Chapter 50
Chapter 50
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Bloodied (6)
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Hating what you're born with is a curse.
Especially when that something is the imperial bloodline that everyone envies.
Unfortunately, Adelheit von Valdion was just such a girl.
She could no longer affirm her identity as an imperial princess.
When Adelheit was young.
Life was fun for her.
How delightful all the privileges of being a princess must have been for a little girl.
She could have anything she wanted and do anything she pleased.
So Adelheit didn't particularly hate being imperial royalty.
No, of course, the retainers would occasionally admonish her.
"Your Highness, as royalty, you must pay more attention to your dignity."
"Princess, you must behave with grace befitting your station. Such actions are for commoners."
Eating while walking around with food in hand, or running through the palace with her skirts fluttering.
Actions that felt utterly natural to Adelheit seemed utterly unacceptable to them.
It was annoying to hear such things, but she could endure it.
After all, it was no different from the nagging any child receives.
So Adelheit took no great pride in her royal status, but she didn't hate it either.
Perhaps this was the last time she could live without any doubts.
Around the time Adelheit's baby fat started melting away, she began conversing more frequently with her older brother and sister.
When she was very young, they simply doted on her cuteness, but now she was old enough for real conversations.
The First Prince and Second Princess no longer just indulged her; they often scolded her gently.
Mostly because of the "recklessness" the retainers reported about Adelheit.
"I see. So you were dancing alone and got scolded by the retainers?"
"Yeah, Brother. Isn't that no big deal? I really don't get it."
"Hmm..."
Once, after Adelheit got an earful from the retainers, she talked to her brother about it.
His face looked troubled, twisted into a wry smile.
"Adel, I understand how you feel, but maybe try enduring it a bit. Ladies who know restraint are more popular with men."
"Hmph! I'm not interested in guys like that. I'd like someone honest with himself."
"Haha. Suit yourself."
Her brother smiled good-naturedly and didn't scold her harshly.
This was because he was much older than her, making him more mature.
And to him, Adelheit was a much younger sister, too far down the line to worry about imperial succession.
So he never reprimanded her severely.
That's fine, he would say. Do as you please.
She'd grow out of it eventually.
He let it slide with such leniency.
"Foolish Adel. You played by the water without caring if your skirts got wet? Are you really royalty?"
In contrast, her sister was cold and sharp.
Adelheit hated talking to her sister.
She nagged every time they met.
"What's wrong with that? I just did what I wanted."
"Stupid Adel. Think about how every action of yours looks to others. You are royalty. Everyone in this country watches your every move. Don't you get that?"
"No. Why does that matter?"
"Ha! Idiot Adel. Fine, pretend it doesn't exist your whole life. Does ignoring the burden on your shoulders make it disappear?"
Her sister's colder attitude stemmed partly from their smaller age gap.
But more than that, the Second Princess took pride in her royal identity.
All the duties she had to bear as royalty.
She embraced them all without complaint—her sister was that kind of person.
So Adelheit hated the Second Princess.
Talking to her never led anywhere, and she had no hobby of getting lectured.
But both the First Prince and Second Princess reacted the same way to Adelheit.
"You're still too young."
"You haven't shouldered your duties yet."
"You don't understand what it means to be royalty."
She hated that nuance.
Adelheit was a princess. At least, that's what she thought of herself.
As long as she handled the annoying duties adequately, that was enough.
She wasn't some immature child who just wanted to enjoy the perks without responsibility.
She simply wanted to live a little more freely and happily.
In truth, there was a reason Adelheit had become this way.
She was the Third Princess, much younger than her brother and sister.
Far removed from the imperial succession race.
She had far more privileges than obligations to worry about.
The retainers all thought: Just uphold the bare minimum as royalty and live as you please otherwise.
But even that, Adelheit hated.
No, perhaps that's exactly why she hated it.
They loosened the reins ambiguously while always insisting on maintaining basic decorum.
