Dream Life

I, Miles Isherwood, came to Empire five years ago.

Titled Sorcerer Guild Plims Branch Manager, but not very highly regarded within the Guild.

Once upon a time, this city had the general headquarters of the Alliance. But that was a far past, and now it's only worth to the extent that there's a branch.

The Mage Guild HQ relocated to Doctus because he hated interference from the Imperial Government. Originally an organization independent of the state, the Mage Guild sends magicians to national courts. But apparently the emperor at the time moved to a less intrusive border because he tried to make the guild one of the imperial government agencies.

For this reason, the Empire created another educational institution and began to train magicians independently. The Academy of the Imperial Capital is one of them, but the Tilia School of Magic is still more than ever watered down by a major private school in Doctus.

The Empire also reluctantly acknowledges the value of the Mage Guild because its own education is not working well, but is unwilling to make active use of it. In other words, this is where the Imperial Metropolitan Branch is treated lightly by both the Empire and the Alliance.

I'm forty-two this year, too. Six years ago, he was said to be a young councillor, and was the current one who could reach the chair of the chairman of the HR committee.

But he also failed to plot the synchronized Piers Worgman's leg loss, and was forced to move left the other way around. If I had succeeded in burying Pears then, I would have been on the Council presidency by now......

No, I can't help but say this about the past now. Now we should act for the future.

And an opportunity came to me to make amends.

The low value of the Mage Guild's presence within the Empire is partly due to the fact that the Guild is sometimes inconsistent with the intentions of the Imperial Government, but we believe that the lower value of the Mage's presence than it used to be.

Then we will talk about what is the value of magicians within the Empire.

It's a little rough, but I want to talk to you about what kind of magician you are in the empire.

With the exception of the healer of Shirai, he becomes a magician of the court and the Imperial Army when it comes to magicians in the Empire.

Of these, court magicians are almost hereditary, knowledgeable but less capable as magicians, and are only recognised as educators of the royal family and grand nobleman's sons.

I mean, the value of being a magician has very little to do with it.

Even more problematic is the existence of an Imperial Army magician.

In this is the standard formation, a regiment of a quorum of 2,000 belongs to a squadron of 100 magicians. The Magic Squadron is a long-range offensive unit for siege warfare and an engineer who builds positions.

Today, however, its strength is low, and in siege warfare it is completely useless due to its short range.

This is because the average level of the magician is about twenty-five, the range is only about fifty meters (melts), and the continuous firing is not advantageous.

Archers are much more aggressive and user-friendly at this level of capability.

Even position building is so low that it depletes the magic just by making simple earth bases. More than a thousand years ago, the magicians had built castles and bridges, but there is so much difference between the magicians of that time and those of today that they do not seem to be of the same kind.

Because of all this, most of the regiments are vacant for every unit. It is also said that even regiments with magician units have too little use, so they are always placed in the rear with heavy units.

The low level, which is the culprit of all, is due to deficiencies in education, but I will not mention that now.

Sorting these things out, the empire's perception of magicians is that their mouths are masters but they have no great strength.

If this perception can be allowed to be revamped, the value of the magician should increase and the status of the guild should also rise accordingly.

But raising the level of a magician is not something you can do overnight. What's more, even if the rating goes up in ten years, it's of no value to me.

Then what?

If the Empire doesn't have a good magician, you can scout.

And here comes three brilliant magicians here in Plims.

The first is that (...) Professor Raspade praises genius at will, Zacharias Lockhart.

The second is not noticeable hidden behind Lockhart, but Sharon Jakes admires the professor as a genius of magic control.

The third is Lydiane Dupree, two divisions and a chief graduate of the Tilia School of Magic. She is now married to Lockhart and named Lydiane Lockhart.

These three are all above level forty, and as magicians who wiped out a large group of undead, the elders can take it.

Furthermore, Lockhart also has a powerful backing called the Blacksmith Guild.

If you present a measure to draw those lockhearts into the Imperial Army, the seniors' appreciation of me will rise at once.

