Chapter 39

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 39

Chapter Title: The Prince in the Barrier

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I rode in a carriage for the first time in ages and left the castle.

Thanks to Cattleya and the baron couple spreading word of my divine power, I was heading to a nearby temple for a re-verification of that power.

The duke hadn't wanted to let me go, but Viscount Dubos had earnestly persuaded him.

"Little One has demonstrated a strength that even Duvered's elite mages couldn't withstand. There could be some anomaly the physicians don't know about. We need an accurate diagnosis from the temple."

Of course, it wasn't just concern for me—it was laced with worry for Duvered as well.

If they didn't let me go, relations with the temple would be irreparably damaged.

In any case, once my health came up, the duke had no choice but to agree to send me off.

I gazed out the window with a look of utter relief.

[Feeling under the weather, little one?]

'Yeah.'

[Why?]

Just as Cattleya said, with my divine power this strong, I might get dragged off to the central temple.

[Shall I wipe the temple off the map for you?]

'You can do that?!'

[If I draw on all your divine power, probably.]

Pffft. My enthusiasm deflated like a punctured balloon.

Going mad was worse than dying.

Death meant returning to my senses, but madness would leave me trapped forever as the temple's tool, unable even to die.

'No, think positive.'

Bune's wish, the Tears of the Goddess, was at the very temple we were heading to.

If I slipped it to Bune in secret when I got the chance, I could send him back. Then I wouldn't have to worry about him turning into a baby or exhausting his divine power and going insane.

'Gotta find the Tears of the Goddess as fast as possible.'

As those thoughts swirled in my head, the carriage came to a halt.

I peeked out, thinking we'd arrived, but we were still at the base of the mountain where the temple stood.

"My apologies, Little One. There's a problem with the wheel."

The guards inside the carriage scowled darkly at that.

"You set out without even properly checking the carriage?"

"I-it's because of the rain yesterday. The roads turned to mud, and it all caked onto the wheels."

The coachman had gone pale as a ghost, poor guy.

"Change it."

We'd be climbing the mountain anyway, which would take ages, so I used the excuse of wanting a little break to calm the Iri down.

Stepping outside, I saw what looked like a full merchant caravan—rows upon rows of warhorses lined up.

The entirety of one company from the Duvered Knights had come as my escort.

All those people moved in perfect sync with my every step: one step forward when I did, halting when I stopped.

I squinted at them through misty eyes.

"I gonna pee around here. Everyone rest."

I needed an escape route ready, just in case I got caught stealing the Tears of the Goddess.

"That's a problematic order, Little One."

I whipped around and yelled, "Leaa!"

"Yes, Little One."

"If Lea come with, it's fine."

"Well..."

Before she could respond, the escorts leaped into action.

"How could a woman's body fully protect Little One?"

I tilted my head.

"You stronger than Lea?"

"Of course..."

"Lea from Iri too?"

"Pardon?!"

They hadn't known she was from Duvered's elite Iri unit—their eyes went wide.

Lea smiled brightly and said,

"Which company?"

"438th, but..."

"I'm 372nd. Vice-captain runs my errands a lot now."

"...!"

The escort captain flinched in shock, and Lea patted his shoulder.

Thanks to Lea making the Iri vice-captain run her errands often, I'd familiarized myself with the paths.

The mountain hosting the temple was lush and green even in winter, like Duvered's own garden.

'They must maintain a Spinello temperature here. Bet they get hefty donations.'

I glanced around as we walked. The sun hid behind clouds, making it a bit dim, but not too hard to see.

Lea kept a polite distance so as not to hinder me.

Then I spotted a tree with unusually pale leaves and my eyes lit up.

'Jackpot! It's an Elza tree!'

This was genuinely rare.

A tree that fed on divine power, its leaves held mystical properties.

'Dry 'em and sell—fifty francs per gram!'

My eyes sparkling, I dashed toward the Elza tree.

As I grabbed the trunk and stood on tiptoe to pluck some leaves—

Rustle. Grass parted with a soft sound, followed by footsteps from behind the tree.

In that instant, clouds cleared, and the sun emerged.

Light flooded the area, branches lifted, and between them appeared a boy with blond hair so stunning it seemed to melt away.

"You..."

I froze stiff.

Radiant golden locks, ruby-red eyes sharp and vivid.

I knew this boy, whose beauty rivaled Duke Duvered's.

