A Boy

When Rudeus woke up, he felt like he was in a bed, but due to the difference from his usual room, this bed was completely different. 

"Where am I?" Rudeus sat up in his bed and saw a huge woman sitting in front of him. When he realized what was happening, he immediately introduced himself, "Nice to meet you, my name is Rudeus Greyrat. I apologize for not being able to greet you properly; I'm still a bit confused." 

"You're quite polite for someone like Paul's son..." 

"I suppose I inherited that from my mother." 

"I'm Ghislaine. I hope we get along from now on." 

"Yes..." Rudeus was quite confused. The only thing he remembered was practicing with his father, and now he seemed to be in a completely different place. Judging by the position of the sun, not more than two hours had passed since then, but somehow, he wasn't at home. 

"Excuse me..." 

"You can call me Ghislaine." 

"Ghislaine, did my father leave you a message?" 

Ghislaine took a letter from her bosom, and before handing it to Rudeus, she said, "But before you read the letter aloud, you must understand something that has been happening in this place over the past few months. The mansion is not entirely peaceful. All of this is because Prince Gilgamesh of the Asura Kingdom is residing here, and although it hasn't been officially announced yet, he will be Eris Greyrat's fiance. So, under no circumstances should you act normally in front of him." 

"I see..." Rudeus, who still didn't understand anything, wanted to ask, but first, he listened to everything Ghislaine had to say. 

"For some reason, I sense that Gilgamesh is interested in you, although I don't understand in what sense. You must be reserved. To stay in this place, it's not enough to be a teacher; you must also not disturb the prince and not give him any reason to dismiss you." Ghislaine was very clear on this point. 

"I notice..." Rudeus looked at his hands and clenched them tightly, as if something he was aware of was affecting him in some way. 

"Did you say something?" Ghislaine asked as she looked at Rudeus. 

"It's nothing, I'm just a little nervous about being in the same place as a prince." 

... 

At the same time, in the largest tower of the Greyrat mansion. 

"The whole city will be destroyed..." 

Sauros Greyrat stared at the point in the sky attentively, and as he contemplated what he had heard from Prince Gilgamesh, who was next to him, he asked, "Is there any way to prevent this catastrophe?" 

"None. We could try to destroy it with powerful attacks, but that would likely result in the same outcome..." Gilgamesh didn't understand the nature of that overwhelming amount of mana gathered in the sky, but he could somehow prevent it from completely harming the main city of Fittoa. 

"Now is not a good time to focus on that problem. Eris's birthday is in a year, and that's when the engagement will be announced. It's the only opportunity we would have for a more significant impact. What do you think about that?" Sauros had a point, and Gilgamesh agreed with it as well. 

"Maybe we can't control its nature, but we can control who it will affect when it erupts. According to my calculations, it will be at least two to three years before it erupts and causes the mana catastrophe, so we have enough time to prepare and develop a plan that involves the people of this city." 

Gilgamesh pondered it seriously and said, "Even if we can't prevent collateral damage, we can reduce the number of deaths by millions if we prepare from now on. If I can't stop it when it erupts, we must have a plan B that involves the complete reconstruction of Fittoa's most important city, but it will have my full support in addressing this problem." 

Sauros rubbed his head and said, "According to records of small-scale disasters, something like affecting an entire city has never happened before." 

"But it's nothing we should worry about. We'll use this catastrophe to our advantage to gain the people's solidarity." Gilgamesh smiled broadly at the idea. 

"Prince Gilgamesh, what are you thinking?" Sauros sensed something but decided not to overthink and chose to ask instead. 

"Although we could possibly save everyone from the mana catastrophe with effort, it would be best to show the people the true nature of the Asura royal family... What do you think the Crown's stance will be on this mana disaster, where we may need to save hundreds of thousands of lives?" Gilgamesh asked, awaiting the old man's response. 

"They will obviously refuse. Even if the city of Roa is destroyed, they will do nothing to rebuild it and leave it as a lost place." Sauros reluctantly accepted this reality as it was likely to turn out. 

"What if Prince Gilgamesh decides to support all those families in need? Not only have those missing people become slaves, but many of them are likely to become commodities for other kingdoms. From this action, we will gain three things: the support of the people, the gratitude of millions of devastated individuals, and we will see the stance of those kingdoms that supposedly only seek peace." 

Gilgamesh turned around and said, "If we win over the people, my reign will have a power that no other kingdom will have. If we have an unsatisfied populace with the Crown, they will be the backbone of my reign. And if any kingdom refuses to cooperate in saving my people, then when I become king, I will destroy their royalty and rule as their emperor." 

"My people are opening Uruk Towers in different kingdoms, controlling slavery as it will be a point where most of the teleported will be gathered. That's why the decisions of the royalty of those kingdoms will be indifferent to me; I'm only seeking to assess their character and empathy. Although many will die, this will mark a new beginning for all humans within the Asura Kingdom." 

"You're terribly perceptive, Prince Gilgamesh. I will support you in this plan with everything you need." Sauros smiled in a way he had never done before. There was horror, happiness, fear, ecstasy, and desire all combined in a single facial expression. 

What he had heard made no sense; it was as if Prince Gilgamesh were a god. He was certainly a child, but the ease with which he had formulated such a plan was something only a monarch who had already reigned for years could do. If that's the case, Gilgamesh was born to rule over all others.