So far, I don't know how much the elders appreciate Lockhart, but if I can justly appreciate my connections with the Blacksmith Guild, my ratings for giving me the measure to draw in will go up a lot.

What's more, if my own value increases, I don't need to raise my guild rating.

If I could have a thick pipe between me personally and the Empire, I would also be better served by the upper echelons of the Alliance worrying about my cold relationship with the Empire. This will allow for a full return to Alliance headquarters.

He won't be chairman in a fling, but he should have the possibility of being promoted to chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

But there was a problem.

It's the key person Lockhart has no interest in status or honor.

Before he graduated, various countries, including the Empire, offered broken terms in an attempt to recruit him. But he turned down all of that and returned to a certain neighborhood of his parents' home as an adventurer.

If we invite such a man to the empire and say it without decorating the words, he thinks we need a whip, not candy, to tie him up.

But not powerful enough to bind him to the Sorcerer's Guild.

If your guild doesn't have power, you just need to use a powerful organization. The way I thought about it was to use factional strife within the Empire.

The current frog empire, but the emperor has no substantial power, and the reality is oligarchy by the elders.

The House of Lords has always been a place of political controversy and is still in contention with the Crown Prince and the Leopold Prince. Most importantly, it is the Prime Minister, known as the Neutralists, who is essentially in power.

But that neutralist will also lose power once and for all if the current Chancellor, Lord Feelobisher, retires. I mean, they're all anxious about the future, and they're in a state of trifles.

This situation could have changed dramatically. That means who will be on the throne of the next emperor.

In due course, the Crown Prince should be seated on the next emperor, but there was a big problem there.

That is the very existence of Crown Prince Gigismunt.

The Crown Prince has a bad behavior and a bad reputation for constant rumors of obsolescence.

Not only does she get her hands on the royal palace woman because of her particular femininity, but she forcibly takes her junior aristocratic wife and drives many women to suicide.

Prince Leopold, on the other hand, is highly popular with the civilian population. The Imperial Army, the source of the power of the Caerm Empire, also has it in its possession and hardly hears any bad rumors.

Prince Leopold also has a cry place. It means he was born of a concubine. Compared to Crown Prince Gigismund, the real son of the current Queen, the difference between birth is historical.

If you believe the rumors, the Emperor himself wants to abolish the Crown Prince, but he can't let the Queen do it terribly. Conversely, if even the Queen fails to convince herself, there can be enough abolition.

All I thought about was what would happen if I told the Crown Prince about Zacharias' wife.

There is no doubt that you will get your hands on the play and if you do, the Lockhart family will be hostile to the Crown Prince.

That's no big deal, but the Lockhart family has a blacksmith's guild.

Zacharias in particular has a deep relationship with the Dwarves, and it is more obvious than seeing fire that if such a man's wife is forcibly taken, the Dwarves of the Empire will erupt.

There are only two or three hundred Dwarves living in the Imperial Capital, but if they erupt, it will definitely be a massive uprising. To contain the angry Dwarves, the Imperial Army needs to go out.

In that case, the Crown Prince who created the cause will undoubtedly be abolished first.

It is Prince Leopold and his party who will benefit most from this.

The Grand Duke of Langton and Lord Kendrew, the Leopold prince faction, are biological samurai and do not like such schemes. If I take this measure there, there's plenty of potential for me to come aboard.

But the possibility remains that I hate such a ploy because of the fact that I am a born samurai. Consider if that happens, and take the story to the Grand Dukes about how they can only persuade Lockhart to give his wives to the Prince Leopold if he wants to protect them from the Crown Prince.

This would make it easy for them to understand too, being simple samurai.

It seems Lockhart is young but has the talent of a politician, so he'll understand as soon as he has a story from the Archduke of Langton. And if I know my own wife is in danger, as I thought, I'll have to enter the Leopold princess faction.

It's not like we have the option of asking neutrality where the Chancellor is, but we just need the Grand Duke and the others to move before he realizes it.

The question is whether the Grand Duke has enough power to protect him from the Crown Prince. There is no one but the emperor who can definitively stop the royal prince's rampage, and his emperor asks of the queen's complexion and cannot be strongly said.

