Hell Mode: Volume 11, page 2
One day, Prince Macris dropped by a tavern in the city where he met Deirdre and fell in love with her at first sight, the book noted. Perhaps its careful wording was because the book was not allowed to touch upon Macris’s appearance.
“Correct,” Princess Rapsonil said. “And so, Lord Macris returned to the palace, but he frequented the tavern to meet with Lady Deirdre, always ensuring that his face was hidden.”
However, as Macris had become a regular customer at the tavern, rumors had spread that a shady man in a hood wandered the streets, and that he only stayed for prolonged periods of time when Deirdre was up on stage to sing. One day, after Deirdre had finished her performance, a satisfied Macris had tried to leave the tavern when a voice had called out to him.
“You mean...” Cecil gulped.
“Yes, that was Lady Deirdre,” Princess Rapsonil confirmed.
“I knew it!” Sophie cried, placing a hand over her chest. “And? What did Lady Deirdre say to Lord Macris?”
“Lady Deirdre said, ‘Thank you for always visiting this place to listen to my singing. I know you’re only here to listen to me. If you don’t mind, would you kindly remove your hood so I can see your face?’” Princess Rapsonil recited.
“D-Did Lord Macris take off his hood?” Cecil asked as she leaned forward eagerly to hear more, ignorant of the fact that she was squeezing the Bird G in her hands like an old rag. Fortunately for the Bird G, it had more HP and Endurance than a normal vanguard Summon thanks to Growth Lvl. 8.
“He did. He’d promised himself that if Lady Deirdre ever reached out to him, he would steel his resolve and remove his hood.”
“Oh my!” Sophie squealed.
Allen, who could feel the pain the squished Bird G was going through via Sharing, felt like the conversation had devolved into girls gossiping, but he quietly watched on.
“Lord Macris apologized to Lady Deirdre and everyone in the tavern for making them uncomfortable, and he removed his hood right then and there,” Princess Rapsonil added.
“And? Was she taken aback?” Cecil asked worriedly.
Allen knew that if he cracked a joke at a time like this, he would be in for a world of hurt.
“Not at all,” Princess Rapsonil replied. “Lady Deirdre didn’t look surprised or afraid, and she didn’t mock him either. She simply gazed into his eyes, which shocked Lord Macris. Everyone else in the tavern, customers and employees alike, stared at him like he was trash.”
Which means she really isn’t the type to care about looks.
“That was the moment Lord Macris began to think of Lady Deirdre as special,” Princess Rapsonil went on. “As for Lady Deirdre, she found him eccentric, for a person with his noble blood usually had no reason to come to a tavern.”
“I see. Lord Macris wasn’t the type to care about rank or social status,” Shia said. “But if that’s so, wouldn’t dressing up at the Songstress Contest have the opposite effect for him?”
Cecil and Sophie gasped, but the imperial princess gently shook her head.
“Indeed, I don’t blame you for thinking that, but Lord Macris wasn’t able to dance with anyone at palace balls,” Princess Rapsonil explained. “And so, he holds strong admiration for women who are dressed to the nines.”
“I suppose that’s just how men are,” Sophie murmured.
“Seems like it,” Cecil agreed, nodding along. “If they struggle to talk to girls or make friends with them, they instead begin to admire and have high expectations of them. But, um, I thought Lord Macris and Lady Deirdre hit it off. I feel like admiration doesn’t really matter in this context.”
“Really? Then the two really loved each other and— No, that can’t be it. After all, at this point in the story, Lady Deirdre doesn’t know Lord Macris very well.”
The two ladies turned to Princess Rapsonil, hope in their eyes, as though to encourage her to continue with her story. In response, she smiled and nodded.
“Indeed. As you say, Lady Deirdre still needed time to truly get to know Lord Macris. However, before she had the chance, word of Lord Macris revealing his face in a lowly tavern reached the emperor’s ears, and Lord Macris was forbidden from leaving the palace.”
“That’s awful!” Sophie cried in a huff as though the injustice had occurred right in front of her eyes. “He didn’t do anything wrong!”
