—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“…Your Highness the Princess, why did you react that way at the sight of a person? Like you saw something you shouldn’t have. Even for me, it’s a bit hurtful.”
“Th-that’s not it…”
It was hurtful for me too, when you looked startled as if you had seen a bug right in front of me, turned your head, and left the room you had entered.
Even if I usually just roughly washed my face to remove eye boogers, shampooed my hair, and brushed my teeth.
Moreover, it wasn’t even something I wanted to do, and you asked me to attend the closing ceremony with you, and made people bother me for hours.
In my mind, Princess Elena was deducted 10 points.
If you asked what kind of points, it was roughly a favorability score.
Anyway, sooner or later, there would be a situation where I had to choose one of the five in some way, or if things really went wrong, I might have to be involved with all five of them.
But I couldn’t help but flinch at the following words.
“…It’s the first time I’ve seen you like this, even combining before and after the regression. It was just a bit unfamiliar.”
Elena, who had somehow regained her composure, smiled gently at the corners of her mouth, and as if she was used to this situation, she held out her hand to me.
“Can you give me the honor of escorting you?”
“…You’re being a bit formal.”
“Escorting a gentleman is a lady’s virtue. Especially if it’s a dazzlingly handsome gentleman like today.”
“Don’t say that if you can’t mean it.”
I held Elena’s outstretched hand with a dour face.
In this world, the treatment of men by women was like this, but every time I received such treatment, it felt strange, as if I was being treated like a woman from my previous life.
And come to think of it, it was definitely not the case in my previous life, and it seemed like this was the first time I had been told I was handsome to my face in this life too.
At least in this life, even if I dressed roughly like in my previous life, the original was much better than in my previous life, so it was at a level that was tolerable.
Still, when I was told I was handsome, I couldn’t help but shrug my shoulders without realizing it.
Well, it might be lip service, but there was a saying that even a whale dances when praised.
“…Well, it might sound like empty words to you.”
Elena, who had brushed her flowing blonde hair, as if it had covered her vision, added with an embarrassed smile.
“At least for me, it was my true feeling. That doesn’t mean you’re not handsome usually, but today, if I exaggerate a bit, I could believe it even if someone said the god of beauty had descended.”
“…It’s a bit embarrassing when you say it so blatantly.”
Ugh, it was making my toes curl.
Using flowery phrases like the god of beauty descended while talking about someone right in front of them required much more resistance than I, with modern sensibilities, had anticipated.
What was even more outrageous was that it wasn’t something she was saying because of a penalty game or something, but it was 100% sincere.
‘No matter how I think about it, it’s not to that extent…’
Even if it wasn’t my intention, to put it in modern terms, it was like going to a salon and getting a makeover.
I was also dressed up in fancy clothes with a nice color.
Anyway, since I did get dolled up, I would look better than usual, but I wasn’t sure if it was to the extent of making such a fuss.
It would be easier to think that the bean sprout on Elena’s head was just thick.
Like that, I held Elena’s hand and left the detached palace, heading towards the main palace.
A place I never had to go in my lifestyle where I could handle everything inside the detached palace.
And the main palace was definitely on a different level from the detached palace.
‘How much is all this?’
There were so many splendid decorations that it made me unconsciously have such thoughts.
Expensive magic stone lamps were plastered everywhere, and paintings and statues of unfathomable value were decorated here and there.
The highlight was the huge mosaic mural that led to the banquet hall where the closing ceremony was being held.
I thought I was getting used to it by now, but that was just my misconception before coming to the main palace.
I had never been there, but it felt like what I had only heard about in my previous life, the Palace of Versailles.
When I unconsciously opened my mouth and looked around, Elena, who noticed, covered her mouth and laughed softly.
“Come to think of it, this is your first time in the main palace.”
“…Since my room and the research lab are all in the detached palace. Still, I can’t just rummage around and wander freely in the Imperial Palace.”
“Let me correct one misconception you have. There’s no place you can’t go within the Imperial Palace. Except for the private spaces of the crown princess… that is, my older sister, Her Majesty, or other royalty. Of course, my office and room are exceptions.”
“Even if you say that, I have no intention of visiting Your Highness the Princess’s bedroom.”
“That’s too bad.”
Elena, who answered cheekily, pointed to a place with her hand.
“The banquet hall is right over there.”
There was a huge stone door with a lion embossed on it.
As soon as Elena and I approached, the guard knight standing and guarding the door gave a vigorous and orderly salute, and Elena, who just nodded her head to acknowledge it, passed through the open door.
The entirely splendid banquet hall was in the form of a huge hall.
And among the nobles attending this occasion, relatively lower-ranking nobles were whispering.
“Her Highness the Second Princess has arrived.”
“She came earlier than expected.”
“Who’s next to her? I don’t think I’ve seen that young noble before.”
