Chapter 198: The Royal Castle (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 198: The Royal Castle (2)
Dragged away by the maids, I was treated like a doll.
They styled my hair, helped me dress, and continued to adorn me.
After about thirty minutes, I stood before the mirror and couldn't help but be surprised.
‘...Not bad at all.’
To be honest, I’d never really dressed up before. The only other time I'd ever tried was when I met up with Choi Hyena, maybe?
But even then, I only paid a little attention to my clothes; I'd never been properly styled before. I wasn't interested in it in the first place, and I didn't know how.
Still, thanks to my magic, I didn't think I looked shabby. My skin had cleared up to the point where you couldn't find a single blemish, and my features had become more defined.
But the man in the mirror looked quite different from my usual self.
No, maybe a lot different?
Clack.
Just then, the door opened with a familiar presence.
It was Elisabeth and Tina.
At their appearance, the maids who had been lounging on the floor scrambled to their feet and bowed their heads. They looked like office workers startled by a surprise visit from their boss.
“Hyun-woo, how much longer are you going to—huh?”
Elisabeth, who had burst through the door, met my eyes.
In that instant, she froze as if she’d turned to ice.
“We just finished.”
The cravat was a bit stuffy, but it was bearable. It wasn't my first time wearing the formal attire of this world, after all.
Of course, it did seem a bit more ornate than the suit I wore when I infiltrated the auction house.
“Lady Elisabeth?”
“...”
No answer came.
Her reaction was strange, so I cautiously approached her.
Flinch!
But Elisabeth flinched and stumbled back in surprise. Her extreme reaction created a strange tension between us.
In the heavy silence, Elisabeth’s lips parted.
“...Not bad.”
She muttered while turning her head away, then walked right out of the room.
I followed the strangely acting Elisabeth out of the mansion. Tina, of course, was with us.
Always maintaining a perfect distance, Tina was like a shadow.
It was a mystery how Elisabeth, who had no magic, had managed to slip away from Tina before.
“Please, take my hand.”
We had to take a carriage to the main palace where the king resided, so I moved to escort Elisabeth as I had before.
It wasn't as difficult as I'd expected, since I'd already done it when we got out of the carriage earlier.
After all, all I had to do was offer my hand, and the princess would take care of the rest.
“Lady Elisabeth?”
But Elisabeth just stared at my outstretched hand, not taking it.
“...Tina.”
“Yes.”
Tina immediately stepped up into the carriage and escorted her.
Elisabeth skillfully took her hand, boarded the carriage, and sat in the seat of honor, turning her head to look out the window.
My role stolen in an instant, I just stood there blankly.
‘What was that?’
Didn't she just complain about me not escorting her a little while ago?
I checked my hand just in case, but there was nothing on it, nor did it smell strange.
‘Is she in a bad mood or something?’
Then again, she might just complain later that I didn't escort her when we get off.
I dismissed it as nothing important and took my seat.
Clatter—
Soon, the carriage began to move.
As befitting the name "Royal Palace," the grounds were incredibly vast. There were quite a few buildings scattered about.
It took about a five-minute carriage ride to reach the main palace. The scale of the palace, seen through the window, was beyond imagination.
The Ruby Palace where Elisabeth stayed was magnificent, but the main palace was even more grand and wondrous.
‘I can feel magic... Is it a barrier?’
And it was a barrier created by a mage of a higher realm than me, one who had invested significant time and resources.
At least 7th Circle.
If not, it was clearly a barrier created by a group of 6th Circle mages.
It seemed to be focused on security and defense. Even if I went all out, I probably wouldn't be able to bring down the royal palace.
Though not on this level, the walls surrounding the capital also had a barrier.
‘Then again, considering Seoul had a barrier covering even the sky, this isn't all that surprising.’
When the carriage stopped and the door opened, Elisabeth got out with Tina's help.
Suddenly left alone in the carriage, I fidgeted with my cravat for a moment before following them.
‘...Did I do something wrong?’
I couldn't think of anything, which made it even more frustrating.
