What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 339

Sub-Male Lead Goes on Strike-339

#339

Returning in Glory, A Breath (1)

Back to the forefront. Near the ‘Reverse Dungeon’ of the Trossart Mountains.

-Kooong······! Kooong······! Kooong······!

A golem as massive as a small hill was being controlled like a marionette.

Its steps through the mountain ridges were uncharacteristically calm for a monster.

Each time it moved, the ground vibrated as if about to burst, scattering dirt and gravel.

Though it was using the path people frequented, it couldn’t prevent the felling of old trees and the shattering of rocks. ‘Crack! Crash!’

Startled wild animals frequently took flight or leaped from the bushes. ‘Caw―!’ ‘Flap flap!’

-Rustle, rustle!

“······.”

Cedric watched a fleeing deer, reminded of someone.

For the past few days, the man’s condition had been exceptionally good.

Like the Winite River endlessly flowing through the continent, clear ether filled his vessel to the brim.

Stacks of sacred stones glowing with golden energy were in his tent.

His partner had promised to steadily send ether even after leaving for the Empire.

He had offered it first, without being asked.

The Crown Prince was no longer plagued by insomnia or nightmares.

He went to bed a little earlier each day, and this morning, he even overslept by seven minutes.

It was a rare occurrence even in Romero Palace.

‘Your Highness, you haven’t left any food on your plate for the past two days.’

David said quietly as he cleared the dishes.

Cedric detected traces of a smile on the middle-aged man’s impassive face.

‘I am loath to say, but I am overjoyed to see you regaining some weight.’

‘······.’

‘It is a truly welcome change.’

Thanks to the Marquis obediently leaving for the Empire, there was no anxiety either.

He regretted not asking enough questions, but now was wartime.

There would be opportunities to gather together once the war was over.

His mother would surely find a suitable pretext to send him back to the Imperial Palace.

Cedric decided to be satisfied with this much.

It wasn’t bad that the Marquis had returned to the Empire and that his decision included him.

He was also pleased that he was under the strict protection of Johann Haynes.

······The teacher’s methods are unpleasant, though.

“To the left, a little more! No, you have to stick closer!”

The distracting thoughts were instantly forgotten.

There was too much noise here, and there were too many things demanding his attention.

A keen light shone in his garnet-like eyes.

-Clunk! Kooong······!

“I know, honey. I have eyes, you know?”

As a knight waved his arms, the trafficker Karme grimaced.

She still wore an ether collar around her neck and held a mana core [a magical energy source] in her hand.

Moreover, she was under the strict surveillance of a high-ranking mage.

Only a priest-level paladin and a 2nd-class mage.

Furthermore, she had no talent for body techniques, but it was a precaution.

She, who couldn’t even manage a simple trip, had survived until now only with her tricks, acting skills, and charms.

Her excessive confidence seemed to be an advantage for her.

‘I’m an incredibly lucky person, Your Highness.’

‘······.’

‘I was abandoned as soon as I was born, supposedly the illegitimate child of some noble family, but I survived for four days in the desolate desert without a drop of water. Besides, I was born with a pretty face and figure, so it was easy to prolong my life. Oh, and I’m quite fast, too.’

‘······.’

‘I have a good eye and a quick mind, so I remember what helps me remarkably well. That’s how I ended up doing what I do now. I work very hard once I get paid. My customers’ loyalty is sky-high.’

‘······.’

‘Do you have anything you want from me, Your Highness? For the record, I have no qualms about becoming a noble’s mistress.’

At this point, it had gone beyond audacity and had to be seen as insane.

Modest Bakar, who was present at the time, took off his glasses and massaged his temples (he was usually an individual with very few expressions in public).

However, Karme’s words that she was ‘incredibly lucky’ were indeed true.

Cedric Liester was in a good mood that day, so she avoided the tragedy of seeing the Hyegeom [likely a reference to a powerful weapon or technique].

‘Hand over your golem to the Imperial Army.’

‘······.’

‘Then I’ll spare your life.’

That was the end of it.

The young criminal survived without being interrogated once, even though she was captured by the Imperial Army.

The reason was that she also had ties to Honing Village.

When the residents sent a boat carrying children to the Empire with tears of blood, Karme was the one who helped them cross the border safely.

She sang about how much she loved money, but she didn’t take a single coin for such things.

She was a complete scumbag who made a living trafficking people, and at the same time, she was a hero who had saved dozens of children from being killed.

Cedric suddenly remembered his mother’s words.

‘Humans are complex creatures, Seidi. The person who stabbed you yesterday may use that knife to cut down the enemy today.’

‘So you have to look at the long term and know how to use them. Don’t just retaliate, and don’t just tame them.’

-Kwaaaang―!

“Your Highness! We have arrived at the operation zone!”

