Chapter 99: This Is How You Provoke Someone

Preliminary Round Injury Treatment Center

As passionate as the students were, the injury treatment center was packed with people.
Still, the turnover was incredibly fast.
This was because the professors and assistants from each academy’s Divine Arts department were present, along with students from the same department gaining practical experience.

Except for those who had lost consciousness, everyone was leaving the treatment center in no time.

I visited the center with two lunchboxes in hand, which I had asked Card to get for me.

“I’m here to pick up a hospitalized friend.”

“Oh, sure. Please tell me their name.”

A student pulled out a registry and responded.
The treatment center was extremely busy.
However, since this was also a form of training for them, the students treated patients without complaint.

“Seron Parmia from Zeryon Academy.”

“Go to Room J-21.”

The student who gave the answer quickly left.

I felt a growing sense of urgency as well.

Moving quickly, I soon arrived at Room J-21, just as the student had instructed.

Even after knocking twice, there was no response.

Creak—

So, I opened the door and stepped inside.

It wasn’t like I was going to just leave because no one answered.

Inside the hospital room, a small girl lay on the only occupied bed.
All her wounds had been healed, but she was still unconscious, her breathing slow and raspy as she slept.

I pulled out a chair and sat beside her.

Carefully, I placed the lunchbox nearby, making sure not to wake her.

“…Prince Sweet Potato.”

Was she awake already?

“You’re up. You must be hungry. I brought food.”

“…You think I suddenly get hungry the moment I wake up? Who do you take me for, a pig?”

Seron grumbled as usual.

But she looked somewhat drained.
That didn’t suit her.

“I saw the preliminary round.”

Seron’s shoulders flinched.
She darted her eyes around, clearly flustered.

“H-How? You were competing in the preliminaries too.”

“My group finished quickly thanks to my stellar performance.”

“Wow, look at you bragging. So annoying.”

“Get it right. I’m not bragging. I’m just that good.”

Seron made a face of utter disgust.

Oh?

Seeing her reaction, I lifted my hand to my neck.
Then, I slightly loosened the bandages of my veil, revealing my real face.

Seron froze completely.

I smiled.

She was instantly blinded.

“Seron, why don’t you try calling me annoying again?”

“Eek! F-Foul play! That’s cheating!”

Seron flailed, pulling the blanket up over her face.
Her forehead was bright red.

Somehow, even her way of speaking had become more reserved.

“You go around calling me a prince and all sorts of embarrassing things…”

“W-Why did you have to hear that…? Why…?”

Seron trembled violently.
Seeing her like that, I let out a small, incredulous laugh.

“Looks really are a cheat code, huh?”

At that, Seron flinched.
She bit her lip, gripping the blanket tightly.

“…I don’t like you because of your looks.”

Slowly, she lowered the blanket she had been clutching.
Her face was flushed with embarrassment, but she looked straight at me.

“It’s just that I have no immunity to your prince appearance. I like you because you’re you—whether you’re Vikarmern, Hanon, or whoever.”

Her unwavering gaze shone with sincerity.
Her words were so honest that even I felt embarrassed just listening to them.

And me, facing Seron like this—what about me?
Unfortunately, my emotions had already been eroded by the veil’s bindings.
Love was slipping away, and even anger was fading.

But when I looked at Seron, I could vaguely feel it—
That this is what it means to like someone.

At that moment, Seron’s face suddenly turned bright red, as if about to explode.
A wisp of steam almost seemed to rise from her forehead as she slumped over weakly.

“Ugh… Pff… B-but not yet, not now…! A-and don’t smile at me like that!”

She flailed her arms weakly, covering her eyes with her hands.
And yet, she kept sneaking glances at me, as if she wanted to see more.

It was only then that I realized—I had been smiling without noticing.

If I stayed as Vikarmern any longer, Seron might actually break.
So, I rewrapped the veil and returned to my Hanon persona.

Then, I stood up and lightly patted Seron’s head.

“Seron, this is my personal decision. I’m going to get an apology from Ergo.”

“Ugh.”

Seron flinched, probably remembering what Ergo had done to her.
Even after the preliminary round had ended, Ergo had let his rage get the better of him and attacked her.
Because of that, after a formal review, he had been disqualified from the tournament.
There was no way they would let someone who broke the rules advance to the main event.

By all rights, getting revenge for this should be Seron’s.

“But I’m the kind of petty bastard who can’t just let it go when something like that happens to a friend of mine.”

If doing nothing means being noble, then I’d rather be petty.

“So eat your lunch and get your strength back. You look best when you’re raising hell.”

“…Was that a compliment or an insult?”

“Take it however you want.”

She pouted, but maybe because I called her pretty, I noticed the corners of her lips twitching upward.
She really is the same as ever.

“So? Are you really going to get an apology? I’m fine, you know.”

A faint look of concern reached me.
She was happy that I cared about her.
But she didn’t want it to cause me trouble.

The moment I sensed she was about to try and stop me, I grinned.

“Don’t worry. I’m just going to have a little chat.”

“…That just makes me more worried.”

“What do you take me for? I may not look it, but I’m a gentleman.”

Seron’s face only grew more uneasy.
Why does she see me as such a troublemaker?
I really don’t get it.

“I’ll make sure it’s just an apology.”

“…Really? You promise?”

“Really, really.”

Reassuring her one last time, I stepped out of the hospital room.

As I stepped out of the hospital room, I instinctively rolled my neck, loosening it with a few cracks.
A habit engraved into my body before a fight.

Ergo had been eliminated from the preliminaries and was set to be sent back to his homeland.
That meant there wasn’t much time.

Of course, I had no intention of recklessly picking a fight.
Attacking a royal outside an official match could lead to unpredictable consequences.

