My Disciples Think I’m Strong – Chapter 54

I loosened my cravat slightly and adjusted the choker I was already wearing.

[You have equipped “Secrecy in the Words of the Horse.”]

[You can use the skill “True Word.”]

An artifact obtained from Aus.

Secrecy in the Words of the Horse is a skill that allows me to ask a question and receive a truthful answer from the other person once a day.

However, there’s a condition: the other person must hear me recite “True Word.”

“What, what’s going on?”

“I said nothing.”

The moment our eyes met, Princess Seri flinched and shifted her body slightly.

“You called me here in the first place. Why did you call me?”

Seeing the youthful and still underage Princess Seri brought back memories. It was a sight I had only seen in flashbacks in the game.

“…I’ll, I’ll get straight to the point! Are you trying to mess with me on purpose?”

Not a chance.

I merely acted hoping that Princess Seri would take an interest in me.

“Is it okay to use the phrase ‘mess with’ about a princess?”

At my words, Princess Seri quickly looked around. Once she confirmed that no one was there, she visibly relaxed.

“D-Don’t joke around.”

It seemed the young princess was quite irked.

Perhaps because she was still a child, the sight of her clenching her fists appeared strangely adorable.

“Why did you specifically mention me?”

“It doesn’t really mean anything, though.”

“Then did you just mention me randomly when there are other siblings around?”

She had a face filled with fear rather than anger.

Seeing her in such a state of unfairness filled me with a peculiar sense of betrayal.

“Are you out of your mind? You don’t even know my position…!”

“How would I know what your position is?”

In this ironic situation, where the princess spoke honorifically to a commoner, and I replied informally to her, I couldn’t help but smirk inwardly.

“Ugh…! You really…!”

She seemed taken aback, becoming dumbfounded by my nonchalant comeback.

“I think it’s more dangerous for you to be here talking to me right now.”

“Ugh. That makes a point, but… it’s certainly troubling because of you.”

“Don’t be so angry, Seri.”

“What! Are you seriously addressing me casually by my name?! No matter how strong you are, that’s clearly against the law—”

“In a situation where you’ve dropped honorifics with Crown Prince Chris, is it really a problem to call your name?”

I stated confidently, with a poker face.

She looked completely bewildered, her mouth agape as she stared at me in confusion.

“You are the worst, truly. Just because you have some skills, it doesn’t mean you can insult the royal family. Are you really thinking of turning the Empire against you?”

“…I’m only considering those siblings who threaten your life.”

“!”

Princess Seri widened her eyes in shock.

“You… you don’t know my position…”

At this time, princesses were still a target of caution from the princes.

Even if she bore the stigma of being incompetent, she could never be sure when the Emperor might change his stance.

Her true downfall would only come after the Emperor was gone.

That’s why Princess Seri needed to remain in this incompetent state for the time being.

I stepped closer to her and lowered my voice to a whisper only she could hear.

“‘True Word.’”

[The skill “True Word” is activated.]

As the skill was activated, her golden eyes clouded over, as if under hypnosis.

Her blank expression indicated that the skill had indeed worked.

From now on, I could ask one question and receive a truthful answer from her.

I had already thought of the question I wanted to ask.

“Princess Seri, if you could become the Emperor, how would you lead this Empire?”

“I believe the current Empire is in a ‘crisis.’ We’re in a situation where we can’t win even if we confront the Demon Tribe. Yet, His Majesty has been slaughtering other races and turning them into slaves. We need to unite now, even still.”

She was aware of it. The power of the Beastman and Elf tribes.

She recognized that they were beings who should not simply be treated as slaves.

“I want to create an Empire that isn’t threatened by the Demon Tribe.”

See, this girl is definitely not incompetent.

As I watched her recite lines just like in the game, I felt a fleeting sense of joy.

“…Huh? What did I just say a moment ago?”

She looked at me in bewilderment, as if the True Word skill had been released unexpectedly. Her blinking, innocent gaze was pure.

“What, what’s going on? Uh, when did I get so close to you?”

She seemed startled and tried to push me away. Instead, I took a step closer.

No matter how vast the Imperial Palace was, there were always many eyes and ears around.

It was possible we were being secretly followed.

Since I wasn’t particularly perceptive like others, I needed to be cautious at all times.

“Princess Seri, listen closely.”

“Huh? I-I’ll listen, so please step back…!”

Ignoring her pleas, I spoke in my own way.

“You have no notable talents in any field, but you are definitely not incompetent. So pretend to be incompetent, just like you have until now.”

“What does that mean…?”

“What I mean is, if you prove your competence, you might gain the Emperor’s attention immediately, but the princes will once again keep an eye on you.”

