Now that Saul had set his goal, he first took stock of what he currently possessed.
He might have belonged to a lesser branch of the royal family, but he was still the king’s biological son.
There were fewer than ten people in the entire Kingdom of Darsen who could stand before Saul without lowering their heads.
At the very least, his status was incomparably better than it had been in his previous life as a low-ranking noble.
Next, Saul examined his own body carefully.
He was smaller and frailer than other children his age.
Fortunately, Saul was still young, and he was not suffering from any particular illness.
If he ate well and exercised diligently, he could become much healthier.
The problem was magic.
In his previous life, Roland had not been a magical genius, but he had at least been considered exceptionally talented.
Then what about the magical aptitude of his current body?
Generally speaking, magical prodigies began displaying their talent from an early age.
Saul had never shown any such signs.
In other words, Saul was not some ‘once-in-a-generation magical genius.’
However, all the magical knowledge from his previous life remained intact in his mind.
“There’s no point lamenting what I don’t have.”
For now, Saul decided to make the most of what he did possess.
Having made up his mind, Saul called for Gray.
“Gray. I’ve made a decision.”
“What is it, Your Highness?”
“I think I’ve been living like a frog in a well all this time.”
Gray blinked at Saul’s words.
“What do you mean...?”
“It took collapsing for me to realize it. I shouldn’t spend my entire life tucked away in a corner of the palace reading books. I want to gain different experiences, learn new things, and become someone useful.”
His desire to learn many things and become useful was sincere.
It simply had nothing to do with loyalty to the kingdom or his duties as a member of the royal family.
It was for his own personal revenge.
Still, Saul had not technically lied, and Gray’s expression brightened immediately.
“Is that truly how you feel?”
“Would that be all right?”
“Of course! Lady Sophia would have been overjoyed as well!”
Seeing Gray tear up as he even mentioned Saul’s deceased mother left Saul feeling somewhat bitter.
‘If Gray ever learned who I really am and what my goal is....’
Gray could have risen much further in life, yet his loyalty to Saul’s deceased mother and to Saul himself had kept him here.
If Gray learned about Saul’s previous life, he would undoubtedly be confused.
And hurt.
Unaware of Saul’s complicated thoughts, Gray asked enthusiastically,
“I will petition His Majesty immediately. What would you like to learn?”
“Hmm... first, I want to strengthen my body. After that, I suppose I’ll learn martial arts and magic.”
Gray looked surprised.
“Do you not wish to study politics or other academic subjects?”
Politics?
It was a field with which neither Saul nor Roland had ever had much involvement.
Of course, Roland had not been completely ignorant of politics.
For a low-ranking noble to rise in the world, he needed enough political sense to know which powerful person to attach himself to—or at the very least, enough to distinguish a sturdy rope from a rotten one.
That had been the extent of politics in Roland’s life.
It was merely the social awareness necessary to prevent politics from obstructing his advancement as a mage officer.
The same was true for Saul now.
Since he had been born a prince, he could choose to study politics and even aim for the succession to the throne.
But even if he intended to compete for the throne, now was not the time.
Saul’s mother was dead, and he had no powerful relatives. If he wanted to build a faction of his own, he first needed to distinguish himself somehow.
And the easiest way to do that would probably be through magic.
After all, he possessed the magical knowledge from his previous life.
‘I may have lived complacently until now, but not anymore. If I want revenge, I’ll have to become strong. And once I do, there will probably be plenty of people who come after me. I need strength just to protect myself.’
After organizing his thoughts, Saul spoke.
Bookworm
“I’m interested in magic. So make the necessary arrangements.”
“Y-Yes, Your Highness!”
Gray asked no further questions and immediately left to carry out Saul’s orders.
Saul gave a wry smile as he watched him go.
***
Alef, the Chief Royal Attendant, looked surprised when he received the message from the Ivory Palace.
“Prince Saul wishes to learn martial arts and magic?”
“That is correct.”
“What could have gotten into that bookworm of a prince?”
Alef had weathered every manner of hardship during his years as Chief Royal Attendant of the Darsen royal family. Stroking his snow-white mustache, he sank into thought.
He was well aware that Prince Saul had injured his head recently.
He had later heard that the prince had fully recovered, only for this request to arrive shortly afterward.
For the moment, Alef reported the matter to the king.
Not long afterward, King Maren summoned him.
“Your Majesty.”
Entering the king’s office, Alef bowed respectfully.
Neatly arranged documents were stacked atop an imposing desk.
Maren had been reading one of them. He set it down for a moment and spoke.
“I heard something interesting. Saul wishes to learn martial arts and magic?”
“Yes. His attendant, Gray, contacted me.”
“If it came from Gray, then there can be no mistake.”
Maren thought for a moment before letting out a faint chuckle.
Even Alef, who had served Maren for many years, sometimes found it difficult to understand the meaning behind the king’s smiles.
This was one of those times.
At moments like this, the correct response was simply to keep his mouth shut and remain still.
Maren spoke.
“I will arrange a gathering with my children soon. Have that boy attend as well.”
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
It meant that Maren intended to decide the matter concerning his son personally.
Having received his orders, Alef withdrew, and Maren returned his attention to the documents.
Yet even as he resumed dealing with affairs of state, Maren could not suppress his amusement.
“That frail boy suddenly wants to learn magic and martial arts? Heh. Live long enough, and you truly see everything.”
***
Father’s invitation came without warning.
“His Majesty has invited you to dinner two days from now.”
An ‘invitation’ from the king was synonymous with an ‘order.’
Unless one was suffering from a life-threatening illness, refusing an invitation to dine with the king was not an option.
Saul tensed when he first received the invitation, but he soon regained his composure.
