The Tyrant Won’t Let Me Go

 

⚔️

 

Despite a little hiccup at the start, the class was successful towards the end. 

 

“Good job, Your Majesty.”

 

Cedric was able to release his mana weakly even after I let go of his hand as he practiced, correcting his unconfident slouching posture.

 

Caliberne’s persistent remarks made my stomach turn, but I managed to keep it under control.

 ‘What sort of greenlight was Caliberne referring to?’ 

Caliberne appeared interested in the topic of swords, so I taught him a few new love-related terms; nevertheless, I had no idea she would use them to mock me in this manner.

 

When I returned to my room, I would punish her, I bit my lips. 

 

“Oh, no. Ciel did a great job too.”

 

When Cedric wiped the sweat from his forehead, he grinned softly.  

 

‘I suppose we should hold hands now that the Prince has unleashed a lot of mana?’

 

The conversation about holding hands first felt incredibly awkward. 

 

‘No, 200 million kerta. 200 million kerta. And my life…’

 

After that, I offered my hand to him…

 

“Then the class is over, Your Highness, so I’ll hold your hand,” said Ciel.

 

“Huh? Oh…” 

 

After he finished, Cedric’s face once more flushed red. But unlike before, he didn’t uncomfortably twist his body or look away. 

 

“Yes, here.” 

 

He timidly offered his hand, and I took hold of it with my right hand.  He probably had a warmer hand than the last time because he had just used the sword.

 

“Hey, am I not weird?” asked Cedric.

 

“What?”

 

While holding his hand, I tilted my head at the sudden words he uttered.

 

When I looked up at him, I saw two clear, unshakable eyes staring at me.

 

“Weird, what? Where?” asked Ciel.

 

“I’m not good at anything, unlike my father, and I’m childish…”

 

The red eyes rolled slowly.  A heavy voice, unsuitable for his age, flowed from between his tender lips.

 

“I thought it would have been ridiculous,” added Cedric.

 

I now understand the issue with this child. 

 

‘You don’t seem confident.’

 

Despite the fact that he’s old enough to think himself to be the best in the world after so much praise. 

 

“No. Not at all. You’re not childish.”

 

“But…”

 

“You’re trying to make up for the parts you thought you lacked.”

 

I continued speaking in a serious voice, “That’s not ridiculous.” 

 

I covered his right hand with my left before speaking, “You don’t have to worry about that.” 

 

Following that, Cedric gave me a startled-looking glance.

 

“I-if I’m with Ciel, together, I might not be abandoned.”

 

Again, my heartbeat pounded.

 

In my thoughts, I saw both the mother I had barely known for a week in this life and the faces of my deceased parents.

 

I bit my lips and closed my eyes, controlling the emotions that seemed to flow out of my throat.

 

“That’s not going to happen.” 

 

“But…”

 

His childlike voice quivered subtly as he said, “I don’t know how to do anything differently from my father. My father, the Emperor, was good at everything.”

 

A grim-faced, Cedric said while rubbing his cheek,

“There were rumors that I wasn’t his real son…” 

My mouth was gaping in shock as he continued.

 

Who the hell said something like that? To the extent that this child knows such a rumor.

 

‘Are those people blind?’

 

It’s possible that Cedric himself was unaware of how much he resembled the Emperor in terms of appearance. 

 

It was safe to assume that Cedric was a miniature version of the Emperor, even if his surroundings were obviously very different.

 

‘Whoever sees it, you are the Emperor’s son.’

 

Additionally, I confirmed his adult appearance in the book and was certain that he would resemble the Emperor in the story practically identically.

 

“I’m afraid that my father might abandon me.”

 

It really took my breath away.

 

‘Cedric, a member of the royal family, and I, a commoner. Why must everyone deal with this level of worry?’

 

I felt the power move to Cedric’s hands as I encircled them with my hands.

 

My heart was churning with heated, driven emotions.

 

Furthermore, it was both unpleasant and cold. For some reason, though, I didn’t want to convey that emotion to a child.

 

“It’s okay, Your Grace. His Majesty would never abandon you. Rather, he would be proud of you.” said Ciel. 

 

Then Cedric’s ears pricked,

“Re– really?” 

“Of course. You’re working so hard.”

