The Regressed Prince Holds Many Secrets

Chapter 12

“Oh, Amethus! We've met before, haven't we?”

I greeted him brightly.

I was unusually energetic for a child in the middle of the night.

“I didn't expect you to visit so suddenly, in the middle of the night.”

“Now that you mention it, I feel embarrassed.”

“I said it to make you feel embarrassed, so I'm glad you are.”

“……”

Amethus closed his mouth.

“First, have some. It's pumpkin pie. As you know, it's veeery sweeet and deeelicious.”

I held out the crispy pumpkin pie to Amethus.

‘Stop teasing me!’ Pies jumped up and down beside me, but I paid him no mind.

“Why aren't you eating? Do you think I poisoned it? It's an offer from a prince, you know.”

“You are right. I have been disrespectful.”

Amethus accepted the pumpkin pie.

Then, with a stiff expression, he took a bite.

He looked as if he were eating poison and he was probably thinking that he might really be.

Yet he didn't refuse. That tough bastard. I clicked my tongue inwardly.

“Isn't it sweet?”

“…Yes, it's very sweet.”

“I like sweet things. Anyway, it's about time you told me.”

I sipped my tea.

Actually, it was a bit of a stretch to call it tea; it was closer to sugar water with a hint of tea leaves.

It was so sweet that Amethus grimaced after taking a sip.

“Why has the closest aide to my busy brother Ferbias come to visit lowly Zionis in the middle of the night?”

“I believe you already know.”

His jade-green eyes flashed.

I shivered.

Ah.

I really hated those jade-green eyes.

They were eyes that no one with a secret could ever welcome.

I pretended to drink my tea, avoiding Amethus’s gaze.

My fingertips trembled, but I forced myself to endure it.

He had only exerted the slightest pressure, yet my child's body was already starting to scream.

Even 19 years in the past, that fortuneteller bastard is still a monster.

I can't stand him.

The position of one of the Ten Great Generals of the Empire was not one you could reach just by having good intuition.

Hidden behind the nickname 'The Fortuneteller', the Amethus from before my regression boasted swordsmanship that ranked among the top five in the Empire.

Even now, in his youth, his sword would not be dull.

Even though I've obtained Valziart... it'll still be difficult.

Facing him, it was clear.

Amethus was younger than before my regression, but he was still very much a monster.

Why on earth was a man like this in the Security Bureau?

Even though he was hiding it, my body trembled from his leaking aura alone.

But I concealed my trembling.

“Yes, I found a Treasure.”

I put on a smile.

The more dangerous it was, the more composed I acted.

It was the basic requisite of a liar.

“You came because of that, didn't you?”

“Yes, that is correct.”

Amethus nodded.

The news that another Treasure had been discovered, and that its owner was the Fifth Prince Zionis, had reached Ferbias's camp.

Although, it was unlikely they knew that the Treasure was Sen Sorti's masterpiece from 400 years ago.

“You sure hurried. Brother Ferbias's palace is quite far from here.”

“I just happened to be nearby.”

“Were you perhaps loitering around my residence because of a strange sense of unease?”

“……”

Amethus remained silent.

That alone was a sufficient answer.

What a leech of a man.

He was just as bothersome before my regression.

I clicked my tongue, tsk.

“Even considering that, you arrived too quickly.”

“Because it is a matter that warrants it.”

The Ten Treasures.

The three factions were searching for them with fire in their eyes.

They couldn't help but be sensitive to every single one.

Amethus’s expression hardened even more.

At the same time, his eyes also took on a deep jade hue.

“Since it is such an important matter, I would like to hear Your Highness Zionis's story.”

Amethus continued.

“Honestly, it was very surprising. Everyone who heard the news must have felt the same.”

“That a half-wit like me got his hands on a Treasure, it's certainly something to be surprised about.”

“It is difficult to say otherwise.”

“You're not denying the half-wit part?”

I laughed.

Amethus did not laugh.

He kept his jade-green eyes deeply settled from beginning to end.

“Alright, you want a story. I'd like to ask why I should... but I mustn't be misunderstood by our great brother Ferbias.”

Ferbias Caseptus, the First Prince.

The man closest to the Imperial Throne and the one who truly became the fiftieth emperor before my regression.

Moreover, he was arrogant and sensitive, so there was no reason to get on his bad side.

“If I were to be misunderstood……”

I made a throat-slitting gesture and chuckled.

“……”

“Come on, take a joke.”

Amethus's face remained inorganic.

That expression, as if it were the personification of strictness, gravity, and seriousness, never once broke.

I let out a deep sigh, feeling drained.

Then I stared blankly out the window.

The raindrops were still pattering down.

“Alright, Amethus, I'll tell you the truth. Without a single secret or lie.”

I sighed once more.

