The 3rd Prince of the Fallen Kingdom Returns

1. Regression (1)

Yuri absentmindedly ran his hand through his hair.

Standing before his eyes was his father, who had died long ago.

He looked exactly the same as he did in the past.

One possibility came to mind.

Could it be that he had died and gone to heaven?

No, it couldn’t be. He could never have ended up in heaven. Did that mean his father had fallen into hell?

Well, considering how much his father prided himself on his honor, he had lived a rather indulgent life.

“Ah…”

Hot tears streamed down his cheeks.

The King and the Prince had fallen into hell side by side—such was the tragedy of the Briol Royal Family.

“Father…”

As they had said in the temple, death was not the end.

Could it be that the sins of the past followed one’s soul into the afterlife, condemning it? To meet his father in hell—was there a punishment worse than this?

“So, you’ve ended up in hell after all…”

“Huh?”

“Honor, honor… You should have practiced what you preached instead of just talking about it…”

At first, his father seemed flustered, but in the end, he hit Yuri on the head as he always used to.

“What nonsense are you talking about now?”

“You still haven’t fixed that habit of hitting, even in hell!”

“What on earth is the matter with you?”

“Repent!”

Shouting in protest, Yuri suddenly realized that the surroundings were surprisingly mundane.

No purgatory flames were burning, nor were there sinners writhing in agony, from being pierced by spears.

It was a place both unfamiliar and familiar; it was the Royal Palace he knew from the past.

And there were no demons to mock and torment them.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Standing there was Ena, his personal maid who had always taken care of him.

“Your Majesty, hitting someone on the head is a bad habit.”

His swordsmanship instructor, Bernard, sighed heavily.

“Yuri, are you alright?”

Cedric, his eldest brother and a saintly figure who would never end up in hell, was looking at him with concern.

The others were debatable, but at the very least, Cedric was someone whose holy soul could never fall into hell.

Only then did Yuri consider another possibility.

“Could it be…”

Yuri slowly turned his gaze to the four pairs of eyes watching him.

And then, he lost consciousness.

***

At first, he thought it might be a dream, or perhaps a long flashback.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t wake up, nor did the world end.

Instead, the old events, buried deep in his memories, repeated themselves exactly as they had before.

Yuri had no choice but to accept it.

He had returned to the past.

To the spring of the year, when he turned thirteen.

“Your Highness, Your Highness.”

Ena shook Yuri’s body as he squirmed in the bed.

“What is it?”

“It’s time for your swordsmanship training.”

“I’m not doing that.”

“You might get scolded by your father.”

“I’m strong even without any training.”

“Stop talking nonsense in your sleep.”

Yuri brushed aside Ena’s hand and abruptly sat up.

“Ah…!”

“Your Highness?”

Did he really think that by turning back time, he could fix everything?

No, that wasn’t it.

Humans don’t change easily.

As if pulled by inertia, he found himself slipping back into the same troublesome prince he had been.

Where was the remorseful sinner Yuri, the one who regretted his past life and groaned under the weight of his mistakes?

“Damn it…”

His heart pounded.

Had returning to the body of a child caused his mind to regress as well?

Returning to the past didn’t erase his sins. On the contrary, an even harsher punishment likely awaited him.

He could excuse one lifetime as a mistake, but if he wasted this life as well, it would truly be a grave sin.

A chill ran down his spine.

“When did I lose consciousness while spouting nonsense?”

“Three days ago.”

“Three days!”

Yuri jumped out of bed and clutched his head.

Ena, as if used to his antics, merely shrugged her shoulders.

“Ena.”

“Yes?”

He looked at Ena.

Her eyes were innocent and pure.

What kind of fate had this sweet and kind Ena met?

Yuri closed his eyes tightly and declared:

“Slap me on the cheek.”

“Pardon?”

“Three times!”

Ena’s eyes widened.

“Your Highness, are you asking me to commit treason?”

“It’s not treason if I ordered it.”

“Are you planning to use this as an excuse to fire me?”

“That’s not it, either.”

“Then you must be planning to slap me back, saying ‘This is the right thing to do,’ huh?”

“Absolutely not!”

She couldn’t trust Yuri at all.

It was understandable.

He had been a troublemaker since childhood, committing all kinds of mischief as if to mock the sages who once preached the inherent goodness of humanity.

