Another story: Arthur's Arc #8 It is his job to matchmake the Protagonist with the Heroin

In a blink of an eye, one month had passed. Arthur had adapted to his new life, perfectly integrating himself into his role as Arthur Knight. Although his acting is not top-notch, no one can easily find fault in him.

He spent most of his time in the training ground inside the palace compound. First, it is easy for him to meet his target, and second, the Ranking Tournament is just around the corner. Despite feeling lazy and unenthusiastic about the competition, Arthur has no choice but to join.

To be the winner and claim the first seat is his first Hidden Mission that he needs to accomplish. Failure will result in punishment.

He once asked Q, what is the severity of the penalty? Will he die?

Q's vague answer gives him an ominous feeling.

"Oh, don't worry. Death is better than that." Q replied nonchalantly. "Try to fail if you want to experience it. I assure you, your butt will no longer feel the same as before."

Arthur's chrysanthemum clenched uncomfortably. Inside his mind, many inappropriate thoughts flash by.

"...why my butt?" He was curious when hearing Q's answer and couldn't help but ask.

Q laughed sinisterly but wouldn't divulge further despite Arthur's begging for more information.

Arthur: Whatever. I better do my best in the tournament, lest I suffer through something dangerous because of my carelessness.

As a consideration for him being a newbie in the competition, Q didn't issue any new task for him, not until he finished his Hidden Mission.

Even so, he needed to do his daily tasks to harvest points. He can use them to buy props from the System Market. The better his preparation, the higher the chance for him to win.

"I heard that you're going to join the Ranking Tournament." Danial rarely takes the initiative to start a chat, but today, the quiet boy finally uttered something out of his own will.

"Yes. This tournament is my last chance to enter Diamante Academy. I had failed twice in a row. If I fail again..." Arthur sighed. If the original failed twice, can someone like him win? It is hard to say.

"But big brother, you're the Grand General's eldest son. Even without winning the competition, you can still enter the academy justifiedly. You have enough qualifications. No one can deny your entry."

Arthur looked at the boy's face. The boy's skin is as ugly as before but becomes ruddier and has a layer of baby fat. His eyes are dull and pessimistic but retain some sliver of hope to continue his life, unlike before. Seeing his healthy complexion makes him feel good. Although he is not as healthy as others since his curse is still effective, he is no longer as thin as a stick.

Good job, me!

"...You're the Emperor's son, but you also never put a hope to enter the academy. Am I right?"

Hearing that makes Danial's face gloomier. He clenched and unclenched his fists, suppressing the suffocating feeling inside his heart.

Enter the academy? It is impossible. Even going to Snowflake Town, which is only fifteen minutes from the palace, is like a far-fetching dream to him. The Emperor wouldn't allow him to cross the border to go to Balzatine. Danial's life only revolved inside this gorgeous palace, like a frog in the well.

As long as his body bore the curse and the restriction on him was still active, he could never dream of leaving his birthed place, forever trapped inside here like a caged bird.

Not once or twice had he tried to leave the palace's perimeter, even risking his life by entering the Dark Forest, desperately searching for a way to escape, but he was doomed to fail in all his attempts. He almost died each time, all the wounds and injuries were life-threatening, but miraculously he survived. It seemed that death was a luxury for him since someone always saved him from the brink of death, unwilling to see him die.

{Q: Yes, that's our job! The protagonist is not allowed to die, so every time the grim reapers come to claim the protagonist's soul, the World's consciousness will ruthlessly kick them out.}

"Our situation is different." His black irises flashed a trace of pain and disappointment, but those disappeared as faster as they came. "I'm an abandoned son of the Emperor. His Majesty hated me and loathed my existence. Furthermore, I have a curse on my body. Forget about entering the academy; leaving this palace would be unthinkable without the Emperor's permission. But you have your family behind you. It shouldn't be difficult for you to qualify. Every year, there are three empty slots. There are many nobles in Grandia, but not many are influential and powerful as your family."

