373. Lena Ep – Princess Chloe

I tend to be quite suspicious and thorough about everything. Some might say otherwise, but they just don’t understand my standards.

Take this situation for instance.

Bringing a sword into the royal palace is a grave sin that could land me in prison.

As someone destined to be a knight, I absolutely cannot go to jail. Thus, I began a meticulous verification process.

The first step in this verification was Leah. I needed to confirm whether that adorably cute lady was indeed a real Priestess.

– “I am a real Priestess.”

– “Okay. So I just need to check if you’re lying to me then. Thank you!”

I confirmed this by asking a person named Reb. He confirmed it. With that, her identity was secure.

However, that didn’t proof that she wouldn’t lie.

A Priestess can also deceive and could be a fraud.

Ah~ It’s no good being this cold-hearted. But it can’t be helped. I decided to have another conversation with her.

– “Hero. Are you awake? Good morning.”

Her appearance was quite convincing. Her nose, cheeks, and the skin around her eyes were all soft; if she were a con artist, I wouldn’t trust anyone in this world.

So I assigned her 1 point for not being a con artist.

Of course, I still don’t trust that Priestess.

– “Good morning. But Priestess, I forgot to mention yesterday, but could you refrain from calling me ‘Hero’? It sounds a bit grating…”

– “Yes. I will.”

The Priestess answered immediately.

Hmm. You might find it surprising, but I gave her an additional point for that.

If she were truly a fraud trying to deceive me, she would not cut off the conversation so neatly.

I was right to talk to her again.

I had to remain cautious, but I felt a tad more at ease, so I told her to call me by my name.

– “Leera?”

– “No, it’s ‘Le-ra’. The ‘e’ sound is elongated.”

The people of the Belita Kingdom are all fools. It took me two or three reminders just for them to pronounce my name correctly.

I worried that maybe the Priestess was one of those. But then she unexpectedly said something.

– “I heard that in the North, they stretch monophthongs. Like Queen Letty.”

What? What’s up with our Queen Letty? That woman is a fraud.

There was nothing more to discuss.

I sat down. I was about to say, “You are definitely a con artist, and whatever that prophecy or whatever it is, is none of my business; just do as you please.”

– “There’s been discussion about how to spell Queen Letty’s name. Originally, it should be spelled and pronounced as ‘Leti’ according to the Acaian Empire’s phonetic rules, but she herself refused that. She prefers to be called Letty.”

Wait a minute. Hm. Let’s hear a little more.

She’s still using proper titles for Queen Letty.

– “So there was quite a debate about how to write it. Just following the Acaian Empire way isn’t possible since she’s the one who liberated the North from the Empire, right? But because they couldn’t overhaul the phonetic system, they came to a compromise by adding symbols. We spell her name this way.”

That’s right, that’s right. Just how great a person she is. I thought while the Priestess was jotting something down on a napkin.

‘So should my name be spelled like how Queen Letty’s is, as ‘Leera’? That’s a bit much…’

Fortunately, it seemed it wasn’t the case.

The Priestess handed me the napkin.

/ Reti’ /

Anyone with a mind at a Magere level would understand what this means. But I could only ask about what this symbol (‘) signifies.

– “It’s an ancient pronunciation symbol. I borrowed the system from Leah, the sister of Lord Leonel, who is said to have established the Acaian Kingdom.”

A’ bota.

Because this symbol is engraved on my sword. The drunken ramblings of Grandfather Boris echoed in my mind.

– “Do you know how amazing that sword you have is? The first time I saw that sword was in the mysterious temple of the Anthrope Great Canyon.”

However, this alone was not enough certainty. My sword could look incredibly ancient, but it was unlikely to be old enough to discuss the ancient Acaian Kingdom.

Let alone, if it was just the ramblings of a senile old man…

– “That guy is so old, you wouldn’t know. Back when your father was little, he was a great warrior.”

– “That’s what the records say. He was a legendary warrior of the Ainar Tribe and received commendations from the Cross Church, along with being exiled from the Aisel Kingdom…”

– “Leera, you will accomplish great things. Having the divine weapon means exactly that. Truly, you will do great! Great deeds that I could never do.”

At that moment, I couldn’t express how my heart raced.

Yet, shortly after, I found myself asking this to the Priestess.

– “But Priestess, about that Evil God you mentioned. You said it’s in the royal palace, right? That’s serious?”

Indeed.

I was ultimately deceived. An Evil God? Such a thing is impossible, but,

What could my heart do?

*

And so, morning came. As soon as I woke up, I found myself lost in thought.

Today is the day of the decisive battle.

I had a refreshing drink during lunch yesterday and sweated it out in the evening workout, so I felt great. Perfect.

