Former Crown Prince favors the Villainess

[...with the appearance of Lady Camilla and her son Prince William, things sure are heating up here in the Capital (Plona). What do you think will happen from now on?]

[What you have said, is absolutely right. Bluntly speaking, all the nobles who were aiming for the Empress’s position were mercilessly shot down from the opportunity. But the greater problem is the appearance of Prince William.]

[And why do you think it is?]

[The mere presence of Prince William threatens the position the Crown Prince Arthur has. And with the things the way they are, Lady Camilla will surely raise to the position of the Empress. After all, she does have the blood of Argon running through her.]

[But isn’t Argon a ruined kingdom now?]

[That is also a problem, the previous Royal family of Argon screwed up by big time. The civil war marked the end of their ruling over the kingdom. However, the new Royal family is doing a great job in maintaining the kingdom.]

[Yes, I’ve heard how the jobs have been getting much more stable in the Kingdom now. But would they support this marriage? After all, Lady Camilla is someone from the previous Royal Family...and moreover, she is the sole survivor.]

[If you think they will oppose this marriage, then you are absolutely wrong.]

[Pardon?]

[She is someone who has blood ties to Argon, which means so is her son, Prince William. In other words, he has the probability to go back for revenge and aim for the throne. And with how things are finally smooth in the kingdom, they would rather have Lady Camilla become the Empress, that way it makes her a member of Zemira...which would mean Prince William only has right over the throne of Zemira and not of Argon.]

[Wow, then would it mean that the Argon Kingdom would support Prince William to become the Emperor?]

[Well, if I were them...I would rather stay neutral. Because, even with the appearance of Prince William, which would cause a major shift in the Noble factions...Prince Arthur is just too strong as the Crown Prince.]

[Prince Arthur...he really is a mystery, huh?]

[Yes, the previous Empress, Helena Zemira...chose to keep much of Prince Arthur a secret. Even among the nobles, only the High Society knows about him a bit better. But it is true that he has strong political connections, not only locally, but even internationally. But, if he doesn’t want his position as the crown prince to be threatened, he better-]

“That’s enough.”, said Ethel while snatching the new phone away.

“Ah…”

“You have been glued to the screen for the past few hours. Either sleep or...actually just sleep.”, she said.

“Haah...fine. I’ll heed your words, Lady Ethel.”

“That’s better.”, she said looking proud.

We were currently on our way to the capital of Prorin Dukedom, Landow.

Speeding through the highway, there wasn’t much to see...apart from the blinding lights from the opposing traffic.

Uncle was already deep into sleep with occasional snoring, while Ethel was listening to songs throughout the journey.

“Arthur, I wanted to ask you…”

“Yeah?”

“Your mana...why is it still so low? I mean, if my mana gets depleted...just sitting around for an hour or two would let me get out of the daze. But…”

She is right...my mana is still dangerously low, it’s like I’m stuck in a strange haze. I can’t even deduce my current situation properly. 

“It’s probably because of passive skill.”, I said while looking into her eye.

“You have a passive skill?!”

“Yeah...I can’t go into details, but it allows me to retain and remember everything I see.”

“Woah...so that’s the reason your memory is so good! But does it take a lot of mana…”

“Well, the amount of mana I absorb per second is equivalent to the amount of mana the passive skill consumes per second.”

“Oh...so that’s the reason...then meditating in the house would be fine, I guess.”

“Yeah, that’s one of the reasons I’m coming to Prorin.”

“Hmm...then I’ll lend you my meditating room.”

“Is it special?”

“Yep! Completely isolated from the rest of the world, no sound can enter the room. You can have calm music playing inside the room...and it’s a lot comfier just sitting in the room.”

“Haha...Fine. I’m looking forward to it.”

With that, Ethel drifting to sleep, I gazed at the moving scenery...trees everywhere, the sound of tire bumping against the road reverberated inside my ear. 

What I said to Ethel was only partially true, yes...I did have a passive skill, [Retainary]...it allowed me to remember everything I see with just a glance. A great skill to have indeed.

But such a skill comes with a cost, it always needs mana to keep itself going. But actually, it needs only half of the mana I consume per second. 

Ideally, I should have enough mana absorbed over the past two weeks...to atleast stop the trembling of my hands.

But it doesn’t...why?

And when I close my eyes, the passive skill switches itself off. So no mana is consumed during that time. That also means...that during the time I sleep, I should be continuously absorbing mana.

