“Adela, have you seen the water tiger by any chance? I’m sure we slept together, but when I woke up this morning, it was gone.”
“………….”
“Adela?”
“……I have no idea. It’s not like I spy on or eavesdrop in your room, so how would I know?”
“That’s not what I meant… This is the Imperial Palace, after all. I can’t just nod and accept that it simply disappeared.”
“If you’re that concerned, ask the maid.”
“You mean Sally?”
“She might… know something. Maybe.”
“……That’s, that’s quite an i-interesting thing to say.”
“Sally, do you know anything?”
“Ah, n-no! I-I don’t know anything either! I have no idea where that spirit went…!”
“Are you certain?”
“………Wh-Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? Y-Young Master! This, this woman keeps trying to frame me— hic!”
“Sally, no one’s interrogating you. You know how Adela talks, right? She just sounds a little cold, but she’s a good person.”
“…………Hmph.”
“In any case, if neither Sally nor Adela knows… does that mean something happened?”
“……………”
“………….”
[……Growl.]
“Huh? Tiger! Where have you been?”
[Growl… grrr.]
“A little stroll? If you were going out, you should’ve at least said something. More importantly, this is the Imperial Palace. Try not to wander around alone.”
[Grrrrowl!]
“Hmm? You’d be fine even if someone stabbed a dagger into your neck? I mean, I did hear that spirits are immortal, but… why such a terrifying example?”
[Grr… rowl.]
“………….”
“……………”
“Well, as long as you’re safe, that’s what matters. Anyway, shall we all go play Catan?”
“Sounds good.”
“Y-Yes, Young Master!”
[Growl!]
***
“What about my brothers?”
“They seem to have eased their suspicions about Your Highness. Kyle Byron’s board game played a significant role.”
“I see… That’s a huge relief. It felt like bad luck, yet things turned out well in the end.”
The hallway of the Imperial Palace, outside the Third Prince’s quarters.
Letting out a sigh of relief, the Third Prince ran a hand over his chest at the head maid’s report as they walked side by side.
It had been ten days since Kyle Byron arrived at the Imperial Palace.
Fortunately, it seemed this incident had also passed without trouble.
If I hadn’t managed to shut Father’s mouth, things could’ve gone terribly wrong.
His son had made it clear that he had no intention of participating, so why did he keep trying to drag him back into the fight for the throne? At times, he seriously wondered whether his father truly had his youngest son’s best interests at heart or if he was simply trying to have him killed.
Moreover, because the emperor had framed it as both an imperial decree and a personal request as a father, the First and Second Princes had become extremely wary of him. Still, he had managed to prove his innocence somehow.
He had firmly declared to his father that he would not take part in the competition for the throne, and by spending most of his time playing the board game Kyle Byron had created, he had successfully shown that his interests lay in entertainment, just as they always had, rather than in the succession struggle.
There had been a moment of crisis when his father made that sudden statement, but thanks to Kyle Byron, he had been able to overcome it. In many ways, he realized that inviting Kyle Byron from the Arkhe Magic Tower had been the best stroke of luck he could have asked for.
And I even gained an unexpected advantage.
They say the ground hardens after rain. His two older brothers who had once harbored suspicions about him had not only let go of their doubts but had also started making amends. They offered him gifts as apologies and even struck up conversations with him first. It almost seemed like their relationship had improved compared to before.
At this rate, using Kyle Byron’s board game to further strengthen their bond wouldn’t be difficult. No matter who eventually became emperor, his chances of survival had significantly increased.
Looking at it from here, it seemed like he had successfully avoided a crisis and even turned it into an opportunity.
“……….”
“Your Highness?”
“……It’s nothing.”
Why was it, then, that despite his relief, a strange discomfort lingered deep in his chest?
And he knew exactly why. There was no way he couldn’t.
“Hey, Lugeric!”
“Second Brother.”
“Greetings to the Second Prince.”
“Yeah, yeah. More importantly, Lugeric, you’re not still sulking, are you? Be a good little brother and forgive me, hmm?”
“Forgiveness? What is there to forgive? I have always supported my brothers.”
“Hah… Brothers, is it? You sure do have a way of choosing your words carefully. Almost impressively so.”
Striding toward him with a group of attendants, the man carried himself with a casual air. His posture was slightly relaxed.
This was the Second Prince.
He held a power base nearly equal to that of the First Prince in the battle for the throne, and on top of that, he was a highly skilled Aura user.
Moreover, having voluntarily enlisted on the northern monster front at the age of fifteen and serving there for five years, he had achieved numerous military accomplishments, earning the absolute support of the North.
Though they were brothers born of the same father, with only five years between them, the positions of the Second Prince and the Third Prince were as different as heaven and earth.