A face and physique on par with Duvered's three young masters, mana reserves, and bloodline—the kingdom's finest—

'Adrian Rueerg.'

The emperor's sole legitimate heir, later elevated to crown prince for ending the holy war.

'You can just bump into the crown prince on a stroll...?'

In Duvered territory, far from the capital, no less.

I swallowed hard, my dry throat clicking.

My heart pounded so fiercely it felt like it'd burst out of my chest.

If it'd been another prince, I wouldn't have been this shocked. But because it was Adrian—him—my mind went blank with terror.

He wasn't supposed to be here right now.

'This winter, he gets dethroned and chased from the palace!'

That event definitely happened around this time.

Adrian's maternal grandfather, Marquis Chatelle—father of the late empress—plotted a rebellion to put his grandson on the throne.

But it failed. Marquis Chatelle died, and Adrian was deposed.

He wouldn't regain status until age fifteen, appointed the youngest cardinal ever.

'The future's changed.'

Why?

The future only changed in one scenario.

'When I do something.'

But what had I done to Adrian to alter the timeline?

Why didn't Marquis Chatelle rebel?

Why was this kid here?!

As chaos swirled in my head, something poked my nose.

I blinked wide: two tiny fish made of water floated in the air.

[That boy's power is astonishing. Giving a self-aware soul to something conjured from divine power...]

I nodded inwardly at Bune's words.

No wonder—a deposed prince at fifteen, made cardinal.

"Ami, Armand. Come here."

At Adrian's call, the smaller fish returned promptly, but the larger one kept circling me, tail drooping reluctantly as it finally swam back. It looked like it didn't want to go.

'More like a puppy than a fish.'

As I thought that, his gaze met mine.

"Who are you? How'd you get inside my barrier?"

"Huh?"

"How'd you spot the Elza tree?"

He'd hidden it with a barrier.

'But why could I see it?'

[Because you like sightseeing, I made it visible!]

Even so, I shouldn't have been able to enter the barrier.

[You seemed like you wanted to go to the tree, so I broke through the barrier!]

Bune said cheerfully.

'You can't just do that on your own!'

Barring enemy attacks, breaching a barrier was incredibly, outrageously rude.

Non-aggressive barriers warped space around them—you could bypass without breaking.

'It's like walking up and slapping someone in the face!'

Adrian was generally lenient with commoners, but far from a pushover.

He could be chillingly ruthless, especially against attackers.

He never let even a spark of threat against him survive—utterly thorough.

"I asked who you are."

Problem here.

I'd just slapped the future cardinal and crown prince in the face.

What now?

"My name Ishak!"

I beamed innocently.

"Ishak?"

"Yup!"

"Only permitted people can enter this mountain. How'd you get in?"

"Uh, um... I'm squire in Duvered Knights."

He stared at me intently.

I looked too young to believe, probably.

[That brat... boy just checked your mana. Cheeky—!]

Of course he'd verify such a dubious claim.

And checking mana quantity wasn't bad.

He hadn't pulled my power to test if it was divine or magic.

'You were about to say "brat," weren't you?'

Bune fell silent.

Anyway, Adrian seemed to accept my squire claim after sensing my divine power's volume.

Nobles often snatched divine-powered kids before temples, training them as knights.

Plus, my plain clothes screamed squire, adding credibility.

"They took you on as squire to serve the Child of Destiny, huh."

Adrian glanced at me and muttered softly, "Tough luck."

"Go on."

"...Thank you?"

After smashing his barrier?

An adult would've exploded in rage and smacked my forehead.

"You're just a kid."

But Adrian was a kid too, plenty young to say that.

Four years older than me—eight right now. Nine soon, with New Year's around the corner.

'Anyway, time to bolt.'

"Thank you."

I turned to leave but slammed into something midair—thwack!

"Ow..."

'Bune! If you let me in, you gotta let me out too!'

[You told me not to act on my own...]

Bune sounded dejected, oblivious as ever.

Then—

Hummm.

A faint vibration rose from Adrian's hand, a slender beam of light appearing.

A small door formed in the barrier.

I glanced slyly and murmured, "This thank you too."

"Bye-bye!"

I waved casually and slipped out the door.

In the distance, Lea called, "Where are you, Little One?" I dashed toward her, too distracted to notice the change.

My bumped forehead no longer throbbed.