Surviving As the 5th Prince of the Ruined Kingdom

048

Even before attempting a conversation with Varisada, my mind was already full of the ‘trials’ I had experienced.

The first thing that came to mind was the possibility that it was a real dream.

Within that momentary time of less than a second in real time, I had dreamed a reality-like dream for about 30 years, and the will? or lingering thoughts? of the founding king contained in [Varisada] may have observed that dream and judged whether I was qualified to possess [Varisada].

‘No, there are too many unexplainable things.’

The fact that the skills I learned in the dream were registered in the skill window and actually manifested in reality was one of them.

In no historical record were there any mentions of the three people who used [Varisada] after the founding king learning and using swordsmanship, magic, and so on that they had not learned before after passing the trials.

Well, to be honest, our ancestors might have hidden that. I’m not so thoughtless as to boast about something like the ‘Evanic Lionel Imperial Swordsmanship’ right away either.

Until I recover to some extent the level I had when I lived as King Lionel, it would do me no good to draw unnecessary attention.

There was a decisive contradiction that the trials I experienced were not merely a dream.

Namely.

┕ Tell me about Titans.

“With the RP you possess, it is difficult to provide an answer to that question.”

It was knowledge of the future that I did not know.

A new weapon that would overturn the paradigm of war, like the guns, tanks, and fighter jets of my previous life.

The steel giants, Titans.

I possess close to 70,000 RP. An enormous sum equivalent to 700 million in the currency of my previous life. Yet I could not obtain any information through [Library].

It’s not that the ‘record’ doesn’t exist. It clearly exists, but I lack the RP to obtain this premium information.

Until I drew [Varisada], I had never encountered the word ‘Titan’ anywhere.

I had wondered if it might be a premonition dream.

But that wasn’t the case either.

As King Lionel, until my last moment, I was unable to enter my ID and password into the login screen.

The me in the trials lived a life completely separate from the me who is now aware of my previous life on Earth.

“Tell me. What kind of dream did you have?”

“It was so long that I would have to stay up for several nights to tell it. To put it simply, I lived for about 30 years as the last king of the Kingdom of Lionel.”

“……. A life spanning over 30 years?”

“Yes.”

“That, that can’t be!”

Barristar’s Bewilderment

“Did my ancestors dream a different ‘dream’?” Barristar asked, perplexed.

“The path of trials is supposed to last only about 10 days, but 30 years?”

“Can you explain in detail?”

“Alright, listen. In the case of the idiots who drew their swords before you… ”

She began to describe the path of trials experienced by one of her ancestors.

A somewhat excited tone could be felt.

“…Do you know what judgment that fool passed on the two women who insisted the child was his? He killed all three of them, including the child. The crime of these filthy commoners giving him a headache? Isn’t that ridiculous?”

She talked to herself and laughed to herself.

Was it because she could converse with a person after nearly 500 years?

“And on the battlefield, do you know what happened? As soon as it seemed like he was losing ground, he immediately led the royal guards back to the castle. The king must survive for the nation to survive, or something like that?”

It seemed they had heard enough about the trials her foolish ancestor had faced.

“So, based on how the ancestors dealt with the situations they encountered while walking the ‘path of trials’, it was determined whether they would awaken or not?”

“Yes, in dream time it lasts at most 10 days, usually about 5 days. If that process pleases him, you get to wake up.”

“When you say ‘him’, you mean the Founding King, right?”

“Yes. That brat.”

While historical records state that the Founding King suppressed Barristar, she seemed to harbor less hostility towards him than expected.

Rather, when mentioning him, a complex and subtle emotion was felt that could not be explained with specific words.

It seemed there was some hidden backstory, but it did not seem appropriate to ask about it now. It was doubtful she would answer, so it was decided to leave it for another day.

“But if the Founding King determines whether the trials are passed, does that mean his ego also remains in the sword?”

“Strictly speaking, it’s not him who decides. It’s the trials he designed that determine whether you pass or not.”

One question arose.

“If the ancestors couldn’t pass the trials and their mana went berserk……”

“Right. It happened when I forcibly awakened them. I couldn’t just leave them wandering in the same space as me forever, could I? Even though I tried to wake them up as carefully as possible, there were some unlucky ones who died, which I feel sorry about.”

Her tone did not sound sorry at all.

‘Hmm……’

Through the conversation with Barristar, one thing became clear. Explaining the ‘trial’ that happened to me would not make it easy to get answers from her.

“Tell me more about the dream you had.”

“……”

There was some hesitation.

Varisada’s origins are half-demon. Though half, her blood is mixed with that of demons. May I recount the events I experienced in my dream?

“Groh, groh.”

Crunch, crunch.

An empty lot where the only sound was that of a faceless dragon chewing on iron ore like a dog gnawing on a bone. I gazed at [Varisada] bathed in moonlight.

I thought all my worries were for naught.

What calamity could Varisada, sealed in a magic array for nearly 500 years and left alone to ramble, possibly bring about?

Having lived for so long, she would know much, and the thought that I should befriend her if I wished to borrow much mana from her held some sway.

“It will be a rather long story.”

`”Very well, very well. Speak quickly then.”`

“Where should I begin……. Ah yes, the beginning……..”

Once I opened my mouth, the words flowed freely.

As I spoke, I realized:

Ah! Just as the bamboo grove allowed the barber to cry out that the lord’s ears were donkey ears, I too needed a place where I could speak of matters I could not easily discuss with others.

