༺ The First Princess’s Visit ༻
An old man sat on a splendidly decorated golden throne.
His back was hunched, his complexion pale, and his body thin and gaunt. His eyes were sunken and lifeless. The old man seemed to be suffering from extreme anxiety, his hands trembling frequently, and his body flinched at the slightest breeze.
This frail old man, reminiscent of a scarecrow on the verge of being blown away, was, indeed, the pinnacle of the Empire.
With a mere gesture, he could command countless people, and with just a single cough, he could behead a high-ranking noble. His position was above all, with limitless wealth and power. Yet, why did he look so pitiful?
What was he so worried about? What was tormenting him so?
First Princess Elaine, who turned ten that year, harbored these questions upon meeting her father for the first time. The appearance of the old man sitting on the throne looked more like a slave than an Emperor.
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The Emperor never showed his face, even at the birth of his children. The Imperial Descendants were separated even from their mothers and raised by nannies and servants. They only learned of the concept of parents through words. The term ‘my Father the Emperor’ felt all too distant.
When the children grew fond of a nanny, she was replaced with someone else. The same went for the servants. The Imperial Descendants were strictly forbidden from forming close bonds with anyone.
Their pleas not to be separated were in vain; the rules were always followed. Attachment and affection led to separation and farewell. Eventually, they stopped opening their hearts to servants.
The only exception was among the Imperial Siblings themselves.
Therefore, First Princess Elaine dearly loved her two little half-brothers. After all, in the ever-changing circle of people around them, the only constant was ‘family’.
But one day, the Emperor summoned his four children to the court.
A red silk path leading to the golden throne decorated the large hall. Numerous knights stood on either side with long swords and a boy knight stood next to the Emperor with his hand on the hilt of his sword.
It felt like a place meant for questioning criminals. First Princess Elaine was only ten and the Second and Third Princes were seven and six, respectively. The heavy security seemed excessive for such young children, who could not even swing a stick properly.
The old Emperor quietly observed his kneeling offspring.
Second Prince Irid read fear in the Emperor’s eyes. The Emperor was afraid of them.
Irid thought. Was he so afraid to step down from that golden throne? Enough to even fear not just anyone, but his own blood? Was power so bewitching?
Irid was pale with terror. Even the Emperor, who possessed so much, feared and was cautious against others. Then, it would be even easier for other people to feel the same. Maybe the nannies, servants, and perhaps even his Noonim and little brother might be vigilant of him someday……
Thus, his paranoia took root.
Third Prince Sledo saw tender concern in the Emperor’s eyes. The Emperor was worried about them.
Sledo thought. Maybe there was a reason he took so much from us, replaced our cherished servants, and never showed his face. Perhaps there were enemies targeting the Imperial Family.
Sledo made a decision. There was something that even the Emperor, who held so much in his grasp, was cautious and careful of. If there was such a threat, he had to become stronger. If he became an Übermensch who could overcome any obstacle in his way, there would be no reason for those he cared for to be taken away.
Thus, his obsession with training took root.
And First Princess Elaine felt………much from the Emperor’s eyes; a whirlwind of emotions, far too complex to define with a single word. Sometimes it was caution and other times it was sorrow. Occasionally there was worry, as well as love or futility.
She didn’t understand. She couldn’t. No matter how intelligent the First Princess was, she could not fathom why the Emperor of the Empire would go mad. She couldn’t discern which of the emotions in his eyes were genuine.
Yet, Elaine deeply remembered that gaze.
As the meeting ended, the old Emperor left his kin with just this advice.
“Survive…….Our bloodline must continue.”
It was a cryptic message.
Following this, First Princess Elaine continued to grow rapidly. She shared her love with her little brothers and did not neglect her training. She dispelled ignorance and defeated enemies. And now…….she was considered a leading contender in the succession for the Imperial Throne. That golden throne was ever so close.
She still could not understand the Emperor’s words and actions, but……
“Irid, my little brother.”
“……Noonim.”
“That wizard said it wasn’t Dimensional Travel Magic, but instead………Illusion Magic. About that…..Do you believe what you experienced was real?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
Irid’s silence lingered extensively. After much contemplation, he finally responded.