Despite that, he had been naturally gifted with exceptional intelligence, so he was never scolded for neglecting his studies or training.

But he had been lazy.

He had wasted his life.

He wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

He didn’t know whether it was God or someone else who had given him this opportunity, but Yuri swore he would never fail again in this life.

“Ena, listen carefully.”

“Yes.”

“I, Yuri, swear that no matter what if you slap me, I will never retaliate in any way.”

“Really?”

“I, Yuri Briol! Always keep my word.”

“So, I just have to slap you?”

“Of course….”

Smack!

Yuri’s face turned away.

“…!”

There was no hesitation in her hand.

Even though he had asked for it, a sense of injustice inexplicably welled up within him.

“Two more left.”

In front of him, Ena was loosening her shoulders with a faint smile on her face.

Yuri suddenly recalled something he had forgotten.

Ena had won first place in the women’s race at the Royal Palace Servants’ Sports Competition, and had also ranked highly in the arm-wrestling competition.

She was a skilled athlete, with abilities that seemed out of place for someone with such a delicate frame.

Ena squinted one eye and measured the distance.

“Your Highness, you should clench your jaw.”

“No, wait a minute…”

“You might hurt your teeth if I hit you wrong. You love meat, don’t you?”

“Ena, so…”

“Two more to go. You even swore an oath. I don’t want to do this, but for the sake of honor, I have to slap you with tears in my eyes.”

“Ah, no…”

“Yes.”

Two more slaps echoed through the air.

“…”

In the end, Yuri left the Royal Palace with his cheeks swollen.

Ena offered to apply medicine, but Yuri brushed her off and stormed out.

What was upsetting was that even though his cheeks were swollen, no one cared.

“Good morning, Your Highness. What kind of trouble are you planning to cause today?”

“Hello, Your Highness. You look as handsome as ever! Who did you torment today?”

“Your Highness, are you coming to play cards tonight? You have to get revenge on Sir Hernando!”

He had lived his life wrong.

Ignoring everyone, Yuri ran to the training grounds.

“You’ve arrived, Your Highness.”

Bernard, who had been swinging his sword alone, turned towards Yuri.

His gaze briefly flickered to Yuri’s swollen cheek before moving away.

“Let’s begin your training.”

Yuri caught the wooden sword Bernard tossed to him.

“…”

Yuri deliberately showed his swollen cheek to Bernard, but he didn’t even glance at it.

Once again, he felt a pang of bitterness.

Was this what his past had been like?

How had a mere thirteen-year-old boy lived to be treated with such disdain by everyone?

“Come at me.”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

Since Yuri turned thirteen, Bernard had stopped teaching him swordsmanship through posture and technique and began focusing on sparring.

It wasn’t just because Yuri had been uncooperative with his training; it was also because Yuri had learned too quickly.

‘If only the prince had been a little more diligent, he would have been the blessing of Briol.’

Yuri had once overheard Bernard say this to his father.

At the time, instead of trying to improve, Yuri had become even lazier.

His past was shameful.

“Bernard.”

Yuri raised his chin.

“Yes?”

“Promise me one thing.”

“What is it?”

“From today on.”

Yuri straightened his wooden sword.

“Teach me properly.”

A spark of interest appeared in Bernard’s eyes.

Yuri raised the corner of his mouth in a smirk and declared:

“I, Yuri Briol, will live ‘earnestly’ from now on.”

“…..”

“So, will you train me properly?”

Bernard tilted his head in confusion.

Yuri didn’t mind.

If he had learned anything from his past life, it was the futility of words.

The human heart is weak, and the tongue, only three inches long, can easily change its words as needed.

True sincerity, in the end, is proven through actions.

“Your Highness, I don’t know what has gotten into you, but…”

Bernard nodded.

“I understand.”

His demeanor changed.

“…”

The true nature of Bernard, the Sword Demon who had stirred up a bloodbath searching for stronger opponents until he was defeated by the King of Briol, was revealed.

In other words, it was too much for a thirteen-year-old boy to handle.

Yuri instinctively opened his mouth.

“Wait…”

But Bernard didn’t stop.

The wooden sword struck down on him from all directions.

It was a swordsmanship that lived and breathed like the tongue of a serpent.

For Yuri, who hadn’t even mastered the Mana Method yet, it was far too much to handle.

So he crouched down.

