Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 306

306. The 306th

The Crown Prince and his entourage halted a short distance from the boarded-up area where the others had disappeared. This space was a makeshift storage for less critical supplies, with a large stack of firewood piled underneath.

“What have you been up to lately?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

The Crown Prince’s voice was a low, fierce growl, his tone accusatory. His gaze swept over Asel, making him uncomfortable. It was easy to see what was bothering him; their recent interactions were clearly the issue. Unlike the Crown Prince, who couldn’t mask his agitation, Asel remained calm, meeting his gaze with a nonchalant expression. “I was bored, so I’ve been helping out with some tasks here.”

“Isn’t your primary duty to assist me?”

“I haven’t neglected my duties. I assist you, Your Highness, and do this in my free time. There’s no reason for you to interfere with my personal time.”

“So you decided to curry favor with the Emperor during that time? Rumor has it you’ve been spending a lot of time with him lately.”

“His generous Majesty is simply giving consideration to my humble thoughts. I wouldn’t dare call it ‘spending time together.’ I’ve asked you before to refrain from using discourteous expressions, but you seem to have forgotten again.”

“Is that what you’re saying right now?!”

Clang!

The Crown Prince’s patience snapped. He raised his voice and punched the boarded-up wall beside him, triggering a small disaster. The impact caused the stacked firewood to spill out, the roughly tied bundles unable to withstand the force.

“Your Highness!”

Serium and the guards, startled by the sudden noise, rushed forward. The Crown Prince blinked in surprise, then made a frustrated face. Branches and twigs were scattered everywhere, creating a mess that would take a while to clean up.

“Damn it!”

The Crown Prince’s anger flared. Everyone stood around, unsure how to fix the situation. Asel clicked his tongue softly and began to gather the scattered branches.

“Leave it, Asel.”

The Crown Prince swallowed a groan and rubbed his tired face. Asel only glanced at him before continuing to pick up the wood.

“I said leave it! Can’t you hear me?”

Unable to ignore him any longer, Asel sighed deeply. “If you cause an accident, you have to clean it up. How can I just leave this? Your Highness, please return to the barracks. I’ll clean everything up and come later.”

“If we leave it, someone will find it and clean it up! It’s not something you need to do!”

“No. You may not know this, but the firewood stacked here is for tomorrow.”

“So what if it is?”

“It means whoever finds this mess will only come tomorrow morning. If it’s left like this all night, it will get frosted and become unusable. Do you think it’s easy to find dry firewood in winter?”

“What’s the big deal about these pieces of wood!”

The Crown Prince’s rebuttal was as loud as his complaint. Perhaps out of spite, he picked up a dry tree trunk leaning against the wall. The dried-up piece of wood, hidden inside the planks, came up with dirt and dust. At that moment, a sharp scream erupted from Asel’s mouth.

“Aaaaaaah!”

The scream was so piercing that the Crown Prince flinched and stepped back, his anger momentarily forgotten. Serium and the guards were also startled and instinctively reached for their swords.

“Asel?”

“G-Get that away from me!”

“What?”

“That thing you’re holding! Heeik! Please! Please throw it far away! I beg you!”

As the screams intensified, the Crown Prince looked down at his hand, focusing on the twisted tree trunk. The others followed his gaze. The wood, lifeless and dried, looked too fragile to even be used as a club. Bewilderment spread across their faces, but I understood Asel’s reaction. A dark thought lingered on the tree trunk; it seemed someone had committed suicide on that tree, and the dried remains had later been gathered as firewood. Of all things, he had picked that one up.

Similarly, Sibelius, who had also noticed the situation, clicked his tongue quietly beside me. Since learning defensive magic, Asel had become less affected by most thoughts, but he was still vulnerable to stronger forces, being a beginner. This vulnerability would lessen as he progressed in his training, but it would take time. Sibelius had warned him about this. Still, it was inevitable that he would be overwhelmed when faced with it directly. It was like knowing a horror movie is coming, but still getting startled when the ghost appears. It wasn’t just a matter of mental strength.

As if seeing a hallucination, Asel covered his face with both hands, unable to open his eyes. The Crown Prince stared at Asel, then at the tree trunk, before sighing with a helpless expression. Finally, he threw the tree far away. Only after hearing the dull thud of something heavy hitting the ground did Asel raise his head.

“D-Did you get rid of it?”

“Yes, I threw it away.”

Color returned to his pale face, but the relief was short-lived. When his gaze landed on the Crown Prince’s hand, his face froze again.

“Your Highness, your hand…”

“What is it this time?”

“You need to wash your hands. S-Something dirty is on them.”

The Crown Prince looked at his hand with a strange expression. There was some dust, but nothing that warranted washing it off. Of course, that was from an ordinary person’s perspective. In reality, a portion of the lingering thought had transferred to his hand. I didn’t know what kind of hallucination it was causing, but judging by Asel’s contorted face, it must have been disgusting. Still, he seemed to have regained his composure, not falling into complete confusion as before. The hallucination’s effects were still present, but he was enduring them, a significant improvement. However, the Crown Prince, unaware of this, could only stare at the pale Asel with a complicated gaze.

“You seem to be having a relapse.”

“Y-Yes?”

“You’re showing strange symptoms again. You seemed fine for a while. It seems you still need more treatment.”

