Chapter 25 – What level of status does one need? (どの位の地位が必要ですの？)

Wai-!! This tea party was organised by the second prince's mother, the Queen.

Is it really alright to say something like "The Second Prince is insane"?

And the other ladies who are accepting it like an obvious fact, is this really okay?

Even if it's true, that kind of reckless remark could get you imprisoned for reasons like slandering the royal family or lese majeste!!

As I was panicking at the unexpected information, Lady Amaryllis, who had been left stunned, came to her senses and entered the conversation.

"What does 'insane' mean? I do not understand what 'confined' means either. Has something bad happened to His Highness?"

Right... A 6-year-old wouldn't normally hear words like "insane" or "confined". They wouldn't know what those mean.

Especially if you're a young lady from a wealthy family.

The people around her would be sure to mind their words.

As the other ladies were troubled as to how to answer Lady Amaryllis' question, the lady sitting beside her began to explain.

"Well... 'insane' is the state of being mentally ill, and 'confined' means to be locked away. The Second Prince is currently suffering from a mental illness, and if his illness worsens, he will be locked up in a tower in the palace."

As if to continue the conversation, the rest of the ladies began to speak up.

"Actually, the royal family of our country has a history of bearing children who suffer from severe auditory hallucinations or mental illness. During their lifetime, no other royals will be born with these symptoms."

"Before the Second Prince, the last person to have it was the previous king's younger sister. Soon after she passed away, the Second Prince was born, inheriting the 'mad blood'."

What's with that...

This is the first I've heard of it, even with the info from my previous life.

..................Hm? Wait a minute...

Something sounds familiar....

Come to think of it...

As I recall, in the game, Isabella was able to get engaged to the Second Prince despite the large opposition because of some "special circumstances" he had.

What if this "special circumstances" is actually referring to the "cursed blood" of the royal family?

That's right!! I reviewed everything about the Christopher Route just earlier in the carriage!!

I'm sure there was something in there that could apply to this!!

I just need to remember it again!! Do your best, Me!!

I'm sure it was... something like this!!

① Due to the Second Prince's "special circumstances", the king instructed that the decision regarding the engagement with Isabella will be left to the prince himself.

② The so-called "special circumstances" were never explained in detail in the game.

③ Looking at the in-game conversations and interactions, it can be deduced that the prince had a curse or something placed on him. However, the game didn't cover any events about breaking his curse, and only foreshadowing of it was dropped. Even after completing the game, it was never revealed what those "special circumstances" of his were.

Th... This is it.

Then let's remember even more of the details.

Whose conversation was it that hinted the prince having "a curse or something"?

.....

If I remember correctly... it was between the Heroine and──

That's right!! It was Lady Amaryllis!!

It was a conversation from Ver. 3 of "Love☆Magical"!!

It happened after Isabella had left the stage, so I didn't think too deeply about it!!

"A woman of your status would never be able to support or protect His Highness. Even saving him from the tragic prison of blood that surrounds him.... It is all impossible for you!! A commoner like you should obediently step down. You're not fit to stand beside His Highness."

"It is true that I do not have a strong family background like you, Lady Amaryllis. However, I do have the strong desire to support, and to protect His Highness!! Is status really that important to support His Highness' heart? Isn't what's really needed... the resolve to stand together and support each other in any situation, along with a strong sense of trust that forms 'a connection between hearts'?"

"That's not enough to save His Highness!! You need a strong backing too!!"

"You think that status and backing will save His Highness? His Highness, whose heart was driven to the brink of ruin!! Would be saved by mere status and backing?! I don't think so!! What's really needed to save someone, is a warm heart who truly cares about them!!"

"You don't know anything, and you understand nothing...!! So don't act like you do!! The curse that drove His Highness into a corner!! And the hardships he had to face because of it... They can't be solved with just 'a warm heart'!!"

"You don't know that!! No matter how hard and painful the path may be, if we support each other and move forward, we will overcome it one day!! Even when faced with those curses and hardships you speak of!! I will never give up!!"

This became a hot topic on the gaming forums and among my friends, but the key phrases that Lady Amaryllis mentioned...

Like the "prison of blood", for example.

Or the "curse that drove His Highness into a corner".

And the "hardships His Highness had to face", were never revealed in the game, were they?

The discussion board was mainly split into two theories. The first takes Lady Amaryllis' words at face value, that Prince Christopher was cursed.

And the second assumes the "curse" to be a "metaphor", meaning the prince wasn't actually cursed, but rather suffering due to his status as the ruling class and growing up in an environment filled with conspiracies, thus leading him to feel driven into a corner.