Bernard raised an eyebrow.

“Oh…”

In his past life, Yuri was a seasoned mercenary.

He wandered the battlefields, honing his swordsmanship solely for killing. He had forgotten all the techniques for showing off and mocking the enemy.

To face an overwhelmingly strong opponent, one had to eliminate unnecessary movements and minimize damage.

He discarded what he couldn’t block and parried only what he could defend against.

“Bernard, is this all you’ve got? Are you not a Sword Demon, but a fool?”

Yuri deliberately provoked him.

Provoking your opponent is the simplest and most effective strategy. Stirring up emotions inevitably creates openings.

Yuri waited for Bernard to show one moment of weakness.

“Are you provoking me?”

It was going according to Yuri’s plan.

Bernard nodded and intensified his assault with an even fiercer aura.

And then…

“W-wait. Bernard.”

Bernard was too strong for Yuri’s childlike body to handle.

Though there were openings, Yuri lacked the skill to strike them. Every time he tried to discard what he couldn’t block, he was forced to compensate with his body.

“Wait!”

“What’s the matter?”

“I think I’ve gone too far with my words.”

“You realize this now.”

“As the Prince of Briol, I apologize. I take it back. I’ve always admired the reputation of the Sword Demon…”

“I can’t hear you.”

“Wait a moment.”

Then Bernard unleashed an astonishing technique, striking dozens of blows in an instant.

It was, quite literally, a beating.

Five minutes felt like five years.

“Huff, huff…”

Yuri collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily.

It was painful.

But he felt good.

The physical pain seemed to ease the guilt from his past life.

Just before he collapsed completely, Yuri looked up at the sky.

The vast expanse of the sky stretched out before him.

After the fall of the Royal Family, he had always kept his gaze fixed on the ground as he walked.

This was a new life.

A chance to atone for his mistakes.

For the first time, he fully realized that he had returned to the past.

Yuri reached out toward the sky.

“I’m alive.”

He muttered those words, and then lost consciousness.

“…”

Bernard looked down at the collapsed Yuri with a strange expression in his eyes.

***

A week had passed since he returned to the past.

Rumors of Yuri’s transformation began to spread through the Royal Palace.

The person who felt this change the most was Ena, the maid who had always been by his side.

“Your Highness.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m proud of you, Your Highness.”

Ena said as she handed a towel to Yuri, who had just returned from his physical training early in the morning.

“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”

“What do you mean ‘all of a sudden’? This is the first time I’ve ever said I’m proud of you, Your Highness.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll be saying it so much, you’ll get tired of it.”

“That’s highly unlikely.”

“Well, let’s hear it. What part of me makes you proud?”

“…”

Ena, who had been making an uneasy expression, soon smiled brightly.

“I heard you had quite a win yesterday?”

“Ah, the rumors have spread already.”

Recently, Yuri had been dominating the gambling scene with the card skills he learned back in his mercenary days.

“There’s a widespread rumor that Sir Hernando’s face turned pale.”

“I completely cleaned out his slush fund. He won’t be showing up at the gambling table for a while.”

“You’re amazing.”

“Hehehe…”

“So, how about giving a bonus to your loyal Ena?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“I have plans for it all.”

“I’m suddenly not proud of you anymore, Your Highness”

“You don’t mean that.”

Ena sighed deeply and handed Yuri a new set of clothes.

“And His Majesty has summoned you.”

“Why?”

Yuri flinched and looked up.

Had the fact that the prince had been active at the gambling tables reached his father’s ears?

It wasn’t fair.

Didn’t his father personally visit the casino under the guise of going incognito?

He’d even heard that when his father suffered a significant loss, he suddenly changed his tune and cracked down on gambling under the pretense of enforcing regulations.

“Did I get caught?”

“No, it’s just that Count Johannes brought his son over.”

“Count Johannes?”

“Yes.”

“That lazy son of his, the one addicted to wearing those white clothes?”

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“That creepy, smirking one?”

“I didn’t hear that either.”

“His son’s the same, huh…”

Count Johannes, Tusen Bakbar, was an excellent knight, despite having rather peculiar preferences.

But he had completely messed up raising his children.

“Where is that bastard?”

His eldest son, Gote Bakbar.

In his past life, he was the traitorous scoundrel who betrayed the Kingdom and opened the gates for the Empire.