I Became the Teacher of the Imperial Family’s Bastard

048. The Forbidden Prince (1)

All the incidents of the Papal Court have been resolved.

The Saint feigned his death and left, and Historia began to move busily to organize the internal affairs of the Papal Court.

The conversation we had on the last day we saw each other comes to mind.

―…I will do my best to help. Please do so.

When I shared the details of the incident, Historia said that.

At that time, her expression was, strangely enough, filled with anger.

―I can’t forgive it. The things that have been done now, the things done to Verheim. If there is evil, I think it is such things. I…

She was so angry that she couldn’t continue speaking, so I calmed her down for the time being.

Even if she didn’t want to, I intended to force her to help.

It was only natural.

The demand for the Holy Power and the Holy Knights increases as the war intensifies.

Anyway, that’s that.

There were more trivial matters, but the immediate urgent fire was put out.

Of course, this didn’t mean we could rest from now on.

‘I expected this…’

They have infiltrated the group internally.

This was both bad news and good news.

Not for any other reason, but because it made our course of action clearer.

I recalled the conversation I had with the Crown Prince.

―I have organized a pursuit team for now. But there will be no results.

―If they were to be caught, they would have been caught already. They are meticulous b*stards.

―But…

―Yes, no matter how far they have fled by now, they are still within the Empire. Unless the enemy has a high-ranking mage capable of teleportation, that is.

―I don’t think they would flee so easily.

―I agree.

They are the kind of b*stards who dig in persistently.

They will try to make their next move somehow.

There was a fact that strongly supported this speculation.

‘They stole the research journal of the Forbidden Book.’

I know the content because it was roughly copied through him before the saint left.

However, let’s consider the purpose.

Let’s talk about why they went to the trouble of stealing it.

I traced back their psychology.

‘If they hadn’t stolen it, it would have been discovered later.’

But as long as they were investigating the saint, their existence would inevitably be revealed.

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If they were going to be discovered anyway, was it their intention to take something with them?

Would it end there?

It’s a ridiculous story.

―They must have judged that it could be used. Even if it meant being discovered a little earlier.

―Then what do you think they plan to use it for?

―Isn’t it obvious?

The fight beneath the surface is ultimately a battle of information and psychology.

The speculated purpose was clearly taking shape.

―There are still humans left.

―The Grand Duke, the underworld.

―It could become a more flexible means to shake them.

―The north is far away. And it’s well controlled. So it’s obvious where those humans would have headed.

―The underworld. A place isolated from the empire, yet within it.

―A place where it’s easy to hide, and where you don’t need an identity.

The underworld.

If they were to make a move, that would be the fastest place.

Above all, it was an environment suitable for sinister experiments.

The black market and those without identities.

In other words, materials and test subjects.

If we know just that, we can catch their tail.

No, not just the tail?

―They were also beside Beatrice. And beside Verheim.

―There must be a minion beside the master of the underworld as well.

―If they were to make contact, that would be the place.

―We might catch a big one.

We can catch them in heaps.

Now, I can finally see the clue of that guy.

If we interrogate, we can surely get a glimpse of the enemies’ identities.

So, we made a decision.

―Stealth, that’s what we need. We must go to the Dark House ourselves.

―There’s no other way. We can’t trust anyone else with this information.

―Let’s move as quickly as possible. We must go to the Dark House. We’ve already delayed because of the cleanup.

Two days later, we set off on our stealth mission.

We should leave immediately, but what is the purpose of stealth?

It lies in secrecy.

However, when the prince or I leave our posts, rumors spread quickly.

If the one who was always present, especially the one who has been in the spotlight recently, disappears, wouldn’t rumors spread immediately?

It’s the same as announcing to the whole town that we’re heading there as soon as possible.

In that case, it’s obvious that it’s better to delay the schedule by a few days to ensure secrecy.

Our movements had to be as concealed as possible.

To prepare for this, the prince needed a double.

With the help of Erilda, he was personally training the double and had placed a curse of silence on him.

The prince was handling all the major events.

Showing off his heroic achievements was a bonus.

So, what am I doing?

Well, not much.

At most, I’m just maintaining my physical condition, asking my sister for understanding about my movements, and creating the illusion that I’m secluded in the mansion.

Other than that.

“Pharos! Like this! Is this how it’s done?”

Managing a little brat who would cause a commotion as soon as I disappear.

