Chapter 4

EP.4 The Princess's Tutor – 1

The background of the Seeker of the Eight Stars is set in a kingdom centered around the queen. Of course, there are times when we travel to other countries through Adventure Mode, but the main story mostly takes place in the kingdom.

As such, the capital of this kingdom was a place the party of heroes often visited, and naturally, I had come here several times as well. However, this was the first time we actually met.

After all, I was an unofficial member of the party who did not receive the blessing of the gods.

I wondered what significance that blessing held, but if everyone thought it mattered, what could I do? I didn’t have many achievements related to the royal family, so I just let it go.

But to meet like this...

“Are you the Sage?”

Sitting on the throne was a red-haired beauty with a tired expression. Wearing a golden crown, the symbol of the queen, she looked both arrogant and quite exhausted. Her gaunt face, proof that the crisis in the world and the kingdom was not yet over, exuded a decadent charm. The queen, touching the dark circles under her eyes, gazed intently and moistened her dry lips with wine.

“The Sage. I have heard the story a few times.”

“Yes, I have.”

“The hero often mentioned you.”

“I have also heard about you from the hero a few times.”

“Is that so.”

The queen who supported the hero to defeat the Demon King.

I, who supported the hero to defeat the Demon King.

Our roles were the same, but we only knew of each other through the mouth of a woman.

“The Sage. The Sage... The Sage.”

She repeated my name a few times, pursing her lips, and then smiled.

“Are you so wise that you are called the Sage?”

“I don’t know.”

“I heard you know everything.”

“Not really.”

Indeed.

The reason I am called the Sage is simply because I can use the skills of other professions and, thanks to over 10,000 hours of playtime, I know various strategies and settings in detail. In reality, I don’t have any great wisdom.

“Rukal.”

“Yes.”

“Ask the Sage some questions.”

Following the queen’s command, an elderly wizard wearing a pointed hat, a significant figure even in the game, asked me a few magic-related questions, to which I shook my head.

“I don’t know.”

“...Hegen.”

Hegen Rosfield, the commander of the Royal Guard and a renowned warrior on the continent, swung his sword in front of me.

“Do you know what kind of sword technique this is?”

“I don’t know.”

“Sir Saltberg.”

“From the stars and the sky above...”

“I don’t know anything about astronomy.”

The outstanding individuals gathered for the queen continued to ask me questions, and I did not answer.

Or rather, I couldn’t.

I can’t answer if I don’t know.

If they asked about monster strategies or dungeon strategies, I could answer, but...

The theoretical problems that arose when the game became reality are something I can’t answer.

“...The Sage knows nothing. Then why are you called the Sage?”

“I don’t know.”

The interest in the queen’s eyes was gradually fading, but she didn’t tell me to leave.

In other words, the queen still wanted something from me.

“Then what do you know?”

“What I know is how to live in this world.”

The audience chamber was so quiet that a pin dropping could be heard, and occasionally, the rough breathing of the maids and some knights proved that this place was not frozen.

In the silence I created, the queen’s eyes regained a spark of interest.

“To live in this world. Is that important?”

“Yes. Sometimes, people wander or isolate themselves because they don’t know how to live.”

“I see. Yes, I see...”

She had more to say, but she cut me off and nodded a few times.

Is this it?

While I was looking, the queen calmly continued.

“I understand. Tutor, please guide the Sage.”

“Yes, I will.”

***

“He’s a strange one.”

“Yes.”

He was a strange man. I had heard many stories about the Sage, not only from the hero but also within the kingdom.

He could use magic and healing spells, warrior skills, and the nimble hands of a thief. He had excellent archery skills, could handle a sword and shield like a knight, and had knowledge of incantations.

Moreover, he knew the strategies for hidden dungeons in various places and was well-versed in myths and secrets.

Truly, a man of vast knowledge and many talents.

There had never been anyone with such power before.

“Wasn’t the Sage revealed when the hero formed the party?”

Special things always stand out. But the Sage was different.

He appeared as if he had suddenly dropped into the world.

No one knew about his past, and no one knew where he came from.

Not just the kingdom, but even the duchies and city-states.

At first, the kingdom suspected him to be a spy for the Demon King, but that wasn’t the case.

He supported the hero’s party without receiving the blessing of the gods and even without any reward.

