Mark was the prince of this country.

Now that I know that, I can’t just abandon him!

…Is that what you thought I’d say? That’d just be hypocritical.

“Well, the relative of Scum King is also scum!”

I clapped my hands and turned around, but the two tried to stop me.

“Wait, wait, wait, His Highness is a victim of said Scum King? Be a bit more merciful.”

[Then you should chase after him! That way you can slap him, right?]

I never thought they’d say something so hilarious to me at the same time.

Anyway, I asked Eivind.

“He’s a victim of Scum King?”

“You’ve had your sights on His Highness for a while now, right? Let me guess, it’s because his magic is ‘beautiful.’ Scum King is the same. …Although, he switched to me once I appeared.”

Uhm, so that’s what it comes down to?

I guess the Scum King intended to choose his next vessel among his close relatives, as he had been doing in the past. As Maximilian was the third prince, there must’ve also been a first prince and a second prince. Among them, the one with the best magical power and body was probably Prince Maximilian, also known as Mark.

However, somewhere along the line, probably ten years ago, Scum King experienced side effects from possessing close relatives. As such, he switched target to Eivind and brought him here from his hometown. Then, the rest was history.

“In other words, because of Eivind, Mark was saved?”

“If that was the case, it would’ve been easier for me… But His Highness Maximilian was the son of a mistress, so his position is weak. Even so, during his childhood, he was under the protection of the king. He lived peacefully in the palace—at least until the king stopped paying him any attention due to my arrival.”

I see.

Since Eivind was being vague about it, they must’ve suffered many misfortunes.

As I was thinking about it, Eivind frowned.

“But why did you say that His Highness is also a scumbag?”

“I mean, isn’t this whole abduction just a farce?”

“What do you mean?”

“What I’m saying is that Mark orchestrated this kidnapping himself.”

[W-what?!]

Inwardly, Cecily was very surprised by my assertion. As such, for her future reference, I explained carefully.

“To be honest, I was suspicious when he suddenly asked Cecily out on a date. Sure enough, Mark purposefully dropped his anti-lost bracelet to make us chase him. The timing of his abduction was also too perfect to be believable. Maybe he wanted us to witness it so we wouldn’t think it was staged.”

Cecily held her breath at my explanation.

Eivind, on the other hand, was in awe.

“No, wait, weren’t you and Ms. Helge preparing for this date?”

“Oh, I was just preparing for the possibility that it would be an innocent experience in Cecily’s youth.”

“My condolences to Ms. Cecily.”

Excuse me?! I also wanted it to be an innocent experience of my youth.

Well, it looked like we could finally revisit the first suggestion I made to Cecily.

Let’s go beat up the guy who tricked Cecily!

As I was drawing the magic formula, I asked Eivind.

“By the way, how trustworthy is the accomplice of the abductor?”

“Do you think I’d be this panicked if I were in cahoots with him?”

“That’s true. Mark probably used his own money to carry it out, and you never know when he’ll actually be abducted!”

When I answered with a smile, Eivind glared at me, narrowing his eyes.

“If you know that much, can you help me bring him back quickly? I’m sure you already know, but I’m only allowed to attend the academy because I have a noble cause: to protect Prince Maximilian! If I fail, I’ll be called back by the king immediately—”

“—Ah, we can’t have that just yet…”

Even if my preparations to enter the palace were steadily progressing, right now was still too early.

In that case, I’d inevitably need to help Mark return after he ran away from home.

“Well, I guess I have no choice.”

I quickly completed the formula. Then, I entangled it with the bracelet Mark dropped. Then, as if the bracelet had become a dog’s collar, I found myself tugging on a magical leash.

“What kind of spell is that?”

“Are you familiar with the formula woven on this bracelet? It’s to prevent you from getting lost. This is the magic that preceded it. It’s tracing Mark’s magic, which has seeped into the bracelet.”

The formula originally engraved on the bracelet was single use only. In contrast, the magic I was using didn’t depend on the object. It could be used on anything—even a handkerchief or a tissue—as long as it had a trace of the other person’s magic.

I moved forward, pulled by the leash as I dashed towards the owner of that magic. Still, I had almost forgotten how slow my feet are.

“Huwaaaaaaaa—-!”

“Wow, it’s not every day that you get to see such an uncool villain.”

[She looks like someone being walked by a dog.]

Even though there wasn’t a direct conversation between them, I was really annoyed at how friendly and harsh Eivind and Cecily were getting. While being dragged along, I thought of confirming one last thing with Eivind.

“Was it okay to reveal Mark’s true identity to us?”

The fact that the third prince was enrolled in the academy using a fake identity while being escorted must’ve been a top secret.

Eivind could’ve easily deceived me using his conversation skills. Nevertheless, he gracefully approached me with a refreshing smile on his face.

“I believe in you.”

“You believe in me?!”

Anyway, we finally arrived. I was panting. It was the warehouse district on the outskirts of town where imported goods were stored. Sure enough, Mark was about to get into a dilapidated wagon, intending to change carriages.

“Abduction methods haven’t evolved at all these past 800 years…”

“Primitive methods are harder for magicians to track.”

“That’s true.”

If we spoke out loud, there was no way the person in question wouldn’t notice.

Mark froze as he faced me. I was about to return the favor to him when a contractor (or someone disguised as one) pointed a knife at his throat from behind. Then, the man shouted at the top of his lungs.

“We have the third prince! If you want to save him, prepare the ransom!”

I smiled at the obvious farce.

---

Read more than a month’s worth of chapters ahead on patreon for only $2~

***T/N: Nothing like banding together and saving the kidnapped prince with the friends you made along the way

Please also consider donating to my ko-fi! It’ll greatly support me in action, no matter the amount!
https://ko-fi.com/antoinettevanessa

Have a Japanese story or the likes (Drama CD, etc.) you’d like to read? Want it to be translated? I’m open for commission!
https://www.fiverr.com/s2/aaab08c14d

<Previous chapter

Next chapter>