Chapter: 17
Colonel Ragoni came running the moment he heard the commotion, and apparently nearly had a heart attack when he saw the barracks split in half.
They said he even grabbed the back of his neck after seeing the princes with their swords drawn.
I only heard about it secondhand.
From his aides, who had fled from the extremely irritable colonel.
The aides and I sat in a neat row inside the field kitchen.
Wearing distant expressions, we lamented together.
“I’m telling you, the moment I saw the barracks split apart, I seriously considered retiring…”
“I heard you still have a huge mortgage left. And don’t forget your kids’ tuition. Retirement should be left to an unmarried guy like me…”
“No, I should…”
“Maybe I should be the one…”
The last person to speak was me.
“You’ve got somewhere to retire to?”
“I just… wished I did.”
“Can’t blame you…”
The soldiers and I stared sadly up at the sky.
At least it was fortunate that Second Prince Luciano was vastly stronger than Fifth Prince Gaspar.
Gaspar knew he couldn’t win and eventually backed down.
Thanks to that, Prince Ain, the one rumored to suffer from madness, escaped unharmed.
No, wait. Why madness?
There had never been any mention of madness in the game.
Not only had the Second and Fifth Princes, who weren’t supposed to be here, arrived…
But the Fourth Prince, who was definitely supposed to come, now had a madness that had never existed before.
Just what in the world is happening?
I needed information if I wanted to understand the situation.
Should I ask Colonel Ragoni?
Though judging from his reaction, he didn’t seem to know much either.
I was still deep in thought when—
“A servant from Prince Luciano’s residence. I’ve come to escort Lady Eustea.”
…The Grim Reaper had come calling.
The aides looked back and forth between my frozen expression and the emotionless servant.
Then, without saying a word, they quietly stood up and gave way.
No.
They were escaping.
It was the pinnacle of workplace survival—not getting involved in the affairs of royalty.
The servant silently waited for me.
“…”
With a mournful face, I followed after him.
The Second Prince’s barracks stood at the deepest part of the military camp.
The servant had me wait outside for a moment.
He was probably informing the prince of my arrival while discussing something confidential.
Standing there alone, I looked at the enormous ancient tree that separated the prince’s barracks from the others.
More precisely, I was staring at the tassel hanging from one of its branches.
It resembled the ornamental sword knot attached to sword hilts in the Eastern Continent.
“A magical artifact for capturing intruders…”
I murmured unconsciously.
Just then, Prince Luciano’s voice came from behind me.
“You recognized a magical artifact that only arrived from the Eastern Continent three days ago.”
He must have heard me as he stepped out of the barracks.
I smiled awkwardly.
Of course I know it. I used it all the time in the game to stop enemies from infiltrating my base.
It was an item players could only obtain after reaching an extremely high level.
The fact that he’d gotten his hands on one…
As expected of the prince known as the First Prince’s greatest rival.
Luciano strode toward me.
I instinctively took another step back.
“No need to flee like that. I have no intention of eating you.”
“When you’ve done something wrong, instinct just takes over…”
“So you know you did.”
“I’m truly sorry…”
“Then tell me.”
“Huh?”
“About that magical artifact.”
I hesitated before looking back at the tassel.
Capture Thread
A relic of the Eastern Continent’s Imperial Family.
Captures any intruder who does not have the owner’s permission.
“It’s the Capture Thread. It’s an imperial relic from the Eastern Continent. And… it looks like you haven’t activated it yet.”
“…”
Luciano stared at me.
Why is he looking at me like that?
Carefully reading his expression, I continued.
“Um… it’s still blue right now. When it’s activated, it turns purple.”
“Even after being cast out of House Andres, Lady Andres certainly has impressive sources of information.”
“Huh?”
“That’s right. We stole it from the Eastern Continent, but we never figured out how to use it.”
“Oh.”
“So? What’s the exact activation method?”
“You weave part of the caster’s body—blood, hair, or something similar—into the Capture Thread. It captures anyone who doesn’t possess the caster’s essence.”
The servant listening beside him looked genuinely surprised.
Luciano’s expression barely changed, but the way he looked at me became noticeably more thoughtful.
Then he chuckled.
“So then… do you also know about the Tracker Orb?”
The moment he mentioned it, I remembered what Gaspar had said inside Prince Ain’s barracks.
“Then where the hell is that cursed Tracker Orb, Brother?”
So Prince Luciano is after the Tracker Orb too.
As expected, Luciano continued.
“I know Ain has the Tracker Orb. But the ancient book describing it has been lost. I don’t even know what it looks like, much less how to use it.”
“…”
“But you seem to know.”
“…”
“Would you find it and bring it to me?”
There was no way someone like him would believe a lie claiming I knew nothing.
Sneaking glances toward possible escape routes, I muttered,
“I do know… but I really don’t want to get involved in you princes’ conflicts anymore. Like I said before, I’m just a dust-covered potato now…”
Please, just let me go.
Without House Andres protecting me anymore, getting caught in the middle of the princes’ fight would only make me collateral damage.
