The Eminence in Shadow

Chapter 1

Putting the Kibosh on Rose Oriana’s Wedding!

I arrive in Oriana’s royal capital, a city of art and culture.

It’s famed for its uniformly colored buildings with their white walls and scarlet roofs, but at this wintery time of year, the roofs are buried under heavy layers of snow, leaving everything white as far as the eye can see.

The city is normally a bustling tourist destination, but unsurprisingly, there are no tourists to be seen. When people plan their vacations, they tend to avoid places that are on the brink of war.

Even the locals are tense.

Based on what I’ve heard, Perv’s marriage to Rose will give him the right to succeed the throne.

There’s no way I’m letting

that

happen.

I gotta go talk Rose out of this.

Step one? Getting into the castle, which is in a state of perpetual high alert.

“All right, gatekeepers, let’s see if you can keep up with the speed of sound.”

The skies are clear, there’s a fair number of pedestrians, and the gatekeepers are standing at attention.

It’s finally time for my hard-trained movement tech to shine!

Then, I hear a familiar voice. “Master Sha—er—Cid! What a coincidence!”

“Oh, hey, Epsilon. Fancy meeting you here.”

I stop on a dime and turn around. Behind me, I find an attractive elf with hair and eyes the color of a clear spring—Epsilon.

Y’know, now that I think about it, she did mention something about getting invited to the Oriana Kingdom to do a piano recital.

“It’s an honor to get to see you. I take it you’re here about the you-know-what as well?”

Epsilon turns and looks at the castle.

I assume she’s here to play the piano for the wedding. Man, anything sounds badass when you call it “the you-know-what.”

I put on the most serious expression I can muster.

“That’s right. I’m here for the you-know-what.”

Looks like we’re both here for the wedding.

“I figured as much,” she replies. “Would you like to accompany me, then?”

“What do you mean?”

“If I introduce you as my apprentice, I can get you in the front door.”

“Oh-ho.”

That sounds kinda fun, and if it isn’t, I can always slip away later.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

And with that, I enter the castle as the apprentice of “Shiron,” the pianist.

Thanks to Epsilon, I get waved right on into the castle. Once we’re in, I’m immediately captured by its gorgeously artistic decorations.

“They don’t call it a land of art and culture for nothing, huh?”

“It’s often said to be the most beautiful castle in the world,” Epsilon replies.

The two of us walk side by side through high-ceilinged corridors and exchange pleasantries with the people we pass.

“In Oriana, people respect the artistically talented, no matter what race they are or what their social status might otherwise be.”

“I see, I see.”

She leans in close to me, wraps her arm around mine, and whispers in my ear.

“All the praise I receive is thanks to you, my lord. You taught me everything I know.”

By my estimate, about 90 percent of her bosom is composed of slime.

Some things never change.

Day in and day out, Epsilon enhances her body with slime.

She uses it to pad her chest and hips, tighten her waist, and even lengthen her legs. It’s amazing what slime can do in the hands of a talented cosmetic surgeon.

Epsilon looks up at me coyly. “Tee-hee. Something on your mind?”

“Nah, I was just thinking about how you never fail to impress.”

I know full well how much precision and fine magical control it takes for her to maintain her figure like that.

“You’re too kind.” She squeezes my arm in delight, then lowers her voice. “I’m keeping an eye on the target to see what they’ll do.”

“…Good.”

Target? What’s this about a target?

“They haven’t noticed us yet. When the time is right, I’ll—”

All of a sudden, a gaggle of people all dressed to the nines chats us up.

“Goodness me, if it isn’t Ms. Shiron! You’re slated to give a performance at the luncheon today, aren’t you?”

“That’s correct, Duke Perv. It’s my honor to be debuting a new piece today.”

Epsilon returns his greeting in a well-practiced manner. The duke has a bunch of retainers shadowing him.

It’s him. Rose’s despicable fiancé.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Perv says. “I love how avant-garde all your compositions are.”

No duh, they’re avant-garde. They were written by a bunch of musicians who don’t even exist in this world.

“I was hoping Princess Rose would get to hear it, but I see she’s not with us today,” Epsilon notes.

“No, I’m afraid she’s fallen ill. She’s going to be taking it easy until the ceremony.” Perv turns to look at me. “By the way, who’s this?”

“He’s my apprentice,” Epsilon replies.

“You have an apprentice? I can’t believe this is the first I’m hearing of it. Forgive me for asking, but does he have a permit to enter the castle?”

“He’s with me, so I assumed he wouldn’t need one.”

“We recently changed the rules, I’m afraid. There are rumors that an outsider managed to sneak into the castle, so we’ve been tightening security just in case.”

“I suppose I’ll have to send him out to go get a permit, then,” Epsilon says. She shoots me an apologetic look.

I nod. These things happen.

“Oh, there’s no need to go that far. If he plays a piece for us, that will serve just as well. I’m sure everyone is dying to know what the legendary Shiron’s apprentice is capable of.”

Perv is giving me nowhere to run.

Fine by me, man. Time to break out the “background character who’s kinda decent at playing piano” routine.

People flood into the hall when they hear that Shiron has an apprentice.