Given that Seri had already lost all her factions, participating in the Succession War now would only be suicidal.

Now was the time to endure.

Whenever forces clashed, the weaker side always lost.

The moment she developed a power would be when the Demon Tribe seriously invaded the Empire, and the incompetent Crown Prince Chris put the Empire in danger, leading to the emergence of the rebel group ‘Resistance’.

Until then, she had to endure somehow.

“What, what did you say?”

She seemed flustered by my sudden advice, but knowing her, she would likely ponder over it desperately multiple times.

Her passive nature suggested a tendency to assign significance even to small matters, which harmed her self-esteem.

“That’s the path you can take to survive.”

I stepped back from her as I spoke.

“What are you even saying…?”

What do you think I’m saying? I’m trying to reduce variables so that you won’t make foolish moves.

As long as everyone had their own personalities, one should never believe that they would wait forever for the protagonist to arrive, just like in a game.

I shrugged and turned my body away.

I started walking towards the restroom, leaving the princess behind.

…But seriously, where’s the restroom?

*

“Praus, you’ve done it again today.”

Duke Tori leisurely turned his expensive wine as he spoke.

That’s right, I hadn’t intended to at all.

At this rate, I wondered if I looked like a troublemaker to him.

“Lord Praus, the sight of you defeating Knight Commander Conver at a speed not visible was impressive. It seems your skills to wipe out Urka and Inkuro haven’t gone away.”

Oh, that…

After a moment of thinking, I arrived at the conclusion that it was the blessing from Ariel at the inn that had activated.

Given it was the power of the Spirit King, I should be able to devour even a knight commander.

“Hmph, your skills are quite… formidable. However, you are a commoner. There’s a disparity in status for you to be engaged to Ella! So hurry up, kill some demons, accumulate achievements, and become a noble. Then I might consider it.”

I stared at Glair, who pointed a finger at me as he spoke.

On another note, isn’t that somewhat implying that he would allow the engagement?

Let me clarify, from the beginning, I had no intention of coveting Ella.

While the noble status was burdensome, it would be inconvenient if my weakness were revealed someday, so I thought a commoner would be preferable for a girlfriend candidate.

“I have no intention of doing that.”

“What! Are you disregarding our Todiah Family?!”

No, that’s not it, you old fool. Just back off. Please.

“…?”

Suddenly feeling a gaze, I turned my head and saw the princess glaring at me openly.

While the young nobles talked passionately in front, she didn’t spare them a glance.

Her golden eyes were fixed on me, as if watching my every action.

Given what I heard earlier, it wasn’t surprising for her to be staring at me…

But I still felt something unsettling.

Did the princess have a ‘obsession’ setting?

I thought I hadn’t seen a yandere setting in the game…

“…I’ll be taking my leave now.”

In any case, I had safely completed my business.

Now it was time to head back.

“Tina.”

“Nyaaa!”

Tina, with her mouth full of food, put down her plate and scampered over.

“I’m leaving now.”

“Ah! But I haven’t finished eating yet!”

Tina pouted, gulping down her food.

“Are you really leaving already?”

Ella approached and asked softly.

“Yep.”

“Then could you take this for me?”

I looked at the hand Ella held out toward me. In her hand was a paw-shaped token.

“This is our family’s ‘token.’ With this, you can enter anywhere in the Todiah Territory without any special procedures.”

“Why are you giving this to me?”

“I hope you’ll come visit us up north someday. I want to have a conversation with you, and learn many things while sparring with Lord Praus. And about our future too…”

She whispered gently in my ear.

A chill ran down my spine. I hurriedly covered my ears and distanced myself from her.

“I don’t want to talk to you—ugh!”

Ella forcefully covered my mouth, stopping me from speaking.

“Even if you don’t want to, I certainly do. So please don’t put up your defenses and step back a little, okay?”

Ella said with a playful smile.

Despite her smiling, it felt like she wasn’t actually smiling.

The intense pressure gave me no choice but to nod.

“Already kissing my palm…! Ugh, that rascal!”

Glair trembled. Seeing him react like that made me feel quite bewildered.

“Stop it, Dad.”

In the end, Glair fell silent after Ella’s sharp retort.

Before I left, I tried to check on the Crown Prince one last time, but I couldn’t find him in the banquet hall. Neither the Emperor nor the Empress could be found either.

It seemed I was being reprimanded for what I had done in the sparring arena.

Thus, Tina and I exited the Imperial Palace, leaving the banquet hall behind.

*

When I returned to Secul’s house, I unexpectedly ran into someone.

“…Father?”

“It’s been a long time, Praus.”

Paroco welcomed me with a kind smile.