The Prince's Lament
"Huh? So you can sit there."
"I'm about to do something important, so don't interrupt me."
"Sitting down? Something important?"
"Ever heard of mental focus?"
From this point on, it was a battle of time and mana.
The real question was how long I could keep Undine summoned. To reduce the leaking mana even a little, I needed to personally refine the flow myself. It was a kind of pruning job, and it demanded an incredibly high level of concentration.
To the point where I couldn't even speak.
If anyone doesn't get why it's difficult, just try turning a faucet on full blast and blocking every single spraying droplet. Even with that kind of focus, the amount of mana I could save was less than ten percent.
"Listen carefully. I don't know when Undine will find the knights, so I need to conserve every drop of mana I can. I don't have much to begin with. I'm still a kid, you know! But I'm still pretty impressive."
"Oh... I see."
"Don't you want to get out of here safely too?"
I was struggling to concentrate on the flowing mana when the unfamiliar boy said something strange.
"Not really... It doesn't matter to me."
"What? Are you insane enough to actually want to be sold as a slave?"
"No one's waiting for me anyway. They might not even notice I'm gone."
This kid was seriously getting on my nerves! Why did he have to sound so pathetic?
"What about your mom?"
"My mother passed away."
"...Sorry."
Damn. I'd stepped on a landmine.
"My father doesn't like me much. He might even hate me..."
The boy started wallowing in self-pity, but my attention stayed locked on the mana draining away. Right then, Undine must have safely left the building and dropped her invisibility, because the rate of consumption decreased.
So far, so good.
But I couldn't relax yet. The farther Undine moved from me, the more sharply the mana drain would spike. Whether she could actually find the knights and bring them back was the most critical factor.
My mana had to hold out until then, but it was already down more than twenty percent. In just five minutes.
"He might even be glad I ran away. I'm useless, after all... When I first went to my father's house, no one welcomed me. My brothers really hate me."
"..."
"I have half-siblings now too. At first I was so happy... but they hate me. They called me a lowly bastard."
I kept my eyes closed and gave no reaction, but the boy continued muttering his story like he was talking to himself. He seemed unbearably lonely, anxious, and miserable.
"The only one who ever loved me was my mother. But she was very sick... One day she suddenly told me I had a father and that we should go to him. She took me to that house... barely managed to tell my father I was his son... and then she passed away."
I wasn't exactly gifted at offering comfort. Besides, now was hardly the time to be listening to this boy's tale. But whether I wanted to or not, it kept tugging at my attention.
This is bad. I need to focus!
"Living alone with Mother in the forest was happy... but Father's house is terrifying. It's strangely huge... and full of people. The servants there all look at me strangely... They keep whispering and badmouthing my mother. Hic!"
Ugh! The brat started crying right next to me, completely wrecking my concentration!
"Hic... Mother... Sniff... I didn't need a father or a huge house like that. I get lost every single day, you know? I have to sleep alone in my room... They only make me study... I hate that house without Mother."
From what I could piece together, his father was apparently a noble. Multiple half-siblings, a massive house, servants—the whole package.
"I hate Father too. I don't understand. Why didn't he come when Mother was dying? She called for him so desperately... Hic, ugh. Mother..."
Hey, kid, sensitive girl here. You're making me want to cry, so please shut up!
I was twitching at the mouth, about to snap at him, when a familiar voice cut in.
"That's awful. So that's why you ran away?"
It was Iruse, casually inserting herself into the conversation. This girl! When did she wake up?!
My teeth ground together on their own, but instead of yelling at her I simply squeezed my eyes shut even tighter.
Calm down. Calm... The remaining mana had now dropped below seventy percent. And the leaking mana had exploded like a stream joining a raging river.
Where the hell are you wandering off to, Undine!
"Yeah. I snuck out wearing the old clothes I used to wear. Once I changed, no one recognized me."
"Where's your house?"
"In the mountains! That's where I'm going. Mother taught me swordsmanship there."
"No, I mean the house you live in now."
These two were happily chatting away while I was over here suffering. Couldn't they read the room?!
"That house is in this city. It's enormous. You'd probably see it from anywhere."
"That big? What's your father's name? I know most of the noble families around here. Oh! I'm late with introductions. My name is Iruse Peiru, from the alchemy class in the elementary division at Drike Academy."
"Iruse."
"This is Jeanie. Jeanie Crowell."
Oh, thanks so much for introducing me too.
"My name is Ephiros. Mother used to call me Ash."
"Ephiros? Sounds noble. What's your family name?"
"Ah, that thing you put in front of the name?"
"No? It goes at the end."
"My full name is Eron de Pon Ephiros. Father's surname is Eron de Kan, and his name is Megaloprofis."
Megalopro... Huh? That surname's kind of long. What was it again? Eron de... Pon?
Despite everything, I'd been listening to their conversation, and the shock nearly made me lose control of the mana completely. I almost caused a backlash.
'Eron de' was the surname of Elan's imperial family. And the inclusion of 'Pon' meant direct bloodline.
"Cough!"
The shock completely shattered my focus. I coughed violently, feeling like I might throw up. I hurriedly pulled myself together again, but I'd wasted a significant amount of mana in the process. Cold sweat poured down my body. The metallic taste in my mouth was proof of a mild internal injury.
It can't be. There's no way this clumsy kid is imperial royalty. He probably just has a habit of exaggerating.
I tried to convince myself, but it wasn't easy. There hadn't been a single trace of falsehood in Ash's voice.
Eron de Pon Ephiros.
Royals and emperors placed the country before the individual, which was why they put the surname first and the given name after.
"Come on, you're joking, right?"
"About what?"
"That's the Emperor's name. So you're saying you're a prince? Pfft, no way."
Iruse burst out laughing, apparently finding it just as ridiculous.
Exactly. It was ridiculous.
I'd literally stepped on that guy's back earlier. There was no way that mumbling softie was a prince. And of all places, this was a slave trader's prison... Meeting a prince here? That made zero sense!
"I'm telling the truth. Why won't you believe me?"
"If you're a prince, then I'm a dragon!"
"Wow, you're a dragon?"
I really hated this. I just wanted to be left alone. This whole situation was completely absurd.
"Done!"
"Huh? What is it, Jeanie?"
Without any warning, a massive amount of mana drained away. Roughly a third of what I had left.
If my guess was correct, Undine had definitely delivered a message to someone. A smile rose to my lips unbidden. It looked like I could finally relax.
"Undine must have made a rescue request. She's bringing help! We just have to wait now!"