How to Live as the Enemy Prince Chapter 68

Chapter 14. Long Time No See (5)

The Elf Sia, Rose, Pebble, Axis of Time, Sisphanian.

And Serenti.

Calian, who had engraved various words in his head that came to mind in an instant, took a step back. Then Yan stepped forward and said,

"I'll take a look. Please step back, it's dangerous."

Calian didn't know where Yan found such courage, but he nodded and took a few steps back.

After retreating about six steps, the light of the cobblestone disappeared. Naturally, the light from the flower vanished as well.

He took a few steps forward again.

The flower and the stone shone together.

Calian soon circled the rose garden, surveying the surroundings. However, he couldn't find anything that emitted the same light.

Confirming there were no more of the same flowers, Calian returned to where he had originally stood. With careful steps, he approached the flower, holding a stone in his left hand and reaching out with his right to touch the petals.

Then,

- Psst...

The red petals withered in an instant and fell to the ground. Along with them, the light of the pebble also disappeared.

Calian, realizing he had impulsively reached out to the unexpected sight, made a bewildered sound.

"Oops."

The fallen petals crumbled into the air like blackened ashes, disappearing soon after.

Calian felt as if time, which had seemed to come to a halt, flowed in an instant. In that moment, he unconsciously seized the tail of the thought that had crossed his mind.

'Time.'

He couldn't know when the rose had bloomed. But what if...

"If it had been blooming for a long time."

Calian's eyes, assuming that possibility, sank into a silent contemplation.

Sia, who had been hearing and answering the words of time ahead of others.

And the flower that seemed to have bloomed for a long time, almost as if time had stopped.

"Indeed, is it correcting the twisted time?"

Calian, thinking along those lines, furrowed his brow.

If time were to be corrected, wouldn't the first thing that needed correction be Calian himself? The conclusion he had just drawn, with Calian standing here unharmed, was likely not the correct answer.

- She hopes you won't act impatiently.

Sispanian's voice echoed in his memory.

Due to frustration, Calian closed his eyes for a very long time, attempting to suppress the profanity that welled up.

"She says not to act impatiently when time is passing right before my eyes."

With a sneer, he muttered sarcastically.

* * * * *

Alan didn’t keep butlers or servants.

Most things could be roughly solved with magic, and, like most wizards, Alan didn't fancy having outsiders in his house.

As a result, the only person Alan hired in Kyris was his butler, Oscar.

"Lord Manasil, you're back early today."

Oscar, who had been driving Alan's famous mother-of-pearl carriage for almost half a year, spoke with a friendly smile.

Although it was already dark, it was a rare occasion for him to be heading home in the night air instead of the early morning. If Rumian had not chosen to have dinner with the princes, he wouldn’t have even dreamed of such a thing.

Alan smiled similarly to Oscar's greeting and said, "Let’s run away quickly."

"Excuse me? Run away?"

Oscar asked in surprise, and instead of answering, Alan climbed onto the carriage. Beyond the coachman's window, Alan's excited voice was heard.

"His Majesty has gone to dinner. In the meantime, we should get out of here quietly."

Rumian had mentioned finishing the business with the mage guild after finishing dinner. Alan pretended not to hear that part and hastily wrapped up some urgent matters in order to escape like this.

Knowing how Rumian would react once he found out about his disappearance, a sense of triumph swelled in Alan's heart.

"Today, my daughter-in-law and granddaughter who lived in Libern arrived. Why is His Majesty so indifferent? Shouldn't you go home on a day like this? It seems he’s quite entertained pushing around this old man so much."

Oscar responded with a hearty laugh.

"I see. Understood. I'll run away quickly."

Oscar immediately began to loosen the reins of the carriage’s horses.

Suddenly, Alan sighed.

He noticed that someone was rushing towards the carriage in a hurry.

There was no one who would restrain Alan, who was trying to go home unless it was someone sent by Rumian. So Alan opened his mouth and grumbled.

"No, seriously, where did you put the meal? Have you already figured it out?"

"What?"

The butler, who had not yet noticed that someone was rushing towards Alan, asked. Alan sighed again without answering.

