NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6 - The Treasure Hunt (1)
It’s been two days since I woke up.
It had been three days since I’d passed out, which meant I’d been in this damned body for five days.
Shortly after I awoke, I began to receive attention for being the unlucky prince who was the victim of an assassination attempt, even though I held my breath and stayed still.
This attention was somewhat annoying, as I could not recall all the details of Prince Yuan in my fragmented memory.
However, since I was the one who attracted the attention in the first place, I had no choice but to endure it.
Even if the masterminds had gone so far as to send an assassin to the palace, it would be difficult to send an assassin after someone of my stature.
It’s especially difficult when the king, who heard of my attempted assassination, is furious that it’s a challenge to his authority.
“Protection is good, but it’s annoying to have to deal with something you don’t want.”
I sip black tea from my teacup and watch the four knights standing guard in the garden path of the palace.
It’s a half-hearted show of respect, but the royal family’s knights have been assigned to escort me for the time being, though I don’t know how long that will last.
“You’ll have to bear with them. The prince’s safety is more important than anything else.”
At my complaint, Precia smiled as she stood beside me.
Looking at her, I said with a grimace.
“Since you’re both so spirited, why don’t you both sit down instead of standing?”
At my invitation, the escort knight Precia and the old servant Herion politely refused.
“If we sit, we won’t be able to deal with any unexpected situations.”
“I can’t be the only one sitting when everyone else is standing.”
There’s a lot to be concerned about. I’m sure Precia can handle sitting down.
“By the way, what’s that thick book you’ve been reading since yesterday?”
Precia asks, and I answer while flipping through the pages.
“An Ancient Language Dictionary.”
It was a patchwork dictionary, a hodgepodge of the results of the dictionary compilations of past kings.
It would probably be a national treasure in another 200 years, but what do I know?
There were quite a few editions, so maybe one would stand the test of time and become a national treasure.
“A dictionary? Is that what you’re looking at?”
Precia asked, puzzled, and I nodded curtly.
“Uh, yeah.”
Not really.
What I was reading was Aquila’s Tome of Magic on my finger.
The text was now floating in front of me, apparently visible only to its owner, as no one else seemed to realize I was looking.
“Is that…?”
Precia looked at me as if she didn’t understand, but I sipped my tea and focused on the grimoire.
Aquila’s Grimoire contained all sorts of magical knowledge, as well as letters that read like Aquila’s diary to her unborn child.
The preface to the Grimoire explained that Aquila had left it in case she was unable to teach her children magic.
There were many interesting details in Aquila’s life that I couldn’t find in the novel.
There are two pieces of information in the Grimoire that I need right now.
One was an explanation of Aquila’s magic circuit, and the other was an explanation of the Ancestral Legacy.
In the case of the magic circuit, the reason why it was as painful as if I had been struck by a hot iron earthquake was that, unlike the original wielder, I was not even remotely talented in magic.
Furthermore, I had to develop the magic circuit in detail to master it properly, and I was informed that the process would be equally painful.
I don’t know why I bothered coming into this body.
Of all the extras, he died early. He was full of talent in each field, but he had such a shitty body.
No, I don’t even want to be talented.
If only I could have been a normal person, I wouldn’t have suffered like this!
I muttered to myself and turned my attention to the Ancestral Legacy section.
Aquila explained the Ancestral Legacy, saying that if the reader didn’t get it, they should make sure that the one who got it didn’t learn it properly.
She went on to explain in detail how the legacy works and how to prevent it from being learned.
I can see why Aquila was betrayed by his Ancestor.
No, I took what was supposed to be Gilbert’s, so the great war god has disappeared?
Anyway, according to the Grimoire, there’s only one way I can properly master the Ancestral Legacy.
And that is to exercise.
In order to remodel my body with the legacy, I needed a minimum level of physical strength.
The percentage on my wrist indicates how far I am from that minimum.
“Ha, exercise….”
I blinked, wondering how many years I’d have to spend with this excruciatingly inefficient body. I closed the Grimoire and stood up.
“Come on, let’s go for a walk! Even the court physician who examined me said to move my body.”
I took advantage of the walk and wandered around the palace.
* * *
As I wandered around, eager to get a preliminary look at the hidden treasures, I saw a cathedral inside the palace and entered.
This was the seventh location where the treasure was hidden.
“Wow, nice!”
The cathedral was as grand and beautiful as any other palace.
The pure white marble structure and mosaic windows sparkling in the sunlight gave off an air of reverence and mystery.
The giant statue of the goddess smiling benevolently in the sunlight pouring through the clear glass dome on the ceiling was almost too beautiful to be destroyed.
As I let out an exclamation of wonder, an older, balding priest who was cleaning the church with the nuns approached me.
“It’s been a long time since you’ve visited, Your Highness.”
The priest was oddly bald and had bangs.
It looked like he had shaved his head on purpose.
Perhaps it was one of those monastic things, like the medieval Capuchin monks from whom cappuccino is derived, who shaved their heads that way.
