...She had been dreaming.
It was a little lonely, but fulfilling.
A dream from a time that was surely twisted in some way, yet happy.
"...Don't worry, Liliana."
She recalled the voice of her brother, the First Prince Helck.
"With Aster here, the royal family will run smoothly enough from now on. ...But even so — that doesn't mean you should cast everything else aside. There's no way that could be right."
Though tinged with a hint of darkness, Helck placed his hand gently on Liliana's head with all the care he could muster and told her:
"The idea that you serve no purpose — that is absolutely untrue. Both me — and you. So don't worry. Even if your disinheritance is decided for the future... I will never let anything bad happen to you."
"You could always come live with us, Lilii."
She recalled the words of her sister, the Second Princess.
"The Church's treatment of those with Incompatibility is harsh. And I don't know what Mother would say... but we're family, after all. Surely, they wouldn't treat you too badly."
Her sister had always been kind, though she could be a bit short-tempered at times. Slightly flustered, she pulled Liliana into a gentle embrace and said:
"Aster probably doesn't like you. But... it wouldn't be right to let that child have her way with everything. So... I'll..."
There had been, without question,
warm times with her kind siblings, with her family —
and she dreamed of that scene shattering.
By the time she realized it was one of Liliana's rare true dreams, everything was already over.
"...! ...Hah..."
Still in her nightgown, Liliana dashed outside the Royal Palace.
The moment she awakened, she understood.
The room beyond the door was in an uproar. The ominous clatter of armor came from every direction.
A bizarre Magic Power Reaction was being emitted with overwhelming intensity from the vicinity of the king's office.
But the final straw—
The instant she peered through the gap in the door, one of the soldiers—a man she recognized as a retainer of the First Prince—locked eyes with her, and his expression turned to nothing but hostility.
That was when she understood everything.
"No way… No, this can't be true…!"
The denial tumbled from her lips like a fever dream, but even she knew it carried not a shred of conviction.
After all,
she already knew
that this was exactly what it seemed. That was precisely why she was now fleeing the Royal Palace at a desperate sprint.
—and she could not help but feel the numerous streams of Magic power doggedly pursuing her, whether she wished to or not.
"What's going on… what happened…! Someone…!"
Still lost in bewilderment, Liliana screamed.
She possessed exceptional Magic power manipulation ability, and her physical mobility using magic power was extraordinary even among mages. As such, catching someone who was fully committed to fleeing was exceptionally difficult. That much was evident from her previous interactions with her tutors.
…But that was only in a one-on-one scenario.
The number of people chasing Liliana now was not merely a handful or even a dozen—it was a pursuing force that could very well number close to a hundred. If that many people coordinated to corner her, escaping on raw physical ability alone was simply, physically impossible.
Therefore.
"Oh my. I wasn't aware that 'tag' was one of your weaknesses, Princess Liliana."
There, in the dead-end alley where Liliana had been cornered in mere moments—
Stepping forward was the man who appeared to be the leader of the soldiers.
He was a man with sharply chiseled features and garishly flashy attire. The sadistic expression plastered across his face only deepened her certainty further.
And yet—clinging to the faintest thread of hope—Liliana asked.
"What... do you intend to do?"
"You don't know?"
"As if I would... know...!"
Liliana put on a brave front. Snapping back at the man who watched her with a smug grin, she continued.
"You must have seen him too—the soldier captain who's been coming and going from brother Helc's quarters lately. What business do you have here? What happened at the Royal Palace? What did my brother—what did he do?!"
"To understand all that and still say 'I don't know'... that won't do."
Having fully grasped Liliana's state of mind, the captain declared.
Fully aware that what he was about to say would crush her with despair, he spoke in one breath.
"—His Highness Helc has usurped the throne. And now, to protect the throne he's seized, he's begun eliminating anyone who might become a future threat—including the likes of you."
Even though she had already suspected as much, the shock still made Liliana's eyes widen.
"That can't be... brother Helc would never do something like that—!"
"Oh my. And just how well do you claim to know His Highness Helc?"
"At the very least, better than you do!"
