Chapter 1-6

After reaching the royal capital, I accompanied my parents in a hectic series of greetings.
From greeting powerful n.o.bles to those of a high position who serve the country, I was already exhausted before the party even started.

When night fell, we were finally guided into the a.s.sembly hall.
Of course, in full dress.
It being the first time for me to be in such a place, I had bought a new suit.
Different to my cute figure before, My height has increased and I’ve become a cool-looking young man who looks attractive in a suit.
I would look into a mirror with self-satisfaction, and upon finding another mirror I would repeat the same action of looking at myself in self-satisfaction.

“To all those gathered here.
Kudan Kingdom’s first prince, Arc Kudan’s entrance.”
From the sudden voice from the host, everyone’s gaze a.s.sembled.
At the point of everyone’s focus, the prince emerged with a gaudy appearance, which everyone met with their applause.
While the pa.s.sionate gaze from a group of ladies at the front of the a.s.sembly hall toward the prince caught my attention, the entrance of the leading part caused the a.s.sembly hall to become lively.

“Everyone, Thank you all for coming here today for my sake. Due to all of you, I was able to grow in good health until my fourteenth birthday.
My thanks comes directly from my heart.
I will end the stiff greetings here. Everyone, please enjoy the music and beverages to your heart’s content.”

After the prince’s greeting ended, he descended from the stage and was immediately surrounded.
While normally he would have thought to go out and greet the elite from his side, he is caught by those filled with ulterior motives.
He corresponds to them without making a single unpleasant face. How admirable.

My parents were enjoying themselves in their own way, talking to other feudal lords.

Huh!? Now that I think of it, the groups within the a.s.sembly hall have already been formed.
I thought this was something gradually made, but I suppose it’s only natural for those who make an appearance every time to have an acquaintance.
This is bad! I’ve been completely left behind.

The party pa.s.ses by moment by moment. n.o.body is coming to greet me and somehow being alone has made me start to feel embarra.s.sed.
I resolve myself and approach the prince to greet him, but…
I was overwhelmed by the group surrounding the him.

No, don’t give up!
I looked at the prince from a spot slightly separated from the mob of people surrounding him.
If I can make eye contact, if I can just make eye contact with the feeling of “Ah, prince, congratulations,” I can do it!!
I continued staring, but he would not meet my eyes.
While I miraculously made eye contact with the prince’s best friend and personal attendant, Rial, it ended with him giving a face that said, “What is that guy doing?”

This is bad. Today is probably no good.
Rather, everyone’s present is too good. With all of those precious gems brought out, giving him a short sword would be embarra.s.sing.
If I made a single mistake, carrying a short sword while staring at the prince from a distance could get me mistaken for an a.s.sa.s.sin.

As one would expect, I gave up with that and searched for a person I knew from the a.s.sembly hall.

Someone, someone.
Hm? Thats?
Coincidentally, there was a face I recognized.
Huh, that’s the second prince Rahsa Kudan, right?

His age is two below mine and is currently twelve.
Unlike the first prince, he was alone listening to the music.
The first and second prince are this different, huh?
Well, I came to see the prince, too, after all.
Since I was free anyway, I decided to approach him.
I poked his back once, Ei-!

“E-eh, W-what is it?”
“I am Kururi Helan.”
“Eh, ah, it’s nice to meet you, I am Rahsa Kudan.”
“Do you know of the territory of Helan?”
“Yes, the one Toral Helan is the feudal lord of.”
“We have hot springs there.. would you like to visit?”
“Hot springs? Would it be alright for someone like me to visit?”
“Of course!
The territory of Helan is beautiful and recently had some hot springs appear. It would surely make for a good trip.”
“Then I’ll take you up on your words. After preparing, I’ll come right away.”

I did it! I succeeded in soliciting one person!
“Well then, as a mark of our acquaintance, I will give you this short sword,” I handed over the short sword I had been carrying. Now I can get away from being an a.s.sa.s.sin.
“This is well made, isn’t it. It seems there are talented artisans in Helan.”
“No, actually I made that.”
“Wha- this!? Amazing! Could you please let me see the process of making it? ”
“Sure.”

The surrounding already made their groups so it was hard to join in, but I managed to get on good terms with the second prince. He said he’ll come to the hot springs, so it seems I had obtained a good result from this party.

Father’s side was apparently no good.
What are you doing? I cross-examined him.

We returned to our territory and a few days later, I received a letter from Rahsa.
It was written that he would come within a week, but what an conscientious boy to send out a letter.
Within the territory, the rumor spread and a welcoming mood filled the air.
I heard the population making talk such as, “Hasn’t it been since the founding of the nation since royalty has visited?”
In contrast to this calm atmosphere, a few days later, my father and I were experiencing a feeling alike having our stomachs gripped.

 

“Rahsa-sama is coming.”
A messenger mounted on a fast horse reported without delay.
He will arrive immediately.
The population was lined up on the road preceding themansion.The preparation of the mansion is perfect.
All that’s left is to wait for the prince.

I can hear the population making a riot outside. It seems he has arrived.
All of our house’s members go outside to receive him.
The carriage is awfully luxurious and there being large amount of people sparks my interest, but I decided to just go along with the mood.

