The Damn Family Is Back Again - Chapter 272



272. The Sword That Split the Flesh (5)

At Albert’s sharp remark, which seemed to urge her to step back, a great wave surged in Arina’s eyes.

Caught off guard by the sudden mention of last year, Arina slightly parted her lips.

“What… what do you mean all of a sudden, Your Highness?”

“Right now, the lady is trying to kill Prince Carsein. From my perspective, I must prevent that.”

“Trying to kill him? Why would I… my brother…!”

“No. If you had not intervened in Lady Harnié’s actions, Prince Carsein would surely be dead by now. Because of your lack of knowledge.”

As soon as those words left his mouth, a cough echoed from Carsein.

“…!”

“It’s something that happens quite often on the battlefield. There are times when you have to cut into a comrade’s flesh to remove foreign objects lodged inside. It may seem insane, but if you don’t take that action, complications like sepsis and necrosis will come rushing in.”

Albert continued, a smirk on his face.

“Besides that, your actions have repeatedly shattered the plans that Carsein had set.”

“Plans… you say?”

“Look at that.”

Albert pointed to a skeletal structure that still bore the form of aggregate.

“Most of the collapsed structures on this side are mixed with aggregate, supporting the building’s framework. In other words, they are the strongest parts of the building, perfect for creating a ceiling and providing more stability and space.”

– Thud.

“But looking at the other side, it’s not the same. Even if it’s the same stone, if it’s a sword wrapped in mana, it can be easily cut. These are, in fact, the most dangerous. They become stones that strike above a person’s head and debris that crushes the body.”

With a crash.

Albert shattered the building stones infused with mana.

“Yet you, claiming to save Carsein, pulled out your sword first and were about to break what?”

At those words, Arina fell silent.

What she had intended to break was none other than the aggregate.

Arina, clenching her fist tightly, responds.

“That is certainly my misjudgment. I lacked knowledge about the building. However, isn’t it true that Karsein survived due to luck?”

“Pfft. Luck, you say. Hahaha!”

The Crown Prince laughed, pressing his forehead.

“Do you only feel discomfort at the collapse of this building, yet feel none for the fact that Prince Karsein has survived under such dire conditions?”

“…What?”

“The stones from the space that just collapsed are sliced as cleanly as if they were being cut like cucumbers. In fact, the balance of weight on both sides has created a space large enough to prevent anyone from being crushed. Is that what you call luck?”

Most would say it was luck.

In a situation where the ground is torn apart and debris is piled up, they would say it was fortunate that any space remained.

But Albert did not miss this.

“Even if it grazed him, it would be a minor injury. If it hit him squarely, it would be a serious wound. If it struck a vital point like the crown of his head, it wouldn’t be strange for him to die instantly. With such things falling above him, if he managed to create space on both sides while breaking the balance on the opposite side to save this space and used the debris to create a ceiling to survive…”

-Crack!

He crushed the broken stone with his foot and continued.

“This was thoroughly calculated and planned. From start to finish, it was a plan devised in that brief moment solely for survival.”

As the Crown Prince elaborated, Arina swallowed hard and looked around again.

‘This… was a plan?’

She bit her lip at the unbelievable outcome.

If that were true, it meant that Arina had nearly killed Karsein multiple times.

Even when carelessly clearing the debris, she had not distinguished between the aggregate and the fragments.

Digging without considering the lower space and the center of gravity meant she had led Karsein to death.

Moreover, in the end, even trying to remove the foreign object lodged in Harnié’s back.

It meant that every single action had been leading Karsein toward death.

‘…Unbelievable.’

It couldn’t possibly make sense.

“I think there is some merit in the idea of the fiancée removing the object lodged in Karsein’s back, but Your Highness’s interpretation is incorrect.”

“Oh? Why is that?”

“It is none other than Karsein himself. A person who has not properly learned the manners or etiquette of nobility could not possibly make such thorough calculations.”

Exactly. The opponent is none other than Karsein.

“While it would be appropriate to cite all the incidents he has caused in the past, we need not go that far. Just bringing up the incident that occurred on my birthday would be sufficient, wouldn’t it?”

The rumor that Karsein ruined Arina’s birthday party had spread widely.

—

“Did you not prepare even a single birthday gift? I can understand that much. Well, I can even overlook the fact that you forcibly tore off my hair tie. However, it is truly pathetic to bring it back and then lie about it.”

What the atmosphere had been like that day.

It was no small task to manage.

“So, is this what the princess is saying? If one has common sense, they would never commit such an act, which means that Karsein could never devise a plan showcasing such cleverness?”

“Yes.”

There was no way she had even planned it from the start.

That idea could not have originated in her mind.

If there was any possibility, it lay with her fiancée. Just as it always had.

As Arina gave her brief answer, the crown prince’s expression grew even more severe.

“I have felt sorry for Arshien until now. I have treated him so harshly and cruelly. But that was a necessary action. If I didn’t compete for the same throne as royalty, I would only reveal those who would seek to harm Arshien.”

Albert strode toward Arina.

“Yes. Even if it is a shabby excuse, I consider it an act for my brother. At least, I do. However.”

Finally, the crown prince approached, his eyes glinting as he seized Arina by the collar.

“Why do you not even consider Karsein as your brother?”

“…Your Highness. No matter how much trouble Karsein causes, that—”

“You don’t seem to think that his foolish actions at the birthday party were part of a scheme to claim the position of heir?”

