LP 3.10 The Prince’s Rebellion

As Kosha’s lips parted to speak, Lucian raised his hand sharply. Simultaneously, the voices of the vassals cut off abruptly.

Only then did Kosha realize that Lucian’s gaze had been fixed solely on him the entire time.

“He says he has something to say.”

Lucian indicated Kosha with a jerk of his chin. The vassals’ attention shifted toward Kosha.

“…Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak, Your Highness.”

He was nervous enough to swallow hard, but he greeted them politely nonetheless. The cowardly Kosha didn’t particularly enjoy being the center of attention, but because Lucian was watching, he felt a strange surge of courage.

“So, I… I thought that would be my job…”

“Your job?”

“I mean, the protective magic,” Kosha answered quietly.

A sudden silence fell over the office.

The reaction was as if they had heard a completely unexpected word, which in turn made Kosha feel puzzled.

“I naturally assumed you would have me do such a thing… if you’re worried about an attack from a Mage. I could use protective magic or a barrier… though of course, that’s something I’d need to study first…”

As Kosha trailed off, glancing around tentatively, one of the advisors spoke up with a skeptical expression.

“Is such a thing even possible?”

“…A Mage is the proper opponent for a Mage.”

The answer came back softly.

“I-I don’t mean to look down on humans, of course. It’s just that the fields we excel in are different.”

“So, exactly what do you plan to do and how?”

Lucian interrupted. His expression, as he toyed with his chin, seemed somehow dissatisfied, though Kosha couldn’t fathom why.

“First… I think I should see His Majesty the King. I need to see his condition, and if the illness is severe, I’ll treat the most urgent matters first. Even if he is in critical condition, it’s possible to a certain extent to keep him breathing so that he doesn’t pass away immediately. And I could set up a barrier in the bedroom.”

A flurry of questions followed. Just as the advisors were pouring out questions about exactly what protective magic was, how far it could go, and what a barrier actually meant, Lucian raised his hand again to stop them.

“You’re saying you’ll do all that alone?”

It was an unexpected question. Well, if not alone, who else would do it? Having another Mage would actually be more troublesome.

Mages are creatures who value their own domains more than one might think. Furthermore, when two or more gather, they instinctively try to establish a hierarchy. Kosha imagined what it would be like if Lucian had another Mage.

The mere thought of that person receiving Lucian’s praise for something trivial made him feel extremely unpleasant.

“I can do it all,” Kosha answered with a hint of boastfulness, as if it were nothing. In truth, he was a novice when it came to advanced techniques like barriers and would have to study them from scratch…

“The price?”

Lucian asked again. It didn’t sound like he was asking about the ‘price of magic.’ Most likely… the price for Kosha doing the work, a reward for Kosha. Kosha wasn’t exactly receiving a salary, nor was he strictly a ‘vassal’ of Lucian.

Hmm… but I’ve never thought about it. Kosha pondered for a moment. As his Mage, he was simply happy to be of help…

“Um, a few magic tomes and…”

Kosha mumbled. However, no matter how much he thought, nothing suitable came to mind. Except for one thing.

Just… a kiss of praise. That would be enough.

But it wasn’t easy to voice such a thing in a room full of people. As he hesitated, Lucian let out a short, incredulous huff of laughter.

“Ha…”

Their eyes met. Kosha instinctively realized that Lucian had read his thoughts clearly, even without words. Watching Lucian brush back his hair out of habit and look away, Kosha lowered his gaze, feeling suddenly embarrassed.

“…Fine, give it a try.”

At the heavy drop of his voice, Kosha bowed his head further, not knowing what to do with himself. Because of that, he failed to see that the tips of the other man’s ears had also turned a strange shade of red.

---

“I think deciding to recruit the Mage back then was a good decision,” Mylotte said suggestively.

They were on their way to the combined research lab and study used by the advisors.

The corridor with windows facing the courtyard was already dim, and torches had been lit. The surrounding party consisted entirely of advisors he had personally selected, and since only they used this area, there was no chance of encountering others, yet Mylotte instinctively leaned closer to Renata and lowered his voice.

“Bastian—though it’s not certain yet—who would have expected him to recruit and use a Mage? If we hadn’t held onto that Mage, wouldn’t we have just been victims with our eyes wide open?”

Renata looked up indifferently at her younger brother, who was shuddering as if the mere thought were dizzying, and spoke.

“His Highness is a man of great intuition and luck. For one who wishes to become the master of many things, such traits often play a more important role than effort.”

She murmured nonchalantly.

“But brother, did you not hear it?”

“Hear what…?”

“That expression. ‘Even if a Grand Mage grandfather came, it wouldn’t work.'”

Renata whispered to her brother, lowering her voice as much as possible.

“Isn’t that a Grafen-style expression? We don’t use such phrases in our country. Especially ‘Grand Mage’—that kind of expression that ranks and elevates Mages is something I’ve truly never heard, at least in the Izelant language.”

