Epilogue
"Ugh... What... happened to me...?" groaned a weak voice.
The first thing Third Prince Rodel Iwood felt upon regaining consciousness was excruciating pain tormenting his entire body.
Every inch of his skin throbbed with agony, as if he were being pricked all over by countless needles.
"Where... am I?" Rodel muttered, forcing his heavy eyelids open.
"Oh! Have you come to, Your Highness Rodel?" an excited voice called out.
"Are you... Marquis Eiger?" Rodel asked, blinking in confusion.
Rodel's eyes widened in realization as he took in the figure standing at his bedside.
It was Marquis Belrio Eiger—the leading nobleman of the Queen Dowager Faction, a man completely devoted to worshipping Rodel's grandmother.
He was also the man serving as Rodel's personal backer and guardian.
"Where... is this place?" Rodel asked, glancing around the unfamiliar surroundings.
Only then did Rodel realize he was resting in a room he had never set eyes on before.
It was a spacious chamber featuring a massive bed and valuable antique furniture. However, the space was gaudily cluttered with overly ostentatious paintings and ornaments, giving off an impression of distinctly poor taste.
"This is my mansion located in the Eiger Marquisate," Marquis Eiger explained smoothly. "I brought you here while Your Highness was still unconscious."
"Brought me here...? But why?" Rodel asked, his brows knitting together.
"Because those fools in the royal capital—that foolish King and his useless sons—have put out a warrant for your arrest, branding you the war criminal who awakened the magical beast Sabnock!" Eiger spat bitterly. "How dare they commit such utter insolence against the future monarch acknowledged by Her Majesty the Queen Dowager!"
Marquis Eiger fumed with intense indignation, his expression twisted in fury.
Listening to the foul rant and staring at the man's ugly, contorted face, Rodel realized with dreadful clarity that everything he had experienced was not a nightmare after all.
(That's right... I used the Monster Attractant to awaken that monster... and because of that...!)
They were dead. His aides. The two loyal companions who had trusted him had lost their lives.
They had served Rodel since childhood, making them not just his retainers, but his closest, right-hand friends.
(Because I got carried away... Because I meddled with Sabnock... they died...!)
Arrogant and foolish though Rodel was, he was not so heartless as to feel nothing at the death of his friends.
A wave of crushing regret washed over him, feeling as though it would crush his very chest.
"It seems that foolish King has realized we are harboring Your Highness," Eiger continued, oblivious to Rodel's despair. "He has demanded that we turn you over at once."
Without paying any mind to Rodel's agonizing conflict, Eiger carried on talking to himself.
"This is a golden opportunity to make those fools realize their foolishness! Why not raise an army and crush them all to dust?!" Eiger declared, a dark sneer spreading across his face.
"Raise an army...? Are you saying you intend to start a rebellion?!" Rodel gasped, snapping his head up in shock.
At those outrageous words, Rodel abruptly raised his head, which had been hanging down in sorrow.
"I never desired a coup d'état!" Rodel shouted desperately. "Cease this madness at once!"
"You call it madness, yet... I have already sent out calls to our comrades in the Queen Dowager Faction and gathered our forces," Eiger replied with a puzzled frown. "It is far too late to turn back now, you know?"
Eiger tilted his head in genuine confusion, as though Rodel was speaking nonsense.
"In the first place, the fault lies entirely with those who dared to slight Your Highness, the one recognized by Her Majesty the Queen Dowager!" Eiger proclaimed, his eyes burning with fanaticism. "Her Majesty's words are absolute! Anyone who defies her must be punished! We shall slaughter that foolish King, that imposter of a Crown Prince, and every noble who opposes us!"
"...!" Rodel gasped, rendered completely speechless in terror.
Hearing Eiger speak as though his lunacy were self-evident truth, Rodel felt genuine, horrifying dread strike his heart.
There was not a single shred of doubt in Eiger's eyes. They were the eyes of a fanatic who mistook his own delusional faith for universal truth. Rodel had never paid attention to it before... but had he really been relying on such a terrifying monster of a man to back him all this time?
"War will break out shortly," Eiger said with a chilling smile. "When that time comes, we shall rely on Your Highness to display your capabilities to your heart's content! Until then, please rest your body well!"