“The long-rumored protagonist has finally appeared.”
As expected, the focus was on me rather than Elena.
The sound of nobles chattering was heard unfiltered to my mana-enhanced hearing.
When I frowned, Elena, who was holding my hand, slightly tightened her grip and whispered.
“Lord Rudrick, you don’t need to back down here. Rather, it’s better to go out confidently.”
“…What?”
“Think carefully. It doesn’t matter that your background is humble. If you think about it differently, you’ve earned your place here solely based on your abilities.”
While keeping her gaze forward, but moving her lips.
Elena, who was unfazed by the gazes of numerous people, added in a whisper.
“It means there’s nothing you should be inferior to those hyenas over there. About half of them are incompetent guys who are putting in requests to the Magic Tower, hoping their talentless sons will succeed, and making them disciples. Guys who are so excited that they’ll dance with joy if a great mage comes from their family.”
“…”
“On the other hand, you’re different. The treatment of the court mage is equivalent to that of a marquis, and you are considered the de facto next court mage to them… Now, do you know who has the upper hand?”
The corners of Elena’s mouth twisted up crookedly.
“It means there’s absolutely no need to feel intimidated or burdened by their gazes. So don’t shrink back.”
“It’s easy to say…”
“An empress is someone who must embrace all the subjects of the empire with a parental heart. So you can think of this as a rehearsal.”
With those words, Elena headed towards the designated position as if nothing had happened.
And next to me, a tactless head maid shouted in a loud voice.
“Presenting Her Highness Elena Esgelant, the Second Princess of the Esgelant Empire!”
“Wait a minute, Your Highness, what did you just say? Empress?”
My startled voice was also drowned out by the head maid’s voice, and as soon as Elena entered, all the seated nobles rose from their seats at once.
No, wait a minute, the person who’s supposed to give the rice cake isn’t even thinking about it, so what’s this about an empress?
I looked towards Elena, dumbfounded, but Elena headed towards the head seat as if she was used to it, without even giving me a glance.
Somehow, I naturally ended up heading towards the head seat as well.
Only after sitting down did Elena open her mouth with a playful smile.
“Well, since we’ve even regressed, there might be such a parallel world.”
“Your Highness, you’re a princess in the first place. So what’s with the empress…”
“Ah, if my memory serves me right, Her Majesty is scheduled to pass away within a month or two at most. And I’d rather die than see my damn sister sit on the throne.”
“Are you crazy, really!”
For a moment, goosebumps rose on my skin.
No, I mean, don’t casually talk about staging a coup d’état while sitting next to someone.
As my voice grew louder, Elena winked.
“Of course, it’s a joke.”
“It’s not convincing at all, you know?”
“Well, objectively speaking, I’m a bit more competent than my sister. And in a political system like this where all the power is concentrated in one person, the leader’s competence is the most important.”
“So you’re saying you’re going to start a civil war now? Somehow, I was wondering why you omitted that story earlier when you became the empress after starting a civil war before the regression.”
“If necessary?”
Elena, who shrugged her shoulders, added with a mischievous smile.
“Well, if my beloved husband dissuades me, saying he’d even sleep in separate rooms, I might give up. But as you know, unfortunately, I’m still unmarried.”
“…Where in the world is there someone who uses a civil war as a hostage to propose marriage?”
“You’re mistaken about something.”
Although she didn’t show it, the gazes of the nobles who had sat down again felt directed this way.
Of course, their gazes would be focused since the royal who entered first and I, who didn’t want it but had been receiving the spotlight in high society recently, had arrived.
But Elena, who didn’t care about the gazes of the people present, brought her index finger to the corner of her mouth.
“I have no intention of resorting to such vile and underhanded means to win your heart. Marriages without love as a premise are rarely happy. Like most political marriages.”
“…”
“Moreover, you’re the first man to treat me so casually like this. I prefer the straightforward type. Like this.”
Elena, who brushed her hair with an elegant and graceful motion, brought her face close to mine and quietly whispered in my ear.
“Don’t you think it’s unfair that everyone except me enjoyed their dates?”
“…So, you’re asking for a chance too?”
“Well, why don’t we go on a trip together to my private villa after the closing ceremony?”
“Sigh…”
It was a sigh filled with many meanings.
At the same time, it implied consent.
Her voice was unnecessarily gentle yet husky, and while her face was beyond comparison, if we only considered her voice, it was the most to my taste.
How could she be so brazen with such a pretty façade?
There must have been a problem.
After the events of the past few days, it seemed that I had unknowingly started to develop a bit of romantic interest in them, as they say even a tree will fall after being hit ten times.
In fact, it was natural to gradually develop feelings for someone when they expressed their liking first.
There was no way I had the skills to endure like a monk in training or a stone Buddha.
“…This is not good.”
I muttered softly.
It seemed that the time for a choice was unknowingly approaching.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
