Chapter 42: Townsperson A Dedicates the Victory

"I-Impossible...!"

The Crown Prince’s eyes were wide, as if his brain refused to process the reality before him.

Once he managed to pull himself together, he directed a string of nonsensical complaints my way.

"E-Enough! Stop relying on the power of suspicious magic items! Fight with honor, using sword and magic as they were intended, instead of resorting to cowardly tricks!"

"Pfft. Your Highness, what are you even saying? The rules we agreed upon at the start were 'anything goes,' remember? Besides, if I’m being cowardly, what does that make the five of you? You were the ones who tried to jump a single opponent."

Technically, I was the one who had suggested the five-on-one match, but pointing that out made the Crown Prince bite his lip in pure frustration.

"Furthermore," I continued, "what does it say about your character that you used your authority as the Crown Prince to surround Lady Anastasia with five—no, six—people just to force a confession for a crime she didn't commit? Lady Anastasia is ostensibly your fiancée. Because of the difference in your social standing, she couldn't even dream of defying you. If you don't call that 'cowardly,' then I’d love to hear your definition of the word."

"That... That’s because she..."

The Crown Prince stammered, finally realizing the tide of the argument had turned against him.

"She what? What exactly are you claiming Lady Anastasia did? She didn't do anything, did she? This is all just a series of baseless accusations. And while we’re at it, how about the fact that you kicked her out of the committee right before the Cultural Festival, despite all the work she put in at the final hour? The difference in the quality of the exhibits made it glaringly obvious which parts were her handiwork and which weren't."

"She! To Amy...!"

The more I needled him, the more the Crown Prince lost his composure, his voice rising in a defensive shout.

"Oh, for heaven’s sake. Stop with the pathetic excuses. Lady Anastasia never harassed Lady Amy. She merely offered legitimate grievances. And keep in mind, that was the daughter of a Duke, Lady Anastasia, going out of her way to advise a mere Baron’s daughter."

Blasted by the sheer logic of my words, the Crown Prince could do nothing but glare at me with eyes full of resentment.

"Listen up! If the future King is this incompetent, the entire country is going to ruin. And when that happens, the first people to be slaughtered will be us commoners! If you’re the Crown Prince, you should at least understand the political weight of a marriage to House Ramslett!"

"S-Shut up!"

"If House Ramslett turns its back on the throne, a civil war is practically guaranteed. This engagement exists to prevent that. Don't go throwing the entire kingdom into chaos just because you’re infatuated with one girl!"

The Crown Prince’s face turned a deep shade of crimson. He looked down for a moment, then, as if findng some desperate resolve, he snapped his head back up to glare at me.

"Shut up! What could a commoner with no responsibilities possibly understand?! As royalty! As the Crown Prince! Everyone has always demanded that I fulfill a role! No one ever tried to see me! That woman is the same. She was always pushing her expectations on me—act like the Crown Prince, act like the future King!"

"Heh. Is that so? Sounds like you had it real rough."

I delivered the line in a complete monotone. The Crown Prince didn't seem to notice the sarcasm, continuing to spew his self-centered logic.

"But Amy was different! Without me saying a word, she saw the real me! She told me I was fine just the way I was! She smiled and told me I was enough! She knew my favorite things, my favorite foods, even my favorite places—she guessed them all perfectly, as if she could read my mind! We thought the exact same way without even speaking! Yes... she is the one! That’s why! That’s why!"

I see. So Amy, who knew every detail of the Crown Prince’s character settings from the game, just used that knowledge to stay one step ahead of him.

By providing him with the unconditional affirmation he craved, she had made him blindly, hopelessly infatuated.

But honestly, Your Highness... isn't that what you look for in a mother, not a lover?

"Yeah, yeah. Who knows how many of her own feelings Lady Anastasia had to kill just to serve you. And yet, all you care about is 'me, me, me.' You’re just a hollow-hearted brat trying to make your selfishness sound like some grand tragedy!"

"Shut up! I am—!"

"What’s wrong? Did I hit the nail on the head so hard you can't even think of a comeback?"

"Be quiet! What do you know, you responsibility-free commoner?! I didn't choose to be born into the royal family!"

"Huh? Are you actually trying to say you’d rather have been born a commoner?"

"It must be so easy, living as a commoner! You’re protected by us royalty, guided along through life without a care! You can actually be with the woman you love!"

