No Regression for the Victor - Chapter 12

“So, Your Highness… may I be so bold as to ask why you are here?”

Three days later. After all sorts of complications, Marcel finally arrived at the frozen lake, was assigned a room, and turned pale the moment he opened his strangely heavy luggage.

“Haha… I thought if I just asked, you’d refuse, so…”

“……”

And what on earth was that getup supposed to be? Did he really think the Duke wouldn’t recognize him like that? No matter that three years had passed—did he think that man wouldn’t recognize the prince?

His golden hair, which looked as though it had been melted from pure gold, was smeared with ash to appear a deep brown, and his eyes were covered with strange glasses, making him look like a complete fool. On top of that, he wore shabby clothes that street children might wear.

Marcel was rendered speechless by the prince’s clumsy disguise.

“Are you seriously saying that right now?”

Marcel broke into a cold sweat at the thought that he might lose his head for having dared to sneak away with the Emperor’s precious prince.

“Hurry back! I’ll send a message to the palace at once and call for an escort to fetch Your Highness as quickly as possible…”

As Marcel fumbled for his portable communicator, Mikhail screamed and blocked him.

“Wait, just a second! I really am curious about Duke Transis’s condition…! Once I see how he’s doing, I’ll leave right away, I promise— So please, just give me time!”

Leave on your own, how, exactly? Marcel held his aching head in his hands and sighed. There was no way he could win against this stubborn prince. It was better to quickly give in to the demands of this overgrown child and get rid of him than waste time arguing.

“So what did you tell the palace that let you come here?”

With a pained expression, Marcel asked, and Mikhail looked away as if feeling guilty.

“I said there was a monster that needed to be subjugated, and that I’d be back soon…”

“And you think His Majesty wouldn’t be worried after hearing that?”

“It’s fine! I got permission to report after I returned if it was an urgent matter, so I’m sure it’ll be all right!”

I don’t think it’s all right at all. Marcel swallowed his retort and adjusted the glasses Mikhail was wearing.

“Well… I suppose it’s understandable that Your Highness would be curious about how Duke Transis is doing. But just to be safe, you’re only going to observe him from afar—if he tries anything strange, you’ll keep your mouth shut and pretend to be someone else, right?”

Of course, Marcel, being capable of rational thought, didn’t actually believe the weakened Duke—enfeebled as he was by the curse—could threaten a robust prince famed for his martial exploits. Still, you never knew what could happen, so he emphasized caution. Mikhail nodded readily.

“I’ll be careful. If it seems like he’s starting to recognize me, I’ll keep my mouth shut and pretend to be someone else.”

“Ha…”

Marcel sighed deeply again and went to the caretaker to ask if his attendant could use the room next door.

“So imperial investigators travel with attendants nowadays?”

“My workload’s been heavy lately, so I needed an extra hand.”

The caretaker couple seemed to find it a bit odd but didn’t press the matter, and everything passed without trouble. Thus, the time Marcel permitted Mikhail was until five o’clock tomorrow afternoon. Until then, Mikhail had to obediently remain in his room.

‘What am I supposed to do until tomorrow…’

While Marcel roamed the manor, searching for any suspicious signs and inspecting for traces of magic with an artifact, someone suddenly opened the door and entered. Mikhail, startled, looked up to see the caretaker he’d seen earlier, who glanced at Mikhail lounging idly on the bed and issued an order.

“Hey, if you’re just going to sit around doing nothing, take this to His Grace.”

“…Pardon?”

The caretaker, wearing a stubborn expression, pointed to a box filled with books. It looked far too heavy for the old man to carry alone.

“What are you standing there gawking for? Hurry up and take it!”