I Became the Teacher of the Imperial Family’s Bastard

006. Answer (3)

Stop pretending to be a scoundrel.

I thought it was nonsense, but then I realized anew that the other person was the Crown Prince, so I let it go.

When I think about it, it was rarer for that man to say something that wasn’t nonsense.

‘Among them, there were indeed a few words that hit the mark…’

But at least that wasn’t the case now.

Isn’t that right? I’ve been at home for the past few days, but at this time, I’m nothing but a person who only engages in scoundrel-like behavior.

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

As I spoke, the Crown Prince let out a small laugh.

“So that’s how you’re going to play it… I see. You must have your reasons. For now, sit down.”

“Yes.”

I sat down.

I didn’t ask why he was acting like that or why he had come.

It is disrespectful to casually question a member of the royal family.

Of course, I’m not the kind of person who cares about such things.

The reason I’m being compliant is because the prince’s mood isn’t bad.

‘Could this just pass if I handle it well?’

Maybe I can cover up the past incident smoothly.

But, the silence was long.

It was hard to tell if this person came to impose his weight or to have a conversation.

I endured steadily.

Until the words ‘So why did you come?’ rose to my throat.

The prince spoke just as my patience was beginning to wear thin.

He was very serious.

“…I have something to ask.”

“That day, I was drunk…”

“You know it’s not about that.”

…I don’t know.

The prince shook his head.

“…Yes, you want a straightforward answer. Are you saying that if I don’t overcome my shame, I’m not worthy of an answer?”

What is this b*stard saying?

Just as I thought that, the prince spoke.

“Alright, I’ll be honest. I want to know the true intention behind the words you said that day. Why did you say such things? What was I supposed to do?”

Wasn’t this story supposed to be different?

‘No, is he mocking me?’

In the end, he’s telling me to apologize.

A vein bulged on my forehead.

Thank goodness. My bangs are covering it.

I lowered my head.

“I deeply apologize. That day, I was drunk…”

“You.”

…Why does he have to interrupt and piss me off? It’s infuriating.

I clenched my fist tightly.

“Yes…”

Ah, I want to go back to the future.

For the first time, I missed the moment when I cursed at this man to his face.

The Crown Prince glared at me with his lips tightly shut.

A moment of standoff.

The one who broke the silence was the Crown Prince.

“…Fine, I admit it. You were right. The more I obsess over her, the further I drift from being the Crown Prince. My desire for her was on a path different from that of serving the Empire.”

At that moment, something came to mind.

‘Ah, that woman.’

Now I remember.

This is why I returned.

‘To kill the Crown Prince…’

…No, to make him give up on her.

At the time, I didn’t think deeply about it, but it was clearly a way to confront the Crown Prince with reality.

Was that what remained inside me?

Surely, as the future Crown Prince said, one understands when beaten.

Even while thinking, the Crown Prince’s words continued.

“You mustn’t do it for her. I know him too. But I can’t let her go. I feel like I can’t live without her.”

The Crown Prince placed his hand on his chest and clutched his collar tightly.

“Even knowing it’s greed, I can’t give up.”

A bitter laugh carried deep confusion.

“There are two of me inside. The man who loves her and the Crown Prince. Yes, I know. Acting as the Crown Prince is the right thing to do. I don’t ignore that. But if I do, I feel like my whole life will be too painful. That’s my reason.”

The Crown Prince raised his head.

His face was earnest.

“You said it. How dare you place a common woman on the same scale as the Crown Prince’s position. Where is your mind?”

“······.”

“But you see, I want to do that. Shouldn’t I? Can’t I, as a man, purely love someone? Is it wrong to wish for that?”

After a long preamble, the real question came out.

“Is it true that the Crown Prince is a position where love is forbidden?”

That question brought to mind his regretful lament from a time lost to history.

-That was when I mistakenly thought love was something between individuals.

I closed my mouth and looked at the Crown Prince.

Even now, I can’t reconcile that face with the future homeless man’s face.

Yet, despite that, I realize that this man is indeed that man.

How many others are tormented by such luxurious worries?

“I, I just want love. A love that isn’t entangled with any interests.”

The Crown Prince’s expression twisted.

He looked as if he was about to collapse.

I hesitated for a moment.

-You should go back in time and beat me up. To knock some sense into me.

The Crown Prince made such a request to me.

It was a ridiculous request.

To ask me to beat up a perfectly fine Crown Prince.

