18: Chapter 10.1 Wouldn’t it have been fine even if the Common practice wasn’t necessarily there?
18: Chapter 10.1 Wouldn’t it have been fine even if the Common practice wasn’t necessarily there?
As I was carrying Andrew, I met the eyes of a delicate beauty with light purple hair and blue eyes.
Her name was Violet Luminaria.
She was a (former) princess from the royal family of the Beliel Kingdom, which bordered the western frontier of the Luminaria Empire, who had married into the Empire.
“Oh!
Mom!” “Y-Your Highness, the 2nd Imperial Prince!
I told you, you must use honorifics when we’re outside!” “Hm?
It’s fine, it’s just Older Brother and us here!” “Ah…
Ahh, Older Brother…
Goodness.” Oh, her face was turning deathly pale in real-time.
After I spun Andrew once in the air and set him down, her face color seemed about to match her hair color.
“I greet Her Imperial Highness, the 1st Imperial Consort.” “Yes…
Your Highness, have you been well?
It is very good to see such deep affection between you two.” Hmm…
seeing the corners of her lips tremble, I should probably restrain myself a bit in front of the 1st Imperial Consort.
“Hehe…
It’s only natural to look after one’s brother.” “That’s right…
You two are brothers, indeed you are brothers.” “It’s just because Andrew follows me so well.” “Hoho…
hohohoho!” “Hahahaha!” Hmm…
Awkward.
This exchange of ‘hahas’ and ‘hohos’ felt like we were just filling the silence with laughter when we had nothing to say.
When the laughter died down, only an awkward silence hung between us.
Just as I was about to head into the palace because I had nothing to say.
“Your Highness, the 1st Imperial Prince…
I have something urgent to discuss.
Might you have a moment?” “Hm?
Uh…
If it’s brief, that’s fine.
Andrew, you can eat later.
Go wash up first.” “?
Understood, Older Brother!” “Then, Your Highness, the 1st Imperial Prince, please follow me for a moment.” So Andrew left, and I followed the 1st Imperial Consort to her room.
‘What does she want to talk about…
Does she have a favor to ask of me?’ It didn’t seem likely that she would ask a favor of an eight-year-old me.
As I was blankly staring at the Imperial Consort, she suddenly knelt before me.
‘Huh?’ “Your Highness!
Please!
Please have mercy and spare that pitiful child!” ‘…
Huh?’ As I stood there, stunned into a stammering silence, the Imperial Consort bowed her head even lower and poured out her words.
“You two are brothers!
Brothers who share half their blood.
If you just let him live, we will live quietly.
I have no ambition whatsoever, please believe me!” “What…” “If you cannot believe me, the 2nd Imperial Prince and I will return to our homeland and never come back.
Please, have mercy!” I’m dizzy.
I racked my confused brain, trying to figure out how this trouble started.
A princess from a foreign country marries in – the Emperor ‘shanks’ his older brothers – she lives cautiously in an unfamiliar environment – she gives birth to a son – she’s living quietly, but her son starts hanging out with a lunatic who brutally stabbed an assassin at age five – he’s floating in the air, laughing ‘hehe’, oblivious to his mother’s turmoil – in her head, her son’s future is getting ‘shanked’ by me.
Well…
I figured it must have been a process something like that.
I mean, it’s not like I’m some blood-crazed maniac.
Why is she acting like this?
So, to correct the misunderstanding, I spoke.
“Goodness, Your Imperial Highness, the 1st Imperial Consort.
Please get up first.” “Yes…
Yes!” “What power do I possibly have for you to act like this?
I am still only eight years old.” “Hee-ik!” “To kill one’s own brother, such a thing should never happen.
It shouldn’t, and it won’t!” “That’s right!
You’re right!” “I promise, nothing like that will ever happen.” “Yes…
Yes!
Thank you!
Thank you!” I helped the Imperial Consort up and dusted off her skirt.
“Don’t you worry, hahahaha!” “….
Hohohoho….
hohohoho!” Phew…
I’m glad I seem to have cleared up another misunderstanding with my smile today.
*** And so the conversation ended, and the three of us finished our meal.
Her Imperial Highness the Consort’s hands trembled a little…
just a tiny bit, perhaps because she was so startled earlier, but she finished the meal without incident.
So, what am I doing now that the meal is over…
“Lily!
You really don’t feel anything, right?” “No, Your Highness.
I don’t feel any particular sense of discomfort.” Not being able to see color in the world was more troublesome than I could have ever imagined.
How should I put it?
The feeling of gradually becoming numb and a bit irritated?
If I couldn’t even see the color of mana, I probably would have become a bit hysterical…
That’s why there’s a magic I’ve been devising.
It’s about imbuing magic power with color and layering it onto my surroundings.
I’m researching it, thinking I might be able to see colors that way.
At first, I struggled with the process of imbuing magic power with color, but my grandfather helped me a lot with this part.
People who use mana possess a unique mana color, and these colors are usually the same as or similar to their eye color.
Fortunately, this is a fantasy world!
A place where you can’t survive if you’re not colorful.
Because of that, Grandfather invited me to the Magic Tower, and I was able to research various mages with different colors.
And since having visibility means being affected by light, I also practiced light magic diligently at the same time.
The result is now, I have Lily sitting down and I’m experimenting with a new magic.
“Lily, if anything feels strange, or hot, or cold, you have to tell me, okay?” “Y-Your Highness…
I’m going to be okay, right?
I haven’t even gotten married yet, sob sob…” …
You’ve been very busy, Lily.
‘I’ll make sure you live happily on a money cushion with a virtuous man…’ Anyway, I focused and furiously spun the Circle.
‘First, just the face color…’