The Strongest Dull Prince’s Secret Battle for the Throne

Chapter 189: Mouth is the source of Disaster

Mumu!?

Around the time that the festival will be over for the day.

Orihime suddenly raised her head.

Her voice was clearly different than usual.

Over there huh.

Saying so, Orihime accelerated all at once and ran through the crowd.

She was not that fast but it was a speed that I am unable to catch up with.

Your Highness.

Dont worry about me. Go after her.

I gave the order to the imperial knight, Marc,  who was stationed nearby.

(TLN: Hes Elnas second in command. Remember him from when he served under Al in Albatro?)

Immediately after that, the nearby imperial knights started moving.

My protection is now weaker but Elna is observing us from a distance so she probably already assessed the situation and remains as my escort.

And even though we are far away from each other, this distance is well within Elnas range. No matter what comes at me, she should be able to intercept it.

Thinking so, I jog after Orihime.

You brat! Dont get in my way!

When I caught up with Orihime, I found a crowd of people there.

At the center of the crowd are Orihime, the woman who showed her godly bow skill at the stall and a collapsed old lady. Opposite them are two thugs. Both of them are quite big.

They are standing in front of a stall but the foodstuffs that should be displayed on the stall are scattered around on the floor

I could easily see that something was going on.

Thats my line here! Apologize to this Obaa-san immediately!

Like hell I would apologize to that old hag! You cant open a stall here without permission! Its the old hags fault for opening the stall here!

I havent heard about such a thing before! And this Obaa-san has already obtained the permission(desuwa)!

She didnt get the permission from us!

I see.

So these thugs are trying to extort the old lady huh.

This is our territory so pay up if you want to open a stall, or something like that I guess.

They are looking down on us quite a bit here huh.

Normally, they would be immediately arrested.

The festivals security is carried out by the imperial capital garrison and the city guards are in charge of cracking down on these people.

The former is an organization under Leos jurisdiction and the latter is a unit under the jurisdiction of the Minister of Justice.

However, it seems that even with their combined strength, they are not enough to cover everything in the festival huh.

Glancing at Marc, I can see that the imperial knights on our security details are ready to act.

They are probably waiting for my decision.

It would be easy to arrest them here but these guys are just small fries. There must be someone behind them since they are confident enough to act so boldly in the public.

It wouldnt be a bad idea to look into that.

Thinking so, I make my way through the crowd and stand between Orihime and the thugs.

Excuse me. Id like to apologize on my ladys behalf.

Ahn? Who the hell are you?

I am a servant of this lady. My deepest apologies. My lady doesnt have common knowledge for this kind of situation.

Servant! What are you trying to do!

Please keep quiet for a while, Ojou-sama.

Turning back, I looked at Orihime who narrowed her eyes at me.

Dont say anything unnecessary okay? That was what it meant. Understanding that, Orihime hid herself behind the godly skilled woman while her body was trembling.

I truly apologize for my ladys action. Would you gentlemen be kind enough to forgive her with this?

Saying so, I showed them a bag of gold coins and took one of the coins out to give it to the thugs.

Looking at a large number of gold coins in front of them, the thugs eyes began to shine.

Then, the thugs look at each other in the eye and grin.

I guess they are planning to extort more money from me huh.

Oh! We cant just let your Ojou-sama off the hook with just that much! It was that old hag who broke our rule so you guys who are backing her up are guilty too alright?

Yes, thats why I am apologizing.

If you are really feeling sorry then show us more sincerity!

Saying so, the thugs demand more money.

Seriously, their ego sure got inflated by the festival huh.

Its convenient for me though.

Then how about this much?

Saying so, I took out a few more gold coins.

However, the thugs are not satisfied with it.

Hah! So thats how much your sincerity amounts to huh? Oi, listen well! We are being backed by Baron Gamlhi alright! If you dont want that person to squeeze you dry then hand us that whole bag!

Baron Gamlhi huh.

If I remember correctly, hes one of Gieds entourage.

Well, those guys probably have connections with guys like this so its no surprise huh.

Handing you the entire bag is a little..can we settle this if I add a few more coins?

I try showing them a weak attitude.

The matter could be settled by arresting these guys and interrogating them about their connection to Baron Gamlhi but I would be troubled if my reputation rose in the process.

It would also be troublesome for me if the imperial knights think that I was tricking them for the name of their backer if I have them arrest him. That will still cause my reputation to rise after all.

Without causing a scene, I have to make them think that I am a person who tries to solve everything with money. The best outcome here is to have the city guards arrest them. Thats why I have been buying time for them to arrive.

With such a plan in mind, I continue to extract information out of these guys for a while.

The faces of the onlookers around us are starting to get pale.

They are probably taking this as a servant trying to get rid of the thugs that bother his master huh.

While thinking that it should be about time, the thugs patient has reached its limit.

Whatever, just hand it over already!

Saying so, the thugs reach out to grab me.

