4. Find someone in need
The next day, Arthur left his mansion and wandered around the castle. After yesterday’s events, he realized that helping people in trouble would make them happy, so he came to the busy castle.
Naturally, the people who worked here all knew Arthur. Unfortunately, his reputation in the castle was far from good. While he didn’t usually do unreasonable things, his exceptional healing abilities led to him being treated as someone special. If he was offended, the surrounding nobles would make unnecessary efforts to manage the situation, which would inevitably lead to trouble.
In other words, to the servants, he was treated like a hot potato. So, when he asked them, "Is there anything troubling you?" everyone simply responded with a confused "Nothing, Your Highness."
"Hmm, what should I do...?" Arthur muttered to himself as he walked through the castle, unaware of their desire to avoid interaction. He took their words at face value.
It was then that he overheard shouting.
"You, a commoner, dare to claim you've been healed!? Did you perhaps use your body to tempt him?!"
"Th-that's not true! I would never do such a thing! And... I don't think that person would ever want something like that!"
"What do you know about Prince Arthur!?"
The voice of someone being yelled at caught his attention. When he peeked around the corner, he saw a young maid in a maid outfit and a nobleman wearing expensive clothes. No, it wasn’t a conversation. The nobleman was yelling at the maid.
—Hahaha, this is the perfect chance to do a good deed!
Arthur, eager to help for his own safety, eagerly went over to intervene.
"Damn that naive fool... using his healing power on a worthless commoner woman... She must be a prostitute’s daughter... No, wait. If I drown her in indulgence, I can easily control her..."
The man muttered to himself, unaware that Arthur was approaching. He then smirked lecherously. Arthur recognized this man well.
This man was none other than the corrupt nobleman, Goyoku, who had appeared in the conversation about Marianne. He was one of the sycophants surrounding Arthur and had frequently asked Arthur to heal people for him.
Well, once the revolution broke out and defeat became inevitable, this man abandoned Arthur and fled overseas. Later, it was discovered by Arthur’s former fiancée, who investigated the situation, that this man had been embezzling Arthur's money. He was a vile and greedy individual.
Seeing this man acting so arrogantly, Arthur felt a wave of irritation.
As he remembered things from his previous life, a desire to confront him rose. It was then that he realized the maid being harassed was the same one who had spilled tea on him just a few days ago, and he quickened his pace.
"Hey, maid!! Use your body to seduce Prince Arthur. If you do that, I’ll make sure you get a special salary. It’s not a bad deal, is it?"
"I-I didn’t become a maid to do such things!!"
"Hmph, do you think a lowly commoner like you can defy me? It’s not just you. I can take away your family’s livelihood, too."
"Th-that’s..."
Though the distance was too far to hear much, Arthur could only make out his name, but upon seeing the troubled expression on the maid's face, a strong desire to help her surged within him.
This was because she was one of the few people who had spoken kindly to Arthur when he was captured in his previous life.
Arthur may be naïve, but he was not ungrateful.
"What do you have to do with her?"
"Wh-What!? Prince Arthur?!"
"Your Highness...!!"
Arthur’s sudden appearance made Goyoku tense up. It was only natural. After all, rumors had it that nobles had been demoted simply for offending Arthur, whose mood was not to be trifled with.
On the other hand, the maid seemed more at ease, likely recalling how kindly Arthur had treated her when he healed her just recently. Arthur couldn’t help but feel pleased by this.
"I was just reprimanding this maid for causing trouble. Maids serving the royal family, even if they are commoners, cannot afford to make careless mistakes. Isn’t that right?"
Perhaps there was something he didn’t want to be asked about. Goyoku stared at the maid with sharp eyes before opening his mouth. The "mistake" he was referring to was probably the tea she had spilled.
"If it’s about that, I’m the one at fault. I’m sorry. So, could you calm your anger now?"
Arthur bowed his head to prove that the maid was not at fault, causing Goyoku to gasp.
"What... Prince Arthur is apologizing...? The man who treated servants like air, as if they were nothing... is apologizing...?"
It was no surprise that Goyoku was shocked. As the maid had said, Arthur had always treated them as if they weren’t even human, as if they were invisible. Though he didn’t resort to unreasonable violence, he was selfish, indifferent to their needs, and never mediated disputes like this. It was unthinkable that he would ever bow his head for a maid.
This treatment led to Arthur's servants feeling distant from him, some even expressing a sad dissatisfaction, occasionally complaining about how much they disliked working for the royal family.
That was the public perception of Arthur. In short, he was an obnoxious, naive brat. So, Goyoku was utterly stunned by the fact that Arthur was apologizing.
"Please, Your Highness, raise your head. As expected of you, Your Highness, to be so kind to a mere maid... Truly, you are fit to be a king. If you say so, I have nothing further to say. Maid, forget what was said earlier. Don’t repeat it."
Goyoku exaggerated his reaction, expressing false admiration with thinly veiled praise for Arthur before attempting to leave. His actions made it seem as though he truly respected Arthur.
In Arthur's previous life, he had been deceived by such flattery, but now he saw through Goyoku's true nature.
In fact, Goyoku was hastily trying to leave the scene. Arthur was sure there was something shady about his behavior, and he grabbed Goyoku's shoulder with a sly smile.
"Perfect timing... I’ve been getting some lectures from Morgan lately. He says that as a prince, I should do some work. Could you bring me the ledgers of my finances? From now on, I’ll handle the calculations myself."
"Wha...?"
At that one word, Goyoku’s eyes widened, and his face turned pale. Seeing this, Arthur grinned.
—Hahaha, just as I thought. This bastard had already started dipping into my finances!
Arthur was no saint. He wouldn’t be kind to someone who abandoned him, and in fact, he found a certain satisfaction in watching people like Goyoku squirm.
"Your Highness... You should ignore the words of that little Morgan girl. If you leave everything to me..."
"Are you telling me to let Morgan continue to mock me?"
"...Understood. I’ll prepare everything immediately."
When Arthur glared at him, Goyoku gave up on convincing him and quickly ran off. Arthur knew that, because he had been pampered growing up, once he made up his mind, he would never change it.
And so, Arthur and the maid were left alone.
"Thank you, Your Highness," the maid said.
"Ah, don't mention it. I'm just glad I could help you," Arthur replied with a smile.
However, the maid furrowed her brow. What had happened to him? The answer came to her soon enough.
"But, you healed me the other day as well, and now you've helped me again. Why... why are you helping me?"
When she asked this question, with some hesitation, it was a perfectly natural one. Arthur gave a self-deprecating laugh.
— Ah, now that I think about it, I asked her the same thing once.
As he remembered that, a sense of nostalgia mixed with guilt washed over him. Because, back then, he hadn't known anything about her. He hadn't even tried to understand her.
"Why...? I’m the one who should be asking that. Why did you... someone who had been serving me all this time, someone whose name I couldn’t even remember, go so far as to save me?"
"Save you...?"
It was no surprise that she looked at him with a puzzled expression. And, for Arthur, it was truly a mystery. Why had she, someone who had served him for so many years, continued to care for him even after he had fallen so low, despite not even remembering her name?
Then, he remembered. Her dedication…
0 Comments