How the Prince Makes Friends - Chapter 296
Only Noblemtl
Episode 296
“[I want to do everything I can. Before I…, leave.]”
“[…….]”
Dios, who was at a loss at the bitter muttering, grabbed his hair that he had been trying to straighten with effort again.
“[If you’re going to leave quietly, then you don’t have to bet with me.]”
“[…….]”
“[Father, tell me clearly. If you tell me to leave right now, I will take care of the dirty work.]”
“[…But Dia…, I’ll give you a chance anyway…….]”
“[Then why don’t you stop talking like that!]”
Dios, who was upset for no reason, grabbed his father’s head and tore it.
“[Ugh, d, d, it hurts.]”
“[What on earth are you expecting!]”
How many times have I been fooled by that foolish expectation that this time it will be okay?
“[You’ve been abandoned like that, and you still think about trying! You’d rather find the god who gave you that punishment and kill him! You’re saying that you’re going to hold that child back in time and wait for him to regain his strength! Isn’t 50 years enough for him to regain his strength!]”
“[…Then shouldn’t Arilmane live in a different timeline…]”
“[Is that my job? I should be grateful for that alone!]”
Even as Dios shouted, he knew better than anyone why his father had made this choice.
I guess that’s what they judged, that a normal human child wouldn’t be able to endure a gap of 50 years.
Didn’t his father watch over him as he wandered through the past, overcome by a great sense of alienation despite the mere ten-year gap?
In a way, it was natural that he was targeted by the gods.
Because he monopolized the extremely dangerous existence called ‘the Great Traitor’.
Of course, they didn’t mess with me from the beginning. From God’s perspective, human life is very short, and when I grow old and die, the traitor will naturally return to his original place.
‘… Can I call you… father?’
However, the younger version of himself who longed for affection ended up holding on to his father, and his father abandoned his duty as a traitor.
The gods felt uneasy when they saw such a father. They judged that if the father, who could be anything, did something out of emotion, the balance of the world would be broken.
They ultimately wanted to eliminate the human child who was the cause of everything.
‘Father…, save me…, please save me… … .’
I don’t remember exactly what happened at the time. All I remember is that a ferocious beast attacked me, my heart was ripped out, and finally, I called my father.
When I opened my eyes again, the world had changed.
My father said I had been asleep for ten years, but I still can’t be sure if that’s true. I just felt like everything was strange to me at the time, like I had been dropped into a completely different world.
My father took me, who was confused, to the Eastern Continent. Perhaps it was his intention to eliminate the sense of alienation that came from the gap in time while encountering a completely different civilization.
To reassure that one person, to a place you know nothing about.
‘[Dia, there are many interesting things here.]’
‘[Father…, I don’t understand a thing… ….]’
‘[It’s okay, Dia. I’ll learn this language quickly and teach it to you. You’re smart, so you’ll learn it quickly.]’
You shared my confusion, showing me that you knew nothing just as well as I did, and that it was natural.
Fortunately or unfortunately, she had never had deep interactions with anyone other than her father, so she quickly regained her stability just by being with him, and thanks to her father, who could easily learn anything, she was able to quickly adapt to unfamiliar places.
However, the father’s mysterious appearance and gentle demeanor were unusual even to the people of the Eastern Continent, so soon flies began to flock to him.
Those who come without a price are, in the end, only children who know nothing.
It was when they settled in a sparsely populated mountain village that things broke out.
Humans regularly shared food and daily necessities with him, and my father sometimes helped them.
Dios, who had not yet fully mastered the language of the Eastern Continent, thought those humans were very kind.
‘My lord, I will give you this, so please send rain.’
… without even dreaming that the food and goods were tribute.
‘Please punish my cheating husband.’
‘Please give me gold and silver treasures.’
‘Please make the girl next door like me.’
As life became more comfortable, the scope of human desires became increasingly private over time.
Father also began to refuse to pay tribute, perhaps because he had not been able to take it anymore, but some humans who had not gotten what they wanted changed their attitude and began to drive Father into being a monster.
‘[Oh, Father, why are they doing that?]’
‘[…Dia, humans are similar wherever you go.]’
Dios still cannot forget the sad smile of his father as he held me in his arms, even though I was scared.
It was probably at that time that he decided that he would always take his father’s side no matter what the situation was.
“[You know, Dia. I don’t just want to save Ariel because I feel sorry for her. What I want is…]”
“[I guess the status quo will be maintained.]”
“[…….]”
“[Isn’t it true that Father doesn’t want the current situation to change because of that girl’s death?]”
“[…you’re right.]”
Dios looked up at his father, who was now covered in dirt and covered in mud.
“[Can you be sure they won’t be more greedy?]”
“[…….]”
Father didn’t answer. He knew it himself. Human greed is endless.
“Neil, baby, what are you talking about?”
