Chapter 7

"You said that the Prince will be earnestly observing me from now on?"

"Correct."

At dawn, with vacant eyes, Albert was called over by Crown Prince Henry, and spoke with an Imperial Guard that was also called over at the same time. Henry's favorite guard, Brock, also replied with a vacant look. Albert regarded Brock with a compassionate gaze.

Brock, the Imperial Guard directly under Crown Prince Henry, was Albert's junior at the age of 25, but by chance, Henry took a liking to him, and thus Brock always accompanies him around the palace. Presumably, the one that Henry parades the most around the Royal Palace is this man.

Henry had also considered parading Albert around as well, but first he has to solve the problem of phrasing the unreasonable demand into proper policy. However, because Brock is Henry's guard, there's not one moment where he isn't by his side. If Henry was an obedient man, then there wouldn't have been any problems with that, but he's the type that when he's resolved himself to do something, he'll fixate on it. He'll call Brock over when he wants to go somewhere, even if it was at dawn.

Unfortunately, Albert has always felt pity towards Brock. Brock has a good personality, so he's too pitiful. Brock is a man from a military lineage that's equally famous as the Heres house –the Hagen house. If Albert were to have gone down the path of a military officer, he'd probably be in Brock's shoes now. When he thought of that, he was extremely glad deep down that he never did.

Prince Henry really made things troublesome for me. That's what Albert thought, but by no means was Henry hateful. Rather, he's an amazing person, and Albert admires him for that.

Even Albert, who was considered to have one of the sharpest minds within the country, has never seen someone like Henry. Many of his proposals accurately pinpoint the country's main issues. What still amazes Albert the most is Henry's superior ability to assess people. Regardless of his pedigree, Henry is nothing but excellent to those he takes a fancy to. His appointments within the Royal Palace have demonstrated great strength and wit. They may have already possessed great ability, but as for Henry, Albert doesn't also consider him as a threat.

"Albert! Before I retire, bring me all the reform plans."

"…As you wish."

Despite it being dawn, Crown Prince Henry, with his blonde hair and blue eyes, gave a refreshing smile, and returned to work once more. Albert bowed with a wry smile and escorted Henry and his guard, who was on horseback, outside.

From the Royal Capital to the site where they'll be inspecting the river, it'll take roughly half a day by horse. During the rainy season the river's water level increased and caused a lot of damage. When he comes back, they'll most likely discuss ways to maintain it.

"Just where can we find a specialist knowledgeable about maintaining the river…"

As Albert massaged his aching temples with his hand, his thinking slowed — nevertheless, his head has spun many times over compared to the ordinary person, and he's been stuck inside his office, taking care of everything.

Doing that all morning, Albert was able to turn over the documents for the last river maintenance, but just when he finished eating his lunch, a subordinate tactfully brought over the documents, and suddenly, he was attacked with drowsiness.

"I'm going to walk around for a bit."

"Understood; please rest a bit."

As long as Albert was working, his subordinate couldn't rest as well. And most of all, he wouldn't be able to do his job properly if he continued to be this drowsy. He hasn't slept at all today. Whenever he would try to doze off for a bit, he would be summoned by Henry. It's safer for him to rest until Henry returns. When he comes back, they'll end up arguing until Albert agrees with him.

The Heres's splendid estate is near the castle. Albert lives together there with his parents and the employees, but it's been close to a week since he's gone home. He's been mostly staying over at the Royal Palace. A lot of people have been busy with work. He's gotten complaints from his mother, but his father isn't annoyed, seeing as his son is dedicated to his job.

However, both his parents have disciplined him strictly from way back. After Albert overcame his family's opposition and became a civil officer, they couldn't even praise him, let alone speak kind words. Even when he became a vice minister at such a wonderfully young age, they only made complicated expressions. They have no choice but to admit that their son's choice was right, but they're too ashamed to congratulate him. Standing in front of his parents with those easy-to-read expressions, Albert could only let out a bitter smile.

Coming out of the office, Albert thought, Let's see, where should I go now? He should go to his never-used bedroom, but the palace's employees should be cleaning around this time, so he probably won't be able to use it. Rather, it'd be better if he could find a place where he won't run into others.

Half-asleep, Albert felt dizzy, but he walked around with a steady gait, searching his surroundings to find such a place. A place where no one would come and go would properly do. Albert, who walked about within the Royal Palace collecting documents, knew of several places that qualified.

He thought that once he's chosen a retreat, he'll sleep there for a few hours. Though it's a question of whether or not he'll be able to properly sleep there. The Albert who always thinks sleeps poorly. His mind tends to not properly rest. He knows that because of that, his fatigue has been excessively piling up, but he doesn't know how to solve that problem.