Became The Son Of The Final Boss [EN]: Chapter 34

34.

The way to secure the Crown Prince position was quite straightforward.

“No one can dispute my legitimacy. My mother was of noble birth. Until her passing, she held the title of Empress.”

Ken nodded in agreement.

Surprisingly, the Empress’s seat remained vacant.

My father had taken daughters from the most powerful and distinguished families, the Empire’s Four Guardian Families, as wives, but he never allowed any of them to ascend to the Empress’s seat.

The best advantage I had was my father’s unwavering devotion.

My father, Ron Carl Leonhardt, loved no woman other than Iriel.

It was a touch of humanity in the final boss, the iron-blooded monarch, the epitome of ruthlessness.

Later, this would even become a cause of division within the empire, but when I initially conceived it, I wanted to include at least one sign that proved Ron Carl Leonhardt was human.

Now, that setup was proving to be a great help to me.

“I am my father’s only direct heir. All that remains is proving I am capable of holding the position. Simply demonstrating my ability within the Imperial Palace won’t be enough… I won’t be able to quell the nobles’ opposition.”

Ken replied, “You need a merit that no one can dispute, a decisive role, and demonstrable proof of your ability in achieving that merit. Everyone will expect His Majesty’s successor to be as strong as His Majesty.”

I was far too lacking to be considered the son of Ron Carl Leonhardt, who single-handedly built the great Calpeon Empire.

Frankly, the same would be true even if any prince or princess were compared to my father.

However, while there was anticipation for the other princes and princesses, many nobles felt disappointment, despair, and even anger towards me, not anticipation.

The anxiety that the empire would fall if I inherited the throne!

I needed a significant achievement not only to dispel all of that but also to prevent any opposition.

“It would be enough to drive out the dark energy, stabilize the western border, and exterminate the monsters,” I stated.

Soris nodded and added, “It’s an achievement that no one has ever accomplished. The monster problem in the border area between the Dark Forest and the Western Forest is something that even His Majesty can’t spare attention to.”

Ken delved into it in more detail than Soris.

“Preparations for the Second Conquest War are underway. Preparing for a Conquest War takes at least one or two years, not just a day or two. If you clean up the western region, which can be considered the rear, during that time, it will be a great achievement.”

Not only that, but Ken added one more fact.

“Of course, all of this holds true only if the story you overheard in the Orcs’ conversation turns out to be accurate.”

I gave a firm answer. “It’s certain. When Gale returns, I’ll be able to find out more detailed information about that. I’m thinking of suggesting it to His Majesty around the time the Spring Assessment ends.”

Ken agreed for now. “I’ll prepare. Of course, before that, it’s important to resolve the assassination attempt.”

I reviewed the goal of the Spring Assessment Tournament once again.

“At least Chen will be dealt with.”

“Does ‘dealt with’ mean that you will prevent him from interfering with the succession structure?”

“Yes.”

Ken narrowed his eyes and said in a somewhat chilly voice, “He will try to assassinate you under the pretext of the evaluation competition. It has already been revealed to some extent that the mastermind behind the assassination is the Seventh Prince, Chen. There is no conclusive evidence yet, but…”

I smiled. “I have no intention of sitting still and dying.”

Honestly, I was quite surprised at myself.

I killed quite a few people during the last attack.

In particular, the bodies of many assassins melted away with the summoning of the last Ifrit [a powerful fire spirit in Arabic folklore].

I expected the shock to be considerable, but surprisingly, I was very calm.

Maybe I’m feeling it instinctively.

‘It may be just the beginning… I was born as the Crown Prince of the Empire, and since I have no political base or military power to support me… the path of blood may have been foretold, and I must have been accepting it implicitly.’

Compared to the brutal future that will unfold before me, the last attack may be just a small incident.

Since I had mentioned the big picture to the two of them, I concluded the conversation for the day.

After asking them to prepare dinner, I leaned back deeply in my chair.

“Every day is not easy.”

It was a really difficult life, but I felt energized.

The struggle for survival was even giving me some pleasure.

I pondered the resurrection of Goran.

‘Goran was… an elf. A great elf who ruled a kingdom.’

The being who revives the dark energy was surprisingly an elf, called the race of light.

Moreover, an elf who ruled a kingdom must have been very talented in terms of lineage and skill.

The reason I was trying to prevent Goran’s resurrection before the main character Karen was not only because of the merit for the Crown Prince position.

The decisive reason why the main character Karen becomes stronger in the early part is the opportunities and items obtained in the process of preventing Goran’s resurrection.

“I have to preempt it. In the big picture, it’s also a way to help the empire.”

I preempt the main character Karen’s opportunities to become stronger, gain merit, and even prevent the empire’s power from weakening.

It could be not only a win-win situation but even a win-win-win-win situation.

“Before that, I need to become an intermediate spirit master.”

To avoid dying in the process of preventing Goran’s resurrection, I had to be at least an intermediate spirit master.

I fell into the Breath of the Wind as it was [a meditative state focused on controlling one’s inner energy].