Luciano stepped closer.
“Wouldn’t this be the perfect opportunity to settle the score between us?”
“I’d really prefer another method…”
“As long as you’re in the North, I’ll make sure Gaspar can’t lay a finger on you. And I’ll pay you one thousand gold.”
“…!”
He’d keep Gaspar—my biggest obstacle to meeting Duke Esgarrot—off my back?
And on top of that, one thousand gold?
Just what is he trying to find with the Tracker Orb…?
Seeing me frozen in thought, Luciano said,
“Well, if you don’t want to, I suppose it can’t be helped.”
He turned as if to head back into the barracks.
At that very moment, I hurriedly shouted,
“And an apprentice position too!”
“…”
“…Would that be asking too much?”
Luciano stared at me before letting out a quiet laugh.
“Accepted.”
“I look forward to working with you.”
I immediately bowed my head.
At that moment, a former enemy became an ally.
That night.
Instead of the ruined dinner caused by Gaspar’s chaos, I prepared a late-night meal and headed to Prince Ain’s barracks.
Several attendants were pacing anxiously outside.
Whatever had happened, their faces had turned deathly pale.
As I approached carrying a tray, they all looked toward me.
“What is it?”
“I’ve brought a late-night meal for His Highness.”
“Go back.”
Had Prince Ain declared he wouldn’t eat anything?
That’s a problem.
“Um… I prepared one of the dishes he especially enjoyed at the Imperial Palace. Could you perhaps make an exception? He hasn’t eaten for three days, and Colonel Ragoni is extremely worried.”
The attendant waved me away impatiently.
“His Highness is incredibly sensitive. And then Prince Gaspar just had to step on the snake…”
“The snake?”
“Yes. Prince Ain treasures it dearly.”
Another attendant sighed heavily.
“If the snake dies, there’ll be a catastrophe. Shouldn’t we summon a veterinarian?”
“Do you think veterinarians grow on trees? And where would we even find one in the middle of the night?”
Since pets weren’t common in this world, veterinarians were equally rare.
Many villages didn’t even have one.
Even the capable palace attendants couldn’t magically produce one at this hour.
“Would you like me to take a look?”
“…You know how to handle snakes?”
“Yes. I used to work at a wildlife sanctuary.”
I’d taken care of snakes there too.
The attendants’ eyes immediately lit up as they crowded around me.
“Why didn’t you say that sooner? You’re a lifesaver!”
“Come on, quickly!”
“Your Highness! Someone who can examine snakes is here!”
Their attitude had changed completely.
That was how I entered Prince Ain’s barracks.
The prince, who had been crouching beside an iron cage, quickly stood up.
He was beautiful.
A handsome young man with caramel-colored hair and gentle green eyes.
But my attention was drawn not to him—
But to the snake inside the cage.
That’s not a snake. That’s practically a python.
It was enormous.
So enormous that I couldn’t understand how Prince Gaspar had supposedly stepped on it.
Rather than stepping on it…
Hadn’t he kicked it?
Prince Ain looked at me with wide eyes.
“Can you save Yeppi?”
So the snake’s name was Yeppi?
The adorable name didn’t quite match its terrifying appearance, but I answered anyway.
“I’ve never treated such a large snake before, but if you’ll allow me, I’ll examine it.”
“Okay!”
The prince happily stepped aside.
Squatting down, I examined the limp Yeppi.
It definitely looked sluggish.
The prince watched me anxiously.
“Gaspar stepped on Yeppi and crushed her.”
There’s no way something that size could be crushed.
It was thick enough that a grown man would need both arms to wrap around it.
“My poor, fragile Yeppi…”
There was absolutely nothing fragile about this snake.
Its fangs looked like a leopard’s.
More importantly… why does a snake have leopard-like fangs? Wait… could it be…
I looked at the prince.
“Yeppi is a Death Servant, isn’t she? A monster.”
“Yeppi is my friend.”
Prince Ain frowned.
Apparently he didn’t like hearing her called a monster.
Still, he eagerly continued talking about Yeppi.
“When she sees me, she opens her mouth wide to greet me. She’s smart. She knows I like greetings.”
I remained silent.
…Death Servants open their mouths wide to measure the size of their prey.
“When my shoulders droop, she looks sad. Sometimes she even gets angry for me. She thrashes around inside her cage.”
…She was trying to eat him because he looked weak.
There was absolutely no way I was opening that cage.
Keeping my distance, I carefully inspected Yeppi.
There were tiny reddish spots scattered across her scales.
“Ah.”
When I exclaimed, the prince hurried over.
“Can you heal Yeppi?”
“No.”
The gentle look in his eyes instantly sharpened.
“Then you have no further use.”
Even his voice dropped several degrees.
The attendants all stiffened.
They weren’t afraid because I couldn’t cure the snake.
They were afraid of him.
Just from that look alone, I instinctively understood what kind of person Prince Ain truly was.
Behind that sweet appearance lay terrifying thorns.
