LP 3.9 The Prince’s Rebellion

“Even after barely getting settled, it’s not over. Until the event, the Capital Guard keeps patrolling to clear the roads and check people, so you have to declare any gifts in advance to get them inspected. Otherwise, one wrong move and you could be arrested.”

Suddenly, a memory from back then surfaced. Since a grown man was stepping forward to do something usually reserved for children, they had looked at him with such suspicious eyes. They had inspected everything so thoroughly that Kosha had been anxious that the bouquet he had worked so hard to make would be ruined.

“Anyway, that is truly… something done purely out of affection. It’s not something you can just do for anyone. Nor is it something you’d do multiple times.”

Of course, there might be people who did it multiple times, but Kosha’s life wasn’t that leisurely.

It was just as he was sniffing slightly at the poignant old memory. Lucian suddenly leaned down.

Their lips met.

“……!”

This kiss had no warning or precursor. Kosha’s eyes widened, and Lucian took advantage of the moment to push his way into the blankly open mouth. Tongues entwined, scraping against the roof of the mouth, and after biting the lips, he finally pulled away. They were still close enough for their breaths to touch.

“Say it again.”

“What?”

“That thing from before. What do you do it for?”

Their lips brushed every time he spoke. What did he mean, ‘for what’? Kosha gasped, unable to keep up with the flow. His gaze wandered, and he swallowed the saliva he hadn’t managed to gulp down.

“Af—affection…?”

As he murmured blankly, their lips met once more. This time, it was deeper.

I don’t do it for just anyone, only for you, purely out of affection. Ah, Lucian closed his eyes at a throbbing headache.

He didn’t even think of the bracelet or the bouquet he had received just a few hours ago. Those would have gone through the same process to reach his hands, but he had completely forgotten the fact that he had even received such things.

Just… just. The word currently embedded in his mind was terribly sweet. Simply because of that. He suddenly couldn’t resist the impulse. Even though the sun hadn’t set yet, it was as if an ‘elixir’ had taken effect.

Lucian grabbed and subdued the wrist that was fluttering in the air. It was the moment Kosha’s back was pressed firmly against the backrest of the chair by the force.

Thump, thump, thump!

Someone knocked loudly on the office door. Startled, Kosha reflexively pushed Lucian away. Their lips parted, and beneath the skin of the thin wrist he held, he could feel a pulse beating rapidly.

Following that, there was a small creaking sound of the door opening. It was in a direction where they couldn’t be seen, and though it was only a narrow gap, it was enough for a voice to leak through.

The sound of an awkward cough filtered through the gap in the door.

“Ahem, ahem….”

“…….”

“Your Highness, if the… ‘interrogation’ is finished, I believe we must proceed with our work….”

He knew it was Mylotte just by the voice. Lucian swept his hair back and clicked his tongue in irritation.

He wiped the damp lips of the still-bewildered Kosha and carefully dressed him in the gray robe. Finally, he held up the Idelma gold shackles and seemed to contemplate for a moment before shaking his head and stuffing the shackles into his pocket.

“I’ll leave them off while we’re together, so in exchange, you must stay quiet.”

At the unexpected leniency, Kosha nodded frantically. He was still a bit dazed.

It seemed Lucian’s work had piled up quite a bit. At the command to enter, the door opened fully and people streamed in. It seemed they had been waiting outside.

Everyone was carrying mountains of scrolls and bundles of paper. The knights were more heavily armed than usual. Familiar faces like Eydrick and Gosrick were visible. Everyone had grim expressions.

Feeling that he was the only one out of it while everyone else was serious, Kosha felt a bit embarrassed.

Mylotte glanced sideways at the Mage, who was huddling awkwardly on one side of the long bench like a stray cat.

Just looking at the flushed face and swollen lips, it was obvious what the two had been doing. Mylotte clicked his tongue inwardly. He also thought the Mage was quite something for seeming unbothered even while being treated like a concubine.

Regardless of finding the Mage suspicious, Mylotte didn’t actually dislike the Mage himself that much.

In this court, overflowing with humans worth less than a leftover dog bone, it would be hard to find someone as gentle and obedient as him. Thus, he had enough fondness for the man to hope that all the allegations clinging to him would end up being baseless worries.

And that fondness had just risen a bit more without him realizing it. Specifically, from the moment the Mage mentioned ‘pathological jealousy.’ No, to think he would say that right to his face. Words that everyone else only thought internally….

Furthermore, whatever method he used, Lucian was surprisingly calm after hearing such words. With that personality, Mylotte thought he would have flipped out, telling him not to spout nonsense.

He certainly isn’t an ordinary person….

It was just as Mylotte was lost in thought with narrowed eyes.

“Aren’t you working? You’re quite relaxed, aren’t you?”

A sharp voice reprimanded him like a bolt of lightning. Snapping back to his senses, he saw his lord, who was always excessively sparkling, standing there with a deeply scowled expression. His tone was overtly dissatisfied.