By the way, I'm of the "actually cursed" faction.

I mean, just look at the Second Prince's character design... Even though he's supposed to be a prince, he has this unusually dark look in his eyes.

Wouldn't a prince normally be a "charming and kind gentleman type" or the "arrogant (ore-sama) type"?

And yet, when a "fallen-into-despair type of prince" appears, you'd wonder what kind of tragic backstory he has, wouldn't you?

Don't tell me, were you once in a situation where the life of a loved one was at stake? ...Is what you would think, right?

Plus, he could probably turn into a yandere if you raised his flags. Isn't that scary?

In the first place, if the main requirement to opening the second prince's heart was him "suffering due to his status as the ruling class and growing up in an environment filled with conspiracies, thus leading him to feel driven into a corner", then the "gentleman prince" would've been fine, wouldn't it?

The kind, gentlemanly prince who shines ever so brightly. It is precisely because of his kindness that he tires of his days of playing mind games with the nobles. ...They could've just gone with that.

Having the main Love Interest despair from the start is pretty weak for a game plot, don't you think?

But in the end, there was no curse-breaking event, and no big reveal in light of the many foreshadowing. What were the scriptwriters even thinking?!

"Hic... Hic. His Highnesh... Is going to be locked away...? *sniffs*... But why...? That's absolutely terrible... Uuuu.....Hic... WAAAAAH!"

Oh, dear...

After learning about the second prince's condition, Lady Amaryllis was so shocked that she began to cry.

Although she was a bewitching beauty in the game, as a child, Lady Amaryllis is still pure and adorable.

The noble ladies started panicking, thinking of ways to comfort Lady Amaryllis.

She may be a young girl, but she was still a noble of high status. Trembling at the thought that they made her cry, the noble ladies attempted to console her, but none of them had enough experience in soothing a crying child.

Flustered, the lady beside Lady Amaryllis said as quickly as she could.

"Tha-That's right!! There's still a chance that His Highness would not be imprisoned in the future!"

At those words, Lady Amaryllis looked up at the noble lady with eyes shining with hope.

"R...really?"

"Yes, it's true... Have you heard that the queen wishes to wed the Second Prince to a young lady from an influential household, who can provide him with proper backing?"

Oh yeah, there was something like that.

It's the reason why Ursch-kun and I are so wary of the queen.

"Normally, royalty who inherit these symptoms are to spend their entire life alone in the tower. However, there are exceptions. That is, 'by marrying someone of an influential household, who has proper backing'. The reason being that they cannot imprison the spouse who hails from a powerful family, together with the royal."

"Will His Highness be saved if he marries someone with a 'proper backing' and a 'high status'?"

"That's right. Royals who have done so in the past were able to avoid being confined in the tower. They then lived quietly in their partner's lands, or a mansion provided by the royal family under the guise of 'recuperation'."

Well... I guess that's better than being imprisoned in a tower.

And at the very least, that's what the Queen thinks too.

I see. So the reason the queen wishes to wed the Second Prince to a lady from a powerful household, and the reason the game's Lady Amaryllis was so adamant about social standing and a strong backing, was all because of this.

But wait, if I remember correctly, the Christopher Route's Happy End, and the epilogue after the True End finished on a pretty good note?

Yes, I believe it was...

"Our heroine and Prince Christopher safely married, and were given a beautiful white tower surrounded by flowers, where they spent the rest of their lives together."

See, a happy...... H-hold up!! A tower?!

Hey!! Heroine!!

I thought you were saving him, not joining him!!

I-is it that? Because you're a commoner? So they decided it was A-okay to throw you down into that tower?

Heroine!! Nooooooooooo!! You can't choose the Christopher route!!

Break it!! Break all of it!! Break all of Christopher's flags into pieces!!

And, I definitely have to avoid an engagement with Christopher at all costs, too!!

To tell the truth, I can't bear to be a part of the Second Prince's plot story. And in the first place, I'm not interested in anyone other than Ursch-kun!!

"What level of status does one need to help His Highness? What kind of person would be suitable for His Highness?"

Lady Amaryllis asked everyone at the table in anticipation.

Immediately, the noble lady who seems to be the oldest, answers.

''Considering that she would have to be close in age to the second prince, a territory close to the capital, and with a household influential enough to avoid confinement, it would be Lady Isabella of a Ducal household, Lady Amaryllis of a Marquess household, Lady Marianne of a Marquess household, and Lady Nancy of a Count household. Should we broaden the age range and include the ladies of further territories, the names would increase."

Could you not just casually bring up my name?!!

And aren't the latter two the fiancée candidates of the other Love Interests?!