Before those thorns could reach me, I quickly said,
“Yeppi doesn’t need treatment. That’s why I can’t heal her.”
“…She’s not injured?”
“No.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s mating season.”
“…”
It suddenly felt as though a cold wind had blown through the barracks.
I looked at the frozen attendants and prince in confusion.
“Mating season. The time when animals reproduce.”
“…I know what that means.”
Good.
That saved me from explaining further.
“Yeppi is female, isn’t she? Female Death Servants conserve their energy during mating season and barely move. You simply need to find her a male.”
One attendant awkwardly cleared his throat.
“Death Servants are an extremely rare species. Finding a male won’t be easy.”
“You can find quite a few of them in the North during this season.”
“And I know how to locate them.”
The prince’s eyes sparkled with interest once again.
“You can find Yeppi a mate?”
“I can, but…”
A good idea suddenly occurred to me.
I might be able to use this.
“I’ll need one of Yeppi’s shed skins. You can use it to attract males. Have you kept any?”
Of course not.
Keeping a monster inside the Imperial Palace was shocking enough.
There was no way they’d carefully preserve its shed skin too.
“No… Mother hates Yeppi. She wouldn’t even let me keep the shed skin.”
“Then shall I carefully remove one without hurting her?”
“Would you? I’ll reward you with a Yellow Crystal that looks just like Yeppi’s eyes.”
“I don’t need a reward. Instead… would you eat something?”
The attendants’ eyes widened.
Recently, the prince had become convinced someone was trying to poison him and had suddenly refused all food.
His hunger strike had been giving everyone headaches.
The attendants looked at him hopefully.
“Hmm…”
“The child helping Yeppi is a kind child.”
“A kind child wouldn’t poison me, right?”
The attendants eagerly nodded.
“Of course not.”
“A kind child would never poison Your Highness.”
“Exactly.”
The prince nodded.
“Alright. But you have to make Yeppi healthy again.”
The attendants placed the late-night meal I’d brought onto the table beside him.
The prince lifted the silver lid.
Tonight’s menu was beef stew—the dish Prince Ain supposedly loved.
He picked up a spoon.
Took one bite.
“…!”
His eyes grew round as he stared at the bowl.
Beef stew.
To be honest…
It was a dish I was almost as confident in as my braised short ribs.
The next day at lunchtime.
The cooks and laborers had all gone to eat, leaving the field kitchen completely quiet.
Inside, I rubbed my sleepy eyes and yawned.
Getting up before dawn really is exhausting…
Prince Ain had eaten the beef stew enthusiastically last night.
Then he’d even declared he wanted breakfast.
When Colonel Ragoni heard the news, he practically danced with joy.
If anything happened to the prince, the responsibility would fall entirely on him, so he’d clearly been under tremendous stress.
The soldiers and Prince Ain’s attendants had even tried to lift me onto their shoulders in celebration, forcing me to quietly slip away before they could.
Even when the other cooks secretly added their own dishes, hoping the prince would eat them…
Prince Ain insisted on eating only my cooking.
As a result, I was now preparing every single one of his meals.
I pulled out a mixing bowl from the drawer to soak the beef.
Inside the bowl was a tiny folded note.
What’s this?
Opening it, I found messy handwriting that looked like random scribbles.
But I knew exactly what it meant.
It was the same cipher used in the battle log I’d stolen from Luciano’s subordinates.
[3 o’clock. Food warehouse.]
If he used this cipher… then he already knows I stole the battle log.
Then perhaps that battle log had been deliberately altered before it reached me.
Thankfully I’d been expelled from my family before I ever had a chance to use it.
If I actually had…
A chill ran down my spine.
He’s terrifying.
Still, this wasn’t the time to dwell on that.
It was almost three o’clock.
Quietly, I headed toward the food warehouse.
Just as expected, Luciano was there.
Leaning against a pile of flour sacks, he watched me approach.
“I heard Ain has taken a liking to you.”
“For your cooking… and your uncanny skill at peeling scales.”
That was right.
I’d successfully removed Yeppi’s shed skin yesterday.
After handing it to the attendants, they were probably running all over the fields right now trying to find a male Death Servant.
I’m pretty good at peeling scales.
I’d even been praised for it back at work.
I’d intentionally timed everything so that peeling the scales would finish quickly, allowing Prince Ain to eat the beef stew while it was still hot.
That way, I’d have an excuse to enter his barracks every mealtime.
The plan had worked perfectly.
Since last night, I’d already entered Prince Ain’s barracks three times.
Luciano asked,
“So? What did you learn?”
“Nothing important.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.”
“It really isn’t anything major. I just found out that Prince Ain isn’t actually suffering from madness…”
As I answered gloomily, Luciano suddenly froze.
“…What?”
“…?”
Frowning deeply, he slowly repeated,
“Ain… isn’t mad?”
“No.”
“His acting is just incredibly convincing.”
“…”
He looked completely dumbfounded.
“And you call that ‘nothing important’?”