“Yes, you’re doing well.”

“Can Aria become a hero?”

“Of course. Your swordsmanship is amazing.”

Pharos’s garden.

Aria was swinging an empty wooden sword with a flushed face.

In fact, it seemed more like she was being swung by the sword rather than swinging it. Anyway, since she was flailing it around, let’s call it training.

Why was she swinging the wooden sword?

The reason was quite simple.

“Aria will become a hero too! Come to think of it, being a princess is boring because there’s nothing to do!”

The problem was the prince’s actions.

After the incident at the Papal Palace, the prince, who was known for personally beating up Verheim, received the most attention along with the saint.

It was meant to be a smokescreen, but he himself boasted about defeating the saint with force, and the whole palace praised him for it, so it must have reached Aria’s ears.

This little brat.

Hungry for praise, she pretended to be quiet and mature, and then created her own world.

Seeing the prince, who was praised as a hero despite being a cheeseburger-eating brat, must have made her very jealous.

She suddenly came to me and said those words.

―Ah, Aria wants to train too―!

If I didn’t play with her, she would cling to me all night, so I hollowed out the inside of the wooden sword to make it light and let her flail it around.

Aria wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Her cheeks were so red that the corners of her mouth were lifted into a smile.

A hint of satisfaction could be seen.

“Swordsmanship is hard. But Aria will not give up!”

“Yes, keep it up.”

“Just wait a little longer! Aria will become the legendary hero cheeseburger and cheer for Pharos!”

“Cheer?”

“Yes! A cheering hero!”

Hmm, it seems she doesn’t intend to fight directly.

Then why is she learning swordsmanship?

I was puzzled, but seeing those expectant, sparkling eyes, I thought, well, whatever.

“Just grow up healthy. That’s the biggest support kids can give.”

“Yes! Aria will eat three meals a day and grow up well! I’ll grow up quickly and cheer for Yuren!”

“Stop being picky with your food.”

“Eh…”

Aria immediately made a disgusted face.

It seemed that growing up well was out of the question.

It was at that moment, as I was resting my chin on my hand.

“Oh, by the way! Do you know?”

Aria threw her wooden sword aside and sat down next to me.

Was she bored of the game?

Just as I was thinking that, she came up with a rather interesting story.

“A book from Bongingo? is coming to the Imperial City!”

It was about a forbidden book.

Aria, the bird that hears the words of the day in the royal palace.

Most of her stories were useless, but sometimes she brought back useful information she had secretly picked up in the Imperial City.

“Is that so?”

I knew the gist of it, but it was the first time I heard about the conclusion.

It wasn’t anything else, the Crown Prince had used this incident to negotiate with Historia to bring all the forbidden books from Bongingo to the royal palace.

From Historia’s perspective, it was a permissible matter, but the problem was the bishops of the Fate Order, whose positions had become precarious.

They had desperately tried to hold on to even a single authority.

‘Looks like they managed it well.’

Lately, things had been getting more and more like my past life, so I had a vague suspicion that their methods had been extreme.

Anyway,

“The forbidden book storage will be enriched.”

It wasn’t something that concerned me much.

Meanwhile, Aria suddenly stood up.

She spread her tiny hand wide, covered her face with it, then opened her eyes wide through the gaps between her fingers and said,

“Do not be consumed by the darkness!”

Her eyes were quite sharp.

I could immediately tell what she was imitating.

“How is it! Do I look like our youngest brother!”

What a ridiculous sight.

But,

“Hey.”

Flick!

“Ugh!”

A flick to the forehead.

Aria let out a sharp scream and protested as if she had been wronged.

“But, but the youngest brother really did this!”

“That person is genuinely hurt.”

“But, but!”

“You must never do that again.”

“…Okay.”

Aria quickly agreed and became sullen.

I patted her head to cheer her up.

As I thought,

‘It seems that’s how it looks to the kids.’

I smacked my lips.

Kids learn exactly what they see, so I know there’s no malice in their intentions.

But it’s right to stop them from showing others that kind of expression about the third prince.

‘Who knows what kind of slanderous words might come out.’

That’s why, especially when it came to the third prince, one had to be careful with words.

At the age of 14, he was said to be immersed in darkness, and because of his dignity, he had to hide such appearances… Unfortunately, it wasn’t such a shameful and ridiculous story.

