Chapter 85: The Humiliation of Pirates
Shune Lak Orazen was facing a dilemma.
‘Is Kyle wrong?’
That could be the case. Usually it was custom for the king to follow either the prediction made by the calendar priests or the astronomy department. And it was so because the kings until now hadn’t had much time to pay much attention to astronomy. However, brilliant Kyle did the calculations himself, and because of that, he might have gotten an incorrect result.
‘But even if he is wrong, there’s no way he wouldn’t have known it.’
Shune knew his younger brother well. It would be fair to say that he recognized Kyle’s competency sooner than his older brother, Vasen. And therefore, he joined the Night Sky religion as a priest at a younger age than others.
‘And perhaps…’
Though Shune thought it was unlikely, he had another possibility in mind.
The calculations presented by the calendar priests and the astronomy department were the results agreed upon by numerous scholars. On the other hand, no matter how smart Kyle was, it would be unlikely for him to have come to the correct answer alone.
‘But what if Kyle is the only one with the right answer?’
If the solar eclipse ceremony was held at an incorrect time, Shune would be punished, but he had already made up his mind. Since he was part of the royal family, he knew he could avoid punishment.
‘Would that be an abuse of power? But what’s wrong with that? Wouldn’t I be getting punished for someone else’s wrongdoing if the answers are incorrect?’
Shune decided to hold the solar eclipse ceremony at the time that Kyle had predicted. And that decision brought chaos to the palace.
***
The day of the solar eclipse ceremony.
It was two hours before the predicted time for solar eclipse made by the calendar priests and astronomy department, and six hours before Kyle’s prediction.
On one side of the palace, the ministers were having an urgent meeting.
“Astronomy Minister, say it. Are you sure your calculation is correct?”
When the Administration Minister, Salusin Oh, urged him for confirmation, the Astronomy Minister nodded.
“I checked several times with our officials. I am certain.”
When the rest of the ministers still looked dissatisfied, the Astronomy Minister added, “I even compared them to the calculations made by the calendar priests. There’s no way it’s wrong.”
“Are you sure?”
“What?”
Salusin glared at the Astronomy Minister, but his eyes seemed to be focused on someone far behind him instead.
“At the first meeting the other day, the Dwarf turned out to be more knowledgeable than you. And His Majesty was shrewd enough to tell the right and wrong answers. Yet you’re still sure?”
“That’s…”
“Answer properly. Our bloodline may be at stake here.”
The Astronomy Minister hesitated several times and finally spoke as if he had made up his mind.
“I am correct.”
Salusin read from his eyes the confidence of a scholar rather than a judgment made for political reasons.
“Alright. Then we should hurry.”
Shune Lak Orazen did not quite understand Kyle’s intention, but Salusin was different. Salusin had come up with two possible explanations for Kyle presenting a different prediction from the calendar priests and astronomy department officials. And the chances of one of the theories being true was low.
‘No matter how smart His Majesty is, he can’t be the only one correct when all the scholars of this country are wrong.’
That left only one explanation that Salusin could think of.
‘It’s…a kind of war of nerves.’
Political conflict between the king and his noblemen had been nonstop since Lakrak’s death. And Salusin thought that might have been the case with Lakrak as well.
‘If someone like the Thunder Dragon King made the wrong prediction about the solar eclipse, his noblemen would think they were the ones making a mistake and prepare the solar eclipse ceremony at the time of the Thunder Dragon King’s choice.’
Then it wouldn’t simply be the king’s fault if it turned out the ceremony was held at the wrong time. The solar eclipse ceremony was held at the Night Sky temple, but in addition to the Astronomy Minister, several other ministers were involved as well. A king wouldn’t be blamed for their errors, but that wasn’t the case for the ministers. The ministers could be punished for not properly preparing the solar eclipse ritual.
‘However, His Majesty is not the Thunder Dragon King.’