Desperately clinging to her crumbling composure, Liliana spoke.
"My brother... my brother is...! He's kind and has a strong sense of duty. He's a broad-minded man who treated me—with Incompatibility—with no discrimination whatsoever. My brother would never—!"
"—See? You still don't understand, do you?"
But the captain dismissed her words with thoroughly genuine amusement.
" 'Broad-minded'? As if that prince has anywhere near that much character."
"Wh—"
"Allow me to enlighten you. The reason he treated you so courteously, Lady Liliana — it was nothing more than a manifestation of his inferiority complex!"
The captain declared this in a tone that held nothing back — not even for the very person he was supposed to serve.
"Poor prince. A royal failure who couldn't measure up to the second prince in any way and was forced into the role of a spare despite being the firstborn! It must have been miserable — utterly unbearable. That is precisely why he sought you out, Lady Incompatibility — someone who could never become a greater king than himself. He wanted you as nothing more than a pet doll to soothe his own wretched heart!"
"S-Stop—"
" 'Someone more pitiful than himself.' That's all Lord Helck ever wanted from you. And that is precisely why, the moment the throne came within reach, you became nothing but an obstacle — and he will remove you without the slightest hesitation! Because — he never had any genuine affection for you to begin with!"
The words hit her head-on, delivered with a fluency that was almost terrifying.
The man watched Liliana's stunned silence with undisguised relish.
"Captain, shouldn't we soon—"
"What's the rush? I imagine they're handling the Tlakia family's delay just fine. Better to break the princess's spirit here and now — it'll make things far easier down the line."
Answering his subordinate's counsel half out of amusement and half out of practicality, the captain went on.
"You see, Princess Liliana.
I despise you.
"
"—What?"
"You have lived such a comfortable life, haven't you — even though you are nothing but
dust
that cannot wield magic, protected by hordes of servants and doted upon by your siblings! The thought of you siblings endlessly playing house — licking each other's wounds under the resigned assumption that Lord Aster will become king regardless — makes me want to be sick!"
At last, he could say everything he had been holding back. The captain's smooth, unbroken flow of words — as though one could almost hear the very voice behind them — brooked no interference from anyone.
"And even Prince Aster, who went so far — he was far too self-righteous as a king! Because of that, he was ruined, and all that's left are the likes of you, none of whom are fit to rule!
Don't you get it? This royal family is already finished — it ends with your generation!!"
And with that, the captain finally let out a boisterous laugh and declared triumphantly.
"Then I'll just have to take this kingdom! Using that pitiful, foolish little prince to great effect, I'll see your clan of misfits — who've done nothing but pile up history — off the stage for good!"
"—"
"Ah, at last. At last, the time has come for us to be recognized for what we're worth! The moment to show every last person who looked down on us that they were the fools all along!
So then, Your Highness — if you've finally come to understand, then hurry up and—"
"Composite Technique — 'Magic Bullet Archer'"
An instant. From impossibly far away.
A lone boy, transformed into a meteor, obliterated every shred of distance in an instant with composite magic of godlike speed.
"Eh— gaah!?"
Impact. Carrying his momentum through, he kicked the captain squarely in the side of the face.
The captain went flying as though it were a joke, and the surrounding soldiers instantly erupted in commotion. Bearing the weight of all their stares, the boy spoke in a flat, emotionless tone.
"...Excuse me. I couldn't quite catch what you were saying, but as a disciple, I have my priorities."
"—Master."
Liliana turned her dazed gaze upon the boy — upon Ermes.
Paying no heed to the soldiers surrounding them, he knelt before her.
"I'm terribly sorry for being late, Lilii. ...There were an astonishing number of obstacles on my end as well. Breaking through took me a few extra minutes."
With a solemn expression that bore both the relief of having arrived in time and an anger that surpassed it, he spoke.
"I understand the situation. I'm sure there's plenty you want to say, but that can wait.
"First—I'll scatter every last one of them. We're not quite ready to escape yet, so please wait here."
End of Chapter 3 Prologue. The counterattack begins next time. Stay tuned!