Chapter 24

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Diana, swaying with the jolts of the carriage on the cobblestones, was sleeping on Cain's lap. There were no longer any traces of injury on the palm of her hand, which was still clasped in Cain's. Cain tickled Diana's palm with his fingertips, and she squeezed it tightly, groaning softly.

Cain smiled gently and spoke to her sleeping face, "It's good that it healed so nicely, isn't it?"

Sighing, her mother Elise said in a resigned tone, "I told you it would heal. Accidents happen during embroidery, which is why we always have a healer on standby."

Cain glanced at his mother and then returned his gaze to Diana's sleeping face.

"If the royal family says anything, don't hesitate to disown me."

Cain, stroking Diana's hair with his other hand, whispered to his mother. There was no sense of tragedy in his voice.

"The queen is a kind person. This happened in a setting with only trusted people, and in the end, no one was injured. They won't seek such severe punishment."

Elise, patting Cain's knee in a comforting manner, answered. She thought Cain had finally shown some remorse.

"If I am disowned, the heir of the Elgrand Duke family will be Diana. That means she will take a husband rather than marry into another family."

Cain wasn't remorseful at all. He smiled softly as he looked at Diana's sleeping face.

For the Crown Prince and Diana to become engaged, Diana would have to marry into the royal family. If a husband were to be taken instead, the engagement would not happen. If Cain were disowned and expelled from the family, it would be harder to protect Diana as her brother, but at least he could prevent her from becoming the Crown Prince's fiancée.

"How much do you hate His Highness the Crown Prince... You just met him today, didn't you?"

"I don't hate His Highness the Crown Prince. I just love Diana."

"Hmm... You'll be scolded by your father when we get home..."

"I've already been hit by you, Mother..."

"It's not enough. You're not showing any remorse. As a noble, you need to learn to control your emotions better. If you don't, I'll have to pinch Diana's cheek in front of you to train you to maintain a poker face."

"Please don't do that to Diana!"

"Then, learn to control your emotions. You're terrible when Diana is involved."

"...I will try harder."

"You're usually so well-behaved, I wonder what happened."

When they returned to the duke's residence, Cain was ordered to stay in his room until his father returned. The embroidery meeting ended early, so Ilvaleno hadn't returned yet. Diana was also being kept at home by her mother and didn't come to play.

He plopped down on the sofa and covered his face with his hands.

"Ah—"

Heaving a heavy sigh, he slumped forward, resting his face on his knees.

Because he was going to the embroidery meeting, he had the morning, afternoon, and evening off from his tutors. He couldn't go running around the estate to blow off steam because he was under house arrest. It was the first time in a long while that he was completely alone.

"I want to play games."

His whispered words were absorbed by the soft carpet and disappeared.

He had been streaming a playthrough of Unlimited Magic Academy, which he had completed all routes and was now editing into videos. The online games he played for fun and the mobile games he micro-transacted for during his commute were still in progress. He hadn't even received the limited edition special version of the new game he had pre-ordered.

He had joined a company with a low salary but allowed him to leave on time just so he could play games. On the release day of major games, he would take a day off and play until he reached the mid-point.

He loved games.

He didn't want to make games, but he thought it would be great if he could earn money by playing them. With the rise of e-sports, it was becoming possible to earn money through gaming, but Cain wasn't very good at competitive games in his previous life. So, he started streaming game playthroughs. He began with action games that had no story to avoid spoilers. He studied how to edit videos to make them engaging even after watching, and eventually, he could afford to buy a new game every month.

Receiving comments and remembering the fun of competing and sharing strategies with friends in elementary school, he realized how enjoyable games were and how he wanted to share that joy with others. He was so enthusiastic that it led to his current situation.

"I want to play games."

Bowing his head, his hands on his knees formed the shape of holding a controller. He tried to press buttons and pull triggers, but his fingers only moved through the air.

He loved books and had read stories about making books in a different world. He loved food and had read stories about making miso and soy sauce in a different world.

In this world, he could probably make games like cards, Reversi, or Snakes and Ladders. Born as the son of the highest-ranking noble after the royal family, he could probably obtain materials and hire craftsmen for mass production if he asked.

But building power plants, developing televisions, creating circuit boards, and developing programming languages were beyond Cain's capabilities. Money and power couldn't make those things happen.

Since he had reincarnated, he decided to live properly as Cain in this world. He trained and studied diligently, and the servants and family were always around to talk to him. His body, like leveling up in a game, became more capable the more he trained and studied, which made it interesting. Diana was cute and growing up honestly, deviating from the plot of becoming a villainess. Ilvaleno, while tsundere, didn't seem to have any dark thoughts. He felt like he was progressing through the game smoothly.

Perhaps for the first time since being born as Cain, he was truly alone. There were no servants passing by in the hallway.

He wanted to play games that were irresponsible, where he could reload if he failed, save multiple save files, and experience emotional highs and lows.

Life, with a known plot, was a lonely and difficult challenge, especially when he had to aim for a completely new ending without any continues.

The sudden emptiness of his time was almost breaking Cain's spirit.