The thunderous report echoed through the mountains. Cedric sat on his saddle and nodded.

What lay before him was a majestic, dark cave like a magic tower.

Tree roots and moss densely surrounded it, making it impossible to guess where the entrance of the cave began and where the grasp of the forest ended.

The cavity was completely invisible inside, and it gave a dizzying impression like a cliff, even though it was facing straight ahead.

Looking at it for a long time gave a strange feeling as if one would be sucked in.

The perspective of the field of vision gradually collapsed, and the eardrums became muffled.

-Woo-oo-oo······!

“Everyone except the mage division, retreat 10 steps! Fall back!”

“Retreat 10 steps! Retreat!”

The mages, who had sensed the enormous mana [magical energy], quickly moved the soldiers back.

‘Ugh!’ Some of the ordinary soldiers retched or complained of dizziness.

Karme stood her ground with trembling legs, manipulating the golem with difficulty.

Clatter, clatter. Around that time, someone’s energy rushed in beside the Crown Prince.

He didn’t bother to look back.

“Is that what they call the ‘Reverse Dungeon’? The amount of mana is quite considerable.”

It was a boisterous man’s voice. The sound of sticky candy crunching was annoying.

The young man with strawberry-blonde hair and red eyes resembling his great-grandfather was with his sister again today.

He was one of the support unit commanders who had come to help the Crown Prince.

He was once predicted to inherit the throne instead of the sickly Cedric, and he was an 8th-class combat mage and a famous playboy in the capital.

He was a scoundrel in a different field from the dead Robert Blancar.

‘The Prodigal of Heavenly Flash,’ Jibril Diop.

The eldest son of the Diop Duchy and a man with a record of being jilted three times.

“Your Highness.”

And his twin sister, Marguerite.

It was a face he had met at the Imperial Palace during the last Great Festival of the Gods.

“······Cousin.”

The Crown Prince briefly acknowledged them. The siblings were distant relatives of the Imperial Family with whom he shared blood.

Unlike her brother, who was addicted to pleasure, Marguerite was a well-regarded noble wherever she went.

Although not as strong as Elizabeth or himself, she was a swordsman who inherited the family’s unique swordsmanship and demonstrated excellent skills.

Cedric despised Jibril but respected her as a fellow kind.

“Your Highness, no signs of demonic beasts are felt inside the cave! It seems to be the grace of the gods. If you allow it, we will proceed with the closure as is.”

“I allow it.”

“Hey! Move!”

As soon as the Crown Prince’s words fell, the knights urged Karme.

‘Kwaaaang! Kwaang······!’ As she waved the mana core, the golem began to block the entrance with large strides.

One would have wondered if the size would fit, but the darkness was being perfectly concealed, as if by good fortune.

The knights who had been wary of the appearance of demonic beasts in the vicinity quickly brightened.

A great worry had been lifted!

“Half a step more! Just half a step back!”

-Kooong! Clunk―!

“To know the location of the mana core and control it······. It’s an ability that has never been recorded in the history of the continent. Even if it’s only 2nd class, if that’s her ‘specialty,’ wouldn’t it be worth utilizing?”

Marguerite whispered, and Cedric silently agreed.

“Cousin, I heard you gave the ceremonial dress to the Marquis. Seeing as you don’t consider the ‘what ifs,’ I assume you’re confident in victory.”

“Brother. Please, shut your mouth.”

Jibril continued to make pointless provocations today. The princess immediately chided her brother.

Cedric completely ignored him and organized his thoughts.

He would establish order in the mountains within the next few days, send a message to his mother, and then lead his troops into the plains.

He had to be careful of ambushes as there was a grand canyon in the way.

If he placed the mage division at the front and personally checked the air raids, he could prevent major damage.

He had never considered defeat. From a few days ago, it had become a word that did not even exist in his dictionary.

-Toowoowoong······!

“Waaaaa!”

“Great! Good job, Karme. You’re the most capable among the serious criminals I’ve seen!”

“Is that an insult or a compliment?”

That’s why he bestowed the makeshift coronation gown to the Marquis.

The Crown Prince had no intention of parting with his mother in this war.

“Amazing! I was at a loss as to how to stop a dungeon that evolves demonic beasts······.”

“What other sure way is there? Huh?”

“The atmosphere is good, you guys. Then I’m free now, right? I can go back, right?”

“Dream on, criminal!”

“Ehehehehe!”

Amidst the laughter of the knights and soldiers, a cloud of dust rose. It was the beginning of the advance into the mainland.

*

Eight days had passed since then.

-Clop, clop······

“Whoa, whoa.”

The coachman’s voice was heard from outside the window, and as the horses pawed a few times, the carriage gradually slowed down.

I reflexively straightened my back.