“Toral Helan, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
Someone addressed father from the front of the carriage.
“The queen has arrived. Make sure to show no discourtesy.”

“”Eeh-”” Wow, I made the exact same reaction as father.

As was said, the person who exited the carriage was the actual queen and Rahsa.
Hurriedly, everyone bowed their heads.

“Please raise your heads.”
I raised my face to the gentle voice of the queen.
What a beautiful person. She was so beautiful that my honest feelings came straight out.
Rahsa waving his hand by her side had a playful feeling, which was kind of cute.
“W-w-we-wel-welcome Harti-sama.”
Father doesn’t seem to be used to these sorts of things. He’s making a face like he’s about to vomit out his breakfast.

“I heard Rahsa, who doesn’t like to go outside very much, say that he’d like to go to Helan and decided to come along. Please, act just as you normally would, without humbling yourself so much. I’m looking forward to the hot springs.”

The queen wishes to observe the flower gardens, so father ended up leading them through a sightseeing route.

Rahsa and I go through the same route from the opposite direction.
He seems to be able to ride a horse, so we went about on horseback.
As expected of the second prince. While alone at the party, when outside he had three attendants always accompanying him.
“Thank you for inviting me, Kururi-san. Mom also seems to be enjoying the first trip she had in a long time.
“No, I didn’t actually believe I could get you to come.”
The attendants glances are scary and I can’t seem to talk normally.
“Kururi-san, are you talented at horseriding?”
“Well, a bit.”
“My attendants are heavily equipped with armor, weapons, and the like. Shall we increase our pace and throw them off?”
I thought him to be unexpectedly a bad kid. Though I did take him up on his offer.

It was probably also due to the difference in the quality of horse. We threw them off in an instant, and took off on a different route.
“The epitome of traveling is going around as you please, after all.” A stunning smile, but one tinged with mischief.
“Yeah, that’s exactly right.”

The place we turned off into was a place I was familiar with. I told him a variety of little-known spots.
More than anything, he seemed to get hooked on the quality of the water.
I also boasted about the hot spring facilities that were being serviced under my orders. Rahsa happily listened to me speak. Ah, thank you, thank you.

“Kururi-san, be careful. We seemed to have approached the forest too much.”
Rahsa’s gaze was directed toward a wolf-formed monster.
Luckily it was not a group, but a single, aged monster.

“Kururi-san, Please leave this to me. I may be weak, but I am skilled in magic.
Ignite! Fire!”
Rahsa’s released mana became fire and then covered the monster.
The monster’s back was covered with fire, but it became frenzied and came charging.
“How!?”
“Burn to nothing! Fire!”
This time, my mana turned into fire and covered the wolf. It stopped moving, then completely burned into nothing.
A strange smell filled the surroundings.

“Wow! To be able to use magic to this level.”
“Uh, yeah.” I often use fire magic after all.
“Your level in smithing high is and and you also possess the qualities to rule over the people. In addition, the power of your magic. Ah, please let me call you aniki”
“Um, sure.”
I accidentally went a bit too far, is this okay? Well, whatever.

Upon returning home, the queen had also returned. The attendants are quite angry, though.
“Oh, Kururi. Well then, Harti-sama, my son is more informed about the hot springs, so I will have him guide you.”
That old man ran away, huh.
“I have heard that there is a hot springs surrounded by a flower garden. I’m looking forward to it.”
“Yes, the lodge was just built, so the queen and Rahsa-sama are the first guests.”
“That’s lucky, right Rahsa?”
“Yes, mother.”

 

“Ah, beautiful.”
Upon reaching the hot springs, the queen was in a state of wonder.
The steam falls on the flower garden, creating a wondrous environment.
Upon entering the hot springs, you can see a dazzling bed of flowers. The sky is blue and the water is perfectly clear. This is the best hot spring within the territory.

“By the way, what sort of effects does this hot spring possess.”
Like I’d know!!
“The effects of the hot springs themselves are relief of the respiratory system. However this hot spring is special, due to being surrounded by a flower garden, the properties of the flowers soak into the hot spring. This has the effect of whitening skin and has a tremendous effect of the figure,” I said halfheartedly.

“Wow, what a brilliant hot spring. I’d like to enter as soon as possible.”
“The flowers have soaked into the hot spring, giving it a pleasant smell. After exiting, I believe you will notice, but the scent of flowers should remain on your body.”
“Amazing, I can’t wait anymore.”
Uwa-, she’s really biting at it.

After finis.h.i.+ng the guiding, Rahsa and I entered the men’s side.
Women’s bathing takes a long time. After my body cooled down, the queen finally came out.
Just looking at her face filled with ecstasy, there was no need to ask to tell that she was satisfied.
She seemed to particularly like the scent, and in the end, the planned two day stay was extended to a week.

While I don’t know if the queen spread information of her own accord or if the fact that she visited was spread, next month, the number of visitors to our territory increased by fifty times.
They were mostly wives seeking improvements to their beauty, and for such a purpose had no hesitation on the use of their money. Money flowed into the territory non-stop.

Kururi Helan, at the mere age of fourteen, came to know of the fearsome power of beauty.
“Tou-san, about how much money does mother use on her appearance?”
“Fufu, it’s still too early for Kururi to know.”
Father’s face had a bit of a tragic expression, so I couldn’t ask any further.