“…Is, is that so?”

“I told you not to neglect your foreign language studies. Moreover, the language of an enemy nation is even more important.”

She tugged on her brother’s ear. Mylotte helplessly begged for forgiveness. I’m sorry, sister, I’ll fix it, sister.

It was said that the wisest child in Koherben was Renata. The framework for Lucian’s plan to advance into Ostbrahe, as well as the design to build up his achievements step by step, were all her handiwork. Had she not vehemently refused marriage and reproduction, the next master of the family would have been Renata, not Mylotte.

“Many may have missed things today because it was chaotic, but you must not. Also, that Mage almost said he ‘saw’ Mages receiving magical healing after a battle.”

The fact that he almost said it made it even more suspicious. Mylotte’s expression hardened. He, too, had felt uneasy about that part.

“So that Mage must have grown up in an environment where he could see war mages when he was young.”

“Not just one or two, but likely several, he ‘saw’,” Renata added.

“The Mage’s manner of speaking is also worth listening to carefully. Expressing gratitude for the opportunity to speak is not a greeting typically used by commoners.”

“Well… he’s been walking around the court for a while now, so couldn’t he have picked it up by listening?”

“Well, perhaps. If so, he’s quite clever for a former gooseherd.”

Renata gave a small laugh and agreed half-heartedly. Mylotte’s expression became clouded with anxiety.

Many possibilities and all sorts of imaginations flickered through the siblings’ minds. As always, they did not voice any of it carelessly.

“…I have no ill will toward that Mage. In fact, he seems rather admirable at a glance,” Renata murmured apathetically, breaking the silence.

“However, we must not forget our duty. His Highness is certainly born with intuition and luck, but it is always necessary to guide the flow of that luck. Our role is to look back at the things he misses.”

‘The things he misses.’

When the long meeting ended and the sun cast its final red light through the western window, Lucian dismissed everyone from the office except for the Mage. It was obvious what the two of them left alone would be doing by now.

Of course, Mylotte and Renata were among the few close aides who shared the knowledge that ‘that act’ was a kind of ‘necessary’ act that provided the effect of detoxification for about one night. Therefore, they could not view that act as mere insane indulgence by their lord.

But how many men had their vision clouded by sex, by the manipulation of flesh and emotion?

The current King of Izelant had been so, as had the previous king, and the former lord of Callot had been as well. Hadn’t countless ‘successful’ men in history already created numerous precedents?

Clouding one’s vision happens in an instant, and that is the thing a ‘vassal’ must guard against most.

“I will keep that in mind, sister.”

Mylotte bowed his head heavily. Renata clicked her tongue and patted her brother’s shoulder. There was a significant age gap between them. Even her brother, whose hair had begun to thin at an early age, looked quite young in her eyes.

“You’re doing well enough. I also hope we can stay with that Mage until the end,” she murmured bitterly. However, it was also the tone of one who had already realized that nothing in this court is eternal.

---

It was exactly six days later that Kosha had an audience with ‘His Majesty the King.’

In the meantime, Kosha had been busy in his own way. Since he had bragged—though it wasn’t entirely a lie—about being confident, he had to study, and he had to help Lucian’s ‘detoxification’ with his whole body. Furthermore, to soothe that man’s severe jealousy, he had to faithfully wear the vicious Idelma gold shackles whenever Lucian left his side.

Every time he brought out the Idelma gold shackles, the lizard jumped up and down, expressing its protest. But since the creature was invisible to others anyway, Kosha pretended not to see it.

Because… every time he put on the shackles, Lucian would kiss him as if he were terribly sorry. Not knowing that Kosha could break those shackles if he put his mind to it, Lucian would press his lips repeatedly against his lips, wrists, and cheeks.

Then Kosha would simply feel lightheaded and let him do whatever he wanted.

Ah, the touch of affection was so soft, sweeter than the finest Ater-made silk clothes. Even while watching the lizard, who gaped in disbelief and faded away along with the shackles, he felt little guilt.

Is this what they call a ‘light’ man? Kosha pondered for a moment. There had been such a man in the court long ago, who said he would sleep with anyone for a certain amount of money. At that time, Kosha had just started sleeping alone after being separated from his nanny, and because he was afraid of the night, he had intended to pay that man to sleep with him.

Of course, before he could put it into action, he was caught by his father and severely scolded. His father had told him not to even glance toward such ‘light bastards.’ Since it was a family of solemn traditions, the word ‘light’ was used as a shameful and insulting expression.

Have I become something like that? A man who does anything if given a single kiss? Though no one had said anything, Kosha, feeling guilty on his own, shook his head vigorously as if to shake off the distracting thoughts.

So what if I’m a bit light? After all, the only one paying the price for the kisses is Lucian.