Arthur let out a dry chuckle.

"Yes, it shouldn't be hard for me to get the quota, yet I cannot enter and even needed to claim the first seat in the Ranking Tournament to consolidate my position. Why did this happen? Can't you guess?"

Danial blinked his eyes, still couldn't comprehend his words.

"...Unless someone intentionally hinders you..." He answered in an unsure tone.

"That's it." Arthur nodded his head.

"Are you serious? But who?"

"Who knows..." Arthur has his guess but doesn't want to tell the boy. It is not an important matter. He lifts his hand and lightly rubs Danial's head. He spends most of his time with Danial nowadays, and he long regarded the boy as his little brother. Moreover, the boy has a good temper and is not as annoying as the twin. He is like an angel compared to the mischievous Julien. "You shouldn't lose hope. Maybe, in the future, there might be someone out there who can erase your curse."

It is not a matter of 'maybe' but something that will soon happen. Only time will decide when it will happen.

Arthur knows the plot but not the detail. He knows Danial will be free from his curse but does not know when and how. And telling this information to Danial will not do anything good to him. Perhaps, Danial will doubt him instead.

"..." Danial said nothing. He will no longer put his hope into something like that. He would be satisfied if he had enough food and drink for the day, warm clothes on his body and a place to sleep, just like today. Being greedy will lead to nothing good. "...I wish you good luck, big brother."

"You're not going to watch my match?"

"...I will not," Danial replied in a reluctant tone. There's a trace of yearning within his voice, but he realizes his situation better than anyone else. "It's unsuitable for me to appear in a crowded place. I might spook someone with my appearance."

He subconsciously touched his face. His hand touched something wet and sticky. He didn't need to check it to know what it was. He took a tissue from his pocket and wiped his face and hand. Blood and yellowish liquid smeared the tissue, which he crumpled into a ball and threw into a bin.

The pimples on the face are still there, occasionally leaking pus and blood, but the numbers have significantly reduced. It is thanks to the healing potion given by Arthur.

Arthur disguised the potion as a simple healing ointment for Danial's wounds. Every tool inside the System Market is expensive, but its effectiveness is guaranteed. He reluctantly exchanged 3/4 of his points for that potion. It breaks his heart after seeing his points go from four digits to two, but he can still collect them again.

"Is there anyone that still dares to bully you?" Arthur is delighted to find no new bruises and wounds on Daniel's body. It looks like his previous farce scared those bullies.

"One or two people, it is mostly my siblings. Others wouldn't dare to do that. Besides, you appeared so timely, not giving any chance to those people to do something. " Danial said amusedly. "It makes me wonder whether you put a tracker on me, big brother."

Arthur always makes a timely appearance, effectively preventing the bullies from laying their hands on Danial. It does make people wonder whether Arthur put a tracker on the prince. It is because no matter how remote the hiding place is, Arthur can always find them.

And the way he makes his appearance is also somewhat baffling and comical, making people want to laugh and curse at once.

The speaker was unashamed of his action, but the listener wanted to vomit blood when hearing such cringe-worthy sentences! They couldn't help but wonder whether this young man had a pit in his brain!

Nonetheless, because of his effort, the number of people who tried to harm Danial decreased! He can do nothing about the princes and princesses, but he can scare off most nobles' sons and daughters with his family's background and reputation.

People started to doubt him, questioning his intention in approaching the prince, but seeing him protecting the boy like a mother hen guarding her chicks, they wisely retreated. It is unwise to offend the Grand General's family for someone like Danial.

"The palace may be big, but I have my way around this place. Who needs a tracker to find your whereabouts?" Arthur lied through his teeth, mixing the truth and false into his words.

Hmph! Who needs a tracker? He had Q!

+++

Arthur, who had finished today's daily missions, stepped into his awaiting carriage and happily went home.

Two big, sturdy horses galloped energetically, dagging the luxurious carriage behind them. The road is bumpy and uncomfortable, but the experienced carriage driver manages to make the return journey smooth and undisturbed.

