Chapter . 44
I intended to attempt a contract different from the original brand with Michelon. One that looks like a brand but isn't.
"A brand is a brand."
"A dragon is a dragon."
Michelon lifted his snout and narrowed his golden eyes. I used to like it when my nanny chimed in with my words, but I don't know what kids these days like. Even if I wanted to appear like a friend his age, I lacked sociability.
"I'm sorry."
"If you know, don't joke. It's not funny."
"It's not a joke. I at least had a good nanny, but you only have me, who has no experience in childcare. So it's no wonder you always grumble. I'm sorry. For not raising you well."
"What are you saying!"
"Look, you're getting angry again. It's all because I didn't raise you properly."
"You're the one actually hinting that you don't like my attitude, aren't you?"
"I'm depressed because of my incompetence right now, how could I hint anything at you. You're the one who would give me hints."
"...You aren't my nanny, and I'm not a kid you have to raise. Don't be mistaken."
"That's exactly what I'm saying. There should be a good being to raise you like a child, but I'm sorry that there's only me by your side. So you're giving up even your childhood."
Michelon scratched his chest fiercely with his claws. He puffed out round smoke rings, POOF POOF, then abruptly spoke.
"...Dragons already complete their mental growth when they come out of the egg. Now only the body needs to grow."
"Then why do you act like a kid? Is it indeed the bad influence of being trapped in the barrier for a long time?"
"......."
"Then it's not your fault."
"Shut up, and what on earth were you trying to say earlier!"
At this point, I should have reasoned with him well like a nanny, but since I wasn't a nanny, I just moved on because Michelon was pestering. Actually, I also prefer explaining my theories over giving useless teachings. When the explanation ended, Michelon was silent for a while before finally opening his mouth.
"...I've thought this since the maze, but you are a crazy genius."
"Mm, you shouldn't say that to a wizard, Michelon."
"Why, do I have to use only pretty words?"
"Because it encourages them to be crazier."
"......."
Like that, that night, we stood side by side on the Throne Magic Circle again.
"To contract properly, both the Throne Magic Circle and the treasured sword Juratio are needed. That is the standard. Even without them, it's not impossible, though."
Michelon snorted at my words.
"Not impossible? Without them, the dragon's pain becomes greater. If the ritual is performed properly, even if Juratio stabs the brand, the pain is bearable as long as it's not severe, but without it, even a small stab becomes incredibly painful."
"......."
"Why are you silent? Weren't you planning to force it even without Juratio?"
"...I would never do that."
I cleared my choking throat and spoke.
"Actually, it was a hypothesis I had in mind when devising the fake brand. Thank you for confirming it."
"...What hypothesis again?"
"If those two things lessen the dragon's pain, what would be the reason? Perhaps it's because they further strengthen the dragon's subordination. So when the dragon is fully subordinated, there's no reason to cause pain, but when not, it gets tamed through pain."
"......."
"......."
"...So are we performing this ritual today? As a preparatory process before the main contract?"
"It is an unprecedented event replacing a ritual that has continued for so long. Preparation and investigation are needed. I need to secure grounds to support my hypothesis to some extent. Otherwise, nothing should be attempted."
"I will gladly take the risk."
"...There's no need to do this. Because this way becomes a stronger contract than the fake brand I first thought of."
To attempt the tremendous magic of dragon transformation, a contract of some form was essential beforehand, and the stronger the contract, the greater the stability. Because the dragon wasn't transforming by itself but through my magic.
"And the reason it became like that is because I wish to transform into a human. I have already made up my mind."
I nodded. Then I opened my hand and extended my palm to Michelon.
When Michelon scratched it with his claw, drops of blood flowed out. Michelon wrote my name with that blood, and dropped the name of blood onto the Throne Magic Circle.
Next, Michelon extended his foot to me. I turned my hand into a blade and cut the sole of Michelon's foot.
"...The blood is blue......."
Why hadn't I recalled it earlier? It wasn't my first time seeing it.
