At some point, the Third Prince and I returned to the board game room, not the white space.
Not even a second past midnight.
“…………….”
“………….”
And the silence continued.
It wasn’t awkward or because we were too shocked to speak.
The Third Prince was watching my reaction.
The Third Prince, watching me, and me, watching him.
That’s why the silence lingered.
It was the Prince’s turn to break it.
“Do you… despise me?”
“What do you mean?”
“You gave me a chance. A chance I was too foolish to realize on my own. I said I’d seize any opportunity that came my way, but when it finally did, I could only bow my head in haste. In the end, I’m just someone who watches others’ reactions, never seizing opportunities myself.”
“It was Your Highness who earned the Archmage’s recognition.”
“That’s the problem. Sacrificing innocent citizens, using the fear of enemies to secure the throne and the title of Emperor—is that what it means to hold power?”
“………….”
“What I want isn’t war or chaos. Uniting the Empire, proving that threats exist… no, even that’s just an excuse. Innocent people will still suffer.”
“Your Highness.”
“And yet, I… I……….”
The Prince was tormented.
After much deliberation and hesitation, he had made his choice, and because of it, he gained the Archmage’s backing. He could now compete for the throne. The possibility of becoming Emperor was within reach. Everything the Third Prince had desired was now within his grasp.
Yet, he agonized.
Was his answer the right one? Was it acceptable to sacrifice innocent citizens for his own sake?
And… the fact that he had confessed all of this to me.
Perhaps I might be among the “innocent citizens” he would sacrifice.
“I still… believe my answer wasn’t wrong.”
“……….”
“If the same situation arose, I’d answer the same way. No matter how much I hesitate or agonize, I’d still give that answer.”
Blood dripped from the Prince’s lips and hands.
It was the mark of his torment.
And a symbol of his unchanging resolve.
“Let me ask again. Kyle Byron, do you despise me?”
“Your Highness.”
“If you do, or even if you don’t, leave now. I say this out of concern for you. I can’t protect you from my brothers… no, my competitors.”
“………….”
“I called you here to play board games, to get closer to my brothers. But now, there’s no need for that.”
With those final words, the Third Prince, after shaking his head a few times, cast aside his hesitation.
And bowed to me.
“Thank you, Kyle Byron. For giving me a chance. For giving me the opportunity to shine.”
“………….”
“You are my benefactor and a noble. You may come to the imperial palace anytime you wish. Whenever, wherever… I will welcome you.”
After expressing his sincere gratitude, the Prince straightened up and quietly turned away. As if to say, it’s time to go.
If his retreating figure looked somewhat lonely, maybe it was just my imagination.
Watching the Third Prince’s back, I whispered softly.
“Did you know? Your Highness always smiled brightly when playing Catan. In the end, you truly enjoyed the board game. Even just now.”
“…………….”
“I’ll leave Catan here. You know all the rules, so you can play with others.”
“………….”
“Someday, when I see you again.”
I sincerely hope to see that unchanging smile once more.
*
Clunk. Clunk.
“…So that’s how it ended.”
The night I comforted the Third Prince with board games and met the Archmage.
That was already two days ago.
As soon as the night passed and the day broke, I told everyone it was time to leave. Along with the news that I had received permission from the Third Prince.
Everyone was taken aback by the sudden announcement, but I was just grateful they followed along without asking too many questions.
“Guess it’s hard to explain everything as it is.”
After all, once the Third Prince officially re-entered the race for the throne, everything would come to light. But the Third Prince didn’t want me to get caught up in the mess or cause any unnecessary noise. So, following his wishes, I left the Imperial Palace as quickly as possible.
We were riding the celestial carriage (pulled by heavenly horses) that the Third Prince had generously handed over, moving farther and farther away from the capital.
After a full day of non-stop travel, the next morning dawned, and I finally explained everything to Adela, Water Tiger, and Sally.
“I see, I understand.”
“Will this affect even the Magic Tower?”
“The Third Prince’s participation in the race for the throne is indeed a major political event, but the Six Great Magic Towers are strictly forbidden from involving themselves in politics. Of course, things happen behind the scenes, but Master Olfin has no interest in such matters, so there’s no need to worry.”
“That’s a relief.”
Adela took it surprisingly calmly.
[Grrr!]
“Hmm… well, I guess I don’t need to explain this to you.”
[Grr.]
After all, there was no need to explain anything to Water Tiger, who was just a spirit.