A deep look of contemplation was on my face.

Half acting, half sincere.

A deep smile, a steeled heart.

It was time for lies and secrets.

“Would you believe me if I said it was a coincidence?”

“Coincidence?”

His jade-green eyes were fierce.

“Did you say it was a coincidence?”

“Yes, a coincidence.”

“A coincidence, you say, a coincidence……”

A frown formed between Amethus’s eyebrows.

“I don't know if you're aware, but I worked at the Security Bureau for quite a long time.”

His tone was serious.

“I was in charge of various tasks, and among them was interrogation.”

“Are you saying you're going to interrogate me, Amethus?”

“Depending on the situation, I may have to commit such a discourtesy, Your Highness.”

I made a subtle threat, but it had no effect, so I clicked my tongue softly.

Amethus was here as Ferbias’s representative.

The authority of the Fifth Prince Zionis was useless against him.

“Where did you find the Treasure?”

“A secret bookshelf in the Imperial Grand Library.”

“How did you find the secret bookshelf?”

“By coincidence.”

“How did you pass the trial?”

“That too, by coincidence.”

“I suppose you'll say that you went to the library by coincidence as well?”

“Of course.”

Amethus’s expression did not change.

“According to your words, Your Highness, a Treasure was coincidentally hidden in the library you always visited, you coincidentally found it and you coincidentally passed the trial to obtain it……. That sounds quite strange.”

He looked at me sharply.

“At the Security Bureau, we used to call this inevitability.”

“Hey, I'm just as bewildered as you are.”

I shook my head.

“Why else would I only frequent the library? It was to avoid standing out! I didn't want to get involved in my siblings' fight. How was I supposed to know a Treasure was there?”

“Couldn't you have just turned back without passing the trial?”

“I would have, if the door hadn't closed right after I entered.”

“……”

His jade-green eyes sank deep.

“You're staring at me like that, meaning my explanation is insufficient, right?”

This was a pain.

I scratched my head.

What a meticulous and sharp man.

He wouldn't let things slide.

But there was no problem.

I was used to lying, and as used to it as I was, I was skilled.

“I had no choice. I thought it led to the underground archives and stepped inside, but the door closed. Only then did I realize it was a place where a Treasure was hidden and that I wouldn't be able to return unless I passed the trial.”

I had heard from Ferbias, who had already obtained a Treasure, that once a trial begins, you cannot escape.

There were wounds all over my body and the signs of fatigue were also strong.

For an eleven-year-old kid, I was in quite a shabby state, looking pitiful for a prince.

A hint of pity flickered in Amethus’s eyes. I did not miss it.

“Don't tell me you're going to say I should have never returned from the underground?”

“…I could not say that. I have been disrespectful.”

“It's not disrespectful. You're just following orders.”

I sipped my tea once more.

“Anyway, how was it? Was that a good enough excuse?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Liar.”

Amethus’s hand froze, his inner thoughts exposed.

The liar prince snickered.

“You have no intention of being convinced, do you? You're thinking that it might be a plausible fabrication, and even if it's true, it only makes me more dangerous.”

Amethus, whose thoughts were suddenly laid bare, shut his mouth.

“Sending you back like this will only raise more suspicion……. I have no choice.

Saying so, I stood up. I took a sip of tea, gulp.

My face was deep with worry.

I turned my head this way and that as if thinking, then sighed again.

Only after a long while did I part my lips with difficulty. Of course, it was all an act.

“If I show you the treasure I obtained, perhaps some trust will be built.”

“…The Treasure, you say?”

“If there's another way to gain your trust, then speak up.”

The Succession War.

A battle to find the Ten Treasures, to take and be taken from one another.

If so, one must thoroughly conceal their own Treasure.

If one aimed for the Imperial Throne, that was the natural course of action.

“I keep telling you. I don't want to make an enemy of brother Ferbias.”

I gave a faint smile.

Before Amethus could stop me, I stretched out my hand and summoned my Treasure.

From my hand, from deep within my body, a mud-like shadow began to stir.

Before Amethus had a chance to stop me, I brought out the Treasure.

“Watch closely.”

A black shadow leaked out.

It clumped together on its own.

Soon, it became smooth like metal, yet tough and hard, in the shape of a black blade.

“The name of this Treasure is the Black Sword, Zamuk.”

I gripped the sword that came from my hand and spoke.

“It hides within my body and I can change the length and shape of the blade as I wish.”

Of course, it was all a blatant lie.

The name of the Treasure I obtained was Mana Armor Valziart.

Not the Black Sword, Zamuk.

It wasn't a mere sword, but a noble of the shadow dimension.

But who would know?

Not even Hermai Merhes knew.

“Is it the type that binds to the body?”

