Chapter 356

An awkward silence hung in the air, as if time had stopped.

It continued until I regained my composure.

…What did she just say?

Me? Her weakness?

I wouldn’t have been this surprised even if my dog had suddenly started talking.

Oscar, the ruthless tyrant, the princess who knew no mercy.

And I was her weakness?

Should I really believe this?

Her words shook my conviction that she was being sincere.

I barely managed to calm myself down and asked, “…Honestly, I’m quite surprised. Could you please explain why?”

“Oh my, you’re trying to sneak in two questions, aren’t you?”

She caught me off guard, and my expression faltered.

I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving without knowing the answer.

“Well…”

“Hehe, I wouldn’t mind giving you another question, but that wouldn’t be fun. It’s my turn now.”

“…Alright.”

I braced myself for her question.

What would she ask me?

“Hmm, let’s see. Tell me your ultimate goal in life.”

That was her first question.

It seemed like an innocuous question.

But not to me.

I hesitated, even though she probably didn’t know the significance of her question.

It was a question I could answer in countless ways.

Should I just make something up?

No.

This wasn’t the time for that.

The princess was being sincere.

It meant that she would really stab me if she sensed any lies.

I had two choices.

To run.

Or to fight.

I would fight and break through this situation with my own sincerity.

I looked her straight in the eye.

“To save the world.”

“Huh?”

This time, it was her turn to be surprised.

Her eyes widened.

She stared at me.

But nothing would change, even if she stared at me.

Because it was the truth.

I had to save the world to save myself.

She seemed to have realized that, because her expression suddenly turned curious.

It was understandable.

Anyone would react that way if they heard such an answer.

“S-So… What do you mean by ‘save the world’?”

“Oh my, oh my. You can’t sneak in two questions, even if you’re the princess.”

I returned her words to her.

It felt good.

“…”

She fell silent, speechless.

She probably hadn’t expected me to turn her words against her.

I smiled faintly and continued, “Honestly, I wouldn’t mind giving you another question, but that wouldn’t be fun. It’s my turn now.”

“Hehe, you’re so mischievous.”

She chuckled wryly.

And then she gestured for me to continue.

“Go ahead.”

“I’d like to ask the same question I asked earlier.”

The question about why she considered me to be her weakness.

“The first one or the second one?”

“The second one. I’m curious, since you pointed me out.”

“Hehe, you already knew the first one, didn’t you?”

As expected of the princess.

She had already figured it out.

I had to admit it.

“Well, I can’t deny that it’s part of the reason. Regina sensed something was wrong and told me about it.”

“Aha, it was Professor Regina, as I expected. I thought she might have noticed. I was a mess back then.”

“If it was something you didn’t want to talk about…”

I said, remembering that she was terminally ill, but she waved her hand dismissively.

“No, it’s fine. I already answered your question. Let’s just clear the air. It’s been like this since I was born. That’s enough, right?”

She smiled, showing no signs of sadness or despair.

Her reaction made me realize,

That she had already come to terms with her fate.

Even so…

‘What is she doing?’

I couldn’t help but smile wryly.

I felt a surge of sympathy for her.

It was understandable to feel sympathy for someone who had been terminally ill since birth.

But,

She was the princess.

Snap out of it.

I forced myself to calm down.

“What’s wrong?”

She tilted her head and blinked.

It was a question she could have easily avoided, just like before.

But I answered.

I didn’t know why.

It was an impulsive response.

“I feel sorry for you.”

“Huh?”

She seemed surprised by my answer.

She stared at me blankly.

And then she pointed at herself.

“Me?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Well…”

I stopped.

It wasn’t something I should say lightly.

I chose my words carefully and continued, “Honestly, it’s presumptuous of me to feel this way. I’ve never lived a life like yours. But,”

“…”

She waited for me to continue.

“I just wanted to say this. I hope you’ll live a happy life.”

It might have been a cliché.

But I couldn’t think of anything else to say to someone who was terminally ill.

But,

Her reaction was strange.

She blinked blankly, like a herbivore.

…It wasn’t that special of a statement, was it?

Did I say something wrong?

*Thud*

She stood up.

W-What now?

“Excuse me for a moment. I need to use the restroom.”

