The Empror's Trap-Chapter 49: Ch - Position Change

"I knew you wouldn’t come," Uheya said flatly, clearly having anticipated Kenji’s answer.

"I’m sorry."

"No, don’t apologize to me. I’ll take your advice to heart. If possible, when we meet again, I hope I’ll have sufficient status to properly invite you to my country."

"Let’s hope so."

Kenji casually found a boulder, squatted down on it and chewed on a blade of grass.

Uheya walked up to Kenji and bent down slightly. Her eyes seemed to hold an almost magnetic allure as she gazed at the man before her:

"Kenji, we will meet again—under different circumstances."

Though she didn’t specify where they would meet, Kenji understood her meaning perfectly.

"When that time comes, if you really manage to capture me, just make sure to leave my corpse intact," he chuckled.

"Leave it intact? Oh no no," Uheya hesitated, then placed her hand on his shoulder, "If I really catch you, my sisters would probably be quite fond of your type..."

"Tsk... a woman’s heart is most venomous!"

"Well, when that time comes, who gets to have you will be entirely my decision."

She shook her head lightly and stood up: "It’s getting late, and you must have many matters to attend to? Head back early. Thank you for today’s invitation, I really like this horse."

"If you like it, you can take it with you. It seems to have quite a connection with you."

"That won’t be necessary. My country lacks many things, but horses aren’t one of them," she said, lowering her hand from petting the horse before her, "I’ll bring news back to my country soon. We probably won’t have chances to meet like this for a while."

"Be careful on your end, safety first," Kenji reminded her.

"Don’t worry, I’ll be careful."

Uheya readjusted her attire, smoothing out the clothes that had become disheveled from horseback riding, then resumed her composed and elegant diplomatic demeanor: "Well then, Duke Anos, to avoid suspicion, please allow me to take my leave first."

"Mm."

The sound of hoofbeats arose as Uheya galloped away down the path she had come from.

"Young master seems quite fond of her," Lina observed quietly, watching Uheya’s retreating figure.

"More accurately, I’m fond of people like her."

Kenji smiled self-deprecatingly. Though he was quite a practical person, whether before coming to this world or now, he could never bring himself to dislike such people.

Anyone who fought tirelessly for their country and their people held an unforgettable charm in his heart.

"Young master, you still need to paint with the young lady tonight. If we don’t head back soon, she’ll be waiting for you."

"Mm, I know," Kenji nodded, then suddenly remembered something he was curious about, "Oh right, Lina."

"What is it?"

"Haven’t you ever wondered, what if I really chose to leave with Uheya..."

"It would just mean a change in work environment. With young master’s talents, you’d surely receive preferential treatment whether in Camelot or in Sal. Thinking of it that way, my working conditions shouldn’t be too bad either."

Lina said this without any hesitation, as if following him was the most natural thing in the world.

"You... ah, fine."

Kenji really had no way to deal with this guard.

...............

Early the next morning, Siguo Camelot, the Minister of the Imperial Family, called in sick.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

With an official taking leave, the question of who would temporarily fill Siguo’s vacancy became an issue. For this, Pluvia Camelot summoned the central officials to discuss together who should temporarily fill this vacancy.

According to the old system, this vacancy should have been filled by the second-in-command of the Imperial Family Court, since the court mostly just managed internal clan affairs of the imperial family. The work could be very busy at times, but also quite idle at others. The second-in-command was usually sufficient to handle things.

However, this time they firmly claimed that the affairs of the Imperial Family Court were extremely busy recently and needed someone who could maintain authority to fill the position of Minister.

So, after everyone’s unanimous discussion, these officials put forward Pluvia’s uncle, hoping this respected elder of the Camelot family could handle the Imperial Family Court’s affairs.

But this was politely declined by Pluvia.

Subsequently, Pluvia smiled and said:

"How about this - I’ve noticed recently that Chancellor Long has been studying our Camelot etiquette and laws. Since there aren’t any major court matters lately, why don’t we let Chancellor Long take this position for now?"

Hearing this news, Kenji felt something was off.

Wait no, this isn’t right.

While the Emperor could personally appoint officials in Camelot, some positions were special.

Especially the Minister of the Imperial Family.

Since this position dealt with internal imperial household matters and sometimes involved all sorts of messy family affairs, it was almost always held by Imperial Family members. And it had to be someone highly respected within the Camelot family.

A temporary change in Minister was already unusual, but now they’re letting Chancellor Long do it?

How could a mere Chancellor serve as Minister of the Imperial Family?

He can’t - he doesn’t have the qualifications, you know?

At least find someone from the imperial family, otherwise you’ll regret it when family scandals emerge, like that time when someone’s brother got drunk and mistook his sister-in-law for his actual sister and then... ahem...

This was an actual ridiculous incident that happened, and though it was over a hundred years ago, it’s still discussed as an extraordinary tale among common people...

The source was some doomed Minister who wasn’t from the imperial family. Who knows what possessed that guy to dare expose such matters.

No, for Her Majesty’s family matters, I must advise against this.

"Your Majesty, I have something to say."

"Speak."

"I believe the Chancellor is already overworked day and night, and may become exhausted. Perhaps there are other candidates for this position."

Kenji said respectfully.

"Then, who do you think would be more suitable than Chancellor Long for this position?" Pluvia asked.

"I do not presume to know who would be most skilled at being Minister of the Imperial Family, but Your Majesty could select someone with a military background. This person must be familiar with Your Majesty and the imperial family, able to balance the various family members. At the same time, they should be familiar with government affairs and have assisted Your Majesty in handling such matters. In my opinion, there is only one such person."

Kenji was quite satisfied after saying this.

He couldn’t directly recommend someone, as that could easily lead to accusations of taking sides in factional disputes.

In that case, rather than naming someone specific, he would just state the relevant requirements.

Actually, only one person in court was most suitable for this role.

That would be General Balinos.

As a veteran court official with outstanding merits, General Balinos rarely engaged in factionalism, making him more reliable in handling family affairs. He could keep the Imperial Family members in check.

He also looked quite intimidating, what with that scarred face and the rasping voice from his previously injured windpipe - just his presence was enough to stop children from crying at night.

Moreover, though General Balinos didn’t have the Camelot surname, he could be traced back as Pluvia’s senior relative, so he was practically family.

The final point was timing and convenience of position transfer. General Balinos would be returning from the frontlines soon, arriving in two days at most. Since he was a general, if they didn’t want him to continue as Minister in the future, Kenji could simply find an excuse to give him troops and send him on a military mission.

So, after thorough consideration, Kenji gave this advice to Pluvia.

However, when these words reached Pluvia’s ears, they were misinterpreted in another way...

Hearing Kenji speak so respectfully, Pluvia forced herself to calm down.

Damn it, she couldn’t calm down, her fists were clenched.

This is getting ridiculous! You want the military, you insist on seeing military reports first, you want the secret forces, and now you want the Minister position too!?

How are you not dead from exhaustion!? Even ambition should have its limits!