Chapter 39
Prince’s Point of View
Monsters appeared in the royal capital again.
And this time, it wasn’t just one or two—it was apparently an entire swarm.
I immediately dispatched the Third Knight Order to deal with it, and I also forcibly summoned Rick back, since he still hadn’t returned.
However, although he stayed in the First Knight Order’s barracks for a full month, even after returning to the capital he made no move to report to me right away.
“If the prince summons you, you come immediately! Just who do you think you are?!”
“…I just got back, and things were hectic. Besides, we had our own problems too, you know?”
Rick finally appeared before me three days after returning to the capital.
Apparently, he had been confined for a short time for deliberately provoking monsters and putting Sybil in danger. And yet, even though it was thanks to my authority as a prince that he was called back here, he didn’t even bother to come and thank me.
“You brought it on yourself. I never told you to do anything so reckless.”
“But that was the quickest way. To find out whether she was truly a Saint.”
“Fine. Whatever. So? What’s the result? Is Sybil the Saint or not? Report already!”
“…Geez, so bossy.”
“What did you say?!”
Did he just click his tongue?
At me, a prince…?!
“Sybil is the real Saint.”
“What?!”
Just as I was about to consider charging him with lèse-majesté, Rick casually dropped an outrageous bomb.
“Too bad. There’s no mistake—she’s the Saint.”
“…That can’t be…”
He took three whole days to report, yet he said something so important as if it were nothing. I stood there, dumbfounded.
“There must be some mistake… Do you have proof?!”
“…All Anika’s mother said was that she saw Sybil use the Saint’s power.”
“That’s right.”
“Then I don’t have proof either.”
“What? Then that means it’s still—”
“But there’s no doubt. I saw it with my own eyes.”
“…!”
As he said that, Rick looked straight at me with eyes like rubies.
He didn’t look like he was lying. And yet—
“Well, that mother said the same thing, and you believed her, didn’t you? So this time, choose carefully. Whether you believe me… or believe that woman. Please act cautiously, Prince Marcus.”
“Damn it…”
Rick gave an exaggeratedly polite bow, which only irritated me further—but now wasn’t the time for that.
Sybil is the real Saint…?!
Damn it. If Rick isn’t lying, then this is very bad.
But I haven’t seen Sybil’s power, nor Anika’s, with my own eyes. There’s no concrete proof for either of them.
Is it really okay to trust Rick’s word again…?!
“Oh, and by the way, there’s one more person in the First Knight Order—”
“What?”
“…Nah, never mind. Anyway, good luck, Second Prince…”
Rick started to say something, but when he met my eyes, he snorted, gave a light wave of his hand, and left the room without another word.
Second… Prince…
What an unpleasant way to put it.
Surely Rick isn’t aligned with my elder brother?
…No, that can’t be. They’ve probably never even met.
Ugh… more importantly, what do I do now?!
If Sybil is truly the Saint, should I call her back immediately?
But then what? What would I even do after that?
Apologize—and expect forgiveness?
Why should I be the one apologizing, anyway?
I’m the victim here. Anika and her mother are the ones who fed me lies.
If I make those two apologize, would Sybil forgive them?
No—Sybil’s feelings don’t matter.
What matters is my father, the King.
Will Father listen to me…?
He’s already furious that I expelled Sybil from the capital on my own authority and got engaged to Anika. Lately, he won’t even speak to me.
Even when I told him Sybil had been bullying Anika, he didn’t seem convinced.
And now there’s the possibility that Sybil is the true Saint…
Ah, this is bad. Bad, bad, bad, bad—this is really bad.
Maybe I should consult Mother in situations like this…
Would Mother be able to fix it?
She might insist to Father that I’m the victim.
…but recently, the rumors that my brother will inherit the throne have been growing louder.
Anika doesn’t behave in a way befitting a crown princess, and she hasn’t shown any Saintly power even when monsters appear.
Even Mother doesn’t like Anika.
Ah, this is such a mess. If only I had been calmer and investigated properly from the start.
At this rate, my brother might really become Crown Prince…
Come to think of it, where is my brother right now? What is he doing?
Wouldn’t it be convenient if he had died in battle or something…?
Then it would be guaranteed that I’d become the next king…!
Ah, I’m in trouble, I’m in trouble. This is really, truly bad…
What is Sybil doing now, I wonder—out there in that remote frontier…?
Sybil is living happily, so please don’t worry about her!
Thank you all so much for your kind comments (；ᵕ；)
Every bookmark, rating, like, and warm message gives me strength to keep writing.
I can’t reply to each of you individually, but your comments always make me laugh!
Please accept my heartfelt thanks here.
There’s still plenty more of Sybil’s perver— eccentric behavior and lucky muscles planned, so I hope you’ll continue to stay with me m(_ _)m
