The Crown Prince
The Crown Prince
Crown Prince Alex checked his appearance once more in front of the mansion gates.
The reflection he saw when he pulled out a hand mirror was flawless.
Since someone might recognize him, he had used a potion to change his black hair—a symbol of the imperial family—to brown.
This was all preparation for the Crown Prince to mess with Rupert, the manga artist.
He would visit the man's family in disguise, deliberately act rude, and if Rupert took offense or got angry—
only then would he reveal his identity and threaten him, asking if he had insulted the imperial family, and by extension the Crown Prince himself.
If he visited openly, the man would obviously grovel, so this was also a chance to see his true nature.
In truth, when it came to rudeness, the Crown Prince showing up unannounced and getting angry was far worse.
But since rumors of him being a scoundrel were already widespread, this sort of behavior wouldn't seem particularly strange.
"You there, is no one home?"
In case they might think he was someone of high status, he had deliberately brought only one escort knight disguised as an attendant.
He had even prepared a cover story: he was a provincial noble visiting Somerset Territory who had nowhere to stay and hoped to impose on the household for one night.
It would be rude for nobles to turn away a visiting guest, so they would likely offer him a night's lodging, and if he then acted insolent in various ways, they probably wouldn't be able to hold back their anger.
'Just thinking about teaching that insolent bastard a lesson already puts me in a good mood.'
The Somerset family should have had no connection to him at all, but now they were going to endure a lecture about insulting the imperial family and disrespecting the Crown Prince.
All of this was because of that insolent Rupert Somerset, who had hidden behind the Imperial Princess and mocked him.
He was very curious whether the man could do the same to his face.
"Excuse me, what business do you have?"
The two soldiers guarding the mansion gates asked who he was.
When Alex gave a nod to the escort knight disguised as his attendant—
"This is Lord Rax, eldest son of Baron Clazen of the west. He is currently visiting Count Somerset's territory and has come to pay his respects."
"Good evening, Lord Rax. Might we see your identification plaque?"
Flash
Alex produced the forged identification plaque he had commissioned from the Magic Tower for this very purpose.
It was identical to the genuine article, so there was no way they could tell the difference.
Once the soldiers finished their inspection, the mansion gates opened and one of them guided him inside.
'Not bad for a country lord's mansion.'
Of course, comparing it directly to a capital mansion was unreasonable given the difference in land, but even so, it was a size that wouldn't lose face anywhere.
"What is that?"
But Alex's gaze quickly shifted away from the mansion.
Two large single-story buildings that didn't fit the mansion grounds.
Even though it was night, the lights were on and bright, and a clamorous noise came from within.
"Ah, those are factories that produce books and merchandise."
"Why are they at the mansion?"
"Well... Master Rupert was the one who decided it...."
How peculiar. Normally, noble mansion grounds had landscaped gardens or zoos where rare animals could be viewed.
A factory? Why would anyone build something so loud and noisy on mansion grounds?
It couldn't possibly be because he was stingy about land prices.
'Probably for security. He's more cautious than I thought.'
He had heard the rumors about Rupert.
Unlike the books he made, he was said to be an extremely cold-blooded man who had turned his own father, Count Somerset, into a puppet.
That one thing was certainly surprising.
In noble society, a rumor like that could later prove devastating to one's honor. Yet Rupert had boldly seized control of his family without seeming to fear it.
"Welcome, Lord Rax Klassen. We sincerely welcome you to House Somerset."
By the time they arrived at the mansion, a butler had come out to greet them.
"I've imposed on you in the middle of the night. I'd like to pay my respects to the head of the house—would that be possible?"
"My apologies. Both the head of the house and Master Rupert are currently out, so I'm afraid I'll have to receive you myself."
Tch.
Being rude to a butler was pointless.
Even if the butler became angry at his behavior, the family could simply blame the servant's training or hiring and cut him loose.
"Ah, I've come at a bad time. Will they not be returning today?"
"No, they should return soon, so please wait inside."
Following the butler's guidance, he entered the mansion, and a portrait hanging in the central foyer caught his eye.
"What is that?"
Alex was startled. The imperial palace had court painters, and he had viewed paintings a few times, but that portrait was on a far higher level.
"It is a portrait of the late madam, painted by Master Rupert, the family's second son."
"...It's very well done."
Even Alex had no choice but to acknowledge the skill. He admired the portrait for a moment, when a question suddenly occurred to him—why hadn't the lady of the house come out?
"Come to think of it, shouldn't I at least pay my respects to the lady of the house?"
"...The madam passed away five years ago."
"I've committed a discourtesy."
"Not at all. How could you possibly have known?"
He inwardly winced.
This was certainly his own breach of etiquette, so he offered an apology to the butler.
"Then I shall guide you to the drawing room."
"Thank you."
As Alex walked toward the drawing room, his thoughts churned.
A particular theory had occurred to him.
'So that bastard lost his mother too?'
Somehow, the man resembled himself. His own mother had passed away when he was young, so looking at that portrait had stirred complicated emotions.
He wondered if that was why Rupert had driven out his father and taken over the family.
Since he himself harbored resentment toward his own father, it was something he could understand.
He still hated his father, who had said the Empress's seat could not remain empty and taken a new woman as his wife as soon as his mother died.
He had been only five then, a child who couldn't understand why he was suddenly expected to call another woman his mother.
He had thrown tantrums and sulked, not wanting to forget his late mother, but his father had firmly brushed him aside and never reversed his decision.
