Ch.6Dubious First Meeting – 6

‘From now on is what’s important.’

I had already finished discussing with Priscilla about what to say and how to say it.

Priscilla had essentially delegated full authority to me, saying she didn’t care as long as I was there, but she had squeezed thoughts out of me using more hugs and hand-holding as leverage.

I was surprised at how effective it was.

‘I can’t reveal too much, but I can’t just lie either.’

According to Priscilla, the Crown Prince has such good intuition that it sometimes feels strange. I didn’t particularly want to think about the consequences if I were caught in a lie.

Of course, it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t get caught. Unless there was specific evidence, it would be practically impossible to distinguish truth from lies in what I say based on atmosphere alone. Even for someone with uncannily good intuition.

“About what happened on the entrance ceremony day—”

“Before that.”

The Crown Prince stopped me with a gesture of his chin.

“You’re sitting too far away. I can’t hear your voice properly. Come closer.”

“…As you wish.”

It was a ridiculous claim. The distance between the Crown Prince and me was at most about 3 meters. But since I had no grounds to refuse, I obediently stood up.

“You need to come even closer. It’s still not enough.”

The command didn’t end with just once. After several trials and errors, I was finally permitted to stop only after narrowing the distance to where I could touch the Crown Prince’s leg if I reached out.

‘What is this about?’

My mind was confused. It felt like the plan I had carefully constructed was being jumbled up. He’s doing this despite knowing full well that he’s a man and I’m a man too?

I had a feeling something was off when he gave me that eye-smile on the entrance ceremony day, but surely he couldn’t actually have that kind of preference. I tried to suppress these ominous thoughts as I opened my mouth.

“The fact that Priscilla Agnes is very proficient in magic—”

“Pause for a moment.”

What is he trying to nitpick now? While inwardly exasperated, I obediently followed his command.

“You may address her as you normally would. There’s no need to be so formal in front of me.”

“…I believe Your Highness is already aware that Priscilla is very proficient in magic.”

“Of course I know.”

The Crown Prince finally nodded in affirmation. His demeanor was utterly shameless.

“Priscilla was using her talent to research magic privately. Then, most unfortunately, she mishandled an ancient magic and fell under a peculiar curse.”

Half truth.

It’s true that Priscilla would end up under a peculiar curse while researching magic privately, but according to the original novel, that would happen next year. It’s far from the current Priscilla’s situation.

Still, if evidence were demanded, I could provide it. It would be enshrined in the deepest part of the magic sample storage room in the Agnes mansion.

“A curse?”

“A curse that makes her see terrible futures.”

The Crown Prince’s eyes narrowed slightly, apparently unable to let the mention of seeing the future pass.

“Am I to understand that she gained precognitive abilities?”

“It’s not quite something that could be called that. She merely ended up in a situation where fragmented scenes repeatedly come to her mind. That’s also why I described it as a curse rather than a blessing.”

This is also half truth. Priscilla wasn’t repeating fragmented scenes but was repeating her life from age 15 to 20.

“…I understand. I suppose you’re going to say that this terrible future was changed by meeting you at the entrance ceremony.”

“You’ve hit the nail on the head. Wouldn’t such an intense reaction be understandable if an ominous future she had been seeing continuously for four years suddenly changed for the better?”

This, at least, was the absolute truth.

I deliberately paused after saying this much. The Crown Prince was tapping the sofa, seemingly lost in thought. According to my prediction, the next question the Crown Prince would ask would be…

“Have you heard about the terrible future that Agnes saw?”

‘As expected.’

I knew it. This is the real core. I quietly chose my next words.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Tell me. I’m curious what kind of future it was.”

I told him about what was known as the “Academy Demon Lord Attack Incident” that would occur in the year when Aria and Brunhild would be second-year students, according to the original work.

The only lie I told here was that it should have happened during the school year next year, not at this year’s entrance ceremony. Everything else was exactly as Priscilla had told me from the original story.

In it, the Crown Prince dies. After graduating, while briefly visiting the academy on other business, the Demon Lord suddenly appears and says “You are no longer useful” before piercing his heart and killing him.

Because of this, those who were close to the Crown Prince are accused of being traitors, and since Aria is also included on that list of traitors, the hero Brunhild struggles to clear up the misunderstanding—that was the story.

“……”

The Crown Prince wore a rather complicated expression after hearing my explanation. Understandably so, since he’d just been told that he would be killed by the Demon Lord and his faction would be accused of treason and destroyed.

‘I’ve captured his interest sufficiently.’

Now the possibility of events unfolding exactly as in the original work was essentially gone. This was exactly what Priscilla had been hoping for. She’ll be extremely pleased when I tell her later.

I hadn’t originally planned to say this much. I was just going to make a few excuses and be done with it, but Priscilla suggested it would be better to bring the Crown Prince to our side, so we put our heads together and added some content.

Thanks to that, although it’s quite different from the plan I had at the entrance ceremony, good is good.

“So she dreamed such things… I had heard that the eldest daughter of House Agnes had her emotions half worn away, but this was the reason behind it.”

That would be because she was in a half-broken mental state before meeting me, but there was no need to correct his misunderstanding if he was making assumptions on his own.

“How interesting.”

The Crown Prince smiled and uncrossed his legs. As he slightly moved his right leg in the air, the black shoe that had been precariously hanging fell off.

His bare foot was revealed, without even a sock, and a subtle floral scent wafted over. His toenails were painted with red nail polish.

‘…Nail polish?’

What the hell is this guy’s deal?

While I was in confusion, the Crown Prince stretched out his right leg. A leg so delicate it was hard to believe it belonged to a man rested on my left shoulder.

I could feel his toes wiggling on my shoulder. I was barely suppressing the urge to grab his ankle and slam it to the floor, trembling with anger instead.