There was no possibility that his father had somehow discovered his previous life and summoned him because of it.
When he thought about it, gatherings like this were not particularly unusual.
Even though his father was constantly occupied with his duties as king, he occasionally gathered his children so they could spend time together.
“Who will be attending?”
“I am told that several of the other princes and princesses will attend as well.”
“Understood.”
A dinner with not only Father, but also his brothers and sisters.
Before recovering his previous life’s memories, Saul had never particularly enjoyed such gatherings.
It was not because he had any siblings with whom he had an especially poor relationship.
But neither did he have any siblings with whom he shared a particularly close one.
“I’m not looking forward to it, but I can’t refuse the invitation anyway....”
Two days later, Saul headed for the Black Rose Palace, where the dinner was to be held.
It was primarily used by the king to entertain guests, and both its splendor and scale easily surpassed those of the Ivory Palace.
As its name suggested, decorations depicting black roses could be seen throughout the palace.
Saul had visited it several times before, but seeing the Black Rose Palace for the first time since recovering his previous life’s memories gave it a different sort of charm.
It is.
‘It certainly is a magnificent palace. In terms of sheer opulence, Darsen’s royal palace may even surpass Gamelda’s.’
Muttering inwardly, Saul entered the dining hall.
Someone had already arrived.
Recognizing him, Saul approached first and bowed his head.
“Brother. It’s been a while.”
The Fourth Prince of the Kingdom of Darsen.
Jonathan Darius, the brother immediately above Saul.
He was also, along with Saul, one of only two princes born to royal concubines.
Jonathan looked markedly different from Saul, who was smaller and thinner than most boys his age.
At twelve years old, Jonathan already had the build of a fifteen-year-old.
He was regarded as exceptionally talented with the sword, as though he had inherited the martial side of King Maren’s considerable talents in both scholarship and warfare.
Jonathan readily returned Saul’s greeting.
“Yes. It has been a while. Are you all right now?”
“Yes. I’ve fully recovered.”
“That’s what happens when you spend every waking moment shut away in the library. Why don’t you learn swordsmanship?”
“Yes. I’m thinking of learning both swordsmanship and magic.”
“A good decision. If you’re going to call yourself a prince, you should at least know how to defend yourself, even if you never go to war.”
Just as Saul remembered, Jonathan did not view him unfavorably.
Whenever they met, they exchanged greetings and a few cordial words.
Both Saul and Jonathan were sons of concubines.
The laws of the kingdom did not formally discriminate between children according to whether they were born to the queen or to concubines.
Legitimacy was important, but ability was considered even more important. Thus, children born to concubines were also granted succession rights, and with enough ability and political influence, they could rise to first place in the line of succession—in other words, become the Crown Prince.
But that was merely the principle.
In reality, princes born to concubines were disadvantaged in many ways compared with the queen’s children.
Sylvester Darius, the First Prince and son of the former queen, who was now deceased.
Charis Darius, the Second Prince and son of Jevia Darius, who had originally been a concubine but became the new queen after the former queen’s death.
Sylvester possessed the legitimacy of being both the First Prince and the son of a queen.
Charis was the son of the queen who was ‘currently alive.’
That was why most people in the kingdom believed one of those two would become the next king.
In the end, Saul and Jonathan were merely sons of concubines.
Perhaps because both were inevitably treated as standing one step lower by birth, Saul and Jonathan shared a certain sense of kinship.
As they spoke for a while, the dining hall doors opened.
Two princes entered.
At the sight of them, Saul and Jonathan bowed first.
“Brother.”
“Brother.”
The First Prince, Sylvester Darius.
The Second Prince, Charis Darius.
At nineteen and seventeen respectively, the two looked like young men, unlike the much younger Saul and Jonathan.
As the leading candidates for the throne, both had reportedly already entered the kingdom’s political arena.
The two princes, who had entered while conversing amicably, readily acknowledged Saul and Jonathan’s greetings.
“It has been a while.”
“Have you recovered from your injury?”
At Sylvester and Charis’s questions, Saul replied with his head lowered.
“Yes, I’ve fully recovered. Thank you, Brothers.”
Neither Sylvester nor Charis said anything more, merely nodding at Saul’s response.
The two princes were the king’s eldest and second sons, and unlike Saul and Jonathan, both were recognized as sons of queens.
Both within the royal family and among the nobility, most believed that either Sylvester or Charis would most likely become the next king.
Perhaps because of that, the relationship between Sylvester and Charis seemed anything but simple.
Their conversation sounded friendly enough, but their eyes told a different story.
They might not openly regard each other as enemies, but their wariness of one another was unmistakable.
From Saul’s perspective, it was a sight worth remembering.
The two leading candidates for the throne were wary of each other.
Perhaps he could make use of that someday.
Meanwhile, another person entered the dining hall.
A girl with glasses and a cold expression.
She was Lucia Darius, King Maren’s third child and eldest daughter, making her the First Princess of the kingdom.
Like Charis, she was the daughter of the current queen, Jevia Darius, and had therefore occupied an advantageous position in the line of succession from birth.
However, rather than seeking to enter politics, Lucia had joined the kingdom’s intelligence bureau.
Because of that, she was not currently considered a likely successor to the throne.
Lucia bowed first to her two elder brothers.
Saul and Jonathan also bowed to Lucia.
“It’s been a while, Sister.”
“It is good to see you, Sister.”
“Yes. It has been a while.”
As always, Lucia’s gaze was cold as she looked at Saul’s youthful face and Jonathan’s sturdy features.
It was almost difficult to believe that she was looking at her own blood relatives.
Even when she looked at her two elder brothers, who had far stronger claims to the throne than an insignificant prince like Saul, her gaze remained equally cold.