"No... This can't be..." Rodel stammered out, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
Rodel fell into absolute despair as he realized he was being set up as a figurehead for a suicidal rebellion.
Even foolish as he was, Rodel could understand that Eiger's actions were utterly absurd and reckless.
"What... what is going to happen to me...?" Rodel whimpered, tears of dread pooling in his eyes.
He was already a wanted criminal for provoking the magical beast Sabnock.
Sensing the sheer point of no return his life had reached, Rodel shuddered violently to his very core.
◇ ◇ ◇
The subjugation of the magical beast Sabnock.
Having achieved a legendary feat that no one had ever accomplished before, Rest returned to the entrance of the plains.
At the plain entrance, the battle between the monster horde and the coalition of academy instructors, the knight order, and court mages had just come to an end.
Although the stampede had driven monsters toward the entrance, their numbers had been manageable, largely thanks to Rest thinning out a significant portion of them earlier.
"Rest, you're safe!" Viola gasped out, rushing toward him.
"Lord Rest, I was so worried about you!" Primula cried out, her eyes overflowing with tears.
Rest was met with a passionate welcome from Viola and Primula.
Having grown frantically anxious when Rest did not return for so long, the two girls threw themselves into his arms, weeping uncontrollably.
"Thank goodness... Oh, thank goodness...!" Viola sobbed, clinging tightly to his chest.
"If something had happened to you, I...!" Primula sniffled, burying her face against him.
"Ah... Sorry about that. I went a bit overboard," Rest confessed with an awkward smile, scratching his head nervously.
Scratching his head in complete embarrassment, Rest began to explain how he had fought against Sabnock.
At first, the two sisters were struck speechlessly stunned by his revelation, but that quickly turned into a relentless storm of scolding over his recklessness.
In the end, they burst into tears all over again, pummelling his chest with soft, tearful punches.
"Oh, Rest! You made it back!" Yuri called out boisterously as she walked up to them.
"Rest-san, I am truly glad to see you unharmed as well," Celestine added with a gentle smile.
Yuri and Celestine joined them shortly after, sharing in the relief and joy of seeing Rest safe and sound.
Rest was startled to see Yuri covered in splatters of blood, but Celestine—looking slightly pale—explained that Yuri had been fighting off the monsters at the entrance, kicking them to death while drenched in spray after spray of monster blood.
With the help of the two girls, Rest managed to calm Viola and Primula down before reporting Sabnock's defeat to the academy instructors and authorities. However, unlike the sisters, no one present believed a single word Rest said.
Fortunately, through the intercession of Viola and Primula's father, Marquis Albert Rosemary, who happened to be on site, an investigation team was dispatched to verify whether Rest's claim was true.
When the investigation team—comprising royal guards and court mages—ventured deep into the heart of the plains, they discovered the massive corpse of Sabnock collapsed on the ground.
With that, Rest went instantly from being branded a liar to being hailed far and wide as a grand hero.
He had accomplished a legendary feat that countless powerful figures had attempted and failed at throughout history.
With Sabnock gone, the Iwood Kingdom had gained access to vast, fertile lands. By clearing out the remaining monsters and developing the territory, the kingdom was set to enjoy unprecedented prosperity.
Thus, Rest was summoned directly to the royal palace to be bestowed his reward.
"Rest, retainer of Marquisate Rosemary! I hereby grant you the title of Viscount!" declared the King.
Standing inside the royal palace for the very first time in his life, Rest listened as the monarch he was meeting for the first time made that solemn proclamation.
Rest knelt before the King, bowing his head in deep respect.
"I am deeply honored, Your Majesty... May my right hand be the kingdom's sword, and my left hand its shield. I swear unwavering loyalty for the rest of my life," Rest recited smoothly.
"I accept your oath of loyalty. I bestow upon you this treasure sword," the King announced, presenting a scabbarded blade.
Rest had recited the formal pledge he had been instructed to memorize beforehand, and the monarch handed over the ornate, scabbarded sword.
Keeping his head bowed low, Rest respectfully received the treasure sword, which was decorated with intricate craftsmanship.
(To think I'd end up joining the nobility like this... Well, I was already planning to marry into Marquisate Rosemary, so I suppose I was bound to become a noble anyway...)
