How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 541

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magic Noble Family (541)

“What are you doing….”

I asked Ulrike with a trembling body. Meanwhile, Ulrike just laughed heartily.

“Hahahaha!”

“No, don’t just laugh. Mimesis operation shouldn’t work like this, right? You need to be in the same space. The place where Leo and Julia are is too far away….”

“No! They’re in Berlin.”

“What are you talking about. They should be in the south, not here.”

At this point, there’s no way they wouldn’t be in their own country. I asked with squinted eyes, but Ulrike laughed and pushed me out of the water.

“Go! Go and say hello!”

Pushed by Ulrike, I waded through the stream water and emerged into the bushes. Water came out of my boots with each step. I glared at Ulrike who was still laughing, and eventually laughed too as I took off my boots and poured out the water. Then I walked over and looked at the two friends sitting on the hill, smiling down at me. When I tipped my hat brim in greeting, Cheringen spoke politely as if we had met at a banquet hall.

“I’m pleased to meet the protagonist at this watershed moment in German history.”

“Julia! Ahhhhh.”

Ulrike, who had followed behind, shouted and stretched out her words without closing her throat. I couldn’t help but understand it meant to stop. Only then did Cheringen smile wryly and greet me with her chin propped up.

“Congratulations, Lucas.”

I replied with the same smile instead of words. Cheringen looked at me for a long time with meaningful eyes before speaking.

“You’ve earned an opportunity to go further.”

“I already know well about the help you gave. I owe you a great debt.”

“A debt? It’s mutual benefit.”

At the word mutual benefit, Ulrike looked back and forth between me and Cheringen. She knew that Cheringen had helped with the media to change public opinion about me, but wondered if there was something I had done for Cheringen in return. I thought the same for a moment, but soon realized what she meant. Ah, surely not. Such thoughts were gradually pushed aside by the saying that “surely not” kills people. I froze for a moment then clicked my tongue.

I shifted my gaze slightly to the right. Leonard just smiled lightly at me. We didn’t need to say more. Before coming and after arriving, we had anticipated what would happen to each of us. I had discussed with him the entire process of getting through that crisis. The result was success. I stood before him having succeeded.

Though I didn’t expect to meet like this…. I extended my hand to Leonard, and he grabbed it and shook it vigorously once. The appropriate force pressing against my bones was more stable than usual.

I asked them.

“So, you shouldn’t be able to be here, but how are you here?”

“Haha. How cold.”

Cheringen laughed refreshingly and explained.

“Compared to Grand Duke Wilhelmina and King Hildegard, we have relatively more leisure.”

That would be true. Even though those rulers had delegated much authority to the crown princes, the initiative was basically in the rulers’ hands. But that wasn’t a sufficient answer.

“So?”

“We made time, that’s all. What should I say to satisfy you?”

“Don’t speak in circles, Julia. You need to be in at least the same arena to access the same Mimesis. So are you at the Wittelsbach mansion now?”

When Cheringen just smiled slyly without answering, Leonard answered instead.

“The building next door.”

Even next door would be quite far. When I looked at them with such eyes, Cheringen answered.

“We installed Mimesis in an underground room closely connected to this mansion and entered. We bought the mansion yesterday.”

“You bought it. To play in Mimesis?”

“As if. It’s good for mansions of southern Empire ruling families to be in close proximity.”

When I stretched my mouth sideways and sent a suspicious look, Cheringen burst into hearty laughter. Leonard also raised one corner of his mouth and snorted. They were of one mind. Seeing things like this, there were times when I could understand why these guys got along so well. They basically had things in common, so they’ve been close until this day….

Anyway, seeing these two go along with Ulrike’s plan, I think they believed we absolutely had to meet today.

I thought of other friends. Narke would be in Berlin now, and though I don’t know when he’ll leave the government, he’s at least nearby. Haike, even thinking about it, couldn’t be brought, and the location of the remaining person is….

“Where’s Elias?”

“Nobody knows.”

Leonard cut it off sharply. I nodded.

It’s not that they don’t know, but that they won’t tell me. He probably didn’t tell Cheringen Elias’s location either.

Because Prussia would be waiting to arrest Elias who sided with Bavaria, Elias is now in a situation where he shouldn’t show himself outside. The backlash from participating in the operation was something both Elias and Leonard were prepared for from the start. Especially since public opinion in the south enthusiastically cheers and acknowledges Elias Hohenzollern’s actions, he remains even more of a thorn in the Imperial Court’s side. So they can’t tell me the location where Elias is hiding either. Especially since I’m in a position where I could be called to Prussia and interrogated again at any time. Leonard drew clear lines when he drew them. That was his way of caring for Elias and his friends in the face of the power he held.