 

Certainly…

 

When I was tutoring elementary school students, I had never even seen a child so calm in my previous life.

 

In comparison to most kids his age, Cedric was an excellent child with a wonderful view of learning.

 

‘Normally, if I had a kid this lovely and gentle, I would have fed him every day and brought him up with gold and jade at his feet.’

 

Oh, of course, starting a war was a bit of a big deal.

 

“If he later sees you, Your Highness, wielding the sword yourself, His Majesty would surely like it.” 

 

A happy light shone on Cedric’s dark face.

 

“You think so…?”

 

I smiled confidently and said, “Of course!”

 

So that he could be reassured.

 

Cedric beamed a big smile, showing his pearly white teeth for the first time. 

 

I nearly gripped my chest at the sight, but I restrained myself.

 

‘Even though there only exists one sun in the universe, I would choose that face to be it. ‘

 

“Ciel, you know. You can call me Cedric when we’re not in class!”

 

“Oh, no, that’s a bit…”

 

“Can’t you?”

 

His teary eyes looking at me ultimately caused my heart to weaken.

 

Who wouldn’t feel sorry when the sun cries?

 

“Well then, to His Majesty, umm Cedric…”

 

“Ah, yes!”

 

After that, there was a brief period of silence. 

 

Till Cedric speaks once again, “By the way, Ciel. Your hands are very soft.”

 

“What? Oh, well, thank you.”

 

Then he smiled brightly again, wrapping his hands around my hands and placing them on his cheeks.

 

“Ah…”

 

“It feels good because it’s soft like marshmallows!” 

 

As a result of his unexpected onslaught, heat instantly surged to my face.

 [Hey, look around—everything is pink!]  

I inwardly yelled to Caliberne as she shouted enthusiastically.

 

‘Hey, shut up! I’m in class!’

 

Caliberne, however, disregarded my warnings.

 [Look at this, neighboring folks! Although Ciel doesn’t teach, the two are just playing!]  

I clenched my teeth and determined what I ought to do.

 

One day, while she’s in a sword, I’ll melt her in a furnace.

 

⚔️

 

After our first class, Cedric began speaking to me a bit more.

 

Now, he frequently speaks to me first, and occasionally, he even chuckles.

 

‘There aren’t any issues with our lessons currently.’

 

It took some time, but I eventually discovered that Cedric was a diligent student who understood all he was taught.

 

To be honest, I wondered if I had to step forward.

 

‘He would have done it well on his own if he had taken on another great magic swordsman as his teacher.’

 

Even the legendary magic swordsmen of the time, as I later discovered, were unable to reawaken his sword, which prompted the alarmed Emperor to consult an oracle and hire me.

 

As I was stretching over the chair in the lounge, I thought to myself, ‘

I don’t believe there would be issues if we continued in this manner till my retirement.’

 

“Oh, life is so comfortable, so nice.”

 

When I was in the orphanage, I slept with my legs folded because there was no place to stretch my legs.

 

Although I realized that I would have died within a few months if I had lived that way, at least I’m fine now.

 

A remedy was discovered, and Caliberne promised that if I joined hands with the Crown Prince for five years, I would recover. 

 

Although it was not my objective, what could be better than this other saving my life and making a decent, high salary?

 

Compared to when I was in the orphanage, the task seemed to have become much more difficult, although the standard of living had practically risen in the air. 

 

I was in the middle of, quietly and intently examining the wall-mounted painting with my eyes wide open.

 Bang–!  

There was a tremendous noise as the door to the lounge slammed.

 

I was startled and leaped out of my chair to take a closer look at the visitor who appeared to be attempting to break in.

 

“Ciel, Ciel–!”

 

“Your Highness?”

 

The Emperor specially permitted me to access this lounge, which was primarily frequented by the elite Imperial Palace Knights.

 

In actuality, it seemed improbable that Crown Prince Cedric could reach this point.

 

“How did you get here? But why are you in such a hurry—”

 

He then exhaled deeply and yelled out frantically. The two trembling eyes had an uneasy appearance, like a predator pursuing a deer.

 

The little hand that desperately ruffled my collar was trembling.

 

“I— Oh! Hide me, Ciel. I have to hide!”