- « Who helped me... »

I took a deep breath.

- «...I see. But Seti ? » I turned my gaze directly toward the butler.

- « Yes, your highness ? »

- « Could you please introduce them to me ? » I had heard all of their names already, but I was going for any kind of information I could get out of their mouths. « I would like to understand, what kind of people chose me as their Emperor. »

If Lady Gerda’s contrite expression was a clue, then she hadn’t made that choice in the name of our friendship. Lord Bolthorn, however, clearly wanted to become my pal. Quite desperately so. The last guy, Surtr or something, looked even more depressed.

«At some point, I’m gonna get stabbed or something.» I thought while I was waiting for Seti’s answer.

When he was about to comply to my request, I heard the doctor’s voice. He hadn’t been very vocal, so it surprised me a bit.

- « Mister Seti. Before you say anything, I need to remind you not to overload the emperor with informations. » He then whispered, trying not to be listened to « And gods know there is plenty...»

Way to break the mood, doc. I could say goodbye to any important intel for now. Well, he wasn’t so wrong anyway. With or without illness, getting too much infos right now would be too much for me since I didn’t know a thing about this damn world.

- « Thank you for your concern, doctor. But I would still like to hear their names. »

His body flinched a bit, as if he didn’t expect me to directly address myself to him.

- « Of course, your highness. In the end, the decision is all yours. » He then wiped the tear of sweat that was rolling down his reddened face.

- « Well, Seti, you may now proceed. » I told him. I was getting tired of keeping a somewhat dignified tone of voice.

- « My lord, as I said, those people are the now who pledged full allegiance to your reign, and helped you overthrow King Alfrid. » He turned toward them for a second, deciding which one would go first. «The gentleman seated on the table is the Count Bolthorn, who has been a great financial support since the start of your campaign. It goes without saying that everybody in house Bolthorn is a fervent supporter of yours. »

The Count approved with a big, badly hidden fake smile that even I could recognize.

- « Of course, our house will stay the emperor’s biggest supporter and most fervent collaborator for the years to come. We see nothing but greatness for your future, my Lord. »

Flattery. He just wanted to be in the good pages of a powerful man. He probably had nothing to himself but his money. An ex « plebeian » like myself saw that clearly as rock water.

- « Enchanted to meet you, Lord Bolthorn. I am counting on your continued support. »

I decided to hate this smile. He looked like a pervert. Surely, he knew where to use all this money he apparently had. Fame and bitches, as they say.

- « Next to him is Dame Gerda. The High ruler of our Church. She is a wise soul who despite her dislike for war, decided to side with your party. With the approval of the Church, getting control of the Kingdom was an easier feat. »

She simply nodded. At least, she wasn’t playing the type to play doggy with her boss. Well, the human one at least. I wondered which god this world was praying to.

Also, I didn’t miss Seti calling the Empire a Kingdom. Sounded like this body was a conquest-hungry one. Better and better.

- « Lastly, the man in front of you, who has been curtsying for a while now, is Sir Tyr, the general of your army. You gave him is title right after ascending to the throne. » He looked at him with an indescribable look to his face « He is...Your most faithful follower. Much so that I can confidently say it in front of Lord Bolthorn and Lady Gerda.»

The two approved as if it was so true that there wasn’t anything else appropriate to do.

- « ...Understood. So, the people we have here are Lord Bolthorn, Dame Gerda, and Surtr if I’m correct ? »

The butler furrowed his brows for half a second, perplexed

- « Actually, your highness, it is SIR Tyr, not Surtr. »

The man whose name I had apparently mistook for another suddenly raised his back and spoke up to Seti.

- « No, no butler, don’t concern yourself. Any name is fine, as long as it comes from the emperor’s mouth. »

« Geez, dude. Have a little self-respect. » I thought, slightly shocked by my follower’s attitude.

This castle was starting to look more and more like a pet daycare.

- « Well, » I continued, ignoring the name issue, « It’s a pleasure to meet you all once again, but I can’t help to wonder whether this is a good time to hold that kind of reunion. » I turned once again toward my butler « Is there a particular reason why they all came ? Was it to witness my illness in person ? »

- « No, your Highness. They came to follow the protocol. »

- « Which is… ? »

- « To put it simply, they are here to swear allegiance to you once again, Highness. »

Pompous shit once again.

