Became a tyrant of defense games - Episode 721
721. [Side Story] Lake Kingdom (2)
The day after the victory declaration ceremony.
The capital of the Lake Kingdom. throne room.
“…….”
The king, who had been full of majesty and joy until yesterday, was now sitting on the throne with a very dark face..
In front of the king, who was filled with water, a young-looking woman and a man stood one by one..
The woman was Princess Ariel, and the man was…….
“Christian.”
It was Christian, the prince..
The prince, who had beautiful silver hair and turquoise eyes like his younger brother, was giving off a somewhat dangerous aura..
The king reprimanded such a prince..
“Why didn't you attend the victory declaration ceremony yesterday??”
“…….”
Christian, who stood silently, did not respond. The king's fist slammed into the armrest of the throne..
“Don’t you know how important yesterday’s event was? Envoys from all major countries around the world came to visit.!”
“…….”
“This is an opportunity for you, who will inherit the country in the future, to greet them and make your presence known! Why is it so strange that you can't even see it! Do you really want to upset this father??”
Christian remained silent. The King placed his hand on her forehead and shook his head..
“Didn't the place that was created to save the country's prestige almost bring shame to the country?…….”
“…….”
“In the end, Ariel did everything you had to do, and that's a shame because Ariel did it perfectly, without any shortcomings.!”
Christian's eyebrows twitched as he was listening silently, and a harsh voice came out from his tightly closed mouth..
“Then, shouldn’t you just leave it to Ariel from now on?.”
“……what?”
Christian laughed at the bewildered king..
“The position of the next king. Instead of giving it to me, who is ugly, you can give it to your good brother. If it were Ariel, she would have done it perfectly, without any shortcomings, much better than me, who is such a helpless fool..”
“you… … ! what to say so……!”
Not only the king, but also Ariel, who was standing next to him, looked at Christian with a pale face..
It was a time when the enraged king was about to yell something at his eldest son..
“Cluck, cluck!”
Instead of a roar, a weak cough came out of the king's mouth..
The King covered his mouth with his hand and coughed repeatedly. Blood vomited out from between his open fingers..
“Abama mama?!”
A startled Ariel ran to the king, and Christian, embarrassed, just watched his father vomit blood..
“haha…….”
The King finally stopped bleeding..
Ariel held back tears and wiped her father's mouth with a handkerchief. While being nursed by his daughter, the King gazed silently at his son..
“I don't have long to live, Christian..”
“…….”
“Look. Even if you defeat all the monsters in the world and become the king of the most powerful country on the continent, life is still so vain..”
The King shook his head..
“Don't waste your life, Christian..”
“…….”
“It's not too late. If you continue to take succession lessons even now, you will become the next king of this country.…….”
slap!
But Christian didn't listen to his father's words and turned around and left..
“Christian! Christian… … ! Cluck cluck cluck!”
The king, who was shouting his son's name, coughed several more times. And he whispered with bloody lips.
“That stupid guy... … There isn't much time left for me to cover up for that foolish behavior..”
“Abama mama…….”
“I can't help it, Ariel. Your brother is like that... … If that bastard doesn't change his mind in the near future, I will make you crown princess. you become the next king…….”
But Ariel shook her head loudly..
“Abama mama. Even though my brother is shaking right now, if good people support him, he will definitely become a good king..”
“…….”
“I will assist you well. So don't worry about that and focus on recovering your health now..”
The king looked blankly at his daughter's smiling face, then smiled bitterly and lowered his head..
“Best of luck to you, Ariel. Your brother and this country…….”
As a king and a father, unable to hide my complicated feelings.
***
From the time he came of age, Christian was irritable..
Because he realized that his younger brother Ariel was better than him in every way..
And, it was because he realized that he was inferior to his younger brother, not only in terms of the talent necessary for a king, but also in his mentality..
“I just think it would be better if I were gone..”
Magic Tower Street.
True to its reputation as a magic kingdom, the Lake Kingdom was filled with various magic towers and research centers. Christian was in the 'Magic Research Institute', one of the largest facilities among them..
Christian grumbled while lying down on the large sofa in the laboratory director's office..