* * *

“Captain, I found a trace.”

Gale rose at the report of his subordinate.

Quite some time had passed since he came down to the border, but he had not been able to find the shadow of the bandit group.

He couldn’t find the bandit group, but the damage caused by the bandit group continued. Because of the bandit group’s mobility, which flashed in the east and west, he always had to be one step late.

“Where is it connected to?”

“It’s the border between the Dark Forest and the Western Forest.”

Gale didn’t show any emotion, but he was surprised inside.

‘Near the Dark Forest…’

Gale said briefly to his subordinate. “Form a reconnaissance team.”

“A reconnaissance team?”

“Move with only a small number of knights, excluding soldiers. Attack when you confirm the bandit group’s base.”

At Gale’s words, the subordinate bowed his head. “Yes. I’ll prepare immediately.”

Gale went out of the tent.

Since being dispatched to the border, he had only rested in the castles of nearby lords for one day. The rest of the time, he lived within the bandit group’s activity radius and chased after traces.

After repeatedly failing, he finally had hope of finding a base, but Gale was not excited.

He had marked all the locations of the villages that had been attacked by the bandit group on the map.

Looking at the marks, Gale muttered, “They are thoroughly targeting only villages outside the imperial border.”

The bandit group strangely did not attack the inside of the imperial border. Were they afraid of the empire? Gale shook his head.

‘They are not afraid of the empire. Those horribly cruel guys are afraid…’

Gale recalled the villages that had been attacked by the bandit group.

It was so terrible that he couldn’t bear to look at it with his eyes open.

“The western border is so weak that it’s meaningless. If you go inside, there’s a bigger village… they thoroughly targeted only small villages outside the border.”

Soon, a subordinate called Gale from outside. “Captain, preparations are complete.”

When Gale went outside, ten knights were waiting for Gale.

“Leave the horses behind.”

The knights’ faces hardened at Gale’s words.

Gale pointed to a man with a thick beard among the knights. “I heard you’re from Ranger.”

“Yes. There was a time when I worked as a mercenary ranger before becoming a knight.”

“You lead the reconnaissance at the front.”

The knight flinched.

He couldn’t easily accept the words that Gale, who was famous even in the center, would take his command.

Gale said simply, “The place we’re going to scout is the border between the Dark Forest and the Western Forest. The forest is a dangerous place. An experienced person is important.”

“I will do my best.”

With the knight’s answer, the reconnaissance team departed.

Eleven knights, including Gale, quickly headed north.

A knight from Ranger asked Gale slyly, “Isn’t it dangerous?”

“It’s dangerous. But if a large number of people chase after traces, the bandit group may notice.”

The knight nodded at Gale’s answer.

Other knights also agreed with Gale’s concern. Several times already, they had only seen the bandit group’s atrocities and missed them.

They thought that if they annihilated the bandit group’s base this time, the tiresome bandit group extermination would be over.

While looking at his subordinates running with hopeful faces, Gale tried to suppress his uneasy feeling.

His subordinates must also be feeling that it was not a simple bandit group, but Gale felt something more than that from them.

He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was, but the uneasy feeling had been going on ever since he saw the first village sacrificed to the bandit group.

Gale tried to shake off his uneasy feeling.

* * *

I sent a message to Gale, but I couldn’t shake off my worries.

“Your Highness.”

I turned my gaze at Ken’s voice.

While looking at Ken approaching from the end of the training hall, I asked, “What’s going on?”

“I came after hearing the news that the person sent to Sir Gale had just left the capital.”

I nodded.

‘The timing has to be right… If it’s the cautious Gale, he won’t ignore my warning.’

It was a problem that could kill Gale, so I wanted to report to my father immediately and dispatch a large number of people.

However, my claim was too weak to do so.

I couldn’t guarantee that even my father, let alone the nobles, would believe in the memory before being attacked by the Orc shaman.

‘Still, I have to say it once.’

While I was making up my mind, Ken said with a regretful voice, “It’s a pity that magical communication is not possible in the west because there are no large cities.”

“I also regret that part, but I can’t help it.”

“It’s hard for large cities to develop there because the geographical conditions in the west are bad.”

Ken asked slyly, “I trust Gale, but… is it okay? According to your Highness, the west is in a very dangerous state right now.”

“First of all, I have no choice but to trust him and wait. I’ll check most of the Imperial Palace issues before he comes. Is the handling of Ted’s knights over?”

Ken nodded. “Yes. They all admitted their sins.”

It was news that Ted’s knights, who had initially strongly denied the crime of insulting the Crown Prince, had begun to show a change in attitude.

“Really? Then only the disposition is left.”

One justification for meeting my father was created.

“I’ll report to His Majesty and deal with them first. Next is the connection between the Atran family and the former vice chief.”

“It won’t be easy to tie it to the Atran family.”

I smiled at Ken’s concern. “Even creating tension is meaningful. Not only funds but also information about me was being reported to the Atran family.”