Or maybe it’s just a circular bald spot?
“May the Earth bless you.”
I don’t know the priest, but he seems to know me, so I decide to go along with it.
“It’s been a long time. May the Earth bless you.”
The priest was both surprised and pleased when he bowed to the prince.
“Your Highness has also decided to believe in the benevolent Mother Earth?”
Ah, did Prince Yuan originally believe in a different god?
There were seven gods in the region, each representing a different natural element.
Although they were grouped into one religion, they were divided into sects based on their main deity, and it seemed that the priest belonged to a sect that believed in the Earth Goddess.
Unfazed, I smiled and said.
“I believe in all gods. But since this place is the home of the great Saint Dahliana, I thought it would be fitting to greet you that waay .”
At my answer, the priest nodded ruefully.
“Yes, indeed, this is the place of Saint Dahliana’s legacy, though many have forgotten that in recent years.”
Saint Daliana was a priestess of the Earth Goddess, a woman who was instrumental in the founding of the country.
She is the reason the cathedral in the royal palace has a statue of the Earth Goddess instead of the most powerful sun god.
“By the way, Your Highness, I see you’ve been studying a lot.”
Daliana’s religious accomplishments had earned her respect across sects.
But she was hundreds of years old, so unless you studied religious history, you wouldn’t know her.
Of course, I know because I read the novel.
“Ahaha, I’m embarrassed.”
“I heard about your story, by the way, and I’m glad you’re okay, because that must have been very hard for you.”
“Fortunately, I’m unharmed, so it’s all by the grace of the gods, and the moon hasn’t pulled me down yet.”
I responded with a fake smile and approached the statue, saying I would pray for a moment.
Then I pretended to pray and had the invisible Navi find a place to sneak in and listen.
-Meow!
Navi fluttered away with a cry that only I could hear, and I read the scriptural text beneath the statue.
Inside this statue sleeps the holy relic of Saint Daliana.
The little rosary, a holy relic, was said to protect against all illnesses and poisons and to enhance natural healing powers.
It was just what this frail body needed.
As an added bonus, it was said to temporarily amplify one’s holy power by dozens of times when held in one’s hand, but that was irrelevant to me.
I’ll never have to deal with divine power.
As much as I wanted to get my hands on it, there was one small problem with getting the relic.
The power of the relic is what holds up the old statue, and if I take the rosary out of it, the statue will collapse.
Whether the statue would collapse or not was none of my business, but the question was whether I could sneak out of the cathedral with the relic.
“…God, please help me.”
Please let me safely take the relics.
Then, I’ll raise the next saint properly.
(TN: He cracks me up. Why would you pray for this TT_TT)
I can’t give the next saint the rosary, but I’ll do my best to help them get the saint’s staff, incarnate remains, or even a forgotten sanctuary, so why not?
-Meow~!
Navi flew back to me when she had finished exploring the cathedral and slipped into my pocket.
I slowly walked out of the church, having made my unanswered plea.
“Now, where should I go next….”
There were still many places to visit. There were four more to go, not including the king’s residence.
My quest began after nightfall.
As I was trying to decide where to go next, one of the knights attached as my escort voiced his displeasure.
“Prince. You should probably head back to the palace, we haven’t even finished investigating the attempted assassination yet.”
From his words, it sounded like he was worried about me, but from his tone, I could tell he was annoyed that I kept running around the palace constantly .
Well, yes, it’s annoying when your target doesn’t stay still and runs around because it gives you the escort more things to worry about.
But what does that have to do with me?
I asked, squinting up to see the face of the taller knight.
“…What is your name, Sir?”
The knight who was disatisfied with my question looked at me as if he wanted to ask what I would do if I heard his name.
It must be ridiculous to him, too, because just because he’s escorting me now doesn’t make him my knight.
“Does your lordship have no name, or are you ignoring this ‘Prince’?”
The knight flinched at my question.
The king was so enraged by what he saw as a challenge to his authority that he personally assigned him to escort me. If you disrespect the target, that’s a challenge to the authority of the king.
At another time, given my situation, he would have gotten a simple reprimand at best or a pay cut at worst.
But now, at best, it’s a demotion and, at worst, a crime punishable by death under the law.
“…No, no, I’m sorry. My name is Facile di Conrad.”
“Very well, Lord Conrad. Why do you recommend that I return to my abode?”
I asked, and the knight spoke as if it was obvious.
“As I said, the investigation into the incident is not yet complete, so to be on the safe side….”
“Ohhhh~!”
I interrupted him with a deliberately exaggerated exclamation.
“For my own safety! So this palace is unsafe, then, and you admit that the knights of this country can’t even filter out a single assassin? I hear you, sir!”
The knight became silent as I clapped vigorously, drawing the attention of the priests, servants at work, and soldiers on patrol inside the cathedral.
“You are indeed a loyal servant of the king, one who is willing to expose his own failings for the sake of his superiors!”
I grinned despite his grim expression.