Chapter 43: Doing One’s Best

The sun had gotten tired and was sliding down the horizon as the market streets emptied out bit by bit. Compared to the large number of people that were here for the welcome parade, you could basically call the market district empty.

Adonis and Godfrey were standing off to the side while Prussia picked out some ingredients like bread, milk, and some deer and wild bird meat... lots of them, because of big eaters like Alpis and Garm.

Godfrey looked at Prussia, then at Adonis.

The attraction his young brother stared at her with would make any woman jealous.

"You know, I’m glad Prussia ended up with you and not Leander. Not that I want to discredit Leander or anything. I just feel she’s a better match for you than him, she’s livelier around you, I guess."

He nodded thoughtfully, and after seeing there were no snarky remarks from his little brother, he decided it was time to put his foot down and be a better big brother.

Godfrey cleared his throat softly.

"Also, brother, you must remember that self-control is a thing. I myself practice it a lot around many beautiful nuns when I go to church. Men of our royal family are polygamous in nature, but we must not succumb!"

He held a fist close to his chest like a general giving his soldiers a motivational speech before war.

"I have been very tempted to take a wife or two, but I know when that happens I won’t be able to stop, so I may just stay a bachelor forever. Adonis, you mustn’t cheat on Prussia. She’s a very lovely lady... and... well, she may also kill you if you do it. I wouldn’t like to attend my little brother’s funeral."

There was still no snarky reply from Adonis.

He’d been staring at Prussia’s large peach all this while, that was enough to convince the First Prince that his brother might actually stay faithful to one woman.

’Sure, little fifth didn’t listen to a word I said, but I’ve still done my job. Heh, what an amazing older brother I am.’

He sighed, sounding pleased with himself, but then wore a pale face as another thought crossed his mind.

’But still, brother is a pervert. Why does he look more serious in the face of a woman’s behind than in life? Perhaps I must educate little brother about the dangers of being too lustful...’

He shook his head with a mild smile.

... Pitter-patter, Adonis hurried away with quick steps the moment he saw his brother’s mouth open again. He walked over to Prussia, who was still picking out food items, inspecting the cuts on the wooden trays.

"Is this magic beast meat truly fresh?"

Prussia asked the dwarven butcher, lifting a thick slab of venison to examine its texture.

Omyujin, said dwarven butcher, scratched his beard.

"Ah, milady has a good eye! That wild deer was brought down in the eastern woods just this morning. The mana settles near the bone first, but it’s as fresh as it gets."

Adonis crept up quietly from behind and opened his mouth wide Aaaam! trying a shameless bite toward her neck.

Prussia glared at him and Adonis quickly turned his face away as he looked up at the sky and whistled like the most innocent soul alive. Prussia just ignored him, shaking her head, and turned back to the dwarf.

"And what about this wild bird meat? How old is it?"

She poked a finger at the bird carcass.

Adonis mischievously leaned in again, aiming straight for her ear this time going Aaaahm!

"Adonis!" Prussia looked annoyed now.

Just like before, Adonis stood straight up, hands tucked behind his back, looking totally harmless.

Prussia narrowed her eyes at him.

"What were you trying to do?"

"Err... what do you mean?"

She tossed the bird meat back onto the tray, crossing her arms over her voluptuous chest.

"So now you want to pretend?"

"Heh, one bite wouldn’t hurt, yunno."

Prussia stared flatly. "Neither would one slap."

They both stared at each other in silence.

Bit by bit, Adonis edged his face closer toward her slender neck again to take a small bite. The subtle sheen of sweat covering parts of her golden-brown body made her look oddly more attractive in the glowing sunset. As his mouth hovered near her skin, he slid a side glance toward her face to see if she was going to explode.

He’s about to nibble on her sweaty neck.

"Thanks for the mea—"

"ADONIS!" Prussia shoved his face away with her hand.

Over in the corner, Godfrey just snickered endlessly as he watched them. Adonis reset his posture, looking at Prussia with those wide, innocent eyes again. But Prussia had long learned not to trust that harmless face of his... that acting skill was exactly how he had tricked her Dunamis family in the first place.

Adonis looked around, scratching his chin casually.

"Um, please don’t get so angry, Purssia is cute. It doesn’t look good on you, hehe~ But come on, Prussia, don’t worry, it’s just a little nibble. You can trust me, heh~ Or would you prefer I bite your peach instead?"

