Chapter 122 · A New Beginning

Beyond the barbed wire, countless people were visible. They were the Kalisan knights who had come to greet the prince. The Kalisan national flag and the banners of the Develo Knights were fluttering splendidly.

Seeing that dignified sight after so long made Basileo’s heart begin to pound violently. Father, and the knights who had cherished him as much as his father did, were right there!

A powerful barrier was cast over the barbed wire. It was a barrier that, if trespassed, would sound an alarm and burn the intruder to ashes.

“I will release the barrier.”

Roktania, who had come with the knights, spoke into a communication stone and approached a massive magical tool.

When he recited a complex activation word, the magical tool glowed and spun rapidly. Dozens of magic circles on the barbed wire shone and then disappeared. Whoosh—the sound of the barrier spell being lifted.

“Then, please take a look.”

Roktania, who had taught him briefly, bowed politely.

“…Thank you for everything.”

Basileo offered a formal reply and turned his back.

He slowly advanced toward the barbed wire. Step by step, he moved forward, then suddenly stopped.

Both sides were, of course, very surprised. They could not understand why the prince was doing that. The air froze in an instant.

The Santran side tensed, wondering why that prince was acting like that, whether it was some kind of trap, while the Kalisan side tensed, wondering if a curse had been placed on the prince, or if they had no intention of handing him over peacefully after all. It was a moment so tense that war could have broken out at any second.

There was only one reason he had stopped. Because of the girl he might never see again once he crossed this line.

‘Anastasia…’

He was appalled at himself. To think he was having such thoughts when the father he had missed so much was right before him!

His legs felt like lead. It was as if something was holding him back with great force.

He clenched his fists and thought inwardly.

‘I will… meet that child again. Somehow, I will meet her again.’

Having resolved that, he could finally lift his foot.

The chilly air eased a little once he passed through the gate safely.

A man with a solemn air, a black cloak lined with beast fur fluttering, approached him. It was the King of Kalisa, Pereus.

King Pereus was a handsome man with thick eyebrows, crisp eyes without double eyelids, a straight, high nose, and a broad forehead. His fiercely shining purple eyes and large build gave him the appearance of a wolf pack leader.

“Basileo, my son!”

King Pereus’s thick voice was trembling violently.

“…Father.”

He too felt his throat tighten.

“Congratulations on your return.”

King Pereus embraced him.

Basileo Ardeo Pereus, First Prince of Kalisa. It was a homecoming after nearly five years.

◇ ◆ ◇

Inside the carriage heading to Kalisa’s capital, Karcho.

“You’ve grown so thin.”

King Pereus spoke in a pained voice, looking at his son.

He thought his father would have been even more distressed if he had seen him a few months ago. Now he had gained quite a bit of weight.

“Tell me honestly. How did they treat you? How have you been all this time?”

Basileo hesitated. He did not want to upset his father over a past that could not be changed anyway. But facing his father’s serious eyes, he judged he could not gloss over it.

So he calmly explained what had happened.

“…Those bastards who deserve to be torn to pieces.”

After hearing everything, that was the first thing King Pereus said.

He was pale with fury and trembling. He looked ready to march on Santra at once.

Even the formal letters Basileo had sent made it clear he was not doing well, but the treatment had been beyond imagination. It was a miracle he had survived and grown up safely.

“No… The fault is more mine. I was the one who sent you there, and I was the one who couldn’t go rescue you.”

“It is not your fault, Father. And because I had learned portal magic, I was able to endure for several years.”

“If you had been caught, those bastards would have killed you on that pretext.”

At that moment, Basileo thought of Anastasia’s past life.

As his father said, he had been fated to be discovered by them eventually. It was also Anastasia who had changed that fate…

“Since you have returned safely, we can now prepare for war with peace of mind.”

“…!”

Basileo’s breath caught.

War.

They would have to fight a war someday. Like an unavoidable fate. But unlike before, his blood did not boil. Rather, it cooled.

“Please stop your father from invading Santra.”

Anastasia’s desperate voice echoed in his ears. Basileo recalled a question he had wanted to ask his father once he met him again.

“I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“The day you fought Princess Beatrice…”

Something that had always bothered him.

“Could you explain what happened then?”

King Pereus was silent for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth.

“I did not kill that princess.”

“…What?”

Basileo’s eyes went wide with shock.

“Then why did you not explain?”

“She had been struck by a very fatal curse. Santra concluded that only I could have cast such a curse.”

His father spoke coldly.

“Besides, we were at war. Explaining that I had not killed the princess would only have been laughable. They were mad with fury then and made many mistakes. That princess’s death was to our advantage.”

“…”

Her mother’s killer was not his father. Basileo felt the heavy weight on his heart lighten a little.

He gazed out the window, lost in thought. Then who on earth had killed Princess Beatrice?

◇ ◆ ◇

“Whoa!”

I kept marveling as I watched the ship I was on approach the dock.

“Cyrus, look! We’ve arrived! It’s Brilia!”

“Yes, yes. We’ve arrived. Finally, my suffering is coming to an end.”

Cyrus said indifferently, slinging the luggage over his shoulder. During the long sea voyage, Cyrus had grown quite haggard from looking after me.

“It’s hot, so hot!”

Brilia’s weather was very hot and humid. It was much hotter than Santra’s midsummer.

“How much longer to Eldina from here?”

“Quite a bit longer. About a month?”

