Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: The Empire's Fallen Scoundrel, 5th Prince (1)
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Everyone has had that thought at least once.
"I want to become the protagonist in a novel."
An absolute emperor reigning supreme.
A swordmaster facing off against tens of thousands of troops.
A great archmage who glimpsed the truth.
A ruthless assassin commanding the darkness.
The protagonists in the novels I read were all captivating. So sometimes I thought it myself. That I wanted to become a protagonist in a novel.
Maybe I was just sick of my cog-in-the-machine life.
A breeze I thought would pass by harmlessly started blowing by more and more often as time went on.
But becoming a novel's protagonist is impossible. I wasn't dumb enough to truly wish for it.
And yet.
Nothing is absolute.
When I woke up, I had entered a novel. But unlike my desperate wish, I wasn't the protagonist.
Raymond Philius.
That was the name of the character I had possessed.
A villain who met a wretched end in the final part of volume 1.
But it was worth a shot.
I knew this novel's "settings," after all.
Warm morning sunlight touched the man's cheek.
He yawned and opened his eyes. But an unusually blurry vision and a headache like his skull was splitting made him frown.
"Ugh, I don't even remember drinking."
This was a hangover.
Instinctively reaching out as if searching for something, he swung his hand around. Then he realized something was off.
"Was my studio apartment ever this big?"
Normally, the nightstand was within reach, but now there was nothing.
"What..."
As his blurry vision cleared, confusion set in.
"Where am I?"
It was a spacious bedroom lavishly decorated. A full-length mirror stood beside it.
As if entranced, the man walked toward it.
The mirror reflected a plump, blond Westerner with a bit of pudge.
"Is this me?"
The moment he blurted out his inner thoughts, a voice came from beyond the door.
"5th Prince Raymond Philius, did Your Highness cough?"
Startled by the young man's voice, he froze.
"I'm Raymond Philius...?"
The man—Raymond—muttered softly. His voice trembled.
This name, there was no way he didn't know it. No, he knew it all too well.
"I'm Raymond Philius, the utter scumbag from Empire of the Dead?"
Raymond Philius was a character from the novel he often read, Empire of the Dead.
He had opened his eyes inside the novel, but questions like how or why didn't even cross his mind.
Something far more important had dawned on him.
"5th Prince Raymond Philius dies at the end of volume 1. And in the most miserable way..."
How exactly he died wasn't described. But the line about it being the most wretched death stuck in his memory.
"Imperial Family Purge Plan."
The massive event exploding at the end of volume 1—Raymond Philius dies there.
"Why this body of all things..."
Wouldn't it have been better to possess the protagonist?
Irritation seeped into his voice, making it quiver faintly.
Sighing in resignation, he flopped into the chair nearby.
That was when it happened.
Footsteps echoed from beyond the firmly shut door. Several people, from the sound of it—quite noisy.
The steps grew closer. They stopped right at the door. Muffled voices followed, but the words weren't clear.
"Your Highness, it's Alex. Pardon the intrusion."
For some reason, the voice trembled with anxiety and tension as the door creaked open cautiously.
A handsome squire stepped in. Dressed impeccably in his uniform, his smile seemed awkward somehow, and his eyes darted about uneasily.
Behind him came several knights in red cloaks and light armor.
Their gazes soon landed on Raymond in the chair. They all reacted the same way.
Eyes bulging wide, mouths hanging open. Then, realizing their rudeness, they quickly schooled their expressions.
"His Highness is awake at this hour?"
"After all that drinking yesterday..."
Those were the knights' thoughts.
"Thank goodness..."
Alex glanced at Raymond's clear eyes—remarkable despite the hangover the night before—and sighed in relief.
Prince Raymond usually had to be roused dozens of times the morning after a night of drinking.
And of course, his attendant squire Alex always took the brunt of the prince's irritated punches in the process.
"Your Highness. How is your condition?"
Alex bowed politely and inquired. Raymond, who had been spacing out, turned to him.
"Alex, was it? Squire to the 5th Prince... Yeah, that rings a bell."
Dredging up memories from the settings document, he soon recalled details about Alex.
Alex Tiringger, second son of the Tiringger Baron family.
That was all he could remember for now. But as far as he recalled, there wasn't much special about the guy.
"Your Highness?"
Alex asked cautiously as Raymond just stared without responding.
"Nothing happened."
"That's a relief. Shall we change now?"
A flood of information on imperial etiquette rushed in.
Part of the memories belonging to 5th Prince Raymond Philius.
"Pr-Prince..."
A brief headache made him frown, and Alex jumped back in alarm as the knights stepped forward. The reaction felt all too familiar.
"Just how much did he beat them to get reactions like that?"
Raymond was baffled, but the answer came soon enough.
A fragment amid the incoming memories—one tied to Alex.
"Insane."
The old Raymond apparently beat his attendants whenever he got bored, nitpicking excuses.
His squires had been replaced multiple times until the weakest option—the second son of Baron Tiringger—ended up with the job.
Too powerless to fight back, he'd just taken the beatings until now. Recently, he'd even had a bone broken.
Ever since, knights had started accompanying him on morning wake-up calls.
"Nothing's going to happen. Relax."
Raymond spoke as gently as he could manage. Only then did the knights glance at each other and step back, allowing Alex to approach.
"S-Sorry."
"I'll change."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Maids entered to assist with the changing. Thanks to Raymond Philius's memories, he handled it smoothly.
One thing grated, though—the maids were rigidly tense as they served him.
"Just how much did he beat around..."
Not all of Raymond's memories had flowed in yet, but the maids' reactions made it clear he'd laid hands on them too.
The novel even described him as a famous scoundrel prince, so he'd half-expected it.
