning into the advanced courses, they should cover matters like the recruitment theories of the Great Emperor or the ruling doctrines of the Martial Emperor.

The problem was that the professor was in a position of accepting bribes from the Emperor Faction and was expected to conduct classes benefiting them, while the Emperor was subtly hoping for educational resources that highlighted his own achievements.

“Get lost.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

The young professor bowed his head forlornly and exited the room.

Having dispatched yet another imperial doctrine professor today, Kariel wore a satisfied smile.

-You’re quite malicious.

“What?”

-Do you feel better relieving stress like that?

As Surth appeared with a snap, he clicked his tongue while Kariel wore an innocent expression.

This was a class initiated by the Emperor to restrain Kariel.

Though it was something he had to face eventually, the Emperor hastily arranged a schedule for classes now that Kariel had somewhat recovered.

Had it merely been standard classes, Kariel might have pretended to listen, but when they brought something so ridiculous to teach, he couldn’t help but act this way.

-Tsk tsk! You must have been a demon in your past life.

“I’m human!”

At Kariel’s statement, Surth sighed deeply.

Surth, who knew that Kariel had returned to the past by a god’s will, clicked his tongue in response.

-Not that past life.

“Exactly.”

-What?

“Even before that, I was human.”

-How do you know that…

Surth trailed off, wide-eyed as he stared at Kariel.

Then Kariel smirked and said, “I’ll tell you later.”

As Kariel said this, he began to loosen up.

His previously heated Fire Energy began to settle once more.

Though he had learned Body Technique and made a contract with Surth, his Fire Energy still hadn’t completely calmed down.

However, it wasn’t without effect; he was definitely feeling improvement as he practiced Body Technique.

“Yeah, this should be enough.”

Kariel said this while examining his own body.

The ability to walk around at will.

Just that alone meant Kariel possessed a body that couldn’t even be compared to his past life.

-Now that your Fire Energy has subsided, are you going to run wild outside again?

“Run wild, you say? Everything I do is for the Empire and our future.”

-Nonsense.

At Kariel’s words, Surth scoffed as if they were ridiculous.

He had excuses claiming that the Empire needed to enter a state of stability for their future selves to be secure, and only then could they afford to seek out other Behemoths.

But the real reason was that it was plain fun to mess with the Emperor Faction, a point Surth understood better than anyone else as he observed from the side.

-If you’re going to talk like that, hide that notebook and keep your mouth shut.

“Cough cough…”

Kariel cleared his throat and quietly placed the notebook back into the drawer.

“Well, now that my health has improved, I should get moving again, right?”

-Sigh, do what you want.

Surth shook his head in resignation, then disappeared with another “pop!”

Since he still felt uncertain about his strength, he intended to stabilize it by sleeping as much as possible.

“Once I perfect Body Technique, I’ll be able to summon you any time.”

Kariel muttered while gazing at the spot where Surth had just been, then stood up and headed out the door.

*

After a period of silence, the Crown Prince emerged from the palace once more.

This news spread throughout the Emperor Faction in an instant.

Today, nobles trembled in fear, wondering what trouble he might cause and hoping they wouldn’t be caught up in it.

As Kariel headed towards the Inspection Department, contrary to expectations that he would torment the officials in the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the Ministry of Finance within the palace, he instead directed himself towards the slums in the Capital.

Upon hearing this news, Chancellor Mussolini slammed his desk with a horrified expression.

BANG!

“Stop him! Do whatever it takes to stop him!”

Mussolini shouted, prodding the officials from the Ministry of Finance, but nothing changed.

So, he went directly to the Inspection Department to meet the Chief.

“Chief, this has crossed a line.”

“Instead of doing this with me, why don’t you ask His Highness the Crown Prince?”

“Chief!”

Under Mussolini’s threat, Podolski leisurely drank tea, responding smoothly.

“Have you forgotten the principles of the Neutral Faction?”

“Eh, what am I supposed to do? Should I defy the Emperor’s orders?”

Mussolini gritted his teeth at Podolski’s response.

“Convince the Emperor!”

Faced with Podolski’s fundamentally indifferent answer, Mussolini’s expression twisted.

At the level of Chief, obstructing the young Crown Prince was a cinch.

However, by remaining so passive, Podolski expressed his clear intent to have no involvement in this matter.

“…You will come to regret this.”

“Take care on your way out.”