I quickly geared up and left the room.

Entering the palace was scheduled for around noon, but I needed to move early to hide among the prince’s entourage and consider the preparation time. First, I went to wake Leah.

“Leah. Are you awake? How are you feeling?”

“I’m feeling better.”

Leah was sitting upright and looking composed.

Seeing the candles lit, it appeared she had been offering morning prayers.

To think someone like her caused such a ruckus yesterday.

She was a dramatically different person when drunk. I chuckled quietly and went to Ray next.

“Ray. You awake? I’m coming in.”

“Yeah.”

As I opened the door, Ray was in the middle of changing his clothes.

I was taken aback and thought, ‘Eww!’ but I didn’t let it show. I had seen him like this once or twice during training, no reason to get shy.

So naturally, I entered the room and sat on the bed.

“Hurry up and get dressed. We need to leave right away.”

“Okay. Just a second.”

Ray got dressed and equipped his gear. But there was a palpable tension radiating from his actions.

He loosened his shoelaces and then tied them from the start again, putting on the Conrad kingdom’s royal guard uniform given by Prince Lean with a sort of solemnity.

I couldn’t help but say a word to him.

“Scared? You seem nervous.”

“…What?”

“You’re scared. Hehe. You look really tense.”

I thought he would snap back and laugh at this, but Ray only shrugged his shoulders and didn’t respond much.

“Let’s go.”

“Uh… yeah.”

It felt a bit awkward. I was just trying to joke around.

Well, what we’re about to do isn’t something to be laughing about.

This is an operation involving the Knight Commander of the Royal Guard, and there’s plenty of potential for trouble. If we get caught bringing weapons without finding that Evil God, even Prince Lean wouldn’t be able to cover for us.

So, we needed to stay tense.

Okay. I felt nervous.

Stepping outside, Leah and Reb were already waiting for us.

Priestess Ophelia also came out, and we set off right away. Our destination was the mansion of the noble Marquis Tatian, where the prince’s entourage was staying.

“Wow, man. This house is filthy huge.”

We waited for a while in front of that enormous mansion. Eventually, dozens of the prince’s entourage began to come out one by one and formed a line by the roadside.

They were preparing for the march.

We signaled to someone who appeared to be an administrator, then stepped into the procession. Ray, Reb, and I were to disguise ourselves as royal guards.

‘But why is the atmosphere like this? I can’t even speak.’

They must have selected only the elite of the elite among the royal guards of the Conrad Kingdom. The soldiers preparing for the march were incredibly disciplined.

They wouldn’t even glance if one were to dance a doggy dance beside them.

I stood stiffly, stuck in the middle of that motionless formation.

Just as I didn’t expect it to be this hard to stay still, my neck began to tighten.

The standard bearer shouted.

“Attention!”

‘I’ve been standing since earlier!’

The prince appeared. When I met him yesterday at the accommodation, I had said, “Wow! A prince! How marvelous!” but now it felt very different.

This guy was an incredibly high-ranking noble!

Since he was only one year older than me, I thought we were somewhat equals… but it should be fine, right? Surely he wouldn’t say anything later, right?

Feeling anxious, I rolled my eyes.

The prince was talking with a middle-aged man presumed to be the marquis as they exited through the main gate.

The marquis boarded the carriage in front of him to lead the procession, and the prince approached this carriage.

Oh my. He’s passing right in front of me. I tensed up, and the prince looked at me and,

“Pffft!”

He burst into laughter.

What? Why? What’s wrong? Did I do something? Will he scold me later? Just tell me.

But that was the end of it.

The prince laughed to himself (and glanced back at Ray and Reb), then boarded the carriage.

“Attention! March!”

With the standard bearer’s shout, the parade began. The Priestess Ophelia and Leah boarded a carriage in the rear.

During the march, occasionally (since it was winter, instead of flowers) straw would blow around, and the cheers of citizens could be heard.

I was too busy keeping pace with the soldiers, balancing my left foot and right, to have time for any appreciation. Just at a moment when the shade came over me, I looked up and noticed we were passing under the enormous gates of the royal castle.

Look at all these soldiers bustling around.

To show respect to the prince, there were royal knights lined up in the castle courtyard. However, we weren’t just waiting for them.

“Marquis Tatian! What are you doing!”

At a glance, it was evident that high-ranking nobles were gathered in a flurry. For some reason, they appeared to be squabbling.

“Why did you invite the prince of the Conrad Kingdom on your own terms!”

“Welcome Prince Lean de Yeriel to Orville! You don’t need to listen to their words, please come inside quickly.”

“Where to!? This hasn’t been agreed upon! Count Forte worked hard on the matter regarding the Aisel Kingdom…!”