Kyle was not as strong as Lakrak, nor had he made enough achievements to garner the same kind of respect. It was worth noting that he had become king over the eldest son, Vasen Lak Orazen, but it happened not because Kyle was unusually outstanding, but because Vasen wasn’t worthy of being the crown prince. At least that was what Salusin believed.
‘You won’t be able to punish us, Your Majesty.’
Salusin, the Astronomy Minister, and several other ministers went to Kyle. They insisted that the solar eclipse ceremony be held four hours before the time that Kyle had calculated.
Then Kyle said, “...I get what you are trying to say. I guess I have no choice if that’s what you insist. Is it not too late?”
Salusin believed that Kyle had simply given up.
“Yes. The solar eclipse ceremony had been in preparation since the early morning after the official meeting, so we should be able to hold it on time.”
“Whew, alright. Administration Minister, prepare the ceremony with the Astronomy Minister.”
Salusin hid his smile and left.
***
“Four hours earlier? At the time the calendar priests and astronomy officials had decided on?”
When Shune asked, Salusin nodded.
Shune assumed Kyle had his reasons and prepared the solar eclipse ceremony to be held four hours earlier than originally planned.
In front of Orazen’s palace, one hour before the solar eclipse ceremony.
Instruments were being played, and Shune and the Night Sky priests began to pray by reciting the usual prayers.
Salusin stood with the other ministers. As soon as the solar eclipse occurred, the king would step up to the podium, and Salusin was facing the podium straight ahead.
‘You have used your head quite a bit, but I have won.’
It was a boring event, but Salusin had to hold in his smile. Kyle was a prince known for his intelligence and shrewdness, but he was still only 15 years old. It was difficult for him to break through the limitations of being a child.
‘As with the former king, things will move on quite smoothly.’
And when the predicted time of the solar eclipse came, Kyle went up to the podium. He scanned the ministers and everyone else in attendance from the podium. And finally, he looked at Salusin. Salusin met eyes with Kyle.
‘You're quite good at controlling your expression, but what are you going to do about the anger that is to come?’
Salusin turned away several times in order to hide the smiles in his eyes. Then suddenly, a strange thought came to mind.
‘What?’
People looked at the sky and murmured. Salusin also raised his head. There were clouds in the sky, but the sun was still clearly seen. The solar eclipse was not taking place.
From the podium, Kyle walked back and forth with his hands behind him as if he was bored and eventually sighed.
.
“The solar eclipse is not happening. Is the priest in charge present?”
Shune approached the podium.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“It seems that the prediction about the solar eclipse is incorrect, so find out what’s gone wrong. We should stop this current ceremony.”
“Alright.”
At those words, the Astronomy Minister stepped forward and put his head to the floor.
“Your Majesty! Punish me!”
“What happened?”
“It seems that our astronomy department has miscalculated the time.”
“How come?”
The Astronomy Minister slightly raised his head at Kyle’s question.
“I…I don’t know.”
“Then I will tell you,” Kyle said from the podium. “Both the calendar priests and astronomy department officials were basing their calculations off of old arithmetics and astronomy books. I hadn't noticed it either, but a Dwarf named Rumf did and told me about it. I was embarrassed by this fact and did not inform the other ministers, but I didn’t realize you’d all made the same mistake.”
The Astronomy Minister stammered, “B…but Your Majesty! In the Thunder Dragon King’s book, it is written that the sky does not change.”
The Thunder Dragon King, Lakrak. It was a name that inspired awe in people of Black Scale just by hearing it. But that wasn’t the case for Kyle.
“You fool. Isn’t that an old book? Why can’t you admit that they could be wrong? It can’t be helped that they had no books to read before. But we?can read numerous books in addition to the legacies they have left. Have you read the calendar book written in the faraway Mangul? As time passes, the sky’s movement also changes. Didn’t I already give you a clue?”
At Kyle’s words, the Astronomy Minister trembled, and Salusin felt like he had been struck on the head.