“I have chosen to believe it. Even if it was all a trick by that wizard from start to finish── My love for her remains unchanged.”
“If so……I truly hope it was real. I don’t want to see my baby brother crying, you know.”
“That’s my line. Going through Dimensional Travel, you said? After everything is concluded, don’t come crying and clinging to me.”
With that sharp retort, Irid strode away. First Princess Elaine watched his back, recalling their only audience with the Emperor long ago.
When she asked Irid if all that happened was fake….Right after that moment…..
The turmoil in her little brother’s eyes……shimmered with a similar hue to the old Emperor’s gaze: the color of a shackled slave.
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“I shall demonstrate Illusion Magic, First Princess.”
“Very well. Begin.”
“Everything is fiction. It has no relation to actual events, purely a product of imagination.”
“I understand.”
“After four hours in real-time, I shall call for Your Highness again. I shall leave a mark on your wrist so you can recognize the time to return.”
The First Princess quietly nodded and laid down on the magic circle. If asked what she thought, she would answer that she was more skeptical than not. Wasn’t just a reasonably well-crafted Illusion Magic by the wizard, just as he claimed? And so…..
This was a test.
In the letter she had sent previously, she wrote ‘I enjoy combat’. The image of her smashing the heads of monsters on the Eastern Battlefront would add to its credibility. The wizard would likely believe it.
If all this was just an Illusion crafted by the wizard, then he would show an illusion filled with battles. If so, she would break out of the illusion and destroy him.
She did not mean in the literal sense of destroying him physically. After all, fighting the Purple Magic Tower Master was suicidal. The First Princess had succeeded in Metamorphosis but had not yet entered Sublimation. To engage in a fight and overcome the difference in realms, she would have needed to bring the Holy Sword from the Imperial Family’s treasury.
Instead, she planned to destroy him politically. Using the charge of defamation against the Imperial Family as a pretext to negotiate, she aimed to further strengthen her claim to the throne with the Purple Magic Tower’s support.
Even if it turned out to be actual Dimensional Magic, there was no loss to be incurred.
After experiencing the event, Irid had changed into a completely different man. He seemed to have overcome the trauma from their audience with the Emperor. He began to trust people more and moved more passionately; truly, a happy development.
If it was indeed Dimensional Magic that bestowed ‘Trials of Fate’ as Irid claimed……..if that was really the case. Then, she could grow. Needless to say, if overcoming the trial meant finding a clue to Sublimation, she couldn’t have asked for more. She did not even consider the possibility of failure.
The magic activated. The TRPG had begun.
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A vast plain.
An ash-gray expanse stretched to the horizon. The wind mixed with the dust of crushed rock scratched the skin. The sky looked overcast, as if covered by a dark filter. Occasionally, giant monsters flew by.
First Princess Elaine climbed atop a high rock to survey her surroundings.
She saw monsters roaming the land, their forms a mixture of various animals or grotesquely twisted. At face value, they resembled denizens of the Demon Realm, but they weren’t as strong. At best, they were comparable to ogres.
Elaine had once taken a hit from an ogre’s club and killed it with a single punch to the abdomen.
The monsters she had so far encountered here had met similar fates.
The blowing wind, the damp smell, the strange stick sensation of the slime that came from the monsters she killed. Even the rough texture of the earth under her bare feet. Everything felt far too real to believe it was just an illusion.
As per her request in the letter, so far, it had solely been a series of consecutive battles. Doubts inevitably arose. Elaine leaned more towards believing that this world was just an illusion.
Would she spend the entire time here just hunting monsters until it ended?
If that was the case, it would have been nice if it was at least a tense battle──.
Right as she thought this, she saw the figure of a human in the distance. First Princess Elaine focused mana into her eyes. It was a boy, about 160cm tall. He was wearing goggles, perhaps to protect his eyes from the dusty wind.
Blond hair with green eyes. Though his face was cute, his expression and gaze revealed a strong resolve. And a beauty mark was dotted perfectly in the most appropriate location.
“……Oh my?”
His appearance was to her liking.
For a brief moment, the First Princess wished this world was indeed real.
