Chapter 11
Who was that boy I met back then? The boy who desperately avoided even looking at me, insisting that I shouldn’t be involved with him…
A little later, I heard that the Crown Prince of the Empire had gone hunting with some close acquaintances and had fallen off a cliff, going missing. Coincidentally, the place where the accident happened overlapped with the route I was taking toward the Duchy of Rilloni.
“Could it be… that the one who spoke casually to anyone, that was the Crown Prince?”
Surprisingly, even as a princess, I didn’t know much about the Crown Prince.
When I was young, due to my mother’s matters, my siblings and I rarely attended social events. My grandfather, who had a rather stern personality, never took us to official gatherings. After I turned thirteen, I spent most of my time locked in my room, claiming to study magical engineering.
I might have exchanged greetings at events where all the nobles attended, but nothing stood out in my memory. Just that he had shiny silver hair and the blue eyes that symbolized royalty.
The Crown Prince, who was kind to everyone, would occasionally speak to me.
“Ah, Princess Kiana! Nice to see you. But where are you headed?”
“Your Highness, I’m not feeling well, so I’m going back to the Duke’s residence.”
“You look weak… You barely touched your food earlier. That’s no good during growth. Want to have some meat pie with me?”
“No, thank you. I must go now.”
All our conversations were like this, and we always parted quickly without making proper eye contact. Oh, and he had a rather chubby build. Plump, almost like he could roll away, yet I remember him saying he would soon become a Sword Master—something that left an impression.
“Ah, Princess Kiana? Want to try this? Ginger cookies from the Solar Kingdom, they’re very flavorful.”
“No, thank you. I must go now.”
His blue eyes, partly hidden in his chubby cheeks, shone with kindness, and he always wore a cheerful smile, his face plump like a baby bear.
Wait—let me correct myself more precisely. He was like a particularly chubby baby bear.
“And… he seemed like someone from a completely different world than mine.”
Instinctively, I disliked people who were warm and bright like sunlight. Probably because I was gloomy and dark by nature. And since Melissa had that exact personality, I disliked her even more.
Yet the boy Crown Prince I glimpsed had that very kind of personality. Being the only legitimate heir of the royal family and on the verge of becoming the Empire’s youngest Sword Master, how many people would be surrounding him? He seemed busy just enjoying the company of those who adored him.
“Princess, long time no see. Do you like soda? I got some as a gift, and it’s so good I wanted everyone to try it.”
“No, thank you. I must go now.”
Because of my attitude, people often labeled me as “arrogant” or “rude.”
But back then, I had a kind of obsession with not wanting attention. My appearance, which didn’t look like a member of the Prellai family at all, might remind everyone of my mother. Yet, I couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit envious of that chubby boy always surrounded by people. His world seemed so warm, pure, and solid.
“Princess, princess? This is really delicious…”
“Your Highness! Come here! Princess Niat wants to personally greet you!”
“Your Highness! Count Bias wants to discuss swordsmanship with you!”
So many people sought the Crown Prince that, as soon as I drifted away, he would be called elsewhere.
“The Crown Prince truly embodies the first Emperor of Telyris! Such beautiful silver hair and clear blue eyes!”
“If he loses just a bit of baby fat, he’ll look exactly like His Majesty the Emperor!”
Many people admired him as the “true Telyris,” and indeed, he was born with all the symbols of royalty. The Emperor loved his legitimate, direct heir and openly favored him.
I turned away, trying not to see it. But deep down, I knew I envied the certainty and recognition of that lineage.
“So I didn’t bother paying attention. Clearly, we weren’t the kind of people who could get close.”
Still, it was possible that the boy who got injured was the Crown Prince, and that we simply didn’t recognize each other.
“Judging by his silhouette, he seemed a bit chubby too.”
At that age, his voice could have been confusing due to puberty. Yet, many things still didn’t add up.
“If it were him, wouldn’t he demand to be taken immediately to the palace for a huge reward?”
Why would he desperately hide himself?
