kscans

Chapter 78 - Meeting the Prince

We were standing in front of the castle, here to act as the prince's playmates for his requested job.

Hours earlier, the Guild Master had told us about the bizarre request from the prince: he wanted us to come to the castle to play. Of course, I had asked the master about it.

"...This is a first for me, too. I’m not sure what his intentions are in making this request. But I’m sure you know that a thief broke into the castle last night, right?"

To his question, I replied, "Yes. …But I only know that a thief got in; I don’t know any of the details."

To which the master responded, "...That can’t be helped. The gatekeepers are tight-lipped, only saying ‘a thief got in.’ From what I’ve gathered through my own channels, it seems the royal family has issued a gag order on this whole affair. …I can’t dig any deeper than this myself."

He sighed.

…I was curious about the Guild Master’s "own channels," but I set that aside for now. …If the situation was that tense…

I asked, "…Then why are we being summoned to the castle?"

To this, the master said, "Exactly. …In a situation like this, why you two? …I thought about it, and my conclusion is that the prince is probably up to something. …You two aren’t from the Republic, are you?"

He asked with a sharp gaze. …There was no way I could lie to those eyes.

"...That’s right. We came from the Kingdom," I admitted honestly.

The master said, "...I won’t ask for the details. …That would be a breach of etiquette. …Which makes this even more confusing. …Well, I don’t know what the prince is thinking, but… for now, will you accept this request?"

To his question, I replied, "...Refusing seems like it would cause a lot of trouble. …I’ll take it."

After all, it was a request from royalty. The option to refuse didn’t exist, so my only path was to accept. At my decision, the master said, "Thank you. …I need you to go to the royal castle around noon. …There’s no specific time, but don’t go in the evening, so keep that in mind."

He emphasized the point. I nodded, and Tina and I left the room.

Alone again, the Guild Master leaned back in his chair and relaxed.

"…I have a pretty good idea why they were summoned. …It’s just the kind of thing the prince would think of. …Well, do your best. …A-rank adventurers."

Around two in the afternoon, we told the soldiers at the castle gate that we were here on a request from the guild, and they let us in without any trouble. A soldier inside then guided us to the prince’s room. When we entered, we saw a luxurious bed, desk, and chair, but nothing else particularly stood out. I had expected a prince’s room to be lavishly ornate, so I was a little disappointed.

The prince, sitting in a chair, said, "Welcome, members of ‘Red Lightning.’ I am Prince Lustolfo. …I thank you for accepting my request."

He offered a formal, diplomatic greeting.

…I felt like I’d seen his face somewhere before, but it might just be a sense of déjà vu. I couldn’t afford to say anything rash. Once the prince confirmed that the three of us were alone in the room, he said, "...It has been a while, hasn’t it, you two?"

At his words, I asked, "…Pardon my rudeness, but have we met somewhere before, Your Highness?"

To my question, the prince replied, "...My atmosphere, or rather, my clothes were different back then, so you might not recognize me, but… do you perhaps remember this manner of speaking, my dears from the Church?"

That speech pattern jogged my memory. When we first visited the Church, after seeing the group of ‘Men Beloved by God,’ a blonde woman had appeared. I remembered her because she had explained about the arrow that had come flying at us.

Just as I thought that, the prince said, "My appearance back then was a disguise. …I figured I’d be recognized in my male form. My face is reasonably well-known, you see. So, I decided to dress as a woman. …A prince of a nation would never dress as a woman, would he? …That’s what I was counting on♪"

He spoke with a laugh.

…I couldn’t tell if he was a free spirit or what, but one thing was certain: he was an inscrutable person. That much I knew.

He looked kind and dignified, with a slightly mischievous side, giving the impression of an upright person. …But talking to him felt strange, like there was something unknowable about him. He probably wasn’t a bad person, but I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking. I’m no mind reader, so it’s natural that I can’t know people’s thoughts, but still, you can usually get a general idea after a bit of conversation. But the prince was too much of an enigma.

He seemed to be speaking in a way that made sense, but it felt like it was all a lie.

Back when I lived on Earth, I was once roped in by a street solicitor and invited to join some kind of club. …At first, I thought it might be interesting, but as I listened, it started to feel shady. They said the membership fee was free and anyone could join, which raised a question in my mind. …If it’s free, where do they get their funding from? When I asked about it, the salesman hemmed and hawed, insisting that he would explain later.

…The suspicion was through the roof. I immediately refused and left.

I found out later that while the initial membership fee was free, upon joining, you were made to sign a contract that forced you to pay a monthly fee of 20,000 yen. And if you tried to quit, you had to pay a cancellation fee of 100,000 yen.

