The Demon Prince goes to the Academy - Chapter 265 Part 2

I didn't know whether other personnel were hiding and guarding from somewhere.

If there was a murder, shouldn't security be strengthened?

Why is it so quiet?

I had a bad feeling.

I don't know how much time has passed. When they returned, Saviolin Turner looked very uncomfortable.

I felt sorry for Charlotte.

I insisted unnecessarily, and she didn't have to fight.

"You can go after dinner, It's okay."

Charlotte smiled lightly and said that, and no one else said anything. In the end, I managed to enter the Spring Palace where Charlotte lived by insisting.

I was even more surprised that my insistence worked.

It's a request that could not be granted even in a usual situation.

Yet, in an unusual situation, Charlotte responded to my insistence.

"Shall we take a walk?"

Charlotte took me around the quiet and desolate Spring Palace, offering to show me around.

Neither Dyrus nor Turner followed.

"What's really going on all of a sudden... I didn't want to fight with Captain Turner."

"Did you fight?"

"Not exactly... but you should know that I had to tarnish my reputation to protect your image."

I felt a chill as I saw Charlotte's grim gaze towards me. I wonder if I've made a mistake by trusting my intuition again... The princess who sacrifices her own reputation to protect a commoner's.

Such a good friend...

"Anyway, don't act rude in front of Lord Turner or Lord Dyrus. Understood?"

"Of course. I'm not crazy."

"Right. It would be strange if you were now."

Hmm.

I have a conscience, so I should admit when I need to.

"You're right. I was crazy, but not enough to mess with the leader of Shanapell. Don't worry."

"But why are you messing with me?"

"Friend..."

"Shut up!"

Charlotte covered her ears as if she didn't want to hear anymore.

-Shut up!

Charlotte's brief scream echoed through the palace, the silence of which was so strange that both Charlotte and I were stunned, not fighting.

"It's quiet."

"...It wasn't always this quiet. We've reduced the number of people recently."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Let's go."

Charlotte led the way, not intending to treat me poorly now that she had brought me here.

There were no signs of a murder. Even if there were, I wouldn't have been able to recognize them, and there would be no reason for them to be left behind.

The first place Charlotte took me was to the gallery.

"Do you like paintings?"

"...I can't lie about this. I don't like them at all."

"Can I assume you have no interest in all things related to art?"

"That's right."

"Actually, I feel the same way." Charlotte simply passed by the numerous paintings and sculptures hanging in the large gallery inside the palace.

"I don't understand. Paintings are just inferior imitations of reality. They're merely inferior versions of reality, and their function lies in the act of preserving them, like relics. But that's become meaningless with the development of thought-copying magic. It's strange to see those who still paint and fuss over it." Charlotte could be quite cynical sometimes where she can’t be compared to Bertus.

The value of painting as an imitation of reality plummeted with the development of magic similar to photography.

There's no concept of abstract art here. I learned something unexpected. Charlotte denied the possibility of painting while walking through the gallery full of portraits.

"These are portraits of people who lived in the Spring Palace. They include both royalty and non-royalty."

"Really? Can non-royals live in the palace?"

"Yes."

Charlotte eagerly explained, even though I was just confirming what I already knew.

I pretended to be curious since her explanation was enjoyable to watch.

"The Summer Palace is the largest, with many subsidiary palaces, and it has been home to royal family members since ancient times. The Autumn Palace in the south is not for royalty but for administrators."

I wonder who lived in the Spring Palace in the original work.

Charlotte lived there but couldn't return, and someone else must have taken her place. I don't know that much. Bertus lived in the Winter Palace in the original work and still does now.

I can't know what I don't know. The residences of the royal family members may have expanded.

There was one potential successor from the royal family living in two of the four palaces. Charlotte and Bertus, each the master of one palace.

Oscar de Gradius lives in the Summer Palace, the residential area of the royal family in the east.

I understood Bertus's words that even though they were both royalty, they could never be the same.

After walking through the gallery, Charlotte went to the main worship hall next.

Although there was no dust, the feeling of unused space was strong.

In the main worship hall with statues of the five gods, Charlotte looked at me.

"Do you have a god you follow?"

"Not really."

"I thought so."

Although I am the master of Tiamata, I naturally don't have a god I follow.

The religion of this world is peculiar. Rather, it had to be different.

There is no concept of not believing in gods.

Gods exist.

It's just a matter of whether one follows them.

Those who follow are religious. It is impossible to deny the existence of gods. Divine power exists, and there are sacred objects given by gods.

"What about you?"

"I don't really... either."

Charlotte shook her head.

"Of course, if Artorius hadn't won, I would have died. Shouldn't I serve the war god, Als...? I thought about it." Ragan Artorius was not a priest of Als, but he defeated the Demon King with Als's sacred object, Alsbringer.

"Anyway, even though I think Artorius saved me... I feel like it's not quite that simple..."

Charlotte smiled sadly.

She must be thinking of Valier. Was my existence such a great salvation for Charlotte? Of course, I did save her life. But if Artorius hadn't been there, the war wouldn't have ended.

"How strong was the Demon King? Even if Artorius had been defeated, couldn't the Allied forces have killed the Demon King if they had joined forces?"

"Well..."

I say that, but I actually know.

The first Demon King, Valiere.

The novel begins with the death of the Demon King, but how powerful was he?

If it hadn't been for Ragan Artorius, the Demon King would not have died.

The Allied forces would have been defeated.

People know that Ragan Artorius killed the Demon King, but they don't know how. The battle took place inside the Demon King's castle, without any audience.

Only I know this in the world.

If it wasn't for the Alsbringer, even Ragan Artorius wouldn't have been able to subdue the Demon King.

If Ragan Artorius hadn't been there, the Demon King would have won, and I wouldn't have had to run away. Charlotte would have died.

"It's funny... to think like this."

Charlotte and I, who left the chapel, continued to walk around the palace. There was a music room where an orchestra played, but there were no musicians. The instrument storage next to it was also empty.

Charlotte introduced me to various places. The palace residents' quarters, kitchen, dining room, dressing room, warehouse, and guest bedrooms.

Even.

"Is… is this okay?"

"...Every time you realize there's such a thing called a limit of rudeness, I'm amazed. What's not okay? You've already been quite rude."

Charlotte even showed me her bedroom.

**************************************************************

TL Note:

If you like the work so far, you can support me through Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/dreambigtl.