It must be because whenever I stabbed Michelon's brand, I turned my head away from his blood and just shed tears.
"Is it your first time seeing dragon blood? You're a greenhorn for a Valaskaion."
"...I am a descendant of Valaska, but I didn't receive that title."
Only Maximilian held the title meaning descendant of Valaska. It was a name only the eldest prince received, a trace of the Crown Prince system that had now disappeared.
"So? If you don't have the title, does a Valaskaion stop being a Valaskaion in a dragon's eyes?"
While Michelon was being sarcastic, I wrote his name.
Like that, my red name and his blue name fell onto the Throne Magic Circle.
They began to float around the Throne Magic Circle, one leading and the other following. My name was a bit clearer and larger than when I first let it flow in. It might be the aftermath of becoming a contractor, but it also seemed like the result of accumulating slight traces left by names that disappear into the magic circle upon completing tasks.
"All contracts with dragons."
I commanded briefly, mimicking the action of pulling a bowstring with both hands. As I finished the motion of releasing the arrowhead, the red name shot out from the starting point of the magic circle like a red arrowhead. The command would pierce through every contract with dragons from there and return.
"Search all transformation magic."
This time, reciting lowly, I made a gesture as if plucking strings of a string instrument with my hand. The blue name began to spread slowly from the starting point, undulating like a melody. A contract with a dragon happens only once in a reign, but transformation magic is too diverse and numerous. It was better to flow like music and reach as far as possible.
"Are you not using a staff because of Valaskaion's dignity?"
"I'm not doing it because there's a risk of getting caught. And if you keep using a staff, dependency increases."
I was already banished before the regression as a prince who had fallen into evil magic and become corrupted. No amount of caution was enough.
"So you developed such a method?"
"Since I couldn't use a staff, my hands felt empty."
Because I used to wield the staff my master prepared, and even slept hugging it when I couldn't wield it enough.
I still can't wield a staff, but this method was more effective than I thought. Since I didn't receive proper education and lacked basic literary knowledge, the spells I made were all simple. There were many times when I was in a hurry and didn't have time to refine the expressions.
As a result, my hands felt empty and the expressions felt empty too. The spells my master taught me were beautiful.
"Once, feeling empty, I clenched my fist tightly while reciting a spell—"
"Did the power double?"
"Not that, but the feeling was different. Since then, I started expressing with my hands while picturing the desired effect in my mind when using magic. Then the effect gradually increased."
Michelon stared at me intently, then spoke abruptly.
"You really like magic."
"Yeah."
"Don't you have any aversion? Magic is an evil power, so you must have heard until your ears bled not to fall into magic and become corrupted?"
Not just that, I was even a victim of a curse cast by magic. Even after deciding to learn magic, it was hard to shake off the fear that was deeply engraved.
"How did you overcome that aversion?"
"......."
However, I soon smiled brightly at Michelon.
"If I have to do it, I do it."
Michelon's eyes narrowed, but I turned my gaze to the Throne Magic Circle.
There was much to do, and no time to waste. This magic of thoroughly scanning the Throne Magic Circle and collecting past data takes time. In the meantime, I had to go meet Father again.
***
"My dear second Prince, I am sad that it is hard to see your face these days."
However, Alexander Steiner barged in before I could even go to meet Father. While I was locked in my bedroom, my brothers kept sending people and making a fuss, but I feigned illness and avoided them.
"Even though I visited you several times because you were sick, you didn't meet me at all, ignoring brotherly affection, which made me very disappointed and sad. But it seems you are a bit better now. What a relief. It is thanks to God Traneha recognizing my heart worrying about the Prince."
My illegitimate brother spouted nonsense while carefully examining my complexion. No matter how much he looked, he wouldn't suspect I was feigning illness. To think this body I considered useless had this kind of use.
"I am fine now. Thank you for your concern, Marquis."
I said so and offered him a seat.
"Call me Alexander. If you won't call me brother, surely you can call me by name."
