Raising the Princess to Overcome Death Chapter 41

41. The Beggar Siblings - Commission**

Summer quickly vacated its place.

As the cold wind ushered in autumn, the prince of the Kingdom of Astin arrived in Orville.

Accompanied by hundreds of elite soldiers and attendants, and guarded by knights, the prince led the procession with imposing dignity.

Among the crowd gathered to witness the grand parade were Lena and Leo.

"Lena! Look over there. It's the prince."

During this time, Leo took care of his sister every day and worked for the family. Recently, he had been deployed in actual combat twice and was now recognized as a valuable asset to the Rauno family.

*[Achievement: Civilian Killing - Killed ‘2’ civilians. Slightly becomes unhappy.]*

This achievement was earned by killing a merchant. He had seen it before when he killed Hans, so it didn't surprise him.

There were no significant changes in his daily life because of it.

Occasionally, he had bouts of bad luck, like losing a pretty hairpin he had bought for Lena or returning to find the bathwater cold after being summoned by the boss right when he had drawn a hot bath. But these were laughable incidents that could happen to anyone.

On the other hand, Lena thrived, eating well and resting, her beauty blossoming.

She lived safely in the family mansion, receiving education and mingling with peers, reclaiming the fresh life of a young girl. She enjoyed her days, basking in the love and attention of her family.

Leo, too, grew stronger, gaining muscle and height.

As his body developed to support his swordsmanship (Swordsmanship 2v), there were no longer any threats to him in the back alleys.

A firm sense of stability—slight unhappiness couldn't shake this stability. Confidently, Leo glared at a man eyeing his sister.

When Leo tapped the sheath at his waist, the man quickly averted his gaze.

A tattoo of the Rauno family was etched on Leo's neck.

A tattoo of a poisoned dagger peeking out from behind a shield. Even common citizens recoiled at the sight of it.

‘How dare you look at my sister? Are you asking to die?’

Leo cracked his neck with a scoff, while Lena, unaware of being watched, cheered.

"Wow! Amazing! It's the prince!"

"Impressive, right?"

"Yeah! It's my first time seeing something like this... Or have I seen it before? Anyway, it's cool!"

Watching his sister jump with joy filled Leo with emotion.

Previously, he couldn't bring Lena to see the prince's parade because he was powerless.

"Lena, what do you think of the prince?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think he's cool?"

"Yeah! He's cool!"

Feeling their definitions of coolness diverging, Leo asked again.

"Wouldn't you like to marry a prince like him?"

"Huh? How could I marry a prince? A prince should meet a princess."

"Lena, you are a princess."—He held back from saying it.

If he did, his sister would surely laugh at him, calling him a foolish big brother.

"Just hypothetically. If you could marry him, would you?"

"Well~ I'm not sure?"

Lena shrugged nonchalantly as the prince's parade faded into the distance.

On the way back, Leo, sensing her disappointment, asked persistently.

"What do you think? Wouldn't you like to marry a prince like that?"

"Not sure?"

"Don't you like him?"

"No."

"Then?"

Lena glanced at her brother, frowning as if something displeased her, yet she looked stunning. The wrinkles on her furrowed brow were unbearably soft.

"Do you want me to get married?"

"No, that's not it... But you'll have to get married someday. I'm just asking your preference."

"...I don't want to get married."

"What? Why?"

"Never mind! You're stupid!"

Lena abruptly turned and went into her room, not wanting to talk anymore.

"Lena?"

"Go away! I won't let you in!"

"Why are you suddenly like this?"

"I'm going to sleep!"

"It's still broad daylight."

“...”

Lena only came out in the evening, acting as if nothing had happened, to have dinner with him. Leo thought it was hard to keep up with women's moods while watching his sister.

*"Is she going through puberty?"*

He couldn't understand her behavior.

---

Prince Arnolf de Klaus of the Kingdom of Astin, once again faced humiliation in this scenario.

Princess Chloe de Tatalia, the cherished jewel of the Kingdom of Bellita, kissed another man right in front of him. She shared a passionate kiss with Gilbert Forte, the son of the ruling Swordmaster, Count Herman Forte.

Caught off guard, the nobles were too conscious of the Swordmaster's presence to respond appropriately, and the prince left with a grim face. After traveling for months to a distant country, he couldn't even stay for a week.

After that, Orville was engulfed in the scent of war, and the prices of iron and weapons soared. This led to a clash between the Corolla family and the Berza family, who had never gotten along, over the illegal arms market.

Brawls broke out all over Orville, and there were several instances of arson.

Leo was aware of these events.

Meanwhile, the Rauno family, as usual, remained cautious. They were the oldest family in Orville.

Many families had risen and fallen like comets in Orville, but the Rauno family never wavered. They continued to protect their markets, exchanged gifts with small business owners, and built relationships by accepting assassination requests when someone harbored a grudge against the small business owners.

Leo was deeply impressed by Joseph Rauno.