But that’s not the case...instead of feeling refreshed, I rather feel more tired in the morning. 

It is all because of the passive skill I gained after the ceremony.

[Dreamy Dreams.]

A weird name indeed...at first, I couldn’t understand what it was for. I also never informed anyone because I wanted to know what its uses are.

That day, when I slept after a long meeting with the guests, I saw a strange thing.

No...I didn’t really see...rather it was flowing straight into my head? It was and still is a strange experience.

[Is that reactor working properly?]

[Yes sir, it is. There’s no issue of overloading.]

[Great, then push the input to 90%]

[But sir!! It’s pushing too far!]

[Just do it! This could very well be the invention of the centu-]

And that’s where it cut off. The next day, I ran a quick check through the database...and found nothing of the sort the man was building. But I do realize that the innovation produced an astronomical amount of energy.

I couldn’t really tell what the ingredients were, but I did realize that some of the minerals they had...is not in this world.

This happens every time I sleep, I see strange innovations that seemed both dangerous and brilliant. I didn’t really understand the workings behind them, and the dream was always left incomplete.

Probably because of my low mana.

But it really is troublesome...then for me to gain mana, I should probably sleep for a shorter duration and keep my eyes closed while I’m awake.

*SIGH*

Well, whatever...it’s not like the skill is gonna help improve my current situation. I should just concentrate on improving my mental health.

****************************************************

“Aarthurrr!!!”

“Ah...Aunt Grace, how are you?”

“I’m fine...wait no, how dare His Majesty do that!! The media is all over the news.”, she said in a harsh tone.

“Yes yes, Mom. We experienced it first hand...and father is really down in the dumps.”, she said while looking at the Duke who disappeared into the mansion.

“Well, I will take care of him later...some hugs and head pats should make him feel better.”

“It’s gonna take way more than though…”, Ethel said while chuckling.

Here is a happy family that cares about others deeply. Grace, she is a former adventure with whom the Duke fell in love with.

She has bright yellow hair accompanied by dark yellow eyes. 

The romance between Uncle Alden and Aunt Grace is something the whole Empire knows. There are various girls who wish to have a love as these two did.

I think there once was a novel based upon these two.

“Now now...you are here after a long ride. Get refreshed, and shall we meet after an hour? I have your favorite food ready, Arthur.”

“Hahaha...fine Aunty...I’ll be there.”

“Great, now...he will guide you to your room. It might not be up to your taste, because it was put up in a hurry…”

“Oh it’s okay...I’m just a guest-”

“Arthur, you are not a guest...you are family. I don’t ever want to hear you calling yourself as a guest, understood?”, she said in a commanding tone.

“Ah..yeah, okay, Aunty.”

“Great! Now hurry along, we will meet up later.”

Ethel had a bright grin all over her face.

I’ll take care of you later.

I’m waiting.

After our eye to eye declaration, I was guided to my room by a maid. An absolutely luxurious over-the-top room that was already cooled down by the air conditioner.

“Is there something you require, Your Highness?”, asked the maid.

“No, everything is perfect. I’ll be there at the dining hall in an hour, don’t need to pick me up.”

“I will keep that in mind.”, said the maid before leaving.

The maids dropped my bag inside the room and left quickly.

*SIGH*

I locked the doors close and headed towards the washroom. After a quick bath, I dressed myself in a rather casual set of clothes.

*PLOP*

As I lay in bed, I realized my thoughts were all over the place.

“This Lady her is, Camilla...a princess of the fallen kingdom, Argon. These two are your half-siblings, William and Diana.”

Wow...thinking back again, that was the lamest introduction ever. He was almost like...yeah, from now on...you three are siblings!! And Arthur you will have a new mother figure from now!!! Yay!!

That ass hole…

Was what I did correct? I didn’t rage...I didn’t talk back at all...it doesn’t feel like me though.

“Haah..it’s already been 45 minutes. Better start moving.”

Going out of the room, I was greeted with a familiar view that I remembered when mother showed guided me all over the house.

The Mansion of the Prorin family is considered both weird and beautiful. This large mansion does not expand vertically, but rather horizontally.

With just a single floor, the amount of steps you need to get from A to B is huge.

Ethel always complains about how annoying the mansion is.

By the time I reached the dining hall, I was greeted by two new faces.

Grandpa Rio and Grandmother Ava were waiting there for me along with the other three.