I wanted to just ask her outright, but as we entered the main palace, the gazes from all around made it impossible.
—Is that the man who saved Her Highness the Princess?
—He doesn't look like a noble. A knight, then?
—He doesn't have a sword at his waist. Isn't he a mage?
—Nah, if he were a mage, he wouldn't have followed her all the way to the palace.
—True...
Of course, it wasn't just the servants who were staring. There were nobles here and there as well.
Even while greeting Elisabeth, they were busy sneaking glances at me.
The stares from these old men were pissing me off. When I let a hint of killing intent slip, they all made excuses and fled.
Tina gave me a look as if to tell me to control myself, but I just averted my gaze, pretending I didn't know anything.
After walking for some time, Elisabeth, contrary to my expectations, headed towards a garden. It was a modestly decorated garden overall.
“...My father usually spends his time in the garden, not his office. Even when you request an audience, he prefers to receive guests in the garden rather than the Nivia Hall, where the throne is.”
For the first time since we left the mansion, Elisabeth spoke to me.
“He must love nature.”
I was putting it mildly since he was her father, but honestly, he sounded like he wasn't in his right mind.
It's not like he was an elf.
“Love? Don't make me laugh.”
Elisabeth seemed to share my thoughts, letting out a short scoff.
As she thought of her father, her face looked colder than ever.
“Your Highness.”
“I know.”
Tina stopped walking, as if she could go no further. I glanced back at her before continuing to follow Elisabeth.
The presence of people grew stronger.
“Hyun-woo.”
“Yes.”
“...Don't worry too much about etiquette. He won't be expecting much anyway. But no matter what happens, you must not raise your voice at my father.”
“Pardon?”
I didn't quite understand what she meant.
Isn't it common sense not to raise your voice at a king?
No matter how much killing intent I'd thrown at the nobles on my way here, I at least had that much sense.
“Understood?”
But Elisabeth looked serious.
When I nodded, she seemed satisfied and started walking again.
Beyond the delicately manicured garden, we came face to face with a man sipping from a teacup.
“Elisabeth Francesca Nivia greets His Majesty, the great King.”
Dressed in neat formal attire, he had faded blond hair and red eyes.
I followed her lead and bowed my head slightly.
“You've come.”
His tone was indifferent, devoid of any emotion.
It was hardly the way one would treat a daughter who had almost died just a few hours ago.
In fact, he seemed to have no interest in us at all, his eyes fixed on a document.
“My name is Kang Hyun-woo. I greet His Majesty, the great King.”
Only then did the man's gaze shift to me.
It was an unpleasant gaze, as if he were appraising me from head to toe.
“So this is him. The man who saved the princess.”
“I am humbled, Your Majesty.”
“Are you a mage?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Your affiliation?”
“I have no particular affiliation.”
“What is your realm?”
“I am 4th Circle.”
For the first time, the king's reaction changed as he continued his questions. Elisabeth's did as well.
Both of them looked surprised.
He even put down the document he was holding and began to focus on me.
“How long have you been learning magic?”
“...Do you want the truth, without any false modesty?”
The king, not expecting such a reply, let out a chuckle.
But he didn't seem offended, and the atmosphere relaxed slightly.
“Yes.”
“It hasn't even been half a year. In fact, far from it.”
Typically, it takes even a talented individual several years just to form a mana circle.
Furthermore, pioneering a new realm is a separate issue entirely; the average age for a 4th Circle mage is in their forties.
“...Your joke is in poor taste.”
The king's voice hardened.
“I am only speaking the truth.”
“Am I supposed to believe that someone who learned magic on their own reached the 4th Circle in less than half a year?”
“I do have a master.”
Iris Remeria Baiart Peledeia, a great 8th Circle mage who has reached the rank of a transcendent, is my master.
“Though I cannot speak her esteemed name due to certain circumstances, I can tell you that she is more skilled than any other mage in this world.”
A gaze, colder than before, shot towards me. But the king said nothing.
Instead, he seemed to be contemplating something.
“Can you show me your circle?”
“Yes.”
