About a week had passed since I beca Imperial Princess Charlotte’s guide. Today, Imperial Prince Harold and Imperial Princess Charlotte were hosting an evening party together on a day when we didn’t have school. While the guests were primarily students of the Academy, a written invitation had been delivered to their guardians as well.
There was little ti to prepare for the party so the invitations wouldn’t reach those who lived in areas away from the capital in ti. However, it was the social season at the mont, so it was apparent that the number of those present definitely wouldn’t be small. At this party, I was given the duty of introducing the party-goers to Imperial Princess Charlotte, and Lady Sophia was granted the role of introducing party-goers to Imperial Prince Harold.
While, nominally, we were guides, in actuality, we were very close to being their partners, because neither the Prince nor the Princess were escorted by anyone. To be exact, they were each other’s partners. However, they were both doing different things and were thus standing separate from each other.
As a result, Lady Sophia and I looked like we were their partners. Lady Sophia especially was seen as the Imperial Prince’s partner by the majority of those present. If one were to strain their ears to hear the idle talk of the people around them, comnts such as, ‘It’s also good for the friendship between both countries…’ could be heard.
“It’s just as I said it would be, isn’t it?”
“I never doubted your words, Your Highness.”
As we shared this back and forth, I thought back on Princess Charlotte’s proposition.
“‘Save Lady Sophia?’ You are saying so strange things again. It’s as if you’re implying that Lady Sophia is in a dangerous situation.”
“I am sure you are aware what our purpose in coming to study here is. Or are you saying that if I don’t explain it from the beginning, you wouldn’t understand?”
“…No, that’s not what–”
There weren’t that many reasons for Royalty to study abroad. And in view of the current situation, their reasons were crystal clear.
“Then, there’s no way that you haven’t understood what I ant by ‘saving your Lady’, is there?”
“Are you implying that Lady Sophia is trying to escape a political marriage? That’s impossible.”
Yes, it was impossible. For Lady Sophia to choose to flee from a political marriage was impossible. However, it seed that Imperial Princess Charlotte didn’t catch the aning of my words.
“Trying to hide it is fruitless. Miss Sophia is really adorable, isn’t she?”
“That’s an undoubted truth, but… what do you an by it?”
“She’s so cute, considerate, and both her lineage and academic results are excellent. I wonder why a girl like her still doesn’t have a fiancé.”
“That is…”
‘…because I have ruined her event with Prince Alforth.’ Naturally, I couldn’t say that. When I hesitated to answer, Imperial Princess Charlotte muttered, “So it’s really like that. Could it be that Miss Sophia doesn’t have a fiancé because there is soone she loves, and also because that the person she loves is soone she can’t get engaged to, as the daughter of a Marquis?”
“Perhaps? That’s not sothing I would be privy to so I do not know.”
“Oh, is that so? But I’ve heard that she has imnse trust in you? Or could it be that you haven’t been told because you are that person?”
She was acting as if she saw right through , to which I responded by letting out an ostentatious sigh. A stir went around the maids accompanying her, but I continued to outwardly express my exasperation.
“You must enjoy gossiping, Your Highness. Or is this a trait shared by all the people of the Flafield Empire?”
I subtly pointed out that this was viewed as shaful behaviour in the Ephenear Kingdom. Of course, I was her guide—in other words, I was taking advantage of being in this position to advise her, as she was soone who was not familiar with this country’s etiquette. I wasn’t afraid that she wouldn’t notice this indirect, candid advice—or that if she did, she would lose herself in anger. In fact, she just laughed.
“Oh, I apologize. Since she’s extrely cute, I let my imagination run wild in all sorts of ways. These were certainly impolite remarks. Of course, this is reproachable behaviour in the Flafield Empire as well.”
“…I see. I myself might have been a bit too obtrusive when I pointed it out.”
I was only allowed to point out the differences in each of our countries’ etiquette. So I certainly wasn’t permitted any behavior such as pointing out her immaturity. Was her retort due to her realizing this, or was she simply trying to protect the image of her own country? In either case, she was a quite troubleso opponent.
“Hehe, you far surpass my expectations. So I’ll tell you one more ti. If you cooperate with , I will help you in protecting your Lady.”
