Chapter 60
Joshua started reminiscing about the past once again.
The First Succession War, which would go down as the Empire's most bitter and bloodiest war in history, flashed through Joshua's mind.
The Avalon Empire, which had already been dealt a heavy blow during the international war, was further crippled. Even the great Emperor Marcus had suddenly vanished, and the kingdom descended into further chaos in an instant.
Under the guise of restoring stability to the country, the Empire's biggest family feud ever erupted over the empty throne.
The war between the First and Second Princes, later?dubbed the 'First Succession War,' devolved into full-blown chaos.
In terms of military power, both sides were rather equal. They had roughly the same number of soldiers, as well as Absolute Masters.
Joshua felt that the military power was only worth it if they were fighting another country. The Masters on both sides weren't a particularly useful card for either of them, because the Avalon Empire's Masters were not dumb enough to risk their lives in a struggle against their own people.
A brutal civil war that was unprecedented in the Empire's history began. The Masters that should have played the largest role in the civil war went into hiding.
Hundreds of battles took place during the first civil war, which lasted over ten years.
Throughout that time period, there were only three large-scaled engagements; each of them caused tens of thousands of casualties. Most importantly, all of the Second Prince's factions were vanquished in those three battles.
In the first battle, the Second Prince lost half of his army.
In the second battle, the First Prince captured a large part of the Second Prince's territory.
Finally, there was the third battle. The astonishing military tactics deployed by the First Prince caused the Second Prince to lose all his military power except for the Masters on his side.
Most of the influential individuals supporting the Second Prince were captured as prisoners of war, Babel von Agnus among them. The remaining Masters pledged their loyalty to the First Prince, as if they had never agreed to serve the Second Prince. Aside from that, the First Prince's army embraced and absorbed the Second Prince's surrendered soldiers.
The successive civil wars had severely damaged Avalon's national might. Thus, the First Prince exhibited compassion for the sake of the nation's survival.
Of course, the new government also took some drastic but understandable measures. The nobles that had supported the Second Prince were demoted from their respective positions, and a supervising organization was formed to monitor these people.
There were two people who played a major part in the war—the two lights that ended the ten years of suffering.
One was the Fourth Prince of the Avalon Empire, Kaiser ben Britten. He had kept his desires under wraps and spared no advice to the First Prince in order to achieve victory. The other one was a master strategist. He was said to hold thousands of strategies in his head; a war god who used ghost warriors to lead most battles to victory.
'Icarus, the Heaven's Mind.'
As per his nickname, Icarus's thoughts were said to be inspired by the heavens themselves. And right now, the person that would earn such an impressive moniker was standing a few feet away from Joshua and Agareth.
He appeared before Joshua's eyes as if their meeting was predestined.
The tragic genius who, like himself, had died at the hands of Kaiser ben Britten, whom they both trusted.
"However, at this time… he should obviously—'
Joshua murmured to himself and stared at Icarus in the eyes.
With light, sky-blue hair accompanied by piercing blue eyes, Icarus seemed to be a piece of Heaven sent to the Earth.
Also, at first glance, Icarus looked rather feminine. In fact, to Agareth, Icarus was was even prettier than all of the noble ladies he had seen before.
Agareth raised his finger at Icarus.
"Ah, you—!" Agareth exclaimed loudly, his eyes wide open. "You are that commoner!"
The Avalon Empire's Imperial Academy.
The students that were accepted were not always local nobility children, though it was the case most of the time. Nobles from other countries and even royalty from minor countries would travel to the academy in the capital of Avalon. After all, Avalon was known as the Empire of Knights. It was also a way to maintain peaceful ties with other countries.
And it was worth noting that in this place, where powerful children of nobility reside, there was only one that was called a 'commoner'.
Icarus, the Imperial Academy's only commoner.
Better said, he was born a commoner but was no longer a commoner. He was from Habest Estate, from the southern part of the Empire. For a long time, the Habest baron and baroness had no children. The baron had then discovered that his servant, Icarus, was a brilliant kid, and he felt pitiful that such talent would not be able to see the light of day. Thus, they had adopted Icarus.
In the Avalon Empire, the nobles' perspective of nobility and its privileges were quite skewed compared to other countries. Thus, this uncommon incident in the Habest Estate had resulted in them becoming a laughing stock for the other noble families.
Of course, Baron Habest did not pay any of them attention since he has no desire for power and was pleased with what he had. Even if he was upset, he could only endure the humiliation, since he was just a powerless Baron.
Icarus became fairly famous as a result of these circumstances...
"Hello?" Icarus grinned shyly and bowed his head lightly, as if anticipating the shocked reaction. "I… I never expected that I'll be sharing a room with Young Master Agareth."
"Haah, I didn't expect I would be sharing a room with you either… but don't you think this is going to be a great year?" Agareth laughed.
"I've felt this before, but Young Master Agareth seems to be a really loud and happy-go-lucky type of guy."
"Do you mean that as a compliment?" Agareth inquired innocently in response to Icarus's subtly caustic words.
"..."
Joshua, who was silently listening in on their chattering voices, felt strangely disconnected.
'Aren't they talking like they know each other already?'?Joshua frowned.
The two boys in front of him, like Joshua, were also new to the institution. As such, unless they had met before outside of the academy, this would be their first meeting. But the way they talked to each other seemed like they had known each other from way before. There was no hint of unfamiliarity emanating from the both of them.
