Chapter 130 - 2-12
The festival began today. Despite his busy schedule, Prince Ricardo managed to carve out an hour in the morning to continue my lessons.
Gratitude for Prince Ricardo filled my heart. Even if his motives weren't purely altruistic, his guidance was everything to me right now. After yesterday's session, I finally started to get the hang of it, making even this brief window of time incredibly precious.
As Prince Ricardo, Theodore-sama, and I headed toward the same room we used yesterday, a figure accompanied by a large retinue of knights approached from the opposite direction. We came to a halt.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Dark Saint. I have been looking forward to meeting you."
So this is the First Prince, Faust...
Being twins, he bore a striking resemblance to Prince Ricardo. The differences lay in his hair, which was trimmed neatly above his jawline, and his slightly upturned eyes. Most notable, however, was the malicious smirk playing on his lips.
Prince Faust glanced at Prince Ricardo and let out a derisive snort.
"Ricardo, you were here as well? It seems the Saint has become quite close with my little brother."
"Prince Ricardo has been kind enough to teach me about this country, as it is my first visit," I replied.
"Is that so? I simply worried my brother might be causing the Saint some trouble."
"...Brother, is it not nearly time? Surely the Queen is waiting for you?"
Maintaining his usual smile, Prince Ricardo stepped aside to clear the path. Prince Faust muttered a frustrated "Tch, clever brat" as he brushed past us. However, he stopped abruptly and turned his head back toward me.
"Saint, if you ever need anything, please come to me. I know this country better than anyone. I shall be your strength at any time."
I offered a polite smile in return. Prince Faust ran a hand through his hair with a satisfied air and walked away with a light step. Prince Ricardo cast a cold gaze at his brother's retreating back before moving forward without looking back. "Come, let us go."
Back in the same room, I focused on pouring mana into the magic tools just as I had yesterday. Prince Ricardo sat in the chair across from me, chin resting on his palm, staring off into the distance as if his mind were elsewhere.
"Is something the matter?"
"Ah, my apologies. No... well, yes. I must apologize for my brother's behavior earlier. It is embarrassing to air the family's dirty laundry, but that was Faust. His arrogance is written all over his face, isn't it?"
"No... I wouldn't say that."
Having successfully changed the third medium-sized magic tool from red to blue, I pushed it to the edge of the table and waited for him to continue.
"I am trying to kick my own twin brother down. I am just as arrogant as he is."
"But Your Highness is doing this for the future of the country, aren't you?"
Prince Ricardo let out a small sigh, a self-deprecating smile touching his lips.
"He wasn't always like that. When we were young... until we were about ten, the three of us were truly close. Even though the Queen disliked me, Faust would always comfort me. He'd say, 'I'll become King one day and protect all of you.' We used to study together, constantly competing."
"I see."
His words surprised me. Given the friction I had just witnessed, I assumed their feud was lifelong, but they once had a bond. How painful must this situation be for them, and for the youngest, Prince Isaac?
"But at some point... I began to surpass Faust in everything—academics, magic, swordsmanship. It all came so easily to me. At first, Faust tried his best to close the gap, but it only widened. Eventually, he just stopped trying. I was a spiteful child. Instead of feeling sorry for him or focusing on my royal duties, my first thought was 'serves them right' regarding my parents."
"Why?"
"I wanted to show them that the son they despised most was the most capable. It was a slight against my mother. I felt a sense of superiority knowing her precious son had lost to the one she hated. So, I pushed myself even harder, wanting to see the frustration on her face. In doing so, I kept wounding Faust—the one person who actually understood me—with my own hands."
I couldn't truly grasp either of their feelings, but I could imagine the weight of it. Prince Faust, burdened by expectations and failing despite his efforts, and Prince Ricardo, gifted yet loathed by his own flesh and blood. Neither had likely set out to hurt the other, but perhaps they had to in order to protect themselves.
"Before I knew it, the relationship with the brother who was always by my side became irreparable. He avoids me, he hates me... and rightfully so. I shattered his pride."
"Is that why Prince Faust is so obsessed with the throne?"
"Yes. The Queen has always expected him to be the next King. Having abandoned both effort and independent thought, he can't imagine any other future. But no one will be happy. If Faust becomes Crown Prince, the country will collapse. If I become Crown Prince, I'll have to remove Faust, a volatile element, from the front lines. Then he and the Queen will hate me forever."
"If neither path leads to personal happiness, then you choose the future where the most people can be happy... is that it?"
Prince Ricardo's brow furrowed as he smiled. He didn't answer, but his silence and expression made his affirmation clear.
"If I didn't exist, the Queen wouldn't be criticized by the nobles. Faust wouldn't suffer from this inferiority complex. I feel like a jinx on this family."
A jinx...
I didn't know how to respond. My heart ached for him, and the words wouldn't come.
But then, a voice rang out.
"That is not true."
A dignified voice echoed through the quiet room. I turned to see Louis-sama approaching, his boots clicking against the floor. He stood beside me and offered a soft smile before fixing a firm gaze on Prince Ricardo. Surprised by the sudden intrusion, Prince Ricardo's smile faltered, leaving him looking uncharacteristically blank. Louis-sama continued regardless.
"If you do nothing, this country will slowly decline exactly as you fear. It will happen gradually, without anyone feeling a sense of crisis. Or perhaps people will feel it, but be left biting their lips in frustration, unable to act."
The longer a period of peace and prosperity lasts, the harder it is to imagine a future where it ends. But by the time people notice, the foundation has already crumbled, and it's too late. Whether one can notice that shift and work to steer the country in the right direction determines what the nation looks like fifty or a hundred years later.
That's why Prince Ricardo approached us. He's trying to increase his allies.
"To the common people, the squabbles of royalty and nobility don't matter. All that matters is whether you can protect the country and work for their sake. Whether you can safeguard their lives."
"...So you're saying that no matter how ugly or stained my heart becomes, I am only required to illuminate the people through proper governance?"
"Indeed. It's not as if I have a personality worth praising either."
Louis-sama placed an index finger to his lips as if sharing a secret, jokingly breaking the heavy tension. Realizing his intent, I felt the tension leave my shoulders. I followed his lead, whispering like a co-conspirator, "...Me neither."
Prince Ricardo blinked in shock, staring at us blankly for a moment. Then, he slumped his shoulders and let out a chuckle.
"Haha, I see."
A smirk played on his lips as if he'd just had an epiphany.
"Then, you will lend me a hand?"
"I wonder about that."
Louis-sama matched Prince Ricardo's provocative tone with an unreadable, challenging smile of his own.