But the Grand Duke is the brother of the former emperor. We can do something about it if we make the most of that position.

If you can't think of a way to do this because you're a samurai with a stiff head, you can do it with me as your staff officer. It should be easy to come up with information, such as measures to seal up a crown prince who is just abusive.

I gathered further information before applying to see Grand Duke Langton. Using his men to gather information, he learns that Lord Ezarrington has begun to move ahead.

Lord Ezarrington is such a good politician that he is said to be the next Prime Minister. When such a man starts to move, this one too. If he doesn't move quickly, my measures will crush him before he starts.

Think about hitting your hand, but there was a big problem.

I have more than fifty men, but not one of my children. I mean, there's not a single person I can trust.

Most of those here are Piers' breathtaking, and the only one who seems to be decent to use is Deputy Director Ansel Brennan.

Brennan was on the Board of Education and Research before and has also worked under me.

The Board of Education and Research that Pears was partitioning could be under his influence, but he is loyal to his duties and has done nothing to the detriment of me so far. On the contrary, he actively cooperates with my plan to launch.

Anxiety will remain, but if I persuade you to say it is to improve the position of the Mage Guild, you will cooperate with my measures.

Immediately after February, he called Brennan to explain his measures to bring Lockhart and the others into the Imperial Army.

"... so. It's not detrimental to the Alliance, and it's the same thing if you put a Lockhart wife story in the Crown Prince's ear in the first place. Don't you think that's a good thing for the Lockhearts?

Brennan remained silent with no expression, as usual, and nodded "You're right," after a while.

"Then set up a meeting with His Excellency the Grand Duke of Langton."

Brennan said, "Yes, I did. Be sure in a few days," he said, backing off.

I hadn't felt blood get hot in a long time.

It's been all about feeling helpless since I got here, but I can finally use my best strategy.

■ ■ ■

Ansel Brennan was thinking about an order from Isherwood.

(Indeed, as the Branch Manager put it, the magician's rating in the Imperial Army is low, and that definitely lowers the overall magician's rating. If Dr. Raspade's beloved disciples listen to rumors, they may be able to overturn that assessment. But would that branch manager move about all that? Wouldn't you be thinking of something more spicy......)

He couldn't trust Isherwood, but it wasn't detrimental to the Alliance, and he couldn't ignore his direct supervisor's orders.

When I tried to act without a choice, one of my men told him he had a visitor.

"Visitors? Who are they?

"They say it's a case of Dr. Raspade's relationship. Looks like that Sharon Jakes is looking for information at the request of Zacharias Lockhart and the professor."

Sharon Jakes' name was no stranger here in Imperial City. Hiding behind Zacharias Lockhart, but the story of Professor Lionel Raspade soliciting his assistant has shocked all guild officials.

Brennan was in charge of the Raspade case.

It is not originally a task carried out by the Deputy Director of Branch Number Two, but only the case of raspede entanglement has been notified by the President of the Council to implement it as a matter of immediate and paramount priority.

This is said to be because generations of chancellors are not comfortable with Raspade, but the guild officials are not strange to anyone because they are equally comfortable with it.

When I ordered you to "let me through to the reception room," I had a bitter laugh that this job seemed more rewarding.

A mid-teenage girl was sitting on the couch when she entered the reception room.

He was younger than he thought, so much so that he thought it might be a mistake, but he remembered the information about her and immediately offered him his right hand.

"This is Deputy Director Ansel Brennan. I mean, Dr. Raspade's request for a relationship, but I wonder exactly what kind of request it is."

Sharon shook his hand, "It's Sharon Jakes. Let me apologize first," he said, bowing his head.

"I'm sorry. I took the liberty of using the teacher's name."

"I wonder what that means. Depending on it, I can't joke."

Brennan lowers his voice and warns him so, but Sharon begins to explain without going through with it.

"I heard the Mage Guild is gathering information about the Lockhart family. I hope it's a concern, but if you're going to use the Lockhart family, it's bound to be disastrous for the Sorcerer's Guild. I'm here to make sure."

