Those words that stabbed into Lutiya’s chest were cut surprisingly deep.  Unable to bear it, he stood up and quickly walked away. He suppressed his breath and presence as if fleeing. 

It should have been obvious. Of course it wasn’t for my sake.

—Lutiya, another Crown Prince has died.  The day you become the Emperor of Rave is near!

—How splendid, Lutiya-sama.  As expected of the next Rave Emperor!

—A Dragon Emperor with the Heavenly Sword?  Impossible.  He’ll just die again like the rest.

—The Imperial Rave bloodline isn’t the same as the Dragon Emperor’s!? That’s absurd… Then what about my daughter?

—Lutiya-sama doesn’t even share blood with any of the three dukes. We should bow our heads to the Dragon Emperor.

—Trying to appease the mainland to get this one recognized was a waste of time. Our priorities were completely backwards!

—He’s a complete burden now. Who was it? Who proposed we make him the next Emperor of Rave?

Adults selfishly placed their expectations on me, raised me up, and then turned me away. I should have learned that a long time ago.  That’s why, “I don’t care.” But, did I come to expect something from them again without even realizing it?

That, maybe, if it was this person, I would be saved just for being me?

—I understand.  I feel the same way.  Laica, Rave, none of that matters to me.

The words of his half-brother, the one who understood him, suddenly came to mind. He couldn’t forgive those people who trampled him underfoot so one-sidedly.  And the one standing at the top of them all is the Dragon Emperor.

“Hey, Lutiya!  Why are you running away?”

Lutiya came back to his senses as Noin grabbed his arm, but he couldn’t lift his head.

“I am not running away, we’re on patrol. –Anyway, you trust Jill-sensei a lot, but you better be careful. You heard her earlier, right? Jill-sensei isn’t protecting us for our own sake. It’s for the Dragon Emperor’s sake.”
“Hey, wait. Why are you bringing that up for?”
“Right now our interested happen to align. We don’t know when we might be cut off.  Be prepared.”
“Lutiya, look at me. There’s no way Jill-sensei would do something like that.”
“You don’t know that!”

You’re right, I don’t know.

My grandfather always praised me, saying, “You’re amazing.” The adults around me treated me kindly. I thought their exaggerated expectations were a bit too much though.  I never thought they would act as if everything were my fault from the start, cast me aside, and then place a false accusation on me.

Lutiya took a step back, as if staggering. That was when it happened. His neck was yanked, and his body restrained.

Noin, who looked at him in surprise, was slashed at from behind by a new attacker who leapt out of the bushes.

“Noin!”
“Please remain quiet, Prince Lutiya. He is not dead.”

The tip of a sword was pointed at the neck of the fallen Noin. He was lying face-down on the ground, breathing shallowly.  He was certainly alive, but blood had begun to slowly spread out around him.

“We were searching for a body just in case, but your safety is the most important matter. —Do you have it?”
“…What are you talking about?”
“Have you become so absorbed in your student life that you’ve forgotten your own role? I believe you’ve already been informed that that lizard-type magic beast was suspicious. We are certain now. It is the black dragon. Apparently, the Dragon Emperor is lurking somewhere nearby. Now then, where is the recording of the black dragon’s cry?”
“I do-don’t know… what you— Stop! I hid it, it’s not here.”

The sword swinging down toward Noin stopped before his neck.

“That’s good. My elder brother would have been disappointed. I thought you were a comrade, unlike that other softhearted one, but now…”
“…What… are you going to do? Kill me?”
“Weren’t you the one who said you didn’t care what happened to you as long as the Grand Duchy of Laica and the Rave Empire were thrown into chaos? That said, you are the master mind who mobilized the Rave Imperial Military to assault the military academy. There is still a use for you. I was ordered to bring you back, assuming you were still alive.”

I’m a coward.  Lutiya thought, hoping Noin was unconscious and didn’t hear the conversation. That’s why I was punished. I am the same as Grandfather who covered the grief of losing his daughter by dreaming of his grandson becoming emperor, who fell into despair and ended up bedridden.

No one is going to save me. No one would ever save someone like me, someone who kept betraying others. And that’s fine— Lutiya felt lighter upon thinking that.

“…Fine, take me with you. Just don’t kill him. He can serve as a witness to my betrayal.”
“Hmm, indeed.”
“Let go, I can walk on my own. I’ll even take you to where the item you all want is.”

“…Luti… ya…”

Lutiya’s back trembled at Noin’s faint call. Then, he laughed.

“What? This is the type of guy I am. You knew that, didn’t you? Everyone, Jill-sensei, and the Dragon Emperor too if you want, go ahead and tell them.
—With this, the dragons can no longer be stopped. Lacia and Rave are finished. Serves them right.”
“Yo-You… from the… beginning…”
“That’s right. I knew. I knew this whole time. My respectable older brother Maynard invited me to throw Lacia and Rave into chaos. I came to the military academy to stir up conflict between them.”

“Ha ha ha.” Lutiya laughed with a clear and light feeling as he spoke to the classmate who might have become a friend. “I was your enemy, right from the start.”

I always knew. No one will save me.
—I was just reaffirming that truth.

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