“Even if I were to repeat what I already said, it would be pointless, wouldn’t it?”
‘Lady Sophia is trying to flee a political marriage.’
If she wanted to talk with this premise in mind, then she should just go ahead. When I implied this aning with my behavior, she smiled, satisfied.
“To a certain degree, my goal and my elder brother’s goal overlap. So if you cooperate with , it will no longer be necessary for my elder brother to choose your Lady.”
It would no longer be necessary, huh? That was an awfully convenient phrase.
However, the current issue was the part where she said that their goals overlapped. Their goal should have been to strengthen the relationship between the two countries and acquire information about the new magical technique. So I perfectly understood Imperial Princess Charlotte’s intention in choosing as her guide. She would be able to achieve her goals if she were to acquire the information from , as well as if she were to obtain , the person who had this knowledge.
But was there any connection between Imperial Prince Harold’s necessity to make Lady Sophia his guide and obtaining ? …There was one, wasn’t there?
If Lady Sophia were to marry into the neighboring country, I would accompany her as well. In other words, it could be said that by obtaining Lady Sophia, it was possible for the neighboring country to achieve two goals at once. However, in other words, that ant that–
“You have quite a high opinion of , don’t you?”
“That’s how much potential the technique you ca up with has.”
Although it was hard to believe, I seed to be correct. Since her statent made it seem like even getting closer to Lady Sophia was simply with as the main goal, whatever the circumstances may be, they were overestimating too much.
Well, this was also caused by being seen as a genius who had invented an unknown magical technique, even though I already said that I simply rediscovered a technique that already existed.
It was certainly true that this technique didn’t exist in this world. Therefore, if she was stating such things after researching it, it wasn’t unreasonable for them to think of that way, was it?
They would naturally not be struck with the realization that I simply used my mories of the previous world. If they had realized that much, they’d be sothing else.1 Or they would simply also be people with mories of the previous world, like Teacher Tristan.
Therefore, since she didn’t reach that conclusion, the possibility that she was a transmigrator was low. Assuming that, was her goal simply my magical knowledge, then?
“Allow to ask you. What do you want from , Your Highness?”
“Oh, are you perhaps considering making a deal?”
“No. But how could I even begin to consider it if I don’t know what you are looking for?”
“You’re right. My wish is for you to cooperate with . Specifically, I want you to move to my country with after my studies here are over and work at my research institute.”
‘That’s out of the question.’
I wouldn’t refuse her rcilessly like this, though.
There was always a possibility of Lady Sophia, as well as Fol, falling ill, at which point it would beco difficult for them to release their own powers. It wouldn’t be such a problem for Lady Sophia, who had low magical resistance, but, in case of ergency, Fol needed . Therefore, I didn’t have the option of moving to another country.
But at the sa ti, there was a great deal of potential when it ca to cooperating in developing magical equipnt. If I were to cooperate with the neighboring country, we might possibly reproduce the magical technique that I used to draw out powers as a magical device.
“I am interested in magical research myself. However, since I am Lady Sophia’s exclusive butler, I will never leave her side.”
“But it would be another story entirely if it was for the sake of protecting her, wouldn’t it?”
‘This could beco the foundation for protecting Lady Sophia.’
Certainly, if that were the case, I would possibly leave Lady Sophia’s side. However, only if I had no other choice, that is.
“Certainly, if we were to find ourselves in the worst possible situation, such a choice would also be possible. However, I do not believe that such an end awaits us.”
“Is that so? Well, I do understand that you want to ignore reality. Therefore, I will wait for your answer until my studies here are over.”
In reaction to her quite crude words, unconsciously, a wry smile appeared on my face.
That was the conversation that we had. anwhile, Lady Sophia was currently by Imperial Prince Harold’s side as his guide. It was no different from being his partner, and, from the perspective of the people around them, it must have looked as if both countries wished for their marriage. In other words, what the Imperial Princess told that day signified that, while she would wait for my reply until her studies were over, she wasn’t responsible if Prince Harold was to take action in the anti.
