Chapter 18: The Transformation of the Crown Prince

Thus began my life in the royal palace.

The Crown Prince had become a much colder and lighter man than I remembered him to be, but he still performed his official duties diligently.

Shortly after he wakes up, the ministers and teachers began their lectures. After that, he would do some light exercise and then return to his duties. After lunch, he would go outside the palace for various inspections and tours.

The daily life of the Crown Prince was hard work.

After dinner, he had music and art lessons, which meant that until bedtime, he had almost no time to relax or do anything, let alone entertain himself.

In particular, he had lessons every day, as is the prince’s habit, and was extremely busy. I felt that being busy with an art that was supposed to enrich one’s life seemed to be overwhelming.

There were several mages in the security department who were supposed to be in charge of the crown prince, and they were supposed to take turns in their duties, but the crown prince appointed me almost every day.

Thanks to that, I work almost every day of the week. I’m looking forward to my pay day.

As a Konoe Mage, I was supposed to be able to stand near the entrance with the Royal Guards to keep suspicious people away from the Prince while he was being lectured by his teachers or doing his office work (in reality, there was no danger in the Royal Palace, so it was just a kind of protection against evil), but he was so annoying that he insisted on asking me to comment on the content of the lecture or to express my political opinions.

“Liesel, what percentage of total tax revenue was generated by tariffs last year?”

When asked out of the blue, I couldn’t answer. When I guessed a suitable number, the Crown Prince looked at me with disapproval.

“Didn’t you listen to the teacher? The correct answer is ten percent.”

The Crown Prince was quite an S. He wasn’t like this before. How did he become like this?

It’s as if he’s a different person in the crown prince’s skin.

Cynthia, who works at the headquarters of the Magic Agency in the same royal palace, said, “It would be nice if we could at least have lunch together!” However, such a thing was a pipe dream. 

We didn’t even pass each other in the large royal palace, let alone have lunch.

The Crown Prince’s daily routine included a walk after lunch.

He liked to go to the pond in the garden, and when he got tired from his official duties, he would take a moment to look at the fountain in the pond.

At the fountain in the middle of the pond, five statues of lions stood with their backs to each other and their legs raised bravely. The lions wore ornaments on their chests, and their manes and fur were delicately rendered. The water from the lions’ mouths hits the surface of the pond, making a cool sound.

As the Crown Prince silently looked up at the fountain, the wind blew flower petals down the surface of the pond.

The Crown Prince reached out from the shore and scooped up the yellow petals.

It was a very picturesque scene.

The Crown Prince, with his beautiful face, turned his melancholy eyes to the surface of the water and gazed at the petals.

I looked at him with slightly complicated feelings.

(Are you really that Ulysses?)

The Crown Prince, whom I loved, was polite to the ladies and attendants, and was adored by everyone in the palace. But the man I serve now is more than a little arrogant and insolent.

For some reason, especially to me.

(If this had been the former crown prince, I might not have fallen in love with him…)

I feel a little lonely.

I wonder if Ulysses changed his personality as time rewound.

When he released the petals into the water again, the Crown Prince tilted his head and said to me.

“I want to see what your magic is. Try something.”

This was one of the strangest things.

The Crown Prince Ulysses I knew was a magician, but this time he was different. He looked more and more like a different person.

“Isn’t magic something you’re used to seeing, Your Highness? There are many famous magicians in the royal palace.”

“What, you’re holding out on me? Or is it that you’re not very good at it.”

“I’ve always been a top student at the Academy of Magic… Unfortunately, I never won first place.

“First place is that Gideon Lancaster, right?”

“Do you know Gideon?”

The Crown Prince snorted and cast a dismissive glance at the water.

“When we were children, we used to play together. He was proud of his strong magic, and he used to show off his skills to the ladies of the court. A flaming lion, a water bracelet, and so on.”

He wasn’t bragging about it, he was probably doing it to please the ladies. I feel that way.

In my first life, I belonged to the general affairs department of the Magic Agency and my work wasn’t that busy, so I was showing magic to the menial workers of the royal palace. I believe that magic is originally meant to make people happy. Just like my grandfather had shown us the water cat when my brother and I were children.

“He is the legitimate son of one of the four great noble families, so I heard that even while he was studying at the Academy of Magic, the Duke’s family received a steady stream of marriage proposals.”

“That’s a typical Gideon anecdote.”

“I can see him doing well in both the academy and the royal palace.”

“It’s true that Gideon excelled in magic, but I was told by my teachers at the academy that I was equal to Gideon in water magic.”

“Well, you had at least one good thing going for you. So let’s see it.”

Since I came to the palace, I’ve hardly had a chance to use magic. The Crown Prince is always protected by a large number of guards outside the palace, and there is no danger for him inside.

It’s not often in practice that a Konoe magician uses fancy magic.

It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to use magic. I cleared my throat.

“If you wish, I will do it.”

I put my right hand out in front of me and pointed it at the surface of the pond.

