Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Princess's Mentor - 1
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The background of the Pursuers of the Eight Stars is set in the kingdom centered around the queen. Of course, there are times when you go to other countries through adventure mode, but the main story mostly takes place in the kingdom.
As such, the Hero Party had no choice but to frequently come and go from the capital of this kingdom, and naturally, I had been here several times as well.
But this was the first time we actually met.
In any case, I was an unofficial member of the party who hadn't received the divine blessing.
I thought what meaning did that blessing even have... but if that's how it was, what could I do? I didn't have any notable achievements related to the royal family, so I just let it slide.
But to think we'd end up meeting like this.
"Are you the Sage?"
Sitting on the jade throne was a red-haired beauty with a weary expression. She wore a golden crown, the symbol of the king, on her head. She exuded arrogance but looked quite fatigued.
Even though the Demon King had been defeated, the fact that crises still lingered in the world and the kingdom was evident in the queen's gaunt face, which radiated a decadent charm.
The queen fiddled with the dark circles under her eyes before gazing at me intently and wetting her dry lips with wine.
"Sage, huh. I've heard the stories a few times."
"Is that so?"
"The Hero mentioned you often."
"I've also heard about Your Majesty from the Hero a few times."
"I see."
The king who supported the Hero to defeat the Demon King.
I who supported the Hero to defeat the Demon King.
Our roles were the same, but we only knew of each other's existence through one woman's words.
"Sage. Sage... Sage."
She pursed her lips several times, murmuring my title, then let out a smirk.
"Are you wise enough to be called the Sage?"
"Well..."
"I've heard you know everything."
"Not particularly."
It's true.
The reason I'm called the Sage is simply because I can use skills from other classes and because of my 10,000 hours of playtime, I know detailed strategies and lore.
I don't actually possess any profound wisdom or anything like that.
"Lukal."
"Yes."
"Ask the Sage some questions."
At the queen's command, an elderly mage wearing a pointed hat stepped forward.
This old mage, who held a fairly important position even in the game, posed several magic questions to me, and I shook my head.
"I don't know."
"...Hegen."
Hegen Rothfield, the captain of the Royal Guard Knights and a renowned powerhouse on the continent, swung his sword in front of me.
"Do you know what swordsmanship this is?"
"I don't know."
"Soltbekyung."
"Above the stars and sky..."
"I don't know astronomy either."
The exceptional individuals gathered for the queen continued to hurl questions at me, but I didn't answer.
No, I couldn't.
I have to know it to answer.
If they asked about monster strategies or dungeon guides, I'd gladly respond...
But theoretical questions that arose when the game became reality were beyond even me.
"...This so-called Sage knows nothing. Then why are you called the Sage?"
"Well..."
Interest was gradually fading from the queen's eyes. Yet she didn't tell me to leave.
In other words, the queen still wanted something from me.
"Then what is it that you do know?"
"What I know is how to live in this world."
The audience chamber fell so silent that the drop of a pin could be heard. Occasionally, maids or a few knights would breathe heavily, proving that time hadn't stopped here.
In the silence my words created, a spark of interest returned to the queen's eyes.
"How to live in the world. Is that important?"
"Very much so. Sometimes, people wander lost or isolate themselves because they don't know how to live."
"I see. Yes. I see..."
She cut off my words midway, though I had more to say, and nodded several times on her own.
Am I getting fired?
As I watched, the queen continued calmly.
"Understood. Head Maid. Guide the Sage."
"Yes."
***
"What an odd man."
"Indeed."
He was a strange man. I'd heard many stories about the Sage not just from the Hero, but throughout the kingdom.
He could use magic yet also healing arts; wield a warrior's techniques while possessing a thief's nimble hands.
Combined with exceptional archery skills, he could handle sword and shield like a knight and had knowledge of shamanism as well.
Moreover, he knew strategies for hidden dungeons across the lands and was versed in myths and secrets.
Truly a polymath, versatile in all things.
No one with such powers had ever existed before, I could say that with certainty.
"The Sage appeared starting from when the Hero formed his party, right?"
The extraordinary always stands out. But the Sage was different.
He appeared as if suddenly dropped into the world.
No one knew the Sage's past, no one knew his hometown.
Not just in the kingdom, but in duchies and city-states as well.
At first, the kingdom suspected he was a Demon King spy and investigated, but that wasn't the case.
Though he hadn't received the divine blessing, he followed the Hero Party and supported them.
Without even asking for any reward.
I wondered if he was lovers with those three beautiful women, but it didn't seem so.
The way they treated the Sage was sharp and vicious.
Yet the Sage didn't leave.
As if his sole purpose in life was to defeat the Demon King.
And the moment the Demon King vanished, he left the Hero Party, and the rumors afterward were even more astonishing.
Instead of an innkeeper's sick wife, he'd clean the rundown stables of a rural inn.
Or escort lost children home.
Or destroy an ogre den to find a memento for an old woman.
He'd conquer dungeons with adventurers to save regions or defeat monsters trying to manipulate people and collapse an entire city.
Yet the rewards he received were laughably small compared to his power and effort.
Even though he could use every class's skills and was an unofficial member of the Hero Party.
Even though he achieved feats that greatly influenced the Demon King's defeat.
He acted as if he couldn't care less about such things.
Saving people.
Occasionally joining festivals to liven things up with lute performances.
