Chapter 89

# Chapter 89: <It's a Gift, After All>

Kale and Alber stood facing each other, their gazes locked.

"So?"

After a moment of silence, the Crown Prince's response was calm. His face remained completely composed. Kale shrugged.

"So, it's a gift, but it's not free."

The words that followed his annoying statement were as trivial as ever.

"Haha-"

A laugh escaped the Crown Prince's lips. If there hadn't been a soundproofing spell in the office, what would have happened? If the servants and hidden subordinates hadn't been sent out of the room, what would have happened?

A chill ran down his spine.

"I thought I'd give you some work to do. I shouldn't have called you."

Alber's usual carefree face was starting to get on his nerves. His gaze shifted to the glass bottle containing the black liquid.

Mother.

The weight of the three-letter name pierced Alber's heart.

Kale watched the Crown Prince, who was staring at the black glass bottle, without saying another word.

Dark Elves.

Beings with the darkness attribute, they were despised by the people of the continent due to their nature. The power they used came from the mana of the dead.

In the past, Dark Elves were often found near graveyards or in villages that had been devastated by plagues.

For this reason, people hated Dark Elves. Although they had never actually harmed living people or corpses.

So, Dark Elves lived even more hidden than regular Elves.

Alber turned his gaze away from the glass bottle. Kale smiled at the Crown Prince, who was looking at him.

"Will you keep your mouth shut?"

"Yes."

"It's not free, right?"

"Of course not."

Alber let out his true feelings.

"Perverted guy."

"Let me explain."

It was truly annoying to see him handle it so smoothly. Yet, he felt relieved in a way. After all, the Crown Prince had come to him, not the 3rd Prince, who was favored by the current King, or the 2nd Prince, who coveted his position.

At least it meant the deal would be made with him.

So, he was lucky. This guy was similar to him.

But there was one thing he was curious about.

"Are you really not one of them?"

How could he know his true identity if he wasn't a Dark Elf? Alber couldn't hide his confusion. The only ones who knew his true identity were his mother's brothers. They had helped ensure his mother's identity remained hidden from the King.

And they were Alber's eternal supporters.

Kale pointed to the glass bottle and answered his question.

"I would die if I drank that."

For humans, dead mana was a very potent poison if taken in excess.

-Don't worry, human. I, the great dragon, will definitely save you.

Kale, as usual, ignored Laon's words and extended the glass bottle to Alber.

"Do you need it?"

Alber admitted it straightforwardly.

"Yes, it would be good to have. I'll get stronger. It's clean. No poison or anything."

"Of course. It's a very precious item."

Kale continued, as if throwing it out.

"It's the mana of a dead dragon."

"...What?"

Alber was taken aback by the revelation. He sighed at Kale's smirking face.

"I'm going to go crazy."

Today, Alber found himself using words that were far from royal, words he only used when meeting his mother's brothers. He couldn't stop them, and he didn't want to.

"You really don't plan to tell me anything about yourself."

Dead mana was hard to come by these days. And this was the mana of a dead dragon.

Of course, the amount of dead mana in the glass bottle was very small. But even a small amount, if it came from a dragon, was significant. Alber would grow at least a few levels stronger.

Even though he was getting paid, Alber couldn't understand why Kale would hand over such a precious item. He thought this guy was similar to him, but he was even more incomprehensible.

"Why are you asking about something obvious?"

Alber was speechless at the obvious answer.

But to Kale, it was obvious.

'The Kingdom of Rowen needs to get stronger.'

Currently, the weakest among the kingdoms were the Kingdom of Breck and the Kingdom of Rowen. While the Kingdom of Wiper and Tunka were on a hell-bound train to ruin, the Kingdoms of Rowen and Breck were clearly lacking in strength.

In this situation, the Jungle's southern region had extinguished the fires earlier than expected and had become more united. The Jungle Queen, Rithana, who had sought out Kale, had likely gained more trust.

Moreover, the Northern Alliance of the Three Kingdoms was preparing to move south. Alber knew this and was strengthening his power and preparing for the invasion by gathering mages from the Kingdom of Wiper.

