If we were to divide the bureaucrats of the Kingdom of Harren into two groups, we could call them “monarchists” and “republicans.”

However, let’s not be mistaken: the republicans do not deny the king’s divinity. They acknowledge that the king’s rights are sacrosanct and that obeying the order under his reign is indeed the path to peace. They merely argue that, despite such order, revolution is a necessary endeavor.

The reason republicans could form a faction was quite simple.

“It’s been a while, Na-Harren.”

“The people of Harren greet the great Majesty, King!”

“Yeah, spare me the fluff.”

“Understood!”

The majority of the royal family that constituted that “sacrosanct” monarchy were republicans—yes, the “Lazy King” was a republican as well.

Since the reign of the Good King, Harren’s royal family had hoped to return all rights to the people.

Republicans were inspired by such ideals.

In other words, if we strip away all the political jargon, the ideas shared by republicans can be summarized like this:

“Our king wishes to return all authority to the people! And so it shall be!”

In the Harren Kingdom, where everyone begs the dragon to reign forever,

you have one-eyed loyalists who see the king’s wishes as their only guiding principle.

That, my friends, is the essence of “republicanism.”

“Your Majesty—! You are the rightful lord of all Harrenites! Our bodies and souls belong to you, may your name be eternally sanctified!”

“Your bodies and souls belong to God in Heaven, not to any earthly sovereign.”

“Your Majesty is the Bishop of the East and lord of Harren! Who would dare question your authority?”

“Ugh….”

That wasn’t to say the monarchists were revolting against him.

Rather, it was just that they loved the Lazy King so much that, no matter how much he wished something, there existed a line he simply couldn’t cross.

All authority in Harren had to come solely from the king.

If anyone dared to divide, steal, plunder, or trample that authority, they would be judged in the name of the old laws. Even if that person happened to be the Lazy King himself.

“Do you guys never get tired of this?”

“If your Majesty desires freedom for tomorrow, then it’s only right that we leap into the flames today!”

“If that’s the right thing to say, then you can say it every single day without getting tired. If what you said yesterday contradicts what you say tomorrow, how can we call that order?”

“Annoying bunch….”

So for the Lazy King, it was maddening.

All the bureaucrats in this country seemed like complete lunatics who would jump into a fire just because he did. It was no wonder he’d want to distance himself from work out of sheer exhaustion.

Yet, despite all that irritation, something extraordinary descended upon this moment.

“…First, bring me the tasks I’ve postponed. We can’t afford to let fighting get in the way of work.”

“Understood!”

Even Harren’s sky seemed to love Harren, gazing upward.

[“If you suffer for the sake of love, then love even more! To die in love is to truly live.”]

[“To die for lack of love is the most dreadful thing.”]

…

After grumbling and wrapping everything up, the Lazy King soon found himself at a publishing house.

“The people of Harren greet the great Majesty, King!”

“Uh, yes. I heard there’s a writer here named Sophocles and I’ve read….”

It was the publishing house for Les Misérables, Ivan Publishing.

The publisher’s president rushed forward, excited to greet his lord.

“Yes! That’s one of our translators!”

“I’d like to have a word with him alone for a bit. Could you set a table for us? I was quite impressed with the book.”

“Absolutely!”

So, Sophocles, who was just minding his business translating, was grabbed by the boss and pulled out.

He knelt and bowed to the king.

“The people of Harren greet your Majesty, the great king.”

“Huh, but you’re not from Harren, are you?”

“Yes?”

“Make yourself comfortable. No annoying little kids here to bother you.”

When Sophocles asked, bewildered, the Lazy King just laughed lightly in response.

“What parent doesn’t recognize their own child’s face?”

…

The Lazy King still seemed like an incredibly laid-back dude. His clothes looked like they were cobwebs away from being rags, and he appeared to have no connection to authority or power whatsoever.

“Homeros, I didn’t think you’d come all the way to our kingdom. Are you on a trip? There’s a pretty cool nature park in Harren, so I see why you’re stuck in a publishing house.”

“Um, well, how did you know I’m Homeros?”

