Chapter 34
Chapter 34
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Side Story - A Certain Princess's Memories (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
# 34
Side Story - A Certain Princess's Memories (3)
#4 Their Circumstances: A Certain Villain's Circumstances
"Is there a problem?"
"None at all."
Why? How can there be no problem?
Even I thought this whole thing was pretty risky.
But he's saying so casually that there's no issue at all.
No, he tricked imperial officials for personal gain, used the imperial family's name to create a herb garden?
Starting with squeezing budget out of the Ministry of Finance, picking a location, building a good farm to grow herbs, assigning personnel to cultivate them—and it was all just so I could drink my favorite tea!
And he says there's no problem!
If this were a democratic world, impeachment wouldn't be surprising!
"By the way, Lea is taking too long to come back. Go soothe her a bit."
"Your Highness, people tend to cry even more when you try to console them. Lady Lea is straightforward; she'll cool off on her own and return if we wait."
That's what he says, but if I'm seen next to a crying Lady Lea, I could get the wrong idea.
No, I figured she was some viscount or baron's daughter, or at least held a baron's or viscount's rank as the princess's exclusive guard.
But heavens! She's the lady of the famous Arais Marquis Family, one of the empire's Absolute Ten Great Houses.
And she's the most promising star in that family!
Even her brother, the next marquis, respects her—she wields immense power in the household!
If word spreads that I made someone like that cry?
They could erase me without a trace from the Arais Marquis Family.
No, even before that, I might get shredded by the female knights who admire Lady Lea.
So, teasing Lady Lea should stay inside the princess's room only. Of course, I won't stop.
It's the one joy in my imperial life—I can't give that up!
After a stretch of silence, the princess spoke in a dry tone, apparently displeased by the brief quiet.
"Bored."
Can't blame her.
"Your Highness is mostly idle, so that's inevitable."
Other royals have dedicated tutors and get to experience various duties, but our princess does nothing.
"If you know that, make it fun."
"How should I make it fun?"
She thought for a moment at my question, then smiled.
"Strategy and tactics—you confident?"
Yeah, back in the day, I was pretty good at StarCraft...
#5 Their Circumstances: A Certain Guard Knight's Circumstances
"Sniff... But I'm still Your Highness's guard."
"Yes, Lady Lea is an excellent knight!"
"You can do it!"
"We believe in you, Lady Lea! In this palace, who else can we trust if not you!"
Rubbing my reddened eyes, I left the maids' room nearby and headed to Her Highness's chambers.
Lately, Her Highness has been going too far.
Ever since Ast arrived, Her Highness's pranks have gotten worse.
It's like she refuses to lose to Ast, tormenting me all the more—please, both of you, stop dragging me into your games.
"And besides..."
Anything but that—there's still room to grow!
The maids said so.
Breast size has genetic factors, but there are ways to develop them postnatally too.
Among the 208 secret imperial maid techniques they taught me, there were some for breast growth.
"Massage three times a day and drink milk made from crushed strawberries."
I scribbled it down diligently and vowed to myself.
Yeah, it's not over yet. I'm only 19! My growth phase might not be finished!
"...Right?"
But tears welled up in my eyes again in no time.
My father is a special case—he's one of the prime ministers working at the palace—but most women in our non-martial house have small chests.
My youngest sister shows a tiny bud, but even that's about the same as mine...
"No..."
Hope flickered out again.
The same size as my 12-year-old little sister. It's hopeless for me.
If I go to Her Highness's room, she'll tease me about being the same size as a 12-year-old kid, along with Ast.
Yeah. I don't wanna go back. Should I run away...
"Sob... No, I have to."
Still, I must protect Her Highness.
Her Highness is so pitiful. Compared to that, my che... chest issue is nothing.
Yeah. My chest's fate can't compare to Her Highness's destiny.
"Your Highness, sorry I'm late... Huh?"
"No, absolutely impossible. No way! Even if you're losing, you can't just insist it's possible when it's not."
"Your Highness would do well to accept that the command unit has been wiped out."
But in the room I entered after steeling myself, Her Highness and Ast were locked in a heated debate.
Various pieces on the table suggested a mock battle.
They probably disagreed on some point and were arguing.
And... something felt off. Really off!
"Lea!"
"Lady Lea!"
They spotted me entering mid-argument and glared, shouting my name.
Yeah, my gut feeling was right. They'll probably ask me.
"Do you think this is possible? This guy hates losing so much that he's insisting nonsense is real."
"It's real because it works, Lady Lea. Your Highness's competitive spirit is admirable, but you must learn to concede."