“So, why are you here?”

I asked while stepping on the sloped earth to climb up the high hill. Suddenly a barrier appeared blocking my path. Knowing it was Leonard’s, I looked up and he answered with a face asking what I was asking about.

“Why? We came to play.”

“You?”

“Yes.”

Leonard threw himself down the hill without hesitation and landed. He extended his hand to Cheringen who was still sitting above. Cheringen smiled leisurely, took his hand, and came down the same way.

They left us behind and went downstream first by themselves. The bird sounds were nice. Ulrike, who was following behind, discovered a wild strawberry bush and took out a pocket knife to randomly pick them and give them to me. Bewildered, I couldn’t decide whether to mourn for the suddenly severely picked bush or be grateful for Ulrike’s kindness. Since my mouth wouldn’t open, I decided to pick the berries one by one and put them in Ulrike’s mouth instead. Ulrike went “mm” and savored the taste, then wrinkled her eyebrows and shook her shoulders. They must be sour. Even so, Ulrike didn’t ask me to stop and continued eating whatever I gave her. I swallowed a berry at an appropriate moment. Then Ulrike said quietly.

“But you know, Lucas.”

“Yeah.”

“This is a school set, right? So I’m wondering, like with our third exam and the headquarters Bora Bread incident, shouldn’t we not just eat stuff like this?”

“….”

She had a point. This could actually be poisonous plants. It’s a bit different in nature, but it reminded me of that atrocity when Elias made me drink unknown water in Mimesis. Ulrike, who had turned pale, whispered.

“If I die and get kicked out of Mimesis, I’ll come back in. You have to wait there until I come down!”

“Got it….”

To say such things after eating it all…. My appetite quickly disappeared and I just trudged along holding the bush. Even as time passed, Ulrike wasn’t kicked out, and when I didn’t eat the wild strawberries, she took them and ate them all while playing a game of throwing them in the air and swallowing them. I watched the brown rabbits and mice that occasionally passed by us, and the blue birds crossing the sky. Being quiet, I could hear well what was being said ahead. Cheringen was speaking.

“…but it’s not unfamiliar. I played in places like this when I was six, do you remember?”

“We did.”

“I remember it being quite boring because you just read books.”

“And you couldn’t answer the fluid dynamics questions I asked.”

“Hahaha! Will it be the same today?”

Both Cheringen and Leonard were continuing a war of words that had no impact on either of them. By the way, did six-year-old Leonard really think of fluid dynamics when looking at stream water—I chuckled again, realizing that Leonard was Leonard even as a child. Whatever the case, the two were looking at each other with warm eyes while wearing leisurely smiles, and though it was hard to match with the content of their words, they seemed to be reminiscing about their own memories. As heirs of adjacent ruling families, they would have had many opportunities to meet. Especially in their preschool years, Leonard and Elias, and Cheringen and Elias would have had more opportunities to meet each other than they had with each other. The way they shared friendship had solidified into that form. Ulrike, as bewildered as I was, was watching them with pursed lips.

The stream became wider and deeper as it went toward the estuary. After coming down a certain distance, Ulrike, who had been beside me, threw off her outer clothes leaving only her undershirt and jumped into the water. Cheringen and Leonard stopped walking when they saw him. They weren’t surprised and remained calm, while only I was gaping at this sudden event.

“…What? Aren’t we going to the village?”

“Ah~ Does it make sense to just stay still after seeing water? Lucas! You come in too.”

“No, I’ll pass. I’m comfortable and happy just sitting.”

I politely spread my hands. But neither my smile nor my words of refusal worked.

“No way! After coming all this way, what do you mean pass!”

When Ulrike struck the water surface with her hand, green magic power flew at me. I leaned my body to dodge and shook my head.

“No, why must we? Why must we— ah.”

I understood well why the weather was set to summer. The moment I gained enlightenment, Ulrike persuaded me with a logical face.

“Refusing a chance to play isn’t like a student of Imperial Second Educational Institute. Think carefully, Lucas. Your pants hem is already wet.”

“What does that matter? That’s why it should dry.”

I wasn’t given the chance to finish speaking like that. I felt hands pushing from behind, and simultaneously grasped the existence of plant stems wrapped around my shoulders to keep my head from falling first and hold my upper body to the ground.

Splash—

“Whew….”

