The pink-haired girl announced that she wanted me to kill her older brother.
Said girl was Princess Farina.
Meaning that her older brother was a prince of the Alvanian kingdom.
Killing a prince was no laughing matter.
[Are you requesting that I kill a member of the royal family?] (Lugh)
Killing royals was a severe crime.
After all, the moment I accepted this demand, I would have no right to protest if my entire clan was massacred for targeting the royal family.
And of course, the ones who made the request would be equally guilty. If this was ever made public, then Princess Farina aside, even one of the four major dukes would be sentenced to death.
[Indeed, this is for the sake of our country.] (Princess Farina)
[The reason for this is the fact that he was seduced by Countess Granfelt, but wouldn’t it be too hasty to kill him just for that?] (Lugh)
[No, this is more than enough reason to eliminate him. Strange, isn’t it? If he was simply falling in love with her, making accommodations for her, and offering her gifts and money, there would be no problem with that. But it appears that he is now siding with the noble faction. If the prince joins them, it will upset the balance between the royal faction and the noble faction.] (Princess Farina)
There were two kinds of aristocratic factions in this country.
The first one was the noble faction, which seeked to strengthen the power and independence of each territory. The second one was the royal faction, which put the royal family at the center of everything.
Tuatha Dé was part of the royal faction.
It’s because as far as a country was concerned, we believed that it was in its best interest for the royal family to take the lead rather than for each nobleman to work independently.
Otherwise, we wouldn’t be working as the hands and feet of the government.
[I understand your point. In that case, which prince would you like me to kill?] (Lugh)
Although she spoke of one prince, there were officially five of them.
Twelve if you also included the illegitimate children.
Depending on who was the target, the seriousness of this situation could vary.
[The Second Prince, Rickla.] (Princess Farina)
A real big shot.
The future king was expected to be either the first son or the second son.
Originally, the First Prince, who was the eldest and had the most outstanding track record, was the favorite of the competition.
However, in recent years, Rickla played a remarkably active role and established himself as a rival candidate for the throne.
[Initially, we had planned to make Prince Rickla our future king. He is straightforward, easy to understand, and easy to manipulate. But I suppose this is also why he caught the attention of Countess Granfelt. …Nevertheless, this is disturbing. He may be candid, but not stupid. I cannot believe he would betray our country just because he fell in love. Brainwashing, drugs, I considered every possible cause, but all we can state with certainty is that it is too late for him.] (Princess Farina)
I thought it was too soon to give up on him, but the situation got so serious that she had no choice but to have him killed.
If he was under the control of the snake demon Meena, then there was indeed no helping him anymore.
I agreed that he should be eliminated as soon as possible.
We couldn’t allow the idea of a prince being the puppet of a demon.
This was a mission worth wielding Tuatha Dé’s blade.
[Is the nature of this mission the reason you wished to meet me in person, Princess Farina?] (Lugh)
[Yes, for if Uncle had been the only one requesting this, you would have probably suspected him of attempting to overthrow the nation.] (Princess Farina)
She was right, I couldn’t deny it.
When it came to regicide, you couldn’t trust the clients unless they were royalty themselves.
[Your explanation makes perfect sense. In that case, I have one important question. May I have permission to ask?] (Lugh)
[Yes, please do.] (Princess Farina)
This question was a bit disrespectful to ask, but with the conversation taking such a major turn, there was something I couldn’t overlook.
[The royal family has to make that request in person. Regardless of their opinion on that, why did they send out an imposter instead of the real Princess Farina? Doing something like this will arouse unnecessary suspicions in me.] (Lugh)
Princess Farina’s facial expression stiffened, then she slowly broke into a smile.
This one was different from the one she had been sporting until now. The one she had before was pretty, but it looked somewhat fake.
But if I had to say, the one she was showing now looked genuine.
[…Whatever makes you think that I am an imposter?] (Princess Farina?)
[It is your hair. This pink-colored hair that only belongs to the women of the royal family. This proves that you are a fake.] (Lugh)
[Even though mine is pink?] (Princess Farina?)
[Indeed. Your hair is the exact same color as Princess Farina’s. The concoction you used was excellent. I cannot imagine how difficult it must have been to reproduce the same color. …However, although faint, I detect the smell of dye. You used a substance with a low odor that you concealed with perfume, but I can tell. That hair was dyed and fabricated. If you were the real princess, you would not have done that.] (Lugh)
This had been bugging me from the beginning.
