Chapter 6

As I stood at the classroom door, I took a deep breath and firmly held the secret letter my mother had given me.

---

In the midst of what was probably a ten-minute event, it felt like two hours to me, a long and short interval. Afterward, the king raised his head and said,

"Arshain, I'm sorry for not noticing until now. You must have suffered, Lord Kaita, I'm grateful for saving Arshain!"

Though he didn't bow his head, his voice was filled with deep regret and gratitude.

"Arshain, I'm sorry for being a weak mother. I'm so relieved that you're safe. Lord Kaita, thank you so much for saving Arshain!"

She said this and started crying again.

"Father, Mother, I haven't suffered at all. I've always been protected by both of you. Lord Kaita, thank you for breaking the curse!"

With a voice tinged with tears, he bowed deeply. Since he was still holding me, it looked a bit silly, but his feelings were conveyed. But I felt a bit embarrassed, so I said,

"Yokatta ne, mahou tsukaeru yō ni natte (I'm glad you can use magic now)."

"??... Magic... Can I use it? I can?"

Arshain looked at his hands with a face of disbelief.

"You can, without a doubt! You should feel the magic power flowing through your body, right? With the amount of magic power a prince like you has, you must have been able to resist the curse without any physical discomfort, just by consuming magic power."

The glasses-wearing official gave his seal of approval. The queen's tears flowed like a waterfall at the glasses-wearing official's words. I was worried that she might dry up if this continued.

"Excuse me, His Majesty Julius, since everyone has returned, would it be better to move to another place?"

A man in his 50s with neatly slicked-back gray hair and a proper posture, the epitome of a butler, appeared. Seeing the queen sobbing uncontrollably in his arms, he looked around and nodded at the king.

"That's right, let's move to another place. The Holy Maiden and Cavendish should go to their respective rooms, and the rest of you should stay a bit longer."

The two Holy Maidens and Cavendish were led out of the hall by maids. The rest followed the king. The queen left for a moment to freshen up.

The room we arrived at was luxurious but ordinary. Two single sofas were placed at the back of the room, with the king sitting on one side. On the other side, two large sofas were placed facing a table. On the king's side, a wise-looking man, probably the prime minister, and a man who looked like a general, sat on the three-seater sofa. On the opposite side, Arshain, who was still holding me, and the glasses-wearing official sat at the back. At first, I tried to resist and sit next to them, but when I started to move, it was mistaken for a need to use the bathroom, so I gave up. I didn't want to be helped to the bathroom!

Everyone settled down, and the butler served tea to each of them. My portion was milk tea with cookies.

"Arigatou gozaimasu!"

I thanked him with my slurred speech, and he smiled. Everyone was incredibly surprised by his smile, and the general even jumped up in shock. What's going on?

"O, o, you can make such a face!"

"... General, your tea will get cold."

When I responded to his question with a smile, the general returned to his seat and started drinking his tea quietly. What's going on? Is the butler the strongest?

While I was joking, the queen arrived and sat next to the king, and the butler quickly served her tea.

"Now, I asked everyone to stay to hear your honest opinions about the Holy Maiden."

"About the Holy Maiden, Your Majesty?"

When the queen asked, the king nodded solemnly and said,

"Some of you may know, but this Holy Maiden did not show any outstanding results in the magic power test, and the pattern was indiscernible."

The prime minister and the general nodded solemnly. The glasses-wearing official explained to me, who was left out.

"Up to now, there have been about nine Holy Maidens. Including this one, four have come from different worlds. The Holy Maidens have had varying amounts of magic power, but the patterns have been similar, mainly plant-based and clearly colored. The two previous Holy Maidens from other worlds had rainbow magic power and vividly colored flower patterns. During the magic power test, you might have seen the white band that appears, which is a sign that the person has been given power by the goddess. All Holy Maidens have a white band and strong light attribute magic power. However, this Holy Maiden has a decent amount of magic power, but the pattern is indiscernible. How should we judge this?"

"That's the issue. Also, all previous Holy Maidens were described as compassionate in the literature. We can't verify the truth, but their numerous achievements are convincing. However, the attitude of this Holy Maiden, can we really ask for mercy from her?"

The king clutched his head, remembering the two-timing Holy Maiden's attitude. A deep sigh echoed, and a heavy silence followed. Just then, a man burst in, slamming the door open.

"Oh, Father, Mother Rithria, and all the most important people in the country, what kind of evil plot are you discussing? Hahaha! First Prince Ingred has returned!"

"Oh, Ingred, you're back!"

"Ingred, welcome back! I'm relieved to see you're not hurt."

"Brother! Welcome back!"

While everyone was greeting the sudden intruder, I was frozen in place. He had deep-set features, bright red eyes, and a... massive build. He was even bigger than the general, like a Hollywood action hero. The type who can knock out an opponent with one punch and keep moving forward. His sheer size and presence were overwhelming, and my mouth hung open.

When I stared blankly, our eyes met with the massive muscle prince.

"What! What! Arshain! When did you have a child! Not consulting your older brother is so cold!"

Everyone burst into laughter at the flustered massive muscle prince.

"Ingred, Lord Kaita is not Arshain's child. Besides, you left for a border inspection three months ago. It's impossible to have a child and give birth in that time. Sit down and calm down."

The king laughed and calmed him down, and the atmosphere became peaceful. The glasses-wearing official moved to the opposite sofa, and the massive muscle prince sat next to him. I was stared at, and then his massive hand, proportionate to his body, patted my head. The force was so strong that my whole body shook. If he miscalculated, he could crush me with one hand. The queen snatched me from the side.