Anyway, he didn’t know why old memories kept surfacing lately. Was it because he had shed the shell that mimicked a human? There was nothing good about recalling the past…

“What are you thinking about?”

A voice came from above his head. As Kosha snapped his head up, the hood he had loosely draped slipped and fell heavily behind his back.

He saw the face of the blond man looking down at him upside down. Ah, he’s handsome. Kosha went blank at the face that made all distracting thoughts vanish just by looking at it.

Lucian habitually kissed his forehead. With his lips still pressed there, he whispered again.

“I asked what you’re thinking about.”

“…Just, this and that.”

Kosha slowly raised his head, struggling to ground himself back in reality.

They were in the deepest part of the main tower. It was the final corridor leading to the King’s bedroom. While Ostbrahe was generally like that, the main tower was exceptionally like a maze. According to Lucian, it was because it was the oldest part of the castle.

However, the interior was actually quite clean. The tapestries decorating the walls, the gold candlesticks, and the glass and bars of the windows were all new. It was likely because it was near the King’s residence.

“This and that, what specifically?”

Lucian pressed further. He was dressed in formal attire appropriate for an audience with the King, and Kosha was wearing a long tunic that reached his shins, layered with a thick white apron resembling a surcoat. Based on his attire, he looked like a royal physician or royal apothecary. The gray robe draped over him was barely hanging on his arms.

“Don’t think about lying to me.”

Lucian lightly tapped Kosha’s forehead with his fingertip.

“And don’t create things to hide.”

“I’m serious… I was just thinking about the protective magic. I’m a bit worried because I had to study it in a hurry.”

Kosha mumbled an excuse. And that was partly true.

Lucian had paid all the ‘prices’ Kosha had mentioned. Not only the kisses, but the magic tomes as well.

He had practically emptied the magic archive in the East Wing. This had been done even in broad daylight, with a large amount of manpower brought in to move the books.

To ransack a place he once had to enter in secret so openly. While guessing that Lucian must have arranged something for this, Kosha deliberately pretended not to know and asked nothing.

Of course, even if he had asked, Lucian wouldn’t have answered straightforwardly. For instance, that the archive keeper had been secretly detained and several related people, including the East Wing royal attendants, had been ‘disposed of’ in a short time without a proper trial.

The court was moving with unprecedented secrecy and violence. Lucian was at the center of it, but since he was the only ‘regent’ remaining in the palace, all instructions he gave were nominally issued in the King’s name.

‘Bastian can no longer return to the palace alive anyway. If such a thing were to happen, it would mean I am already dead.’

‘……’

‘So there’s no need to worry about the aftermath anymore.’

He had dismissed all voices of concern regarding the cleanup of those radical orders with that one sentence.

‘Arabella? Let’s think about that woman after we’ve managed to survive first.’

It was becoming a given among the ruling class that the eldest and third sons would engage in an all-out war, and the atmosphere of the court grew as sharp and sensitive as a blade.

Just do what can be done now. While moving busily without a moment to breathe, Lucian often said that as a habit, and Kosha… though he didn’t know why, secretly liked those words. Because Kosha knew that it wasn’t as easy as it sounded.

So Kosha also just… worked hard with the lizard to choose books and research protective magic. For a Mage who knew little about the court’s power dynamics and had limited learning, that was the only thing he could do right now.

And now was the time.

With eyes stiff from translating magic tomes written in the ancient language while cutting back on sleep, and clumsily disguised as some kind of royal physician or apothecary, he stood in the middle of the corridor leading to the King’s bedroom.

Lucian stared at Kosha, who was glancing around, with a strange expression, then spoke slowly.

“If you think you can’t do it, tell me now.”

“Huh? What…?”

“The protective magic or whatever.”

Lucian muttered, waving his hand. Suddenly, now? As Kosha became flustered, Lucian frowned slightly.

“I forcibly pushed out one of the attending physicians to slot you in. Of course, it’s a fake identity, but if a problem arises here that wasn’t there before, it’ll be more troublesome.”

He explained quietly. With slow, precise pronunciation and words that were easy for Kosha to understand.

“So if you’re not confident and think you’ll mess up, tell me now; it’s fine. This is my business anyway. These are things I decided to handle entirely on my own, and I didn’t expect this kind of help in the first place. So if you’re overextending yourself out of some sense of obligation…”

The vocabulary he used felt somewhat firm and harsh, but at the same time, there was a cautious line. Kosha could instinctively tell that he had put a great deal of effort into ‘choosing’ every single word.

So he shook his head. He had no choice but to shake it.

“I’m not lacking confidence. And it’s not out of obligation.”

“……”

“It’s all well and good for Your Highness to handle everything alone, but still, I’ll make you glad that I’m here.”

Because Kosha was a Mage. One who had found his own shining human and finally decided to ‘choose’ him.

While he respected the tendency of men in high positions to manage and take responsibility for everything alone to an excessive degree, he still wanted to be useful.