As a reward for defeating the magical beast Sabnock, Rest was elevated to the nobility with the rank of Viscount.
While he had now become the head of a noble house independent of Marquisate Rosemary, that did not mean his planned marriage to Viola and Primula was cancelled.
It was hardly unusual for high nobles to hold multiple peerages. In effect, it simply meant he now possessed an additional title and house to pass down to any future children they would have.
The peerage was not his only reward. A portion of the vast plains opened up by Sabnock's demise was also slated to become Rest's personal fief.
(I set out to rise in the world to prove myself against my abusive father and my cruel brother... but before I knew it, I've left them both far behind in the dust.)
Clasping the treasure sword—the symbol of his nobility granted by the King—Rest reflected on everything he had gone through to reach this moment.
The peaceful days he had spent living with his mother. The hellish existence that followed after she passed away and his father took him in.
And then... the fulfilling, joyful days he enjoyed after being taken in by Marquisate Rosemary.
He had been allowed to attend the academy, gaining precious knowledge and making dear friends.
(The reason I was able to attain such happiness isn't just because of my infinite mana. It's because I met them in that forest on that fateful day...)
"Rest, congratulations!" Viola cheered happily.
"Lord Rest, congratulations!" Primula beamed, her face glowing with joy.
As Rest stepped down from the royal presence following his investiture, his fiancées Viola and Primula came rushing over to him. Though they had been crying and scolding him out of worry and relief when he first returned from defeating Sabnock, they were now offering him radiant, beaming smiles of congratulations.
"Thank you, both of you," Rest replied, offering his heartfelt gratitude for everything they had done for him.
Rest expressed his sincere appreciation, taking into account all the support they had given him until now.
The sisters looked slightly puzzled by the deep, overflowing emotion behind his words, but their faces instantly melted back into warm smiles.
"To be ennobled while still a student is a historic achievement that even Father couldn't accomplish!" Viola remarked admiringly.
"I am so very proud of you. Lord Rest, you really are an incredible person," Primula chimed in sweetly.
"I was just lucky. It's not a credit I can take all by myself," Rest insisted modestly.
It was not mere false modesty. Rest's victory over Sabnock had only been possible thanks to Ryubass's crucial support.
If Ryubass hadn't drawn away the swarm of lesser monsters, Rest might very well have suffered defeat.
(Come to think of it, he's being ennobled as a Baron... I remember him grinding his teeth in frustration that his title was one rank lower than mine.)
Recalling his new friend's grimacing face, Rest let out a wry, affectionate chuckle.
"Rest, I hear a celebration banquet is about to be held in the palace. Let's head over to the venue," Viola urged cheerfully.
"It seems Father and Mother have already arrived at the venue as well," Primula added.
"Ah, then we shouldn't keep them waiting. We had better hurry," Rest agreed with a nod.
Rest fastened the treasure sword to his belt, intending to head toward the palace's grand banquet hall.
However, before they could set off, someone called out to the trio.
"Rest! So you're finished talking with His Majesty! I've been waiting for you!" Yuri called out cheerfully.
"Rest-san, wonderful work today," another calm voice chimed in.
The bright, innocent greeting and the refined, tranquil response belonged to their academy friends, Yuri Catleia and Celestine Crocus.
"Ah, Yuri, Celestine. What's up?" Rest asked, looking between them.
"I have something important to tell you! You have to listen!" Yuri declared energetically.
"Whoa!" Rest gasped in surprise.
Without warning, Yuri pounced forward and latched herself firmly onto Rest's arm.
Stunned by the sudden ambush, Rest widened his eyes in absolute astonishment.
"W-What is this all of a sudden...?" Rest stammered, flustered.
"I just realized something... It turns out I'm actually in love with you, Rest!" Yuri announced proudly, beaming up at him.
"Huh...?" Rest uttered, his mind going completely blank.
"So from now on, I'm going to give it my all to become your bride! I'm counting on you!" Yuri declared with a wide grin.
"Whaaaaat?!" Rest, Viola, and Primula screeched in unison, their voices cracking in utter disbelief.
A bombshell of a statement had dropped out of Yuri's mouth out of nowhere. Not only Rest, but Viola and Primula as well shrieked in high-pitched hysteria.