I felt my rattling heart once again and brushed my chest in water that came up to around my solar plexus. Suppressing a chuckle, I closed my eyes and raised my head with my elbows against the ground. Snickering sounds could be heard from various places. When I opened my eyes, Cheringen and Leonard were looking down at me from above with gentle faces. It had been planned for them. The words “you bastards” almost came out. Ulrike, who had caught and hugged me from below, cheered with laughter, whether this was a good or bad thing.

“You didn’t fall all the way in~ Leo said not to let you fall completely.”

“Right, then what now. Luise, you at least left your outer clothes up there, but I have nothing to change into when I get out and will freeze to dea… death….”

“Gasp.”

Ulrike’s eyes widened then she patted my back nonchalantly.

“Then wear mine!”

“….”

Then what will you change into? I won’t wear them. I dry-washed my face and first threw my less wet jacket to a sunny spot to save it. Ulrike, happy either way, splashed in the water and shouted.

“Lucas, let’s race to over there.”

“I can’t move because my body is heavy from certain people throwing me in fully clothed.”

“Hup….”

Ulrike made a strange sound and moved away. His attention had been on playing in the water ever since entering. I leaned against the grass by the water and closed my eyes briefly. Staying here, the water was surprisingly warm. I suppose it’s because it’s a place that receives a lot of sunlight.

The two ruling family guys who had been watching us talked among themselves. When I opened my eyes again, Leonard, who had been looking down at me, said to Cheringen.

“You asked if it would be the same today too.”

“Hmm?”

“Well. Whatever we think, both you and I would be different from back then.”

I blatantly craned my neck to look at them upside down. The sunlight stung my eyes. The sound of a cuckoo calling was serene.

Leonard was saying that they had now supplemented what they used to find lacking in each other. So Leonard had learned how to play and Cheringen had become as devoted to academics as Leonard—since Cheringen was already academically impeccable, that was settled. However, the former was somewhat doubtful. Whether thinking the same thing, Cheringen provoked with a grinning face.

“That’s how it should be. Let’s see how well our class president, who has never once entered the Spree River, can swim.”

Then Leonard also looked at him and faintly raised the corner of his mouth.

“Isn’t it time to move away from peer groups that take pride in swimming in rivers?”

“How difficult could it be for a peer group like that to make you run away like that? If that’s what the general public wants, wouldn’t it be worth joining in even if it’s trivial?”

“What if you don’t feel it’s worth participating in?”

“Right, our class president never lacks for company even when he just sits still.”

Cheringen laughs leisurely. Leonard doesn’t need to do things like diving into rivers that ordinary kids do to show off their strength or vigor to others. Cheringen patted Leonard’s shoulder and looked down at Ulrike and me.

“It goes without saying that the group you lead around has completely shattered the discipline of such peer groups and acts like it’s forming a school of thought. You’re rewriting peer culture starting from school, so I’m truly curious about what will happen after your enthronement.”

I don’t know why they’re having every conversation as if they’re in high society. Still, it seems quite familiar to them, and their personalities are already showing from here. The reason Julia didn’t frequently interact with Leonard and Elias after coming of age – such tendencies are visible even in their casual conversations. By the way, I’m watching with wide-open eyes the culprits who threw me here, but neither of them seems particularly concerned.

Leonard raised his eyebrows at those words and rolled his eyes to the other side, and whether he responded with his expression or not, he said nothing more. He quickly took off his jacket and vest, loosened up briefly, then entered the water. I hear Julia’s interested “Hmm” sound. Julia naturally thought Leonard wouldn’t enter the water, and I thought so too. Julia, like Leonard, only removed her jacket and vest and sat on the embankment with just her legs dipped in. Then she naturally slid inside. During this period, exposing bare skin outdoors was considered very undignified, so entering the water in an undershirt state like Ulrike was common, but the two friends from ruling families didn’t seem to want even that. Cheringen swam to where Ulrike was swimming and gestured for them to go further downstream. I watched my three friends with half-open eyes and spoke sincerely.

“You’re all asking for trouble.”

“How old are you?”

Leonard, who was nearby, sarcastically remarked seriously with his usual expressionless face. Even among teenagers, there are those who don’t want to swim, aren’t there? Unfortunately, as someone who’s at best in their mid-twenties, I’d say that. When I snapped back at Leonard asking if that’s something he should say, Ulrike, who hadn’t gone down yet, widened her eyes and quickly looked back and forth between us. Fortunately, since there was laughter—hollow laughter—on my face, Ulrike soon smiled with relief. I called out to Leonard, who hadn’t gone far yet.

“Leo. What’s your reason for being here?”

“I told you. To have fun.”

“You have to have fun, right.”

