Raising the Princess to Overcome Death

Chapter 214: Beggar Siblings - Night Sky

214. Beggar Siblings - Night Sky

“Have a good night, Prince.”

Leo nodded as he dismissed Gallen, who had been drinking with him. However, instead of going straight to bed, Leo sat in the quiet and very modest guest room of the church, finishing off the remaining wine and snacks. His thoughts were preoccupied with Lord Bart.

Blinded by revenge, he is a knight of exceptional skill who shows no mercy. As loyal as he is, Lord Bart reveals intense hostility whenever the Duke of Tertan is mentioned. Even after meeting me, his vengeful spirit wasn't solely because the duke caused him to lose his lord.

Comrades.

Whatever the reason, his comrades who shared hardships with him lost their lives while being pursued by the army raised by the Duke of Tertan. This was all Leo knew about Lord Bart's inner feelings.

I can't figure it out.

With the wine gone and even the snack crumbs eaten, Leo tidied up the cluttered table. To ventilate the heat of the rather warm early summer night, he opened the window and was about to go to bed when,

- Knock, knock.

Jenia Zachary was at the door. She knelt down respectfully in the dark hallway.“I'm sorry to bother you at this late hour. Princess Lena has requested your presence, Prince.”

Admittedly, it was a bit late. However, Leo simply said, “Lead the way,” pulling his hood over his head and following Jenia without further words. He only asked the reason after leaving the church and getting into the carriage Jenia had arrived in.

“What is it about?”

“I don't know either. She just mentioned that there's something to celebrate.”

...Lena must have told her not to reveal it.

Jenia Zachary was once again acting as Lena's guard. As the illegitimate daughter of Baron Zachary and a knight in the First Order, her skills in swordsmanship and etiquette were impeccable, making her an ideal companion for his sister.

Honestly, Leo would feel more at ease with Rev by her side, but Rev wasn't knighted and was too young to be an appropriate escort for a princess. Consequently, Rev, suddenly rendered unemployed, spent his time idly hovering around Lena.

According to him, people saw him as a sycophant who followed the prince after helping him once, hoping for a reward. Leo laughed it off.

Anyway, realizing that his sister called him to surprise him, Leo didn't ask further.

Instead, he posed trivial questions like “Is it tough guarding Lena?” and “Any interesting stories?” Since he had already heard the important ones last time.

Jenia began,

“Actually, the princess went out the day before yesterday. She seemed to enjoy herself a lot.”

She detailed how the princess stared at the palace for a long time and how she bought a cosmetics set from the Kingdom of Bellita only to find out it was a defective product, causing her to throw a fit.

Haha.

Is this another “event”? Something that always happens when Lena meets Jenia?

However, since nothing special happened last time or this time, Leo just nodded lightly. Soon, the carriage arrived at the Marquis of Arne's mansion.

The mansion of Marquis Arne, the northern frontier count of the Kingdom of Conrad and Leo's supporter, was located on Moritz Avenue, where many noble residences were concentrated. It was right across from the Duke of Tertan's mansion, making Leo think it was quite a coincidence.

After glancing at the duke's mansion shrouded in darkness, Leo turned and entered the mansion.

The Marquis of Arne's mansion had a unique aspect compared to other mansions.

The building was made of stone.

In Conrad Kingdom, where stone was extremely scarce, houses were typically built with brick and wood, making it an unusual sight. This was because his territory bordered the Aisel Kingdom, known as the Magic Kingdom. The stones used to build this mansion came from the Aisel Kingdom.

In fact, importing from the Orun Kingdom, which mostly consisted of mountainous terrain, would have been cheaper.

However, due to a subtle rivalry between the Orun and Conrad Kingdoms to flaunt their wealth, luxurious items like stone had sellers but no buyers.

The Arne family benefited greatly from this. Trading with the Magic Kingdom, they amassed significant wealth and proudly built their mansion from stone. The interior was also filled with exotic items from the Aisel Kingdom.

That said, belittling Marquis Arne as merely a lucky merchant would be a grave mistake. He was a noble with the most powerful fleet on the continent.

This fleet funded itself through whaling, hunting balaenas, except for the fleet owned by Count Oscar of the Holy Kingdom of Jerome, which had no match.

Honestly, what do we have to do with the sea... Leo thought as he shook hands with the slim, tanned Marquis Dennis Arne. Despite knowing proper etiquette, the marquis often chose not to follow it, having spent his youth with rough sailors.

“Welcome.”

“...So, it wasn't my sister who called me but you, Marquis.”

Despite his tanned skin, the marquis had a rather refined appearance and smiled gently. He shook his head and joked.

“No way. I wouldn't dare summon a prince. Please, follow me. The princess and a very welcome guest are waiting for you.”

The place Marquis Arne led Leo to was a small banquet hall. Judging by the half-burned candles, empty glasses, and plates on the long table, it seemed they had already celebrated among themselves. And there, still drinking, were Lena and...

“Allow me to introduce. This is Lystad Jegun Doroff. Lystad, this is Prince Leo de Yeriel.”

"... "Please, just call me Lystad Jegun Doroff.”

There was a magician. The middle-aged, unshaven man, whom Leo had seen briefly in the past, even while drunk, insisted on his full name. However, given the marquis's shrug and Lena's giggle, it seemed his wish was unlikely to be granted.

