Chapter 108
Chapter 108
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: Chapter 34. Crown Prince (1)
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1.
The atmosphere in the Ariant Kingdom was one that could erupt at any moment.
“Damn it all!”
There was no sign of that tension easing in the slightest, and in the end, incidents broke out all over the place.
“I can’t take this anymore! What the hell did I do wrong? It’s the Ariant Kingdom that’s in the wrong!”
Some adventurers clashed with the kingdom’s guards.
It was far from a minor clash.
“My god, fire! Fire!”
“Casualties! We’ve got casualties!”
Fires broke out in various parts of the royal castle, and there were even deaths.
That was a massive problem.
It wasn’t just anywhere—it was the royal castle, and adventurers had killed Ariant Kingdom guards. That was practically a rebellion.
Of course, no one branded it as such.
Everyone knew the adventurers weren’t causing trouble to overthrow the Ariant Kingdom.
The kingdom treated it as an accident, too, and didn’t punish them for treason.
Even so, people’s worries only deepened.
Because they knew.
“Isn’t a real rebellion going to break out like this?”
“Nah, no way. You think adventurers would rebel? They’ve got no reason to.”
“Adventurers maybe not, but if the Sand Shadow Corps moves, who knows.”
That there was real potential for an actual uprising.
“The Sand Shadow Corps isn’t going to just sit back and watch this chaos, right?”
Especially with the royal castle’s security shaken—it was like a lion exposing a wound in front of a hyena.
From the Sand Shadow Corps’ perspective, they wouldn’t want to miss this opportunity.
So most were convinced.
“The Sand Shadow Corps will move. One way or another.”
That a storm would soon engulf the castle.
But the actual mood in the Sand Shadow Corps was different.
“We wait.”
They showed no sign of moving at all.
It was only natural.
“Until the Cygnus Knights give their answer.”
The Cygnus Knights—themselves—were moving to capture Queen Areda.
In such a situation, there was no reason for the Sand Shadow Corps to stir up more trouble and ruin the Cygnus Knights’ position.
“It’s making my skin crawl.”
They had even halted their ongoing activities to avoid giving the Ariant Kingdom any pretext.
“Hold it in. If we wait, the Cygnus Knights will capture Queen Areda.”
“Of course. Once Queen Areda is caught, it’s all over.”
Moreover, the Sand Shadow Corps firmly believed their desired outcome was just around the corner.
“No matter how cunning Queen Areda is, she can’t pull any tricks against the Cygnus Knights’ leader.”
Queen Areda had no moves left.
At least, that’s what they thought.
“Th-this is bad!”
“What is it?”
“Abdullah VIII has made an announcement!”
“Announcement?”
2.
“I will select a crown prince.”
At Abdullah VIII’s words, all the gathered princes were stunned.
Selecting a crown prince meant, in the end, that Abdullah VIII was relinquishing the throne.
‘That wicked woman?’
And if Abdullah VIII stepped down, everything Queen Areda enjoyed would turn to mirage.
That was why Abdullah VIII had never even considered naming a crown prince until now.
Far from it—the very word “crown prince” was a taboo that no one dared utter in his presence.
Yet now, Abdullah VIII was saying it himself?
One thing was certain.
‘It’s not a negotiation.’
Queen Areda, cornered, wouldn’t have orchestrated this just to negotiate with the princes.
That was when it happened.
“But I won’t select him in the usual way.”
At Abdullah VIII’s words, the princes’ eyes changed.
“Under my rule, the Ariant Kingdom has enjoyed unimaginable prosperity. And all of this is thanks to the divine gift called the Mystic Gate.”
The mention of the Mystic Gate made the princes’ eyes begin to waver.
They had caught on.
“So the next Abdullah must be more capable at conquering the Mystic Gate than anyone else.”
They understood what that meant.
“Therefore, princes, prove yourselves.”
That was the decisive blow.
“Do it yourselves.”
Enter the Mystic Gate and conquer it personally!
It was absurd.
Some princes hadn’t even opened a single circle.
Even those who had were few and far between when it came to proper adventurer experience.
And now they had to enter the Mystic Gate themselves?
It wasn’t just a matter of life or death.
If only the prince’s life were at risk, that might be fortunate.
‘One mistake, and it’s a total wipeout.’
The problem was that conquering a Mystic Gate with adventurers was one thing, but doing it with a prince was on another level.
Adventurers decided in advance who to sacrifice and who to abandon.
But with a prince, it was different.
At every moment, everyone had to sacrifice to protect the prince.
The difficulty doubled—no, more than that.
In fact, that was why princes had tombs.
Even the fourth prince, a skilled adventurer, had ended up in one.
And if the prince lacked ability on top of that?
‘It’s a trap. Queen Areda’s.’
Not to mention, Queen Areda wouldn’t just let the princes conquer it easily.
‘But refusal isn’t an option.’
Of course, none of the princes would turn down the opportunity.
At the very least, Prince Kashan wouldn’t.
‘The justification is clear.’
Abdullah VIII’s condition was perfectly reasonable given the Ariant Kingdom’s current state.
You couldn’t make someone incapable of conquering the Mystic Gate the king of Ariant!
