Chapter 44: Grace’s birthday (2)
In fact, Roger Dickens was supposed to leave home and join the Imperial Army three years ago.
At least, that was his original fate, predetermined for him by the game’s plot.
And yet, somehow, I managed to change the course of events and lead us to the outcome we had at that moment.
Since I promised Roger that I would support his dream, I couldn’t go back on my word.
But at the same time, I really didn’t want to mess up my relationship with Duke Dickens, who was still my main patron at the time.
And William Dickens, for his part, would obviously be against his son’s desire to serve in the Imperial Army — for several quite understandable reasons.
So how did I finally manage to resolve this problem?
I can’t say it was easy, but in the end, I managed to find a way out of the situation.
Roger, of course, had to join the Imperial Army in any case so that he could later meet the main character at the palace. And I had to make sure that everything turned out that way.
So when the question of Roger’s enlistment in the army arose, I was on his side and helped him change the duke’s mind.
The essence of our plan was that, thanks to my tip, Roger told his father that instead of leaving for good and giving up everything, he only intended to serve for a temporary period.
In this empire, as in many other states, there was a period of compulsory military service that both commoners and aristocrats had to go through.
However, Roger, who was his father’s only son and heir to the Dickens family, was granted an exception — he could skip military service and focus solely on his duties as heir.
However, thanks to my advice, Roger promised the duke that instead of seriously joining the army and becoming a soldier, he only wanted to fulfill the mandatory term of service prescribed to him by the laws of the empire.
In this way, the young man wanted to demonstrate his loyalty to the empire and show the people that even as the son of a duke, he did not shirk his duty. Was that a bad thing?
And so, manipulating such excuses, Roger managed to convince the duke to voluntarily let him join the army.
In the end, this was a much more favorable outcome than in the original story, where Roger had a serious falling out with his father over this and completely severed ties with him.
But now that didn’t happen, and father and son remained in contact. Isn’t that wonderful?
Thus, Duke Dickens was calm about the situation, convinced that his son would return to his duties as heir as soon as he finished his military service.But, of course, this was not the case, because, as in the original game, Roger still wanted with all his heart to defend this country with his sword and shield. And that’s exactly why the excuse of temporary service came in handy.
During this time, thanks to his successes in service, Roger also had the opportunity to prove to his father that this was his true calling.
For this reason, Roger continued to work diligently, striving to achieve results as soon as possible and show them to his father. Well, all I could do was wish him luck with that.
The mandatory term of service in the Eidelman Empire was four years.In other words, Roger had one more year to prove his abilities to the duke and gain his approval to join the army full-time.
For this reason, as Roger was very busy with his service, we had not seen each other often lately.
Although I was still formally his art tutor, in reality, we rarely managed to have lessons.
Our last lesson and meeting took place a month ago, after which the young man left for military training in another part of the empire, and we had not seen each other since.
So it was really unexpected when, a month later, he suddenly appeared at my doorstep. I was truly puzzled.
"Sir Roger, has something happened? Why have you come so suddenly?"
"I apologize for the disturbance. But I only returned from service yesterday and decided to visit you first thing."
Hmm, why am I suddenly being given such an honor?
Although it had been three years since we met, we weren’t actually that close.
Of course, we had a good relationship as teacher and student, but we couldn’t be called special friends.
And that was because I deliberately kept that distance between us.
Of course, I didn’t believe that Roger was capable of truly falling in love with me, contrary to the plot of the game, but precautions certainly wouldn’t hurt.
After all, clichés in stories like this are no joke.
In any case, precisely because we weren’t that close, I couldn’t think of any reason why Roger would show up here so suddenly.
Could it be that today is my birthday and he wanted to wish me a happy birthday? Although at first, I decided that was the case, but then unexpectedly...
"The fact is, my father wanted to speak with you urgently and asked that you be escorted to our estate as soon as possible."
"What? So it was His Lordship who sent you?"
"Yes, he insisted that you come as soon as possible to discuss something important," Roger said seriously.
I was, of course, quite surprised to hear this.
What could this important conversation be about if the duke sent his own son after me? Apart from the possibility that it concerned the national security of the empire, nothing else came to mind.
"But what exactly happened? Can you at least give me a general idea?"
Roger Dickens hesitated before answering:
"It concerns your business with him, so I know almost nothing about it. My father didn’t tell me anything — he just wanted you to come as soon as possible."
Puzzled by this answer, I fell silent for a few seconds.
In fact, it was true: Roger wasn’t particularly involved in our dealings with the duke because there was too much that he shouldn’t know about yet.
So I wasn’t surprised that if it was really something important, the duke hadn’t told him the details.
Well, it seemed I had no choice.
Although I had no plans to go anywhere today, since this concerned our business with the Duke of Dickens, I would apparently have to make an exception.
I just hoped it wouldn’t take too long and I could be back before noon.
After all, I had promised Ruby that today, in honor of my birthday, we would cut a delicious cake. I didn’t want to let her down.
After telling Edison that I would be back soon, I got into the Dickens family carriage that Roger had arrived in.
As we got into the carriage, I couldn’t help but notice how broad Roger’s shoulders had become. He barely fit inside.
Yes, there was almost nothing left of the sweet teenager he had been three years ago.
It was a little sad, but there was nothing I could do about it. After all, growing up is a natural stage for everyone.
Besides, nineteen-year-old Roger had his own merits.
"Let’s go."
When we settled into the carriage, Roger gave a short command, and the carriage set off.When we were alone, I didn’t feel particularly embarrassed, but Roger’s gaze was still fixed on me.
However, every time I tried to catch him doing so, he immediately looked away, which seemed rather sweet. Yes, it’s good that even in adulthood, a person retains some of the traits of youth.
In any case, Roger suddenly said unexpectedly:
"Lady Weinstein, may I ask you something?"
"Yes. What is it?"
At that moment, I finally looked away from the window, behind which trees flashed by, illuminated by the soft, golden light of the sun.
All this time, I had been absentmindedly watching the landscape, trying not to think too much — just enjoying a moment of peace, which had been rare lately. The wheels of the carriage tapped steadily, creating a rhythm that made me want to think about something distant and frivolous.
"Your niece... Does she still live with you?"
I was a little surprised when Roger cautiously asked this question, but I answered anyway:
"Oh, yes. Ruby will live with me until she comes of age. Why do you ask?"
Roger blinked in confusion, then looked away and cleared his throat.
"Nothing. I was just wondering if it was difficult for you to raise a child on your own."
I smiled.
"Oh, it might seem difficult to other people. But in my case, it’s different. My niece is the most charming child in the world," I replied happily.
For just a moment, it seemed to me that Roger’s expression became somewhat strange.
"Charming child? Yes, I think you’re absolutely right," Roger smiled uncertainly, but it seemed to me that he wanted to say something else entirely.