"No, Ingred! You have to be more gentle with such a small child! You'll crush him!"

The massive muscle prince was scolded, and mothers are strong in any world. It was very surreal. Everyone watched our interaction with a smile. The king cleared his throat and explained my identity, the Holy Maiden's arrival, the magic power test results, the queen's curse, and the situation at the border that Ingred had been dealing with.

"...... I see. That's the case, but first, Arshain, I'm glad the curse is broken! Lord Kaita, thank you for helping my brother."

He bowed deeply. The queen's eyes welled up again.

"...... So, about the Holy Maiden, is she really that bad?"

At this question, everyone fell silent.

"Is it something that can't be corrected?"

"...... Lord Kaita, did you know the Holy Maiden in your original world?"

To the glasses-wearing official's question,

"Un-un, jikochokujen made achakokochinakatta (I hadn't met her until just before the accident)."

"Did you get caught in the same accident?"

"Machikomarimashita."

"Huh?"

"Machikomarimashita!"

"You were caught in the accident! Huh? You were caught in the Holy Maiden's accident?"

"Sho, futa, seijyo ni hikyarite, jiko atta (Yes, I was pulled by the Holy Maiden and got into an accident)."

Danger, danger, I almost said "two-timing Holy Maiden." Should I have said it?

"Huh? That... the Holy Maiden tried to harm you?"

"Un? Seijyo ga, futamata kakete ochotoko ga kenshite, seijyo ga chikibashite, kadan kara ochite, orie chippatte, ichi de ochita."

"The Holy Maiden, who was two-timing, was pushed by a man she was fighting with and pulled me down with her, is that correct?"

"Shikai! Yoku wakarimashita!"

I clapped, happy that my slurred words were understood accurately. The atmosphere lightened.

"Huh? Two-timing? ... The current Holy Maiden is, well, promiscuous, I guess?"

The general tried to soften his words, but his intentions were clear.

"Indeed, seeing her closeness to Prince Cavendish, it makes sense."

The prime minister's words were met with nods from everyone except Ingred, who hadn't met her.

"Is it that bad? Is it okay?"

Seeing everyone's reactions, Ingred asked, worried.

"That's why we gathered everyone to discuss this."

The king's voice continued,

"Most concerning is that the Holy Maiden, who should have strong light attribute power, has an indiscernible attribute."

The glasses-wearing official spoke thoughtfully,

"Can this be corrected with training?"

"Only to a certain extent. It depends on the person's innate qualities and character. There are examples of people who changed their mindset and added attributes through training, but they never surpassed their original magic power."

A heavy silence followed. During this time, I was battling the cookies on the queen's lap. They looked normal and delicious, but as soon as I put one in my mouth, it took all the moisture away and was incredibly hard. I couldn't even bite it! I was worried if I had no teeth, but I had them, just small. As a toddler, I didn't have much jaw strength, but they were too hard! The queen was ready to feed me, but I was so fidgety that she was worried and fidgeting. The butler was also fidgeting. I gave up on the unbreakable cookie, put it back on the plate with a faint tooth mark, and drank the milk tea. It was too sweet! My small teeth felt like they were dissolving! I gave up after one sip. The cookies looked good, but I realized a terrifying possibility. The food in this world might not agree with me! A life-or-death issue! I couldn't give up yet! I hadn't eaten a proper meal yet! The cookies were hard but not too bad in taste, just very sweet!

The queen tried to feed me the cookie she had intended for me, but Arshain ate it first. He was confused at first but ate it when encouraged by the queen. It was as hard as a cracker, making a crunching sound, but he ate it normally. The queen also tried and ate it normally. I felt a great sense of defeat.

"Pfft"

The first to laugh at my struggle was the prime minister. He quickly returned to a serious expression, but his mouth twitched. Everyone else laughed, and when my cheeks puffed up unconsciously, the queen laughed and poked me. The previous gloomy atmosphere was gone.

"For now, let's monitor the Holy Maiden's training progress and come up with a plan. At the very least, we should prepare to fight without her."

"That's right, our army will train even harder!"

The general responded to the king's summary,

"We will also prepare for the upcoming battle by stockpiling and acquiring supplies."

"I will train the Holy Maiden. By the way, what about Lord Kaita and Prince Arshain?"

"Huh?"

Arshain and I were confused by the question and tilted our heads.

"Lord Kaita, of course, and Prince Arshain, have learned theory but not practical skills, so they need training, right?"

"...... If we train, will we really be able to use magic...?"

With a voice filled with uncertainty and a hint of hope,

"It's fine! You're my brother!"

Ingred said without any basis and patted Arshain's back. If I had been hit, I would have flown away. Arshain looked a bit pained but very happy, and he smiled awkwardly,

"Please guide me well."

He bowed deeply to the glasses-wearing official.

"That's great, Arshain! ... But,"

The queen, with tears in her eyes, was happy but hesitated when she looked at me.

"What's wrong?"

When the king asked, the queen hesitated several times,

"Lord Kaita is so small, is it okay for him to participate in magic training?"

She hugged me tightly. The back of my head felt happy. Seeing me hugged by the queen,

"Indeed, he is small, and his speech is clumsy, but he seems to understand our language accurately. I don't think it will hinder his learning of magic, and he has sufficient magic power... What do you want, Lord Kaita?"

The king seemed to let me decide, which was reassuring. I was worried if I would be told I couldn't because I was a toddler. So, I held out my hands to Arshain, asking to be held. I couldn't escape the queen's embrace on my own!

"Mahou shuryu!"

I declared, looking into the king's eyes.