"The Crown Prince?"
When Viktor heard this title, he began to think.
In his memory, the two princes didn't really have any detailed story in the game's background.
Between the two, Viktor remembered more clearly that the Crown Prince guarded the border city in the southern part of the Empire.
The Empire's southern border, that was a gathering place for adventurers.
Because inside that enormous city existed a monster rift surrounded and sealed off.
That place was a high-difficulty dungeon zone.
Inside the rift, there were endless waves of monsters, and their strength was far from ordinary.
The massive spatial fissure was like a city gate, and behind that gate, the enormous castle was the Abyss of Monsters.
The Abyss was divided into a hundred layers, with each layer populated by monsters of different strengths and types.
Adventurer parties made up of players could enter and kill various monsters to train themselves, and they could also obtain considerable amounts of materials.
But most importantly, every ten layers inside the Abyss, there existed extremely powerful items.
Collectively called "Imperial Artifacts."
In the game, at each tenth layer, an astonishingly huge monster tide would appear.
Players who passed without taking damage within the time limit, or who cleared it under special restrictions, would qualify to obtain these Imperial Artifacts.
And there were very few such players.
Imperial Artifacts granted incredibly powerful stats and effects, but due to the extremely harsh requirements, very few players could obtain them.
Fortunately, Viktor was still one of the few players who had actually achieved it.
If he had the chance, he wondered if he should go challenge that place again.
"The Crown Prince, huh…"
As far as a player's impression went, the Crown Prince was someone you basically wouldn't be able to encounter.
After all, being royalty, players couldn't meet them as easily as other NPCs.
Moreover...
Viktor glanced at Aurelian, who was resting.
After hearing the news that her elder brother had returned, Aurelian didn't seem to have much of a reaction.
Although she must have known already, this princess didn't stay in the palace either; she had run out early in the morning to train for today's lesson.
Royal family affection.
Both princes were cannon-fodder-tier characters. After Emperor Aubrey died, the two princes were quickly killed by Aurelian.
So Viktor didn't care at all about this prince who brought back a dragon head just to brag.
"I'm not going."
"I'm too lazy to waste my breath with that group of hypocritical nobles."
'Kill one dragon and all the nobles have to welcome you?'
"Your father Aubrey killed one when he was seventeen.'
"Tsk, fine."
Liya helplessly shook her head, as if she had already expected Viktor's reply.
The words she was going to say changed, and her tone carried a bit of mocking.
"Our dear councilor really does have the qualifications to refuse. Sigh, pity that I still have to go mingle with a group of idiots."
After speaking, Liya secretly glanced at Aurelian.
This little princess had no extra reaction, even nodding in agreement.
Because she wasn't going either.
Seeing that, Liya was very satisfied and smiled while waving her hand.
"Then I won't disturb the two of you, teacher and student. Have fun, Your Highness."
She was just about to leave when Viktor's voice sounded,
"Take Cocotte with you."
Liya froze for a moment, several question marks popping up in her mind.
'Take Cocotte? Take her for what?'
She blinked, then seemed to understand.
"She's still a former councilor, after all."
After saying that, Viktor didn't speak again and turned back to Aurelian.
"Get ready, we're starting today's lesson."
Aurelian immediately perked up.
"Yes, teacher!"
Viktor waved his hand, and several strands of green aura slowly fell onto the ground, intertwining.
Small monsters crawled along the floor, their green carapaces reflecting sunlight, curling up.
A few green shadows appeared in midair, flying with vibrating wings, lurking at a distance.
Ever since Viktor obtained Deruga's ability and mastered monster-summoning skills, he no longer needed to bother finding suitable combat locations for the princess.
Liya watched this magical scene, clicking her tongue twice, "Wow, really caring."
If only he ever cared about me like that.
She added that silently in her heart, then turned to leave.
———
At this moment, the palace was bustling, countless nobles gathered to welcome the Crown Prince's return.
Before the golden castle gates, the nobles lined up in two rows, and the Second Prince stood at the very front.
The armored cavalry gradually approached the palace. The man in golden armor at the front led his prized horse to the lineup.
Behind him, the enormous dragon head was displayed for all to see.
Jace Lesser was also among the nobles, but unlike before, he now lacked the gloom he once carried, and seemed refreshed again.