To the fact that the girl in front of her knew what she had just heard, Brennan couldn't hide her surprise and asked, "How do you know that?"

The moment I say it, I think it's gone, but I can't get back the words that came out once.

"The Lockhart family has a variety of sources. We still don't know what Isherwood Branch Manager is going to be doing, but at least be prepared to just turn the Duke of Ezarrington against his enemies. Of course, the blacksmith's guild is natural."

Brennan is wary of the girl's words in front of him.

(Did you hold hands with Lord Ezarrington... then Lord Feelobisher naturally knows too. Turning the Chancellor over to his enemies is unsavory. But you wouldn't even ask the branch manager......)

Brennan worries about what to do, and is silent.

"There is no benefit in the fact that the Mage's Guild is about either the Crown Prince or the Crown Prince. Because they only think about the moment. In exchange for that, I think there is a great risk of turning the neutrals against their enemies. Worst case scenario, we can even think of a branch closure, no, an Imperial invasion of Doctus"

"Regardless of the closure of the branch, there will be no invasion. Unless you're going to turn the United Cities against the enemy."

Brennan's reaction is not particularly optimistic. In fact, because if the Imperial Army tries to invade, many disruptions are expected, headed by commercial guilds.

"Are you sure? The Union of Urban States is now losing the power of its allies, Aurelia. If Aurelia's safety is guaranteed in this situation, she could acquiesce to the invasion of Doctus. In fact, one of the Union of Urban States, the city of Kilnarek, will be incorporated into the territory of the Lockhart family at the initiative of the Duke of Ezarrington. Even though the power is weak, the independence of the cities that belong to the Union was taken away."

"Sure, but isn't that directly related to the invasion of Doctus?

"I have heard that the Chancellor, the Duke of Phyllobisher, is a ruthless man. If the Sorcerer's Guild were to pin its mouth on factional strife within the Empire, the Chancellor would relentlessly impose sanctions on the Guild. Don't ever speak to politics again. Perhaps, the Duke of Ezarrington and the Chancellor took up the autonomy of the city of Kilnarek in order to exert pressure on Aurelia…"

Further Sharon's story continued.

"... The Mage Guild should have been a neutral position vis-à-vis every country and it should have been a basic policy not to interfere in internal affairs as a guild. If this were to result in the loss of the guild's neutrality, not only the Chancellor, but also other countries would have doubts about the guild. (i) Problems caused by branches are not something that can be handled."

Brennan felt she was more right than Isherwood.

(What the Branch Manager is trying to do just looks like he's recommending a sorcerer guild member. But it is essentially close to interfering in internal affairs that threatens the Lockhart family, which ties with the Duke of Ezarrington, and attempts to change factional relations. Especially dangerous is the possibility of turning the neutrals who have that prime minister against the enemy. She's right, if the Chancellor recognizes that the Alliance has turned to the enemy, it will be to a great detriment. Given the subtle relationship with the Empire, there is no need to protrude…)

Brennan decided to ride Sharon's idea.

"Great. All your words are reasonable. Even for me, I can't miss the fact that the Mage Guild takes unnecessary risks. If there's anything I can do, I'll help. Of course, to the extent that it doesn't shake the guild's neutrality."

"Thank you," Sharon said, bowing his head,

"Now I'd like you to give me some information about what the Branch Manager is going to do..."

Thus Sharon gained a collaborator within the Sorcerer's Alliance.

Having obtained the information, she asks Brennan for a savotage.

"It's about the meeting between Isherwood Branch Manager and the Grand Duke, and I want you to delay it as much as you can."

"Why? I don't know if you want me to stop, but I don't think it makes sense to delay it."

"Ahead, the Duke of Etherlington should be moved a lot. Now, if the branch manager moves you, you're going to get in the way of that. Over time, no matter how the Branch Manager moves, he must be settling in the same place."

"I see. Lord Etherlington would have a story. Understood."

Thus the meeting between Isherwood and the Grand Duke will be about two days later than usual.