Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: The Prince and the Mad Mage
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Even in this hair-trigger situation, the mage remained utterly calm.
Rather, he gazed at Irid with what seemed like pity.
"Your Highness... This is nothing more than illusion magic."
"Don't insult the time I spent with her...!"
The grip on the mage's collar tightened. Irid glared at him with a ferocity that screamed he could kill him right then and there. The mage let out a deep sigh, as if the stare stung.
"By denying that it's illusion magic, what exactly do you stand to gain?"
"...What?"
The madman began spouting his twisted logic.
"This is the simpler path, Your Highness. And the righteous one, to boot."
"A naughty mage toyed with you a bit... and all the events and mishaps you went through inside were nothing but a midsummer night's dream."
"After that, it's easy. Righteously rage, punish the mischievous mage, and be done with it. Your Highness bears no responsibility here."
"But... if you insist on believing a fleeting illusion is real... Good lord, where on earth do I even start unraveling this?"
The mage's melancholic eyes fixed on Irid. Despite the rage still boiling within him— Irid had no choice but to loosen his grip. Those eyes swirled with utter indifference, a madness that truly seemed to dismiss everything as trivial.
"I've seen plenty like you, Your Highness..."
"Those who can't keep their distance and get too immersed... they all meet tragic ends. It's only natural. Players are always... outsiders, after all. They can never stay forever. They're fated to part someday."
"It's just... illusion magic showing you your deepest fear. Wouldn't that suffice?"
Irid's hand trembled, mirroring the turmoil in his heart.
It was vicious vitriol, an insult ripping open his wounded soul. Yet it was equally tempting. If the wounds he'd suffered, Centra's peril, the pathetic future as the Fallen Emperor—all of it was false.
Then he wouldn't have to turn his anger inward.
He wouldn't have to despise the fool who'd failed to foresee the attack and let her get caught in the blast. He could just vent his fury at the mage before him, and everything would be neatly tied up.
However.
The memories that still rose vividly when he closed his eyes.
The rosemary scent still lingering at the tip of his nose.
The ache in his heart refused.
...He couldn't bring himself to flee to such an easy out.
Second Prince Irid reflected on the nine-day journey.
Scenes from the past flashed through his mind like a panorama.
"At first... I was terrified. Thrust into an unfamiliar future, wandering the back alleys of the city while brooding over my failures—it was a horrific experience. Even now, whispers blaming me echo in my ears from time to time."
He had nearly given up everything for that future as the Fallen Emperor.
Filled with fear, he'd tried to run.
"But... after that, it was pure bliss. At some point, I forgot the obsession with becoming emperor, forgot my dreadful failure."
She had caught the fleeing Irid.
Like a firefly, she had guided his soul.
"It felt like the hole in my soul was filled, overflowing with fullness. I'd received something irreplaceably precious from her."
And now, this Irid stood here.
Captured by rage and impatience, Irid could look back at himself through the mage's warped words. The mage before him reflected the future self who'd fled in terror.
He couldn't discard the treasures he'd painstakingly gathered just to escape. He had to embrace the pain and joy alike, take that one step forward. The world called it courage.
"...I see. So that's how it is."
Second Prince Irid realized.
Why he had awakened in the empire a century from now.
Why, in that vast capital, he had found the other half of his soul.
It was no coincidence.
"Looks like it wasn't a random warp spell. They say the gods of the distant past bestowed trials upon their champions like the two faces of a coin. And granted immense power to those who overcame them."
A trial of fate. In the era when gods directly interfered in the mortal realm, the grand ritual where they shook the board of destiny to select their proxies.
"A dimensional spell that transports to a world touching the fate of the piece in question, fraught with trials and tribulations."
"...So you've decided to think of it that way?"
"You must have experienced it firsthand with your own body, mage... And your heart broke in the process."
"I've had a few unpleasant experiences myself. But it was all illusions, wasn't it?"
The mage shrugged. The gesture seemed utterly mechanical.
After perfecting the spell, the mage must have attempted dimensional travel himself. And suffered a crushing failure. His shattered heart led him to dismiss it all as illusion.
"I won't call you a madman for turning a blind eye to reality and running away. Without her, my own heart would have broken too."
But.
