A Blend of Romance and Fantasy - Chapter 63

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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63.
As time wore on, I watched the gathered nobility succumb to intoxication one by one.
Cedric and I had consumed a magical potion beforehand to resist drunkenness, so we remained remarkably lucid.
Besides, I had always possessed an exceptional tolerance for alcohol.
And for the record, I certainly did not discover this fact while drinking at the masquerade ball for the sake of a plausible encounter. Absolutely not.
“I believe we may proceed now, Cedric?”
Observing the thoroughly inebriated nobles, I posed the question quietly to Cedric.
Upon confirming his nod, I deliberately let the wine glass I held slip from my fingers and shatter against the floor.
Crash!
The sound of breaking glass drew every eye in the room toward us.
“What on earth!?”
“What is happening over there?”
The Count turned his attention in our direction. I quickly lowered my head in apparent embarrassment.
“I fear the wine has made me clumsy, Your Excellency. I must visit the restroom to clean myself. Would you permit me to excuse myself?”
“Hmm, dropped your glass? How charming.”
The Count, himself quite intoxicated, chuckled softly. He promptly instructed an Attendant to escort us both to the restroom.
The corridor was silent as we walked.
I observed carefully as we passed, searching for any magical surveillance devices.
There were none.
It seemed they dared not leave evidence of their illicit activities, so they had forgone such magical measures.
Upon reaching the restroom, the Attendant spoke.
“I shall wait outside.”
“We are hardly children. Please, go rest yourself.”
This was our chance to slip away and locate Benjamin Prince.
But the stubborn Attendant remained as resolute as his expression suggested.
“This place is labyrinthine. Besides, one cannot trust a Siren.”
“My, how harsh your words are!”
Well then, I suppose I may be equally harsh.
I swiftly withdrew the pearl pin from my braided hair and pressed it against his throat.
“Silence, or I will kill you.”
“Ah… ahhh…”
Cedric moved with lightning speed, surging forward.
Five Attendants and Guard Knights collapsed to the floor in an instant.
Silence settled over the corridor as Cedric spoke.
“Princess, do you intend to explore the castle now?”
“Yes. According to Rosalian, Benjamin Prince should be in the rightmost room at the end of the third floor of Teia Castle… hmm.”
I turned my head and smiled sweetly at the Attendant, who still trembled beneath the point of my pearl pin.
“You there. I require your guidance. First, where exactly are we?”
* * *
Leonard had said that after the Emperor expressed his desire to make Benjamin the Crown Prince, assassins had been relentless.
So I’d heard that he had an exceptionally large guard detail, but…
“Still, I never expected it to be this many.”
Guard Knights swarmed in front of the room. There had to be at least fifty of them.
I had just silently incapacitated the Attendant who’d guided us this far.
I glanced between the sprawled Attendant and those fifty-odd figures before speaking to Cedric.
“Cedric, can you take care of those people silently too?”
“Yes. However, the one inside the Sixth Prince’s room cannot be dealt with silently.”
“For you to say that…”
I widened my eyes in question, and he quickly added:
“I can win. But the one inside feels like a Mage, so naturally there will be noise.”
“I understand, so calm down! Why are you talking so fast? We’ll be discovered.”
“…When I faced Leonard last time, it ended in a draw, did it not? I am not someone who loses to anyone.”
As Cedric spoke with his characteristic dry expression, Leonard’s image overlapped with his.
-Once I reach Blake, I’ll be able to win…
Are all men like this? It’s childishly ridiculous.
“Never mind that—just take care of those people for me.”
At my words, Cedric’s expression showed slight displeasure, but he soon cast off his cumbersome cloak.
His neat knight’s uniform was revealed, and his gaze—which had been as calm as the deep sea—flashed with an eerie chill.
“I’ll finish in ten seconds.”
Cedric’s words were no boast.
As I silently counted to ten in disbelief, the people in front of the room fell quietly before Cedric’s fists.
He seemed to have used the Myers Family’s unique sacred power.