“Wow, as expected of the Young Master…! Even the Archmage has eyes to see your worth!!”
Sally completely ignored the part about the Third Prince and only focused on the fact that I had been invited by the High Magician of the Imperial Palace.
And so, the Imperial Palace, where I couldn’t even achieve my original goal and had to leave in a hurry, was behind us now.
I was still concerned about what would happen to the Third Prince in the future.
‘When I return, I’ll find out through Catan.’
Whether he’ll stay the same in the race for the throne or change.
Well, it’s not like I came away completely empty-handed.
“Adela, the letter of recommendation from His Highness the Prince—”
“I have it safely. It doesn’t bear the Third Prince’s personal name, but the crest of the Severus Imperial Family is clearly there.”
First, there was the letter of recommendation from the Imperial Family that the Third Prince had personally arranged.
Though it didn’t carry the Prince’s name, it bore the crest of the Severus Imperial Family, which only the Imperial Family could use. With this, there was virtually no place in the Empire I couldn’t enter.
‘If his name had been on it, I’d naturally be tied to him.’
The Third Prince was destined to become the eye of the storm. While the Archmage’s protection meant the First and Second Princes couldn’t directly target him, the same couldn’t be said for those around him.
That was exactly what the Third Prince was worried about, which is why he deliberately left his name off the recommendation.
Still, it was an incredibly useful item.
“And then, the dwarves…”
“They’re a race that even nobles can’t easily make contact with. There’s a saying that the Empire was able to seize continental hegemony because they secured the dwarves first.”
“Definitely, they’d make one heck of a board game.”
“…………….”
Second, there was the permit to enter the Dwarf Village.
As Adela said, the dwarves were strictly managed by the Imperial Family and were the highest-ranking artisans who worked exclusively for the Imperial Family.
‘Even the Third Prince’s status couldn’t mobilize the dwarves.’
It was no exaggeration to say that the legendary weapons and structures across the continent all passed through the hands of the dwarves.
Only high-ranking nobles like marquises or dukes, or members of the Imperial Family, might get to see them once in their lifetime.
And here I was, holding a permit to enter the village where such dwarves lived.
‘He even asked me to return this later.’
It wasn’t something that could be issued or obtained easily. Not even the First or Second Princes could get their hands on something like this.
According to the Third Prince, direct members of the Imperial Family were each given one permit. Without it, even they couldn’t enter the Dwarf Village.
My gratitude was endless, and with the letter of recommendation, it was clear the Third Prince had done everything he could for me.
It was practically all done anyway.
Given that he had little to nothing and was challenging for the throne, each and every one of these things must have been precious to him.
‘A board game made by dwarves.’
The pass was in the form of a necklace, intricately engraved with the image of a dwarf holding a hammer and nails.
If he had ever visited the Dwarf Village, it was also something he had asked to be returned when he later came to the imperial palace.
Frankly, I can’t resist a board game made by dwarves.
And finally, there was a harvest that overwhelmed these two.
“Sally, you packed 8 board games, right?”
“Y-yes! I, I made sure to pack all the board games you made, Young Master! And, and as you said, I left Catan behind.”
“Great…!!”
There are 8 high-quality board games made by imperial craftsmen, a whopping 8!
Unlike Abracadabra, which is made entirely of illusion magic, or Kyle Galli and Spirit Poker, which only require a few cards and tools, these are games with intricate boards and various complex tokens.
Especially since such complex and intricate games are practically impossible to mass-produce, making them even more valuable.
‘Even if we mobilized the blacksmiths of the Byron family, we could have made them.’
But it would have been hard to expect this level of quality. Moreover, there were no top-tier painters or scribes within the family.
Frankly, just being able to make these board games was more than enough profit from this imperial trip.
‘Board game trend? Spreading among the nobility?’
Well, that’s important too, but it’s something that can be done slowly, right?
Given that we don’t know when we’ll be able to make such board games with imperial craftsmen again, it was truly a satisfying gain.
I’m holding back because we’re in the carriage, but once we arrive at our destination, I’ll have to try them out again.
As I reminisced about the harvest and petted the Water Tiger sitting at my feet, Sally, who had been giggling, approached me.
“Young Master, are we going back to the Magic Tower then…?”
“Ah, I didn’t tell you where we’re going? We are going to the Magic Tower, but there’s a place we need to stop by first.”
“A place to stop by…?”
“Where else? We need to return the Water Tiger.”
[……Grrr!?]