A heart, wrapped in four circles, bloomed above my palm.
At that moment, a strange light flickered in the king's eyes.
“You said you were twenty-one this year?”
Tap, tap, tap.
The king tapped the table.
The smile that spread across his lips was utterly unsettling.
“Your contribution in saving the princess is not small, so a fitting reward must follow.”
The king's gaze, as he stroked his chin out of habit, swept past Elisabeth.
Following his gaze, I glanced at her, and her eyes were trembling pitifully.
“How would you like to marry the princess?”
*
Elisabeth Francesca Nivia was a person more familiar with misfortune than happiness.
Her mother, the First Queen, was too ill to care for her daughter, so from the time she was a newborn, she was raised by a wet nurse.
The wet nurse was a kind person, but the parental care she should have received was nowhere to be found.
Except for the day she was born, the man who was her father never once came to see her.
After such a lonely childhood, what awaited her were attempts on her life.
The one who had poisoned her rose tea was a maid she had trusted and followed.
After that, the assassination attempts continued.
Hovering on the brink of death was a common occurrence.
There wasn't a single day she could fall asleep with a true sense of security.
Even at her tenth birthday party, as she collapsed from poison, a woman appeared before her.
It was the Second Queen.
—You poor thing...
The Second Queen looked at Elisabeth with a mocking smile.
She was the woman who, after the First Queen left the capital to recuperate, had married the king, ascended to the position of queen, and given birth to the first prince.
The moment Elisabeth saw the Second Queen approach her, she knew instinctively.
It's her.
The woman who had been trying to kill her all this time.
Only men could inherit titles, but the throne was a different matter. That woman intended to eliminate a competitor who could stand in her son's way.
That day, for the first time, she ran to the king and pleaded with him.
Please, save me.
My stepmother is trying to kill me.
But all she received in return was a cold stare.
In that moment, Elisabeth realized.
He knew.
He knew and let it happen.
From that day on, she gave up all expectations of her parents.
To survive, she had to doubt everything.
That was why she entered her débutante ball alone. To her, the young lords her age were nothing more than potential assassins who might be under the Second Queen's influence.
She rejected every man who approached her without exception. The same went for women.
Things got a little better after she met Tina, who had been dying on the street, but she still felt as if she were being suffocated from all sides.
That was why she secretly went on excursions.
She couldn't bear it otherwise.
If she were to be killed by an assassin during one of her trips, she had planned to just accept it and die.
That would be far more peaceful than continuing this precarious life.
Then, by chance, she met a man.
He knew who she was from the very beginning.
For a moment, she thought he might be an assassin, but his acting was so clumsy.
So clumsy that even a low-level mercenary hired for an assassination would have done a better job.
Moreover, as soon as he realized who she was, he tried to leave. Intrigued by this treatment she had never received before, she took an interest.
‘...He looks a bit rugged, though.’
But he seemed better than those who wielded knives with smiling faces.
The man before her knew who she was, but he had no intention of killing her or flattering her. He was a complete outsider.
It was because of that baseless conviction that she used his rudeness as a pretext to make him take off his pants.
Whenever she was severely stressed, she would relieve it through masturbation.
But she had never actually seen a man's genitals in person.
The sex education at the royal palace only taught the very basics, glossing over the details.
‘...I could die at any moment.’
Shouldn't I at least satisfy my curiosity before I go? It would make it a little less regrettable.
Of course, not just any man would do.
At the very least, his appearance had to meet her standards.
In that sense, the man before her met her criteria.
“I am sorry, but I'm afraid marriage will be difficult.”
Until that moment, he had been nothing more and nothing less than a simple toy.
“...And why is that?”
“Isn't the reason obvious?”
At some point, she found her eyes following him.
But why?
Of course, she was grateful that he had saved her from assassins, but she wasn't naive enough to fall in love over something like that.
And it wasn't as if he were so handsome you'd call him a peerless beauty.
“What meaning is there in a marriage where the will of the person involved isn't even asked?”
And yet, the look on his face as he seemed to mock her detestable father gave her a strange sense of satisfaction.