Anyone other than me would’ve probably never noticed.
However, assassins always observed their surroundings and refined all their senses so as not to overlook any little detail.
An imposter showed up when the royal family should’ve been the ones to make the request in person.
I had to suspect that I was being set up.
[Fufufu… Ahahaha! You figured me out! And yet, not even the king himself could tell I was a fake. I expected no less from Tuatha Dé’s greatest masterpiece, Lugh Tuatha Dé! Father, I have taken a liking to Lugh-sama.] (Fake Farina)
[Nevan, don’t you think you revealed yourself too soon?] (Duke Romanlung)
[It’s okay. I mean, this man already figured out who I was.] (Fake Farina —> Nevan)
Nevan.
This was the name of Duke Romanlung’s only daughter.
And she was my senior at the academy.
[Duke Romanlung, may I know the meaning of this?] (Lugh)
[Sorry, I had to test you a bit. Cian spoke so highly of you, after all. I had no intention of tricking you by impersonating the royal family at all. I realize my words alone won’t convince you, so let me prove it to you.] (Duke Romanlung)
The moment he finished talking, the servant, who was standing behind him, stepped forward.
She took off her wig, wiped her face clean with a towel, and removed her heavy makeup.
Doing so, her pink-colored hair was revealed, and a girl who had the exact same face as Nevan appeared before me.
[How do you do? My name is Farina. I apologize. I was opposed to this sort of mischief.] (Princess Farina)
[Still, aren’t you glad that you got to witness Lugh-sama’s abilities as a result? Let me introduce you. This is the real Princess Farina. And I am Nevan Romanlung. I occasionally act as her body double.] (Nevan)
[Princess Farina, how do you do? My name is Lugh Tuatha Dé. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.] (Lugh)
I stood up and knelt down to show my loyalty to the royal family.
[Yes, you already introduced yourself earlier, so there is no need for you to do it again. Please return to your seat. I cannot resume the conversation. I will leave the rest to Duke Romanlung.] (Princess Farina)
Princess Farina lowered her head and bowed repeatedly.
She was such a humble girl, I couldn’t tell which one of them was the double.
…Princess Farina and Nevan really do look alike.
She probably used makeup for that, but even so, this would’ve been impossible to pull without bearing a strong resemblance to the original.
Seeing me confused, Duke Romanlung smiled.
[Nevan and Princess Farina truly look similar, don’t they? The two of them are cousins. That’s why Princess Farina refers to me as Uncle.] (Duke Romanlung)
[I see. And that’s why your daughter can act as her body double.] (Lugh)
[Yes, and you’re the first person who ever managed to see through her disguise. As you can see, this is an actual request from the royal family. I hope this puts you at ease.] (Duke Romanlung)
[Somewhat. There is one more thing I am curious about. Why was Princess Farina the one to make that request? The fact that you, Duke Romanlung, are affiliated to her proves that she is the one who takes the initiatives among the royal family, but normally, you should be affiliated with either the First Prince or the Second Prince.] (Lugh)
[Well you see, this was the will of my friend, the king. According to him, Princess Farina is the most talented of his children, but because she’s a woman, she cannot succeed to the throne. That’s why he asked me to arrange for Princess Farina to be in power. I know that finding a husband for her and making him king would be the best solution, but we can’t seem to find the right partner for her. Our plan B was to control the Second Prince from the shadows. And then, just when the Second Prince was starting to gain credit and grow influential… this happened.] (Duke Romanlung)
So that’s how it is.
Only a man could become the leader of this country.
From the beginning, Princess Farina wasn’t qualified for it.
That’s why even though they needed to elevate her in a backhanded way by using the Second Prince as a pawn, that pawn was snatched away at the worst time possible.
In that case, there was no choice left but to dispose of him.
[I understand your request. But what if I were to refuse?] (Lugh)
[Then don’t expect this to end peacefully for you. You’ve learned too much confidential information. Besides, surely you got our message. You know the meaning behind serving you the tea of Orna, and mentioning Maha’s name.] (Duke Romanlung)
[Yes, pretty much.] (Lugh)
…I can’t believe they found out that Illig Balor and I were the same person.
Even though I was careful in keeping it a secret.
Still, I have to ascertain if they’re really aware of it, and how much conclusive evidence they have to prove it.
