Trapped in a Game That Flopped

Chapter 132

Episode 132

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Kassel could not take his eyes off the woman standing precariously on the railing.

Even though he knew she was preparing to run away again, and that he had to catch her now.

He couldn't lift a single finger, as if he'd been bound by the magic the woman had cast.

Damn it.

Was it because of that brightly smiling face?

Thud.

A sound like something dropping echoed in his ears, and his heart began to pound unpleasantly.

"You can't catch me with a barrier like that, Your Highness."

Swoooosh.

The moment the woman finally dropped below the railing, along with a gust of wind.

Only then was he able to break free from the invisible restraint that had held him.

"...Shari!"

He forgot all about the play-acting he'd been doing to match her tune and ran forward, shouting her name.

But when he stretched out his hand and looked down below the railing, there was, like a lie, nothing there.

Nothing at all.

"Ha..."

Kassel, looking down at the distant arena floor, let out an empty laugh.

Two seconds for him to reach the railing.

At most, maybe three seconds.

In that time, the woman had vanished without a trace.

If she had fallen, there would have been an impact mark on the dirt floor, but seeing as there wasn't even that, she had clearly teleported the instant she fell.

His unpleasantly pounding heart began to slow.

He languidly swept back his hair, which had been mussed by the rough wind, and muttered.

"She has all sorts of ways of driving a man crazy."

Her words were right.

"You can't catch me with a barrier like that, Your Highness."

He couldn't catch the woman with this kind of method.

To catch sensitive and nimble prey, he had to be more patient.

And he needed to take his time to set a detailed, tight, and subtle... trap.

It seemed he had been too hasty this time.

"Tsk."

Kassel, who clicked his tongue, admitting his mistake, tilted his head and thought.

"...Why?"

He hadn't doubted for a second that the woman would participate in the tournament.

It was the natural course of action for a 'Hero' until now, and even if not...

His gaze flickered to the bizarrely shaped sword in his hand.

'I thought it was sufficient as bait.'

When he'd offered it as the tournament prize, imagining her freaking out had been quite enjoyable.

It was more bearable than he'd thought.

This whole boring and predictable process toward the 'end', that is.

But he was quite flustered when he received the report that she had appeared as royalty from another country.

If he hadn't given the order beforehand to check every woman entering the arena for the 'Blue Sapphire Brooch', he might not even have known she'd come.

Of course, seeing how she'd turned the tournament opening ceremony into a total mess afterward, it was impossible not to recognize her.

"Royalty of Solenia..."

The divine punishment dealt to the corrupt Pope, and the cursed doll imbued with the Saintess's soul.

And how 'The One Forsaken by God' had awakened his power and ascended to become the Pope.

There was a mountain of things to find out, but he put all of it aside and immersed himself solely in thoughts about the woman.

"Your Highness."

It was then.

Another knight in black armor ran quickly from the rooftop entrance and prostrated himself before him.

This was the man who had recognized the 'brooch' at the entrance and quickly reported about the woman.

"I have investigated what you commanded."

Kassel nodded. The knight then spoke again.

"Currently, the King of Solenia's direct descendants are a total of four sons and two daughters. The princesses are confirmed to be the eldest and the youngest."

"..."

"However, the first princess, the eldest, is known to have married into the Archduke's family of the Palus Duchy five years ago and has borne two children, and as for the youngest princess..."

The reporting knight's voice trailed off as he broke into a cold sweat.

He continued, his face pale.

"She is said to be a three-year-old child, born to a concubine the King of Solenia recently took."

"..."

"A-and... among all of Solenia's royalty, there was no one with the name 'Sari Song'."

"..."

"I-I apologize, my lord!"

Thud!

The knight, sensing the ominous aura from the Crown Prince, hurriedly knelt.

"I let an imposter into the arena based only on the brooch, without a proper confirmation process! Please mete out severe punishment...!"

"Ha."

The knight, who had confessed his guilt out of a knee-jerk fear, flinched and shut his mouth at the cold, dry laugh from above.

When he slowly raised his head, the Crown Prince, fortunately, was not looking at him.

