Chapter 5
As soon as the door to the imperial family’s private lounge closed, Empress Yekaterina turned toward the Crown Prince. Perhaps because he knew he was at fault, he flinched when her gaze landed on him.
“What on earth are you thinking, Crown Prince. You know full well that your body is in a state that requires guiding, don’t you?”
Yekaterina deeply regretted not having Kasselard receive Ephinia’s guiding earlier. Their match rate was unprecedentedly high, and after receiving guiding from her, he would not have been able to insult her like this.
If there existed a Transcendent who could receive guiding and still behave that way, then that would be a case of mental abnormality and ought to be dealt with accordingly.
Kasselard replied with an irritated expression.
“For now, suppressants and rest are enough.”
“Rest? Rest?! Do you really think that will suffice! The Lord of the Mage Tower already warned us. He said that your mana will only continue to grow stronger, and that without a Guide, you won’t make it past twenty-six!”
“That’s just the Tower Lord’s opinion, isn’t it? I know my own body best. I use magic myself!”
The Tower Lord was also an S-Class Transcendent. The Crown Prince, believing his own rank to be higher, was under the illusion that he knew better.
“If you truly can manage to endure, then that would indeed be fortunate, but in the end, a Guide is necessary. You haven’t forgotten that your match rate has never exceeded 40% with any Guide, have you?”
Even with Agnes, the S-Class Guide who had raised the greatest expectations, it had not surpassed 31%. Because this caused severe pain to both of them, Agnes had avoided guiding Kasselard ever since. Kasselard had done the same.
“My fated Guide will appear soon enough.”
“When exactly?! Transcendents waiting for Guides are lined up all the way beyond the capital!! Even if a new Guide appears, what guarantee is there that the match rate with you will be as high as Baroness Linier’s!”
To Empress Yekaterina, Ephinia was no different from a blessing bestowed by the goddess. Her commoner origins might be a slight roadblock, but considering that match rate, it was no more than a speck of dust that would blow away with a breath.
“Even if she already had a husband, I’d divorce them and take her! What does it matter that she’s of commoner origin?!”
“And what if a Guide with a high match rate with me appears among noble young ladies or a foreign princess?”
“Is there really a fool who would throw away a present opportunity over a future that hasn’t even happened? Or, Crown Prince, are you perhaps thinking of keeping Baroness Linier as a mistress and putting things off for later?!”
Yekaterina’s voice naturally sharpened. She wasn’t angry over moral concerns or the dignity of the imperial family.
Binding Guides of unclear origin or low status as concubines was something many members of the imperial family had done in the past.
But without exception, the endings were never good.
If it were acceptable, why would anyone bother taking a Guide as a lawful wife? When a Guide was kept as a concubine and a high-born noble lady was taken as the main wife, problems always arose.
It was common for Transcendents to become obsessed with their Guide and end up killing the main wife. The most common outcome was the Guide running away after becoming involved with another Transcendent.
In such cases, it was also common for scions of the imperial family to go mad, hunt down the Guide, kill both of them, and then end it all with their own suicide.
‘Ephinia is a rare Guide with high match rates with most Transcendents. If the Crown Prince takes that child as a concubine, she’ll definitely run away with someone else.’
Even if a Transcendent and Guide seemed to get along well, temptation from other Transcendents would never cease. Seeing Kasselard speak so foolishly, the Empress felt like she was going mad with rage.
But Kasselard went even further.
“She’d at least need something pretty about her to keep her as a mistress. Even a withered flower would have more vitality than that woman! Just thinking about that gloomy black hair and that dismal expression makes me sick!”
A woman sold to a noble household as a child and forced to do nothing but harsh labor all her life having a bright expression would be far stranger. It was only natural for a young lady, unfamiliar with high society and entering it for the first time under the heavy protection of the imperial family, to be tense.
“Crown Prince, not everyone is blessed with a smooth life. Must you slander a young lady simply for being tense in an unfamiliar environment?”
To Kasselard, who had grown up surrounded by attendants and maids who smiled brightly and spoke to please him, Ephinia’s expression may well have seemed strange.
When the Empress tried to gently reason with him like this, Kasselard immediately looked sullen. He clearly disliked being treated like a child.
‘As if it never occurs to him that he’s acting like a spoiled brat!’
“In any case, I won’t take that woman as my Guide! Having to marry a woman like that under the pretense of guiding is horrifying!”
“What nonsense is that? The Crown Prince is a Transcendent. You can’t live without a Guide—”
As the scolding continued, Kasselard finally snapped back.
“Then I’d rather die.”
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