‘That damn Dwarf! He had read foreign books…’
Then the Astronomy Minister said, “But Your Majesty… Our Black Scale is a large country, and Mangul is so small… Is it necessary to have that knowledge…”
“No matter how large of a country Black Scale is, can you say that we have as much power as the whole continent? Do we have all the knowledge there is on the continent?”
Kyle turned around and continued to say, “Punish those who were involved in the miscalculation according to the national law. And the priest in charge of the solar eclipse ceremony, reorganize things so we can hold the ceremony by the time the upcoming solar eclipse happens.”
The solar eclipse took place four hours later.
***
As Vasen Lak Orazen climbed onto the ship, he saw Orazen’s harbor from the deck.
‘I’ll be back, Kyle.’
Kyle knew well that Vasen was someone who enjoyed adventures. And it was also true that they had to explore the land beyond the eastern mountain range.
‘Besides, it’s necessary that I leave the palace.’
Three years ago, after he decided to give the title of crown prince to Kyle, Vasen had in mind the worst case scenario. In comparison to that, this kind of adventure was very peaceful.
‘To the point where I can leave Orazen behind with joy.’
It would be a lie if he said he didn’t have feelings of sadness, but as soon as he got on deck of the merchant ship named The Humiliation of Pirates, he was filled with enthusiasm for an adventure.
As the leader of the Eastern Mountain Range Expedition Team, Vasen should have the authority to lead 150 soldiers, who were split into three military ships.
‘But I’m not boarding those military ships.’
Vasen was riding on the merchant ship, The Humiliation of Pirates. It was a ship in service to Black Scale and belonged to the Itimo family, which had a long history trading with the palace. Vasen was on the merchant ship since the military ship was too crowded for a royal like him to be properly treated.
‘That’s what they told me at least, but I know my personal supervisor simply wants to make sure I don’t use the troops as I wish.’
As of now, he didn’t know who his supervisor was. However, Vasen was able to obtain a list of everyone on board The Humiliation of Pirates in advance, and he could guess a few of the candidates.
‘The first candidate is definitely…’
A woman with her red hair tied up walked towards Vasen.
“Nice to meet you. I am the captain of the ship, Theone Itimo.”
“Nice to meet you. I am Vasen Lak Orazen. So you are an Elf.”
Theone’s ears twitched.
“It’s the first time someone recognized that immediately. I’ve only met Lizardmen who can’t tell the difference between Elves, Nixes, and Halflings.”
“Halflings? Even the tall ones only come up to my waist.”
“Oh well. Some people even confuse Dwarves with Elves.”
“Hm. I hope you understand. There are even Humans who look like Dwarves and Halflings.”
“But wouldn’t it be hard to mistake me for them?”
Vasen nodded.
Theone Itimo had long arms and legs even for an Elf.
“Anyways, we’ll keep seeing each other from now on, so I hope we get along,” said Vasen.
“Sounds good. But there’s something I would like to tell you in advance.”
“Go ahead.”
Theone cleared her throat and said, “No matter how high your status is, you must obey me on my ship. If you’re not going to follow this rule, you’ll need to get off and look for another ship.”
Vasen seemed to think for a moment and then nodded.
“As long as you don’t give unreasonable orders, I should be able to accept such conditions.”
When Vasen accepted the condition without any complaints, Theone’s expression turned surprised for a moment. But she soon recovered and nodded with a calm look on her face.
“Alright. Other than that, since you’re the leader of this expedition and a guest on my ship, I’ll be as considerate as I can.”
“Thank you. But just one thing, has my luggage not arrived yet?”
“Oh, Hwae-Sa will be bringing your luggage, so do not worry.”
“Hwae-Sa? What a pretty name.”
Theone shrugged.
“Name? I never said it was a name. But that’s how I call them, so I guess you can think of it as a name.”
Vasen looked puzzled.
Then Theone turned around.
“They’re actually just coming from over there…”
Vasen followed Theone’s line of sight and saw a 3-meter-tall Ogre with a magnificent physique walking towards them.
“Did someone mention Hwang Hwae-Sa?”
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