“Ugh! Do I have to go through that seasickness again?!”

To settle in Eldina, several documents were needed, so we decided to stay in neighboring Brilia for the time being to prepare.

“There seem to be a lot of people at the pier. Can we find Cyrus’s sister?”

Cyrus’s sister had promised to come meet us.

“My sister is a very conspicuous person, so she won’t be hard to spot.”

The moment I stepped off onto the pier, an exotic fragrance wafted over me.

To think I’m in another country! The unease of leaving Santra was momentarily forgotten, and my heart pounded with excitement.

‘Oh my, I feel a little sorry for the people I left behind.’

I shook my head vigorously and made excuses inwardly.

‘I-it’s only natural to be excited since it’s a trip!’

Just then, a booming voice rang out from afar. It was a girl’s voice, and it was so loud it pierced my ears.

『Here, here! Hey! Cyrus!』

Cyrus turned his head and shouted.

『Emet!』

A girl with platinum-blonde hair and dark skin was waving her long arms vigorously toward us. As Cyrus had said, she stood out even among the crowd. Because she was wearing incredibly unconventional clothes that revealed more than they covered.

‘Siblings who are both exhibitionists?!’

You’d think I’d be used to it because of Cyrus, but I was still taken aback by the southern continent’s attire.

Cyrus didn’t seem to care much about her outfit. I thought he cherished his sister, so I expected him to be overjoyed, but his expression was somehow subtle.

Cyrus held my hand tightly and walked slowly toward her. He seemed to be hesitating—was that my imagination? His palm even felt a little sweaty.

『Cyrussss!』

Ah, so it really is a touching sibling reunion. Should I step aside…?

Just as I thought that.

『You bastard!』

Thwack!

“Kraaah!”

The girl delivered a flying kick to Cyrus. As he took a direct hit to the stomach and tumbled to the ground, she immediately began raining down kicks.

『Cough, cough! Hey! S-stop! You’re crazy!』

Um, was this not a touching reunion? Even enemies wouldn’t do this.

The Brilian people seemed easygoing, because they didn’t stop the violence even after witnessing it. They just laughed heartily and walked on.

『You little shit! You dared to abandon me and run off?!』

『Aaaah! I didn’t abandon you and run! I told you I’d go make money and come back!』

『You should have taken me with you, you bastard! Do you have any idea how much hell I went through being chased by debt collectors alone?!』

『But how could I sneak you into the delegation! You can’t even speak Santran!』

『There’s plenty else to do besides delegation work—it’s your fault for choosing the delegation!』

『Hey, are you going to act like this in front of the princess?』

Only then did the girl stop kicking and slowly turn to look at me.

『The princess?!』

The girl named Emet had a very cheerful impression up close. Her eyes were a pretty pink, and her slightly sharper-than-average fangs were cute. Her shoulder-length, fluffy lion mane was braided with colorful ornaments in a few strands, which looked stylish.

Above all…

‘Wow. Look at those abs.’

Most Santran women covered themselves up tightly, so I never saw abs. My eyes felt like they would pop out.

『Kyaaah!』

Emet stared at me blankly, then suddenly screamed.

『Is this lady the princess?!』

『Yes. I wrote that in the letter too, you idiot.』

『She’s so small I only just noticed!』

She circled around me, making a fuss.

『Whoa! Like a doll! Like a fairy! Like an angel!』

Cyrus sighed and introduced her.

“This is Emet Sohrab. My younger sister, as you know. She’s seventeen this year.”

『Nice to meet you, Emet. I’m Anastasia.』

When I greeted her, Emet clasped her hands as if in prayer and stammered in awkward Santran.

“Princess, to you loyalty loyalty. You paid our debt. You are our savior. Thank you for taking in Cyrus. This pathetic bastard. You saved trash. Princess.”

“Pfft.”

I burst out laughing. I had only ever seen affectionate siblings like Aquila and Stella, or Rizen and Aria, so this was the first time I’d seen siblings like this. It was fascinating.

“Princess, you’re even cuter when you smile. Very cute and pretty. I am yours from today on, Princess.”

『Emet, you can speak the southern continent language. I’m good at it!』

“No, no. How dare I make the princess struggle with a foreign language.”

『You, when did you learn Santran anyway? Your foreign language skills are terrible.』

Emet glared fiercely at Cyrus.

『Don’t act all high and mighty just because you’re a little better at foreign languages than me, when you’re not even smarter.』

『Oh? Who’s not smarter than you?』

『I had higher math scores than you!』

To stop the two endlessly bickering, I clutched my stomach and spoke.

“I’m hungry.”

Right on cue, my stomach growled.

“Gasp! The princess mustn’t be hungry. Let’s eat first. There’s a super delicious restaurant near here. It’s freaking delicious, seriously.”

『Where and how on earth did you learn Santran? It’s really weird, so stop it.』

Cyrus scolded her irritably, but Emet cleanly ignored him and spoke to me earnestly.

“Want to hold hands? Let me touch the princess too!”

『Stop it! It sounds weird!』

Holding their hands, I left the pier, and a new landscape spread before my eyes. Unfamiliar air, unfamiliar sounds, unfamiliar scents, unfamiliar people…

Everything was so unfamiliar, but it would be fine. Who am I? I’m on my tenth life, after all!

I smiled brightly and strode vigorously onto the unfamiliar land.

Part 1 Complete.
Continues in Part 2.