He then picked up a sword from among the fallen and gestured to me.
I checked the fallen for magical items and stuffed the good ones into my pocket. Just in case.
“Princess, please step back. Once the door opens, they’ll definitely launch a magical ambush.”
“It’s fine. I just cast a protective barrier around myself using sacred power. I’ll cast one on you too.”
He opened his eyes wide in surprise but obediently extended the back of his hand to me.
I touched the back of his hand. Pink light flowed from my fingertips into Cedric.
“Done. Now we count one, two, three and open the door.”
“Understood.”
In truth, I was certain the Mage inside wouldn’t attack us even if we opened the door.
The one guarding Benjamin was Rosalian’s half-brother.
He would have already received detailed information from Rosalian by letter, so he wouldn’t attack us.
Yet even so, standing before that door required a measure of courage.
“One…”
Two…
Three.
With Cedric’s count, the door swung wide open.
He rolled in like lightning, drew his sword, and surveyed left and right.
After seeing something, he spoke to me calmly.
“Princess, do come in.”
“Everyone is waiting for me, aren’t they?”
“It would seem so, Your Highness.”
Cedric rose and sheathed his sword.
I stepped into Benjamin’s chamber.
Inside were Benjamin, the Mage who served as his guard, and three younger sisters—the Princesses.
The Princesses bore frightened expressions, yet Benjamin trembled while his eyes gleamed with determination.
“W-welcome. We have been awaiting you, sister-in-law.”
“You certainly look as though you knew I would come.”
“…Rosalian told me.”
Unlike Benjamin Prince, who was attempting to appear composed, the Princesses quivered with fear.
I pitied these young girls, yet this was a negotiation. I hardened my expression deliberately.
“Then you must anticipate what I am about to say?”
“I… I…”
Benjamin Prince stammered for a moment, then cried out as though he had steeled his resolve.
“I cannot renounce my claim to the throne!”
“Then you intend to fight Leonard?”
“Yes. B-but my younger siblings are innocent! Please, I beg you—grant them asylum in Sincester. I implore you!”
“Brother!”
“No! I want to go with you, Brother!”
“Brother…!”
The Princesses cried out desperately, but Benjamin soothed them and turned his gaze back to me.
“My maternal grandfather is a terrifying man. He came here with the determination to die, and if I cannot become Emperor, he will throw a blade at me and demand I take my own life. Even if I flee, war will break out regardless.”
“And so you will simply accept that?”
“If I remain silent, at least I can protect my mother. If I renounce the throne, my grandfather will torment her as he always has.”
Tears welled up in Benjamin’s large, round eyes.
Yet he soon realized his younger sisters stood behind him and hastily wiped his eyes roughly.
I exhaled deeply and placed my hand upon my waist.
“First, the Princesses may seek asylum in our Kingdom. That was always my intention.”
“Truly!?”
“However, it cannot be unconditional. You must make a public declaration renouncing your claim to the throne.”
“What? That is too cruel! If you demand this, my younger siblings will be sold into servitude or… they will have no choice but to die!”
“Is that not the very outcome of this succession struggle? If your grandfather prevails, Leonard and I will face that same fate, will we not?”
At my words, Benjamin’s mouth clamped shut.
“All wars are absolute—either victory or defeat. Only the faces of those who suffer despair change depending on who wins.”
“…”
“But if you renounce the throne, there will be no war. I will ensure it.”
At my words, Benjamin Prince’s eyes widened.
“And even if I cannot prevent war, you must still make your position clear.”
“Why…?”
“The Sixth Prince is not Count Pixis’s puppet—he is the Emperor’s son with genuine authority over the succession to the throne. He must make his own decision.”
The air in the room grew taut and silent.
A heavy silence carved through the space, and no one dared to breathe.
After that deafening quiet, Benjamin spoke in a trembling voice.
“What if… what if your words are lies? What if you’re manipulating me like this, and then Leonard comes and kills us all? I’m so afraid of my brother. I don’t even dare to stand before him.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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