As if to prove it, the Third Prince bowed his head politely, while the Second Prince merely laughed and gave the younger prince a few light pats on the shoulder.
“You received my gift, right?”
“…If you mean the exercise equipment, I use it every day.”
“That’s right, you should work out a bit! You’re always messing around with magic and looking so frail. It’s not like you’re going to become an Archmage, are you?”
“I… I know.”
“Well, anyway, I’m sorry for doubting you. It’s already exhausting dealing with our damn older brother, and if you got involved too… well, you get it, right? I wouldn’t want to kill my dear little brother with my own hands.”
“I understand.”
“Not that it really matters. Even if you were to compete, there’s no way you’d ever take the throne. Honestly… Father is too much sometimes.”
…You never know.
Maybe, just maybe.
If only… if only I had been more talented.
Not cursed with the ability of someone who couldn’t even rise to the rank of lieutenant, but gifted just enough to be the disciple of of Magic Tower Master Olphin.
If only I had been able to build a stronger faction.
Like the eldest prince, who, as the firstborn, had secured support from the central and eastern regions by getting engaged to the daughter of Duke Grandel.
Like the second prince, who had gained the unwavering support of the North through his military service.
And…
If only… I hadn’t been the youngest.
Because he was the youngest, he had never even had the chance to build a power base.
Because he was the youngest, he had learned from an early age how to survive, how to avoid being eliminated by his two older brothers.
Because he was the youngest, he had no choice but to give up on competing for the throne if he wanted to live.
Simply because he had been born the youngest.
That alone had decided everything.
And so, as always, the Third Prince suppressed the boiling resentment within him and smiled.
“That’s right.”
“Haha! Lugeric, don’t you think you lack a little too much confidence?”
“It’s at a reasonable level.”
Don’t look down on me.
Don’t belittle me.
Don’t see me as nothing more than an insect you can crush at any time.
I want to be emperor, too. I was born a prince of the empire, so I want to chase the dream that everyone desires to the very end.
But the moment I step up to the starting line, the two of you will crush me first.
So I endure it. Because that’s all I can do.
Unlike his two brothers, the Third Prince…
Is someone who can never shine.
“I’ll be going now. If I invite you next time, make sure to come!”
“Safe travels, brother.”
He called it an invitation, but the Thir Peinces knew full well it was nothing more than an excuse to seat him among his supporters and have him mocked under the guise of politeness. The Third Prince had been through it enough times to understand.
His followers would reaffirm their belief that choosing him was better than choosing someone like the Third Prince, and through that, his second brother strengthened his inner circle. It was a tiresome game.
Perhaps because he had spent five years in the military, his second brother’s methods were far more blatant than his eldest brother’s.
The only thing they had in common was how disturbingly insidious they both were.
The Third Prince only lifted his head after the Second Prince had completely disappeared.
Only when all of his followers were gone from sight did he finally dare to look up.
“……………”
“Your Highness…”
“Enough. Don’t say anything. Just… stay.”
He clenched his fists. He gritted his teeth.
It’s fine. No, actually, it’s not fine. It’s just that after more than ten years of killing this emotion, he had grown used to it.
Inferiority. What a merciless feeling it was.
If it had simply been a matter of lacking talent, if his brothers had been smarter or more capable than him, he would have felt bitter, but he would have been able to let go cleanly.
However, as far as the Third Prince was concerned, the only fault he had committed was being born too late.
Eight years later than the First Prince. Five years later than the Second Prince. That was his crime.
Is that really true? Could it be… that I simply lack talent?
The thought surfaced for just a moment, but as always, he quickly brushed it aside. He knew all too well that if he allowed his thoughts to spiral in that direction, all that would remain was helplessness and defeat.
So he did not give up. He simply endured.
For the chance that might come one day…. perhaps, just maybe—
“…Let’s go back.”
“Ah, are you heading to the board game room?”
“Yes. I could use a distraction.”
The board game room.
Originally, the board games had been created and played in Kyle Byron’s room. But when the number of board games he had crafted in just ten days exceeded six, the Third Prince had ordered an entirely separate room to be used exclusively for their development.
Though he called it a distraction, in truth, he had been visiting the board game room almost daily, save for the first couple of days.
It was not merely to check how many new board games Kyle had made.
He went there to play them himself.
“I’m here. Kyle, you haven’t started without me, have you?”
“Of course not! I just finished a round. Let’s start right away!”
“…Alright.”
Ten days ago, as soon as Kyle Byron had arrived at the imperial palace, he had created a board game called Catan.
Though he had made several others since then, the prince mostly played Catan.
The reason was simple.
Unlike other board games, Catan allowed the prince to experience a certain sense of vicarious satisfaction.
“I’ll build a village here. And add one more road.”
“You’re short one wood for that.”
“You have some, don’t you? Trade me one for my iron.”