“No, this is…”

“Let’s go back to the barracks. I’ll have your favorite wine prepared. You said you feel better when you drink and fall asleep, right? I can’t be your drinking buddy, but I can at least stay by your side.”

Before Asel could answer, the Crown Prince turned away. Asel hesitated, then closed his mouth as if he had an idea. The agitation in his eyes subsided, and his expression became calm. He raised his gaze and stared directly at the Crown Prince.

“No.”

“You might as well just return home from here… What did you say?”

The Crown Prince paused and turned around, his face slightly stiff, as if sensing a change. Asel met his gaze without flinching.

“It’s not a mental illness.”

“……”

“I’m not sick, Your Highness.”

The night deepened. Asel’s firm declaration cut through the silent air. I felt a surge of emotion seeing him stand tall, without hesitation. He must have remembered my words – that he wasn’t sick, and that he should be confident and not back down. He had chosen to fight back instead of enduring.

However, the events that followed weren’t as pleasant as I’d hoped. The Crown Prince simply stared at Asel for a moment, then sighed deeply. Asel’s shoulders flinched at the heavy sound.

“…Right. You’ve always said that. Always blaming it on that damn bloodline.”

“Yes, that’s right. So…”

“I know it makes you feel better to say that. But honestly, I can’t agree with that. You know you can’t just insist and make it true, right?”

“Your Highness, I…”

“You’re a bright guy, Asel. You have an excellent memory that remembers everything in detail, and you have useful intuition and insight. Geniuses tend to have flaws, and I don’t see that as a bad thing. I think I’ve said that several times already. Why are you still obsessed with that fact?”

“…I’m really not sick…”

“If you’re going to say that, learn to hide your symptoms more skillfully. Then I might be able to pretend to believe you.”

“……”

It was like facing a huge, unyielding wall. I could see his face distorting with despair. Asel clenched his fists and bit his lip, while the others exchanged awkward glances. But no one defended him or offered comfort, not even Serium, who seemed to understand him the most.

I took a deep breath. I understood the situations he had been enduring and fighting alone. It wasn’t that he gave up easily; it was that those around him had forced him to. As I suppressed my rising anger, I felt a trembling beside me. Sibelius was clenching his fist tightly, his expression calm, but his eyes were cold with anger. Seeing someone even angrier than myself helped me calm down. Besides, he wasn’t the only one who was angry.

“Isn’t it your time to appear?”

I smiled and turned to see Isana standing behind me, a stiff expression on his face. The royal guards escorting him wore similar expressions.

“Who is it!”

The Crown Prince’s guards, finally sensing our presence, shouted as they scanned the area. But their sharp gazes turned to embarrassment as they recognized us.

“Y-Your Majesty, the Emperor.”

The Crown Prince and Asel’s expressions also stiffened. Isana hesitated, then put on a gentle smile and walked forward.

“Quite an interesting conversation to be having at this late hour.”

“What brings Your Majesty here…”

“I was feeling restless, so I took a walk. I thought I heard a loud noise nearby, so I came to see… I’m glad I did.”

He directed a meaningful gaze at Asel, who lowered his head as if guilty. Isana’s expression darkened. The Crown Prince, watching him warily, twitched his eyebrows and was about to speak when Isana said,

“Asel, I heard you’re considering your career path. Would you like to work by my side?”

“……!”

It was a completely unexpected move. Among the Crown Prince’s stunned party, only Asel remained calm, as if he had anticipated the offer.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. May I ask what you mean by working by your side?”

“It means exactly what it says. Asel, I desire your abilities. Become my man and work for this empire.”

“Wait, Your Majesty! What is this…!”

“There are a few conditions.”

The Crown Prince, looking displeased, tried to intervene, but Asel spoke first. The Crown Prince turned to him with disbelief, surprised that Asel, who should have refused without hesitation, seemed to be agreeing. But Asel’s gaze remained fixed on Isana.

“What are the conditions?”

“First, I have semesters remaining at the academy. I want to complete them all and graduate fully.”

“Granted.”

“I need assurance that I will be safe no matter what advice I give to Your Majesty. Please grant me immunity regarding that.”

“Granted.”

“I also need a position and title that will not be a flaw even if I serve Your Majesty by your side.”

“Of course, granted.”

“…Finally, please certify in the Emperor’s name that the Unicorn Clan is a real race and that my family inherited that bloodline.”

“……!”

A chorus of gasps filled the air, reactions from the Crown Prince’s party. They had been frozen throughout the conversation, but the last condition seemed to break them. A document certified in the Emperor’s name carried significant weight. Asel’s intention was clear: he wanted formal recognition as a member of the Unicorn bloodline.

“Asel, you…!”

Accusatory gazes poured out. Isana also frowned. Asel’s composed face turned pale for the first time. But Isana’s frown stemmed from a different reason.

“You’ve only been asking for obvious things as conditions. Aren’t you being too ungreedy?”

“…Yes?”

Asel blinked, surprised by the reaction. His companions, about to protest, turned around with dumbfounded expressions.

“Or are you being considerate of my position? Do I seem like an unreliable Emperor that I need such consideration?”

“N-No way! It’s not that…!”

“If it’s not that, then demand more freely. I’m not so stingy that I would skimp on the price of getting my man.”