I adjusted my clothes, which I had touched several times, combed my hair back with my hands, and looked at my face in the mirror that Demi had pushed.

As I sprouted an ether bead on my fingertip, my eyes shone brightly purple.

It’s still awkward, but I’ll get used to it someday.

We had already entered very deep into the territory of the Empire.

Just how deep, you ask―

“I see the Diem Marquis’s carriage over there. I also see the Imperial Guard.”

“······.”

Benjamin pointed outside and said calmly.

I creaked and moved to look beyond the glass.

A familiar sight came into view, with heavy pillars supporting a white roof.

My mouth went dry and my jaw trembled.

This was the last public place I had visited when I left the Empire.

It was the place where we were subjected to Erbe’s group’s random inspection before crossing into the neutral zone.

‘Hurry! Do you think your carriage is the only one we have to check?’

‘Oh dear, it seems to be frozen overnight and won’t turn well.’

······The wide-area portal in the eastern part of the Imperial Capital. A circular space with a blue forest as a backdrop.

“Are you nervous, Marquis?”

Sir Johann, who was sitting next to me, asked softly. I forced a smile.

“I thought you might not be able to accept it.”

“······.”

“Of course, if they know you possess ether, they will understand it in their heads, but······. We can’t expect everyone to be as kind as you. You look different, too.”

“······.”

“Besides, he is a ‘Prince’.”

-Squeak?

Demi fluttered her ears and tilted her head.

I chuckled and stroked the warm belly of the creature. Sant whispered with a worried look.

“But from now on······. Won’t you be playing the role of the Prince, Marquis?”

“That’s the problem.”

I replied with a sigh. That really was the problem.

‘You cannot reveal to the world that you are a different person from Prince Yesser.’

The middle-aged woman’s words lingered in my ears like a spell.

The day after I had an audience with Empress Frederick, I had breakfast with her at her invitation.

The imperial order to rest for a day was, in fact, the leeway she had given herself.

At that place, the Empress made a very precarious and difficult proposal to me.

It was virtually a declaration and an order. I had no other choice at all.

‘Ordinary people cannot handle such confusion. I am also not familiar with concepts like ‘another world.’ Nevertheless, the reason I was able to accept you was because I knew what kind of little rascal you were. But the people on the streets are different. They are not your housemates.’

‘······.’

‘Would commoners who have never seen mana or ether be able to accept you? Would they believe your words as they are and understand every situation as smoothly as water flows?’

‘······No, Your Majesty.’

‘So you have to deceive them.’

I bit my lip and put down my utensils. My appetite disappeared as if by a lie, and my stomach churned.

The Empress clicked her tongue.

‘If it becomes known that you are a different person from the Prince, the Holy Nation will gain one more justification to attack us. They will ask what we did to the Prince, who was like a precious treasure, and even distort the clear truth that the consort killed you.’

‘······.’

‘Would the enemies created in the Empire stay still? The nobles who envied and envied you will rise up and ask for punishment. They will cry and beg to have your title taken away and exiled, and they will demand that you be imprisoned in the underground prison for deceiving the Imperial Family. They will exaggerate the matter, saying that a mere commoner coveted the Prince’s body. Don’t have the illusion that the whole country will unite because of the war. I see a future in which the entire continent is engulfed in chaos and collapses.’

‘······.’

‘You have to wear a mask to protect yourself. I know I’m asking you to do something you can’t bear to do.’

The cherry-colored eyes darkened like the deep sea.

‘So I will leave this entirely as my sin.’ Those were the Empress’s last words.

She was considering the feelings I would feel and telling me that I didn’t need to.

That I was just following the words of a high-ranking person······.

She was advising me to defend myself in that way.

No, she was ‘ordering’ me. With that, I was handed the Prince’s mask again.

At least in front of those who didn’t know the circumstances, I had to act that way.

“······I don’t know if I can confidently lie when the body is so intact.”

“Marquis.”

“And that image of me······. I don’t think it will have a good influence on the children either.”

More than anything, I felt sorry for the Prince. I didn’t want to steal his place even after returning.

However, I couldn’t neglect my survival, so the remaining choice was, after all, another theft.

I squeezed my eyes shut and scolded myself for being hopeless.

Even when I made up my mind on the veranda, I didn’t think things would turn out like this. Foolishly.

At the time, I was blinded by the will to meet my friends······.

-Knock knock

I flinched. I opened my eyes at the sound of knocking on the carriage door.

It was a much smaller and more delicate noise than the coachman’s knock.

Sir Johann, who had met my gaze, gently folded his eyes.

“It seems like someone has come to greet you.”

-Squeak······

With those words, the door opened. I hurriedly made a smile.

I don’t know who’s standing outside······.

I want to give a good first impression if possible.