That was the final straw. I knew I’d been running my mouth quite a bit already, but that level of ignorance was more than I could stomach. I stopped trying to argue logically and let my emotions take the wheel.

"Don't you dare mess with me! You think being a commoner is 'easy'? Could you handle cleaning sewers every single day without fail starting from the age of eight? Could you handle backbreaking physical labor while covered in filth and stench?! And do you know what that earns you? A mere 1,000 Cent a day! Do you have any idea what it’s like to survive on scrap vegetables and a single sliver of dried meat, soaking bread so hard you can't chew it just to stave off the hunger?! Stop being such a spoiled brat!"

"Guh... Shut up! A mere commoner...! Shut up!"

"Oh? Now that you’ve lost the argument, you’re going to hide behind your status and give me orders? Do you even remember what you just said a second ago?"

He glared at me with pure, unadulterated hatred, his face still flushed.

"Look. If you love being a commoner so much, why don't you just elope with Lady Amy? Then you can live the 'easy' life you’re so jealous of."

"Wh—! Such a thing is—!"

The Crown Prince went silent, completely struck dumb. Apparently, he didn't actually have the resolve to back up his whining.

Honestly, he was so naive it made me want to gag.

I let out a heavy sigh and spoke in a tone one might use to admonish a child.

"If you aren't even capable of that, then your only partner is Lady Anastasia. Though it might be too late for that now."

The Crown Prince’s face went from red to purple. Tears actually started to well up in his eyes as he screamed.

"S-Shut up! Silence! I won't lose to someone like you! Not to someone like you!"

Then, he began chanting a massive Fire Magic spell.

I recognize that. It’s the ultimate wide-area annihilation spell he uses in the late-game.

It had been a very useful spell when I was the one playing the game, but it wasn't something you used in a school arena. If he unleashed that here, the referee and the audience would be caught in the blast.

The Prince had clearly lost all sense of reason. Not to mention, he shouldn't even have the level required to cast it yet.

"Y-Your Highness! That magic is beyond you!"

One of the teachers overseeing the duel shouted a warning, but the Prince didn't even flinch.

"If I have to lose Amy, then I...! I...!"

No, that’s not what we’re talking about. I was the one who had derailed the conversation to lecture him, sure, but the whole point of this was to get an apology for House Ramslett.

As I watched, the Prince’s Fire Magic predictably went out of control.

"Your Highness!"

Anastasia moved to deploy Ice Magic in a panic, but I stopped her with a sharp gesture. I activated Wind Magic using Chantless casting, creating a massive updraft that funneled all of the Prince's haywire flames harmlessly into the sky.

Phew. I was lucky this training ground was outdoors.

The Prince collapsed immediately after, unconscious from total mana depletion.

"Alle...n?"

I heard Anastasia’s bewildered voice, but I didn't turn around. I pressed my dagger against the Crown Prince’s throat and stared fixedly at the official witness.

"H-His Highness Karlheinz is unable to continue. Therefore, Allen is the victor!"

I gave a polite bow and then flashed a sharp smirk at Amy. Her face contorted in a mask of shock and horror before she collapsed to her knees.

Turning on my heel, I walked over to Anastasia and knelt before her.

"I dedicate this victory to you, Lady Anastasia."

"A-Ah. Thank you. But more importantly..."

Anastasia looked toward the fallen Prince with a worried expression.

"He’ll be fine. I didn't kill anyone. His Highness just exhausted his mana; it isn't life-threatening. Since I blew the runaway flames upward with my Wind Magic, he shouldn't even have any serious burns. He'll wake up once he gets some sleep and his mana recovers."

"I... I see."

Anastasia looked visibly relieved. Even after everything, she was still thinking about the welfare of the kingdom. I could never hope to match that kind of selflessness.

Still, how did a boneheaded Prince like him end up with such a wonderful fiancée, only to throw her away for someone like Amy?

Ah, right. Because he's a bonehead.

Regardless, this was the end of my role. I had just won a duel against the Crown Prince; there was no way the authorities were going to let me walk away from this.

Plus, I had definitely said way too much in the heat of the moment.

I just hope they go easy on the execution...

"Well then, Lady Anastasia, I shall take my leave. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. Lady Margaret, Lady Isabella—thank you as well. It’s a bit regrettable to say goodbye like this, but I must go."

"H-Hey, Allen!"

Ignoring the calls behind me, I turned my back on the arena and headed straight for my room in the dormitory.