The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 247
‘Three months? Did the timeline shift a bit during the dimensional transfer?’
It’s entirely possible.
Even when it’s just spatial transfer, if you don’t use a topologically stable portal, you can arrive with the timeline shifted.
For reference, when the timeline shifts like this, you can’t go back to the past; you always end up at a future point. It’s because, by the laws of the universe, reversing time is impossible.
‘Three months isn’t a long time…’
But it bothered me that it was such a crucial period.
I was anxious about what might have happened during those three months.
“So, the second semester is already over, and it’s winter break? Wow. Am I going to be held back?”
“That won’t happen. Since you’re here on a field trip, your attendance will be counted. You’ll just have to take the exams separately.”
“Let’s hurry back to the academy.”
I nodded.
Checking with the self-tracking function of the Mirror Board, we were in a remote area in the northwest.
Since it was far from the portal, we headed to the nearest village first.
“Let’s stay here tonight and head to the portal tomorrow.”
“Okay, sounds good. Wow, I’ll finally get to eat normal food.”
“I’m not particularly interested.”
Luckily, it was a village with an inn.
We booked a room and ordered some food while we waited.
“They say there’s chaos in the capital, right?”
“Really. Doing something like that. Is the emperor insane?”
“Shh. Watch your mouth. You could get caught. There have been many executed in the capital for speaking out of turn.”
“What does it matter? We’re not in the capital, who’s listening?”
“Seriously, what’s going to happen to the empire?”
I listened closely.
As expected, trouble had arisen.
And the moment I heard the next part, I felt dizzy.
“Accusing the Ecclesia family of treason.”
“!!”
I sprang to my feet.
The people talking looked at me in surprise.
“Can you tell me more about what you just said?”
“Who are you?”
They looked tense, probably because my appearance was anything but ordinary.
“We’re just wandering merchants picking up rumors. We don’t know the details.”
“That’s fine. Tell me everything you know.”
“Apparently, there’s been tension between the emperor and the Ecclesia family for months. More precisely, the emperor’s side has been picking fights with the Ecclesia family. Then, suddenly, a few days ago, the emperor accused Duke Huam of treason.”
I swallowed hard.
That damn troll Emperor finally caused some trouble.
‘At least I’m not too late.’
Since it happened only a few days ago, the situation might not have worsened too much.
There was still room to take action.
I pondered my next move.
‘Going back to the capital is out of the question. If I get detained, it’ll restrict my actions.’
Of course, I’m not someone who would be easily captured, but if I cause a commotion in the process, it could negatively affect the Ecclesia family.
‘First, let’s head to the Free City. I need to discuss countermeasures with Sister Mariam.’
The Free City is a place where the imperial influence is weak.
It was relatively safe to stay there.
“I’m in a hurry, so I’ll go ahead. You follow slowly.”
Swish!
Having gained strength comparable to an advanced Level 8, I became almost as powerful as Duke Alfonso.
By risking it, I could perform long-distance spatial transfers, so I moved directly to the city with the portal.
“Who are you?”
“I’m Van the Legend. I plan to go to the Free City, so open the gate.”
“Well, the thing is….”
The portal manager looked troubled.
“P-Professor, you’re currently wanted, so you can’t use the portal.”
I frowned.
The soldiers guarding the portal glanced at each other and slowly drew their weapons.
‘What should I do?’
At that moment, an unexpected shout was heard.
“What are you doing?! Put down your weapons.”
“C-Captain?”
“Don’t you know what Professor Van the Legend has done for the empire? There’s no way he committed treason. There must be some mistake.”
I looked at the captain in surprise.
The captain approached me and spoke softly.
“During the last epidemic, my family in the capital survived thanks to your grace, Professor. Besides that, the Ecclesia family has done much for us.”
Other soldiers spoke hesitantly.
“That’s true. A few years ago, during the poor harvest, the Ecclesia family provided relief grain, so we didn’t starve.”
“They also corrected the excessive taxes imposed in the territory.”
“I heard it was the Ecclesia family who made laws to prevent unfair punishment of commoners.”
From all sides, the soldiers shared the good deeds the Ecclesia family had done.
‘Though, it was more for the sake of the Ecclesia family’s standing than for the commoners.’
Ecclesia is a shrewd family.
They knew well that the support of the commoners was the root of their power, so they never did anything harmful to them and worked hard to maintain high popularity among the public.