It was a classic pyramid scheme or multi-level marketing scam.

I’ve digressed, but the point is, I can usually get a read on people after talking to them, but the prince was so incomprehensible that he just made me uneasy.

As I was lost in thought, the prince said, "…Well, that’s why I called you here. …I became interested in you after you resolved the riot at the Church. …But let’s not just stand here. Please, sit."

He gestured for us to sit on a nearby sofa.

From there, we briefly recounted our story: being at the Church, the job we took at the guild after the riot ended, leaving the Church and coming to the Republic, and taking the Undead hunt request. …I didn’t mention going to the ruins. The details were too complicated.

After I finished, the prince said, "…After the riot ended, I was dragged back by the Knight Captain. I had no idea all that was happening. …Honestly, I’m filled with regret that I didn't stay."

He said it playfully.

…I really don’t get it. I have no idea what he’s thinking. I should just stop for now. I don’t know his intentions, but being too suspicious could get me arrested for lèse-majesté. I decided it was best to go along with his request.

Just then, the prince said, "…Now then, I’ve brought you here to be my playmates. …Do you know what this is?"

He said, bringing out a certain object.

Tina looked at it with a confused expression, but I knew what it was.

It was a green board with vertical and horizontal lines, and next to it were black and white pieces that were two-sided. …It was Othello.

Seeing this, I asked, "…Your Highness? …What exactly is this?"

I decided to feign ignorance.

If he knew that I knew, he would undoubtedly suspect me. …For now, I decided to find out how he had obtained it and then play along.

The prince said, "I found this at a tool shop when I went to the Church. …According to the story, late at night, as the shopkeeper was sleeping, a girl with no feet appeared floating by his pillow, holding this. …Ignoring the startled shopkeeper, the girl said, ‘Please play with this,’ and after handing it to him, she disappeared. …A gift from a ghost, so to speak."

He said it with a smile.

…Don’t buy such creepy things! …is what I wanted to say, but he’s a prince.

Keeping my cool, I asked, "…Why would you buy such a thing?"

To which the prince replied, "…Because it’s interesting."

It was a simple answer.

…Now then, I said, "…In that case, I will use my `Analysis` skill to find out what this is. …From the looks of it, I think it’s some kind of chess."

To this, the prince said, "Oh, you have such a convenient skill? …Show me at once."

He said, encouragingly.

Tina was looking at me with suspicion. And for good reason. My `Analysis` only grasps the structure of things; it doesn’t tell me how to use them. …But I already knew how to play this.

I activated the skill. …The structure was entirely plastic. No useful information.

I said, "…I understand now. First, this is called Othello…"

I explained the rules of Othello.

…It’s a two-player game where you decide on black and white and place your pieces adjacent to each other. For example, if you line up white, black, white, you can flip the middle black piece to white. I finished my rough explanation.

The prince said, "…I see. So it’s a game where you steal each other’s colors, and the one with more pieces in the end wins. …It seems simple, but also deep. …Let’s begin at once."

With sparkling eyes, he began to play against me.

…The first game, I won. The second, I won by a narrow margin. …As expected of a prince, he’s a quick learner. The third game, the prince won. …We continued for another ten games. The result was four wins and six losses for me, and six wins and four losses for the prince.

In the final game, I thought I had it won, but the prince made a last-minute comeback and I lost. …I was honestly a bit dejected to lose to a beginner.

At this result, the prince said, "My, that was fun! It was a series of wins and losses, but when I lost, I thought about how I could win, and then I won just like that. …It’s simpler than chess, but so deep. …This game is truly wonderful."

He had a satisfied look on his face.

…Well, the original request was to be the prince’s playmate. As long as he’s satisfied, that’s all that matters. I glanced out the window and saw it was evening, so I said, "Well then, Your Highness. …We will take our leave."

As I was about to exit, the prince said, "…Now, don’t be in such a hurry. Your job as my playmate isn’t over yet. Have dinner with me. …And let’s continue tonight, shall we? Of course, the beautiful Tina-dono as well."

He said.

…If the client insists, it is an adventurer’s duty to silently obey.

We ended up being treated to dinner.

After dinner, we resumed playing Othello. This time, Tina and I took turns being the prince’s opponent. After playing for a while, the time passed nine o’clock.

The sound of a window shattering echoed through the room.

I said, "Your Highness, what was that sound?!"

The prince, without panicking, said, "…Did something happen? …I’m sorry, but could you go and see what’s going on? …Of course, I won’t force you."

At his words, I replied, "It’s no problem. I’ll go right away. …Tina, I’m counting on you to guard His Highness."

Tina nodded. I put on my armor, grabbed my weapon, and left the room.