Reincarnated as a Genius Prodigy of a Prestigious Family - Chapter 92

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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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Reincarnated as a Legendary Talent Genius of a Noble Family Episode 92

 

 

 

51. Then It Will Be Resolved

 

 

The timing of the summons was impeccable.

He said we should meet again before I left, but I never expected it would be right now.

I was just heading to Professor Delfineso’s Research Lab when someone suddenly appeared and told me to come along, saying His Highness the Prince had summoned me.

So now I was facing none other than the 3rd Prince in what was probably the most luxurious place in the Academy – the Annex Reception Room.

With a lavish dining table between us.

“These are the finest dishes made from Imperial Ingredients procured from the Imperial Palace. I hope they suit your taste.”

“I am deeply honored, Your Highness.”

The Prince suddenly frowned at my choice of words and waved his hand.

“I would prefer if you didn’t use such formal language.”

“But aren’t you His Highness the Prince?”

“Right now, I am also your friend. If you would allow it, that is.”

I burst into laughter.

“What is there to allow or not allow? If Your Highness thinks so, then that’s what it is.”

“I don’t want to force someone to be my friend by relying on authority.”

At the Prince’s words, I shook my head.

“That’s not it. Friendship isn’t a contractual relationship, nor is it a relationship created by someone’s permission. It’s just a relationship that forms naturally.”

“…I’m learning something from you.”

The Prince let out a hearty laugh.

“You may not know this, but this is practically the first time I’ve met someone my own age.”

Whether it was because of his hands or some other reason, it seemed the Prince had only stayed in the Imperial Palace and was meeting peers for the first time.

“Anyway, this must have been a sudden summons, but thank you for responding.”

“Not at all, Your Highness.”

I should be the one who’s grateful.

Now I don’t have to argue with Professor Delfineso, whose reasons for calling me are obvious.

By now, news that the Imperial Family summoned me would have reached his ears, so he won’t even think of calling me for a while.

“You look to be in good spirits.”

Meanwhile, the 3rd Prince’s face looked exceptionally pleased.

His hands weren’t trembling either.

Most of all, his voice was filled with joy.

“Hmm. Actually, it’s a bit troublesome to be this happy.”

“Why is that?”

“Because the investigation yielded nothing.”

I outwardly showed sympathy while inwardly nodding, thinking I knew that would happen.

But as the Prince said, it was a joyful day for him.

“My hands are getting better. There were no side effects I was worried about either.”

The Prince showed me both his hands spread out.

The darkened skin color had brightened considerably and was showing signs of life.

It was amazing.

“Every moment feels new. When I wake up after a night’s sleep, I find strength returning to my hands.”

And it was fortunate.

Honestly, I was slightly, just a little worried.

The body has homeostasis, a tendency to maintain environmental conditions constant.

So I was worried that the mana pathways I had worked so hard to widen might narrow again, but it seems he’s adapting better than expected.

“Doesn’t it feel awkward?”

“Hmm. It is awkward. I imagine this is what it would feel like to walk around with someone else’s hands attached. But it’s good. Very good. When I hold a pen to write, even gripping it very lightly makes the writing come out dark.”

The Prince’s face was filled with a bright smile.

His hands.

He said it started when he was one year old.

What would it feel like to regain the sensation in hands that were taken away before he could even become aware of his own existence?

“May I take a look for a moment?”

“Hmm. Go ahead.”

Just in case, I drew up my mana and examined the Prince’s hands.

The flow wasn’t completely perfect yet, but it was much better than when I first opened the pathways.

In just a few days, the mana pathways leading to his hands had widened further, and the flow had improved considerably.

Seeing how easily they widened, it seems this wasn’t something he was born with after all.

If it had been, the method I used would likely have been just a temporary measure.

Of course, I can’t ask about that now.

That’s beyond my area of knowledge.

“They’re really getting better and better.”

“Hmm. As I said, I can feel it happening.”

The Prince withdrew his hands and looked at me.

“You truly are remarkable, Dane Sogress. Spear Arts, Swordsmanship, Summoning Arts, Magic… Each one is an enviable talent on its own, yet you possess all four, and even this mysterious ability on top of that.”

It’s thanks to Ancient Mana, but it’s also thanks to consistent effort.

Thanks to that, I’ve been able to form this connection with the Prince.

“Thanks to you, I can now do many things. Dane Sogress. I express my infinite gratitude to you.”

The Prince then suddenly asked me.

“I want to repay you. Let me ask directly. Is there anything you desire?”

I also shook my head directly.

“There isn’t.”

“…What?”

The Prince asked back with a very bewildered expression.

“You want nothing?”

At my words, the Prince shook his head.

“You have helped me tremendously. If it weren’t for you, I would have completely lost the will to live in a few years with my hands rotting away. If I have to send you away without any compensation, I will regret it for the rest of my life.”

Only then did I say what I needed to say.

“It’s not that I truly want nothing. It’s just that there’s nothing I want right now.”

“…Right now?”

I want to make the most of this opportunity.

Since I’ve already helped him, wouldn’t it be right to receive something substantial in return?

It would be too wasteful to ask a Prince for just a good weapon, artifact, or money.

I can obtain those anytime.

Since I’ve started selling Mana Stones, money goes without saying.

So right now, I’m boldly asking the Prince.

What can you do for me?

“…Right. Yes, nothing might come to mind immediately.”

The Prince seems flustered, as if my answer was unexpected.

The Prince then suddenly smiled wryly.

“Now I see you also have a talent for flustering princes.”

“I apologize.”