"Ah!"
"S-Sorry! Your Highness!"
While pinning a badge on his uniform, a sharp needle pricked his skin ever so slightly.
The sting made him grimace, and the maid who slipped turned pale, dropping to the floor in prostration. Raymond was dumbfounded.
"This much...?"
He shook his head with a sigh. One of the knights rushed forward.
"Your Highness! You mustn't kill another maid this time! Please, quell your anger!"
"He killed a maid before? How is this scoundrel still a prince?"
That was when a line from the settings popped into his head.
"The worst scoundrel in imperial history, but he inherited the imperial bloodline capable of wielding ancient Colossal Divine Soldiers—that's why he's remained a prince until now."
The worst scoundrel in imperial history.
But it wasn't too late. He could change.
Shed the scoundrel stigma.
"What's your name?"
The prince hadn't drawn his sword for once. Alex's eyes gleamed, while the knights shot anxious glances.
They probably figured no immediate sword meant some worse punishment coming.
Looking at the Imperial Knights poised to intervene, Raymond could only swallow a short sigh.
"C-Celia, Your Highness."
Relieved just at not being executed on the spot, Celia—who had been trembling wildly moments ago—now looked much steadier.
"You seem pretty shaken. Go rest. We're done changing anyway."
With that, he took the red cloak from a knight and draped it over his shoulders.
The Imperial Knights' eyes went wide at the total lack of tragedy.
He could feel their stares on his cheeks.
"I'm hungry. Alex, breakfast not ready yet?"
"Pardon?"
"I asked if breakfast is prepared."
"I-I'll escort you."
Raymond took the lead. Alex and the knights followed, leaving Celia and two maids behind in the 5th Prince's bedroom.
"Is that really the 5th Prince? Can a person change this much in one day?"
"Maybe a sign the world's ending?"
Amid the maids' whispers, Celia pinched her cheek. It hurt. Not a dream.
The 5th Prince had changed.
The 5th Prince's Palace was quiet as he walked toward where breakfast was prepared.
A man in attire similar to Alex's followed, bowing his head. Matching pace calmly, he spoke up.
"5th Prince... His Majesty the Emperor wishes to share breakfast with Your Highness."
The emperor of the Philius Empire—Ronald Philius.
"His Majesty does?"
"Yes, Your Highness. If you refuse again this time, His Majesty will be deeply saddened."
Alex shot a cold glance as the attendant added that.
It was unnecessary. The attendant seemed to realize it too, bowing hastily.
"Forgive me, Your Highness. I overstepped."
"No need. If His Majesty summons me, of course I must go. Lead the way to the palace."
"Pardon?"
The attendant doubted his own ears at Raymond's reply.
"The 5th Prince, who's refused the emperor's invitations for five years since the 3rd Consort's death, suddenly...?"
He'd delivered the invitation expecting the usual curt refusal, so now he was the flustered one.
"What are you waiting for? Lead on. We can't arrive after His Majesty, can we?"
The attendant doubted his ears once more.
If the man before him weren't the 5th Prince, he might have dared to question it.
He held back from that worst-case blunder, but couldn't fully mask his shock. Reading the attendant's face, Raymond sighed inwardly.
"Just how much of a scoundrel was he..."
In the book, Raymond was a villain but not a major player.
Like most novels, Empire of the Dead focused on the protagonist, so there wasn't much written about him.
"I'll escort you to the Imperial Palace."
The attendant moved first. Raymond followed right behind, with Alex and three Imperial Knights in tow.
The 5th Prince's Palace was on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital, so it was a bit of a trek. To make breakfast on time, they had to quicken their pace.
"I wonder how surprised they'll be?"
A faint, odd reaction from the clash between the original 5th Prince's personality and the new soul that had taken root.
The Imperial Capital was vast, but with a carriage mobilized, they reached the Imperial Palace quickly.
The Imperial Knights guarding the main gate gawked at the gold carriage emblazoned with the 5th Prince's crest.
"The 5th Prince, heading to the Imperial Palace?"
"What in the world is going on..."
The guards whispered. They tried to keep their voices down, at least.
"I can hear you all, you idiots."
The carriage sat high enough that they didn't notice Raymond's frown.
"No issues."
With the imperial mage's approval, the carriage carrying 5th Prince Raymond Philius passed through the palace gates.
Watching it go, the Imperial Knights opened their mouths in disbelief.
"Know how many years it's been since the 5th Prince crossed these gates?"
"He shut himself in the 5th Prince's Palace right after Her Majesty the Empress passed—five years, right?"
"This doesn't bode well."
"Maybe just a whim?"
The veteran knight shook his head at his subordinate's words and gazed up at the sky.
"I hope that's all it is."
Arriving at the vast Imperial Palace, Raymond stepped down from the carriage and recalled the settings in his mind.
"I know plenty about the Philius Empire."
The Philius Empire. A nation maintaining strict centralization, the sole survivor of the great war that ended the ancient era.
The imperial bloodline could wield Colossal Divine Soldiers, one of the ancient relics.
Thus, secret organizations had long protected the royals—but in these declining times, they wielded little power.
"Not everything, but enough."
Still, he knew secrets not revealed in the novel and all the protagonist's future opportunities. No need to worry.
His thoughts were the same when he first read the novel and later stumbled on the settings document.
"Man, this author is a total lore junkie."
The settings alone exceeded the length of volume 1—for a novel with only three volumes serialized.
"Ro-Royal Guard..."
Lost in thought, he heard Alex's startled voice. Looking up, a man in golden uniform and mask leaned against the wall right in front of him.
The shield protecting the imperial family.
Even sifting through the 5th Prince's memories, he'd rarely seen one in person.