“Arthur!! How are you?! I heard about everything that happened, but…”

“I’m fine, Grandma. Aren’t you pissed off, Grandma and Grandpa?”

“Well…”, Grandpa looked uncomfortable.

“We have already known about it…”, Grandma dropped the bombshell out of nowhere.

It caused all of us to widen our eyes to the maximum...the most surprised was Uncle Alden.

“Helena informed it to us the moment she found about Camilla.”

“I’m sorry...but you just said sister already informed to you?! And I never knew…”, his face was distorted with confusion.

“As much as we wanted to let you all know…”, Grandma stopped with a sad face.

Grandpa then put his hands around her and continued the sentence.

“Helena didn’t want to reveal it in fear of having the family broken. Once she called us and cried for a whole three hours, explaining everything she uncovered."

“But why?! Why would Aunty want to hide it?!!”, Ethel screamed trying to find the reason.

“Because she was scared…”, I told.

Uncle, Aunt, and Ethel turned their head towards me. 

“Am I right...Grandpa, Grandma?!, I said while looking at them.

They nodded their heads slowly indicating that I was right.

“Hahaha…”, I let out laughter that had almost no energy.

“Arthur, wh...I don’t understand, tell me!”, Ethel screamed from the other end of the table.

“She was scared, Ethel. As grand as she might seem...at the core, she too is a human being. With her realizing her own death, she didn’t want to spoil the little time she had. She wanted to enjoy her life to the maximum and not leave with any regrets. And...that’s why she was apologizing to me to that extent.”

“No way…”, Ethel said while dropping into her chair.

“She was all alone…”, Uncle said with almost no life.

Aunt was trying her best to cheer up Uncle. The grandparents however were feeling guilty...guilty for feigning ignorance all this while.

And my mother...she was all alone. She had almost no one to lean on, because since everyone loved her greatly, even if she does break the secret to someone...it would just cause problem, and end up with widespread depression.

But, that means...she was all alone...all because of him...my father!!

So that’s why she going on about being selfish. Because she didn’t inform me of his cheating...because she wanted to enjoy the short-lived peace.

“Haha…”

“Arthur?”

“Hahahaha~!!”

“Is something wrong?”

It’s alright mother!! You were not in the wrong...no, not at all!! In fact, any human being in your place would have acted in the same way. You didn’t need to apologize to me at all!!

“Haaah...Ethel, please guide me to your Meditating room. I will need provisions for atleast 4”

“4 days?!”

“Yep...I apologize, Aunty and my dear grandparents. I need to use all the time I have. I don’t think I will have any time to spend this time around.”

“No, it’s alright. You can use this mansion however you please.”, Aunty said.

“Uncle…”, I cautiously said to him.

“...”, his eyes were bloodshot with anger, I could tell he was already planning on atleast taking both legs from father.

“5 days. Just hold on for 5 days, after which we can torture him till the end of time.”, I said while beaming my brightest smile in a while.

“Arthur?”, he said while looking stupified at my statement.

“We can’t just straight up take his arm or legs, now can we? Mother would definitely not want that, but something better than that…”

“Something better than that?”, he repeated while looking a bit brighter.

“Yes...just wait for five days. We’ll make him repay every bit of pain he made mother go through.”

With his approval, I made my way to my room.

On my way, I also made a call to a special someone.

“Hello?”

“Grandpa Fred. How are you?”

“Arthur?! Where are you right now?! Augustus called me several times asking about your whereabouts.”

“Oh, I’m in a place where I feel at home.”

“Arthur…”

“You knew, didn’t you?”

“About wh…*sigh*...yeah, I did.”

“Even grandmother too, right?”

“No...I mean, yes...but believe me, Gloria had nothi-”

“It was weird, I mean...if it’s the previous Emperor, he should still have access to The Cubicle. You know, the guys who always manage to sniff out all the rumors across the Empire. You knew everything, but still chose to stay quiet.”

“Arthur, I apologize...but, at least come back to the pala-”

“Put the phone on speaker. I bet Grandma is near you.”

“How...fine. There, it is on speaker.”

“Arthur, dear?...How are you?! Come back to the palace...please we will help-”

“Listen to me, Grandparents.”

“...”

“You know that your son is in the wrong, yet you chose him to support him...rather than my mother. A parent’s love, huh. Nothing wrong with that...but does that mean, I should stay silent and listen to every bit of crap that emerges out of his mouth?”