"Hold on a minute, Yuri! Just what on earth is the meaning of this?!" Viola demanded, stepping up to her.
"That's right! This is far too sudden!" Primula chimed in hotly.
In place of the paralyzed Rest, Viola and Primula cornered Yuri aggressively.
Yet Yuri showed not the slightest hint of guilt, flashing them a cheerful, sunny smile as she explained.
"Well, you see, I've actually been looking for a wonderful husband for a while now," Yuri said cheerfully. "Before my mother passed away, her final wish was for me to find a fantastic man and be happy. I've been interested in Rest ever since we met, and I kept thinking how amazing it would be to have a husband like him!"
"I-Is that so...?" Rest squeaked out, his facial muscles twitching in an impossible mixture of embarrassment, panic, and sheer bewilderment.
"However, since Rest already had Viola and Primula, I assumed there was no room for me," Yuri continued happily. "But just a moment ago, I ran into your mother, and she asked me, 'If you'd like, why don't you marry into the family as a concubine too?'"
"M-Mother said that...?" Viola gasped, growing pale.
"How could she suggest such a thing...?" Primula whimpered, clutching her forehead.
"W-Whoa... Careful!" Rest cried out, reaching over to catch them.
Both Viola and Primula wobbled on their feet as if overcome by dizziness. Rest hurriedly wrapped his arms around their shoulders to support them. Since Yuri was still stubbornly clinging to his arm, all four of them ended up smashed together in a bizarrely intimate huddle.
"Now that I think about it... Mother would totally say something like that," Viola groaned weakly. "She did mention making Rest take concubines..."
"She said that since he's a master mage, she wanted him to father as many children as possible... I guess she was completely serious," Primula whispered in shock.
"Wait... really?" Rest squeaked out, staring at the sisters with wide, horrified eyes.
The sisters were uttering absurdly outrageous revelations with utterly dismayed expressions.
This was news to Rest. He had never imagined such crazy talks were transpiring behind his back without his knowledge.
The sisters' mother, Irishe Rosemary, was a muscle-brained warrior woman. Not only was she one of the most powerful individuals in the kingdom, but she was also a hardcore, right-wing patriot with wildly extreme views.
It had been her final verdict that dictated both of her daughters would be married to Rest in the first place.
(If that woman ordered it to happen... it really is going to become reality, isn't it...?!)
"If I become Rest's bride, we can all stay together even after graduation, right? With Viola and Primula, too! Don't you think that sounds absolutely wonderful?" Yuri beamed brightly.
Yuri maintained her bright, innocently cheerful smile, completely free of any malice.
There was no sneaky intent to steal her friends' fiancé, nor any desire to play wicked games.
Her sole motivation for accepting Irishe's proposal stemmed purely from her innocent wish: "I just want to stay together with my dear friends forever."
"To think Mother would recruit Yuri as a concubine behind our backs... I feel like I've been stabbed in the spine," Viola muttered, shaking her head in disbelief.
"I am sorry to interrupt while you are still reeling from the shock, but may I say something as well?" Celestine interjected, raising her hand gracefully.
"Celestine...?" Rest blinked, turning his gaze toward her.
"It appears I, too, shall be marrying Rest-san as a concubine. I look forward to working with you all," Celestine declared with a serene smile.
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Rest and the Rosemary sisters shrieked at the top of their lungs, far louder than before.
The sisters looked as though they were on the verge of fainting right then and there. Holding them up nervously, Rest asked in a trembling voice.
"W-Why would such a thing happen...? Lady Celestine, don't you already have a fiancé...?"
"To tell you the truth... my engagement with Prince Rodel is slated to be annulled," Celestine revealed calmly.
"Annulled...?" Rest repeated, his eyes wide.
"His Majesty the King will likely make an official announcement later," Celestine lowered her voice to explain, "but the culprit who provoked the magical beast Sabnock and triggered the stampede was none other than Prince Rodel."
"Ngh...!" Rest gasped, his heart skipping a beat.
At those quietly whispered words, Rest's eyes stretched wide in shock.
"Prince Rodel...? Why would he do such a thing...?" Rest asked, appalled.