Just then, little Rex came running up to me. My father stared at me, grabbed my hand, and added timidly:
“[But…, this is also my greed.]”
“[…….]”
It seemed as if he had no intention of backing down. The excuses continued.
“[…Don’t you know that it’s impossible without a rotten moon?]”
Of course I know. If not now, when God’s eyes are not upon me, my father would be disqualified as soon as he dies. If it hadn’t been a rotten moon in the first place, the bet itself wouldn’t have been possible.
But that wasn’t the only problem.
“[…Do you know how annoying it is to have a father who wanders in his dreams?]”
“[…….]”
Father’s head bowed deeply. Dios tried to ignore him and turned his gaze to Rianus, who was blinking beside him.
“Little Rex.”
“Why, baby?”
“[Get ready to say goodbye.]”
“……?”
Little Rex, who didn’t understand what was being said, tilted his head to the side. Dios turned around, one corner of his mouth curling at the sight of Lianus’ innocent face.
“[I’m going.]”
“[Dia, wait a minute…!]”
His father seemed to want to say something more, but Dios threw himself into the passage without waiting for an answer.
“Your, Your Highness…?”
The aides in my mansion suddenly looked at me with wide eyes in surprise. Dios realized belatedly that he was still a baby and his expression crumpled.
“Do you want to get your eyes gouged out?”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
“Everyone get out.”
“Yes, yep!”
Boom, bang, bang!
The frightened aides all ran out with a loud noise.
Dios stared blankly at his empty office for a moment before returning to his original appearance.
I know. This is all just venting.
“after…….”
Dios roughly stroked his hair, and only then did he notice the hair tie wrapped around his hand.
“…….”
I wonder if my father saw it too.
‘…What is this?’
Dios clutched his hair tightly. Maybe his father thought he was jealous again.
But it wasn’t something like jealousy.
‘… Do you know how annoying it is to have a father who is lost in his dreams?’
Dios bit his lip hard. Yes, it really is annoying. It is so annoying that no matter how many times he experiences it, he cannot get used to it.
The same goes for the blood clots. In the end, the father will be abandoned and hurt again. Dios didn’t want his father to be hurt anymore.
But what if… , the blood clots succeed in waking up the father who is wandering in his dream… … .
‘If I lose that bet, then I… … .’
I wonder if it will become unnecessary.
* * *
“Aryl, come play with Kara!”
“I wonder?”
The brat who didn’t want to attend class with Ariel quickly left, and Karus watched his back happily.
“Haha, Evan, our Kara really likes Miss Ariel.”
“Aryl also loves Miss Kara very much. Oh, and Lord Cayenne too.”
“I’m glad you’re doing well. Now, princes, shall we begin class?”
Karus took out the history book he had brought with him. Then he fell into thought for a moment.
“…I don’t know if the history I am teaching is correct.”
Recently, Karus has been thinking a lot about history. He never thought that the records could have been wrong, but judging from the words of the Archduke who pretended to be a baby, the baby of his friend… it seemed that many historical distortions had already occurred.
‘The fact that the Archduke, who was once human, was called a devil may be one of them… … .’
“…Shall we take a look at the history of the Holy Empire today?”
Somehow, I feel like I need to reorganize the history of Harpens. I wonder if the Archduke will help me.
“There are few records left of the Holy Empire before the Heavenly Demon War. Since it had the most temples, it was also the place that suffered the most damage. However, humans eventually won and regained peace.”
Carus continued his explanation by drawing a simple map of the empire.
“The one who defeated the Demon King was Cassius, the first Holy Emperor of the Holy Empire. Cassius was a former Holy Knight……”
“…Cassius?”
At that time, my friend muttered as if he was puzzled.
“Do you know him?”
“…Teacher, you speak as if I were friends with someone from 500 years ago.”
“Well… that could be the case. But why are you doing that? Is there something strange about it?”
“It’s nothing. I just thought it was a guy’s name.”
“Isn’t the invited Sung Hwang a man?”
Karus tilted his head in puzzlement. His white hair also tilted along with him.
“The guy who defeated the Demon King became the new emperor?”
“Yes. Cassius, a former paladin, became the Holy Emperor and rebuilt the Holy Empire.”
“It was a girl who defeated the Demon King.”
“……?”
“He didn’t even use divine powers. He probably wasn’t a paladin.”
“…….”
Tub.
Karus closed the history book. This just didn’t seem right.
“Princes, shall we have a different lesson today? I think I’ll have to go back and study.”
“So are we having language class today?”
“Okay. What should we do?”
“Nana! Teacher, I have a question for you.”
Why did the second prince raise his hand so actively? Karus really liked active students, so he smiled brightly and joked.
“Please ask gently, Prince.”
“…….”
“…sorry.”
Karus quickly apologized. The prince’s expression was not very good.
On the other hand, the second prince laughed heartily and asked a question.
“What does [Get ready to say goodbye] mean?”