“The reform plan for the Ivory Tower?”
“Yes, your highness.”
“Ian, I have more than fifty appeals to read today. Do I need to add something more?”
Hayden Greenriver, the young Emperor of the Greenriver spoke.
“I have already entrusted the Ivory Tower to you. I probably won’t even understand that document.”
“Even so, just read it once…”
“I will then. Place it next to the appeals, and let’s go back to the subject. What did you say? Reconstruction?”
“It’s a temporary name.”
“Umm…”
Ian Page had presented something called the Reconstruction Theory, and Hayden tried to understand that unprecedented magic.
“You’re saying that there’s a spell that can return time, but you had thrown it away due to the side effects?”
“Yes.”
“However, now you have created a perfect spell without any, which means you can go back in time anytime you want. Is that right?”
“You got the conclusion right.”
The Emperor let out a sigh at the sudden time-returning spell.
“Did you return time yet?”
“No, it’s only a theory and will not be used unless there’s something drastic. But…”
“But?”
“I just wanted to boast.”
“What?”
“That I’ve become stronger.”
“I do not understand.”
“Haven’t you read difficult books near me before?”
“I never have-“
“My wife told me.”
“Hailey did? Where is her loyalty…?!”
Hayden could not stay still, as his old self still lurked inside the majestic Emperor he now seemed to be.
“Well, that had been a long time ago, and we all have been young. You have been too.”
“I did not…”
“What? Haven’t you asked with bright eyes to see the site where the old Ivory Tower had stood?!”
It really had been a long time, and Ian decided not to speak of the real reason he had asked as the Emperor seemed amused.
“However, now the little boy is the Lord of the Ivory Tower and created a spell that can turn back time. Even storybooks are not written like this.”
“Yes, similar to how you became an esteemed Emperor.”
“You always try to get the last word.”
“But of course.”
Banter like this always ended with a smile, like now.
“So, it seems that the reason you were scarce was due to researching that spell.”
“I get caught up…”
“And you don’t come out of your lab.”
“Was there anything to do?”
“No, just show your face more often. It’s even more difficult now to see you than when you were sleeping for nine years.”
It had taken nine years to patch up the side effects of the time magic Fran Page had used.
“While people don’t show it, Sir Oliver, who is listening to us outside, my father, and others are curious about what you’re doing. So, get out more often. It’s an order.”
“I will try.”
“All right. Also, Frantz wants you to visit.”
“Me?”
“No, he’s waiting for your daughter, who you will bring with you.”
Ian Page had come back to a peaceful life, and he now had a wife and a daughter.
“My niece, Yohana, is a beauty even now.”
Ian Page had married Princess Hailey Greenriver, and Yohana Page resembled her mother even as an infant.
“You should have brought her with you today!”
“Not yet, at least until her first birthday.”
“…Why?”
“It’s dangerous outside.”
“What’s dangerous?”
“It’s loud and unhygienic. I am not going to take her far outside until her first birthday for her physical and mental health.”
“This is the Imperial Palace! The quietest and cleanest building in this country!”
“The problem is the trip coming here.”
Hayden let out a laugh at seeing how protective Ian was of his daughter, but as he was raising a son, he did understand.
“Wait, don’t you come here by teleport?”
“There is no research on the effect teleport spells will have on a baby, and I do not intend to know.”
“You had taken me…”
“You’re you and Yohana is Yohana.”
Hayden felt a little hurt by Ian’s strict categorization.
“…Anyway, I am the Emperor, and you know that, right?”
“Of course.”
“I thought you forgot.”
Hayden changed the subject to other matters.
“Anyway, tell me in advance if you use the time returning spell so I can at least brace myself.”
While Hayden would not be able to feel it, Ian accommodated him.
“I will inform your highness first and foremost.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
Hayden was in a good mood now, as his moods were simple as always.
“Your highness, what is that orb?”
Ian had been curious about that weird orb sitting in the corner of the Emperor’s office all the while.
“That’s the first time I saw such an orb.”
“This is Siram’s masterpiece.”
Hayden looked proud at introducing Siram’s technology. Siram had sent new boomsticks to the Palace, but the orb did not seem like one. Hayden placed his hand on the orb set with complicated patterns.
“Let me show you magic.”
While Ian was the greatest mage ever known, his eyes were serious as he watched the orb light up and speak.
(Hello, Master.)
A mechanical voice came from the orb to call Hayden its master.
“Anna, I want to know who the man is standing in front of me.”
(Will you wait?)
“Yes.”
The orb let out blue light to scan Ian from head to toe.
(He is Sir Ian Page, your brother by pact and the Lord of the Ivory Tower.)
To Ian’s surprise, the orb spoke of Ian’s identity.
“Your highness, what is this…”
“Anna, he wants you to introduce yourself.”
(Hello, Lord of the Ivory Tower. I am a mechanical fairy, Anna.)
What did it mean by the term mechanical fairy?
(Siram has made me through magical technology, and I support Master Hayden Greenriver’s administration work.)
“Anna helps me out a lot, as it’s a machine with a better memory, quicker calculation, and more durability.”
Hayden stroked the orb with satisfaction.
“If you want, you can converse with it to check its intelligence.”
“I decline your offer, as Siram would have created something magnificent.”
“Well, if so, how about a meal with you, Oliver, and me? It has been a while.”
“Next time. Mother said she would make me a meal as she got good quality red beans.”
“Do you mean that dirt tasting…”
“Yes, a red bean pie.”
Hayden blanched on remembering the taste of Vanessa Page’s special red bean pie.
“If you want to taste it again…”
“No! I cannot…acknowledge it as food.”
Hayden thought he should send Ian back as quickly as possible, as it seemed probable he would taste it again.
“You cannot keep your parents waiting. Go.”
“Yes, your highness. I will visit you as often as I can.”
“That’s nice to hear.”
Then, Ian was basked in a ray of light. He had used a teleport spell, which only Ian could use among humans. Hayden thought of when Ian had used flying spells, as he felt a bit nostalgic.
“Those days had not been all bad…”
Hayden smiled as he picked up a document. He did have to read more than fifty appeals today.