CHAPTER 11

Prove Your Worth (1)

"Your Highness, His Majesty the Emperor has summoned you."

The unexpected message arrived in the early morning. Just as I was about to start my day with a self-diagnosis, Sir Gardin delivered the news.

"Hm? Why?"

"Well, uh…."

Sir Gardin hesitated before speaking.

"It seems that Your Highness's peculiar actions have reached His Majesty's ears."

"My peculiar actions?"

If he meant what I thought he did…

"Yes, I believe you're thinking of the right thing."

"…You weren't the one who informed him, were you?"

"Of course not."

Sir Gardin shook his head hastily.

"But the imperial palace has many eyes and ears. Someone must have spoken of Your Highness's… rather unusual behavior—such as inserting needles into your own body or brewing and consuming medicinal herbs yourself."

"Tsk."

Lachiel clicked his tongue.

Peculiar actions, they said.

'But… I doubt that's the only reason he's calling me.'

I had a feeling.

Something more was at play.

This wasn't just about seeing my face or expressing concern over some strange habits. The emperor wouldn't summon me all the way to the imperial palace for that.

'I'll find out when I get there.'

Suddenly, I recalled the early events and settings of the novel The Magic Sword Emperor. I also remembered how the emperor was portrayed in the beginning.

'He was a strict man, like a lion—harsh on himself and those around him.'

That included his own sons.

He constantly tested them, especially his eldest son and heir, the Crown Prince.

To see if he was worthy of inheriting the throne.

To determine whether he deserved the power that came with it.

The emperor repeatedly judged, evaluated, and tested him—like a lion throwing its cub off a cliff to see if it would climb back up.

And the original Crown Prince Lachiel?

'He failed those expectations completely.'

He was physically and mentally weak—so much so that, in an attempt to hide his fragility, he lashed out at those around him.

'There was even a mention of the emperor's deep disappointment in him. And about two months before the Crown Prince's death… the emperor summoned him for the last time. That must be around now.'

In the novel, Crown Prince Lachiel never made it to that last summons.

His condition had already deteriorated too much. He couldn't even get out of bed.

He was practically carried into a carriage, but before he even made it halfway to the imperial palace, he vomited blood and had to be brought back to the secondary palace.

'As a result, Lachiel… lost all practical authority as the Crown Prince.'

That was the turning point.

The emperor gave up on him. Instead, he passed the title of Crown Prince to another son—the one who had managed to climb back up from the cliff.

A decision made through ruthless judgment, evaluation, and trial.

But now?

'The situation has changed. A lot.'

Unlike in the novel, I wasn't bedridden. I could make the trip to the imperial palace with ease.

Lachiel stood up.

"Then I should go. Prepare the carriage."

"Understood, Your Highness."

The following steps proceeded swiftly.

He rode in a Rolls-Royce-tier royal carriage, clattering along the road with his escort. After about an hour's journey, he arrived at the imperial palace. He passed through vast gardens, countless staircases, corridors, and turns.

Finally, he was granted an audience with the emperor—Asterion Testarossa Magentano.

"Crown Prince Lachiel Adria Magentano greets His Majesty, the rightful ruler of this land."

He recalled a line from the novel and delivered his greeting naturally.

Perhaps because of that…

The emperor, who always looked down on his weak and feeble eldest son, showed a faint glimmer of something in his gaze.

'…The Asrahan Breathing Technique?'

Emperor Asterion unconsciously muttered to himself.

He had no choice.

The Asrahan Breathing Technique.

A secret technique passed down only to the direct lineage of the imperial family.

When the Crown Prince was just an infant, the emperor had personally imbued it into his tiny heart. But because of his weak constitution, the Crown Prince had never been able to activate it.

'And yet… why did I just feel its resonance?'

Those who possessed the Asrahan Breathing Technique could detect the resonance of another wielder. And the emperor, a master with double circles, had definitely felt the resonance just now.

'Could it be…?'

The emperor's gaze deepened as he scrutinized his eldest son's pale complexion, trying to sense that inner resonance again.

But he found nothing.

'…Was it just my imagination?'

Disappointment flickered across the emperor's eyes. The resonance he thought he had felt was gone. The Crown Prince still looked as pitiful as ever.

His thin frame seemed like it would collapse at the slightest touch. His steps and gestures lacked any vigor. His complexion was beyond pale—it was sickly. His lips were devoid of color.

He looked like a patient. No, worse—a terminally ill one.

'Tsk, tsk.'

Perhaps he had been mistaken.

The last lingering hope he had refused to let go of must have clouded his judgment.

The emperor clicked his tongue in silent regret. There was no way his eldest son had awakened the Asrahan Breathing Technique. That was not something a weakling could handle.

'Why, of all people…?'

He sighed.

Why did his firstborn end up like this?

He had once envisioned this child as the heir who would lead the empire. And yet, here he was—a prince who couldn't even manage his own frail body.

No amount of healing magic worked. Blessings and divine protections from priests were useless. The finest doctors in the empire had all abandoned him.

The meaning was clear.

There was nothing left to be done.

No cure. No future.

The Crown Prince would not live long. That was why even the best doctors had fled like rats abandoning a sinking ship.

'Are you truly without a future?'

Should he have chosen his second son as heir from the start?

The emperor's gaze hardened as he looked at the Crown Prince—not as a father, but as a ruler.

"So, have you been faring well in the secondary palace?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Even his answer was unsatisfactory. The emperor's expression stiffened further.

"I have heard otherwise."

The Crown Prince remained silent, his head bowed.

With a calm but imposing voice, the emperor continued.

"I hear you have been engaging in bizarre behaviors."

"...."

"Why do you not answer?"

"That is…"

"I have heard that you harm yourself."

"...."

So he flinched, did he?

The emperor's gaze turned even sharper, nearly oppressive.

"You have been sticking needles into your own body. Brewing and drinking poisonous herbs. It is pathetic. Absolutely disgraceful. Do you still call yourself a descendant of the imperial family?"

"...."

"I have also heard that you abuse your servants. Likely out of frustration. Out of weakness. And now, that weakness has turned inward, driving you to such shameful acts. How can you, unable to withstand the hardships of the flesh, allow your very mind to crumble as well?"

He was not pleased.

Not with his fragile heir.

Not with his own past belief that this frailty would improve.

Not with the lingering sentiment that still refused to fade.

His voice was cold, biting.

"You are a direct descendant of the imperial line, and as such, no matter the circumstances—no matter if your body and mind are crumbling—"

Even if your insides rot away—

"At least on the outside—"

"You must never lose your dignity or composure."

Even in your final moments.

"Do not disgrace yourself. Do you understand?"

"...."

Crown Prince Lachiel did not answer.

No—Ihan did not answer.

Instead, he inwardly clicked his tongue.

'Hah. Listen to this guy.'

His words sounded majestic.

He spoke of imperial dignity.

But when I actually thought about what he was saying—

'He's just telling me to die quietly without embarrassing the family.'

What a ridiculous thing for a father to say to his son.

If this were the original Lachiel…

'That would've crushed him.'

But I was not him.

'Not my real father, anyway.'

To me, this man was just a stranger I met for the first time today.

And so, I remained unshaken.

And then, I smiled.

A smile that made the emperor flinch.

And I spoke the words that would change everything.