ALL NOVEL Chapter 41
“Was it the attending physician for Acella? George, what was it again?”
George blatantly ignored me and sneered.
I smiled brightly at him and replied.
“It’s Gothberg. It would be nice if you could remember that from now on.”
“So, what were you thinking, daring to speak up and interrupt the performance when I didn’t even call for you? Can’t Acella train her subordinates properly?”
I folded my arms and asked him.
“You’ve been watching the Royal Princess’s magic demonstration. Do you happen to know what problem just occurred?”
“What? That?”
George frowned.
With no understanding of magic, he probably just liked seeing the Emperor’s reaction.
“There are a few types of space-type magic.”
The previously silent First Royal Princess Heike finally spoke up softly.
“For example, Bringer cannot take objects owned by others, and Summon only calls forth contracted spirits. What Acella showed was completely new magic.”
Heike shot a sharp glare at me.
“Attending physician, do you know where that magic is dangerous?”
I pinpointed the core issue in my response.
“It’s magic that can instantly bring any creature next to the caster. The important point is that it brings living beings, not just objects.”
“Looks like you’re well-educated for an attending physician.”
Heike nodded.
“Imagine if that magic became widespread. If someone were to kidnap His Majesty the Emperor from a hostile nation, it could threaten the throne at any moment.”
Lau nodded as if he finally understood after Heike’s explanation. Heike continued.
“Moreover, the summoning was of a hatchling from a formidable dragon—a demon that only dwells in the middle realm. It’s certainly clear that the range is extraordinarily vast.”
Heike shot a resolute gaze.
Emboldened, George swept his hair back and boasted.
“Yeah, that’s what I mean. What if Acella betrays the Empire?”
“Princess is a member of the Imperial family. The one she would betray is…”
I emphasized my point.
“Only a rogue who babbles frivolously without any knowledge.”
“Pfft.”
Lau burst out laughing at my mockery. George glanced around, not getting it.
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s about me. I often get scolded by the Royal Princess for my frivolous attitude. But, Your Highness the Prince…”
I took a step closer.
Right up to George.
Speaking in a voice only Acella’s siblings could hear.
“Is that kind of attitude really okay? What if you suffered a serious injury and Falkenhayn isn’t there to assist you?”
Finally grasping my intent, George’s expression hardened.
Cold fury manifested on his face.
“Are you threatening me, the Imperial family’s attending physician?”
“What are you talking about? As a physician, I was merely offering sincere advice for the safety of your highness.”
I ingrained it in him with a smirk.
Acella and I aren’t at a level to be mocked by you.
“If our Royal Princess uses a new magic, His Highness will disappear without a sound. Don’t you wonder why the other princes are holding back their words?”
“What?!”
Fear flickered on George’s forehead.
Acella’s Recall magic.
Using that would allow one to summon and assassinate anyone, regardless of their escort, in an instant.
Though George seemed a bit rattled, he didn’t quite back down.
Rather, he fanned the flames of anger.
“That’s sacrilege. Attending physician, I’ll have your head for this!”
“Me? I don’t recall having made any sacrilegious statements or actions towards your highness.”
“You just did! How dare you threaten my life as the imperial prince?”
“Oh, did I? Lau, could you testify if I made any sacrilegious comments?”
Lau watched our confrontation and giggled as he replied.
“Umm, I’m not sure about that?”
“What…! No, there must be someone else who heard!”
George ground his teeth as he glanced around.
The only other succession rights holders who heard my words were all George’s enemies.
There’s no reason for them to cooperate with him.
“You, you…!”
George pointed at me, veins popping on his neck, but he couldn’t do anything else.
Being in the midst of enemy territory, it was a bizarre situation where I could openly attack him.
George’s dog-like bravado definitely needed to be dampened.
‘The Empire’s demise bad ending was caused by Acella’s hatred of the Imperial Palace.’
I need to get rid of any glaring elements immediately.
“Those two match! Ha, after all, Acella is the witch’s daughter. Betting on Acella to ascend as the next Emperor is just naïve for them to think that will happen!”
Wow, really?
“Soon the price of the talent implanted in Acella will consume her! When the Moonlight Palace collapses, I will surely take your head, attending physician!”
Something he said caught my attention.
So, George was aware of the second magical talent that had been implanted in Acella.
“Hm, your Highness’s talent, you say?”
“Yeah! The witch’s curse. It’s already destined for self-destruction without any intervention! You’re a foolish man.”
I wanted to hear a little more about this.
Wondering how to continue the conversation, I suddenly—
WHOOSH!!
The sky turned dark.
A huge shadow enveloped us.
“What…?”
George looked up in surprise.
A frantic shout accompanied the sound of a trumpet.
“Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!”
In an instant, the audience area turned into chaos.
The escort knights rushed in to take away the princes and princesses, while the common knights entered combat stances, and the physicians and attendants got tangled up in the commotion.
I didn’t know much, but this felt like the right time.
“Your Highness, it’s dangerous! Take cover!”
“Ugh?!”
Before the escort knights could reach, I jumped at George, pretending to protect him, and fell to the floor.
THUD!
“Ow!”
[Diagnosis activated]
[Injury status: Contusion]
[Injury location: Back of head]
I inadvertently tackled him. George slammed the back of his head hard onto the floor.
I’ll just apply some ointment later.
Our figures blended into the crowded scene.
Soon, the escort knights would come looking for us, so time was short.