Besides, separate from making him apologize to Seron, there was something else I wanted to get from Ergo.
I had originally planned to make a deal with him at some point anyway.
This was a perfect opportunity.

So, I decided to challenge him to a fight—completely by the book.

I moved quickly, searching for a certain individual.
And when I found them, I immediately bowed my head.

“Iris-nim, please help me just this once.”

“Hmm?”

A trump card even greater than royalty—imperial nobility.

* * *

The Sky Kingdom, the nation with the longest history in the world.
A kingdom that inherited the bloodline of Parazon, the great royal family that once stood alongside the legendary hero, Wolfram.

And the overwhelming heir to that Parazon throne—
The sole prince, Ergo Parazon.

Draped in gold from his hair to his attire, Ergo wore a deeply displeased expression.
The reason was simple.

He had been disqualified from the preliminaries for punishing a mere girl who had dared to defy him.

“Disqualify me? Unforgivable.”

His teeth ground together in fury.

With his immense pride, Ergo believed that everything he did was justified.
Beyond his natural talents, he had the clear disposition of a tyrant.

But even so, it was undeniable that he was competent.
Despite his arrogance, he had already made a name for himself in the political world.

Which is why—

“Your Highness Ergo, Third Princess Iris Hyserion has arrived to see you.”

Ergo’s anger vanished in an instant.

The Third Princess was one of the most powerful contenders for the imperial throne of the Hyserion Empire.
There was no reason to refuse a meeting with someone of her stature.

“Let her in.”

Adjusting his attire, Ergo took his seat.

Creak—

The door opened, and two figures walked in.

Seeing them, Ergo’s expression briefly flickered with curiosity.

One of them was indeed the Third Princess, Iris Hyserion.
She was renowned for her breathtaking beauty, even beyond her own country.

But beside her stood a boy who bore a striking resemblance to her.

Black hair and red eyes.
A small, slight figure.

“Iris-nim, is this your younger brother?”

“Yes, he’s my younger brother.”

Iris, who normally spoke casually, still maintained a respectful tone with Ergo.
After all, he was the confirmed successor to the Parazon throne—
The future king.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Hanon Airei, Iris-nim’s cousin.”

Cousin.

At that, a small smile appeared on Ergo’s lips.

If Iris had personally brought him here, that meant she deeply cherished him.
Naturally, Ergo had no reason to treat him rudely.

“I see. A pleasure to meet you. I am Ergo Parazon.”

He was well aware that Hanon had not inherited the name of the Duchy of Robliaju.
Still, he didn’t bother pointing it out.
Sometimes, in this world, lineage wasn’t everything.

“My apologies, but I came to see you today regarding my own business.”

“Oh? Business, you say. Go on.”

It felt somewhat odd that it was Hanon’s business rather than Iris’s, but Ergo generously decided to hear him out.

“You possess the White Nightmare Sword, do you not?”

“I do.”

The moment the Nightmare Sword was mentioned, Iris cast a brief, inexplicable glance in Hanon’s direction.
Ergo found it curious but didn’t ask.

“Would you be willing to trade that sword for mine?”

“The White Nightmare Sword?“

Ergo’s eyes widened slightly.
He had a deep sense of ownership over his weapons.
For someone—especially Iris’s cousin, not Iris herself—to ask for an exchange outright was bound to irritate him.

The tyrant in him almost surfaced, but he held himself back.

“I don’t see a sword on you.”

“Not at the moment, no.”

At Hanon’s vague answer, Ergo’s expression began to darken with annoyance.
Just as irritation was about to settle in—

Hanon reached up and unclasped something from his neck.
A pendant.

The moment he lightly tapped the pendant, a sword materialized in his hand.
Though old, the blade radiated an unmistakable sense of quality.

But aside from that, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly special about it.
Ergo’s interest started to wane—

Until—

“This is the sword once wielded by the ancient hero, Parazon.”

The instant those words left Hanon’s lips, Ergo’s eyes snapped wide open.

“What?”

“The sword of the ancient hero, Parazon.”

“…What in the…”

Ergo’s face twisted with confusion.
Even Iris, who hadn’t expected this, widened her eyes at Hanon.

But Hanon’s expression remained unchanged.

“If you recall the murals of the Parazon Dynasty, you’ll find they match.
If you wish, you’re free to verify its authenticity.”

“W-Wait a moment.”

The sheer abruptness of the claim gave Ergo a headache.
Holding his forehead, he peered through his fingers at Hanon’s sword.

The image of the Parazon royal murals flashed vividly in his mind.
Having grown up constantly seeing the self-portraits of the hero Parazon, he could recall them with absolute clarity.

‘No doubt about it.’

The sword’s appearance was an exact match.

But then again, countless forgeries of Parazon’s sword had surfaced over the years.
It was entirely possible that this was just another one.

‘However…’

The fact that Iris had brought him along gave him pause.

Would someone personally vouched for by Iris, of all people, really try to deceive him, the heir of Parazon’s bloodline?

At the same time, another thought crept in.

‘The White Nightmare Sword is a fine weapon, but…’

Was it truly worth trading for this?

Parazon’s sword was a relic the Parazon royal family had long sought.
They had given up serious efforts to recover it long ago, assuming it lost forever.
But if it had truly been found,
it was a blade that the royal treasury would be emptied to reclaim.

The sword itself held no special abilities.
But its name alone was enough to move the entire royal family into action.

Yet now, he was being asked to trade it for the White Nightmare Sword.
It made no sense.

“…Ah, and there’s one more thing I’d like to ask for.”

At this, Ergo’s expression shifted to one of knowing expectation.
Of course. He had figured Hanon wanted something.

But the next words that came from Hanon completely threw Ergo off.

“Fake prince, why don’t you have a duel with the real prince?”

Hanon grinned.

Come on, Fake Prince.

Let’s fight.