“It's painful for my father to hesitate because I'm there for no reason, and I think Ariel is also living oppressed, unable to spread her wings..”
“Don't say that, prince..”
Laboratory Director Diran Dahi smiled awkwardly and pleased Christian..
“Both His Majesty the King and the Princess. You all know how much you care and love the prince, right?.”
“Damn, yeah. I know. Because he loves me, he protects me even if I live in a different way. but…….”
Christian sighed and stood up..
“That's more miserable…….”
“Prince.”
“I want to be recognized fairly. But the more you try, the more you learn. Ariel is more worthy of being a king.…….”
Dirandahi suggested cautiously..
“then… … How about trying your merits??”
Christian's eyes widened..
“ball? what ball?”
“A great feat would be enough to be recognized as a king's talent..”
Diran Dahi scratched his chin awkwardly..
“However, the Lake Kingdom has now defeated all monsters and has taken over world hegemony... … There are few enemies left to defeat and few feats to accomplish..”
“…….”
“But, isn't there one urgent matter??”
Dirandahi looked around and lowered his voice..
“Your Majesty's health..”
“……!”
Rumors have been secretly spreading about the king's health problems for several years..
I tried everything I could to treat my illness, but there was no improvement at all. The king was dying rapidly for his young age..
Dirandahi lowered his voice even further..
“This is a story I heard from a clan of shamans from the Eastern Continent.…….”
Christian's shoulders trembled at the words that followed..
“It is said that on the other side of the Eastern Continent there was a magic of immortality..”
“what? immortality?”
“yes. There is also a rumor that the destruction of the Eastern Continent was due to that magic. So we continued to investigate at our research center... … This is quite believable. We have also narrowed down the expected discovery area..”
Dilandahi looked at Christian with a subtle look..
“If the prince can find this magic of immortality…….”
“……!”
Christian was thrilled..
If only I could truly find the magic of immortality..
‘Father… … will accept me.’
The father who always had a warm gaze towards his younger sister, and the father who only had a cold and stern voice towards him..
My father, who always blamed and scolded me for my shortcomings,.
This may be the first time that your efforts are recognized and praised..
‘Moreover, if you can bring about the magic of immortality, you will not only restore Abamama's health... … I can get recognition from all the wizards in this country..’
There is only one thing that the Lake Kingdom, currently a magic powerhouse, cannot overcome..
hour.
And the resulting aging and death.
If you can truly bring about the magic of immortality, all the wizards in the Lake Kingdom will praise the feat and obey Christian..
Christian, who had been immersed in hopeful thoughts, soon sighed with a dark face..
“……But I can't leave.”
he is a prince He is likely to become king in the future.
If I were to leave for the East Continent, which is nothing but ruins, there is no way my father would give me permission..
But Dirandahi grinned, as if he had expected Christian to say this..
“In that respect, I found an interesting test subject this time..”
“huh? fun test subject?”
“yes. Come this way..”
Let's follow Dilandahi's guidance and head to the basement of the laboratory..
There was a boy trapped inside a glass wall with a blank face..
Dirandahi said, gesturing towards the boy behind the glass wall..
“I am a non-citizen living outside the outer city. I went to the sewer to get magic ingredients and found it. As soon as I saw it, I was surprised and quickly bought it..”
“What's funny about this non-national??”
The humans of the Lake Kingdom are 'citizens', a class that can use magic, and those who cannot use magic... … They were divided into ‘non-citizens’, a class that was ruled like livestock..
‘The ‘people’ were also divided into ordinary citizens, nobles, and royalty. For Christian, the highest-ranking royal family, this situation of observing a non-citizen boy was unfamiliar and uncomfortable..
But what followed was even more absurd..
“Doesn't it look similar??”
“……what?”
“The prince. She looks exactly like her.”
When Dirandahi, laughing heartily, touched the magic panel installed on the glass wall, the hair and eye colors of the boy trapped inside began to change..
The boy who had dark gray hair and dark gray eyes changed to silver hair and blue green eyes in the next moment.…….
“……How can this be??”
Christian muttered in surprise..