Yes, yes, of course. Mylotte set down the bundles of documents he had brought. A map was spread wide across the large desk on one side of the office, and scrolls were stacked neatly.

“Regarding the part you mentioned, we have handled the most urgent matters first. Leading the King’s escort, our Arman and Ruden….”

The words of the staff and commander-level knights mixed chaotically. Most of them opened their mouths while glancing at the Mage as if his presence were burdensome at first, but soon they stopped caring.

The Mage draped in the gray robe had a surprisingly negligible presence. To the point where, even though they knew he was there, they kept forgetting his existence.

“…Tomorrow morning, the final expedition decree stamped with the King’s seal will arrive at the North Gate of Osterbelt.”

“That bastard will definitely turn back and return. His goal will be to strike me. It’s only a matter of time.”

“Is there no probability that Arabella will return in the meantime?”

“Even if that woman returns, would she stand against Bastian? Logically speaking.”

She’ll join Bastian’s side. Lucian smiled crookedly. There was no need to think deeply. Between a slightly lacking younger brother he could manipulate as he pleased, and a half-brother as cunning as a fox. It was a matter of who he would deal with first.

“Rather, it’s better if that woman doesn’t return for the time being. While fighting the defense of Ostbrahe, we don’t have the capacity to deal with enemies from the north and south simultaneously.”

“Even if Arabella stays still, the Olet Army still remains. If Bastian turns back from the northwest where Gaikrux is, and Sir Mathers moves, we will have to fight a two-front war like this….”

“Then, should we split the army into two?”

“Then a hole will open up on this side…. The scale of the army they can mobilize is….”

Model pieces moved here and there on the map spread across the table. The staff frowned, and all sorts of words mixed haphazardly.

“If the Princess’s pregnancy is true, no matter how much Sir Mathers’ relationship with Bastian has soured, there is a high probability he will help him. As long as Bastian is seated on the throne somehow, the next throne for that fetus is guaranteed….”

“And after that, if Bastian is removed, Sir Mathers could play the role of ‘regent.’”

“That thing must not be born alive. No matter what.”

Lucian murmured lowly, cutting off the overheating conversation. The atmosphere sank heavily. Mentioning the death of an unborn child was unsettling even for those who had been through everything, but at the same time, it was an undeniable fact.

The influence of establishing a successor is greater than one thinks. Currently, Arabella’s two sons had both died young, and Lucian was unmarried. In this situation, if a new legitimate royal descendant were born….

Bastian’s position would become firmer than ever before. No one in this room wanted that. Lucian spoke slowly again.

“…But naturally, it would be better if we could deal with Bastian first before killing the fetus in the womb. Or at least make him ‘disqualified.’”

“Anyway, as long as the King is alive, if he crosses the Osterbelt gate armed, he is immediately ‘disqualified.’ Regardless of the reason, it is treason.”

“There’s something about that part.”

Lucian murmured.

“There is a way to make it so that attacking me, seated in Ostbrahe, with force does not become ‘treason.’”

Bastian, upon his departure, had been full of confidence. That idiot, definitely something…. Something they missed, or some conspiracy plotted in secret.

“…Regicide.”

One of the staff murmured as if whispering in the silence. It was a word everyone had thought of but dared not utter. For a moment, the atmosphere stirred.

“But how? Although the King is weakening, a human cannot time the moment of death. Nor can we just sit and wait indefinitely until he dies. Bastian doesn’t have the money to feed his soldiers through the winter.”

“What about planting someone inside to assassinate him and framing our side as the mastermind?”

“Wouldn’t that be disadvantageous? If there is an assassin, there must be a trial, and our side currently controls the court. It wouldn’t be natural for Bastian, who has been outside, to suddenly claim he knows the mastermind behind the regicide.”

“Even if it’s not natural, it’s worth insisting. We need to keep it in mind. However, Bastian’s reputation isn’t that good….”

“If a public trial is held, our side would be relatively advantageous.”

After all, Lucian was the one popular with the common people. That was a new ‘foundation’ and a final ‘fallback’ for emergencies that his staff had painstakingly formed for Lucian, who had no power in the capital.

To the fifteen-year-old Lucian who asked, ‘What power do commoners have? Would those who honorably hold swords fear those who hold pickaxes and torches?’, Retana, who had been preparing his journey to Ostbrahe since then, had answered calmly.

‘When those holding pickaxes exceed ten, then twenty, then eighty, wouldn’t even someone holding a sword be afraid?’

“If they try to frame Your Highness as the regicide, hold a hasty trial, and execute him, the backlash from the people will not be small. That is not the best move for Bastian to make.”

“If only that guy had the brains to think of such a thing.”

Lucian replied half-heartedly, tapping the table with his finger. His gaze scanned the map chaotically.

“Since I’ve already replaced all the apothecaries and escort personnel, assassination won’t be that easy either….”