If you did, the kingdom’s people wouldn’t follow.
‘And this chance won’t come again.’
More than anything, this was a shot at becoming crown prince. Backing down here was as good as giving up everything.
Better to die than pass up such an opportunity.
‘I’ll stake it all here.’
And if death was on the table anyway, aiming for this chance was far better.
It wasn’t just Prince Kashan.
All the princes present shared the same determined gaze.
The gaze of challengers determined to seize this opportunity.
‘And crush them.’
At the same time, they began viewing their brothers—who had until now sought to topple Queen Areda and right the Ariant Kingdom—as rivals.
That was the real problem, in fact.
No matter the outcome, many princes would meet their end.
The Ariant Kingdom would be plunged into grief.
But Prince Kashan didn’t worry about that.
If he became crown prince—and king—everything could return to its proper place.
“I’ve prepared a Yellow-grade 300-man Mystic Gate.”
Abdullah VIII said to those princes.
“The one who conquers it with the fewest people will become crown prince.”
3.
The adventurers of the Ariant Kingdom, on the verge of exploding with discontent.
“What? Crown prince?”
But before the news of selecting a crown prince, their complaints suddenly fizzled out.
“To the prince who conquers a 300-man Mystic Gate?”
And when they learned the method was conquering a Mystic Gate, the adventurers couldn’t hide their shock.
That the Ariant Kingdom’s new king would be chosen this way?
“To the one who does it with the fewest people?”
“My god!”
Once the details spread, no adventurer spoke of princes’ tombs anymore.
It was that shocking.
“This is insane.”
And shocking in a bad way, at that.
Adventurers knew.
“Such competitions are dangerous. The princes could all die!”
Conquering a Mystic Gate with fewer than the entry limit was certainly a valuable title for an adventurer.
So adventurers knew.
Many who chased such titles had ended up as scars in the Mystic Gate.
And this wasn’t just any contest—with the crown prince on the line?
If someone conquered a 300-man gate with 200?
The others would try even fewer.
What awaited was ruin.
And this ruin was on a different scale from adventurers failing.
“What happens if all the princes die?”
In the worst case, there might be no crown prince at all.
Of course, not everyone thought of the worst.
Most adventurers were actually excited.
Because they knew.
“This is our chance.”
“Chance?”
“The princes have to conquer Mystic Gates from now on. You think they’ll do it half-assed? They’ll gather the best adventurers. And it’s not just one prince—it’s a competition among many.”
“So?”
“Yeah, our value’s going up.”
That this battle for crown prince would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for adventurers.
And it played out just as expected.
The princes raced to recruit adventurers.
“Success, and I’ll give you a unique item!”
Offering unprecedented terms.
At those conditions, adventurers from across the Maple World flooded back into the Ariant Kingdom.
Naturally, no one dwelled on grudges against the royal family.
Everyone gathered before the princes.
Of course, they didn’t approach blindly.
Adventurers knew.
“In this situation, only two princes have a real shot at winning.”
Who to side with for maximum gain.
That was why.
“And one of them is Prince Kashan.”
Prince Kashan—adventurers from the Ariant palace and the Maple World began flocking to his name.
“I’m the leader hunter Hassan! I’ve come to see Prince Kashan!”
“I’m sorry. Prince Kashan wishes to meet no adventurers.”
But Prince Kashan refused to meet the gathered adventurers.
“What nonsense is this? I’m the leader hunter Hassan! Once you know my reputation, you’ll have no choice but to hire me!”
“I’m sorry.”
He didn’t even show his face to famous adventurers who came in person.
“Damn it! I’ll remember this day!”
Naturally, the self-arriving adventurers vented frustration without exception.
They hadn’t expected such treatment.
But that was it.
No one caused a bigger scene.
No matter how renowned the adventurer, no one wanted to earn the ire of Prince Kashan—one of the standout princes among the Ariant royals, closest to the throne.
Of course, Prince Kashan wasn’t just toying with them by refusing meetings.
Prince Kashan said.
“Exactly 100. I’ll conquer the 300-man Mystic Gate with precisely 100 adventurers. To do that, I need not half-baked talents, but proven elites.”
He had to select adventurers more carefully than ever.
“Those coming to me are just the riffraff anyway.”
So instead of accepting walk-ins, he needed to seek out the necessary adventurers and negotiate.
His subordinates carried out Prince Kashan’s orders.
No adventurer reached his ears, allowing Prince Kashan to quietly handle work in his office.
That was why.
“P-Prince Kashan. An adventurer wants to see you.”
When his subordinate made that sudden visit, Prince Kashan furrowed his brow more than ever.
“I said I want to see no one.”
“W-Well, I think you should meet this one.”
Prince Kashan’s brow furrowed even deeper at the follow-up.
He was the third prince, Kashan.
And even after saying he didn’t want to meet anyone, now he had to?
“If his name doesn’t ring true, I’ll have your head.”
Prince Kashan finally unleashed his anger.
“So who is it?”
But his subordinate didn’t flinch at the rage.
There was no reason to.
“It’s El Pam.”
“What?”
“El Pam. He wants to see you, Prince Kashan.”
“……Send him in.”
Because the visitor was someone Prince Kashan could not refuse.