Favorable Wind Pavilion, an upper-class inn where captains and navigators from the Harbor District prefer.

  It was the inn that Ruti once stayed in the past when she first came to Zoltan.

  Prince Sarius had occupied that inn and seemed to be using it as his headquarters.

  A sun-tanned High-Elf Veronian solder escorted us.

  He held a halberd that was slightly shorter than the ones used by Zoltan guards with a simple spear that was nothing but a sharp and thin tip in his hand and he had a short curved cutlass on his belt along with a composite bow that was short but has long-range.

  His armor was chainmail reinforced with iron plates at vital regions. Wood was used for certain portions of the armor which might be meant to increase buoyancy in water.

  “Your Highness Sarius. I have brought the messenger from Zoltan.”


  The soldier announced and knocked on the door.

  That was rough etiquette from a soldier serving a prince but his attention was always on us without letting anything slip and was constantly in a combat-ready state which indicated his wealth of experience.

  His demeanor was unlike the refined High-Elves who hail from the High-Elf Kingdom of Kiramin. He exuded sharpness and danger that was trained from being a soldier of the ocean.

  “Enter.”


  A man’s voice could be heard from within.

  I looked at Ruti and Tise’s direction and they nodded.

  The two of them had met Prince Sarius before and that was his voice.

  The soldier opened the door.

  Inside were men seated with equipment similar to soldiers …… but with their respective Veronian Nobility heraldry and wrapped in magic tools engraved with runes.

  Prince Sarius should be close to 50-years-old but his complexion was youthful and he looked to be in his thirties.

  “I see that Ririnrara is safe.”


  Prince Sarius said when he saw Ririnrara’s condition and showed us a smile with white teeth.

  That smile was more of a ferocious grin that could be called threatening rather than a friendly smile and it showed that we were opponents from now on.

  Hn …… the Prince’s makeup ……

  Slap!

  It was loud.

  And it happened in an instant.

  “Wh-why?”


  Prince Sarius held his cheek and was stunned. Ririnrara stood in front of him with unchecked anger as she exhaled roughly.

  After hearing Prince Sarius’ words, Ririnrara has abruptly flown out and struck Prince Sarius’ face.

  “I should be the one asking why!! Why did you do something this stupid!!!”


  Ririnrara’s High-Elf subordinates and Prince Sarius’ guards who were directly beside them were stunned by the sudden turn of events. Misufia was shaken from the moment she saw Prince Sarius and didn’t move.

  Of course, Ruti and Tise noticed Ririnrara’s action and they probably could stop her if they wanted. But they silently watched Ririnrara’s actions.

  Lit shot me a look to ask what should we do. I shook my head slightly to indicate that we should remain as we were and see how things turn out.

  “It will be your doom if Leonor finds out about this! You fool …… you shouldn’t be so dull as to not understand something like that!!”


  Ririnrara’s voice was trembling.

  Her voice showed that she couldn’t suppress the various kinds of emotions that were mixing together and had chosen to be angry.

  Prince Sarius clench his teeth and bowed in silence but ……

  “You were captured.”


  He said as though squeezing the words out.

  “And so what! I have taught you that kings need the resolution to discard their subordinates!”


  “If I have to discard you …… then I don’t wish to be king! I don’t want to be either!! You know that too!!!”


  Prince Sarius shouted loud enough that the soldiers outside could probably hear. I could hear the agitated voices of soldiers from outside.

  Those were words that should not be said by a prince aiming for the throne …… but Ririnrara could not scold him.

  I don’t know how to describe Ririnrara’s expression.

  It was an expression of anger, of despair, of being on the brink of crying …… and smiling.

  A whirlpool of emotions that threatened to tear her heart swirled inside Ririnrara’s chest.

  Silence fell on the room. The Veronian soldiers were at a loss and uneasily looked around many times.

  Within that scene, I gently moved beside the person behind us who had been staring straight at Prince Sarius’ face all this time.

  “Don’t they look similar?”


  Misufia’s shoulders jumped when I spoke to her.

  “How did you know what I was thinking?”


  “I thought of the possibility from before …… Ririnrara is a pirate. She acts not for the sake of the Kingdom of Veronia but completely for Geyserik …… in that case Prince Sarius is ……”


  “Ye-yes! They look similar! Exactly like how he looked when he was young! It’s …… it’s unthinkable that they are not connected by blood!!”


  Misufia whispered and trembled. As expected, Prince Sarius is King Geyserik’s actual son.

  And ……

  “Why, why didn’t she tell me the truth from the beginning …… the true parent of that child …… if she did …… I ……”


  Misufia covered her eyes with her own fingers that were like dried branches.

  Love and malicious intent for who’s sake, who betrayed, who sacrificed, and who gained.

  Prince Sarius didn’t look youthful, he was pretending to be older than his real age.

  The slight makeup applied on Prince Sarius’ face was not so that his complexion looked better.

  Once the makeup was removed, underneath it would probably be the youthful face of a teenager. That was not strange for their race at the age of 50-years-old.

  “Red …… By any chance is Prince Sarius ……”


  Lit whispered in my ear.

  I nodded and answered.

  “Yes, Prince Sarius is a Half-Human Half-High-Elf.”


  And.

  “His father is Geyserik, and his mother …… is probably Ririnrara.”


  Lit shook her head weakly.

  “Royalty is seriously ……”


  “You said that right.”


  Precisely because the world is ruled by divine protection, the people wish for lineage as backing outside the influences of divine protections.

  Because anybody with powerful divine protection can make people obey without conditions, the people do not trust divine protections.

  King Geyserik, even though he possesses the divine protection of 『Emperor』 and rebuilt Veronia into a huge country once again, the people still continue to view him as a rogue pirate.

  Probably because if they recognize King Geyserik, it will imply that any future mountain bandit, thief, arsonist, or any other person with a 『Emperor』 divine protection can break the rules of the world they live in and reign as a new ruler.

  To me, the way of the nobility of this world was the representation of the greatest contradiction toward the existence of divine protection.

  As the Principality of Logavia’s princess, Lit might have seen their fate as a destiny that could have happened to her.

  Lit tightly gripped my hand as though to confirm that she was with me at the moment.

  I responded by gripping her hand back.