But it wasn't enough.

'With the Wyvern Knights and the Empire.'

Kale didn't know what happened in the later volumes. But humans had the treasure of imagination.

'Obvious.'

The moment the Wyvern Knights dominated the skies and the Crown Prince revealed his true ambitions, the Kingdoms of Breck and Rowen would be like candles in the wind.

Therefore, Kale needed the Kingdom of Rowen to get stronger to protect his comfortable life. For this, a strong leader was needed first.

'If the power is poisonous to me, it's better to have a strong backing.'

Of course, it would be problematic if he got too strong.

The Crown Prince had more conditions to become stronger and more powerful than in the original story. The House of Sten would soon fall into Taylor's hands and become part of the Crown Prince's forces.

One more thing.

Kale added one more thing to Alber.

"Do you need a Magic Tower?"

"It's hard to talk to someone who knows everything."

More mages were gathering around the Crown Prince, and the speed was increasing.

"The Magic Tower summoning device you gave me was very useful."

Kale handed Alber an item he had found on the 21st floor of the Magic Tower's secret room. It was a device that only the Master of the Magic Tower could own, capable of sending a message to all the mages in the Kingdom of Wiper multiple times.

The Master of the Magic Tower, the pinnacle of the Kingdom of Wiper's mages and the administrator of the Magic Tower, wouldn't it be strange if he couldn't contact the mages within his own country?

It was just that it was hidden on the 21st floor, and Tunka's side couldn't find it no matter how hard they searched.

Kale passed it to Alber through Villus, and Alber sent a single line of text to all the living mages in the Kingdom of Wiper.

[The Land of Rocks. Its future leader will protect you.]

The Crown Prince, who had benefited greatly from this, hoped that Kale would move the Magic Tower to somewhere in the Kingdom of Rowen or restore it. But now, he couldn't say such things.

"It would be hard to give you orders. But if it's a request..."

"I have no plans to build a Magic Tower."

The Crown Prince, knowing this, tried to coax Kale gently. This guy hated being bothered.

"But I can give you part of the Magic Tower design later."

Alber swept his hands over his face.

"What do you want?"

The Crown Prince realized he didn't need to waste words. The initiative was not in his hands.

"The conditions I'm putting forward now should be implemented two years from now."

For Kale, the next thing to acquire after money for his comfortable life was the initiative.

Why was being a freeloader good? Because there were no superiors, customers, or business partners to worry about, except for family.

Kale didn't want to live a life of worrying.

He wanted to live as he pleased, even if it meant being a troublemaker. Eating, sleeping, and rolling around. How good would that be?

Kale could see all the changes in Alber's expression as he examined the document he had given him. He looked puzzled, then frowned, and finally stared at Kale in disbelief.

"...What the hell is this?"

Kale answered brightly.

"That's for Your Highness to decide."

Ha. A sigh filled with disbelief escaped Alber's lips.

But a moment later, Kale left the office with a contract stamped with the Crown Prince's seal, his steps lighter.

"I really don't get it. It's a win, but it feels so uncomfortable."

"It's a good deal for both of us, Your Highness. Enjoy it."

The Crown Prince was clearly benefiting. He had the guarantee of his secret, the dead mana of a dragon in the glass bottle, and the promise of part of the Magic Tower design in a few years.

Despite receiving such an immeasurable reward, he felt uncomfortable. Because Kale's expression was too bright.

He looked like he was in a flower field all by himself.

"Then I'll be going."

"Go quickly."

The Crown Prince told him to go quickly, but he didn't want Kale to leave. He wanted to grab him and shake him to find out what he was thinking. But he couldn't.

'The Dark Forest, the Northwest Road, and the sea.'

Alber couldn't understand Kale's intentions, which were not about money or material things.

On the other hand, Kale didn't care whether the Crown Prince understood or not. Having achieved his purpose in the capital, he immediately got into the carriage. There was no reason to stay in the capital.

"Shall we go back to the estate?"

"Sure."

In response to Kale's answer, Vikros closed the carriage door and set