I Became the First Prince

I Changed My Thinking and Saw Differently (3)

Blurred features buried in disgustingly thick flesh; a bloated body covered by an outlandishly colored outfit.

The First Prince’s appearance was as famous as his rude and nasty attitude. Every noble in the kingdom knew how he looks.

So, the hall was filled with confusion when the First Prince entered.

The door revealed not a highly obese ugly man, but a handsome man with a well-trained body. He was well-proportioned, almost looking like a knight, and his simple black outfit suited him well.

The only flaw in his appearance was his arrogant gaze, but it suited his position and could be overlooked. In fact, his seemingly rebellious attitude even looked impressive.

The nobles were in awed shock. They heard the news that the First Prince has changed. They heard the rumors that after his near-death, he had started training. However, they did not expect the extent to be this huge. He looked entirely like a different man in just half a year.

“Pay due respect to the descendant of the noble Leonberger lineage!”

Only then did the nobles expressed their courtesy. The lower nobles knelt, while the high lords bowed their heads.

In their heads was the same thought.

How could this happen in just half a year?

The Prince’s change was too sudden and too severe.

The Pig Prince, a symbol of indolence, no longer existed.

“For a banquet, the atmosphere is too dull,” the First Prince said.

The musicians, who stopped playing in fear and astonishment, remembered their duty and started playing. Soon, the atmosphere lightened with a sweet melody filling the hall.

The nobles couldn’t help but stare at the First Prince.

He was looking around the hall with his chin raised, oblivious to the stares.

Even though the high lords were quite aristocratic, the Prince was on a different level.

The First Prince they knew was an ugly man with a severe sense of inferiority. He was infamous to take offense at people staring at him, thinking that they were laughing at him. Whenever he catches one staring at him, he would certainly start insulting that person.

But now… the Prince was calmly taking the gazes pouring at him. Now, it was the nobles who couldn’t stand his stare.

Whenever one has eye contact with the Prince, they quickly turn away. It was as if the Prince was staring right through them. They could only bow their heads. It was only the high lords who met that gaze.

Instead of avoiding the Prince’s eyes, they approached and greeted him. The Prince accepted the greetings of the nobles who were much older than him with an arrogant expression.

As if he was accepting greetings from his servants.

Taylor Tailheim felt proud as he watched it.

Such a great prince sent an invitation directly to his family.

Nothing of the past bad experiences remained in his mind. Only pride and gratitude.

He slowly stepped towards him. Hopefully, the Prince could remember him.

As he approached, he could hear the high lords talking to the Prince.

“You look amazing, Your Highness…”

“Your face reminds me of His Majesty when he was younger…”

Are these the great lords of the south and the east? Taylor thought.

They seemed eager to please, with their smooth tongues and bright expressions.

“That’s a lot of fuss. I just lost some weight,” an indifferent Prince answered.

At the Prince’s words, a high lord from the south frowned, his pride seemed hurt at the Prince’s indifference. Still, he didn’t leave the circle surrounding the Prince, basking in his glory.

It was natural. The nobles were sensitive to the flow of power; the great lords create the flow itself. For them, the Prince’s transformation was a variable that should not be taken lightly. They should ingratiate themselves immediately.

Taylor felt his low rank as he got closer. He lamented his position, where he could not squeeze in among the high-ranking nobles. Maybe, he should just be happy that the Prince sent them invitations.

His shoulders drooped, and he started walking away. It was a bit disappointing, but he should be satisfied enough that he experienced the splendor of the royal road. He slowly walked toward his seat at the corner of the banquet hall.

Behind him, he heard the buzz of the high lords.

Suddenly, he felt a strong grip on his shoulder before he could even figure out the reason for the uproar.

“You should say hello since you’re here,” he heard.

When he turned around, he saw a handsome face, and behind it, the depressed face of the great lords.

“Your Highness!”

The Prince smiled. “You’re hurting my ears.”

“Sorry, I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

The cultured lords and ladies would have used the words ‘regret’, rather than ‘sorry.’ However, Taylor didn’t care. He was just happy that the First Prince noticed him amongst the crowd.

“Where are the others?” the First Prince asked.

“Oh, we sit there, Your Highness.”

“They came! Let’s go.”

The First Prince strides towards the corner of the hall, were the rural barons were seated.

Taylor stared at the Prince’s back in astonishment. Then, he felt the eyes of the high lords upon him.

The looks were no different from the gazes that the Prince received, but Taylor wasn’t a prince.

He walked after him with his head down.

* * *

I could see the insides of the great lords who surrounded me and refused to leave.

Maybe, they were trying to figure out how I’ve changed over the past half-year, and what my plans were in the future.

But they wouldn’t know that I was peeking inside of them as they were trying to peek through me.

The power of [Judgment].

I checked the abilities of everyone I encountered in the banquet hall. Even the high lords could not escape my power.

Some of them were incompetent; some were capable. Their abilities vary, but they had one thing in common.

They had a dirty thing called [Snake’s Mind] in their trait column.

It was a sign of those whose greed has reached its peak. It was the stigma of bad karma for those who took things from others and ruined lives.

All around me were these filthy things. It’s a completely rotten crowd.

I could almost smell their foul stench.

Four hundred years ago, my friend fought day and night against monsters. He protected those who were driven from their lands, those who were exploited. He cultivated barren land, built a village on that land, built a fortress, and raised a castle. He even had to defeat a dragon to establish and protect this country.

But now… that country is filled with snakes.

The descendants of those who suffered from exploitation were now the exploiters.

It was terrible.

I wasn’t in the mood to play games with the high lords. Fortunately, I saw a familiar face in the distance.

I saw a young man, the eldest son of a rural baron, whom I met before.

It was nice. Although he might not be competent, I’m very happy with the young man’s energy.

“Your Highness? Your Highness, where are you going?”

I left the Earl of Somewhere hanging and followed the young man. The look of surprise he gave me when I grabbed his shoulder was refreshingly human.

It seemed to me that he was the only human in this hall.

There were several more with him. The banquet hall was particularly bright, but in a shady corner, rural barons were gathered. Some of them looked familiar; the others were not.

I walked towards them.

“Your Highness!”

When they saw me, they bowed their heads with worried expressions. Knowing their previous experience with the First Prince, I understood why they looked like that.

I thought it would be enough for me to get stronger. I thought the country my friend built was safe enough to continue on.

Only now did I realize how rotten this country is.

Then, I heard someone getting announced.

“Eternal friend of the Kingdom, the Marquis Montpellier, ambassador of Burgundy, under the authority of His Majesty the Emperor of Burgundy, is entering!”

He was announced later than the eldest son of the monarch caught my attention.

Burgundy.

That hateful name.

The country that bled this kingdom 400 years ago, the old enemy that my friend had to fight for the longest time.

The nobles of my country began bowing their heads in front of the Burgundy ambassador. They showed more respect than they gave me – a member of the royal family.

“It’s been a long time, Prince Ian.”

The Burgundy ambassador looked at me and smiled arrogantly.

As if he was talking to a subordinate.

My heart was pounding.

I was burning inside as if I swallowed a fireball.