This bit’s similar to the picture book. Allen had been forced to read Tales of the Prostia Empire many times at Cecil’s behest, and he recalled the tale. Prince Macris, having fallen in love with Deirdre, had implored the emperor to let him marry her, but His Majesty had refused, citing the difference in their social ranks.
“You’re exactly right,” Princess Rapsonil said. “But to the emperor at the time, Lord Macris’s actions could not go unpunished. After all, the poor prince had been forced to wear his hood so that no one would see his face, but he had revealed it to everyone in the tavern. The emperor believed that his son had brought shame to the Prostian imperial family, and while there were several people ahead of Lord Macris in line for the throne due to his appearance, he was still an imperial prince and needed to act as such.”
“How utterly selfish...” Cecil muttered. Sophie, meanwhile, was too disgusted to speak. “What happened next? Did Lord Macris end up leaving the palace again?”
“Lord Macris actually declared that he would relinquish all claim to the throne,” Princess Rapsonil replied. “The emperor and everyone else in the royal palace were stunned. No one had ever cast aside their power and title out of love for a person of far lower standing.”
I guess the man who was unpopular for his entire life wasn’t one to give up on love so easily.
“But that means Prince Macris had such strong feelings for her,” Shia remarked. “How did Lady Deirdre feel?”
Princess Rapsonil again smiled and nodded. “Lady Deirdre was stunned at first to hear that Lord Macris was the rumored Pig Prince. After all, upon laying eyes on him, she hadn’t found him as hideously offensive as she’d heard. Only after he’d left the tavern had the people around her told her of the rumors, and she’d been shocked then too. That’s why Lady Deirdre wished to accept Lord Macris with open arms. Even if the entire empire was against him and insulted his appearance, she wanted to be his ally and his friend.”
“Ah, so she’s generous and kind.”
“Indeed. And so, even though Lord Macris had been placed under house arrest after drawing the emperor’s ire by declaring that he would relinquish his right to the throne, he still managed to sneak out of the palace to meet with Lady Deirdre, much to her delight. Lord Macris also found himself drawn to her, for she always waited for him.”
“How lovely!” Cecil gasped, her eyes twinkling.
“But if he kept sneaking out, surely the one who forbade him from leaving would be upset,” Shia pointed out.
“That’s right,” Princess Rapsonil replied. “Lord Macris’s actions became widespread among the knights and officials who guarded him, and they all tried to prevent him from leaving before the emperor caught wind of their incompetence. They blocked every escape route in the palace, but even so, Lord Macris managed to sneak out.”
“Of course! Of course!” Cecil cried. She squeezed the Bird G she was holding in front of her chest, causing Allen, a good distance away, to writhe in agony.
“If one route was blocked off, he simply used another,” Princess Rapsonil continued. “Even when it was thought that all escape routes had been sealed, he managed to sneak out from the most surprising of places. He used all sorts of impressive methods just so he could meet with his beloved Lady Deirdre. And of course, since the knights and officials weren’t nearly enough to stop him, the emperor caught wind of his son’s escapades. He had someone tail Lord Macris, and that’s when it was discovered that the prince had been spending private time with Lady Deirdre. When the emperor saw Lord Macris’s passion and Lady Deirdre’s kindness, he ultimately allowed the two to be together.”
“Seeing how the two felt about each other changed the emperor’s heart... How wonderful!” Sophie exclaimed, her eyes damp with tears. “What a beautiful tale!”
All the while, however, Cecil grimaced and gazed at the imperial princess with concern.
“Wait, after that, didn’t...” she started.
“Yes,” Princess Rapsonil replied. “One day, a sea monster suddenly appeared. It had been sealed away for several centuries, but it awakened from its deep slumber.”
“A sea monster? So one actually exists?” Allen asked through Bird G.
Cecil frowned, annoyed by Allen’s interruption, but Princess Rapsonil did not seem to mind and nodded.
“Correct. According to Lady Aqua, since many, many millennia ago, there has been a monster plaguing the ocean floor. Of course, she and the other deities, including their kin and disciples, attempted to kill the beast, but to no avail. It was sealed away by Holy Fish Macris, but that monster is still very much alive, waiting for the opportune moment.”
