Volume 4 Chapter 13 - The old man goes out with the prince (1/2)

At daybreak, we finally arrived at Selene’s hometown, the Laluzulu Kingdom.

Right before entering the city, Selene had revealed her identity, causing a huge commotion to occur. We proceeded to leave the raptor carriage with the guardsmen and waited in the guest room.

Since the guards were convinced by Selene’s true identity, Princess Lutra, this became an even larger deal. As a result, their higher ups decided to bring someone capable of confirming her identity. However it seemed that it was a lot more trouble than we thought as it had already been two hours.

[Uhn. I’m glad. Selene finally returned to her home.] (Luna)

Luna was talking to Selene as she accepted the sweets served to her by the guards. The guards were exceptionally considerate, going through the trouble of serving us light snacks as the preparation took a lot longer than expected.

[That’s right. Although, I can’t let my guard down.] (Lutra)

[Selene.. Sorry, I guess you are Lutra now? As Lutra mentioned, we can’t afford to be careless. We may even be in the most danger we’ve ever been. If our opponents was malicious enough, the battle may as well have already begun. They could insist that the Lutra that appeared was an imposter, or even outright attempt to erase any trace of this incident.] (Yuuya)

Luna and Til, the glutton duo stiffened up at my words. In contrast, Phil was prepared for battle even before I said anything. Similarly, Selene was prepared for the situation as well. Both of them most likely knew from their own experiences, as a seasoned adventurer and a political figure how dirty the real world was.

[Uhn. Understood. Selene can be relaxed. Luna will assassinate anyone who comes close to Selene.] (Luna)

[I’m here too you know.. Although, in a small room like this, my bow won’t be as effective.] (Til)

[Kyu!]

The duo and Erik seemed to be filled with energy from our short exchange.

[Luna, Til, Erik. Thank you. I’m glad that you feel that way. ] (Selene)

[Although it’s good to be motivated, the moment a battle is about to break out, I want everyone to use their Return Stones immediately. Starting a battle here is a fool’s errand.] (Yuuya)

Even if a battle were to break out, I’m confident that we would emerge from the battle in good condition, however in the event of the worst condition I decided that using our Return Stones was the best course of action.

Although the item was used to escape dungeons, it’s actual ability was to return to it’s last recorded dungeon entrance. It could also be used outside of dungeons, meaning that we would be able to escape immediately to Grannel.

We were already on the verge of reaching level 40. In both me and Phil’s case, with our special benefits from our reset we were closer to level 50 instead. The girls were similar in our levels however just the stats they gained from their natural levels was enough to show that they were blessed by the gods. Furthermore, they were also naturally talented. They were already well on their way to catching up to me and Phil.

[Understood. Luna will do as Yuuya says.] (Luna)

[Return Stones are really convenient huh.] (Til)

[That’s why their so highly valued. If they weren’t so highly priced then people would be using them much more often… Also, the two of you, we’re finally in the Laluzulu Kingdom. Her name is Lutra, not Selene.] (Yuuya)

[Uhn. But it feels weird.] (Luna)

[Right? We’ve always been calling her Selene.] (Til)

Lutra smiled at their responses.

[I feel the same way. I’ve gotten much more attached to Selene than Lutra recently. Especially since it’s a name given by Yuuya-ojisama. I prefer it much more to Lutra.] (Lutra)

Lutra began to mention her liking for her alias, however it was time for her to be addressed properly as there were eyes all around us.

[In that case, in the Laluzulu Kingdom you are Lutra! On the outside, you are Selene!] (Luna)

[Sure, that sounds great.] (Lutra)

At this time, the guards had brought over several cups of tea and served them to us.

We ensured that there wasn’t any poison in the tea using a magic item that was capable of doing so. It was an essential item as our opponents could fairly well be capable of drugging our tea with poison or sleeping pills.

After we finished our tea, we heard a knock as the door slowly opened.

There were several soldiers escorting a youth dressed in white. The youth seemed to radiate a feeling of warmth as there was nothing to dislike about him. Furthermore his body seemed well conditioned and tanned with muscles that weren’t unnecessarily large. Such a body filled with lean muscle was an efficient body for someone who specialised in swordsmanship providing the necessary strength without overcompensating. Furthermore there was a strong sense of charisma radiating from his well-featured and attractive face as he looked towards Lutra.

[Without a doubt, she’s my younger sister. Lutra, I’m glad that you returned home safely. I felt my blood rush to my face when I heard the news about your disappearance… Even after organizing the search team, there was no news about your rescue. After all this time, I’m happy that you’re back safe and sound. Truly.]