“Yes. I can't even transfer it at will. Do you understand why I'm telling you all this in such detail?”

“…Yes.”

Amethus nodded.

He felt a slight sense of displeasure.

It was because his intuition sensed my lie.

However, the unpleasant feeling emanating from the black blade confused him.

He couldn't properly distinguish whether this displeasure was due to my words or the black blade.

This too was my aim.

“That's a relief. It seems you're somewhat convinced.”

I returned the black blade.

And gave a bitter smile.

“Tell brother Ferbias that Zionis just wants to live. While eating sweet pumpkin pie.”

I picked up a piece of pumpkin pie and brought it to my mouth.

It had gotten cold in the meantime.

Still, the sweetness was intense.

Looking at the eleven-year-old prince stuffing his cheeks with pumpkin pie, Amethus opened his mouth.

“…Your Highness, you are different from the rumors.”

“What rumors have you heard?”

“I heard that you weren't much different from other children your age. When I saw you before, you were indeed like that.”

Right after the proclamation of the Succession War.

He was talking about the time I was caught by Ferbias but escaped using pumpkin pie.

Back then, I really did look like nothing more than an eleven-year-old kid.

“But now……”

Amethus did not say more.

But his meaning was conveyed clearly enough.

The current me did not look like a child.

I was reading the other's intentions as if it were natural and giving only appropriate answers.

And yet, I was clearly conveying my own will.

What eleven-year-old could do such a thing?

…. Amethus stared at me intently.

His gaze was unpleasant.

But my composure did not break.

15 days since the regression; for the man who was called a hero, it was enough time.

That's why I burst out laughing, ha ha ha.

“Amethus, I heard you recently entered the palace. How long has it been?”

“It has just been four months.”

“Late for someone of your skill. You said you were in the Security Bureau before, so it's understandable that you wouldn't know.”

With Amethus’s skill, he could have risen to the position of the top elite in any legion.

The reason he insisted on being in the Security Bureau must have been due to his personal beliefs.

It wasn't strange, as he was a man who boasted of his foolish loyalty even before my regression.

“You should know from now on, Amethus.”

I chuckled.

“Here, in the Great Palace of Cordis, this is what a normal eleven-year-old is like.”

***

The rain had stopped at some point.

I could see Amethus's departing back.

I had overcome the biggest hurdle.

I wore a triumphant smile.

What I had shown was only a tiny fraction of Valziart’s abilities.

But Amethus had left believing it to be the entirety of the Treasure.

So I couldn't help but smile.

That bastard Amethus!

He had always given me trouble, even before the regression.

Amethus, a man with a ghost-like intuition. He couldn't be deceived with mere lies.

What was needed was to deftly weave between truth and falsehood.

To make him unable to trust his own senses and the result was a success.

The next guest would probably come after daybreak. I should get some sleep for now…….

“Y-Y-Your Highness Zionis!”

Pies rushed over.

He had been listening to the conversation between Amethus and me the whole time.

“You're admirable, truly admirable!”

“Ugh, I can't breathe, Pies!”

“To think you obtained a Treasure! When on earth did you become so admirable……!”

Pies Roesti hugged me and started stroking my head.

He was a prince's imperial guard, after all.

He had considerable strength, so I choked from the tightness.

Pies paid no mind and kept stroking my head, then suddenly grew sullen and pouted.

“But still, to hide it even from Pies……. I'm a little hurt…….”

“You heard, so you know. It was a coincidence. I didn't even have a chance to tell you.”

“That may be so, but……”

Between them was something stronger and more intimate than a simple master-servant relationship.

Sometimes like friends, sometimes like family.

They ate together and were companions in conversation.

“…Huh, the fact that you hid it even from me, could it be……. A secret plan to aim for the throne……!?”

“As if.”

Thump.

I tapped Pies’s forehead.

Then I slipped out of his embrace.

That was still a long way off.

Reaching the Imperial Throne could not be so easy.

Even though I had obtained one Treasure, the forces of the three princes and princesses were massive.

First, I had to protect my body.

Valziart would be a great help to this weak body.

With a living shadow armor, even the body of an eleven-year-old child would become somewhat useful.

And if I didn't obtain at least one Treasure, they wouldn't even let me sit at the negotiating table.

Ferbias, Leniar, Secundus.

The three largest factions.

Before I obtained the Treasure, they wouldn't have given me a second glance, but now, it was finally worth talking about.

I had no time to waste on useless checks.

I needed to grab onto a faction that could act as a shield.

I couldn't hide forever.

It was time to move.

To move freely, I needed a backer.

But I didn't want to be bound by a faction either.

Especially Ferbias's faction, which was out of the question.

He would try to control me with the ‘Prince’s Eye’ at every opportunity.

A faction with weak power and a slightly foolish master would be the best!