“Pff.”
The blond, handsome man burst out laughing.
“Haha! Ahaha, ahahahahaha!! Snow, are you serious!? This? This is what you—ahahahahaha!!!”
He doubled over, clutching his stomach as he laughed.
I wonder, what is so funny?
“…Please stop, Your Highness, you’re being rude to my friend.”
“Huh?? Hmmmm?? Snow? The way you look at him, and that scent… No way, you’re not serious, are you? You’re seeing this guy as a man?”
“—Huh?”
“It’s a flowery scent, the kind a woman gives off when she’s in front of a man. A scent that never appeared in front of me or Aki, but now, you’re giving it off.”
The handsome man leaned closer to Snow with a slow, deliberate movement.
Ah, I see, I’ve completely figured out the flow of magic.
That ring… it’s just an aid; the mind magic is actually coming from him.
I’m going to kill him.
But… it doesn’t feel like the right moment.
《Player?》
No, it’s just… it feels different.
My instincts are telling me now isn’t the time to kill this guy.
You know, like when you’re in a sauna, it feels better to really warm up before you jump into the cold bath.
《Wait, shouldn’t we intervene between those two?》
You idiot, we’re talking about Snow here.
There’s no way she’d struggle against a guy like this—
Wait, what?
“No, no, please, don’t come any closer…”
Snow took a step back.
She glanced towards Aki’s bed, but he did not wake.
The blond, long-haired handsome man approached Snow.
“……Snow, you’re being a bad girl…”
“P-please, don’t come any closer!”
“That strong demeanor of yours… it’s just armor, a flimsy armor to keep yourself together… a small, fragile vessel, trying so hard to fulfill your role… I can see why he’s taken a liking to you.”
The prince stepped closer to Snow.
Her knight, Aki, remained asleep.
“N-no…”
“Oh, let’s show him, let’s show him our relationship, shall we?”
The prince reached out to embrace Snow—
“Hey there.”
“Nggh.”
Huh?
Why am I…?
Before I knew it, I had grabbed the prince by the collar, clutching his expensive-looking tailcoat.
The prince hadn’t touched Snow.
“…Kasuya ?”
“…Do you realize what you’re doing?”
Snow looked at me, tears welling up in her eyes.
The handsome man—this “Your Highness”—glared at me.
Huh? Wait a minute, there’s… something inside this guy?
“……”
“Silence, huh. I see, you’ve got some brains after all, G-ranked Gifted. I am the first prince of this country, the child of the Goddess of Courage and Duty, ‘Lutos,’ Lux Ulbera Bels. You understand, don’t you, reincarnated hero?”
“Oh, yes.”
What’s a “child of the goddess”?
《It seems that in this country, there are a few individuals who can become vessels for the gods. You could think of them as the earthly incarnations of the Seven Gods.》
“Huh?”
“So, does that mean it’s something like a partial divine spirit?”
Oh, I might have just thought of something good.
“…Do you think you’ll get away with doing this to me?”
“But, Snow doesn’t want you to.”
“Hahahahahahaha!! You really don’t understand this woman, do you!? There’s no way she’s some naive girl! She’s a noblewoman who understands politics and speaks on equal terms with the Emperor!”
“…”
“Listen up, G-ranked Gifted. This woman is cunning, calculating, and full of wisdom. She knows her own value and has used her worth as a woman to force the Empire to accept unreasonable demands. She even accepted the role of a concubine just to get someone like you into the Magic Academy!”
“I see.”
“No, Kasuya , don’t listen to him…”
Oh, Snow is looking pretty mentally shaken.
Why, though? She’s amazing.
She’s sacrificing herself for someone worthless like me.
People like this really do exist.
Ughhh!! I’d love to be killed by someone like this.
“Are you mistaken? I’ll let you go this time. Or would you rather die here?”
“Huh? Die? Me?”
I wonder what he’s planning.
Does he intend to use the subordinates he has lurking outside the room?
But they seem weak, even weaker than White’s men.
“Oh, yes. ‘Forget all memories from the moment you entered this room, forget everything you’ve seen and heard… and take your own life in a place where no one will find you.’”
“—Huh? Your Highness, what are you—”
《No, stop!! Player!!! This is extremely powerful mind control magic!! This is… divine-grade magic—oh, but you seem to be okay.》
Curse power amplification.
As soon as the magic from the prince wrapped around my mind, I caught it with my curse power.
Curse power is heavier than magic power.
“Hmm, mind control magic… I think I’ve got the hang of it, something like this?”
“Huh?”
“‘Your Highness, please leave the room.’”
“What are you saying…—Yes, I understand…”
Suddenly, with a vacant expression, the prince obediently walked out of the room.
—Your Highness!? Is it all right now!?
—Yes, I’m leaving.
—I’ll accompany you, Your Highness.
Wow, it worked out even though it was my first time.
He left without any trouble.
Hehe, it feels almost like the satisfaction of ending an event through a sneaky trick in a life simulation game.
Reflecting the magic effects using curse power.
The concept is to wrap the incoming magic with curse power and send it back to the opponent.
If the magic-laden energy is returned directly to the opponent, it’s essentially the same as reflecting the magic itself.
Hmm, this could be useful in real combat…
It could be applied to defense, even if not for reflection.
All right, I’ll just wait for the right time and use this guy to finish things off.
The best part of open-world games is being able to deal with annoying NPCs however you like.
“Huh, why…”
“He’s left, that’s lucky.”
While Snow was in shock, I moved over to Aki.
Just like with the prince earlier, I wrapped the magic with curse power and tossed it away.
“Guh… uh…”
Good, he should wake up soon.
“Huh… Aki, his expression looks a bit more relaxed?”
“Yeah, that’s good.”
Before we knew it, we were standing side by side, watching over Aki.
Snow is standing unusually close.
Her shoulder is touching mine.
Heh, you can’t be a friend character unless you’re a gentleman and cool.
I’ll step back quietly here.
《Stand still in that spot.》
Yes.
Following Navi’s instructions, I froze in place.
“…” “…”
The conversation suddenly stopped.