Although I had trouble recalling his name, I finally remembered the name of Lutra’s elder brother, Prince Aleck. It seems that he had still retained some of his features from when he was young.

[It’s a pleasant surprise to have my elder brother going out of his way to visit me.] (Selene)

[Isn’t it a normal reaction for a brother to personally ensure his younger sister’s safety? Now, let’s return to the castle. Our father is worried about you.] (Aleck)

Looking at the warm expression Lutra had in response to her brother, it seemed like this was his honest expression. This was her brother expressing his anxiety over her younger sister whom he thought was gone.

[You’re being obtuse. Saying this although you’ve made countless attempts to harass and obstruct me… I’m saying this as I’m not as good at playing games as you. It was you who threatened the knight into killing me, then proceeded to kill her and brush the incident off as an accident in the dungeon. I wonder if the knights sent on the search team met an unfortunate accident or were silenced instead. Putting myself aside, you’re involving and underestimating everyone else around us. One wrong move, and you’ll be drown in contempt.] (Lutra)

Lutra threw a straight punch towards her brother.

Although I wouldn’t necessarily call her actions correct here, the path ahead of her was going to be thorny regardless. There shouldn’t be any particular problems with this.

[What do you mean? How would I ever consider harming my own sister? I will admit to hindering your growth. I do have the power for that, after all my dear sister’s mother is merely a concubine. However it is ridiculous to be furious just for that. Knowing how to use everything at your disposal effectively to create an advantageous situation before the ceremony and increasing the chance of success is a necessary ability for a king. That is how our inheritance ceremony is designed isn’t it?] (Aleck)

Suppressing her murderous intent towards her brother who readily admitted to his sabotage while denying his murderous actions, Lutra continued to clench her fists.

[I have never once considered putting your life in jeopardy. Don’t misunderstand me. I’ve only done what I have to, to sabotage you in order to become the king. I still love my younger sister. Once the inheritance ceremony is over, I wholeheartedly wish to return to our former relationship of loving brothers and sisters as well as to compensate for my coldheartedness for our past.] (Aleck)

[What are you saying. Ever since we were children until now, all you’ve done is get in my way while mocking me, not paying me any heed at all.] (Lutra)

While Lutra firmly denied her brother’s words, it was merely lip service as I felt that somewhere in her heart, she truly wished for her brother’s words to be true.

[There are two reasons. First, the moment I heard about your disappearance. I truly regretted having our relationship ending like this without having a chance to reconcile and decided that I would speak only the truth once you returned. The second was to solidify my conviction to becoming the king. Would the gentle Lutra from our childhood wholeheartedly dedicate herself to her craft if she knew about my intentions?] (Aleck)

After saying his piece, his brother let out a hearty laugh as Luna and the other girls recoiled in shock. It felt like Lutra’s brother character was much more horrifying than we had heard.

[It is far too difficult for me to believe any of your words right now. You aren’t the only person vying for the position of the king. I’m sure that our sister has heard of your wrongdoings.] (Lutra)

[Wrongdoings, me? You’re not wrong in saying that I would have to dirty my hands for our kingdom to strive.] (Aleck)

[That’s not what I’m referring to. Aniue has changed. You weren’t a person who would succumb to greed and inflict despair onto your people.] (Lutra)

Prince Aleck covered his eyes with his hands before seemingly coming to a conclusion.

[…. I see. I understand now. It must be Aure. It definitely seems like something she would do. Despicable doesn’t even describe her. Taking advantage of the fact that I intended to avoid a confrontation with you until the ceremony was over. It seems that I still have a long way to go. I was done in quite badly.] (Aleck)

Despite saying such self-deprecating words, Prince Aleck seemed to have an extremely vicious smile.

[Our story ends here. There’s a carriage waiting outside. Although it’s quite a simple carriage, at the very least it’s ready for a simple parade. Go and reassure the public by showing your face. You are the one who is loved by the public, more so than any of your siblings…. This is another reason why I would never put your life in danger. You, known as the reincarnate of the legendary battle princess Renoir, would be the perfect tool to unify the public under our banner, the ultimate weapon of the Laluzulu Kingdom. It’ll be a waste if anything were to happen to you.] (Aleck)

In such a short amount of time, they worked surprisingly effectively, preparing a parade in this short timeframe. Although he was a prince, he knew perfectly well the limits of his power, grasping the power given by his position and was talented in using other people’s talents as well. He was definitely talented and popular.