Episode 59 The Ideal King
Shortly after the commotion with Lord Glutton, Edward—invited by Morgan—arrived at the castle in the royal capital with the still-unconscious Prim and Gale.
The purpose, of course, was to treat Prim, who had yet to awaken.
Normally, as a member of Rod’s faction, visiting Arthur would require many complicated procedures, but this time they were allowed in under the pretense of an apology for Lord Glutton’s rampage.
“This place is awfully formal… My shoulders are getting stiff.”
“Don’t say that, Gale. Prim might finally wake up. I’ve heard Prince Arthur is naïve and difficult to deal with. Please don’t be rude.”
“I get it, I get it. I won’t say anything unnecessary. Nobles are a pain, anyway.”
Gale, glancing around nervously, nodded at Edward’s scolding. Though his speech was usually rough, Edward knew he could be composed when it counted, so he let it go.
Then he turned his gaze to Prim and spoke again, his eyes full of tenderness.
“I want Prim to wake up soon too.”
Gale had come along partly because of his closeness with Prim, and partly because Gazeff had begged Edward to bring him to the capital for something important.
Edward knew Gale was genuinely worried about Prim. And he also knew… that Prim and Gale had feelings for each other. As a father, it was complicated.
“Besides, there’s that errand Gazeff asked me to do…”
“Ah, that. He said he’d already talked to Lady Morgan, but… did Prince Arthur really give permission?”
“Who knows? That old man just said I’d understand once I met the prince…”
Seeing a maid standing at the door, the two fell silent and moved forward. She smiled kindly, opened the door, and gestured for them to sit.
“Prince Arthur will be with you shortly. No need to be so nervous. Please, feel free to help yourselves to the cookies on the table while you wait.”
“Thank you.”
Edward and Gale sat as instructed. Edward, surprised to see that Arthur’s maid was a black-haired commoner, reached for the cookies on the table.
They were ordinary cookies…
Not something specially prepared by the castle chefs—just the kind sold in markets. Gale, who preferred simple tastes like most dwarves, devoured them with delight.
What kind of man was Prince Arthur…? Edward had heard he favored commoners, visiting orphanages and such… but to prefer even their food?
And the black-haired maid wasn’t just any maid. She wore the royal emblem, a sign of a personal maid. In all of Britannia, a commoner serving as a royal’s personal maid!?
While Edward was reeling from the unexpected, the same maid opened the door again, and a boy entered.
“Prince Arthur has arrived.”
“Wha—?!”
Seeing the boy’s face, Edward and Gale were left speechless. His hairstyle and clothes were different, but he was clearly Richard—the nobleman Marianne had brought.
And yet, his expression held a commanding presence, something like a king’s aura.
“Nice to meet you, Lord Edward of Dorf, and craftsman Gale. I’ve heard about you from Morgan.”
“What are you talking about, Richard? What is this…?”
“Gale, stop!! It’s fine like this!!”
As Gale called Arthur “Richard,” Edward hastily tried to stop him. But along with his surprise came deep emotion.
He now understood why Prince Arthur had gone to Dorf in disguise. Likely, due to factional politics, he couldn’t openly go, so he had hidden his identity to stop Lord Glutton’s rampage. Even knowing that if discovered, his own faction would suffer for it.
“Prince Arthur, nice to meet you. I heard you would treat my daughter…”
“Yes, I’ve been informed. This is the girl, correct?”
Saying this, Arthur held his hand over the resting Prim’s forehead, and a warm, radiant light enveloped her. It was an illness that even Edward’s personal healer had given up on.
No matter how long it took, Edward was determined to wait… or so he thought—
“She’s healed. As expected, the cause was a toxin unrelated to the mining region. Don’t worry, we’re already investigating the source. I even have a good idea who’s behind it. I know who would benefit from your daughter’s illness.”
“Wha…? Huh…?”
Arthur casually spoke to the stunned Edward before promptly leaving the room. From beyond the door came voices: “Did I pull it off well~?” and “You looked so cool, Lord Arthur! As your personal maid (and big sister), I’m proud!”—but perhaps it was just his imagination.
No, more importantly—wasn’t the treatment too fast? Could even Prince Arthur have given up…?
Just as Edward panicked and tried to follow—
“Hey, Edward!!”
“What? Prince Arthur’s leaving!! He’s our last hope—I must speak with him, no matter what—”
He trailed off mid-sentence as he realized it.
His daughter, who had been unconscious for months, was opening her eyes…
“Father…? Gale…? Where are we…?”
Her voice was raspy from disuse, but unmistakably hers.
“Prim… Prim—!!”
Despite Gale being right there, Edward, forgetting his age, broke into tears and hugged her. No one laughed at him—because Gale was crying too.
“Dad!? Even you, Gale? What’s going on?”
As a confused Prim looked on, the room echoed with the cries of two grown men. And they thought:
Prince Arthur—who risked his position and safety to correct his subordinate’s corruption and healed the suffering with overwhelming power—was the king worth believing in.
He was the rightful heir of the kind-hearted Holy King…
