The Princess and Her Horse – Part 04

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Translator: Kell | Editor: Ryunakama


An ear-shattering roar echoed, and blinding light rushed towards us, turning my vision white. The impact was so immense I thought the earth would crack. Unable to stay on my feet, I crouched down.

Several seconds later, the sound dissipated and the shaking stopped. I opened my eyes slowly. Quickly, I surveyed the surroundings, but nothing was destroyed and no one seemed to be injured. Raul and the princess were stunned.

“Hey, look!” someone in the crowd shouted, pointing behind us.

I turned around and my jaw dropped. The ruins standing behind us had all been blown to bits, leaving only a vacant lot. Not even a trace of rubble existed, just bare soil. There were no rocks or tree roots in the way. A little plowing could turn it into a nice plantation.

“Oh, so it’s Magic for farming,” I muttered in realization.

“Yes,” Zero said. “That is why it is called the Chapter of Harvest.” Her tone was playful.

I turned around to find Zero standing right behind us, gazing at the field with satisfaction.

“Come on,” I said. “I thought for sure you were gonna blow me up as well.”

“I do not kill people with Magic,” Zero replied. “I said I would show you how to use it.”

“How was I supposed to know how you use it?! I haven’t read the Grimoire of Zero!”

“Oh, you are right.”

Coming back to her senses, the princess rose to her feet. “I can’t believe it… The whole square’s turned into a field!”

The blast had disheveled her hair, and there was a crack on her monocle. Seeing the arrogant princess flustered felt quite good. I’m a jerk? I’m well aware of that, and there’s no fixing it.

“This is the power of Kudra? Then what was the Kudra I’ve been using all this time?! And why didn’t my Magic cast properly?!” Trembling, the princess glowered at Zero. “Why didn’t Steim work on you? How can you even use Magic?!”

“How?” Zero cocked her head. “Because I am the one who invented Magic.”

“Wh-Whaaat?!” Her voice, devoid of any dignity, was unbecoming of a princess.

I couldn’t blame her. If some random woman who appeared out of nowhere declared she invented Magic, I would assume they were crazy.

Ignoring the princess’ reaction, Zero turned to her, puffing her chest out arrogantly. “I am a witch of the Murky Darkness. I find meaning in meaninglessness and create something out of nothing. I am the one who created the Magic contained in the Grimoire of Zero.”

The princess stared at Zero, mouth agape. She then glanced at the Magic Corps who stood no chance against the witch, and turned her gaze back at the perfect field created by Zero’s Magic.

I guess everything that’s happened is proof enough.

At the very least, the princess understood that Zero was several times more powerful than them. As if that was more than enough for an explanation, Zero turned to me.

“Lower your head a little,” she said. “I will remove that collar. It is a sign of ownership, yes? You are my mercenary, yet you are wearing this. Does it not make me look pitiful?”

“Not me?”

Zero reached around my neck and snapped her fingers once. The collar, solid and designed for fierce animals, broke easily and fell to the ground. I could finally breathe easily.

Rubbing my neck, I heaved a deep sigh. “Thanks. That thing was suffocating.”

“It was nothing.”

There was no point in staying chained any longer. I ripped the chains around my arms and legs.

Nodding in satisfaction, Zero turned to the princess. “I am taking back my mercenary,” she said, flashing a smile.

The princess’s expression hardened, but she could not say no.


Sitting down, leaning against the monument, I watched farmers hoeing and sowing seeds on the field that just appeared out of nowhere in front of the castle, wearing a look of both astonishment and admiration.

“We’ve got a field here, so why not use it?” the princess said.

Her bewilderment only lasted a moment. The way she quickly pulled herself together and brought the situation under control almost made her look masculine. As soon as she realized there was a field ready for cultivation in the square, she ordered men to bring the farmers whose fields were destroyed recently. She was not your ordinary lady.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Raul said as he lay down beside me on all fours.

Zero threw herself on the Beastfallen. “It is my first time riding a horse,” she said.

“I don’t really mind waiting,” I said. “We’re partly to blame for this. So what is up with that woman?”

“You mean the princess? Ah, isn’t she beautiful?”

“I’m not asking about her looks.”

“Let’s see. She’s a kind person?”

“I’m not asking about her personality either!”

Raul laughed softly, like a nice, young lad. I hate to say it, but I couldn’t imitate his laughter.

“The princess is really a kind person. She’s easily misunderstood, though.”

I lifted my arms, showing Raul the dangling chains.

“Did she not tell you that it was to not scare the people?” he asked.

“So you heard our conversation.”

“There was just no other reason I could think of.”