I did not speak of my previous life on Earth, but I informed Varisada of the important moments during my life as the last king of the Lionel Kingdom in the Ordeal.

As well as the contradictions that arose when that life was merely a dream.

“…….. Well, those are the reasons I believe it was not a simple dream.”

`”……..”`

Varisada fell silent, deep in thought.

I poked at the campfire, waiting a while for her thoughts to reach me again.

`”…….. The Ordeal’s path is composed based on the trialist’s experienced life. Situations where one becomes a remote tribal villager of the Eastern Continent or a fisherman of a neighboring island do not simply occur. This is truly an absurd thought, but……..”`

I could guess what Varisada was trying to say.

“Are you saying that my life as the king of the Lionel Kingdom was composed based on my own experiences?”

`”Yes, no matter how I think about it, nothing but such an absurd notion comes to mind! How, how is such a thing possible?”`

After judging that the life I experienced in the Ordeal was not a dream,

I had two hypotheses:

One, I experienced a parallel world’s future.

Two, it was a life I had truly lived.

My conversation with Varisada felt like it provided the answer.

‘The latter.’

Having failed to recognize my previous life on Earth, I, who had met my end as the last king of the Lionel Kingdom, had returned to the past.

“This is really an outrageous thought, but did you perhaps come back from the future to the past? Is that what happened?”

Back to that moment when I woke up as if my head had been shattered by Akard.

In other words, regression.

While being aware of my previous life on Earth. But for some reason, forgetting the memories of that life entirely.

It might be a delusion.

However, many things became explicable.

The reason I felt such familiarity when I discovered [Mugeuk Mana Cultivation Method] in [Skills], to the point that it felt contrived.

Normally, when the ‘relationship’ is not good, the other person’s secret appears as ?, but the reason I immediately knew Alfonso’s surname was Einberg.

The reason I was convinced Reina would become the kingdom’s sacred sword. Hmm… this might just be my keen eye.

Anyway.

“Why are you so calm? Want to talk about it?”

I’m not sure if it’s the right answer, but once I felt like I found my own answer, a sudden physical and mental fatigue rushed over me.

I quietly opened my mouth.

“Aren’t you going to sleep?”

I wanted to rest a little.

***

The next day.

I drew a line about the size of a futsal court in an empty lot and looked at the faceless dragon.

“What happens if you go outside this line?”

“Grrooahh! Ahhh!! Ahhh……”

It twisted its body as if sliced by a blade, then collapsed on the ground, intermittently twitching. An excellent pretense of death.

As expected of a creature with the intelligence of a dragon.

According to what I learned from [Library], their intelligence is said to be quite low, but this one seemed smarter than the dogs raised by the 3rd Knight Corps.

Should I give it a name?

Since it’s one of the more intelligent faceless dragons…

‘Zidrakon?’

I chuckled at the name that suddenly came to mind.

I decided to definitely name it once I’ve fully tamed it.

As I was thinking this,

“Ahh~ playing around, I see.”

Pran appeared with the chieftain. She looked at the faceless dragon and me with a displeased expression.

Although the result was good, she was a little angry that I had taken out [Barisada].

“Do you really think you can tame that thing?”

“Honestly, wouldn’t it be a waste not to try?”

“Yeah, you’re right about that…but it’s also dangerous.”

“Grrr, grrr!”

The faceless dragon shook its head as if it wasn’t dangerous at all.

“It’s not.”

“It seems more intelligent than you said?”

“Not all humans have the same brain, do they? The same goes for those creatures.”

“Tsk.”

Pran clicked her tongue and shook her head.

“Work hard. But if there’s an accident, you’d better find me, or you’re dead.”

“Of course.”

Although I said that, if a real accident happened, I would find her first.

After the conversation with Pran, the chieftain spoke.

“Yesterday, I had a meeting with the elders of the tribe all night long.”

I know.

I waited for the following words with an excited heart, wondering what the result would be.

“Thanks to you, seven children’s lives were saved. On top of that, we were able to keep our home that we almost lost. We, the Black Anvil tribe, are dwarves who know gratitude. There were some opposing elders, but…”

His gaze briefly turned to the faceless dragon. It seemed there were those who were dissatisfied that the creature wasn’t dealt with properly.

“In conclusion, we’ve decided to proceed with the mine development together with you.”

I smiled faintly.

“Thank you.”

“Listen carefully. We’ve decided to do this with ‘you,’ not the ‘Lionel Kingdom.'”

“I’m even more grateful.”

The Black Anvil tribe had blocked any potential situation where the Prince’s faction might try to take a share of the mine.

I felt like dancing a jig.

All I did was get a counterfeit [Barisada] and swap it, and they’re trying to take a share of the mine? It’s a shameless act, but surprisingly, even more outrageous things happen in politics.

“And if that thing causes any trouble, no matter how small, it will be gone immediately.”

Hmm, this is a bit concerning.

“Grrr! Grrr!”

The faceless dragon, sensing the strange atmosphere, curled up like a ball and frolicked around.

Well, it’ll be fine.

“So the share is……”

“There’s no need to get into complicated details right now. I may be able to provide greater assistance with the mine development.”

I watched the faceless dragon rolling around as if trying to appeal that it wasn’t dangerous at all, and said:

“Umm, can I really tame that thing?”

“You’ll see.”

I spoke with confidence.

In just one day, I taught it to ‘play dead’. A week later, the skill [Beast Taming] would probably appear in my skill window.