Adelheit rebelled even more, deliberately seeking out things unbecoming of a princess—things that were truly her.
Perhaps it was because her personality was too unique to fit the royal mold.
But by the time she was over ten, such things hardly mattered anymore.
Her goal was to find freedom from this suffocating life as a princess.
She learned magic.
Unlike her brother and sister vying for the throne, Adelheit had no need for personal power.
She could just adorn herself beautifully and marry a suitable noble as a consort.
No one told her to learn magic.
So she did it deliberately.
Half out of rebellion, half out of curiosity.
Flipping through books to learn magic was fun, and surprisingly, she had talent—her skills improved quickly.
"The Third Princess again?"
"Yes. She's reading a magic tome in her room."
"Good grief. We've told her there's no need, yet she insists."
The highborn retainers couldn't understand Adelheit.
How happy a life it was to groom oneself and fulfill minimal duties.
Yet she rebelled like this.
So Adelheit sought out even more different things.
Things a little less princess-like, a little more her.
She tried carrying a fan.
A fan used in the eastern region of Aonia.
Uncommon in the empire, which made it all the better.
It wasn't something a princess would carry.
Even such un-royal behavior didn't change the nobles' attitudes toward her.
They still didn't see her as an individual.
To them, she was royalty above all.
Marry her once, and life was set.
Sure, Adelheit acted strangely.
But they still thought her worthy of betrothal.
No, they might have even liked it.
The lower her princess value, the less burden on the marrying noble.
To them, she was attractive.
No bloodbath from succession wars, a path to advancement as consort, and an eccentric princess they could use as an excuse for separate quarters.
Thus, suitors' advances toward Adelheit were inevitable.
"Third Princess, care to walk with me?"
"Your Highness, you look lovely today as well."
"Princess, have you heard of my family?"
Their faces, as they spoke, never truly looked at Adelheit.
They gazed only at what lay behind her—her background.
She hated that.
Look at me.
Stop fixating on "princess" and look at me.
If you're going to say you like me or love me, shouldn't you see the person I am?
The more it happened, the more she locked away her heart.
Believing there were no men worth expecting or interesting.
Yes, that's how Adelheit grew up.
Hating her identity as a princess despite having it.
Hating even the minimal duties.
It was partly her nature, partly circumstances.
Looking back as an adult, she could dismiss it as youthful folly.
Just immaturity, nothing more.
Easy to reflect on and move past.
Of course, even such minor rebellions can become irreparable mistakes depending on the situation.
For instance, getting your face torn off by a wicked vampire at a social gathering.
But Adelheit didn't face such a future.
Thanks to a certain young man who shouldn't have been at the Cluster of Stars she attended.
She still remembered it vividly.
"Hello! Is that magic? That's so cool!"
The first boy to praise her magic.
Her first meeting with Kline Leonhart.
"No need to bother. It looks like you're trying to win my favor, but it's pointless. I've heard that sweet talk far too often."
At first, she raised her guard.
All the nobles who had tried to make her theirs until now.
Some pretended to understand her tastes and acted magnanimously.
So raising her guard was natural.
But for some reason, this boy was different.
"No, I just saw magic for the first time and thought it was amazing. Forgive my impertinence, but... do you hear 'hatchet-face' a lot?"
She'd never heard "hatchet-face" before.
She knew what it meant.
But she never imagined a boy bold enough to say it to a princess's face.
"Y-You're quite bold speaking like that before Third Princess Adelheit. Surely you don't fail to recognize me?"
She asked just in case.
Her guard was already melting from this conversation alone.
An unusual, unique noble.
To Adelheit, he was like sweet fruit found in a desert oasis.
So she worried he might realize her identity and change his attitude, prompting the question.
"Yes, I didn't recognize you. I don't pay much attention to other nobles anyway. This is my first time out for the Cluster of Stars, so now I know. But don't you know me either, Princess? Who am I?"
He turned the tables, pressing the princess herself.
Yes.
She fell silent around then.