“I told you, the royal family of Harren has dragon blood running through its veins.”

“What?”

The Lazy King’s eyes morphed into slit-like slits, resembling a snake’s.

Proof of the dragon blood flowing.

Great blue blood.

The king who carried that blood the most was indeed the Lazy King.

“The bothersome eyes of this dragon show me the truth.”

“Aha….”

“Now, if you’re here because of that favor I asked last time, I’m really sorry. It looks like republicanism is a failure. The Sidheel Republic was a backwater that would just behead its king whenever it ran into trouble—and while that had its uses, there’s no way a cursed dragon-blooded Harren could follow in those footsteps.”

“Oh, I see….”

The Lazy King leaned back on the couch, frowning as if he had a headache.

“Still, my thoughts haven’t changed.”

“What?”

“Being a king is truly a useless job. Just a hassle, really.”

“……”

After whining like a child for a while, the Lazy King suddenly sighed and muttered in a weary, defeated voice.

“From the beginning, those kids need to learn to live without depending on the king.”

“What?”

“Old oaths and all that nonsense. To think that an unmotivated fool with the blood of a flying lizard is regarded as the master of virtuous Harrens—that’s just terrible. Each Harren should be the master of their own soul…. That’s the duty and privilege of the virtuous!”

“……”

“They can go further. No mere descendant of a lizard can hold them back….”

At that moment, I gained a glimpse into the character of the Lazy King.

He wasn’t just some irresponsible dude.

This “lazy” king, with his raggedy clothing and casual speech, at a glance seemed completely uninterested in wielding authority.

“It’s a father’s duty to support his kids’ independence, after all….”

He was like a parent in that regard.

Because the sky is that kind of being.

Born merely as the parent of all Harens, he required no authority or ceremony to fulfill that role.

“…Why not switch to a constitutional monarchy like the Empire?”

“Ha, didn’t I ever try that? From the time of the Good King, the Kingdom of Harren was a constitutional monarchy.”

“Really?”

“The Good King was a thoughtful man; he wanted to share the kingdom’s power with the council out of fear that a tyrant might rise up later.”

“Hmm, I’ve heard Harren was known as an absolute monarchy in the Empire.”

“That’s mainly because the Good King was just too capable. He was thoughtful but… too earnest.”

I fell silent, unsure what to make of that.

The Lazy King chuckled and started explaining further.

“The Good King was a multi-talented individual. He might have inherited the dragon blood even more strongly than I did. If I were to list all his achievements, I’d need a whole day. Creating the current Parliament, setting up the Bureau of Administration for minimal societal safety, reorganizing the royal army into a police force for maintaining order, importing imperial technology to establish a printing press and the kingdom’s first newspaper—all of that—everything was done by the Good King.”

“He must have been quite capable.”

“Yeah. And because he was so competent and conscientious, the parliament meant to be a source of power for the people ended up just being a useless puppet dependent on the king.”

“Ah.”

“He probably knew that would happen. Yet, being overly intrusive, he couldn’t just leave my people alone, so he carries a heavy sin.”

“…If that’s the case, your Majesty declares himself ‘Lazy King’ to avoid repeating the same mistake.”

“No, it’s simply because I’m naturally lazy.”

The Lazy King chuckled as if he’d just heard a funny joke.

Then he spoke a little more comfortably.

“Anyway, I can understand the people’s sentiments. Our dragon blood… teaches us a great deal: we don’t forget what we’ve seen, we comprehend things swiftly, even complicated matters, we instill fear and respect in those we encounter, we can tell truth from lies, and we’re blessed with talents in many areas.”

“……”

“But not everyone blessed with that right will be a Good King. If they’re just lazy like me, that’s one thing—but how can we guarantee that the next dragon’s descendant won’t use these gifts for violence? How could Harren’s children resist if it steals their freedom and love and treats them merely as tools or parts?”

“……”

“So, I’d like to ask you, the greatest intellect of the Empire, one question.”

The moment he posed that question to me was one where I, a mere “plagiarist,” found myself unable to answer.

“What do you think I should do next?”