“The heir… position…?”

As Arina tilted her head at the mention of the heir, Albert seized that moment to strike with a sharp dagger of words.

“I cannot fathom why you wouldn’t question that behavior. Doesn’t it seem strange, no matter how you think about it? That you couldn’t even procure a single birthday gift?”

“…”

“Coincidentally, rumors were circulating just like that. Are you going to dismiss this as a remarkable coincidence?”

Following the symposium and the martial arts competition.

With the results and performances that could not be ignored, Karsein had once been rumored among the nobility to be suitable for the position of heir.

Is this also not a coincidence?

“It seems the princess remains unchanged. Last year and this year, you are repeating the same actions to try to kill Karsein.”

“No…! I…!”

“Back then, the princess’s sword could have been stopped. At the very least, you could have protected your brother through forfeiture, just as Prince Karsein did in this martial arts competition. But you didn’t. I think I now understand the reason.”

Albert turned his back.

“How disappointing. A sister who feels inferior to her own brother. The future of the Bagland Duke’s family is looking very bleak.”

Having invoked the name of the family, Albert walked away, leaving only the sight of his back.

—

Just then, Harnié pulled out both pillars that had been embedded in Carsein’s back. The emergency measures had been taken in advance, so he was quickly carried by the crown prince to the palace, where treatment began.

In the midst of it all, Arina stood there, staring blankly at the scene.

She repeated it over and over.

She thought about it again and again.

“Inferiority complex…”

A sharp remark about whether she harbored an inferiority complex towards her younger brother.

– Ding!

▶ Hidden Episode. You have cleared the sword that split the skin. ◀

▶ Arina Bagrand’s emotions have changed. ◀

[ Arina Bagrand ]

[ Inferiority Complex → ??? ]

[ Current Value: 80% ]

▶ A character-specific hidden episode for Arina has been unlocked. ◀

▶ Upon achieving all conditions, intimacy settings will change. ◀

▶ You have currently achieved 1 condition! ◀

[ 1. Be pointed out by Crown Prince Albert Schhenian Peselros regarding issues related to Carsein. ] ☑

*

– Ding!

With the familiar alarm sound, I opened my eyes.

“Ugh!”

However, the first thing that approached me upon opening my eyes was not the status window, but the pain.

▶ All status abnormalities have not been recovered. ◀

▶ You must fully recover all status abnormalities through sufficient rest. ◀

The pain jolted my mind awake.

Right. I was the madman who had thrown myself between the collapsing buildings. It was strange not to be in pain.

Heavy debris, weighing at least twice my own body, was falling all around me, pressing down, and I had to consider it a miracle that I had survived.

Just like that time when I had thrown myself to save the author.

‘…To think I would experience something like this twice.’

Still, there was no regret.

Looking around, I noticed an empty bed right next to me. On the empty bed, a disheveled blanket lay haphazardly, carelessly tossed aside.

Seeing the hair tangled in the blanket I used, it’s clear that I must have been lying down before going somewhere.

And then, turning my head to the other side, I find the owner of that hair awkwardly asleep, resting on the bed.

“I have a feeling I’m going to hear a lot of nagging when she wakes up.”

Harnie is just as much of a nagger as the author.

Putting aside my brief lament, I shift my gaze to the status window.

▶Status Effect: Level 5 Bleeding has disappeared.◀

▶Status Effect: Level 3 Necrosis has disappeared.◀

▶Status Effect: Level 4 Laceration is recovering.◀

▶Status Effect: Level 4 Fracture is recovering.◀

…

…

Looking at my current state, I see a series of status effects that have either vanished or are in recovery.

My stats have also temporarily decreased due to the injuries, and a warning window caught my eye.

And at the end of it all.

▶You have avoided a bad ending.◀

The phrase indicating that I did not meet my demise is written there.

For now, it seems I somehow managed to survive that crazy ordeal.

“…But what is this?”

▶Hidden Episode Clear Reward.◀

[ You can attend the after-party following the Duke of Bagrand’s gathering. ]

Attend the after-party?

“Ha. Seriously.”

A hollow laugh escapes me.

It’s a given that an after-party follows the Huanglong Martial Arts Tournament, and it’s part of the story progression.

But there’s no benefit to participating. The after-party banquet hall is filled with all sorts of traps, and there are nobles who come to provoke Karsein.

“But is entering there really a reward?”

I can’t understand why this is considered a reward.

I was left speechless.

Ugh. Damn game.

“I wonder if it would be okay to go with Harnie?”

—

It has always been like this.

There must be overlapping purposes…

“…”

Suddenly, as I looked at the sleeping Harnié, such thoughts crossed my mind.

“They resemble each other quite a bit. Ji-eun and her.”

The way she sleeps, the look on her face with her eyes closed, even their weights seem somewhat similar… Their heights too. Even the way nutrition seems to have concentrated in certain areas.

“In fact, their backgrounds are similar as well. Ji-eun mentioned she has half-siblings too…”

Besides that, she had been wrongfully accused of being a seductress by the girls at school.

If I expand on this, today’s incident feels somewhat like that—

-Click.

“Is she already awake? Her recovery ability is quite impressive. No, looking at that body, it’s only natural.”

“…!”

Silver hair and golden eyes.

A common appearance among the royal family.

But that appearance was different from the two siblings I had seen until now.

“Oh. You can skip the formalities and don’t bother trying to get up.”

The Crown Prince.

Albert Schuenian Peselros.