Ahhn, they cant wait until the city guards arrive huh.

While thinking so, I look at the hand of the approaching thug.

However, that hand never touched me.

Wh, at?

The reason is that the undercover imperial knights all point their sword at the thug in an instant.

Surrounded by the imperial knights on four sides, the thugs stood still without moving.

Forgive me, Your Highness. Any more than that and the Captain would have moved.

Its fine. Thats your job after all. But still, I will have to report this to Father huh.such a hassle.

While I half-acting and half-serious said so, I remove the hood.

At that moment, the thugs gave me a dubious look.

They probably dont recognize my face huh.

Im Arnold Lakes Adler, Seventh Prince of the Empire. Would it be easier for you to recognize me if I say the Dull Prince? Surrounding you guys are the imperial knights. You may try to resist but it would be useless you know.

A, a prince!? Why is someone like that here!?

Well, it was due to Ojou-samas wish, you see.

Saying so, I turned to Orihime and lowered my head.

Please forgive the rudeness of my people, Your Grace.

Hearing that, the people around me jumped.

After all, there is only one person who would be addressed with Your Grace here.

Its fine. I apologize for causing trouble for you as well.

Saying so, Orihime removed her hood.

At that moment, the people around me all kneel down on the spot.

This is the effect of the Dull Prince huh. They didnt kneel since they already knew me. Well, some might actually kneel for me but most would just lower their heads though.

But the moment they find out Orihimes identity, this is the result.

Seeing that the people are properly looking down on me, I make a bitter smile.

Prince Arnold. What will you do with those people?

I will hand them to the city guards, Your Grace.

Then, before that, can I have them apologize to this Obaa-san?

Orihime states her wish.

In response, I nodded and glanced at the thugs.

What do you want? Want to apologize?

W, W, We will apologize! Please allow us to apologize!

I see.

When I gave Marc a signal with my eyes, the imperial knights made the thugs kneel in front of the old lady.

Seeing that, Orihime tells them.

Dont do it again. If you try to exploit the weak, it will eventually come back to you. Live a proper life from now on.

Y, Yes! Thank you very much! Celestial Princess-sama!

The thugs repeatedly bowed to Orihime.

After all, if they displease Orihime, their heads wont be on their shoulders anymore. In other words, they are glad that they can at least keep their lives.

While that was happening, the city guards arrived.

They probably saw all the fuss around here. Theres a large crowd around us after all.

I will let you handle it from here. Marc.

Yes, sir. Please leave this to me.

I left Marc to hand them over to the city guard and explain the situation to them since it is troublesome. Thus, I decided to take Orihime back to the castle.

See you again! Kind lady, Obaa-san!

Thank you very much! Thank you very much!

The old lady lowers her head while repeatedly offering her gratitude while the godly skilled woman also bows her head accordingly.

However, for a moment, my line of sight intersected with that of the godly skilled woman.

At that time, the woman opened her mouth.

Your Highnesswhat are you planning to do with the people behind them?

.

My plan was to reveal Orihimes identity so that I can get the spotlight away from myself but..

She is looking at me with quite an intensity.

It seems like she is not some random person that happens to be skilled with bow handling huh.

My younger brother will give them the appropriate response.

Y, your brother?

Yeah, I wont do anything. That is my brothers job after all. Well, see you again.

Saying so, I left the place together with Orihime.

After all, since it has already become quite an uproar, we cant continue this incognito outing anymore.

Night.

In the end, after returning to the castle, I have to report the matter to Father so I took the chance and relayed the information Sebas discovered to him.

That being said, the information we have on hand is only fragmentary.

It was only speculation at best so Father and Franz are making a troubled expression.

In the end, the talk concluded that I will tell them more once Sebas discovers more information.

That meant this matter will be entrusted to me for the time being.

The back alley at night is quite ominous huh.

It is also perfect for a secret talk, sir.

When I was having such a conversation, I felt a presence from behind me.

I turned around slowly and found a woman in a vermillion colored mask standing there.

She has a bow in her hand.

So this is the chivalrous thief of the Dominion, Vermillion huh.

While I was thinking so, the moment she saw my face, she panicky muttered.

Pr, Prince Arnold.!?

Hou. So you know about me huh. As expected of the famous chivalrous thief of the Dominion. Perhaps I was one of your targets?

Th, that is not the case(desuwa)!

.desuwa?

(TLN:)

I paused at her way of speaking.

After all, I just met a woman who ended her sentence in the same way at the festival.

I dont think that many people would end their sentences like that. No matter how I think about it, the only person who would talk like that and know me is

..are you the godly skill woman I met at the stall earlier today?

Th, thats not me(suwa)! I dont even use a bow(desuwa)!

I see. So you dont use a bow huh.

Aah..Ive done it now(desuwa)

Ive never said anything about a bow.

Immediately realized that she just dug her own grave, Vermillion dejectedly dropped her shoulders.

TLN: A small cliff? is this enough cliffiness for the week?