I wondered if he was in a romantic relationship with the three beautiful women, but it didn’t seem so.

The way they treated him was harsh and cruel.

Yet, he didn’t leave.

As if his sole purpose in life was to defeat the Demon King.

And as soon as the Demon King was defeated, he left the hero’s party. The rumors after that were even more astonishing.

He cleaned the shabby stable of a rural inn instead of staying at a comfortable one.

He brought a lost child home.

He destroyed an ogre’s den to find a lost son’s mementos for an old woman.

He helped adventurers conquer dungeons and saved a region, and he defeated a monster that was trying to collapse a city by manipulating people.

Despite all this, he accepted a reward that was far less than his efforts and power.

He could use the skills of all professions and was an unofficial member of the hero’s party.

Despite achieving great feats that significantly contributed to defeating the Demon King.

He acted as if such things didn’t matter to him.

Saving people.

Sometimes participating in festivals and playing the lute to liven up the mood.

Even joining a card game, a mere form of entertainment, and getting a useless card and playing with the participants.

Yet, he never stopped helping and saving people.

As if that was his only joy.

Looking at all these aspects, he was certainly not an ordinary person.

“He’s a remarkable man.”

“Yes.”

The fact that one person could use the skills of all professions meant that his small head contained an immense amount of knowledge.

It’s a simple matter. The knowledge required to use magic is different from the knowledge required to use sword skills.

Moreover, the knowledge required to use holy power and incantations is even contradictory.

The same goes for other things.

Yet, he mastered all these at such a young age?

And when asked simple questions, instead of showing off, he only admitted to not knowing, displaying humility to others?

Even in a position that could elevate his status to the highest level?

A man who is that strong.

A man who is that great.

I wonder what he desires.

“I’m curious how he will treat the princess.”

The interest that had disappeared earlier returned to the queen’s eyes.

Money, fame, glory, power.

Even beautiful women are unnecessary to him.

What could be the reason for him accepting the position of the princess’s tutor so readily?

“Do not stop monitoring the Sage.”

Feeling a premonition that something more interesting might happen, the queen stopped her steps as she was about to leave the audience chamber.

“Oh, by the way, when was the day General Leoden reported to the hero?”

Rukal calmly replied to the question.

“Today.”

***

I didn’t lose the position of tutor just because I couldn’t answer any questions. That’s a relief.

Anyway, the important thing is becoming the princess’s tutor.

In the game, when a student reached a certain level, it counted as an achievement. Will it be the same this time?

While thinking about what to teach, the tutor stopped in front of a large, ornate door.

“Here we are.”

“Is that so? I understand. From here on, I...”

“Sir Sage.”

The tutor looked at me with a serious expression. It seemed she had something urgent to say.

“Princess may not meet your expectations. Please understand this part.”

Even the queen, her mother, didn’t say such things, but the tutor did. I looked at her intently. The wrinkles in the eyes of the middle-aged woman, who looked knowledgeable, were proof of how much she worried about the princess.

Tsk tsk. You’ve had a rough life, haven’t you?

“...The princess has very low self-esteem.”

“Oh... Why is that?”

A princess with low self-esteem.

It’s not a special setting. It’s common to see someone become like this due to being overshadowed by a powerful successor or other siblings.

But as far as I know, the only successor to the queen in this kingdom is Princess Lucille Ermeier.

I couldn’t understand why she was like this.

In the game, she was just a minor NPC who did as she was told and had no special characteristics or importance.

“She has been like this since she was young. Perhaps... the burden given by the queen has made her tired... or...”

“Is that your opinion?”

“...Yes. I don’t know exactly. All I know is that the princess always thinks she is inadequate.”

“I see. I understand.”

It can’t be worse than the hero’s party or the adventurers.

At most, she has low self-esteem and hides it by being a bit temperamental.

-Knock knock.

I knocked on the door immediately, and the tutor looked worriedly at the door. I knocked a few times, but there was no response.

“...Is she sleeping?”

“I don’t think so. ...Princess. The Sage has come to see you.”

-Bang!

-Scream! Your Highness! Your Highness!

Suddenly, the sound of something falling and the screams of the maids came from inside. What’s happening?!

I opened the door and prepared a spell. But contrary to my expectations, nothing serious was happening inside.

The bang was just the sound of a chair falling, and the crash was the sound of a vase on the table breaking.

“H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H-H