Chapter 34

# Episode 34: Crown Prince Alondre (3) – The Art of Immersion

The capital of Izern Empire, Karlastia.

The Golden Cloud Palace, where the Crown Prince resides, housed over a hundred people, and they all recently suffered from a strange affliction.

Its name was, “This-is-all-my-fault Syndrome.”

“As the Crown Prince’s personal physician, I couldn’t prevent harm to His Highness’s body! What use am I being alive when I failed him!”

“Diseases usually arise from unclean environments. It’s all due to my incompetence as the Palace Administrator! I hereby offer all my ranks and properties to the palace and wish to return as a commoner. I earnestly ask for your permission!”

“Ah! If my swordsmanship had reached its true potential, I could’ve even cut down the illness troubling His Highness! How shameful it is for me to be both his bodyguard and martial arts teacher! I’m worse than the kitchen knives wielded by housewives!”

Witnessing this spectacle, a great demon evaluated them.

“What a bunch of cowards they are…”

Lucidra sincerely felt chills.

I mean, people do catch minor illnesses every now and then. Why go to such extremes over something like this?

What was even more absurd was the Crown Prince’s reaction.

“Cough! A ruler is one who takes responsibility. If any of you bear guilt, I bear a greater sin. Let’s not speak more on this matter.”

‘This sounds like a threat. If you keep this up, I’ll expose your flaws,’ and his subordinates promptly shut their mouths. The Crown Prince lay in bed for about three days before getting up as if nothing had happened.

Lucidra was bewildered.

In truth, when the Crown Prince’s first avatar, Bern, was destroyed, she had secretly nurtured expectations.

The destruction of an avatar would inflict significant damage on the host body, and thereby, she planned to tempt the weakened Crown Prince into forming a new contract.

Ultimately, her expectation failed due to the Crown Prince, who may or may not have been human, but looking back, she felt it was for the better.

“If such a ruckus happens over a mere cold, what would have happened if this guy had collapsed while coughing up blood?”

The palace might have been turned upside down, no joke.

There would undoubtedly have been a massive investigation to find the culprit, naturally leading to Lucidra’s exposure.

Just imagining being chased by hundreds of zealous royalists with fierce eyes made her shiver.

“Why are you shaking? Can even demons catch a cold?”

“Nothing like that. Rather, isn’t it too early for you to get up?”

“Not entirely recovered, but I can manage paperwork. I’ve postponed the Crown Prince’s education for now, so I have time to deal with my backlog, though if the workload gets too much, it may get unbearable.”

“Didn’t you say you didn’t want to work? In that case, you could just pretend to be sick and rest.”

Upon Lucidra’s suggestion, the Crown Prince looked at her.

With his sculpted features and soulful gaze, even the great demon Lucidra felt nothing but…

…annoyance, as his face explicitly said, ‘And what kind of talk is this?’

“What’s with that look?”

“Playing sick is just a temporary escape. In the long term, it damages one’s reputation and relationships.”

Furthermore, the Crown Prince added,

“To be precise, I don’t dislike work itself. I just don’t like doing only work.”

“So you’re creating a new identity through avatars to do otherwise?”

“Hmm. The adventurer’s life was exhilarating.”

“But you’re a terrible actor.”

The Crown Prince stiffened.

For the first time, a flaw was exposed in someone who was usually insurmountable, and a smirk crept onto the demon’s lips.

“At the drop of a hat, you revert to the Crown Prince’s ‘majestic’ gaze, and occasionally, your manner of speech goes back to normal.”

“Hmm.”

“And despite posing as a commoner adventurer, why do you know so much about magic? The knowledge you gave to that Blanca is rarely known among commoners.”

“Umm.”

“Then at the end, you outright revealed that you were an ‘avatar.'”

“Wha!”

The Crown Prince sounded as if he had been shot in the chest, and he hastily offered an excuse.

“However, vanishing without a word would be such a pathetic act. If handled poorly, that girl might go through life burdened with guilt. Although I can’t reveal my real identity, she should at least know that the body she interacted with was fake to clear her misunderstandings.”

“Hmm.”

Lucidra let out a snort.

The Crown Prince wasn’t wrong. He had done the best he could.

The issue was that Lucidra thought the girl named Blanca might have interpreted it in a ‘different way.’

‘Well, it doesn’t matter. Leaving it alone might be more entertaining. After all, if the misunderstanding escalates, it’s this guy who will suffer consequences, not me. Yes, no problem.’

Having reached a truly devilish conclusion, she snapped her fingers.

Her attire, usually revealing and shimmering with an odd sheen, transformed into a white shirt and black suit pants. With the demeanor of a salesperson introducing a product, she spoke to the Crown Prince.

“In that context, wouldn’t it be wise to form a new contract with me, Your Highness?”

