Ch. 17
Chapter 17: Placing a True Love Curse on a 10-Year-Old Child?
Lumia, now restored to a human body, was pointing to a section of territory on the map and explaining:
"What about Enzel County here? This is a direct princely domain—extremely prosperous. Tax revenues alone bring in 30,000 gold coins a year!"
"As long as you agree, His Highness the Prince can confer the title of Count of Enzel upon you right now, in his capacity as the family heir!"
In the early stages of the game, securing a title at the level of Count was already quite good.
Besides, Li Kainan didn't place too much weight on it anyway—it was only a temporary stepping stone. In the end, he would still be striking out on his own!
But just as Li Kainan was about to nod in agreement, Belle, seated beside him, suddenly pointed at the map in Lumia's hands and spoke up:
"But these direct princely domains were already gradually carved up and divided among others as far back as 10 years ago!"
Li Kainan, on the verge of nodding, turned his head to look at Belle seated beside him.
And compared to Branny, who had spent her whole life with her family deep in Reyp Forest, Belle was clearly far better informed about the current state of affairs in the realm.
He really had guessed wrong at the start—he'd assumed she was a combat-type recruit.
Looking at her now, she was actually a talent more inclined toward diplomacy and administration……
……
Lumia, standing across from them, instinctively pushed back upon hearing Belle's words:
"How is that possible! Everything on the map is territory belonging to Prince Adam's family—the Royal Family would absolutely never stand by while the direct domain of a royal prince of the blood was arbitrarily divided up……"
But the moment Lumia mentioned the Royal Family, he suddenly seemed to realize something.
His words ground to an abrupt halt. A certain possibility crossed his mind—and his expression shifted to one of horrified realization.
Before the curse had been cast upon them, they had heard that the entire Cape Royal Palace had been sealed away by a witch's curse.
The young prince at the time—though still young—was a direct royal prince of the blood, and had already been preparing to raise his banner and call upon all the nobles of the Kingdom of Cape to organize and rescue the Royal Family.
But no sooner had he used the pretext of holding a banquet to convene his direct vassals and deliberate on the matter than he, just like the Royal Family, fell victim to a witch's curse……
So had 10 years already passed—and the palace's curse still not been broken?
The Beast Prince, his body wrapped in bandages from head to toe, was seated nearby.
A beast-form body was simply stronger and more powerful than a human one—and since Li Kainan hadn't gone all out, the prince's injuries were serious but not life-threatening.
However, upon hearing the exchange between Belle and Lumia, the Beast Prince's expression turned dazed, and he muttered to himself:
"No wonder the Royal Family was unable to organize a rescue for me over these 10 years……"
"Is the Kingdom of Cape—has it already fallen?"
Belle shook her head and continued:
"Not at all. A few years back there were some power-hungry great nobles who declared themselves king, but these individuals either suffered military defeat and were exiled, or died from various illnesses and accidents."
"The Cape throne has since been dubbed 'the Cursed Crown'—no noble dares to lightly declare himself king anymore. The great noble factions keep each other in check, which means the Kingdom of Cape nominally still exists……"
At this, Li Kainan couldn't help but turn to Belle and ask:
"With the Royal Family in crisis, surely someone would have put forward a noble of royal blood to become a new king and restore unity to the kingdom?"
This was a question that had been sitting in Li Kainan's mind ever since he learned that the Kingdom of Cape had fallen into complete chaos after losing its king.
In a story setting like this Western medieval world, royal lines dying out was a common enough occurrence.
By rights, the kingdom's entire administrative system should have had contingency measures in place for exactly this kind of situation!
Belle turned her head and happened to meet Li Kainan's curious, questioning gaze.
She wasn't the sort of shallow girl who only cared about appearances—but Li Kainan's charm right now was genuinely in a league of its own.
And then there was the fact that Li Kainan had appeared before her today like a savior, at the moment she had been most frightened and helpless.
An opening like this felt just like those moving love stories she'd read in books……
Pretending to brush the hair from the side of her face, Belle lowered her head and turned her gaze away with a touch of self-consciousness, explaining softly:
"The Cape Royal bloodline has always been thin. Besides the King and the Princess, the only other person with the standing to become the new king is Prince Adam……well, he's sitting right across from us!"
Li Kainan heard this and immediately glanced over at the Beast Prince lying there.
Oh—so you're the one called Adam!
To think that if it hadn't been for the witch's curse 10 years ago turning you into this, you would have become the new king of the Kingdom of Cape!
A prince, out of selfishness and a lack of compassion, had made an enemy of a witch—and so the witch placed a curse on him, one that could only be broken by finding true love.
Honestly, the witch didn't sound like a bad person—she seemed to have only wanted to teach the prince a lesson through this method!
Though……
Li Kainan's brow raised slightly as his gaze swept across the portrait hanging in the hall.
The portrait showed a boy of around 10 years old—chin tilted high, with a trace of arrogance in his handsome young features.
The person in this portrait was the Beast Prince Adam from 10 years ago!
Teaching an unruly child a lesson was fair enough—but wasn't this method a little excessive?
Placing a curse on a 10-year-old brat that could only be broken by true love—that was completely absurd!
And then there were those wolves outside, being kept and used to prevent anyone from getting near the castle……
Hmph—how interesting.
……
At this moment, the Beast Prince Adam hadn't yet turned his thoughts to any of this.
Hearing that the Kingdom of Cape had not officially fallen, he let out an immediate breath of relief.
It's only been 10 years—he refused to believe that every person who remained loyal to the Royal Family had already perished.
All he needed now was to break the curse, restore his identity, and he could raise his banner and rally the loyalist forces together to save the kingdom!
The Beast Prince Adam looked toward Li Kainan again and took the initiative:
"Esteemed sir, I can confer the title of Count upon you right now……"
Belle looked up again at once, and immediately took a firm stand opposing this on Li Kainan's behalf:
"No—a title without territory is nothing but an empty honorific. Honorary counts with titles but no land are everywhere out there right now, and no one takes them seriously at all!"
Li Kainan looked at Belle beside him, his eyes filled with appreciation and approval.
She's not even officially recruited yet and she already knows to argue for my interests with such conviction—clearly a fine and capable talent……
No wait—clearly a partner who will be the most loyal and reliable companion in the future!
Sensing the warm intensity in Li Kainan's gaze as he looked at her, Belle's intelligent, bookish face flushed faintly.
She didn't quite dare to turn her head and look at Li Kainan right now—so she could only focus even more intently, throwing herself even more energetically into negotiating terms with the Beast Prince Adam on his behalf……