“For someone who’s treated like an animal, you sure understand her well.”

“She treats me like an animal to protect me.”

“What?”

Raul’s smile faded a little. “I killed a person once,” he said.

“Pretty sure any Beastfallen has killed at least a few people. If anything, it’s surprising how you’ve only killed one.”

“I suppose… I heard that is how it is on the mainland. In my case, I killed my own mother.” Casting his eyes down, Raul spread out his arms to show me his huge body. “There is no way a normal person can safely give birth to this body. My mother died while she was pregnant of me. My father, wanting to at least save his child, ripped my mother’s belly open. Then he found me inside. I still remember the look of fear on my father’s face back then.”

Strangely enough, he was already aware of things even before he was born. He remembered the voice of his mother as she spoke softly to him every day while he was still in her belly, and that he was the one who killed her. His own father called him a monster. In the end, Raul ran away soon after he was born.

Raul knew he was responsible for his mother’s death. He understood why his father would want to kill him. So he ran, hid, and survived alone in the forest, eating fruits and grass while avoiding people. However, when he injured his leg and couldn’t move, a royal company in the middle of a hunt found him. He was about to be killed on the spot, when the princess, who happened to be in the company, saved him.

“The princess knew I would be killed if she didn’t want me. And if a princess of a kingdom claimed I was hers, no one would kill me.”

This all happened ten years ago. The princess had just celebrated her eighth birthday at the time. When she said she wanted the horse, crying and whining, her doting father couldn’t say no.

“Hmm…” Zero mused. A moment ago she was lying on Raul’s back, staring at the sky with sleepy eyes, but now she was sitting, looking at me. “I see. So that is why she claimed my mercenary as her property. I can forgive her for that, I suppose.”

“Well, I won’t!” I exclaimed. “At least, not until she returns Theo’s knife.”

“Whether you forgive me or not, I don’t care.”

As I heard sounds of footsteps and the princess’s indifferent voice, I raised my head. Raul stood up quickly, and I caught Zero as she fell off his back.

“Princess,” Raul said. “How is Lord Gouda?”

Zero’s eyes were asking who Gouda was, so I told her he was the princess’s bodyguard.

“I see,” she mused. “Her bodyguard.” She had no intention of learning his name at all.

Nodding at Raul, the princess pressed her head. “He’s testing the survivors, as planned. I thought he should get some rest, but he insisted he only had scratches.”

“You need to get some rest too, Princess. You exhausted a lot of energy with your Magic earlier.”

“I know that. But there is something I need to do first.”

“Yes. I wanted to ask about that,” Zero said, slipping out of my arms. “Why is Magic so prevalent on this island? No.” She changed the question. “I will be direct. Where is the Grimoire of Zero?”

The princess’s reddish brown eyes narrowed. After a moment’s silence, the princess sighed. “What if I told you I don’t know what you’re talking about?”

“I will find it and take it. After that, I will take Magic away from every single human on this island. That is my intention.”

“Do you really think I’ll let you do whatever you want in my kingdom?”

“Allow me to borrow your words. Whether you allow me or not, I do not care.”

Good, good. Give it to her, you genius witch, you.

“You have seen my power,” Zero contiuned. “Your Magic does not work on me. I am making the demands. How you respond to them is up to you, but your actions will determine our actions. You are free to choose, whether or not to make an enemy of me.” She looked haughty and proud as she talked.

Two arrogant women were glaring at each other. After a moment of silence, the princess sighed. Her lips were trembling upon closer inspection, like she was stifling her laughter.

What’s wrong with her? Then suddenly she burst into laughter, frowning a little in pain. I couldn’t believe that such a cruel princess could laugh like an actual girl of her age.

“I-Is there something funny?” Zero asked. “Mercenary, why is this woman laughing? Did my masterful way of speaking break her mind?”

“No,” the princess said, still laughing. “That is not it. I apologize. It’s just… I’m delighted to find out you were just as I imagined you would be.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“When I was reading the Grimoire of Zero, I imagined what kind of sorcerer wrote it. I thought they must be intelligent, innocent, and ruthless. I wanted to meet them one day.”

Wiping tears from the corners of her eyes with slender fingers, the princess knelt on the ground and pressed her forehead against the back of Zero’s hand.

“No fuckin’ way!” I exclaimed. The bossy and stuck-up princess kneeling before someone?

“It’s obvious that making you an enemy is not wise,” the princess said. “Welcome to my kingdom, Lady Zero. I am Amnil, the first heir to the throne. On behalf of the King of Nordis, its citizens, and the whole kingdom, I welcome you.”


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