Then Leonard, who turned to look at me, answered without wavering.

“You know well.”

He came back up to the embankment with his back to the sunlight and said.

“Your speech was impressive enough.”

“…”

“Lucas, from now on you won’t be left out when discussing modern history. You’re going to change the history of our continent.”

“It’s not at that level yet.”

“Everyone expects it will be. If they’ve discovered someone with such leadership ability, they won’t leave you alone anywhere.”

Leonard flatly denied my denial. He smiled gently.

“I’m proud. As you know, you promised to overcome it by any means necessary.”

“Right. Since we’re on the topic, thank you. It was much easier thanks to Bavaria properly controlling the population of southern Germany.”

“Not at all. But it’s true that we’re concerned our plans might branch out in other directions. Now that the day has come when I call you not just Count Ernst but Count Ascanien…”

Leonard muttered while gazing into midair.

“We’re trying to make sure. Even though it might be our needless worry.”

What they were trying to make sure of was clear without asking. He and Cheringen both had the same concerns as Ulrike. I nodded. Meanwhile, Leonard stepped on the ground and jumped far into the distance. Clear water splashed on me. Then he quickly surfaced. He smiled brightly and extended his hand to me.

“Having fun isn’t that difficult, Lucas. Right?”

The friend who’s been most distant from having fun tells me that having fun isn’t difficult. Thinking about how unlike himself he was acting, I laughed and roughly nodded. Leonard, who had been about to pull me into the water while holding my hand, paused for a moment and asked.

“Should I make you a raft?”

“No… The future king knows how to make many things.”

I took a deep breath and leaned my body to float. The moment my head briefly went underwater, my body reflexively twisted, but Leonard quickly helped me surface and let go. From then on, I didn’t do anything special and just floated while looking at the sky. Honestly, this is how I have fun. As long as I’m not cooped up indoors, I prefer doing nothing after that. Even in the 21st century, I often went abroad to rest, and before my recognition overseas increased, I liked wandering alone through alleys where people lived.

Leonard swam moderately with the current while occasionally grabbing my shirt collar. I grumbled each time.

“Hey, let’s just float here.”

“How is that having fun?”

“I thought you were on my side, but apparently not.”

Inevitably, I—we—went down to where Ulrike and Cheringen were playing. The water depth gradually became shallow then deep repeatedly, while the width became slightly narrower. Cheringen wrung the water from his hair and sat on the embankment. Seeing us, Ulrike instantly swam up to us.

“It’s refreshing!”

“No, it’s nice because it’s warm.”

At my response, Ulrike made a face like something was strange, then shouted without caring.

“Look at this. I caught a fish!”

Ulrike carefully opened her fist to show what she was holding inside. There was a small grayish fish. I laughed seeing Ulrike doing exactly what I did when I was in elementary school. Meanwhile, Leonard went to Cheringen’s side. They quickly started laughing and talking. They’re probably talking about childhood stories we don’t know again… When Cheringen dipped his hand in the water and splashed Leonard’s face, Leonard looked at him with his characteristic dead eyes. Then they both started laughing.

As I floated with my eyes closed doing nothing, Ulrike carefully placed a large oak leaf over my eyes. I tilted my head to shake it off. Ulrike grabbed her cheek and stretched it down while shouting in an endlessly lowered voice.

“This is an eye mask!”

“Ah, I see.”

Momentarily flustered, I picked up the leaf again and held it in my hand for now. Then Cheringen waved a similarly shaped oak leaf from where he sat. It was an eye mask for everyone… When I closed my eyes again, Ulrike grabbed my shirt collar. When I opened my eyes because of something, something slippery touched my skin. I tapped below my collarbone with my hand and asked Ulrike, who was standing blankly beside me.

“What is it, Luise?”

“A fish.”

“…”

I put my body further into the water and used magic to remove the fish that had entered my clothes and sent it back to its home. Then thinking about it, I became increasingly absurd and chuckled while holding my forehead.

“No, you really…”

“Julia did this to me earlier.”

“Then why are you doing it to me too?!”

Ulrike just grinned and tidied my clothes—though I don’t know what meaning it has when I’m lying in water, it seems like a gesture of goodwill. Then she disappeared to dive underwater. I couldn’t follow the high school student context, so I decided to just try again.

Then.

“Hm?”

I hear Cheringen’s voice. Ulrike’s “Huh?” also flows faintly from nearby.

I opened my eyes to the cold water that fell on my cheek. It wasn’t water. Something with form had melted into water on my skin. What I saw in my vision was pure white snow fluttering down.

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