"Well... I cannot say for certain what his reasons were, but His Highness fled to his supporter Marquis Eiger and is currently gathering troops," Celestine murmured, her gaze turning cold. "It is a clear sign of rebellion."
"A rebellion..." Rest muttered, stunned.
He had known Rodel was a fool, but he had never imagined the prince would go this far.
Awakening a magical beast and raising the flag of rebellion against his own kingdom...
"There is no longer any point in marrying the prince. The annulment of our engagement is already a done deal," Celestine explained smoothly. "However... that leaves me without a fiancé."
"A-And so...?" Rest swallowed nervously, sensing where this was going.
"All high-ranking nobles of appropriate age are already married; there are no openings left. On the other hand, it would pose a grave political problem for a duke's daughter to marry a low-ranking noble... And so, the choice fell upon you, Rest-san."
Celestine narrowed her eyes with subtle amusement as she watched Rest's stunned reaction.
"Although you are currently a Viscount, Rest-san, you will eventually succeed House Rosemary. Our social standing is well matched," Celestine elaborated calmly. "By acquiring a portion of the Sabnock Plains as your fief, your house will soar even higher. The royal family can no longer afford to ignore your presence."
He had slain the legendary monster that no one since the founding of the Iwood Kingdom had ever managed to defeat.
That meant a single individual named Rest possessed power equal to—or exceeding—an entire army.
"The royal family desperately wants to tie you to the crown. A political marriage is the fastest way to achieve that, but the current royal family has no princesses," Celestine continued with a graceful chuckle. "I am the closest in blood to the royal family and closest in age. A convenient maiden whose fiancé conveniently vanished... Doesn't it sound almost like destiny?"
"..." Rest stood completely speechlessly paralyzed.
His face flushed red and turned pale in rapid succession as he stood frozen in sheer stupor.
"Besides, I have always envied Viola-san and Primula-san, so this is a windfall both politically and emotionally," Celestine added sweetly. "Of course, I have no intention of slighting either of them. I am perfectly content with being a concubine, so please do not worry."
"A-A duke's daughter becoming a concubine...? No, more importantly... Whaaat?!" Rest choked out, his stomach churning violently.
Hit by one overwhelming revelation after another, Rest was suddenly assaulted by a strange wave of nausea.
Having extraordinary beauties like Viola and Primula as his fiancées was already more happiness than he deserved, yet now Yuri and Celestine were barging in as well?!
(N-No... Wait. It's not set in stone yet. If I tell them this is far beyond what I deserve and decline politely without embarrassing them...)
"By the way... regarding this matter, we have obtained approval not only from Lady Irishe, but also from my father Duke Crocus, Marquis Rosemary, and His Majesty the King," Celestine noted with a pleasant smile. "Though Yuri-san's father, Marquis Catleia, is opposed... he won't be able to refuse a royal decree."
"Guh...!" Rest gasped, feeling a metaphorical dagger sink into his gut.
His escape routes had been systematically destroyed. The outer moats were completely filled in.
With permission granted by his future father-in-law Marquis Rosemary, the Prime Minister Duke Crocus, and on top of that His Majesty the King himself, it was for all practical purposes an unalterable done deal.
"Rest... Just what is the meaning of this?!" Viola demanded, glaring at him with half-lidded eyes.
"Lord Rest... What is going on here?!" Primula pressed, her gaze burning into him.
"Wait... It's not like I did anything wrong, is it...?" Rest squeaked out weakly.
Viola and Primula glared at him with accusation-filled, half-lidded eyes.
But what was he supposed to do about this? There was literally nothing Rest could do to change it!
"What is going to happen to my life from now on...?" Rest muttered, looking up toward the heavens in complete helplessness.
Whether he was ennobled as a Viscount or suddenly found his list of fiancées multiplying... life would nevertheless go on.
Born with infinite magic, having slain a legendary beast, and celebrated as a true hero, Rest would surely continue to be swept into countless tumultuous events in the days to come.
(Is this happiness, or is it misfortune...? Which is it, Mother?)
Carrying emotions he could not even process himself, he posed the question to his late mother... but in Rest's mind, his mother only offered a troubled, gentle smile, offering no answer at all.
Post a Comment