In the Oriana Kingdom, she’s hailed as the greatest pianist in the world. Her name carries a lot of sway.

When she burst onto the scene a few years ago as a complete unknown, her pieces took the world of music by storm. Their innovative artistry and her polished technical skill became the talk of concert halls everywhere.

It’s said that the world of fine art has two rising stars that shine brighter than all the rest—Natsume for literature, and Shiron for music.

When people hear that Shiron’s taken on an apprentice, it’s hard to blame them for sitting up and paying attention.

In the Oriana Kingdom, talented musicians are a big deal. Even if nothing’s official yet, nobles hoping to become their patrons latch on to every rumor and scrap of information.

For Oriana nobles, the renown of the musicians they have working for them plays a huge role in how they’re viewed by their peers.

That’s why the people looking at the black-haired, dark-eyed boy standing before the piano are so confused.

They have no idea who he is.

If this boy is truly blessed enough with talent for the great Shiron to take him under her wing, surely

someone

must have heard of him.

“I saw them linking arms earlier… He had himself sandwiched right up against that massive rack…”

“That lucky dog. What’s Ms. Shiron doing with a skeevy little nobody like him?”

“Look, she’s young, and young people make mistakes. That’s why it’s on us to show her a better path.”

There are tons of people who would be all too happy to trick a naive young artist and make bank off their talents.

The gazes resting on Shiron’s apprentice are already steeped in animosity.

As the air sits thick with tension, the boy plants his fingers on the keys.

“

Moonlight Sonata

, huh…?”

Why that piece, though?

Out of all of Shiron’s pieces, that one’s hardly the most notable or best respected.

And yet…

“It’s so beautiful…,” someone murmurs.

The music is sharp. Polished.

It’s like it’s carving away all the dregs of life one by one. The only things that can exist in his music are the things he

lets

exist there.

His audience is so enraptured by his performance, they close their eyes.

And when they do, the moon’s light fills the world.

When I finish the performance and rise from my seat, I’m greeted by a thunderous round of applause.

Heh-heh-heh, you see that?

Now, you know the power of a

Moonlight Sonata

specialist. I’ve practiced that piece in my head so much I could play it in my sleep.

I bow to the audience and make my way back to Epsilon, who’s clapping so hard I’m afraid her hands might explode.

“Oh, goodness me! I’m so moved, it feels like the deluge of tears will never cease! There isn’t a person in this room who’ll ever forget the moment they got to hear the world-famous

Moonlight Sonata

distilled to its finest form!”

Classic Epsilon. She’s a bona fide master when it comes to wildly over-the-top reactions.

Perv steps in and asks a question I’d rather he didn’t. “That performance was so exquisite it was like I could see the moonbeams stream down from above. I’m sorry I ever doubted you. Might you do me the honor of telling me your name, my young pianist friend?”

“He’s still in training, but I would be more than happy to introduce him to you once he’s ready to go out on his own,” Epsilon replies.

“Oh, but we’re all just

dying

to know who he is.”

Ah, right, the Oriana Kingdom has this patronage system that they’re super into.

“As a student, I really shouldn’t…,” I tell him.

“And there you have it, I’m afraid,” Epsilon says.

“A shame, that.” Perv bows. “Still, the performance was sublime.”

Suddenly, I spot a weird bulge in one of his pockets. It catches my interest, so I casually pull a quick one and yoink it.

It turns out to be a small box.

I peek inside, and hello, hello, hello. My good friend Perv, I do believe this is a ring.

Obviously, it must be his wedding ring.

It’s not like he’s gonna end up needing it, so I’ll do everyone a solid and pawn it so it doesn’t go to waste.

I use Epsilon’s slime boobs as cover while I quietly fish out the ring, but I end up feeling kinda bad for Perv, so I decide to at least return the box to where I found it.

It wasn’t without its hiccups, but I successfully passed myself off as Epsilon’s apprentice. Now, I’m in the castle’s music room.

“Would you two like some tea?”

“Later, perhaps.”

I keep an eye out for an opportunity to slip away as I pretend to help Epsilon with her rehearsal, but the castle’s maids are sticking to us like glue.

I could run so fast they wouldn’t see me leave, but that would be pretty suspicious of me in its own right.

“Master Shiron,” I say, “we’ve come all this way. Would it be all right if I took a look around the castle?”

“Oh, that’s right,” Epsilon replies. “I’d forgotten it was your first time here. Go ahead. It’ll be a good experience for you.”

Thanks to our mediocre ad-lib, I successfully escape—

“I can give you a tour!”

—but one of the maids butts in, and my success turns to failure in a heartbeat.

“I’ll be fine on my own, but thanks.”

“Oh, please, you’re Ms. Shiron’s apprentice. We could never neglect you like that.” The maid’s hair is madder red, and a smile spreads across her face like a flower coming into bloom. She walks over to me. “Please, follow me.”

“You’ll be in good hands. Margaret is a veteran,” another maid offers. “On some days, she’s even entrusted with working in Princess Rose’s room.”

Apparently, little miss madder hair is named Margaret.

Margaret sidles right up next to me. “It’s my honor to serve.”