I can feel the presence of water around me 360 degrees right now, so water seems easy to manipulate.

Taking a deep breath, I sharpened my nerves and increased my concentration.

“Water Dragon Javajan, show yourself!”

The moment I clenched my fist, the surface of the pond rose dramatically and a column of water rose high, defying gravity. With a spray of water, it moved in a sideways swimming motion, transforming into the shape of a dragon with a long tail.

Large wings extend from its transparent back.

(It worked!)

It had four legs with long claws and wings growing out of its back.

It was a transparent body made of pond water that you could see through to the other side, but it roared loudly as if to assert that it was real.

When the water dragon let out a low roar, the crown prince jerked on the shore.

“Rest assured. I will not attack your Highness.”

“Of course not. –Javajan, is that the name of this water dragon?”

“Isn’t it cool? By giving it a name, I can control its actions.”

The Crown Prince looked away from the water dragon and said in a provocative tone, as if testing my skills.

“Can you make it turn three times and say ‘woof’?”

“Eh… The water dragon is not a dog…”

“You’re a sorcerer, can’t you manipulate it?”

The crown prince laughs at me as if I were a fool. I’ve never had a water dragon say “woof” to me.

I don’t want to give in to the provocation, but I’m so annoyed.

“The National Academy of Magic is not that great. After all, the Royal Academy is the best.”

It’s said that the national academy has a higher level of entrance examinations but it’s surprising. I’ve never thought of it as being lower than the Royal Academy. If you’re a student of the National Academy of Magic, you will definitely not be able to ignore this cheap provocation.

My self-esteem is severely damaged.

I can’t remain silent.

–I’ll give it a try.

In order to make up for the humiliation, I ordered the water dragon.

“Javajan. Turn three times and bark at His Highness!”

The water dragon circled above the pond. The wind generated by its movement rippled on the surface of the pond, and the cold wind caressed my cheek.

After three disciplined turns, the water dragon looked like a snake coiling its tail.

Then it stuck its face out in front of the Crown Prince, it opened its big mouth and barked, “Gwaan!” Just like a water gun.

To my dismay, the water dragon lost its shape as its magic collapsed, and it fell to the surface in a huge splash.

The crown prince, who was in front of me, didn’t have time to avoid the water at all and was covered with it.

(That …! What!)

Was it too much to ask a water dragon to imitate a dog? Or was it that my daily fatigue had unconsciously broken down and blended into the technique?”

The crown prince, whose face was soaked with water, didn’t move a muscle, perhaps because the impact was too great.

The water was just dripping from his beautiful face onto his chest.

This is not good.

This is incredibly bad.

It’s a big mistake, a big blunder.

But it was the Crown Prince himself who asked for it by firing me up. Besides, the dragon barked anyway.

After a few seconds of deliberation, I decided not to dwell on the matter.

I turned my back to the pond as if nothing had happened.

“Well, let’s go back to the office. It’s about time for your next official duty.”

After a few steps, the Crown Prince tapped me on the shoulder.

“Your Highness?”

“Liesel. Don’t people often say you have good skills?”

The Crown Prince chuckled as he let the water drip from his face. His eyes, of course, were not smiling.

“…You’ve got some nerve.”

The Crown Prince grabbed me by the neck of my robe and pulled it tighter. His brown eyes glared coldly at me.

My feet were no longer on the ground.

“You’re a really funny fellow. If I look closely, I can see a pretty face, but what are you thinking behind that face? If you weren’t new, I’d have chopped your head off. You can thank me for my generosity.”

“Well, I’m sorry… I respectfully accept any disciplinary action.”

The Crown Prince brought his face closer and narrowed his eyes. I could see my reflection in their brown color and he said with a terrifyingly straight face.

“You’ll never be fired!”

The Crown Prince said slowly, as if to remind me of my stiffness. It was as if he didn’t want me to miss a word.

“All the best people belong to the royal palace. Remember that well.”

Behind his piercing brown eyes, I could see a ruthless light that had no temperature.

When he let go of me, who was completely frozen, he clapped his hands together and ordered as a matter of course.

“Thanks to you, my proud face is soaked. Take responsibility and dry it with your magic.”

I thought about it for a moment and then made a suggestion.

“Do you mind if I blow warm air on your face?”

“Are you trying to dry me out?”

“Well, I could always use a blast.”

“Do you want to blow my face off? Stop being an idiot. Even though you graduated second in your class, you can only come up with such a method? Why do you insist on using wind magic? Are you okay at all? In this case, use water magic on the surface of the face…”

The crown prince suddenly stopped talking.

“Your Highness?”

“No, I’m done with my walk. Let’s go back.”

The crown prince shrugged his shoulders, turned on his heel, and began to walk away.

I wondered what he was going to say. I dared to suggest a poor method, but the fact that he immediately rejected it showed that he at least had some knowledge of magic. Unless you’re a magician, you’re unlikely to learn anything about it.

Does he really have no magic power?

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