“Maybe there’s some backstory I don’t know… or maybe he wasn’t the Crown Prince.”
If not the Crown Prince, it was likely he was part of a criminal organization. After all, he spoke of betrayal and revenge at that age. Then his insistence on avoiding entanglement with me made sense.
“Crown Prince or criminal… both extremes, but in any case, both are the type to speak casually to everyone.”
After arriving at the academy, I secretly had two mailboxes purchased just in case.
“Get two. I’ll pick the one with the prettier number.”
The person running my errand looked at me as if I was wasting money and brought numbers 1597 and 3125.
“I’ll take 1597. I like it because it’s prime—a number with only itself and one as factors. 3125 is pretty bland; I’ll cancel it later.”
Of course, I didn’t cancel 3125. Luckily, the errand person wasn’t good with numbers. 3125 was 555^5, a fairly pretty number.
Time passed, and I never felt the need to contact it. Whether Crown Prince or criminal, why should it matter to me? I intended to spend my life at the Rilloni Academy, not return to the Empire. So in my previous life, I never used the mailbox the boy had told me about.
But after reincarnation, things changed. While I stayed only in Rilloni, in the “original story,” the Crown Prince had begun his strange revenge. Without revealing himself, he started ruthlessly targeting the members of that picnic, one by one.
“Survive, then seek revenge.”
Why he remained hidden, I didn’t know, but it fit him perfectly. I guessed Highton had eliminated the Prellai family, who were staunch allies of the royal house, making them trustworthy supporters of the Crown Prince.
If the boy I had met was indeed the Crown Prince, I needed to act fast to accelerate that revenge plot. Highton had completely taken over the royal family as the first in line for succession. But once the Crown Prince returned, that would end.
“And if Highton is neutralized, the Prellai family wouldn’t face annihilation for rebellion either.”
So as soon as I arrived in the capital, I ordered Ppiyak to secretly leave a letter in mailbox 1135.
‘He said it would take a week, so I’ll have to wait a bit before Ppiyak arrives.’
I hadn’t told anyone that Ppiyak was now under my care. It was a little awkward that Melissa had handed him over to me. Ppiyak claimed he had dreamed of me every day since childhood, insisting he was originally mine.
Perhaps that’s why I was even colder to Ppiyak. Seeing him made me feel as if a childish greed from my youth had come true. Sending him to deliver the letter as soon as I arrived in the capital also bought me some time. I didn’t want to flaunt him in front of others just yet.
‘He kept insisting he was mine, and now he really is…’
Surely everyone would assume I had finally “snatched” Ppiyak from Melissa.
‘When Ppiyak returns…’
I should tell my family. I wonder how they’ll react.
I was lost in thought when the carriage stopped. We had arrived at the general store.
The young man with black hair, Cesare Levin, leisurely began preparing to go out. But unlike usual, he seemed subtly nervous.
His attendants had no choice but to watch him meticulously choose his clothes for an unusually long time.
“Your Grace, you always say Princess Kiana is someone to merely ‘utilize without attachment.’ So why such trouble in picking clothes…?”
“Well…”
Cesare slowly smiled.
“I’m worried she’ll reject me with a simple ‘No, thank you,’ before I even speak properly.”
One of his closest aides, Ranyac, tilted his head.
“Ah… ‘No, thank you’ is what you say to someone you’re not interested in?”
Ranyac, from a wandering tribe in the western deserts, had a slightly accented speech and little experience in social etiquette. Yet he was extremely loyal and competent.
“Generally, yes.”
So Cesare kindly explained to Ranyac what he meant by “generally.”
“Someone once told me it usually means ‘Don’t bother me, go away!’”
“I see. I didn’t know. But if Your Grace worries about your charm to the opposite sex, how are other men supposed to live?”
Cesare glanced at the mirror absentmindedly. His statue-like face reflected back. He knew from experience that his looks were widely admired. Today, with extra effort in grooming, he seemed even better.
“Then let’s go.”
Gloved, Cesare finished preparing and smiled darkly.