But from that moment, the boy had already started seeming incredibly attractive to Adelheit.
She could tell just from talking.
What kind of person he was.
Whether he was the type lunging only at her background.
And this boy was clearly different.
That much she knew for sure.
"I'm Kline of the Leonhart Ducal Family. Regrettable to introduce myself this way, Princess."
Kline Leonhart.
She committed it to memory.
"Anyway, to continue what I was asking. Are you a mage, Princess? What do you do? I was going to ask to see some magic."
Kline was a truly curious boy.
Approaching out of nowhere to ask for magic.
Normally, she'd call it rude, but somehow she didn't want to with him.
What was it? She wanted to impress him.
It was a new feeling, unfamiliar to Adelheit.
"Your hatchet-face seems severe, so I thought you'd be good at acting."
She wanted to smack him for harping on hatchet-face.
"Is there a spell called Fireball? I'd love to see it. It's a dream of mine."
This odd boy wanting to see basic magic.
She obliged, and he applauded with genuine awe.
'Wow.'
What kind of person is this Kline guy?
Even as she thought that, her heart fluttered, threatening to show on her face.
Her best restraint was a haughty "hmph."
"Are you here for the Cluster of Stars too?"
That's why she blurted it out without thinking.
Most nobles coming to the Lotus Pavilion at that time shared the same purpose.
Yet she asked because she was secretly embarrassed.
The bold follow-up embarrassed even her.
"Hmph... Well, if you can't find a dance partner, come to me."
She snapped her fan shut over her mouth in sudden shyness.
It hid her mouth, but her flushed cheeks were surely visible.
Oh.
I'm crazy, crazy.
Why say that to a boy I just met?
But what could she do?
This was the first person like him.
"You, shut up. Sara, why are you so surprised?"
Her maid Sara interrupted midway, making a fuss.
From her demeanor, it seemed Kline had some ominous rumor attached.
Sara explained he'd beaten a member of the Imperial White Wing Knights, one of the four great knight orders.
'...Is that even possible?'
An apprentice knight, stronger than his peers with the sword.
Yet Kline, four years younger, had won?
Impossible.
...Even thinking that, her heart inexplicably raced.
Like realizing a magic book chosen by its cover was a gem.
Knowing this boy was something special made her heart pound more.
"Hey. Next time you see me, act like you know me."
Yes. That was it.
Words she'd never said to any other noble.
Special permission to acknowledge her as Adelheit next time.
At the social gathering.
She ran into Kline on the terrace.
In the flow of conversation, somehow.
"Sounds nice. You get all the privileges with few duties."
Jealousy welled up at Kline's words.
She couldn't let it slide.
Not when a man she liked spoke that way.
She snapped her fan to her nose tip without realizing.
"You think I have few duties? I only came to this gathering because they begged me as a princess to please maintain some dignity."
Even after, Kline remained slippery.
As if he couldn't empathize with her troubles.
A bit disappointing.
Does even he not understand my feelings?
"What if someone made you do something you hated? If the atmosphere demanded it despite not wanting to, would you?"
"I'd do it. Sure."
She'd bared her true feelings, yet Kline answered curtly.
That he'd do it even if he hated it.
Unexpected.
To Adelheit, Kline seemed her kindred spirit.
A soul hating noble airs, wanting to roam freely as he pleased.
For such a boy to say he'd do what he hated.
'He's lying.'
Natural to think so.
"It's written all over your face that you hate noble stuff like me. Yet you do it without complaint? Ha! Fine. I'll watch. I'll see exactly how you act in that situation."
So she declared to Kline.
She'd watch.
Whether he truly acted as he claimed.
She'd see it with her own eyes.
...In truth, Adelheit had no real reason to go that far.
How Kline acted was irrelevant to her.
If she thought he lied, she'd be disappointed and lose interest.
Yet she vowed not to give up and to watch because.
She'd already developed a huge fondness for the boy named Kline Leonhart.
Deep down, she felt it but denied it.