He was just glaring fiercely into the air, muttering softly.

"Sari Song, Sari Song, Sari Song..."

"..."

"Song-sa-ri."

He'd had an inkling when he first heard the name the woman had given, but hearing the report on the Solenian royalty, he was beyond dumbfounded; he was appalled.

It was a name created without even trying to hide it, wasn't it?

Of course, if he hadn't given those orders.

To immediately report if a woman with pink hair, a Blue Sapphire Brooch, and a dazzlingly lovely, bewitching appearance showed up.

The average knight might have been deceived.

Solenia was not a close country to the Empire, and their diplomatic relations weren't very active.

"...For a royal name, it's so half-assed."

Thinking it was a good thing he'd set the trap in advance, Kassel muttered wryly.

But why?

He clearly found the woman's actions detestable, and yet he kept 'pfft, pfft'-ing, letting out dry laughs.

He figured he must be going crazy, too, from dealing with a madwoman.

Kassel let out a short sigh, roughly brushed back his mussed bangs, and finally spoke.

"Stand."

"Yes? Yes!"

The knight, who had been kneeling and awaiting his punishment, shot up, his face bright.

"The one I told you to watch."

"He has returned to his line and is preparing for the first test. We confirmed he is wearing Belisser's Eye, and he has not shown any suspicious movements so far."

"Keep watching him."

"Understood!"

"And block the entry of the Solenian royal party that's supposed to arrive tomorrow."

"Yes? H-how..."

"A shipwreck, or being pillaged by pirates. You bastards will find a way."

The knight, who had been standing at attention with his head bowed, was greatly flustered by the following words.

Of course, it wasn't difficult to orchestrate a shipwreck or use pirates to block their entry, as the Crown Prince had said.

But their counterparts were royalty. If anyone got hurt, it could blow up into a major diplomatic incident.

Kassel, who read the knight's thoughts as he hesitated, unable to answer, let out a faint, cold smile.

"His Majesty the Emperor will handle that much just fine."

"Ah..."

"He must be so bored, sitting on the throne all day doing nothing but chasing shadows. This unfilial son should at least create some non-existent state affairs for him."

"..."

"Isn't that right?"

The Crown Prince, who had been staring into the air, radiating a sharp aura, suddenly turned to the knight and asked.

An eerie feeling struck the knight, and he nodded hastily.

"Y-yes, that's right!"

"If you understand, go."

"As you command!"

After a short bow, the knight ran off quickly to carry out the order.

Kassel turned his gaze back to the distant empty air.

Sheathing the sword he was holding, he stretched that same hand out over the railing.

And he grasped at the empty air, grip.

As if seizing the brilliant pink hair and the fluttering hem of the dress that had been just within his reach.

"...It's easy to enter a net once, but it's always hard to get back out."

He glared at the empty air he had grasped and smiled fiercely.

"I'll play along with your little play. Go on, keep at it, Sari Song."

[Crown Prince Kassel Ludwig feels a very high level of affection for you.]

[Warning! If affection becomes abnormally high, trust and friendship can warp, and you may be classified as an object of obsession. Please be cautious!]

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

"Fuck, what was that?!"

I was back at my sweet home for the first time in a while, sprawled out on my bed, when a sudden chill made me shoot right up.

Damn it, the temple main quest was over.

And it had already been a day since I'd screwed over that detestable bastard Male Lead and made a perfect getaway.

I had no idea why I felt so ominous and uneasy.

Lost in confusion, I was wracking my brain to see if I'd missed something.

"Onni! Pwetty onni!"

Suddenly, with a clatter-bang-thud, someone came rushing up the stairs from the floor below.

There were only two people in this house who made that much noise.

One of them should be taking the first test of the tournament right now, so I chided her gently.

"Lucy. I told you not to play tag inside the house."

"Th-that's not it! Th-the egg! The egg... gasp, gasp!"

The adorable Lucy, having dashed up to the second floor, bent over and panted for a moment to catch her breath.

And then she delivered some rather surprising news.

"The egg haththed!"