As if he had forgotten everything that had happened.
The Second Prince narrowed his eyes at Jace Lesser, sensing something off.
'Strange.'
Although surprised, he didn't show anything outwardly.
But nobody noticed him anyway.
Because that enormous dragon head had seized everyone's attention.
They surrounded it, marveling, "So that's the dragon that caused chaos on the southern border…"
"To slay a dragon, His Highness Albany's achievement is truly astonishing."
"Yes, he really has His Majesty's style from back then!"
Albany, clad in gold, didn't care about the nobles' praise. He let them admire the dragon head he had brought back.
He himself simply walked toward the Second Prince with a friendly smile and softly said, "My dear brother, did Father ask you all to greet me?"
"I'm honored that Father still thinks of me."
The Second Prince also wore a smile as he looked at him.
"Yes."
"Slaying a dragon is a great merit. Naturally, Father would not neglect a hero."
He deliberately emphasized "hero," but the Crown Prince acted as if he didn't notice, only smiling.
"Seems like my years away haven't created any distance between us brothers."
"That puts me at ease."
Albany waved at the nobles surrounding him and cheerfully said, "What are you all waiting for? Hurry inside, don't keep Father waiting."
Surrounded by nobles, he walked into the palace.
Only the Second Prince remained standing there, a shadow passing over his heart.
"Seems you don't like him much?"
A voice not belonging to him sounded beside his ear. The Second Prince watched the others leave and calmly replied, "A man who strives for perfection only disgusts me."
"But he's lucky. Everything he does succeeds."
The nobles continued praising the man in golden armor, and nobody heard his words.
Staring at his brother, surrounded like a star among stars, the Second Prince's voice turned cold.
"Yes. That's why I hate him."
———
Inside the great hall, Albany knelt on one knee. Beside him, the enormous iron cage held the massive dragon head.
Aubrey's face was emotionless, but he still praised him lightly.
"Not bad."
"Slaying a dragon is no small feat. Speak, what do you want?"
"Father, eliminating threats to the Empire is my duty. Rewards are unimportant."
Hearing that, the emperor nodded.
He was about to say something when Duke Rivi leaned over and whispered, "Your Majesty, Earl Viktor has not yet arrived."
"Hm? Hahaha, right, right."
Aubrey seemed reminded of something amusing. He narrowed his eyes at Albany.
"Child, I have nothing else fit to reward you. But there is one matter I should bring up."
Aubrey smiled faintly.
"You and Aweser are no longer young. It's time for marriage."
"Otherwise, if word spreads, people might think my great Empire has two princes and one princess with no matches, strangers might think my children are incompetent."
He watched Albany stiffen slightly and continued cheerfully,
"Jace."
"Your Majesty."
Jace Lesser stepped forward and bowed.
The emperor asked, "I recall you once said you had found a suitable match for Albany."
"Why not tell us today, who is this candidate?"
Everyone was stunned, not daring to make a sound.
They all felt the emperor was using the Crown Prince to warn House Lesser.
After all, His Majesty had recently shown displeasure toward the Lesser family, and Jace had offended Viktor before.
But this time, Jace was no longer impulsive. He answered neither humble nor arrogant,
"Your Majesty, His Highness's marriage should be decided personally by you. As an outsider, I do not dare interfere."
"Oh?"
Emperor Aubrey looked surprised, then nodded in satisfaction.
"Seems you've gotten rid of… those emotions you shouldn't have had."
"Go back."
Jace bowed deeply again and returned to the nobles.
The Second Prince stood nearby, his expression terrifying.
Because he realized it, Jace Lesser's anger… was gone.
But that anger was the carefully prepared gift he had intended for Albany.
'What happened?'
For the first time, he felt he had lost composure.
He trembled slightly, unable to control his emotions.
Just then, an eunuch approached the emperor and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, the people from House Clavenna have arrived."
The emperor was surprised... 'So Viktor didn't come?'
Soon, Liya appeared in his line of sight.
But more people turned their gaze toward the figure beside her.
'…A cloud?'
When that white cloud drifted closer, they finally saw something lying on top of it.
'It looks like… a person.'
The elf lifted her head, yawning, showing not a trace of respect toward the royal family.
She sat up, and the moment she saw the emperor, she casually waved and greeted him, "Yo, Aubrey, long time no see."