At my words, the Water Tiger, who had been quietly closing its eyes and enjoying the petting, immediately raised its head.
Although its body was made of water, it didn’t slosh around like a slime, so my hand didn’t sink into it, but it was quite a dramatic reaction.
“I received a letter from Duke Nicholas. He said he has already returned to his duchy and asked that you return the Water Tiger when the time comes.”
[Grr, grrr…!]
“Anyway, it’s on the way, and I also plan to meet Princess Leisha.”
“…Princess Leisha, you say?”
“Come to think of it, Adela wouldn’t know. When I went to the Arkhé Magic Tower, I went as a representative of the Everts Duchy, didn’t I?”
“……I was mistaken.”
“Huh? Anyway, the reason I was qualified then was because I helped Princess Leisha on behalf of the Everts Duchy. This Water Tiger is also her spirit.”
[Grrr…]
“We parted ways a bit abruptly last time, but we’ve been exchanging letters since then, so she must have cooled off by now. I’m a bit nervous about seeing her again after so long.”
There was no sign of it in the letters, but since she slammed the door when I left last time, I’m a bit worried.
What if Leisha’s distrust of humans has worsened? What if I go all the way there and get completely rejected?
As I worried about this, I suddenly noticed that Sally and Adela’s gazes were directed somewhere.
Their gazes were.
[Grrrr…?]
They seemed to be looking at something very bewildered.
They were looking at the Water Tiger.
……Why?
*
“……”
One of the four turrets in the Everts Duchy. The top floor of the turret where the youngest princess resides.
Leisha…
She quietly opened her eyes and woke up on her bed in her room, located in that familiar place.
*Creak. Creak.*
“Ugh……….”
How many hours had it been since she last woke up? As she finally got up, her joints screamed in protest.
One of the highest-level Spirit Techniques, ‘Synchro,’ was an incredibly powerful and useful secret art that allowed a Spirit Master to enter the body of a Spirit with whom they shared a deep bond. But it wasn’t without its drawbacks.
Since the Spirit Master’s consciousness was sent into the Spirit, their physical body became vulnerable during the process. Additionally, if the Spirit Master wasn’t skilled enough, there was a risk of their consciousness being assimilated into the Spirit.
Of course, for Leisha, this was all irrelevant. She was at the top of the Turret, protected by countless Spirits, and she was already so accustomed to Synchro that the risk of assimilation was practically nonexistent.
Right now, she was just stiff from lying down for too long.
*Growl.*
“…………Sigh.”
How many hours had she maintained Synchro? Even at the shortest estimate, it must have been well over 24 hours.
Returning from the Water Tiger’s body to her human one, her empty stomach growled, and it took a while for her dazed mind to fully regain its senses.
[Whoosh!]
[Clatter!]
“……Hmm.”
Seeing her awake, several Spirits hurriedly brought her porridge and used their bodies to massage Leisha.
Their response was so practiced, as if this wasn’t the first or second time.
While shakily scooping porridge into her mouth, Leisha’s thoughts drifted to her head.
Specifically, to the touch of someone’s hand on her head.
‘It was warm.’
Her mind was still hazy, filled only with the memory of someone gently stroking her head.
She missed that soft, affectionate touch. Her head felt empty without it.
Lost in these repetitive thoughts, Leisha…
“……….”
*Slurp.*
…finished her porridge and very naturally lay back down on the bed.
Just as she had done over the past few weeks, she woke up once a day to consume the bare minimum of calories before immediately preparing for Synchro.
“………Ah!”
Finally, as if her senses had somewhat returned, she opened her eyes wide and sat up.
Unlike before, this time she had ended Synchro to ‘prepare.’
Taking slow, deep breaths, Leisha looked at the dozens of Spirits gathered around her bed.
“Everyone, get ready……!”
[Whoosh?]
[Meow?]
[Clatter?]
“Clean, clean the entire Turret! Tidy up my room too! Pick out clothes and cosmetics! They’ll be here in half a day!!”
[Whoa, whoosh!?]
[Clatter-clatter!]
As soon as the command was given, the Spirits moved in perfect unison.
Before Leisha started preparing herself, she quietly gazed out the window.
“……Those girls.”
Far in the distance, two arrogant women who had seen through her true identity were approaching.
“Kyle, Byron…….”
Remembering the warmth, touch, and scent she had felt all this time…
As the Spirits finished their preparations…
Leisha quietly indulged in the warmth of her memories.
For minutes, for hours.
On and on.