“Apologize for what. This is why I arranged this private meeting. If I intended to pressure you with authority and power, I would have met you in the Dean’s Office, not here. Going on and on about how amazing your accomplishment was while incidentally elevating my own authority.”

The Prince was more straightforward than I expected.

“Yes, it’s bewildering but it was a question that gave me something to think about. Actually, I’ve been pondering it too. What I could do for you, and for your friends who became guarantors of that oath.”

The Prince took a sip of wine and continued speaking slowly.

“The Imperial Treasury, enormous wealth, Imperial job placements, treasures officially known not to exist… Of course, some things would require His Majesty the Emperor’s approval, but as a Prince, there are countless things I can do for you.”

Then he shrugged his shoulders.

“Of course, I don’t think any of what I just listed would appeal to you.”

He was right.

None of it attracted me.

So I brought up what I had prepared in advance.

“Then, how about this?”

The Prince took another sip of wine and showed me his hand. That hand no longer trembled and had regained its color.

“I will not accept a reward right now.”

“Hmm?”

However, now his eyes trembled slightly instead of his hand.

“As I said, I think it would be better not to receive anything right now.”

“The reason?”

The Prince was an honest person.

I could tell just by seeing his expression slightly contort.

No matter how straightforward his personality, it was natural for him to react this way when someone refused a reward after he, a Prince no less, had personally called them for a private audience to give compensation.

Of course, there was a reason for saying this.

“This is a reward given directly by Your Highness. I don’t want to waste such a precious opportunity on something trivial.”

“Continue.”

I finally got to the main point.

“When I truly need help, I will request it from Your Highness.”

The Prince was silent for a moment.

“…Are you telling me to wait?”

“If that’s how it sounded, I apologize. Please forgive my disloyalty for not being able to think of anything suitable immediately upon hearing the word ‘reward.'”

“I permit it. I forgive you.”

As I said again, the Prince was a straightforward person.

“So, you’ll request help later.”

“That’s correct. I could request money immediately, or ask for fine weapons or artifacts from the Imperial Treasury, but… it would be a shame to waste Your Highness’s grace on just such things.”

The Prince finally burst into laughter.

“You have remarkable insight, Dane Sogress.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, you’re right. Mere money, artifacts, weapons. If you wanted them, I could give them to you anytime for healing my hand.”

The Prince finally curled up the corners of his mouth.

“But something ‘valuable’ that only I can do for you has a different meaning, doesn’t it? Just as you said.”

The Prince’s help.

The 3rd Prince.

A figure with less influence compared to the 1st and 2nd Princes, with nothing particularly known about him.

But why?

Something sleeping within this Prince seemed to cry out that it would become more than that.

“Good. Let’s do that.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Perhaps…

Was it because the flow of his mana that I saw while healing the Prince’s hand was unusual?

Like something held back by a massive dam, calm but ready to burst forth uncontrollably the moment the dam breaks, sweeping everything away.

That might be why his hand recovered so quickly the moment I opened a path.

Of course, it wasn’t Ancient Mana.

However, it seemed it wouldn’t take long for him to grasp the opportunity he had been deprived of and grow.

That’s why I postponed the reward to the future.

To receive something greater.

“But I hope the time when you need me won’t be too far off, Dane Sogress. I like you.”

Would my heart pound like this if I received a love confession?

The Prince said he liked me.

“If Your Highness ever needs me, please come find me anytime.”

“Hmm. Then…”

The Prince hesitated for a moment at my words.

“…By any chance.”

Then he brought up something out of the blue.

“When I’m bored, would it be alright if I came to visit the Academy to see you and your friends?”

At those words, I finally couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.

“Why, why are you laughing? Was I, was I too childish? Oh, do I need to make a separate appointment to meet you at the Academy? I didn’t know about such things…”

“Ha, haha… No, Your Highness.”

I nodded while unable to stop laughing.

“You can come visit anytime. You’re coming to see a friend, so what permission would be needed?”

“…Friend.”

Friend.

Yes.

Perhaps the Prince wanted this, beyond talent and hands.

To be the Prince’s friend.

Setting aside rewards and status, he certainly seemed like a genuinely good person.

Well, it’s not like I analyze every little thing when making friends.

“…Thank you for saying that, Dane Sogress.”

“Don’t mention it.”

But how would he come to the Academy?

Would he secretly come wearing some disguise like in fairy tales?

Well, he did come to the Academy that way before.

If that doesn’t work, we could go to him.

We’d be going to see a friend.

“Friend. It’s my first time, so I’m a bit bewildered. Hmm, friend. Friend…”

The Prince, who had been repeating the word friend, suddenly spoke as if he remembered something.

“Oh, and by the way. I have something prepared.”

“Something prepared…”

Snap!

The Prince snapped his fingers with an extremely excited expression.

“Oh, it makes a sound now. I couldn’t even dream of this before.”

And immediately the door opened, and a knight entered carrying boxes covered with luxurious cloth and set them down in front of me.

“This is a gift I prepared as your friend, not as a Prince.”

The Prince raised his hand.

“Open it.”

When I removed the covering cloth, what was revealed was a splendid wooden box stamped with the Imperial Seal.

“This is my gift, trusting that you will use it wisely.”

As soon as I opened the lid-

“Above all, I thought this was the only thing I could give you as a friend.”

An item similarly stamped with the Imperial Seal appeared.

This round, flat, and heavy thing was…

“It’s an Imperial Signet.”

It was something I never expected.

“It’s a signet that the Imperial Family traditionally bestows only upon those who have greatly helped the Imperial Family.”

It was an incredible item.

“Its use is simple.”

And the purpose of this signet was extremely straightforward.

“If you run into any trouble, show them that seal. It’ll solve everything.”

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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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