Seeing Her Highness and Ast charging at me, I tried to flee, but the door was already shut—I could only back against it, unable to retreat further.
"Lea!"
"Lady Lea!"
Eek! Scary! Her Highness is scary, and Ast is scary too!
Logically, I should listen and side with one, but the other would shred me.
Her Highness is intimidating in her way, and Ast is picky in his.
Waaah. I don't want this...
I just sorted myself out and came back! Tears are threatening again!
But as Ast once said, even if the sky falls, there's a way out.
And now's the time to find that hole in the collapsed sky!
"Pr-prove it, then?"
"Prove it?"
"Yes! Try it for real—if it fails, Ast loses; if it works, Ast wins. Right?"
My brilliant verdict, perfect enough to make a judge weep, made Her Highness and Ast step back from me.
I clutched my startled chest and sighed...
'Sob, so small...'
Calming my shocked chest reopened another wound, forcing me to soothe it again.
But I had no idea. That one sentence would spark the first trigger to reshape history.
#6 Their Circumstances: A Certain Imperial Soldier's Circumstances (Sky Edition)
"Cold."
"Indeed."
"Even so, this feels wrong..."
Shivering in the clouds above 4,000 meters, we poured our efforts into the magic.
But damn, it's cold.
We dress warmly for flights, but getting summoned suddenly for this leaves us underprepared. And of all things, ice magic.
Damn, freezing to death, and we have to make ice!
"Ast, was it? That bastard who lounges warm inside—dragging us into this mess. I'll remember and get revenge someday."
"Don't be too harsh. He's the exclusive guard for that 'Imperial Princess,' right? Look at Lady Lea. She's suffering daily."
"No, reliable intel says he torments Lady Lea alongside the princess. Hardcore style too."
"Huh? That's legit info? Some sane guy roasting the Sword Princess of Arais? Possible without going mad?"
"Right? A commoner grilling a swordmaster. That's terrifying territory."
"Hey, hold steady. Dropping means big trouble!"
We chatted like usual during ops, but this task demanded constant focus.
To avoid detection by the princess's troops, we minimized magic reactions. Unlike regular ice spells, we drew maximum moisture from the air and froze it pure.
It took ages subtly—pure ice doesn't float like spells, so suspending it midair guzzled mana.
Hence, teams of three skilled magic engineers.
"Okay, what's next?"
"Let's see—protective spells and barriers first, then acceleration, gravity magic, whatever we can layer on."
"Normal spells might strain, but this is just an ice block, so no issue. Auxiliary magic and arrays sound fun."
"But has anyone succeeded at this?"
"Nope. Magic artillery tactics are nearly 1,000 years old. Anti-magic bombardment tech has advanced tons—you know that. Unless the target's an idiot, success odds are low outside hyper-specific ambushes."
I answered my subordinate's question while enchanting diligently.
Wait, yeah. Isn't this kinda serious?
It sounded absurd at first, but prep went smoothly.
If this actually works, it'll revolutionize magic engineer roles...
"Alright, drop it."
"Got it."
With all spells applied, we released the completed ice mass.
Simple—just cancel the levitation. Gravity and acceleration take it groundward in seconds.
"So, if this succeeds, what happens?"
My subordinate asked, watching it plummet.
Success? Then...
"Chaos."
#7 Their Circumstances: A Certain Imperial Soldier's Circumstances (Ground Edition)
"Why am I the target..."
"Because Her Highness can't do it herself..."
Who'd believe the beauty pouting beside me is the empire's famed Sword Princess—the top contender to succeed the Sword Saint among female swordswomen?
Countless female knights idolizing her would rush to kill that Ast guy if they knew.
Of course, they'd all fail thanks to Her Highness.
"Still, success odds are zero. It's nonsense. Even knowing it's a bombardment, magic barrages fail."
What is the flower of war?
Magic.
Everyone in the military knows a magic corps strike can flip wars won.
Decades of peacetime research countered those damages.
Thus, high-mobility magic engineers—prime targets—now only snag surprise hits, barely even those, with superior defenses.
"See, Lady Lea? No matter how stealthily you hide mana, spells trigger via mana, so reactions get detected on launch."
"I see."
I showed her the mana detector blinking red to the fascinated Lady Lea.
Even with dedicated jammers for stealth ambushes, range is limited.
From visual range out, long-range spells' mana gets pinged on fire—even if the caster's hidden—letting barriers block easily.
"Watch. They might hide in clouds for a strike, but a slow barrier rollout stops it cold."
Subordinates layered mana barriers from max deployment altitude up.
Behold.
Using mana barriers to halt the magic bombar—
*Crash!*
What the hell?