Thoughts followed one another, repeating in circles. He was an old man to the point where waiting for natural death might be faster, but as a human, one cannot time the moment of death….

…As a human.

The finger tapping the table stopped for a moment. Lucian snapped his head up.

“What if it’s not a human?”

At the sudden remark, the staff’s expressions went blank, and Lucian abruptly turned his head.

Toward the direction where the Mage, who had been so quiet he was almost unnoticed, was sitting.

Kosha, who had been curled up in his gray robe, fidgeting with his fingers and playing some unknown hand game, looked up as if he felt the gaze. His glowing green eyes blinked at the sudden concentration of attention on him.

If a non-human Mage were involved.

The story of that suspicious red-haired Mage he heard from Kosha, the Gykrux mages, and the third-party entities he had never needed to worry about during the family feud became intricately entangled in his mind.

Not grasping the situation, the Mage rolled his eyes with his hand awkwardly raised. Then, he spoke cautiously.

“Uh… by any chance, has something come up that I can help with?”

Unfittingly for the serious situation, his voice sounded somehow fluttery and full of anticipation.

---

“No… yes, that’s right. You can’t really know the exact day a person dies.”

Kosha mumbled, glancing around.

He was currently sitting in the middle of the office. When he was told to come, he had trotted over excitedly, but now that the gazes of a dozen staff members were focused on him, he seemed nervous.

Sitting alone in a chair too large for his body and dealing with questions coming from all directions, it felt like he was being interrogated.

Meanwhile, the rude way they spoke to a Mage grated on his nerves. How dare they speak so carelessly to whom….

However, for now, his vassals were officials and the Mage was a servant. Even if it was a disguised identity, for now, in terms of justification and appearance. So… even if he wanted to find fault, there was no proper pretext. Lucian, suppressing his displeasure, crossed his arms and observed.

“Speak precisely. Are you saying you can’t do it, or—”

“Even if the Grand Mage grandfather came, it probably wouldn’t work…. That’s not a field that can be sensed with mana.”

As he shook his head, the staff, including Mylotte and Renata, exchanged glances. After observing for a moment, Kosha added slightly.

“But I can sense things like the flow of the body to roughly know the health status. Like, a general idea of where the body is unwell right now.”

“Then what about death? Is there a way to kill someone and make it look like natural death?”

“Well, that….”

Kosha frowned and twitched the tip of his nose slightly. As if the mere thought of it was unpleasant.

“I think you could first use sleep-inducing magic, and then stop the heart.”

“Is that difficult magic? Or is it at a level anyone can do?”

“I’ve never done it, but I don’t think it would be that difficult….”

Kosha, rolling his eyes as if thinking for a moment, scratched the back of his neck slightly.

“But even if it’s not difficult, most mages probably wouldn’t want to do it.”

“What do you mean?”

“There is such a thing as a price for magic….”

Kosha hesitated. Translating the concepts of a Mage into human language was always difficult.

“If a Mage intervenes to kill someone who could have lived longer if left alone, it’s… a bit like that. Let’s say it’s not a recommended action.”

Strictly speaking, the word ‘price’ could not fully express it. Kosha rambled. Someone interrupted hastily.

“Does that make sense? Do you know how many mages we’ve faced in war? Then what happens to the lives of our soldiers they killed?”

“That, I mean.”

“Saying there’s a price for killing sounds like some outdated primitive religion. Then should butchers receive punishment because they cut chicken necks every single day?”

“No, it’s not that….”

Kosha waved his hands in embarrassment.

“Human butchers can’t use magic. It’s not an intervention with mana. That’s not what I’m talking about.”

That was partly why mages were generally taciturn. Since they were born as mages, they were taught almost like brainwashing from a very young age that they must be cautious even when picking a single mushroom in the forest.

In other words, it was the responsibility that comes with power.

“War, honestly, I don’t know. I’ve never done such a thing. But I heard it’s bad. I saw—no, I heard that mages receive magical healing after a battle….”

Kosha trailed off, glancing around.

The staff exchanged silent glances, and Lucian, who had been rubbing his chin, spoke.

“In the end, it means it can be done somehow. Whether by scheduling ‘healing’ or whatever.”

“It can be done somehow….”

Kosha nodded slightly. Anyway, the timid Kosha had never even dared to think of such a thing, so his voice lacked confidence.

“…We must respond while keeping in mind the possibility of magic intervening.”

The faces of everyone present crumpled satisfyingly.

“Where should we start dealing with magical assassination attempts? Is Gaikrux trying to intervene?”

“It doesn’t seem like something that red-haired mage fellow could handle alone….”

“Can a Mage also control humans? If so, to what extent?”

“How about using Idelma gold protective gear? Can that block a controlled human too?”

“For all of them? Then there will be a problem with our management of Idelma gold as well.”

Once again, all sorts of voices and questions mixed chaotically. In the middle of it, Kosha didn’t know what to do and parted his lips. No, I mean….

“Um….”