But even if she didn’t tell , that much was obvious. I accepted so non-alcoholic, sparkling wine from a waiter and held it out for Imperial Princess Charlotte to try.
“Here, Your Highness, a present from the Rosenberg Marquis household.”
“…This is a present?”
Imperial Princess Charlotte watched the wine inside the glass bubbling and frowned. While she didn’t say it out loud, she probably wanted to call it a dud of a wine.
It was said that originally, sparkling wine was the product of an accident. It was considered a failure at first since the focus of the research was to figure out how not to make wine that contained carbonic acid.
Such was the information from my previous world. In other words, it was still treated as a dud in this world and it wasn’t generally distributed.
“Please give it a try, if you’d like.”
“…If mory serves right, I believe that I am forbidden from drinking alcohol due to my age in this country just like in the Flafield Empire, isn’t that right?”
“Please rest assured. Strictly speaking, this isn’t alcohol.”
She was reluctant to drink it nonetheless, which was probably due to her being on guard against poison. This was a natural reaction from an Imperial Princess.
“Of course, I will not force you. However, the manufacturing thod of this wine is sowhat complicated. I used a magic spell to control its state. Perhaps if there was a magical device that could create a vacuum inside the barrel, it would beco easier to ma–”
Before I could finish talking, Imperial Princess Charlotte took a sip from the glass. Did she wish to verify the taste of the sparkling wine first after hearing ‘magical device’? Was she truly interested in the taste or was she pretending to be interested in the taste in an attempt to hide her interest in the magical spell…?
“…Wow, it’s filling my mouth with bubbles and it has quite an interesting, satisfying quality to it, right? I can imagine that there are people who enjoy drinking this… Did you say ‘create a vacuum in the barrel?’”
“Yes, that’s right. I’ll answer any of your questions.”
I wanted to feel out her response to see what she displayed interest in.
“Why would it get easier to make if there was a magical device? Is it because you could make commoners supervise the process? Or is there another special reason for it?”
“Your guess is correct. It’s a spell that consus a vast amount of power.”
The mont I said this, her athyst eyes definitely sparkled with curiosity. It was proof that she was quite interested in what I had just said. I was able to catch a glimpse of her goals, even if it was just a fleeting look.
“Now that you seem to have taken a liking to the sparkling wine as well, let’s cut right to the chase. It seems that you wish for , Your Highness, but… why don’t we hold a more constructive conversation?”
“Oh, what kind of conversation, for example?”
“What if you were to conduct magical research during your studies here while working together with ?”
Her athyst eyes slowly narrowed.
That was what she desired of . If I provided her with what she wanted while she was studying here, I would lose my leverage to protect Lady Sophia.
She must have been thinking, ‘Then why?’
But, once again, this suggestion would fulfill her desire. So while she believed that it was clearly so kind of a trap, she still wouldn’t be able to ignore my proposition.
“…Are you saying that you’d give your knowledge?”
“Of course, I won’t do it without so compensation. It’s just that, don’t you think that if we were to put our fields of expertise together and cooperate, there is a possibility that we’d co up with new magical devices?”
While I majored in magic in my previous world, I was virtually an amateur when it ca to the developnt of tools necessary for magical equipnt, which were called hardware devices. In other words, working on developnt together with the Flafield Empire was an attractive prospect to as well.
“If you worked together with , then there’d naturally be the possibility of joint developnt. However, in that case, I believe that these newly created magical devices would be put on the market by our Empire, though…?”
She ant that, even if I were to provide them with my knowledge, we’d be depending on the Flafield Empire to manufacture these devices. So, for example, even if I were given profits in return, it wouldn’t change the fact that the Empire would be in an advantageous position.
“I’ve also heard rumors of you having leading knowledge even within the great power of magic. So I am interested in doing research together with you, Your Highness. Wouldn’t you agree that this is a sufficient reason to cooperate?”
Even when I told her that I had only rediscovered a technique from a magic book, she didn’t believe , despite it being the truth. And this ti, she was also–
“…Alright. Let’s leave it at that. No matter what your true intentions are, magical research is what I desire the most.”
She didn’t believe .