'This is the first I've heard of Icarus having a friend.'
The anecdote about the heaven-blessed Icarus was so well-known in the internal courts of the Empire that Joshua remembered it perfectly.
The low-born Icarus was a perfect victim for the bored children of the upper class. They just couldn't leave him alone. His life in the academy was a living hell. In spite of his ability, Icarus was an empty pot for the children to pour their contempt and disdain into. While these things were plaguing Icarus's daily life, the first person to reach out to Icarus was none other than a descendant of the most prestigious bloodline.
It was Kiser ben Britten, the First Prince of the Empire.
'The first person to treat him like a human being was Prince Kiser… he discovered the hidden gem that was Icarus and even offered him the opportunity to unleash his full potential however his heart wanted.'
Icarus devoted himself to serving Prince Kiser. Eventually, his abilities bloomed and earned him the title of 'Heaven's Mind.'
'However, till then...'
As Joshua stared at the boy with the sky-blue hair, doubts began to creep into his mind.
'We'll find out shortly,' Joshua thought. 'Icarus is a unique talent and I need him on my side.'
Joshua instantly put on a relaxed expression after a long period of thought. He and Icarus had a lot in common, after all, from the disdain and contempt that they had suffered in the past to their future death at the hands of Kaiser ben Britten.
Icarus was already a friend in Joshua's heart, according to the adage that "the enemy of an enemy is a friend." A friend so exceptional that his abilities were bursting at the seams.
For a little while, Joshua glanced between Agareth and Icarus. A glint appeared in his eyes.
'Let's take our time and enjoy it. There will be an abundance of opportunities in the future.'
Joshua was convinced that their meeting was predestined.
Every year, at least 1,000 students would be enrolled into the academy.
And in that sense, the three of them were assigned to become roommates. There was no better coincidence than this.
How could one believe that was just a fluke? It was not a coincidence at the slightest.
'The friend I trusted turned out to be my enemy, but it seems like fate is on my side?'
A gentle smile appeared on Joshua's face.
However, Joshua was unaware at this time that fate did not always present itself in a pretty box with ribbons.
* * *
"Can you tell me what you're doing?" ”
Lucia, Joshua's mother, was shocked as she stared at the artwork on the wall.
"Your… Your Grace!"
Immediately recognizing the voice, Lucia turned around and was startled like a rabbit.
Duke Agnus was staring right at her.
"My humble self greets you." Lucia hurriedly showed her respects.
Duke Agnus glanced at Lucia with an incomprehensible gaze and inquired, "Are you satisfied living in here?"
"Yes, thanks to Your Grace's thoughtfulness, I am living a humble but good life."
Lucia bowed her head respectfully, while Duke Agnus smiled at her with an obvious interest written on his lips. After some contemplation, he sighed and said, "If you have any issues, please let me know any time. You can directly come to me. I'll let the servants know."
"Ah—" Lucia's lips parted slightly as her eyes widened in surprise.
Duke Agnus then turned around and walked away without giving Lucia an opportunity to speak.
"Let's go."
"—Yes, Duke." A middle-aged man bowed in greeting to Lucia before following Duke Agnus.
Lucia, who had finally come to her wits, bowed her head hurriedly toward Duke Agnus, who was disappearing from her view.
~
The duo had walked for a relatively long time before the middle-aged man called out.
"Your Grace—"
"..."
Duke Agnus cast a sidelong glance.
With merely a mustache and a bald head, the middle-aged man gave off a loyal vibe.
He was Baron Hed, one of Duke Agnus's few true vassals and a man who had been in charge of the Agnus' administrative matters for a long time.
He was also Duke Agnus's personal secretary in the capital, and he was the type of person who didn't hesitate to offer advice.
Seeing Duke Agnus' doubtful expression, Baron Hed continued with a determined look, "It's a pretentious statement, but… May I inquire as to why Lady Lucia was brought into the mansion?"
"..."
"I heard you'd made a wager with Young Master Joshua. However—"
Baron Hed trailed off, and a look of fear appeared on his face.
"I'm concerned that Duchess Vanessa might act out of jealousy..."
"..."
Baron Hed finished up with his concluding statement as Duke Agnus remained silent.
"Young Master Babel has been confirmed as the future head of the household for a long time now, and even the vassals are perplexed by the current state of affairs."
"..."
"I've heard that Young Master Joshua is incredibly skilled, but even if he's stronger, I can't help but think about Young Master Babel's royal heritage… it's preferable that you take a firm stand at this time and maybe just let Young Master Joshua assist the family in other ways."
"To put it another way, you're worried about Joshua's lineage."
Without hesitation, Baron Hed nodded.
"Yes… the blood that flows in Young Master Joshua's veins cannot be overlooked; if Young Master Joshua inherits the dukedom, there will be commotion both inside and outside the family."
Duke Agnus shook his head slowly.
"Well, if legitimacy can only be established by bloodline, then..." Duke Agnus muttered under his breath.
"...yes?" Barely hearing anything, Baron Hed tilted his head in confusion.
"Nothing. For the time being, let's keep an eye on it."
"Yes. Everything will be done according to the lord's wishes."
The two of them resumed walking.
'The blood legitimacy...'
A weird glint appeared in Duke Agnus' eyes.
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