- « Understood. Can we proceed quickly then ? I am getting tired and would like to go back to my room as soon as possible. » I wasn’t lying about this.

To my surprise, the mood in the room shifted immediately.

- « Of course. » Seti said hurriedly. «Everyone, let’s proceed immediately. » Everybody stood up and walked towards the front of the room, with varying expressions on their faces.

Were they scared of me getting annoyed ? Probably a bit of both. If people feared me, then at least I’d have more freedom in the future.

They all bent the knee, Seti included. Said butler then started proclaiming his loyalty speech or whatever. I wasn’t interested by it at all, but since I still had to fish for clues about the universe I ended up in, I decided to listen to it attentively.

- « As we stand here, in the holy year of 1061 P.R, we, the most fervent servants of our first and only emperor Friedrich Nóatún, second only to Lord Baldr’s, proclaim before the gods’s eyes our most profound devotion towards our liege. We, the sword, cross, and quill of the empire, swear on the honor of our blood to serve-

Too many information. My brain froze for a hot minute. I couldn’t listen to the rest of his speech.

« Baldr, quill, P.R, blood, liege, first emperor, 1061,... » I tried desperately to maintain every bribe of intel I’d just heard inside my head. There was a reason why I was failing college, and it came to hit me in the face at a critical moment.

« Fuckin’ goldfish brain you better NOT forget this shit, I swear…»

At this moment, it struck me that it would be harder then expected to adapt to this world. Sure, I was good at imitating mannerism and language, but understanding them was a whole other thing.

Nevertheless, I tried my best to keep my composure while Seti ended his goddamn speech.

- « ...And thus, we are yours. »

- « We are yours. » Everybody repeated before getting up.

- « Now, » I heard the doctor’s voice again « We shouldn’t bother the emperor further. He must’ve been exhausted by all this chatting. »

- « Right. » I approved. « I will now head back to my chamber. Have a safe return trip. »

After I bid my farewells, Satya led me once again this time towards my room.

Finally, I was done with their shit.

« I mean, it’s probably just the start... » I thought, quite uninspired by the idea.

Of course it wouldn’t just end here. From now on, I had to lead an empire, somehow. I didn’t even remember its name.

Once I was all by myself, and since I was way too agitated to actually try to sleep, I decided to start establishing a plan to understand where I stood. Just going through things hoping they drop some information wasn’t reliable enough.

First and foremost, I needed to know « myself » better. Even if I was playing the amnesia card, people like Seti would start to get suspicious if they didn’t recognize any kind of behavior he used to have.

So far, the one thing I kind of understood about him was that he wasn’t a nice guy. Murdering his dad, instilling fear as easily as I did earlier… I’d need to at least act a bit harsher in the future.

Next, how things work here, in a general manner. Things such as magic and alchemy seemed to be concrete concepts in this world, but I still had to witness it.

Besides, we seemed to be in an earlier setting. Clearly not the dark ages, but I highly doubt the internet was a thing here. Judging by the decorations I’d seen so far, maybe something between the 17’s to 19’s. Well, it’s all I could think of from my old history lessons.

And last, for now, the world itself. I knew absolutely nothing of the geography or politics going on here. Sure, I was an emperor and there was a church. But what else ? The country, too. Was it on land ? An island ? It was freakishly cold for sure, but other than that, I had no idea.

Anyway, Was I in a planet similar to earth ? Was it even round ?

All my beliefs were completely shattered, so might as well brace for weird and weirder things from now on.

I looked out the windows to watch the scenery. It was snowy, to say the least. Snowdrops were quickly falling from the grey sky. It looked like the window was overlooking the garden, but everything was so white you couldn’t guess whether there were flowers and grass underneath.

« With that kind of temperature, the soil would be barren... » I figured silently. Maybe that’s what magic was used for ? Or were there warmer lands in this empire ? After all, empire rhymes with conquests.

The more I thought about it, the more I was convinced the second solution was the truth. Something about this body was telling me this. I, no he always, always craved for more. Bringing down a few countries could only be a steppingstone, no more. I first believed nothing stayed in this body but now, thinking about the world, I felt deep down my entrails the longing he felt toward it.

Staring at the cold outside, I hoped winter would be over soon.