Soon, a voice urgently calling Alan could be heard from a distance.

"Lord Manasil, please wait. His Majesty is looking for you."

Only then did Oscar understand Alan's sighs and complaints, and speak from behind the window.

"Lord Manasil. It seems you can't escape after all."

In the end, Alan had to leave behind Oscar, who felt a little sorry for not departing quickly, and return to the Arpia Palace with a heavy heart.

He vowed to say something to Rumian when he met him.

However, the place the steward guided Alan to was not the study.

In the center of the courtyard at Arpia Palace, Alan sensed a familiar presence lurking nearby, furrowing his eyebrows and murmuring.

“Have you left your sons behind to come here and drink?”

Indulging in alcohol. On such a chilly night.

Alan shook his head slightly, and without further ado, he flicked his finger, warping directly in front of Rumian. Rumian, who was about to pour himself a drink, glanced up at Alan.

"It seems the mage is right on time."

He expected Rumian to be more surprised, as Yan had suggested, but surprisingly, he seemed rather nonchalant. Alan, devoid of amusement, grumbled.

"Sitting out here drinking on a night like this will give you chills."

Then, he flicked his hand, slightly raising the temperature around Rumian. A chuckle escaped Rumian’s lips as he felt the warmth enveloping him.

"Indeed, there's no match for a mage when it comes to dealing with alcohol."

Rumian tapped the floor on his side with his hand.

Without saying a word, Alan plopped down where Rumian’s hand had touched, accepted the bottle of alcohol from Rumian, and poured a drink for both of them. Then, he filled his empty glass.

After leaving the dinner with the three princes, Rumian had suddenly started drinking.

Instead of asking what was going on, Alan clinked his glass against Rumian’s.

"Thinking about the past only brings pain."

"Is there magic that can peer into a person's thoughts?"

"There must be such a thing."

Alan's sharp intuition wasn’t reserved just for Calian. Rumian, who had been staring into the distance absentmindedly, turned his head to look at Alan.

"It's an obvious matter. Seeing all three princes, who have become adults, together at once must have been awkward. While worrying about the two falling behind in the competition, you must have thought about your brother trapped in a distant place and regretted bringing Silica into the palace."

So, why regret having created three princes when you could have just given birth to one?

Thinking about this for a moment, Alan realized that Calian was the youngest. Rumian having three sons was why he could meet such a talented disciple.

"You really know how to recognize things well."

"Just look ahead and live, that's all."

Alan completed his revenge on Rumian, who had prevented him from his early return home, by not revealing any information on how he knew so much about Rumian.

Since then, the two exchanged their drinks in silence.

When the sound of the wine flowing became familiar, and the buzzing of insects felt louder, Alan spoke again.

“In truth, I thought that even if you combine the three princes, they can't compare to Chase."

"Are you talking about the Crown Prince of Secretia?"

Instead of asking why he was comparing other’s children, Rumian quietly accepted the statement.

Alan nodded, and Rumian chuckled.

"I found it fascinating how such a son was born under the venomous temperament of the Devil. I've thought that way as well."

"Yes. Anyway, although Your Highness's three sons may not be as remarkable as Chase, they're still not to be taken lightly. They'll find their own ways to survive, so don't worry."

Upon hearing those words, Rumian’s eyes glanced at Alan for a moment.

There was one person who seemed to have a hard time finding his own way. Soon, Rumian opened his mouth in a low voice.

"If, by any chance, Calian loses his way."

The conversation stilled for a while. After taking another sip of the drink, Rumian spoke again.

"I'd like to ask a favor from you."

If Calian can't ascend to the crown prince position, he requested to save Calian's life and help him escape. The reason he specifically asked Alan for this favor was simple. If Calian were to be pushed out of the situation, there was almost no chance of him surviving.

"With your understanding of such circumstances and your deep affection for Calian, it seems you would be willing to consider such a request."

However, upon hearing Rumian’s serious deliberation and request, Alan suddenly burst into laughter. Then he tilted his head.

"Do you think I would have any reason to take care of Your Highness's youngest son?"