*SILENCE*

“Arthur, dear...please calm down...we’ll talk through-”

“Choose...it’s either your grandkid or your own son.”

“How can we choos-”

“It’s either Augustus or Arthur. Don’t worry, I’ll educate him, though very slowly over the years...and guess what, I’ll even throw in a bonus. I’ll take care of your other grandkids too...I’ll make sure that they don’t end up like your son did. Alright?”

“Arthur, please...just what do you expect us-”

“Stay out of it. Stay out of this problem, don’t even think about helping your son by trying to control the media. You can at least do that much, right? You just have to stay still like before...when you both chose to stay quiet even after knowing about what he did. You just have to continue what you used to do...nothing difficult.”

“...”

“I still hold respect towards you two. Please keep that in mind before replying.”

“...fine, we both will stay out of this. But after this-”

“Yes Yes, I will visit you two...don’t worry, I’ll still continue to be your grandkid. And with that, I will be signing out! Make sure to take your tablets regularly, I have no intention of losing another family member.”

*BEEP*

“Arthur, If you were ever to be forced into a situation where you have to choose from the given options...you don’t need to do it. There’s always another way in life, if you don’t like the options...then just create a new one.”

Of course, Mother. I am done playing the role of a sweet and mature Prince.

“Just be yourselves. If you start faking your character...after a period of time, even you won’t be able to tell apart the fake from the real one.”

As you said, I will be myself. No more restrains...no more holding back in consideration of the face.

“Haha~ This is the clearest I have ever felt in a while.”

*******************************************************************

“Arthur talked with you?! When?!”, the surprised Augustus asked his father.

“About five days ago. I am pretty sure he will here today. He might have already boarded his plane.”, said Fred Zemira, the former Emperor of Zemira.

“What did he say?! Was he angry?!”, questioned Camilla from one corner of the room.

Both William and Diana were in their respective rooms.

Even if he preferred Helena over Camilla, Fred knows that the position of Empress has to filled quickly, and the only perfect candidate for it is Camilla.

“He wasn’t angry…or rather I don’t know. He was calm...maybe too calm...but he also ordered me and Gloria to-”

“TO?!”, intervene Augustus.

“To stay out of this problem…”, replied Gloria, the former Empress of Zemira.

She is someone who absolutely adores her grandchildren, especially Arthur. So the current state of matters concerns her greatly.

“...to stay out of the problem? What else did he say?”, Augustus pressed for more answers.

“Augustus, don’t you realize that you and Camilla are the only reason we are going through this problem?! I told you!! I specifically told you to atleast take in Camilla as a concubine...but you...you refused saying that it would hurt Helena!!”, Fred burst into a fit of anger.

“...but…”

“Shut up!! Your child, Arthur told us to choose…”

“Choose?”, Camilla asked.

“He told me to choose between Arthur and Augustus!!”

“...what the hell?”, Augustus whispered in surprise.

“But even when we chose to support him...he just said us stay quiet like we always did!! That means he wants us to get out of the matters of the palace!! In layman’s terms, he told...no ordered us to retire from our position and just enjoy our life with the grandkids!”, Gloria screamed in anger at Augustus.

“Aren’t you looking too much into it? He is just a 10-year-old kid…”, Camilla said to them while handing Gloria a glass of water.

*GULP* *GULP*

“Camilla, I’ve always warned you...and I still am. Arthur is the same to same, ditto copy of Helena. And moreover, he is someone who Helena trained right from the day he started walking! Don’t ever look down on him!! He is not just some kid who knows how to wield a sword...if he wants, I can guarantee you that you would lose the civil war...if one ever were to happen.”, Gloria continued.

Remembering the fear she felt 5 days ago at The Cogni, Camilla was forced to catch hold of her trembling hands.

“...what will you do?”, Augustus asked 

“We? We will do just as he says...we will be moving to the house the Prorin’s built for us. It’s better to stay with Rio and Ava right now. As for you...try to talk with Arthur. Remember that Helena has taught everything she knows about politics to Arthur. And with his memory, we can rest assured that he remembers everything.”, warned Fred. 

“I will keep that in mind…”, Augustus said in a low tone.

“Have you invited all the others?”, asked Gloria to Camilla.

“I did...but do we really need to have the important heads here? Wasn’t this supposed to be a meeting between son and father?”, the confused Camilla asked Gloria.