“Ah, but if I do that, Your Highness will get ahead. Why would I do that?”
“Two iron.”
“Here you go!”
“Good.”
It was not the kind of satisfaction that came from ruling a civilization within a fictional board game.
What the Third Prince felt…
Was the strange satisfaction of knowing that, in this space, everyone was equal.
Honestly, it’s laughable.
When it came to a sense of vicarious satisfaction, Abracadabra at the Arkhe Magic Tower seemed like a better option. It allowed anyone to experience what it felt like to be a mage through an illusion that was nearly indistinguishable from reality.
Ironically, however, the prince found even greater satisfaction in the fairness of a board game, where there were no illusions.
In the mid-to-late game, power imbalances might emerge, but in the beginning, everyone was equal. No matter how favorable a plot of land was, everything depended on the dice roll, ensuring that no one was at an outright disadvantage.
Expanding one’s territory under equal conditions while competing against others—
If that had been the only appeal, he could have felt the same satisfaction from any other board game.
“Rolling the dice… seven. I’m placing the thief on your land.”
“W-Wait, Adela! There’s still room for negotiation!”
“No, there isn’t. Out of the seventeen games of Catan we’ve played so far, you’ve placed the thief on my land forty-two times. Every time you’ve moved it, over forty percent of the time, it ended up on my land. Do you really expect me to trust you?”
“You remember all that? In other words, more than sixty percent of the time, I placed it elsewhere!”
“That doesn’t matter. Now, hand over one resource.”
“Ugh… Prince, remember that resource I lent you earlier? I think it’s time you returned it.”
“Isn’t that a little too obvious?”
“In return, I won’t charge you interest the next time I lend you something.”
“Hmm… that’s actually not bad.”
Catan was different from other board games. In this game, the other players weren’t just competitors; they were also collaborators.
Negotiating, interacting, and making deals…..all of it was an experience in itself. It felt almost like a board game version of the imperial succession struggle.
Of course, the Third Prince knew the truth. Compared to the power struggles of the imperial court, filled with scheming and bloodshed, this was nothing more than a game. Just a fleeting pastime.
And yet.
…This is fun.
The process of trading and talking with others naturally pulled him deeper into the game. If he had no motivation, he wouldn’t bother negotiating in the first place.
And in that immersion, he felt something he never had in the fight for the throne. A fair starting line. True equality.
Through Catan, the Third Prince was easing the inferiority he felt about the imperial succession.
Of course, it wasn’t nearly enough to resolve all the emotions that had built up inside him.
But at the very least, it was enough to make him look forward to this moment every day.
“I’m using all the resources I’ve saved up! I’ll build three roads and one village at once!”
“In that case…?”
“The victory condition is 15 points. I earned 1 more point by building another village, and with this road construction, my road is now the longest, so I achieve the ‘Longest Trade Route’ bonus and gain 2 additional points…!! That makes 15 points!”
“A last-minute comeback… I didn’t expect that. Congratulations, Your Highness.”
“Con-Congratulations…”
“As expected of Your Highness! That was an excellent play!”
“…Thank you.”
Moreover, the Third Prince had talent. A talent for strategic board games.
It stemmed from the survival skills and keen insight he had cultivated since childhood. Aside from his meager aptitude for magic, it was the only thing he had left, something he often mocked himself for.
It was a perspective he could afford to develop only because he had no chance in the imperial succession. Ironically, if he had been a real contender for the throne, he might never have gained it.
Though he relied on his insight and survival skills, he still resented them in a contradictory way. But just for this moment, he didn’t.
For the first time in his life, the Third Prince reevaluated his own insight.
It was the “talent” he had always longed for. Yet he couldn’t help but let out a bitter smile at the fact that it was talent for something as trivial as a board game.
The Third Prince.
Amid the congratulations of many, he allowed himself to entertain a thought.
What if… the real world had fixed rules, just like Catan?
A pointless, hopeless notion.
And yet, the more he thought about it, the sweeter the thought became.
The prince kept sinking deeper into that ‘what if.’
And as he did—
“…hmm.”
A certain board game creator watched him with a subtle expression.
***
That night.
The once lively board game room was now swallowed by darkness, filled only with silence and stillness.
Slowly, the door creaked open.
“…I heard you called for me, Kyle.”
“You’ve arrived, Your Highness.”
The Third Prince stepped into the room, where Kyle Byron was already waiting with a warm smile.
As Kyle slowly cleared the table,
“That is…”
“It’s nothing serious, Your Highness. I simply—”
Rustle.
A fully set-up board game, Catan, gleamed under the moonlight.
At that moment, the Third Prince realized why Kyle had called for him. His expression briefly froze in surprise.
Kyle Byron’s smile deepened as he continued,
“How about a round of board game?”
…His smile was one of pure enjoyment.
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