"What does that mean?"

Lermain's face, showing disappointment, as he thought Alan was expressing refusal, deeply furrowed. Seeing that, Alan playfully asked with mischievous eyes.

"Do you know how much the baby elephant cares for Your Majesty’s youngest son?"

With the following words, Rumian’s eyes, which had been indifferent even to Alan's warp, opened wider.

The meaning behind Alan's gesture was that if Calian were to be pushed aside, he would need to worry about the fates of the other two princes and the future of Kyris, and that Alan wouldn't need to step forward.

Eventually, the alcohol completely broke the serious atmosphere.

* * * * *

Calian hadn't attended breakfast for two days.

He gave a sincere yet mixed excuse that the poison hadn't completely cleared yet.

"Your Highness, do you plan to skip breakfast tomorrow as well?"

Yan asked on the second night, his voice tinged with concern.

He was worried about Silica’s mention of the Crown Prince and for Calian's health.

"Only until tomorrow. I'll go back to my usual routine starting the day after tomorrow."

Calian responded with this rather than clearly acknowledging or complaining about returning to a life where he couldn't do as he pleased in the morning.

Since Yan was aware of why Calian wasn't attending breakfast, he nodded without further comment.

"Yes, I'll convey that. Well then, I'll take my leave. Please make sure to close the window before you go to bed."

"Got it."

After exchanging these final words, Yan left, locking the door behind him. Calian, now alone, let out a sigh.

"Phew."

There was only one reason why Calian didn't attend breakfast.

It was because of Randell.

Calian associated Randell with the glowing phenomenon solely because it was in Randell's cultivated garden. There was no logical basis for this suspicion. It was just a thought that occurred to Calian, wondering if Randell had anything to do with stopping the time of the roses. After all, the blood of the clergy born in Tensil flowed through Randell as well.

However, since there was no evidence to support such a vague suspicion, Calian decided that he should first observe Randell.

In the process of considering this, Calian unconsciously avoided making eye contact with Randell, fearing that he might send a gaze that caused suspicion within Randell. After all, wasn't he on a level similar to Alan in piercing people's hearts?

As Calian lay in bed, his thoughts wandering, he soon drifted into sleep.

After a while, just before dawn, in the dark early morning.

"Scratch..."

The sound of the wind shaking the curtains echoed, and Calian's eyes, which had been closed, slowly opened.

'Intruder.'

He sensed someone's presence through silent footsteps.

Yan had undoubtedly locked the door.

If someone were to open it with a key other than the one Yan possessed, the alarm spell created by Sispanian would be triggered. Therefore, no one had entered through the door.

Then he remembered that he had fallen asleep with the window open. The alarm spell on the window had not been activated.

'I should have listened to Yan's words carefully. This is going to be a pain.'

Calian smiled lightly.

And still lying down, he waited for the intruder to come closer.

'It's quite welcoming already. I don't know what to do.'

Silica. Or Randell.

While contemplating who the unexpected guest might be, a moment later, there was a quiet sound of the bedroom curtains being drawn.

Calian, who had been examining the intruder's presence as it drew closer, furrowed his brow. It was because the energy belonged to someone familiar but unexpected to visit in this manner.

In the end, Calian postponed the creation of the 'sword' he had been planning and rose to a sitting position. With sharp, gleaming eyes, he stared at the intruder.

"What is it?"

The intruder didn't bother to cover their face.

Despite Calian's vigilant words, the intruder showed no surprise at Calian waking up. With an expression that paid little attention to Calian's guarded state, the intruder spoke in a low voice, locking eyes with Calian.

“You claim to use magic, yet you startle from a mere gust of wind.”

There was absolutely no reason to welcome anyone who entered through the window at this hour. Therefore, Calian, not bothering to hide his displeasure, spoke up.

“I’m asking why you've come. At this hour, in this manner.”

Observing Calian's hostility evident from his gaze to his voice, the corner of the guest's mouth twisted up slightly.

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TN: Sorry if this chapter is confusing. I tried my best :,(. I'll try to post a few more chapters than usual in the next few weeks!