Furthermore, inside the spacious carriage, the seat was covered with a comfy mattress and very comfortable to sit on. It makes Arthur, who is tired and lethargic, feeling drowsy. The teenager eventually falls asleep.

Ding!

{Tomorrow's Special Mission.

Promote a chance encounter between the protagonist and the heroin and reconnect their mate bond-200 points. You have a day to accomplish this mission. Failing to do this task will lead to severe punishment.

The mission will start at 00:00. Good luck.}

The notification jolted him awake. He was befuddled and couldn't control his reaction. Unable to control his action, his forehead accidentally bumped into the carriage's window, startling his two younger brothers, Julien and Sean.

"Big brother, what's wrong with you?!" They asked in unison, one person seemed worried and concerned, but another sneered at him.

Julien's face clearly expressed his disdain toward him.

Arthur coughed, his cheeks flushed red. Despite that, he tried his best to hide his embarrassment and maintained his aloof posture.

"Uh...I fell asleep. Don't mind me."

The twin looked at each other and then looked at him. There's one expression on their face, 'This big brother of theirs is becoming weirder and weirder.'

"Tsk, I thought you got attacked by an assassin or something." Julien scoffed.

"Why would someone send an assassin to attack me...?" Arthur mumbled while rubbing the bump on his forehead. It's so painful! Damn that Q!

Julien ignored him and resumed his task of cleaning his beloved sword while Sean continued his reading. Between these two, Sean is more rational, and Arthur likes to deal with Sean more than the annoying Julien. But their aggressiveness while fighting is on par, and Sean is more ruthless and black-hearted than his twin.

It's better to provoke the hot-headed Julien, which is very straightforward in his attack, than deal with the cunning, black-bellied Sean.

[Q!]

{Yes?}

[You promised me you would not issue any new mission while I tried to finish the hidden task!]

{I do?} Q asked him back, seemingly bewildered by his question, as if it was the first time him hearing such a promise.

[Yes!]

{Alas, I can do nothing about it since the one issuing the missions is the higher-up, not me.} Q casually tossed the blame to his employer.

[You liar!] Arthur wanted to strangle this guy, but Q only existed inside his mind and didn't have a physical body. So, he can only cuss Q inside his heart. [A cheater! Bastard!]

{Whatever.} Q's dismissal tone tells Arthur that Q doesn't take his anger into his heart. {The new task is not difficult. You can do it, Arthur. I believe in you.}

[Believe me, my bullshit!]

{You can also do nothing and receive the punishment. It's been a while since I saw a host getting their penalty.} Q smirked.

[I'm not crazy. Who will be the idiot whose willing to accept such dangerous punishment?! It's definitely not me! Besides, aren't you treating me like the protagonist's nanny?! Why should I care about his love life?!]

{Of course, you should care! We need someone to open the way for the protagonist to meet his fated one. How can they fall in love with each other if they never have any chance encounter? Can you fall in love with a stranger? No, Right?}

[...I cannot say anything to refute that.]

[So, who's the heroin? Do I know her?]

{You know her.} Q said in a mysterious voice.

[Who?] Arthur couldn't hold back his curiosity.

{Who else? There's only one person suitable. It is...} Q purposely dragging his voice to create suspense. {...your beloved younger sister, Seiran Knight!}

"What?!" Arthur couldn't control himself and shouted, startling everyone again.

Julien: "...." Looking at his sword that almost pierced his thigh with trepidation. He turned his head and glared at Arthur with resentment.

He will never admit that he gets spooked out by his eldest brother's shouting and almost stabbed himself because him being chicken-hearted for a moment.

"Big brother, you're becoming strange nowadays. Are you okay?" Sean looked at Arthur in concern. "I think you need to visit the Royal Healer."

"No, no, no. I'm alright." Arthur immediately refused. Damn that Q! Making me lose my face in front of my brothers again and again!

Q: What making this his fault?