Completely oblivious to my feelings, the Crown Prince spoke indifferently.

“Do you know why I said this is interesting?”

“…I apologize, Your Highness. I do not know.”

I answered through gritted teeth. It was already overwhelming just to contain the rising disgust.

“Because I too had a similar dream. Just once, though.”

“…What?”

I looked up at this completely unexpected statement. Priscilla had never mentioned that the Crown Prince had dreamed about the Demon Lord’s attack.

“No, perhaps it wasn’t a dream but a hallucination. It remains only vaguely in a corner of my memory, like something from long ago. But now I remember it completely. Hearing your words brought back the memory. In the dream, I died just as you described.”

—By the Demon Lord.

The Crown Prince, who whispered the last sentence, bent forward seductively. He rested his elbow on his knee and supported his chin with the back of his hand. All the while, his toes continued to wiggle on my shoulder.

His other hand, the one not supporting his chin, reached out toward me. Judging by the height and position, the destination seemed to be my right cheek.

“What a curious ‘coincidence’ I think. That Agnes’s dream and mine match so precisely. Don’t you agree, Mira Crate?”

Emphasizing the word coincidence heavily, his hand came closer and closer. It was about to cup my cheek—

—CRACK!

“…Ugh?!”

—but stopped as the Crown Prince hastily straightened his back. His face showed extreme bewilderment. I also hesitated, halting my actions, having been ready to escape the situation no matter what.

The Crown Prince looked down at his necktie with wide eyes, then made an urgent gesture toward me.

“Step back.”

“Your Highness, just now—”

“I clearly ordered you to step back.”

“Yes, understood.”

I rose without argument. Then, after observing proper etiquette as quickly as possible, I practically fled the room, closing the door behind me. I wondered if I would be punished for this later. If so, it would feel somewhat unfair.

‘Phew…’

Whatever the case, that was something to think about later. Right now, there was something much more important. I took off my school coat, checked my surroundings, and snapped my fingers.

The coat instantly turned to ashes.

‘I’ll get a new one later.’

And while I’m at it, I’ll also tell Priscilla that bringing the Crown Prince to our side might not be such a good idea after all.

After Mira Crate left, the Crown Prince remained frozen for a while before muttering into the air.

“Dolores.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Shall I capture that Mira Crate person?”

A maid emerged from the shadow of the sofa and knelt down. The Crown Prince shook his head and looked down at his necktie, or rather, at something beneath it.

“We need to contact the old hag.”

“Do you mean the Tower Master? Please command me.”

“Tell her that the Celestial Change necklace has broken.”

Dolores, who was trained never to be surprised by anything, flinched as the Crown Prince pulled out something that had been hidden under his necktie.

It was a necklace with a blood-red gem that had cracked. The gem, which looked precarious even at a glance, couldn’t hold out any longer and split completely into two pieces on his palm.

Then changes began to occur in the Crown Prince’s body.

His waist became slender, his hips and pelvis protruded attractively, and the overall curves of his body became much more graceful. His face also changed as his eyelashes grew longer, shifting from an androgynous impression to one of beautiful femininity.

The most significant change was in the chest area. The once completely flat chest now formed large curves, becoming so voluptuous that it was noticeable even through the school uniform.

“Mira Crate.”

The Crown Princess Laura, who had transformed from an androgynous beautiful man into a woman of ripened beauty, murmured Mira Crate’s name with a cold smile on her face.

Even Laura herself didn’t know exactly what had just happened. She had felt a tingling sensation, and then the Celestial Change necklace, which also served as a protective device, was destroyed all too easily.

This was a necklace made by the Tower Master herself to protect the first in line to succession. It possessed durability that wouldn’t even be scratched by ordinary magic or physical impacts.

And yet it had been broken by something she couldn’t even perceive. It was impossible not to be surprised.

“…I’ve been reflecting on my actions just now, Dolores.”

It wasn’t a question requiring an answer. Dolores simply bowed her head and listened attentively to her master’s words.

“But no matter how much I think about it, I cannot find a reason why I acted so emotionally.”

“……”

“It’s been like that since the entrance ceremony. I still don’t understand why I accepted that man’s proposal.”

“……”

Dolores continued to choose silence. It was hard to believe these words came from the Crown Prince, who always acted with clear reasons.

“It’s truly strange. When I look at that man, I feel a sense of ease, and also a feeling that I’m no longer myself.”

Laura chuckled, seemingly finding it absurd herself.

“They say the daughter of House Agnes shows such intense obsession toward Mira Crate.”

The two had been seen together countless times, holding hands, and some had even witnessed them embracing each other.

The common testimony was that Priscilla usually initiated these situations. If anything, Mira seemed to be the one accommodating her.

“How presumptuous.”

Laura’s eyes took on a strange gleam.

“To try to keep something so interesting all to herself.”

A killing intent rose so strong that Dolores flinched despite knowing it wasn’t directed at her. But the killing intent didn’t last long. Dolores wondered if this too was influenced by thoughts of that man.

A magic circle formed in Laura’s hand. Illusion magic enveloped her body. The graceful curves that constituted her female form changed back to rugged straight lines. Laura, now returned to the usual Crown Prince appearance, spoke abruptly.

“I am unwell today. Make it known.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Compared to the Celestial Change necklace that actually altered physical form, illusion magic was merely a deception to the eyes. If someone were to touch her, they would immediately discover it was magic.

But since no one would dare to lay hands on the Crown Prince, it was sufficient as a temporary measure until the necklace could be repaired. Laura left the room with a cold smile.

Dolores, who remained behind, only lifted her forehead from the floor after the Crown Prince’s footsteps had disappeared. Melting into the shadows, Dolores immediately headed toward the teachers’ private rooms.

It seemed the Crown Prince would not be attending afternoon classes due to illness.