"Let's refrain from doing things neither of us are used to."
Don't you think about calling me by name either.
"Whether on the battlefield or in the court, there is no such thing as getting used to something. Do you know why Maximilian and Desmond didn't come?"
"Because the Marquis is their representative?"
"Oh my, sorry to disappoint you. Regrettably, Maximilian has currently left the capital Elan to find a dragon egg. They say he obtained certain information about where a dragon egg is."
"Is the person who provided that certain information perhaps you, Marquis?"
"I am innocent. Who else but Grimiati would dare plot a wicked scheme against the eldest prince of this country. Well, it's not like I don't understand. For him, it was necessary to send Maximilian far away so he wouldn't incur the Emperor's wrath. Of course, for Maximilian too, it's better to go on a picnic somewhere than to fight again with his only younger brother. Since he still harbors the delusion that the Prince would never disobey him."
"Then do you mean the Marquis has no connection to Desmond's affairs either?"
"Desmond is engrossed in finding the dragon egg with magic along with Her Majesty the Empress. To be precise, he believes that if the Prince could discover it, he can too. As you know, Her Majesty's wizards are quite skilled."
I experienced their skill personally twice.
"And so, the Marquis came to find me."
"I came a long time ago. I would have seen you earlier if not for the Prince's loyal dog standing guard at the door barking. I only worried that the Prince's condition might worsen due to the sound of a dog barking."
I turned my head to Sir Rolf standing behind my back, but he kept his mouth shut like a rocky mountain.
While feigning illness, I locked myself in the room, only occasionally letting Goldmund in while devouring large amounts of food. It was extremely suspicious, but Sir Rolf didn't say a word. Even when he sometimes came out to oversee Nanette's studies and exchanged a few words with Sir Rolf, asking if anything was wrong, he always said nothing was wrong.
"I was deeply moved as Sir Rolf conveyed the Marquis's affectionate heart every time you visited."
"Of course he did. If the Prince says so, it is so."
Just as nothing is wrong if Sir Rolf says nothing is wrong.
"So, did you find the dragon egg?"
Alexander asked immediately after the greetings ended. Like a dog biting as soon as the hand petting its head is removed.
"I was actually on my way to tell His Majesty the Emperor about that. You can come along and hear it."
If the Emperor allows it, that is.
"Prince Leontes, I acknowledge the fact that I haven't done anything to earn any trust from the Prince until now. But if we're being technical, all of the Prince's family members were like that. I am not the person with the greatest responsibility, and I am actually the one who has harmed the Prince the least so far."
It was true. The fundamental responsibility lay with Father, and throughout before and after the regression, Alexander caused me the least harm.
"I formally propose an alliance, Prince Leontes."
The Sword Master with blond hair and blue eyes looked straight at me. Sir Rolf inhaled sharply.
I said I would join hands with anyone, but I didn't say it expecting this.
I just grew rapidly compared to before, but right now, my people are only one knight and one child. Everyone says let's join hands and sends this and that, but it was merely a scheme to curry favor with me only for this matter.
To think I would receive an alliance proposal from the head of one of the four major court factions.
Since he is illegitimate, he could be seen as the weakest among the four factions.
'At the same time, his pride in standing alone is also the strongest.'
The relationship between the Empress faction, the First Prince faction, and the Emperor faction sometimes reminded one of a ball. Like dancing a group dance, letting go of hands, holding hands, and letting go again when changing partners.
But the Illegitimate Prince faction was different. In the early days, they suffered losses because of that, but they increased their scarcity value as a faction worth allying with as much as it was difficult to ally with.
Especially, they raised their pride by earning the reputation of making the opponent propose first instead of ever proposing an alliance first.
Honestly speaking, I was surprised to the point of suspicion. I was more surprised because it felt like sincerity rather than a ploy.
"I am honored. I will consider it. Thank you for the proposal, Marquis Steiner."
I nodded politely for now.
"As expected, you aren't surprised."