He was never in a hurry.

‘That's right. My goal is to overthrow the prince of the Kingdom of Conrad... This isn't something that can be rushed.’

Even a family's survival tactics were this cautious; what he had to do was overturn an entire kingdom.

Leo calmed his impatience and focused on gathering information about the Kingdom of Conrad. Thankfully, Lena was still young.

Of course, it wasn't easy. Information about another country, especially about its upper echelons, wasn't as common as stones on the street.

Unfortunately, the Rauno family was well-versed in information about Orville and the Kingdom of Bellita, but they had no interest in other countries, so they weren't much help.

Eventually, Leo had to track down merchants from the Kingdom of Conrad himself.

In front of him, a haggard merchant cleared his throat awkwardly and spoke.

"Well, I've picked up a few things from my travels, but... they're not very significant or certain, so I'm hesitant to share..."

The merchant trailed off. Even though he was intimidated by Leo's tattoo, he still expected a reward.

Leo placed a few coins on the table with a firm 'thud,' and only then did the merchant start to share what he knew.

It was useless information.

---

As winter approached, the Rauno family mansion was stocked with plenty of firewood.

The boss, who had summoned Leo after a long time, waited by the hearth and spoke in a careful tone.

"A big job has come in."

His expression was as usual, but his clasped fingers fidgeted nervously behind his back.

"An assassination request for a noble."

"A noble? But killing a noble would cause..."

Killing a noble by a commoner caused chaos. In this strictly hierarchical world, it was an unforgivable act, and the perpetrator was executed without trial if caught.

If the perpetrator escaped, their relatives were exterminated, and even their village or acquaintances suffered.

Joseph Rauno handed over a piece of paper.

"You're right. Our family would be in deep trouble. But the request came from his father."

Leo took the elegantly decorated letter. At the bottom of the letter was the seal of Marquis Benar Tatian, the head of the Royalist faction. The letter, written in a beautiful script, demanded his son's death.

Joseph waited for Leo to finish reading with a troubled expression before continuing.

"The Marquis's spokesman brought this. He said they'd arrange a meeting with the Marquis if we wanted."

He placed a hand on Leo's shoulder. Leo's small stature made it feel like a father consoling his son, and Joseph spoke with genuine trust.

"Go meet the Marquis."

"Understood. But why did such a request come in?"

"Have you not heard? Our princess caused trouble again."

Joseph Rauno, as if he had just remembered, had Leo sit down and offered him a cigarette. Leo didn't refuse. Smoking beside the boss felt deeply respectful.

The smoke from the two men drifted around the darkly decorated room.

Joseph briefly recounted the incident from a few days ago.

Marquis Benar Tatian's son, Toton Tatian, and Princess Chloe were intimately close at a banquet and disappeared quietly. Embarrassingly, the princess returned to the palace only in the morning, and the king didn't discipline her for staying out without permission.

He had condoned her misconduct.

"You're aware of the current political situation, right?"

"Yes. The Royalists and the Swordmaster faction are at odds, with the Swordmaster faction generally having the upper hand."

"Correct. And the person leading the Royalists is Marquis Tatian."

The boss inhaled deeply.

"The princess indirectly touched the leaders of the two factions. It's likely the king's doing."

Princess Chloe de Tatalia was known for her upright and modest behavior, so no one thought she caused the incident willingly.

Leo was no different.

"Why would the king do such a thing?"

"I don't know. The king has never involved himself in politics... That's why your role is important."

Joseph discarded his cigarette and leaned forward. Leo threw his half-smoked cigarette into the hearth.

"Marquis Tatian requested the assassination of his own son. Isn't that strange? The king orchestrated this, but the Royalist leader wants to clean up the mess to avoid conflict with the Swordmaster faction."

"..."

"It's different from the Swordmaster sending his son to the capital churChapter Maybe Marquis Tatian distrusts the king. Go and subtly probe the Marquis."

"Understood. But why me?"

"I pondered a lot. But you're young and somehow trustworthy. Perhaps the Marquis might say a bit more to a trustworthy young man."

*[Achievement: First Meeting with the Family Boss - The gangsters trust your words.]*

It seemed this achievement had caused a misunderstanding.

"If we accept this request, I was going to entrust it to you anyway. You're the most capable. Please handle it from start to finish. It will help us decide whether to take the Marquis's request or stay out of it."

He finished speaking and handed over an envelope.

The envelope bore the Marquis's seal, used to seal it, hanging from the edge.

The symbol of the Tatian Marquis was a scale.

Imprinted boldly in wax, the green scales were already tilted, even though nothing was placed on them.

Leo's excitement rose.

With this, he could meet a high-ranking noble at the heart of the kingdom's politics!

And possibly...

Gulping, Leo reached out, and the envelope was passed to him in front of the blazing hearth.

The cigarette he had thrown smoldered slowly at the edge of the hearth, failing to burn completely.