I scratched my cheek.

‘Who would have known? That the prince would be chosen by the Forbidden Library.’

The third prince, Fried Orteare.

In my view, he was a smart coward who, six months after ascending to the throne, hanged himself and fled to the afterlife.

But at this point, if I were to evaluate him, he was that.

‘A contractor.’

Chosen by the Forbidden Library of the royal family and forcibly contracted, a cursed prince with the scythe of death always hanging over his neck.

Currently, the Forbidden Library of the empire was managed by that little brat.

* * *

The history of the Orteare Empire spans a thousand years.

It was an empire built simultaneously with the independence of humans, and as deep as its history was, the imperial capital, the center of the empire, still preserved quite a few mysteries.

The Forbidden Library was one of them.

No one knows exactly how it was constructed, but based on the revealed facts, it was so.

It was a space imbued with mystery, possessing a kind of ‘self.’

It controlled the entry of those it did not permit and isolated the space itself from the outside, controlling the flow of energy.

Thus, the founding emperor of the empire designated that space as the ‘Forbidden Library.’

In other words, it was utilized to store dangerous items.

The background of the Forbidden Library’s birth ends there.

Afterwards, the royal family personally educated and managed personnel to introduce to the Forbidden Library.

When a qualified person appeared, the Forbidden Library would contract with that individual.

It was a structure where incidents and accidents could certainly occur.

However, the reason they did not was due to the will of the Forbidden Library.

‘The Curse of the Companion.’

It was the Forbidden Library’s unique ability, a curse that would imprison the life of anyone who attempted betrayal.

Additionally, if someone tried to divulge the knowledge obtained from the Forbidden Library to the outside, the curse would similarly take their life.

Because of this, the Forbidden Library has continued for a thousand years.

For this reason, the royal family also trained personnel to manage the Forbidden Library in this era.

In the midst of this, an accident occurred.

‘The Forbidden Library chose its own contractor.’

There were those trained for the contract of the time.

However, the Forbidden Library rejected all of them and abruptly contracted with the third prince who was in the palace.

Naturally, the royal castle was in an uproar.

No, the entire empire was stirred by the event.

It was an unprecedented situation in a thousand years.

Moreover, the chosen one was a five-year-old prince.

It was even more so because he was of the most noble bloodline.

There were movements to somehow break the contract and the curse, but all efforts were in vain.

What the Forbidden Library had done was irreversible.

What could they do?

They had no choice but to entrust the management of the Forbidden Library to the third prince.

Everyone was anxious.

They were worried that the child might accidentally spill the knowledge of the Forbidden Library and die.

The fortunate thing was that the Third Prince was a very smart child.

Also, he didn’t seem to mind much that he had become the master of the Forbidden Library.

His willingness to conform to the results and contribute to the empire melted the hearts of the imperial citizens.

That’s what they said.

If Aria was the royal who stood with everyone’s reluctance, the Third Prince Fried was the royal who received everyone’s sympathy.

Therefore, one should not speak carelessly about the Third Prince.

As it would bring about political disadvantages.

Anyway, such a person was the Third Prince who turned fourteen this year.

And,

“Is it possible?”

…the person standing before my eyes now.

Golden hair touching his shoulders.

A thin, fragile impression with a slender face, and glass-like blue eyes.

And a sickly smile.

Third Prince Fried Orteare.

Why am I suddenly meeting this little kid?

To explain that, I had to recall today’s events.

‘…I came to meet the Crown Prince as I have to leave tomorrow.’

In the midst of that, the Third Prince suddenly appeared and requested a conversation.

I thought it was about the transfer of the Forbidden Library’s sealed book, but it was another story that surprised even me.

“…So, you’re asking me to come to the Forbidden Library?”

“Yes.”

He asked me to follow him to the Forbidden Library.

The request was so absurd that I couldn’t help but ask again.

“Can I go? Only the Third Prince can enter there.”

The Forbidden Library is completely off-limits to those who are not permitted.

So why is he making such a request?

When I asked out of curiosity, the Third Prince told a strange story.

“Of course. Dea requested it first.”

That was,

“Because of the recent incident at the Papal Office, I told them about the Young Lord. They said there was a ‘promise’ made with Pharos in the past. If the Young Lord is qualified, it seems like now is the time to fulfill it.”

It was a request I couldn’t possibly refuse.