To my own surprise, this non-national boy resembled Christian. In particular, not only the appearance but also the unique atmosphere were surprisingly similar..
“Just cast a little bit of a perception-impairing spell here, and most people will think this guy is the prince himself..”
“…….”
“The prince doesn't do much outside work anyway, so if you're a little more careful, you won't be caught..”
Christian, lost in thought, glanced at Dirandahi..
“Search the Eastern Continent. What is the expected deadline??”
“I expect it to be a month.”
Dirandahi nodded..
“In other words, this fake just needs to wait a month..”
“……good.”
Christian, who had made up his mind, nodded his head..
“Let's do it, Dirandahi..”
“Yes, prince. I'll prepare it right away.”
Christian shouted after Dilandahi, who was trying to leave the basement room..
“Thank you, Dirandahi. I must... … I'll repay you big later.”
“Hehehe. It was nothing.”
Dirandahi smiled kindly..
“The prince's joy is my joy.”
After Dilandahi left, Christian turned his head towards the boy inside the glass wall and slowly approached the glass wall..
Christian gestured to the boy who was embarrassed by his sudden change in appearance..
“Hey you.”
“yes yes?”
“name is?”
The boy hesitated and then answered in a crawling voice..
“uh… … doesn't exist.”
“what?”
“Non-nationals usually do not have names. I'm sorry…….”
Christian clicked his tongue in frustration in front of the boy who spoke in a low voice and raised his voice..
“From now on, your name is Christian..”
“yes? Ha, but…….”
“While I'm away, you act as my shadow, as a substitute, as a fake... … I have to pretend to be myself..”
Christian asked coldly..
“can you do it?”
There's no way you can say you can't do it..
If the people tell us to do so, we follow. That was the life of a non-citizen of the Lake Kingdom..
If you do not follow orders or fail…….
I have no choice but to die.
The boy closed his eyes tightly, trembled, and prostrated himself..
“I'll just do as you're told, prince.…….”
***
a few days later.
In search of the magic of immortality, Christian embarked on an expedition to the Eastern Continent on a ship prepared by Dilandahi..
And the nameless boy, who received short-term training as a substitute for the prince, was secretly brought into the royal castle..
- Keep this in mind. The moment you get caught, you die..
Diran Dahi, head of the Magic Research Institute, made several threats..
- It's easy to imitate a prince. No matter what anyone asks, don't answer, just make an angry expression. Because the prince is a recognized fool, no one will easily talk to him. He just stays in his room like he's dead. Do you understand??
Finally, Dirandahi gave the boy a firm squeeze on the shoulder..
- If you do this job well, making a living will be no problem in the future..
Wearing a necklace with an awareness-reducing spell around his neck, the boy stood in the middle of the prince's room..
‘How did this happen?…….’
It was still difficult to tell whether this was reality or a dream..
He, who just a few days ago was cleaning up rat carcasses from the sewer, is now pretending to be the prince of this country.…….
‘But it's not difficult. All you have to do is hold on quietly for about a month..’
It was then that the boy, who had made up his mind, nodded his head..
“Brother!”
The door burst open, and Princess Ariel ran into the room, smiling brightly..
“Ice snacks have arrived from the north! Let’s eat together. I also prepared ice strawberries, which you like.!”
“…….”
The boy, who was frozen in shock, soon came to his senses..
The person the prince told him to be most careful with was his younger sister, Ariel. Did you say that she is the only one who treats the prince, the royal hedgehog, kindly?.
‘Okay, it's okay. As practiced. Let's just do what we practiced.’
The boy looked back at Ariel with narrowed eyes, wearing the cold expression he had been practicing for the past few days..
But before I could even say a word-
“……!”
sreung!
With a straight face, Ariel pulled out a sword from her waist and pointed the blade..
‘Eh?’
Ariel shouted in a confident voice while pointing the tip of her sword at the boy who stiffened in embarrassment..
“who are you?”
“……?!”
“You are not my brother! Who are you??”
It's been less than an hour since I entered the castle and started acting as a pinch hitter..
I didn't do anything, but I got caught right away..
Feeling unfair and embarrassed, the boy swallowed back tears without realizing it..
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