“Humph. I wouldn’t say returning from war deserves praise. That’s something anyone can do.”

The nobles were clamoring around Prince Lean. Of course, this worked in our favor. Amidst the chaos, Knight Commander Hamlet Oldenburg approached and spoke.

“Ophelia, this way.”

“Thank you. I won’t forget your help.”

By principle, we are never allowed to bring weapons into the royal palace.

But with the Knight Commander’s tacit approval, we quietly slipped away from the group and set foot into the palace with our weapons.

My heart felt like it was going to leap out of my mouth. Now we just needed to find that Evil God.

“What do we do now? Should we scatter to find the monster?”

“I’d be careful, if I were you.”

I asked Leah, but it was Ray who answered. When I looked at him like, ‘Why are you answering?’, he looked shocked.

“If you scatter, it will be a big deal. If we get caught wandering around, it’ll cause trouble.”

“That’s right. We mustn’t scatter. Also, actually, drawing out the Evil God is Prince Lean’s role.”

“Huh? The prince’s?”

“Yes. We just have to wait.”

Tch. Well, Leah says so, so I guess that’s how it is… Still, I wasn’t quite sure how this was all going to unfold.

For now, I waited. But I soon figured it out.

Just why that Evil God we were about to confront can be called ‘God.’

*

I have a mental illness.

Princess Chloe de Tatalia was deep in thought, looking all sulky.

She has a mental illness that she is aware of, and she knows exactly when it can flare up.

Today is just such a day. Whenever Marquis Benard Tatian enters the royal palace (for reasons she cannot understand), her mental illness almost always acts up.

Please. I wish for today to just go smoothly. No incidents, please.

Princess Chloe finished adorning herself and offered a prayer before leaving her room.

Her mental illness causes her to act out uncontrollably, leading her to do things she never intended.

Of course, in most cases, it ended with her slightly overeating.

The reason being, she would lock herself in her room and stuff herself with nuts in a fit of rage.

The sight of her bed covered in nut shells when she regained consciousness would bring her a sense of shame, staring at the handmaiden who was now unsurprised. But considering that, she had managed to get off lightly.

What if she didn’t?

A disaster would unfold.

Last time she regained her senses in the bed of Toton Tatian, she cried bitterly.

When she had unexpectedly kissed Gilbert Forte, the son of Count Hermann Forte, she shuddered, locked in her room.

Just die. Please just let me die.

But she couldn’t even do that.

With so many handmaidens around, it was hard to find something to commit suicide with, and every time she’d try to jump out the window, her illness would hit her. She would lose consciousness only to find herself lying gently on the bed.

What kept her from going insane was her older brother, Prince Klian, who understood her and consoled her from the depths of his heart.

Time will heal everything, he said.

Eventually, things would get better, so rather than die, she should endure and go find the Holy Woman later on to request a cure. He promised that once he became king, he would allow her to do so.

“Princess. It’s time to go out.”

“Yes. I’m coming.”

Princess Chloe de Tatalia stepped out of her room, praying, “Please. Just today. Please.”

Today, it was the day that Marquis Tatian would bring the prince of the Conrad Kingdom.

She had no right to choose not to meet the prince.

She would need to show her face at least so as not to start another war, and she needed to politely indicate that she had no intention of marrying yet.

She tried to do this last time… only to cause a huge incident that became the reason for war.

As she walked, Princess Chloe took a deep breath. She counted numbers and imagined the lakes north of Orville.

This was what the doctor advised to help her gather her thoughts.

“Princess Chloe de Tatalia!”

Please.

When she squeezed her eyes shut and opened them, the doors to the banquet hall were wide open. Fortunately, she felt okay as she stepped in.

Yeah. It’s been over half a year since things were quiet. Maybe everything’s going to be alright…

‘Ah.’

This is bad.

The moment her gaze hit Prince Lean de Yeriel, her mind began to cloud.

Not just cloud, but her body heated up rapidly. Prince Lean de Yeriel looked crazy adorable, and the impulse to rush at him made her take unsteady steps.

If it continues like this…

Princess Chloe de Tatalia stood before Prince Lean de Yeriel.

Ignoring the crowd of nobles swirling around, she was about to kiss him when he suddenly halted her by holding her shoulder.

“Long time no see, Astroth.”

Pardon?

The prince had stopped me and looked deep into my eyes with his golden pupils gleaming.

“It’s me. Leonel. I’ve come to keep my promise, so get out here.”

“Eek!!”

And then, I saw a god. The ugly face of a god tearing through the banquet hall ceiling.

A massive gray face, resembling a person, loomed over the banquet hall.

– Leonel. I have awaited you.