Chapter 79: Prince Maker (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 79: Prince Maker (4)
They say the position makes the man.
Living in the imperial palace, Esid had felt the weight of those words deep in his bones.
Royalty.
The bloodline of the Emperor, the one who ruled the most powerful nation on the continent.
From the moment he was born with that blood, a normal life was an impossibility. No matter how much he lacked the desire to become Emperor, his own will meant nothing as long as the mere possibility of his ascension existed.
By the time he realized this, numerous factions were already pushing him forward as their figurehead.
And even more enemies were watching, waiting for him to fall.
Well, he had managed to stay relatively safe only because he lived so quietly. Rumors whispered that some of his brothers who were closer to the throne had already survived several assassination attempts.
That was why Esid had fled to the Academy as soon as he was old enough to enroll. It was a move to distance himself from the imperial palace and the factions trying to crown him, while simultaneously signaling to his brothers that he had no interest in the throne.
And in the process, he fell in love.
It wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it was quite good.
His heart had been captured by the daughter of a rural noble who truly had nothing to her name.
He felt a pang of guilt toward his fiancée and benefactor, House Jeyka, but their support was the very thing forcing him into a succession war he didn't want. If he were to have an affair with Daisy, the Ducal House wouldn't be able to hide their displeasure.
He felt sorry for his fiancée, Lady Loreliya, but... perhaps she, too, secretly desired an annulment rather than an unwanted political marriage.
Indulging in such selfish, convenient thoughts, he had tried his best to catch Daisy's eye. However, he had too many rivals.
And then.
"It's... it's a fake relationship!"
Was his effort too burdensome for her, or did she simply have no feelings for him? If it were him, he would have gladly accepted a real relationship, not a fake one.
She claimed it was fake, but she had taken a lover nonetheless.
And to top it off.
"Lady Loreliya has declared that she is seeing Adam Smith!"
"…?"
Not only the woman he truly loved, but even the fiancée he was bound to by politics had been snatched away.
And by the exact same person.
…Of course, if he had to weigh whether this was good or bad.
"It's not so bad."
To an outsider, it might look like Loreliya was having an affair. But since Esid was the one who had technically strayed first—albeit unofficially—he had no intention of blaming her.
He could have gained a lot politically from her scandal, but his goal from the start was to distance himself from politics. Besides, if he actually pressed the issue, wouldn't he become a complete enemy of House Jeyka?
Esid wanted to distance himself from power, not have assassins visiting his bedside every night.
That was why, when Esid told Adam he sincerely hoped things worked out between him and Loreliya, he meant it. Just as he had discovered love, he hoped she would find it too.
He figured that would ease his conscience... while also harboring the dark hope that Daisy might finally end her fake relationship.
But.
"…Don't you think he's going a bit too far?"
"D-do you think so?"
"I do! Even if it's fake, two-timing without even consulting you!"
"…Would it be okay if he did consult her?"
"Of course not!"
Watching Daisy grumble to Violet in the clubroom, Esid wondered if he was the only one feeling a growing sense of crisis.
He glanced around and realized that, for better or worse, he wasn't alone in that thought.
The result of that mounting anxiety was the group stalking they had done during the Night of Magi. They had experienced things beyond their wildest imaginations that night, but Esid knew better than anyone that he had contributed almost nothing to the effort.
If he had to make an excuse, it couldn't be helped.
To begin with, Esid was not born with a talent for martial arts. Thanks to the various elixirs gifted to the imperial family and the guidance of great masters, he had reached a level he didn't have to be ashamed of, but that was it. To put it another way, despite all that investment, he was only slightly better than the average student.
He simply didn't have the skill to face those who grew their power through unorthodox means, like dark mages.
In that last fight, they hadn't just faced dark mages; they had dealt with fanatics who had ties to the Demon Tribe—and even a real Demon, a creature straight out of myth.
They couldn't let a prince of the Empire with mediocre skills join a fight like that. The various imperial agents present, and even his friends on the battlefield, had pushed him to the rear.
Though it stung his pride, he knew it was the rational choice. At the time, providing minor magical support from the back was the best he could do.
That was why.
"……?"
Esid could not understand the sudden, widespread praise being heaped upon him from every corner.
"What is this?"
Was it a new form of bullying? Since they couldn't openly harass a prince, were they mocking him through "praise"?
Esid felt nothing but embarrassment at the compliments. He was a man who knew his own shortcomings.
Unlike his half-brother who had come to Rias, he had never proven himself. He knew he didn't possess the brilliant talent of his club mates, who were in similar positions.
On his gloomier days, he even fell into bouts of paranoia, wondering if that was why Daisy wouldn't look at him. He had no confidence in himself.
Which was why...
"Prince Esid, good morning. This, too, is thanks to you, Prince Esid."
"What is?"
He couldn't understand why the good weather was his doing.
…Actually, this had nothing to do with self-confidence!
"Isn't the weather lovely today? Of course, since the Magic Department mostly stays indoors, it wouldn't matter if the weather was bad, but doesn't it just make you feel good?"
"I suppose."
"That is why I am expressing my gratitude."
"I'm asking why, exactly?!"