Wasn’t it just telling me to go back in time and get executed?

But if it’s in this form.

If I could convince him with words to make the Crown Prince give up on that woman.

‘Well…’

Isn’t this enough?

Not just because it was the Crown Prince’s request, but if this man had been properly doing his job as the Crown Prince, the war wouldn’t have dragged on this long.

If someone as competent as this man were the ruler, the empire would be better off than before.

That means, ultimately, Pharos would be safer than in the past life.

The deliberation ended.

I stood up and walked towards the curtained window.

‘Just this once.’

With the first and last respect for the old superior who gave me a second chance.

-Sometimes…

The answer he found in the future was conveyed to his past self.

* * *

“Sometimes, there are things we miss because they are too obvious.”

Kallios looked at Yuren’s back.

He couldn’t see his expression.

But his tone was serious, reminiscent of him in the abandoned warehouse.

The man who had always frowned or feigned ignorance finally showed his true feelings.

That fact gave Kallios a glimpse of some hope.

He didn’t know why.

But he had a strange certainty that this man would teach him the answer.

“Love is the same. No, because it is love, the more familiar it becomes, the easier it is to miss.”

“…What do you mean? Are you saying there’s something I’m missing?”

“Perhaps, maybe certainly it will be so.”

Yuren affirmed and added,

“Your Highness, is the reason you love that woman truly love?”

“…I have no doubt.”

“Then is that love something only she can give?”

“That too… I have no doubt.”

“Why is that?”

Why, you ask.

Kallios could easily provide the answer.

“She saw me as my whole self. Not as Crown Prince Kallios van Orteer, but as the human Kallios. She looked at me purely and judged me purely. Without any ulterior motives.”

That was a comfort.

The court’s intrigues drain one’s blood.

In the midst of it all, the expectant gazes of those standing behind him weighed heavily.

What about the nobles?

To them, he was not a person.

Just a fearful or detestable sky.

Everything wore Kallios down.

The only moments he could cast off such burdens and smile were when he was by Rebecca’s side.

He spoke of that fact.

“…I just wanted to feel such pure goodwill, even if only for a brief moment.”

One,

“Then, Your Highness, you were wrong. Clearly.”

He denied it.

There was a momentary surge of emotion.

He tried to argue.

But he couldn’t.

“I asked if she was the only one who could give that love. I also said that sometimes, because it is too obvious, we miss it, and that is love.”

He gave the answer not too late.

He spoke while holding the curtain in his hand.

“Your Highness, do you know him? You are the one who is granted a special love that no one else in the world can have.”

It was right after.

Swish―!

The curtain of the window was drawn.

Kallios’s eyes trembled.

What was visible beyond was none other than the entire view of the capital shining under the sun.

Yuren’s words struck his ears.

“Your Highness, you are allowed to love this Orteair. Just because you were born. Just because you are the firstborn of the royal family.”

“Ah…”

“You are allowed their love. Because you will lead them.”

“Ah…”

“Did you ask about pure love? Then I will answer.”

Yuren’s finger pointed to the capital.

“Where can you find anyone purer than those people who laugh when you want them to laugh, and cry when you want them to cry? Where else can you find those who cry out for love overflowing just from the small amount of love you give them?”

It was only at that moment that Kallios could fully understand Yuren’s words.

‘…There is none.’

He had pondered endlessly, but there was none.

No one, no individual could give something greater than the emotions expressed by these countless people.

No one could produce as much resentment as they did, and no one could produce as much cheer as they did.

This multitude of humans, the phenomenon of society, could not be fulfilled by an individual.

So it was as Yuren said.

‘Only I…’

Only he was allowed to receive all this love.

Just because he was born as the eldest son of the imperial family.

Because he was the crown prince.

Yuren looked down at Kallios.

It was blasphemy.

Yet, it was not blasphemy.

Kallios looked up at him from an endlessly low posture.

As if it were the most natural thing.

“Now, I will ask again.”

Continuing as if to admonish, or perhaps to rebuke.

“Would you dare to place such a commoner girl on the same scale as the crown prince?”

He recited the truth that Kallios had ignored.

Underneath the gray hair, the nervous-looking eyes and the azure gaze demanded an answer.

Thus, for the first time, Kallios placed the smile of the pastel-toned girl, pure beyond measure, and the countless imperial subjects who would cry and laugh only for him on the same scale.