“Really...”

“Oh! Are you getting angry again? Don't forget, as punishment, you'll have to show us some magic. Brother, you're here? Please, have a seat.”

Leo greeted the magician and sat next to Lena, as she indicated. To avoid ruining the relaxed atmosphere, he kept silent, but he didn’t like seeing his sister playfully tapping the magician’s hand.

It wasn’t the first time he saw this.

Lena adjusted her manner of speaking and controlled the atmosphere depending on whom she met. However, instead of feeling proud as her brother, Leo felt uncomfortable. He had an inkling as to why his sister had changed like this.

[Achievement: Twenty Photos – Lena occasionally remembers the past faintly through dreams.]

In the flickering candlelight of the small banquet hall, Leo felt out of place among the marquis, the princess, and the magician, who were chatting and laughing.

‘You’ve become complacent, Leo de Yeriel.’

He took a deep breath, trying to suppress the persistent regret he felt. Shoving it down, he grasped his sister's hand under the table. Lena turned to him with a bright smile, asking, "Why?" but Leo couldn’t tell if her smile was genuine or fake.

“How did this happen? Why is the magician here?”

“It’s a long story.”

Lena lifted the necklace around her neck slightly. It was a white necklace with raised droplets and engraved letters, the same one the beggar siblings wore at the start of the scenario.

“I was curious about what this was.”

“Isn’t that our mother’s necklace?”

“Yes. But I was curious about the patterns and letters on it since I knew nothing about our mother. The droplets are indeed her personal emblem. But the letters have a different meaning. Marquis Arne told me they represent the Isadora Royal Family, the Cornel Tower, and the Jegun Faction.”

“Ah...”

Leo’s understanding was aided by the information about noble society.

Their mother, Ainass de Yeriel, who died giving birth to Lena, was a princess of the Aisel Kingdom. Her name before marrying into the Conrad Kingdom was ‘Ainass de Isadora,’ making her a princess of the Isadora Royal Family. The political structure of the Aisel Kingdom was incredibly complex.

A kingdom established by the exiled imperial family of the Arcaea Empire through numerous political marriages. The nobles, bound by blood to the royal family, wielded significant power. The Cornel Tower, the first mage tower that contributed to Aisel’s independence from the empire, had a strong influence on politics.

As a result, the royal power was weak, and the interests of the nobles intertwined with the royal family members were extremely complicated. Adding to this, the rivalry between the two main factions of the Cornel Tower, the Lydia Faction and the Jegun Faction, made Aisel’s political scene dangerously intense.

In short, their mother, Ainass de Isadora, was a princess tied to the Jegun Faction of the Cornel Tower.

Lena figured this out and thus involved Lystad Jegun Doroff, a magician who came to the Lutetia palace to earn money.

“No, it was Marquis Arne who brought the magician here, not me. I didn’t even know Mr. Lystad... I’m sorry. Can I call you that?”

“It's not the title that's the problem... fine, yes. You may call me that, Princess.”

“Thank you. I didn’t even know Mr. Lystad was here. If the marquis hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known he was from the Jegun Faction.”

“But it was you who asked about the magician contracted with the royal family. I didn’t do much.”

“Lystad. Jegun. Doroff. Please, marquis, call me by my full name.”

“But why do magicians use two surnames?”

Lena asked brightly, bursting into laughter, and the three resumed their conversation. Leo neither joined in nor paid attention to their chatter, instead recalling the ending of the 12th round where Lena became an enraged duke.

- Lena, born in the Lutetia palace... (abridged) ...merged the ducal houses and rose to the title of Duke Yeriel. She strategically got engaged to Vivian de Isadora, the first prince of the Aisel Kingdom, to reclaim the throne but was assassinated on her way to Aisel by assassins sent by the Grand Magician of the Lydia Faction, Angelica Lydia Kyrgyz. -

Leo didn’t know why Angelica ‘Lydia’ Kyrgyz killed Lena. However, if he and Lena were associated with the Jegun Faction, and so was Vivian de Isadora, it made sense.

Sigh.

None of that matters.

Shaking off his thoughts, Leo sincerely praised Lena for her achievement. She shrugged modestly, but it was indeed a significant accomplishment.

Prince Eric was finished.

With a countermeasure against Oriax in place and the current state of the knights lost to him, he had no way to survive. Moreover, with the magician responsible for the royal palace’s magical defenses on their side, the rebellion was as good as successful.

Bart and the necklace?

Lord Bart was supposed to return to Lutetia soon. Gallen had sent a messenger to the Noyar harbor months ago, so Leo could ask Bart once he arrived.

Leo lifted his head.

His sister had filled the gaps left by her inexperienced brother. Tomorrow, or rather today, since it was past midnight, he and his sister would safely reclaim their lineage. And then...

...this beggar sibling scenario would finally end.

‘......’

With his head still raised, Leo stared into space. Though it was a moment to be grateful, he felt no joy.

Lena. My poor sister.

He saw his sister, who had gotten up to leave, brush past Santian Rauno, her squire, who had been waiting outside all this time. On the way back to the church, Leo prayed to the heavens that this wouldn’t be the end, that it absolutely, absolutely shouldn’t end this way.

The night sky was pitch-black.