"Explaining the reason... wouldn't be fun, cool, or sexy..."
Esid could not understand.
"It's still a bit hot. But that just means one can feel happiness in a single sip of cool water... This, too, must be thanks to Prince Esid."
"……?"
Esid could not understand.
"I heard today's sandwiches have thick slices of fried meat in them."
"That sounds delicious!"
"This, too, must be Prince Esid's grace."
"That goes without saying."
"……?"
Truly, Esid could not understand.
"Esid. According to my investigation, through your exploits..."
Esid could not understand.
"Even you, Brother?!"
Of course, Erild couldn't understand the look of utter betrayal on Esid's face either.
Rumors spread fast in the Academy.
I don't know if it's because of the RoFan Buff or just because the place is packed with people who just hit puberty, but once a rumor starts, it spreads with terrifying ease.
The event that proved this was, naturally, our RoFan heroine Daisy's "Holy Kingdom Restoration."
At the time, the legend of the massive, beautiful sword was famous not just in the Academy but across the entire continent. Since the students had been scattered across the land during the break, they had all returned with various regional rumors, which then converged at the Academy.
As the rumors merged, split, and merged again, they began to spiral out of control.
The most absurd one was about why this world had two moons. Apparently, there used to be only one, but Daisy's sword had reached past the sky and struck it. When she swung her blade at the corrupt cardinals, it supposedly grazed the moon and split it in two.
The funny thing was that a lot of people actually believed it.
It was so convincing that if I had possessed someone at the start of the Academy arc and heard that rumor, I might have actually wondered, Wait, is that true? Fortunately, I had memories of looking at the sky as a child in this world and thinking, Wow, since it's a fantasy world, there are two moons.
That was how sensitive and gullible the Academy students were. I suppose you could call it the "Blessing of RoFan."
The problem was.
"…They're a little too gullible, aren't they?"
I'd known this since I first saw Prince Ellen and the other RoFan male lead bastards, but this damn RoFan world had no middle ground.
"We give thanks to the Goddess for our daily bread, and to Prince Esid for making it possible..."
Goddammit, why is Esid's name coming right after the Goddess?
"Kyah! The water in my canteen is still cold! This, too, must be Prince Esid's grace, right?"
No, that's the grace of a temperature-preservation spell, not the Prince.
"Hey, I ran into Esid this morning! Now that I have Esid's blessing, I'll definitely beat you today, Adam!"
"…Just go die."
"Gah!"
I could ignore the others, but shouldn't the Minor Sword Emperor know better?
"…Uncle. Isn't this joke going a bit too far?!"
"Adam, you brat! Know when to stop!"
And so, an emergency meeting was called.
Since we weren't in a designated warehouse like back at the Academy, we gathered in a room I'd managed to squeeze out of Taylor. As soon as we saw each other's faces, we blurted out what was on our minds.
"…It wasn't you?"
"I thought it was you!"
We immediately sensed each other's sincerity.
"Why would you think it was me?"
"I thought you were just pulling a prank because you thought it'd be funny."
"How is this funny? It's getting scary. Besides, I thought you were determined to push Prince Esid forward."
"Why would I? The Ducal House has already given up on him becoming Emperor. The Imperial Family just wants the future Emperor's abilities to grow through healthy competition. They wouldn't push one person this excessively."
"……"
"……"
Having heard each other's denials, we couldn't help but fall into a state of dread.
"…Then why?"
"Is this shit happening?"
Even for a rumor, there's a limit. We might have laid the groundwork to spread the word, but this had moved past the realm of rumors and into the realm of madness.
"…Can we fix this?"
"Do you think we can?"
It had reached the point where his name was being mentioned alongside the Goddess in prayers.
"Stop spreading weird stuff in my hometown!"
Taylor, who arrived a moment later, let out a scream of despair. The problem was that this was spreading beyond the first-year students on their field trip and naturally infecting the people of Rias.
"If only I had Lord Esid's blessing, I could be with the Prince..."
"Get a grip, you crazy girl."
Even looking at the Fire Spammer, it seemed the situation had reached the level of a folk religion.
"Forget Esid, even if Esid's grandfather showed up, it wouldn't happen!"
"…Prince Esid's grandfather would be the Retired Emperor."
"N-no! If I just have Lord Esid's blessing..."
"That's why you can't get a date!"
"Waaaaah!"
"What a mess..."
Just as even the insiders who knew the truth were falling into chaos, I finally faced the reality of the situation.
"This, too, is thanks to Esid."
"Ahhh..."
"I believe..."
"You little—"
Bathed in a holy aura, Daisy gave a benevolent smile as students wept with emotion.
Right, I was the idiot.
When something happens in a RoFan novel, there's a very high probability that the protagonist is at the center of it. And since Boradori herself had certified that the only protagonist here was Daisy...
The moment trouble started, I should have suspected her first.
"Ow! That hurts! I-I'll go, just stop pulling my ear...!"
I dragged Daisy away and shouted with all my heart.
"Why are you working so hard on this?!"
Daisy replied, her voice full of confusion.
"W-well, because it was a promise?"
"……"
I had no idea the effect of a one-year contract extension would be this potent.
Dammit. I have nothing to say.