“The gate is open. You can move immediately.”
“Thank you.”
Swish!
I moved to the Free City, and there was a commotion as soon as I appeared.
“It’s Professor Van the Legend! He’s finally here!”
“Contact the academy!!”
“No, we should contact the mayor first!”
I headed to the city hall first.
There were two key people involved in resolving this crisis.
Sister Mariam and the Third Prince, Mikhail.
When I arrived at the city hall, both of them were there.
“You’re here? Where have you been all this time?!”
“I was worried. Was everything alright?”
Voices mixed with relief and urgency.
I asked about the situation again.
“What happened?”
“Well….”
The overall situation was not much different from what I had heard on the way.
As expected, the emperor had caused trouble and finally crossed the line.
An additional noteworthy detail was:
“Brother Ron was the one who reported the Ecclesia family’s crime to the emperor?”
“Yes, it seems there was a deal. He must have been promised the position of the next head of the family.”
The treason charge was not on the entire family but specifically on my father, Duke Huam.
Since the head of the family is accused, it amounts to the same thing.
“So it’s a difficult situation. There’s evidence to use as a pretext.”
It’s impossible to be entirely clean in politics.
No wonder he created the mask of the Shadow Ghost.
Especially since Brother Ron, as the eldest, knew all the family’s secrets, it was a fatal blow.
“How is Father handling this?”
“He’s denying the charges and is under house arrest. Even if treason is suspected, they can’t just throw the head of the Ecclesia family into prison.”
“Protesting won’t help.”
“Father knows that too. The problem is if Father resists, the empire could split in two. In the worst case, it could lead to a civil war.”
I swallowed hard.
The influence of the Ecclesia family on imperial society was enormous, so it wasn’t an unfounded fear.
“The nobles are also wavering. Should they side with the emperor or the Ecclesia family? At this rate, it wouldn’t be surprising if a civil war broke out. Father is probably deeply troubled right now.”
“No, Father has already made up his mind. He’ll admit the crime and step down.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because that’s the only way to protect us.”
“!!”
I recalled a scenario.
The timing and specifics are different, but the overall flow is similar.
The Ecclesia family was accused of treason, and Father, Duke Huam, admitted guilt and accepted punishment.
The reason, as I said, was to protect us.
‘If a real civil war breaks out, no matter how great the Ecclesia family is, the chances of winning are slim. The entire family could be executed.’
“Father will deal with Brother Ron and hand the family over to Sister.”
“That’s… unacceptable. I didn’t want to inherit the family this way.”
“I also find it unacceptable.”
I sighed.
It was a difficult situation.
There was no peaceful solution, and if we resisted, the empire would split in two and rivers of blood would flow.
Sister Mariam spoke resolutely.
“There’s only one way now. We must be prepared for any bloodshed and overthrow the emperor.”
“Father won’t agree.”
Without Duke Huam’s resolve, a rebellion is impossible.
Then, Mikhail, who had been quietly listening, spoke up.
“I have an idea.”
“What is it?”
“To stage a real coup and overthrow His Majesty by force.”
“As I said earlier, without Father’s agreement, a rebellion is impossible.”
“No, I don’t mean the Ecclesia family should stage the coup.”
Mikhail proposed something unexpected.
“I will lead the rebellion and overthrow the emperor.”
* * *
“…….”
“…….”
The room fell silent for a moment.
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. I will lead the rebellion and overthrow the emperor, as the prophecy of the imperial blood path foretold.”
“Are you serious?”
Mikhail replied bitterly.
“I am not joking. I know that the only reason I’ve been safe so far is because Duke Huam has secretly protected me. If Duke Huam falls, the emperor won’t leave me alone.”
There was an attempt on Mikhail’s life before, but Father had always tried to protect him.
“It’s more likely to succeed if I lead the rebellion than if the Ecclesia family does. It would be unexpected.”
It made a certain amount of sense.
‘The Ecclesia family is under strict surveillance, but Mikhail isn’t. He could stage a coup in secret.’
There would be much less bloodshed this way.
However, there was a problem.
“Are you okay with this, Your Highness?”
Mikhail had always rejected the idea of becoming the Bloody Emperor.
But
“I told you I’ve decided not to be a coward anymore.”
Mikhail spoke with a determination I hadn’t seen before.
“I will become the emperor and be your strength.”
