Chapter 23: 22

Chapter 22: The Crown Prince's Intentions (Ethan POV)

　Garrett, who escorted Rebecca, came back afterwards. He must have come in quite a hurry. He seemed a little out of breath.

　I only ever speak informally in front of a few people in my immediate circle and family. Even then, I basically use the formal, "I,". Earlier, I used a casual"I" with Rebecca, whom I met for the first time. Garrett wondered about that.

　I feel bad for Garrett, who just got a beautiful fiancée, but I won't give Rebecca to anyone. Instead, I must …
　I was willing to give up anything to have her.

　In order for me to be with Rebecca, besides breaking off the engagement between me and Princess Aaliyah and Garrett and Rebecca, respectively, there is another, separate issue.
　That is the intention of Rebecca's father, Marquis Howard.

　In the first place, Marquis Howard does not want his daughter to be the Crown Princess. Perhaps it is because of the ridiculous mistress system, but no matter how much I swear that I will never cheat on my wife or have a mistress, there is no way to prove it now. It is best to assume that normal persuasion would be difficult.

　Of course, it is possible to use the authority power of royalty to wrestle Marquis Howard and take Rebecca away from him.
　However, she would surely be saddened if I were to trample on her family. I wanted to avoid that.

　There was a better solution than such forceful action.
　The Marquis Howard would no longer have any reason to oppose our marriage in the first place. It would also save Rebecca a lot of unnecessary heartache.

“Garrett, will you take the throne?”

“Brother! What are you talking about? Are you kidding me?”

　I explain to Garrett, who is standing there with a blank stare.

“I have fallen in love with Rebecca at first sight.
　I will break off my engagement to Princess Aliyah within four years, and upon the dissolution of our engagement, you can succeed the throne. At the same time, I will renounce my right of succession and become a vassal to tell Rebecca how I feel about her.
　She is the only one who can be my wife. Even if I have to take her from you, I cannot give her up. You must take over the throne."

　The way to serve one's country and people is not limited to rising as king.
　There are many ways to serve the country and the people, including supporting my younger brother as a vassal, and doing so in the shadows or in the light.
　Even if I were to give up my title and become a commoner, if I could work to help people live in peace, whether it be peddling or defeating demons, that would be enough to serve the country.

　One of the reasons why I had not missed any physical and mental training since I was a child was because I was prepared to go on a journey to look for her sooner or later.
　Of course, my status as crown prince would not allow me to do such a thing. Therefore, with Garrett in mind, I have been imparting to him a part of the education of a crown prince by watching over his studies and by giving him sword training.
　Garrett is now 14 years old. He may be a bit of a spoiled brat, but depending on his education from now on, he will become a gentle and good king.

“Brother! What are you talking about? I am not fit to be king!
　And who else but you can rule this country! I am far from capable of that …!"

“No, I'm sure you'll make a good king. If I could have her, I would gladly decline the succession to the throne.”

　I ruffle my brother's hair as if to soothe a whining child.

“I can' t do it! I know you will scold me, brother, but aside from becoming Rebecca's own husband, becoming King is too much of a burden to bear …!
　In the first place, how can falling in love at first sight with Rebecca lead to you renouncing your claim to the throne!"

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　Garrett scratched his hair, which I had ruffled even more.

“Marquis Howard allowed you to marry Rebecca because you are not the crown prince.
　You know how hard Father and Mother had to work to get you betrothed to Rebecca, don't you? No matter how royal you are, you don't want to make enemies with that shadowy powerhouse of the court.
　It's not that I can't forcefully take Rebecca away from you, but if we were to tie the knot, Marquis Howard would be my father-in-law. I will feel sorry for Rebecca her father and husband don't get along."

　Garrett shuddered as I said this with a pure heart.

“So, so if you're not the crown prince, all is well--- how much of a stickler are you for Rebecca!

　I want to fully understand your true intentions…!
　Originally our engagement was a political one, not a romantic one. She is, how shall I say, a woman I can't handle… No, she is a woman who I can’t surpass, and I will gladly cooperate with my brother's love for her!
　So please, please reconsider!"

　Garrett was on the verge of tears as he desperately fought back. He told me how I had all the qualities of a king, how I was respected by the nobility, worshipped by the army, and loved by the people.
　I, on the other hand, couldn't help but laugh at my brother's panicky attitude, as if his life depended on it.


　In fact, the topic at hand was a disturbing one that could be life-threatening in some cases.
　If the younger brother were to accept such a topic in a situation involving the question of succession, he might be accused of having ulterior motives for usurping the throne and risk being purged. The only possible answer here is "no." This is a very complicated topic.

　This would be the case if we were not close or if we were ordinary brothers, but fortunately, we are very close and there is no such grievance between us. I was seriously planning to renounce my right to the throne, and Garrett also really wants me to succeed the throne.

　He was saying things like, "I can comfortably be a prince because I'm the younger brother," and "I absolutely hate being a king," and even "I'll curse you if I go bald from exhaustion," all in a desperate attempts to persuade me.

“You're revealing your true feelings.
　I'm willing to make sacrifices to make Rebecca my wife.
But I feel bad for you, Garrett. So, I thought the throne would be the price for giving up Rebecca…”

“That's an unnecessary concern, brother!
　As I said before, Rebecca is a woman who is too much for me. Rather, you can think of it as helping me, and woo Rebecca. If you want help to make Rebecca the crown princess, I'll do whatever it takes."

"I see…
　I would like to ask you to do one thing for me. I know it's shameless of me, but could you please hold on to her until I break off my engagement with Princess Aaliyah? She's such an accomplished woman, if we let her go, other men will swarm her in no time.”

“Yes, I will do my utmost to play the role of a first-time fiancée. So if you're going to make up your mind, I'd like you to make Rebecca stand next to you as queen!”

　I was very grateful that he said so, but just in case. Seeing Garrett in a panic, I thought to myself, "I will advise Father to give my brother a full-fledged education as a crown prince.”


　Garrett took my insistence that I was not going to declare my love for Rebecca until I ended my current engagement very seriously.
　He thought that the reason why I didn't say anything was to prevent her from being called a lover or something dishonorable, and to avoid exposing her to vulgar speculation.
　I would never let anyone around me, including Rebecca, know about our fake engagement! I even felt the spirit of a boy taking on a big role.

　Despite his enthusiasm, Garrett seemed to be terribly perplexed by the troublesome situation of having to stand next to his future sister-in-law as her fiancée.
　He was not quite sure how to deal with her and became quite a stranger, but Rebecca did not seem to mind much either, and they smoothly established a relationship as a couple before their political marriage.

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