The weight shifted in an instant.

‘Would a future with Rebecca be happy?’

Surely it would.

Her smile was one that could erase even the residue clinging to his heart.

But, could he move forward without looking back at that time?

If his wrong choice made them cry, could he not regret the moments he didn’t love them?

On the other hand, if he chose the empire?

He would lose her and it would hurt.

He would cry out in pain and sorrow.

But, he wouldn’t live only in that pain.

Kallios knew himself.

He was someone who couldn’t endure without moving forward.

He was someone who had to correct what was wrong to feel at ease.

Therefore, the answer was clear.

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Only then could Kallios smile.

Bitterly and shamefully.

“…No.”

The heart that had been tangled in confusion and crushed by thirst finally found its proper course.

“I cannot raise it. No matter what you present to me, it cannot stand on the same scale as the hearts of the people.”

That is.

“Because you are the Crown Prince. It is the duty of the one who is granted the only love.”

It was right after he gave the answer.

“Correct.”

Yuren Pharos smiled for the first time.

Quite roguishly, at that.

* * *

Kallios returned to the Palace of Dawn.

However, his expression was starkly different from when he left Pharos’ mansion.

It was a somewhat hollow, yet refreshing smile, and it made every woman who saw Kallios that day blush.

“What are you looking at?”

The First Princess Erilda asked bluntly.

Kallios answered briefly.

“Outside the window.”

To be precise, he was looking at the archipelago visible through the window, and at the mansion of Pharos perched at its end.

“…Are you okay? Did you hit your head?”

“You have no qualms about speaking to your brother like that.”

“No, it’s just creepy how you suddenly started grinning after looking so grim all the time.”

“Blasphemous.”

“Blasphemous~.”

Erilda, mocking Kallios, followed suit with a sneer.

Then she spoke.

“Let me guess, it’s about that woman again. What, did you hold her hand this time?”

“No.”

“…Huh?”

“I will no longer meet with Rebecca. I realized that our meetings are detrimental to me.”

Thud!

Erilda sprang up from her seat.

Glancing around, Erilda, with a blank expression, slowly began to draw a broad smile.

“Kallios! You’ve finally come to your senses!!!”

Erilda hugged him tightly.

Though she hugged him with such cheer, before long, she realized she was burying her face in his chest and shedding tears.

Kallios let out a hollow laugh at the sight.

‘Was I really that mad?’

Upon reflection, it seems that way.

Now that I have come to my senses, it is truly embarrassing, and also shameful.

Thus, Kallios’s gaze turned once more to the window.

‘Yuren.’

It must be thanks to him.

His gaze eventually reached the mansion at the end of the capital, the mansion of Pharos.

‘The reason the mansion is in that location is…’

It clearly meant to watch over the imperial family.

Conversely, it also meant that the imperial family was within Pharos’s sight.

History and tradition say,

The Pharos family of the Grand Master was established long ago by the first emperor’s mentor, who drew his sword when humans were slaves to other races.

When the emperor liberated humans from other races, the first Pharos did not hesitate to wield the rod when the emperor made wrong choices.

He always strove to lead him on the right path.

It was not a choice for the personal gain of the first Pharos.

He refused all titles and positions bestowed by the emperor, and in return, the family obtained two rights, passed down through generations.

‘The right to reconsider and reject the imperial family. And the position of the imperial family’s educator.’

Thus, the noble house without rank or title, the great house of Pharos, was born.

Of course, stepping forward as the imperial family’s educator was rare, even in history.

‘A family that becomes the mentor of the imperial family…’

Kallios thought that it was a fitting description.

Yuren Paros was undoubtedly the savior who grabbed him by the collar on the path to ruin.

He was the teacher who taught him the right kind of love, and at the same time, the guide who showed him the way forward.

A thousand words of gratitude would not be enough for him.

However, apart from that, Kallios developed a desire.

“Erilda.”

“Hmm?”

“I intend to entrust my education to Paros.”

He needed to learn.

He was still lacking and not ready to walk the right path on his own.

Therefore, he needed an advisor, a guide.

For that role, the monster who pretended to be Paros’s executioner would be suitable.

‘I don’t know why he pretends to be an executioner…’

Finding that out would be fun too.

Kallios smiled broadly and said,

“Prepare it.”

Then,

“…Paros, that executioner?”

Erilda’s smile stiffened.

Her face clearly showed what she was thinking.

End

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