“Arthur is someone who cares about his mother’s image...he wouldn’t do something rash in front of the other nobles. And you said a meeting between son and father? If I’m correct, that relation is long gone. Today is a meeting enemies...one who cheated on his wife and one who cares about his mother. Camilla let me tell you an incident…”, 

“An incident?”

“Yes...there was once a maid who worked in the palace for about 11 years. She was related to someone who Helena ordered to be hanged. What do you think she did? After waiting in patience for all these years, she decided to poison Helena...of course, in front of Arthur. Helena knew about this too...the knights were waiting to catch her red-handed. Arthur on the other hand didn’t know anything.”

“What happened?”, curiously asked Camilla.

“She was killed, of course. But by whom?”, asked Gloria looking towards Augustus.

“Arthur...Arthur killed her. With nothing but a fork. With the smell of poison raising from both the food and her body...Arthur mercilessly drove a fork into her throat and flung her out of the balcony they were in. Both the knights and Helena were surprised…”

“...”, Camilla remembered just how much she was in danger that day.

Her Majesty never told me about this!!

“So, tell William to calm down. He might be strong, but not enough to match Arthur. I understand his anger...it might be difficult to stay still after having to know that your mother was handled in the wrong way. But you were completely in the wrong...In what mind did you go to The Cogni? If something happened in there...even we would have a tough time to help you”, Gloria warned again.

But I just wanted to give him the book!

Thought Camilla in her mind.

“Haah...good luck. We won’t be attending the meeting. This will be the last help you will ever get from us.”, Fred and Gloria walked out of the room with heavy steps.

“...Haaah...I just hope everything goes smoothly…come one, let’s get ready...he will be here in a few hours.”, Augustus said with a dark, worn-out look on his face.

****************************************************************************************

“Dad, where are you going?”, asked a girl with platinum blonde hair and azure blue eyes.

“Fiona...I am heading to the palace right now.”, said a man with similar platinum blonde hair.

“Can I come too? It’s been a while since I’ve seen His Highness.”, she asked with glittering bright eyes.

“Ahem...maybe a latter-day. Today we have a meeting with the Emperor...if you want to go out somewhere...I can ask the knights to accompany you.”

“Ehhh~~ Then it’s fine...you can go. I’ll be with mommy and Silas.”

“Alright then...bye!!”

“Bye father!”, Fiona who was strangely taller than most of the other girls of her age ran inside the mansion.

Rather than to her mom as she told...she headed straight to her room.

“It changed...the appearance of William is just like I saw in the dream...but Arthur, he disappeared for the past few days.”

The girl whispered while taking her stylus and drew what seemed to be a blueprint.

“I have to survive...I don’t care what happens to others…”

In the darkroom, with a large table which had all of its top covered with a screen...Fiona started working.

Looking at the room from the pathway...Duke of Hastings, Landon Hastings who was also the Prime Minister, thought to himself.

Thank god she seems to be fine. I still vividly remember the day when she came crying holding her neck...all while screaming

“I...I’m dying!! Someone save me!! My neck!! Please….someone save me!! It pains!!!”

The girl ran all over the mansion screaming in pain. It caused great stress and confusion between the Hasting’s couple.

Even the doctor said it was probably a bad nightmare. There was no apparent harm on her body. Probably psychological. She returned to normal after a few days, though her eyes were still tired and exhausted.

“But what’s weird is...she became more interested in money and rumors related to the palace.”

Landon was always worried that with how brilliant Fiona was from a young age...that it would at one point isolate her from the rest of the world.

“And that’s when His Highness Arthur invited her to the palace…”

That was also the first time when Fiona acknowledged someone their knowledge.

“Haha~ losing was new to her at that point...she started learning even more. But she was never interested in money-related matters.”

I wonder what she is gonna do~

Landon unlike Augustus is someone who absolutely cherished his family. Being the second most powerful man in the Empire, he would do anything to keep his family happy.

His one entertainment was to enjoy all the crazy things his daughter would pull off.

“Now...to the palace…*SIGH*...”

Landon absolutely despised the current mood that was circulating in the palace. And now, the Emperor invited all the important heads to the palace.

“It’s gonna be a day where both the fate of Prince Arthur and Prince William changes.”

Minutes later, about a dozen cars left the mansion of the Hastings in the capital heading to the Palace.

The same happened among all other important noble mansions. 

The people were naturally worried. This movement which consisted of some of the most powerful identities led to massive unrest between the common people and media.

“We are finally here…”, said a black-haired boy with crimson red eyes getting down from his private jet.