“O-Oh, okay.”

* * *

While the princess was gone, I calmed myself down.

“Phew, what is going on?”

I hadn’t expected this meeting to be so intense.

It was almost like a duel.

A truth game with the princess?

If I had known this was going to happen, I would have come prepared with a hundred pages of notes.

The only good thing was,

That I seemed to be handling it well so far.

But her reaction earlier bothered me.

‘Was it really that surprising of a statement?’

I would have understood if she had been offended by my words.

But she hadn’t been offended. She had just looked… dazed.

‘I don’t understand.’

*Creak* *Thud*

She returned while I was lost in thought.

“Excuse me for the interruption.”

“It’s fine.”

I observed her expression as she sat down.

‘She’s back.’

She had returned to her usual self.

She must have composed herself in the restroom.

“Hehe, shall we continue? It’s my turn to answer your question, right?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Then I’ll tell you why I said you’re my weakness.”

She continued, her smile back in place, “Because I owe you my life. It’s only natural for you to be my weakness, isn’t it?”

What?

I almost reached for the dagger.

I knew that she wouldn’t feel any debt to me for saving her life.

But,

I couldn’t move.

Because it didn’t feel like a lie.

My instincts were telling me that she was being sincere.

‘She’s not lying?’

I was confused.

The princess before me was both familiar and unfamiliar.

It made it even more difficult to deal with her.

“Actually, there’s another reason, but it’s a secret.”

“Huh?”

“Hehe, even I have secrets I want to keep, even from you.”

She smiled mischievously and tucked her hair behind her ear.

That was unfair.

I was speechless, but I decided to let it slide.

If she could use that excuse, so could I.

“Alright. Then it’s your turn.”

“Hmm, then I’ll ask the same question as before. What do you mean by ‘save the world’?”

I replied calmly, “This world is going to be destroyed. And I’m going to stop it.”

She looked at me as if I had lost my mind.

It wasn’t that strange…

“…Are you serious?”

“You’re wise enough to tell the difference between truth and falsehood, Your Highness.”

“…”

“…”

“It doesn’t sound like a lie…”

“It’s not.”

“Then I have to question your sanity…”

“I don’t mind.”

“Hmm, if it weren’t for your sincerity, I’d accuse you of mockery and stab you.”

“…Please do.”

“This is giving me a headache… But fine. I’ll keep it in mind.”

She stopped there.

It was a testament to her patience.

If anyone else had said such an absurd thing during a truth game, she would have flipped the table.

“Hmm, hmm, hmm.”

She thought for a moment and then gestured for me to continue.

“Go ahead, Senior.”

“Alright. This time…”

I asked the question I had come up with while she was in the restroom.

“I want to know if you’re willing to join forces with me.”

It was a direct question.

A question that would decide the fate of our relationship.

I was asking her,

If she was willing to share power with me.

If she agreed, the empire could be stabilized without any more bloodshed.

And if she didn’t?

Then I would have no choice but to resort to drastic measures.

I had decided to cut to the chase.

‘Please accept.’

I didn’t want any more bloodshed.

I didn’t want to see the empire suffer any more damage.

But that wasn’t all.

There was also the matter of my feelings for her.

Honestly, she hadn’t done anything particularly bad to me in this world.

At least on the surface, we had a cordial relationship.

So I was hesitant to take drastic measures.

‘Just accept.’

I pleaded silently.

And then,

She finally spoke.

“W-Why are you asking me that?”

Huh?

…What was she talking about?

She wasn’t pretending to be clueless.

“That’s against the rules. Answer the question.”

I pressed her for an answer.

I had to get an answer from her.

“Hmm.”

She looked troubled.

She seemed like she wanted to avoid the question.

That wasn’t going to happen.

This wasn’t a game.

“Answer the question.”

“A-Alright, then… “

She blushed slightly and fiddled with her hair.

Stop playing with your hair.

It’s distracting.

“I-I have to say no for now…”

Ugh.

So we had to fight after all?

I had wanted to avoid bloodshed.

I gritted my teeth in frustration.

“B-But that’s just for now… I-I might change my mind later…”

W-What?

What was she talking about?

I was speechless.