“You’ve changed your tone. What do you propose?”

“It’s a magic for deeper ‘immersion’ in acting. It prevents confusion between the host and the avatar.”

Lucidra’s crimson eyes gleamed seductively.

The phrase ‘preventing confusion between the host and avatar’ might sound appealing at first glance, but,

Actually, it’s not much different from saying that both the host and the avatar possess individual selves.

Of course, since avatars can disappear at the host’s will, it’s impossible for them to betray the host, but the avatar is still a part of the Crown Prince’s spirit.

If I tempt the ‘avatar’ during the times when the host is vulnerable, like while sleeping, I might be able to create an interesting situation.

“Oh, I’ve already made one, so I don’t need it.”

Lucidra’s devilish smile faltered.

Ignoring her frustration, the Crown Prince coolly continued to explain his own magic.

“I’ve added some modifications to the avatar magic. Let’s say it in terms of administrator accounts and sub-accounts, but that might be a bit hard to understand. To put it simply, I’ve made it so that the host and the avatar’s consciousnesses are distinct. The avatar’s information can be viewed by the host, but the host’s information does not transfer to the avatar. Meanwhile, the host can interfere with the avatar, but the avatar can only ‘request’ assistance from the host, not interfere directly. And there are restrictions on memory access.”

Lucidra blinked.

She asked, taken aback.

“When did you manage to do all this..?”

“Why, I’ve been lying down and resting for the past few days, haven’t I? I’ve tried tinkering with it. It was a good form of rehabilitation exercise.”

‘Rehabilitation exercise?’

Just based on what she’d just heard, it wasn’t merely modification; it was a complete reinvention of the magic.

“C, can you really do that? That magic isn’t something easy to tamper with! And what about the identity issues and self-confusion?”

Having abandoned her sales pitch, Lucidra reacted hysterically, to which the Crown Prince responded seriously.

“An actor immersed in their role often forgets they’re an actor. However, deep within their consciousness, the actor’s true self remains alive. Applying this principle, it shouldn’t be that difficult.”

“…Ah, I guess.”

Lucidra gave up trying to rationalize.

After all, he was a human who casually used and modified a demon-specific avatar magic that even demons struggle with.

His mental structure must inherently differ from that of normal people. Thinking about him like a normal individual was useless.

“So, what about the next avatar? Do you plan to revive Bern?”

“Umm, I thought about casually reaching out to Blanca with greetings, but it seems too risky. Blanca may not know, but the other adventurers believe Bern is truly dead, especially since it happened in Richi’s dungeon.”

Wouldn’t it raise too many suspicions if an adventurer known to have died in Richi’s dungeon secretly meets one of the dungeon’s conquerors?

The Crown Prince, who sincerely desired Blanca’s growth and success, didn’t want her to get caught up in unnecessary gossip because of him.

“So, a new avatar then. What do you plan to do with it?”

“I’m thinking about delving deeper into the Virca Kingdom.”

From Bern’s perspective as an adventurer, the situation in the Virca Kingdom appeared nothing short of a mess.

Particularly, the royals and nobles who allowed the unchecked growth of dangerous elements like Goblin Lords or Liches within the kingdom seemed to be on a suicidal path.

“Coincidentally, I overheard an interesting rumor from Renya.”

“A rumor?”

“There’s a family in the Virca Kingdom with immense power and influence. The young lady of this family has an extremely nasty temper, and her servants are constantly being replaced daily. Ordinarily, a family of such stature should have trustworthy servants, but they fill in the roles with just anyone because they don’t even maintain that properly.”

“Someone who’s spoiled and has a nasty character, or perhaps delights in tormenting others. Either way, not a normal lass, I’d say.”

“Hence, I intend to infiltrate their household as a servant.”

“…A Crown Prince becoming a servant in a noble family of a foreign country?”

“Role-playing is supposed to be like that. Besides, there are limited ways for someone of unclear identity to approach the nobility. Doesn’t this seem like a perfect opportunity?”

And further, the Crown Prince added,

“Ever since interacting with Blanca, I’ve realized that nurturing talent is quite to my liking. Should I transform a nasty noble young lady into an outstanding military talent, it would doubtlessly also contribute to stabilizing the Virca Kingdom. A win-win situation.”

“Isn’t it better for the Crown Prince of an empire if a foreign nation is in chaos?”

“That’s overly short-sighted thinking. If undead armies or a Goblin Kingdom emerge on the continent, it becomes troublesome for us too. If there’s a fire next door, it’s best to extinguish it before it spreads to our home, isn’t it?”

“Alright, well done, Your Highness.”

After answering with evident sarcasm, Lucidra asked,

“So, have you decided on a name?”

The Crown Prince replied.

“Cedric”