Chapter 10

"That's..."

Seeing Morgan's shocked expression, the petty Arthur was riding high. It felt incredibly good to see her, who had always called him a foolish prince in his previous life, now looking so surprised. Yes, Arthur was a man with a very small capacity.

"...You seem to have given it some thought. Then, what do you think you can do without using your healing ability?"

"Hmm... I am the second prince and have a healing ability. There are various things I can do without me having to do anything directly, such as using the nobles who fawn over me for my attention. For example, I can make them use the money they waste on luxuries for the people. Sadly, this country has many problems. If I make it seem like I'm interested in these issues and subtly ask for help, there will surely be someone who will cooperate."

As Arthur spoke, her previously cold gaze gradually became heated.

"Hmm... Then, Prince Arthur, do you know what problems the kingdom is currently facing?"

She hadn't called him Prince Arthur since their first meeting. He didn't miss the hint of respect in her eyes.

"Of course. There are countless issues, but the most significant ones are the disparity between the commoners and the nobles, the excessive privileges of the knights, and the food shortage. And... the monopoly on certain healing magic... To resolve these, ..."

Of course, these were not opinions Arthur had come up with. They were the opinions Morgan had once advocated to him and other nobles to improve the country.

"You've seen that far? More specifically than I have..."

Morgan let out a sigh of admiration, but there was no reason to be surprised. Arthur, with the memories of Morgan's advice and the 'Good Deeds Notebook' he had thoroughly read, was simply speaking more concretely about the future he knew would happen.

"I see... So, you made a commoner your personal maid as a step towards solving the disparity between the commoners and the nobles... And you came to me because you're ready to take the first step towards reform..."

Morgan, who was a genius, was advancing the conversation on her own and coming to her own conclusions. It was natural for her to be shocked and respectful, as she had vaguely foreseen the problems Arthur mentioned and was impressed by his more specific opinions.

"Your usual act of pretending to go along with the nobles was to put them off guard... Please forgive my previous rudeness. Prince Arthur... I was foolishly thinking that I alone was concerned about the future of this country..."

Seeing Morgan, who had previously been disrespectful, now looking at him with respect and bowing, Arthur felt something akin to a perverse pleasure awakening. After all, she, who had always belittled him, was now looking at him with such respect. It felt too good. If Kay weren't outside the door, he might have shouted, "Hahaha, kneel before me!!" in a fit of arrogance. But that was only until she spoke her next words.

"I understand your thoughts. However, as the second prince with a healing ability, you are currently just a successor to the throne and don't have the power to implement reforms on your own. To gain such power, you need to attract attention from the nobles and the people and increase your influence. That's why you're confiding in me, and you want to use my... Avalon's network and resources to help someone and gain more supporters, thereby increasing your power, right?"

"???"

Morgan smiled, as if she had understood Arthur's intentions. To Arthur, it felt like she was just misunderstanding, but her words wouldn't stop.

"To gain the influence needed to solve the problems you mentioned for the future... I can think of a few things, but tell me your thoughts. What do you plan to do to increase your influence, Prince Arthur? I will do my best to help you."

Seeing her respectful smile and the soft, joyful emotion of having found an ally, Arthur was speechless.

Oh my god, that's it!!

The things she had talked about in her previous life and told him to think about were for after he became the successor. Currently, he was just the second prince, with the right to succeed but not yet confirmed as the successor. Even if he had ideas, he didn't have the influence to put them into action. Of course, Arthur had only wanted to show off to Morgan and hadn't thought about the details. He had only moved to earn good deeds points to save himself and hadn't thought about the future of Britannia. He had no real opinions.

But, would she forgive him if he prostrated himself and said, "Actually, I haven't thought of anything!!"?

"...What's wrong?"

Her eyes briefly showed a hint of doubt at his silence. What would happen if he said, "Actually, I just copied the future Morgan's opinions, hehe, peko"? She might snap, thinking he was mocking her.

She gets scary when she's angry...

Remembering how she once showed him a book called "Torture Encyclopedia" for no reason, he felt a chill run down his spine.

Besides, she had always pushed him to be more princely.

And she was the only one. Even though they were engaged, there was no love between them. But Morgan was the only one who had always encouraged and scolded him, and even after their engagement was broken due to certain circumstances, she stayed by his side as a noble until the end. Those days were honestly hell. He had seen many people who had once fawned over him now treat him coldly. Many people didn't even want to listen to him and only mocked him.

You've always been working hard even in such a situation, haven't you...

So, perhaps out of self-satisfaction, he didn't want to disappoint her here. Therefore, Arthur thought. What had she told him to do in the past?

"Orphanage..."

It was something she had once said. He remembered her saying something about improving the orphanage... What was it again... As Arthur desperately tried to remember, her eyes lit up.

"I see, indeed, revitalizing that orphanage would be useful!! Well done, Prince Arthur, I'll arrange it immediately."

"Ah... Thank you. I appreciate it."

As Morgan beamed at his offhand comment, Arthur was drenched in cold sweat, trying to hide his internal questioning with a smile. For some reason, she fidgeted and hesitated before speaking.

"No, thank you. Thanks to you, I've been able to help. When I took over Avalon, I had the network and resources but lacked the power to get things done. Now... if you can gain power, we can change this country. And..."

She paused, her lips twisting.

"Thank you for believing in me more than in Go-yoku earlier. I was happy..."

Saying this, Morgan blushed. What is this, it's scary... Arthur thought rudely.

What will happen to the bluffing Arthur... Stay tuned.

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