“No one can beat it?” Allen asked. “Is it a Demonic Deity or something?”
“Come on, Allen. Now isn’t the time to talk about stuff like that,” Cecil scolded. But the Summoner was already in monster-hunting mode, and her words fell on deaf ears.
When Allen was still a manservant of House Granvelle, Cecil had forced him to read Tales of the Prostia Empire many times, and he had always been curious about the sea monster that appeared in the latter half of the story. It felt like the kind of boss he might have found in one of the games he had played when he was still Kenichi. If the monster was defeated, it would either end the game or drop a rare item—or so he hoped.
After graduating from the Academy and clashing with the Demon Lord Army, Allen had begun to think that the sea creature, if it really did exist, had to be a Rank S monster or a Demonic Deity. He was dying to discover the identity of this mysterious beast.
“Lady Aqua hasn’t mentioned that it’s a Demonic Deity of any sort,” Princess Rapsonil said, shaking her head at Allen’s query. But that response only piqued his interest further.
“You keep mentioning the Goddess of Water. Does she have some kind of special relationship with the Prostia Empire?”
“She does. We of House Prostia are the shield that protects merfolk from this sea monster, as well as the spear that drives it back should it try to escape its seal. This role was given to us by Lady Aqua, and while she was unable to defeat the monster, she did succeed in sealing it away. However, this is neither a permanent solution nor a perfect one. Every now and then, the seal comes undone, and the monster is freed from its shackles to wreak havoc. We have maintained the seal to prevent such a rampage, and even if it breaks, we’re here to cast it once more. It’s because we have this power that we have been allowed to rule over Prostia.”
“I see... Your role is to protect the merfolk who believe in Lady Aqua.”
“Your understanding is correct. The sea is vast, and there are many monsters prowling about, but this one is a very special beast.”
“The book calls it a sea monster too, but does it, by any chance, have some kind of official name?”
“I wouldn’t know. Lady Aqua also called it a sea monster, so even if it does have another name, we weren’t told of it.”
Hmm, a nameless beast that no one can kill... Is there some condition that has to be fulfilled before it can die, or is it just too strong? Allen recalled from his past life that some games had monsters in them that simply could not be defeated. Perhaps within the storyline, the enemy had been made absurdly strong because the player was not meant to defeat it until a set point or because they needed a certain item in order to win.
Water Goddess Aqua was one of the Four Elemental Deities, meaning she was by no means weak. If she could not defeat the monster, perhaps it was because she had not satisfied an oddly specific condition. We’ve beaten Demonic Deities before. In other words, if no one can kill this sea monster, then at the very least, it’s stronger than one of those. An abrupt silence settled over the room, with Princess Rapsonil patiently waiting for Allen to speak. He did not have any more questions, though, so she resumed telling the story of Macris.
“As I mentioned before, three hundred years ago, the sea monster awakened from its slumber. Of course, the emperor at the time tried to fight it and cast a seal upon it, but that seal was imperfect. It bound the monster, but not enough to stop it from threatening the destruction of Patlanta.”
“And that’s when Lord Macris borrowed the power of Lady Aqua to become a Holy Fish,” Cecil said nervously.
She recalled the story from the book, and Princess Rapsonil gave a sad yet firm nod.
“He did. Lord Macris wished to protect his beloved Lady Deirdre, and so, he went to the Water Altar. He implored Lady Aqua’s assistance and formed a contract with her. The goddess warned Lord Macris of the consequences of the contract, but he was undeterred and wished for her help. I’m sure that you know the rest. Lord Macris became a Holy Fish and weakened the immortal, unstoppable sea monster, allowing Lady Aqua to seal it up. And that is where present-day Patlanta is built—the beast is sealed within the massive crystal flower.”
Cecil, Sophie, and Shia gazed on in utter astonishment.
“Wait, then if the sea monster awakens again, this city will be destroyed!” Cecil cried.