That was my conclusion, after trying to read between the lines of what I said. She was certainly a very insightful young Lady. Knowing that she was a high-spec villainous daughter in the original work, her actions and deanor were truly befitting of her role. Although it was necessary for one to preface this statent with– ‘for her age’. She was no match for the Lady Sophia whom I raised. She excluded the right answer right from the get go, and she probably won’t be aware of our motives until my Lady or I have achieved our goals.
As I continued to move our deal forward, I continued to fulfill my role as her guide. A short while after, guests arrived and walked towards Imperial Princess Charlotte—or, to be more precise, towards . It was Alicia and Prince Alforth.
The fact that they were attending the party wasn’t strange in itself. However, it was unusual to see these two together. Could they perhaps be here together as partners? Could the plot have returned to its original route…? Probably not.
As I pondered upon such thoughts, Alicia and Prince Alforth exchanged greetings with Imperial Princess Charlotte. She saw Prince Alforth every day and she had also t Alicia a few tis. Therefore, introducing them wasn’t necessary. When I stepped back, Prince Alforth looked at .
“Your Highness, Princess Charlotte. Excuse , but would you mind if I borrowed Cyril for a little while?”
“Borrowed Cyril…?”
“Yes, there’s sothing I’d like to discuss with him.”
“Alright. If that’s the case, then I don’t mind.”
I had a hunch that sothing troubleso was about to arise, but the unimportant guide had no right to veto this request, and so, I was dragged away by Prince Alforth and Alicia.
“What’s the aning of this?”
We were in a lounge outside of the party venue that we were lending out to the guests. For so reason, Alicia hounded for an answer. And, standing behind her, Prince Alforth definitely had a reproachful expression on his face, too.
“I would actually like to ask what’s going on instead.”
“For crying out loud! Why is Miss Sophia Prince Harold’s guide?! What are you doing, Cyril?!”
“Being Princess Charlotte’s guide?”
“Glare.”
Whoa… For a Viscount’s daughter, the heroine, to actually say ‘glare’ while glaring at was… quite the rare sight indeed.
“Cyril, you’re not trying to say that you don’t understand what I’m implying here, are you?”
As she glared at , Alicia sohow looked like she was about to cry. Then, as if taking her side, Prince Alforth spoke up as well.
“Cyril. His Highness, Prince Harold, intends to choose Miss Sophia as his partner for a political marriage. And yet you’re not trying to stop this?”
“What are you expecting , a butler, to do?”
“That’s… but… you’d be able to do sothing, wouldn’t you, Cyril?”
I caught Prince Alforth’s imploring gaze and shook my head.
“Your Highness. It’s not whether I can or cannot do sothing. If you want to prevent Lady Sophia’s political marriage, shouldn’t you be doing sothing about it yourself?”
‘Of course, one way of doing this would be using your position as a prince to order to do sothing about it. But, it’s different if you don’t think of anything yourself and just rely on ,’ is what I was trying to tell him as my disciple.
“Your Highness, you told earlier that you want to gain Lady Sophia’s trust, right? But do you believe that sothing like this would gain you her trust?”
“Ugh… Got it. I’ll go ask Miss Sophia for a dance.”
“Yes. Off you go.”
Prince Alforth turned on his heel. His face brimd with so kind of determination as he left accompanied by his servants. If Prince Alforth were to ask Lady Sophia for a dance in front of everybody, he would let the people around him know that he was watching Lady Sophia and Imperial Prince Harold, which would probably keep the gossip in check. However–
“Cyril, you’re not fooling , you know.”
When Alicia began hounding again, she put her hand on the wall as if to say that she wasn’t letting get away. I never thought that a day would co when I would get kabedoned2 by a young Lady in this world.
Well I didn't expect that either! Gotta love Alicia. If Sophia saw though… she'd probably want to kabedon him too lol. Also Sophia and Cyril's plans are so mysterious…what could they be planning?
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literally uses the word ‘bakemono’ – monster, ghost; I felt this was too harsh to use in English, so I tried to soften the statent a little. I feel like it carries the connotation of being extra, like when you see soone too powerful in ani and call them a ‘bakemono’. Hope this makes sense!Everyone probably already knows what a kabedon is but just to be sure: Kabedon
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