He himself had been unable to do anything about his father, the Emperor, and had done nothing to this day.
But unlike him, Rupert had clearly expressed that fury.
'The Cinderella and Snow White he made both had protagonists who lost their mothers.'
Now he understood the background behind those works.
Those stories, so peaceful and warm on the surface, now struck him as hopeful retellings of the artist's own life.
Tap tap tap!
Loud footsteps shattered the Crown Prince's train of thought.
A little girl came racing down the hallway as if it were a riding track.
Who on earth was that little kid running around the hallway?
She looked too young to be a maid.
But she couldn't be the Count's daughter either—her clothes were grimy, and her plump build made it hard to see her as a noble family's young lady.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Elza Ada! Who are you, mister?"
"My lady! This person is a guest."
The butler spoke urgently to the little girl while glancing at Alex, but Alex was already in shock.
'M...mister?'
What an absurd form of address. Calling him—who had just turned twenty-five—a mister.
"Who is this little one?"
"Ah, my apologies. This is Lady Ada Somerset, the Count's third child."
Ah, so she was that bastard's younger sister.
Alex stared at the little girl who had dared call him "mister."
Eyes staring up at him from a chubby face.
'But why are her clothes so worn?'
Even setting aside the plump body unbecoming of a noble young lady, where on earth had she gotten that sky-blue dress? It was in a terribly grimy state.
Seeing that, anger rose in Alex.
'Does Count Somerset not even pay attention to his own daughter?'
Even the Emperor, who oppressed him and showed no interest in his second child, at least cared about appearances.
Could Count Somerset be running around womanizing?
As the thought occurred to him that everything in the books he had read might be based on true stories—
suddenly this little girl named Ada seemed pitiful.
'Poor thing. At an age when she needs a mother's love the most.'
Unaware of Alex's feelings, Ada beamed brightly and pointed at him with what she held in her hand.
"Freeze!"
"What?"
A bewildered question escaped at the sudden nonsensical outburst, but Ada's expression rapidly fell.
"My lord, I apologize. My lady, he is a guest. You mustn't play that sort of prank on him."
The butler, who had been watching, hastily stopped Ada and apologized to Alex repeatedly.
Alex, still baffled as to what kind of prank this was, received a hurried explanation from Alain.
Once he heard that she was imitating the protagonist of the currently popular manga <Kingdom of Ice>, he finally understood.
'Is this how it goes?'
He stopped moving and stood still as if frozen, and Ada began smiling with satisfaction again.
But as if that wasn't enough, Ada poked Alex's body here and there with the staff she was holding.
"How dare you lay hands on his august person—!!!"
The escort knight pretending to be an attendant was horrified and tried to stop her.
But when Alex quietly signaled with his eyes to stay still, the escort could only fidget anxiously and watch.
'She's a pitiful child. I can indulge her for a moment.'
He himself had gone through a childhood like this, so he knew how hard and unhappy she must be right now.
"Unfreeze! Hiya!!!"
Only when Alex showed no reaction even after being poked did Ada finally feel reassured and shout the spell's release.
Seeing that, Alex felt a part of his heart grow a little more at ease.
Looking again, she was grimy, but with those chubby cheeks and all, she was a fairly cute little kid.
So he patted her head, and she shook her head from side to side.
"Hm?"
"No! Ada's gonna marry the prince, so not just anyone can pat Ada!"
At Ada's answer, Alex burst out laughing in disbelief.
If she knew his status, she'd be shocked.
Some mere prince was nothing compared to him, the Crown Prince of the Empire.
"Little one, wouldn't it be better to dream of marrying an imperial prince rather than a prince?"
"No! Ada likes princes! Ada doesn't know imperial princes!"
He was at a loss for words.
How could she like a prince more than an imperial prince? Just as 2 was obviously a higher number than 1, there was an incomparable difference.
"Why do you like princes more?"
"'Cause Cinderella and Snow White and the Little Mermaid all marry princes!"
Those damn picture books.
It seemed he had one more thing to request of the author.
***
"Welcome back, Master Rupert."
"Yes, it was just a simple meeting. Nothing happened while I was gone, right?"
"Ah, a guest visited and just left."
A guest?
With so many visitors these days because of the picture books and manga, I figured it was something like that.
"What did they come for?"
"A guest visiting the territory who came to pay their respects."
"How unusual. What's there to see in this backwater?"
"As it was late, they said they would pay their respects another time and left a letter."
I opened the letter Alain handed me.
「To Rupert Somerset.
I originally visited because I had something to say to you, but since you were absent, I shall leave only this letter.
I had intended to point out your behavior, but having come and learned something of your circumstances, I shall let it pass this time.
Pay no mind to public rumors, and continue to push forward with your own actions. Others may not understand, but I do.
Ah, and when you write your works in the future, it would be better to make the male lead an imperial prince rather than a prince.
From an anonymous sympathizer.⌟
"What the hell? Is this guy insane?"
Leaving behind a letter whose contents made no sense whatsoever—it was unsettling and ominous.
'Come to think of it, something like this happened before.'
Just in case, I carefully tucked away the letter I had been about to throw out.
A deeply uneasy feeling. An imperial prince rather than a prince?
Could an imperial prince have come to our territory?
No, if that were the case, rumors would have spread.
The more I thought about it, the more my head hurt.
'Should I really start being more careful?'
Maybe it was a side effect of drinking Vitality Potions like water lately, but I had a tendency to grow recklessly bold without realizing it.
It was a moment when I resolved to be more careful once again.