As I held onto him tightly with both arms, he couldn’t move. He was as weak as I was.
“Ah! You crazy, crazy bastard!”
“Your Highness, if you answer just one question, I will speak favorably of you to Princess Acella.”
“What! What question?!”
He asked right away, indicating that he was probably quite afraid of Acella.
In this chaotic situation, adrenaline was probably surging high in him.
“How was the talent for magic implanted in Princess?”
At my question, George grinned widely.
“Hahaha, didn’t you know? Acella was made into a magical weapon from the start. I saw it with my own eyes when I was young. That’s why she’s not fit to be Emperor!”
“How was she made?”
George, evidently pumped full of adrenaline, shouted excitedly.
“They shoved it in! Empress Camilla used black magic to insert the soul of the great witch into her belly! Thus, she inherited both the talent and the curse!”
So that was it.
George had frequently mocked Acella, possibly because he was left terrified by what he had witnessed of the black magic from his childhood.
He might want to hide his own fear, but not knowing what a stronger Acella might do had him opt to support the Moonlight Palace financially.
“Thank you for the answer. Please take care and evacuate safely.”
I grabbed George by the collar and lifted him up.
“Your Highness will be safe here!”
I handed him over to the escort knights.
One mystery was solved.
Acella’s magical talent did not belong solely to her.
‘Black magic, huh.’
Magic of the demon race.
That curse must have made it impossible for my diagnosis to verify what she had.
But, putting aside trivialities for a moment.
It was time to find Acella.
*
After finishing her magic demonstration, Acella bit her lower lip.
Unintentionally, strength gripped both hands holding her wand.
‘…Ugh.’
At the same time, pain surged.
In her abdomen, lower left.
The high-ranking level 4 magic required far too much mana and concentration for Acella to use.
The more magic she used, the more the price of her talent would overwhelm her.
A stinging pain rendered her almost immobile, causing her thighs to tremble.
‘…Still, if His Majesty gives me a high score…’
It was worth enduring.
Acella gazed far into the audience where the Emperor sat.
Someone she had barely seen once a year, never having exchanged a single personal conversation with.
Only an old man she knew as her father through knowledge alone.
From the way his lips moved, she could easily surmise his thoughts.
—What a monster.
The Emperor shook his head as he looked down at Acella and returned to discussing with the princes.
‘Is that all?’
Acella lowered her gaze.
The other princes and princesses sitting in the stands.
George, Lau, Heike, Gunter.
They all feared her.
Though she thought she might receive at least a bit of recognition for showcasing new magic, she received nothing but scorn despite all her hard work, repetition, and preparation for today’s martial arts tournament.
‘…It hurts.’
Her stomach ached.
No, more than that.
She was angry at herself for harboring expectations from the royal family.
Now Enmity brewed against the Imperial House.
No brothers were here.
No relatives.
As for her mother… She’d decided to set that aside.
After all, she was the one who gave birth to and raised her.
If she became Emperor, a purging of the royal family for stable governance would naturally be accepted.
‘…No.’
That wasn’t it.
Perhaps she simply wished to see the whole Imperial Palace vanish.
The pain radiating from her abdomen made her sink into more negative thoughts.
Anger, hatred, and injustice invaded her very mind.
As that sticky sensation began to take hold,
“Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!”
Someone shouted, accompanied by the loud blare of an alarm horn.
All the knights gathered in the Colosseum jumped up and drew their swords.
The Emperor’s bodyguards rushed in to protect him and began to clear the area.
‘What’s going on?’
She quickly grasped the situation.
Before the knights could assume their combat stances, the sky turned pitch black,
WHOOSH!
A whirlwind rushed in, and a massive presence appeared above Acella’s head.
“…Ah.”
Witnessing its magnificence, Acella let out a short whimper.
A dragon exuding deathly mana, black mana, was flapping its enormous wings above the Colosseum.
“A DRAGON! A DRAGON HAS APPEARED!”
“Where did the dragon suddenly come from?!”
“It must have been summoned by the princess!”
The audience fell into chaos.
As the whirlwind created by the dragon blew Acella’s hair, she shook her head.
‘…No, it wasn’t me.’
She had no ability to summon such a gigantic dragon.
Could it be that someone saw her magic and managed to replicate it?
But unless someone was a great sorcerer, it would be impossible to grasp the combination of the spells by just watching.
Acella shook her head to clear her thoughts.
‘What’s important right now is…’
Understanding the situation and moving quickly was crucial.
Dragons thrive on mana-rich food.
With Seymour absent, Acella was the one most fitting in that regard.
Conversely, magic was also the most effective attack against dragons.
‘I…!’
Acella instinctively brandished her staff and cast a spell.
Forcing her rapidly dwindling mana through her burning magic circuits, she conjured ice spears.
BOOM BOOM BANG!!
The spears shot out towards the dragon.
Yet shallow attacks only enraged the beast.
‘What the—’
She couldn’t understand why a dragon had suddenly appeared in the sky.
She couldn’t comprehend why she was being so openly dismissed at a martial arts tournament she had prepared so hard for.
The reality that she wasn’t even allowed to express her frustration on her face solely because she was a princess also repulsed her.
…At this rate, perhaps it would be better if everything crumbled.
“Princess.”
Acella heard a voice in her ear.
A voice she heard every morning, noon, and night.
Acella too called out his name.
“Lars.”
“Yes, it’s me.”
Lars grasped Acella’s arm.