After we spent some time chatting, he finally gave me the answer I wanted to know.
[I presume you and Maha are romantically involved. I found out that Tuatha Dé and Orna have done business with each other. Not only that, but she’s been checking up on Lugh Tuatha Dé far too often, and she seems to want to protect you. No one would go that far for a mere stranger. Moreover, she came all the way to see you at the party the other day. Obviously, your relationship would come to light as a result.] (Duke Romanlung)
So that’s what they learned.
They didn’t find out that I was Illig Balor, but they suspected that Maha and I were lovers when they found out about what she did to check up on me and devote herself to me.
…There’s nothing critical about giving them that impression.
Rather, it could serve as an insurance policy, a decoy to hide Illig Baylor’s true identity.
No need to go out of my way to correct him.
Let’s just go with it.
[I guess there is no way out of this one. I accept your request. However, I will need your support, and to make suitable preparations. This is not a mission I can fulfill right now.] (Lugh)
[I know that. The deadline is two months from now. We’ll provide you with Prince Rickla’s schedule. Kill him when the time is right for you.] (Duke Romanlung)
This was more than I could ask for.
[Is this the end of the topic?] (Lugh)
[Indeed. It was supposed to be. But I have a suggestion to make. If it’s alright with you, Lugh-kun, would you be willing to marry my niece?] (Duke Romanlung)
[Are you… referring to…?] (Lugh)
[Princess Farina, of course. As the Second Prince is no longer an exploitable pawn, we will need a new one as soon as possible. In that respect, you would be a good choice. You’re exceptional, understanding, a Holy Knight, and a “Chosen One”. The way you are now, you would be a great match for Princess Farina. You would become the future king, which isn’t a bad deal for you.] (Duke Romanlung)
[Father, this would be wonderful! I think Princess Farina and Lugh-sama would be a perfect match.] (Nevan)
[If this is alright with you, Lugh-sama, I would like you to accept. I know a lot about you.] (Princess Farina)
The fact that she knew a lot about me was probably the result of all the research they had done on me.
Even if they didn’t realize that I was Illig Balor, there were still the transactions between Tuatha Dé and Orna.
Since they found out about Maha checking up on me and supporting me, I should assume that they had gathered all kinds of intel on me.
[Please let me hold off on that. For your sake as well as mine.] (Lugh)
I wanted to refuse, but if I did, things would get messy.
So I dodged the subject by declaring that I cared about the princess’s welfare.
In the event that the assassination was exposed, Princess Farina would also have to take the fall if she had any connection with me.
[You are so kind. I am even more interested in you.] (Princess Farina)
[Princess Farina, if you two get married, please let me borrow Lugh once in a while. As the Duchess of Romanlung, I will need him. Don’t you agree with me, Father?] (Nevan)
[He is such a fine young man. How could I object?] (Duke Romanlung)
When she said she would ‘borrow me’, she probably meant as a breeding horse.
…The Romanlung family is abnormal.
Every noble family strived to obtain better blood in their choice of spouses for the sake of having better children, more or less. However, the Romanlung family took it up to eleven.
They used all the power they had to get their hands on the finest genes. The moment they found someone with outstanding genetics, even if that someone were already married, they would take them in to create the next generation.
And if some of them were against it, they would use their power to crush them and forcibly take them away.
They would ignore the other person’s personality, social status and so on altogether, and only consider their superior abilities and appearance.
This was how they continued to bring in the most outstanding bloodlines and improve their breed of human.
The results of it were right in front of me, Duke Romanlung and Nevan.
Both of them were inhumanly beautiful and possessed overwhelming abilities.
[Let’s talk about this another time as well.] (Lugh)
[In that case, I’ll ask you again when the assassination is over. Also, when school resumes, I’ll greet you there again. I’m your senior. So you’d better not ignore me. …And I’m a bit excited to go back to the dorms.] (Nevan)
Nevan smiled. And this one wasn’t fake.
I think I’ve caught the attention of one hell of a girl.
…My only relief here was that in Duke Romanlung’s case, he didn’t want anything more than genes, so there wouldn’t be any more trouble to face.
In the worst-case scenario, I’d just end up sleeping with his daughter.
But I’d rather avoid that matter for as long as possible.
After all, Tarte was looking at me with her cheeks puffed up and a tearful look on her face.
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