Participating in card game tournaments—seemingly famous but ultimately just entertainment—winning useless cards and rejoicing, then partying hard with the participants.
Yet he never stopped saving or helping people.
As if that was his only joy in life.
Considering all this, he was no ordinary person.
"A fascinating man."
"Yes."
For one person to use every class's skills meant an enormous amount of knowledge packed into that small head.
It's simple. The knowledge needed for magic differs from that for swordsmanship.
Not to mention, the knowledge for holy power and shamanism are even opposites.
The same for the rest.
Yet he mastered them all at such a young age?
And when faced with simple questions, instead of showing off, he humbly says he doesn't know?
Even in a position that could elevate his status immeasurably?
He's utterly incomprehensible.
A man that strong.
A man that exceptional.
I wonder what he truly desires.
"I'm also curious how he'll treat the Princess."
The interest that had vanished earlier returned to the queen's eyes.
Money, honor, glory, power.
He doesn't even seem to need beautiful women.
So why did he so readily accept the position as the Princess's mentor?
"Don't stop surveilling the Sage."
Feeling a premonition of more entertaining things to come, the queen was about to leave the audience chamber when she paused.
"Ah, come to think of it, when is General Leoden's regular report day with the Hero?"
To that question, Lukal replied calmly.
"Today."
***
I didn't lose the offered mentor position just because I couldn't answer anything. At least that was a relief.
In any case, the important thing was becoming the Princess's mentor.
In the game, once the student reached a certain level, the achievement unlocked... Would it be the same here?
As I walked, pondering what to teach, the guiding head maid stopped in front of a large, ornate door.
"Here it is."
"I see. Thank you. I'll take it from here..."
"Um, Sage."
The head maid looked at me with a serious expression. She seemed to have something important to say.
"Her Highness the Princess might... not meet your standards. Please... be understanding about that."
Even the queen, her own mother, hadn't said as much, yet the head maid did? I stared at her intently. The wrinkles around the eyes of the prim-looking middle-aged woman were traces proving how much she worried about the Princess.
Tsk tsk. You've lived a turbulent life like me, haven't you?
"...Her Highness has very low self-esteem."
"Oh... Why is that?"
A princess with low self-esteem.
Not a particularly special trait. It's common for them to end up like that when overshadowed by overwhelmingly powerful heirs or siblings.
But as far as I knew, the queen's sole heir in this kingdom was Princess Lucille Ermeyer.
So why was she like this? It didn't make sense.
In the game, she was just an NPC with no standout traits or role, obediently doing as told.
"She's been like that since she was young. Perhaps... worn down by the pressure from Her Majesty... or maybe..."
"Is that your opinion?"
"...Yes. I don't know the exact reason. All I know is... Her Highness always thinks she's lacking."
"I see. Understood."
How bad could it be? Worse than the Hero Party or adventurers?
At worst, low self-esteem making her snappish to hide it.
I could handle that much.
*Knock knock.*
I knocked on the door right away, and the head maid looked at it worriedly. Even after several knocks, there was no response.
"...Is she asleep?"
"I doubt it. Your Highness. The Sage is here."
*Crash! Bang!*
*Kyaaak! Your Highness! Your Highness!*
Suddenly, sounds of something falling inside, followed by maids' screams. What happened?!
I opened the door immediately, preparing a spell. But contrary to my expectations, nothing was wrong inside.
The crashing was just a chair toppling, and the breaking sound was a vase falling from the table.
"H-Hic... S-Sorry. Sorry..."
A frightened rabbit-like girl, who must have been sitting in the chair moments ago, was hiding in the corner of the room.
She had red hair like the queen's.
Unlike her, a cute girl with silver eyes was hiding herself in a lavish, voluminous dress.
Her bangs hid her eyes, which darted around anxiously.
Then, our eyes met, and she flinched, bowing her head deeply.
I gave her a wry smile and bowed at the waist.
"I'm the Sage, Song Hyun-woo."
The Princess, who had been glancing desperately at the head maid, hesitated at my greeting before nodding slightly.
"I-I'm... P-Princess of the k-kingdom... Lucille Ermeyer..."
She clamped her mouth shut after that single sentence. As the head maid said, she truly lacked self-confidence. No social skills either, and no idea how to interact with a stranger.
Hm...
I looked at her, then turned to the head maid.
"Um..."
The head maid soothed the Princess and sat her on the bed. She handed her a large stuffed doll to hug, and only then did the Princess seem a bit less anxious.
But her silver eyes kept darting toward me furtively, full of unease.
No.
More precisely, she feared everyone in the room besides herself.
As if she thought they would hurt or belittle her.
"...Sorry... Sorry..."
"What's there to be sorry about?"
"...I... Um... I... Because I'm... inadequate..."
Watching the Princess apologize and bow her head before I'd even done anything, I thought to myself.
"S-Someone like me is worthless trash not even worth living... C-Compared to the H-Heroes who traveled with y-you, the Sage... I'm utterly inferior... A disgrace to the glorious... r-royal blood..."
The head maid looked worried, then glanced at me. Did she think I'd ignore this?
I smiled, meeting not just her gaze but those of the other maids as well.
It's fine.
At this level.
"No. Princess. Among the people I've met, you rank among the most outstanding."
"...Pardon?"
Among the people I've met, she's pretty normal compared to them.
Author's Note
Thank you for reading enjoyably ㅎㅎ