"But I still have— unfinished business. Cast the spell once more."
He had to save Centra. The blast had been powerful, but those skilled in mana could mitigate it to serious injuries at worst. Centra's reflexes and senses were exceptional; she surely defended properly.
To tie up loose ends, the Resistance hardliners would come to finish her off. She was vulnerable, in danger. Only Irid could help her.
Second Prince Irid steeled his resolve.
The mage shook his head in confusion, then murmured lowly.
"...Time is relative, Your Highness. Time on the other side is practically frozen."
"Is that so?"
"You should prepare thoroughly, enjoy some tasty snacks, and re-enter in high spirits."
"Having time is good news. How many chances do I have left?"
"...Just one, Your Highness."
"Then we'll meet in a week. Send a list of materials needed for recasting the spell."
Irid straightened the mage's rumpled clothes, then turned away. With the incident resolved, the Violet Magic Tower Master and the boy knight also withdrew their mana as they faced off.
Irid took the boy knight and left the magic tower.
In the magic tower where one wall had been utterly demolished, the Tower Master and I stared at each other with blank expressions. What the hell just happened?
I racked my brain to piece it together and summed it up in one sentence.
"So right now, I've been mistaken for a 'madman who went insane filming grimdark dimensional magic and brainwashed himself into believing it's illusion magic,' right?"
Even summing it up like that made my head spin from the incomprehensibility.
Who's the madman? I explained three times that it was fiction!
I naturally assumed the Second Prince was RPing—acting—deeply immersed.
I figured he knew it was an illusion. Of course he did!
What kind of lunatic prince tests dimensional magic on his own body?
The normal thing is to sacrifice ten subordinates, confirm safety, and then jump in!
I thought he knew it was illusion, so he messed with the test out of boredom!
But for a prince to actually dive into real dimensional magic...
Should I get indignant at the misunderstanding, or be pleased it means my virtual reality was that convincing? As I waffled, the Tower Master cautiously voiced her opinion.
"Uh, yeah... But y'know."
"Yes?"
"Comparing you and the prince... yours is the one that's a bit... mentally off, right...? What if it really is dimensional magic?"
"???"
I tried to deny the Tower Master's absurd claim—but.
Thinking it over, she had a point. Compared to me and the crown prince, he seemed saner. He even remembered people's names.
Am I a brain in a jar?
Was I, who thought I was the GM, actually a dimensional mage?
Was Virtual Idol Heart-chan, whom I thought I'd created as a character, actually my hidden true self??
"Gahhh, no!!"
Tricked by the prince's silver tongue, the Tower Master and I plunged into massive confusion.
We spun totems together, pinched each other's cheeks, then logged back into virtual reality and had three hundred Heart-chans do a group flash mob before finally.
Ah, it really is illusion magic. Relieved, we stretched out and slept soundly.
"Summon mages from the Flame Magic Tower skilled in calculations, if you please. Contact my sister as well."
"...Are you alright, Your Highness? Hypnosis is suspected."
"Then test me."
"Pardon the intrusion."
The boy knight gathered mana in his hand and lightly tapped Second Prince Irid's forehead.
Irid swayed briefly, then steadied himself.
"How is it?"
"Perfectly fine. No sudden mood swings up or down, no memory gaps. My resolve remains... fully intact."
The boy knight furrowed his brow. It had been a mere three hours. In that time, the prince had become a different man. His impulsiveness had turned into steadfast drive. The resolute light shining from his eyes reflected unyielding determination.
"What happened?"
"In a future century from now... I fell in love. Embarrassing, isn't it."
"It sounds quite foreign to me, Your Highness. Weren't you disinterested in such matters?"
"What, I'd simply never met a captivating woman until now."
"If you're that smitten, I worry I may have to block you out of loyalty. From using dimensional magic again, that is."
"I'll be frank. Part of me wants to stay in that future century. But I won't. I have to make 'beer and song' echo throughout this empire. And stop the Kingdom Alliance's dark mages."
"......"
"I'm trying to muster courage. But first... I want to save the one I love. Saving the empire can wait a bit. Will you join me?"
"Charming and resolute. I shall follow."
Irid walked ahead, the boy knight following behind.
A week remained.
Irid gathered experts from every field to save Centra.