“That’s exactly what’ll happen,” Princess Rapsonil confirmed, nodding solemnly. “House Prostia is here to prevent that from ever happening. The seal that Lady Aqua cast upon this crystal flower is also stronger than any used before it. Thus, for the past three hundred years, monsters have refused to so much as approach Patlanta. That is why the city has been able to prosper, its citizens able to enjoy the flourishing city that it is today. It’s all thanks to the seal on the crystal flower, and to Lord Macris, who dedicated everything he had to protect his beloved and the nation she lived in by allowing the seal to be cast. We wish to ensure that this important story will never be lost to time, and we use books like Tales of the Prostia Empire so that it may remain in the annals of history without ever being forgotten.”
“When my ancestors in the Crevelle royal family immigrated to the lands of the Galiatan Continent, we brought this story with us,” Princess Carmine added. “That allows land dwellers like you to read it and learn the history of our empire.”
Cecil and Sophie bobbed their heads with awe.
“There must be original records of the event such a famous book is based on,” Allen remarked through the Bird G that was still in Cecil’s arms.
Princess Carmine glanced at Princess Rapsonil, who nodded.
“Right. Within the palace treasury, there’s a place only the people of House Prostia are able to enter, and that’s where the original records of three hundred years ago are stored—the truth of that time. Members of the imperial family are required to read through it at least once, and the tale that I have told all of you is based on these original documents. And so, our house is required to host the Songstress Contest.”
“Does that contest have anything to do with House Prostia’s role?” Cecil asked. “I thought it was a way to honor Holy Fish Macris and provide him with some enjoyment.”
Princess Rapsonil slowly nodded in agreement. Sophie and Shia did the same, as though they understood the underlying meaning of the event.
“People who don’t know the purpose of the crystal flower may be inclined to agree with you,” Princess Rapsonil answered. “And of course, you aren’t wholly incorrect, but that is just the reasoning we tell the public. In truth, once a year, the crystal flower produces seeds, and during that time, the seal on it weakens.”
Crystal seeds could be used for more than just creating items. If planted, they warded off monsters. They protected cities and acted as a barrier to ensure that monsters would not approach. Thanks to these seeds, the Prostia Empire was allowed to flourish. Many other nations wished to become its provinces so that they could receive this protection as well, and as a result, the imperial family’s reach would expand further. Naturally, this was a plan concocted by the Goddess of Water in hopes that all merfolk would have the opportunity to prosper.
Aqua had made sure that the crystal flower could expel around ten thousand seeds each year, but it came at a cost to the flower. Creating the seeds put a burden on it, temporarily weakening it, which thereby weakened the seal.
“Which is why Lord Macris visits the city once a year...” Cecil murmured, finally understanding the reason for the contest.
“Exactly,” Princess Rapsonil said. “He watches over the seal, and if there are any signs that the sea monster might awaken from its slumber, he will fight against it so that the seal may be cast again. And so, Lord Macris visits us once a year. We use that opportunity to not only honor his work and express our gratitude toward him, but also so that we merfolk can unite and fight for the seal in hopes that it maintains as much power as it can. We host the Songstress Contest to provide whatever support we can.”
Cecil, Sophie, and Shia turned somber upon hearing the end of the story. Kinda brings the mood down, but we’ll meet Macris soon. As Allen sat quietly, he noticed a fuss coming from the first floor of the annex. Everyone turned toward the door that led to the floor below to see knights entering, their metallic armor clanking loudly.
“Your Highness, Emperor Ignomasu has arrived!” one of them announced.
Cecil and the rest watched nervously as the door burst open, and Ignomasu barged inside.
“Oh? Looks like you’re hitting it off with your new friends,” he remarked as he gazed at the imperial princess, who was sitting near Cecil and the other ladies. A look of satisfaction adorned his face as he slowly approached the group.
“It’s quite rude for you to invite yourself in without warning, Ignomasu,” Princess Rapsonil said sternly, raising her guard.
Sophie quietly gazed around at her friends when she noticed Cecil trying to stand in front of the princess. The elf could not hide her shock.
