🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter : 02
1. Namia Roapi’s Circumstances
A high ceiling, luxurious tapestries, and a polished marble floor that gleamed under the light.
This was the Scroll Management Department of the Imperial Palace.
A small division belonging jointly to the Magic Tower and the Imperial Knights.
“Namia. Namia?”
“….”
“Namia!”
My name is Namia Roapi.
A palace civil servant in my third year and seventh month of service.
I was a low-ranking clerk in the Inventory Team—the most insignificant unit within the already low-status Scroll Management Department.
“Namiaaaaa!”
…Huh? Who’s calling me?
I snapped back to my senses and stood up abruptly.
“Oh, yes.”
“Namia, are you okay? You always have that dead-fish look, but today it’s especially bad.”
My direct supervisor and Inventory Team leader, Oson, spoke lazily.
“We’re heading to the conference room. The Minister called everyone.”
“Oh, yes.”
I hurriedly followed Oson to the conference room.
The Scroll Management Department was small, so even gathering everyone only made about twenty people. After a yawn, the Minister finally spoke.
“Alright, listen up.”
Next to the Minister stood someone I had never seen before.
A handsome young man with jet-black hair and glasses.
“This is… a new intern starting in our department today.”
An intern was a system for foreigners interested in becoming imperial civil servants.
They typically worked for up to three months, mostly receiving training or assisting with tasks.
“Hm? This is the first time we’ve had an intern here?”
The Scroll Management Department was the least popular department.
It was dysfunctional inside and out, and the higher-ups were especially incompetent.
Even the Minister looked like he didn’t fully understand what an intern was supposed to do.
Once they see how our department is, they’ll probably quit tomorrow.
While I was thinking that lazily—
“For seating… Namia Roapi? The seat next to you is empty, right?”
“….”
“…Namia?”
Only after Oson nudged me in the ribs did I realize what was happening.
“Oh, yes.”
“We’ll assign him there. You take care of him from now on.”
“Oh, yes.”
Oson gave me a look that said, What’s wrong with you today? I sighed inwardly, nearly tearing up.
Of course I’m not normal today!
The intern began introducing himself, but I didn’t hear a word.
Reincarnation. I’ve been reincarnated!
Last night, I realized I had been reincarnated into a fantasy novel I once read in my previous life.
According to the original story, this empire would soon become a battlefield.
The Polaris Empire—blessed by dragons, peaceful, beautiful, and prosperous—would be thrown into chaos.
There’s nowhere to run. The entire continent goes insane.
The original story ended with a young protagonist surviving the war and restoring peace.
The problem was that the war lasted thirty years.
I’m not even a named character. I’m just part of the background.
And in wars, people like me die first.
It made sense I couldn’t focus today.
Meanwhile, the intern’s introduction ended, and the meeting moved on.
“And Lady Countess Torres has passed away. Tomorrow morning, His Highness the Crown Prince will attend the funeral…”
The Minister glanced toward our Inventory Team.
“Inventory Team. How many defensive scrolls do we have?”
As usual, our team leader Oson didn’t care at all.
He poked me, and I quickly answered.
“Six scrolls in total.”
“Enough. Submit the report like that. Namia will join the escort knights tomorrow and bring the defensive scrolls.”
I swallowed hard.
According to the original story, the Crown Prince dies tomorrow because of this event.
Six scrolls… That’s not even enough to protect one arm.
The imperial family of Polaris were Dragon People—descendants of dragons.
Their physical abilities surpassed humans, and after twenty-five, they could even manifest into dragons.
They also have other abilities, but that’s not important right now.
Under their rule, the empire had long enjoyed peace.
Among them, Crown Prince Kiaros was especially exceptional—so much so that people half-joked he should protect his own escort knights.
Because of that, defensive scrolls were rarely used.
But tomorrow…
Even that incredible Crown Prince won’t expect what’s coming. And only six scrolls?!
The meeting ended, and people began returning to their desks.
As I shuffled along, someone spoke to me.
“Where is my seat?”
It was the new intern—handsome, composed.
Right…
I sighed internally.
What the Minister meant by “take care of him” was really: I’m done with this, you deal with him.
“Oh, yes. Please follow me.”
His seat was next to mine—because no one else had been assigned there.
As soon as he sat down, he handed me a document.
“I need you to sign this.”
It was a magical contract granting access rights to Scroll Department documents.
A spell would activate once I signed it.
“Oh, yes. By the way, your name?”
“Keybon Altes.”
The intern was oddly bold. Maybe because he was a foreigner?
Well, interns obviously needed access rights.
But I wasn’t thinking about him at all.
Even after signing the document, my mind kept racing.
If the Crown Prince dies tomorrow, the war starts immediately… I need to stop it somehow.
The war begins with the Crown Prince’s death, followed by the fall of the imperial family.
I had to act now.
I carefully asked Oson.
“Team Leader, isn’t six defensive scrolls too few?”
Oson scratched his ear.
“Namia? Are you giving an opinion right now?”
“Ah, yes…”
“The Minister said it’s enough. Are you, a low-ranking rookie, questioning that?”
I knew it…
That’s exactly how this department was.
A hopeless place filled with hopeless people.
I lowered my head.
“…I’m sorry.”
“Be careful next time. Think before you speak.”
Oson soon started dozing off.
I buried my face in my hands in despair.
This is why wars happen! Are they even planning to protect anyone properly?!
For someone like me, this was the limit of my voice.
But I can’t just let the war happen.
There was no choice.
I’ll have to do it myself…
I was the lowest of the lowest civil servants in the entire palace.
And yet—
I had decided to save someone far above me.
The Crown Prince.
Meanwhile…
Intern Keybon—no, Crown Prince Kiaros—was waiting for work to end.
His special ability allowed him to transform into another person.
Right now, he was using the identity of “Keybon Altes,” the intern.
No one knew about this ability, so no one suspected he was the Crown Prince.
He had infiltrated the department for one reason only.
He suspected corruption within the Scroll Management Department while investigating internal imperial instability.
But—
This department is even worse than I expected.
Scroll Management was both part of the palace and the Magic Tower, making its documents restricted.
To access them freely, he had to become part of the department.
I knew it was a mess, but seeing it in person is worse.
These were people with the lowest exam scores in civil service.
They handled magical scrolls, but lacked the talent to enter the Magic Tower.
A useless department, consuming salaries while accomplishing nothing.
I should find some excuse to shut it all down.
Finally, the workday was ending.
People began leaving one by one.
Then the girl beside him—the same lifeless-eyed clerk—spoke.
“Keybon… could you bring one box of parchment and ink for scroll-making? No, maybe two boxes each…”
His impression of her wasn’t good.
She couldn’t even remember his name properly during introductions.
Vacant eyes, broken speech, repeating only “ah, yes…”
Just another useless civil servant.
He replied coldly.
“I was just about to leave.”
Then she looked at him.
Those empty eyes—he thought they were harmless.
But then she spoke.
Calmly. Monotonously.
“According to Imperial Civil Service Act Article 34, civil servants must obey lawful orders from superiors. Article 28 states that interns with granted authority must also fulfill civil duties. You currently have document access rights, so you are obligated. Article 4 defines working hours as 9 to 6, and it is currently 5:45:22. This is a lawful work order, and since it is still working hours, and you can still leave on time after completing it, I request you bring the parchment immediately.”
……
Huh?