He leaned right back in to bite her, and Prussia gave his face a nice, solid shove, but Adonis kept leaning in. Before long, the two started laughing as they wrestled around the stall.

"Just ooonee bite!"

"NOO!"

[Congrats! You made Prussia laugh and her affection level has increased by +15!]

Omyujin, who had just been waiting patiently for Prussia to finish paying for the meat, let out a tired sigh as he watched the two goof off in front of his shop.

After buying everything, Godfrey decided to escort them a short distance before returning to the palace to prepare for the evening service at the church.

Adonis looked over at his older brother.

"Oh yeah, what about Bradley?"

Godfrey took a moment to recall what he could.

"He’s been hard at work recently, so I don’t get the chance to see him much these days. The maids say he’s always training with his beasts at the range or out in some forest. I’ve never seen little fourth work this hard before."

It wasn’t to say that Bradley wasn’t a hard worker, but he’d always felt like the child who was overlooked.

Godfrey was the first son, so he couldn’t be ignored, and Leander was the King’s new favorite. Even if their father didn’t like Adonis, he still paid a lot of attention to him. Knowing the kind of man King Aldrius was, everyone knew the King only paid any attention to Bradley because his mother was his favorite.

Just thinking about that irritated Adonis.

’Aldrius did serious damage to his kids because of the kind of man he is... someone like that doesn’t deserve to be king, and that’s why I have to get stronger.’

Adonis yawned out loud. "Whatever."

Godfrey blinked, looking surprised. "Hm? I’m surprised you’re not interested in trying to impress father. I would’ve thought if anyone wanted to prove him wrong, it would be you."

Adonis waved his hand dismissively.

"Who cares about impressing that old fart? I really only care about the throne."

Godfrey nodded understandingly as his gaze softened.

"I admire your grit, you know."

"Huh?"

"Yes, I really do. I feel like I failed our father. That guilt has killed me for so many years that I can’t even have a small talk with him anymore. Then there’s you, who isn’t even bothered by the fact that he hates you. To be honest... if it wasn’t for mother, I’d have given up on the throne already."

"So... you haven’t given up on the throne?"

"Heh, I wouldn’t want you taking the throne so easily, so I’ll try my best one last time."

Adonis stopped walking.

Prussia paused beside him. "Hm?" ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The Fifth Prince held a hand out toward his big brother.

"Then let’s try our best together."

"Deal."

Godfrey accepted the firm handshake.

"Oh, what a lovely sight to see."

A calm voice chipped in from the quiet street. Prussia’s hand instantly darted toward the hilt of her sword, but Adonis gently placed his hand over hers to stop her when he recognized the figure standing nearby, Old Hershant.

Prussia looked at Adonis and tensed down.

Old Hershant looked at Adonis and Godfrey.

’I wish I wasn’t here right now, but still, it shouldn’t be difficult to plant the artifact on him before I leave. The duel is in a few days, so I may not get a better chance than this.’

Hershant cleared his throat as he stepped over to give Adonis a firm, friendly pat on the shoulder.

"I hope you two have been training well."

Adonis didn’t offer a word in reply. He just glared into Old Hershant’s eyes, while the old man maintained his sweet, unbothered smile.

The old man then turned to Godfrey with a handshake.

"I hope you’re working hard for the duel, First Prince. You may yet impress your father this time."

"Well, I’ll try..." Godfrey chuckled nervously.

Hershant nodded pleasantly, then looked back at Adonis.

"We shall speak sometime soon, yes?"

Adonis smiled back brightly. "I wouldn’t count on it."

The two men suddenly burst into laughter together, sharing a chuckle as if enjoying a light joke. Prussia and Godfrey looked at each other with confused expressions. It made no sense, the two of them were laughing together like something hilarious had been said, even though Adonis’s response was blatantly rude.

Old Hershant bowed politely and took his leave, strolling down the emptying street.

Godfrey turned to Adonis. "I should go too."

"Alright then."

"Well..."

The First Prince took a moment to gather his words.

"I know everyone in the family treats you poorly, but I’m sure it’ll change someday. I see how hard you’ve worked... you look tired and more worn out than usual. I’ll make sure everyone back at the palace knows you’re giving it your hardest. Let’s talk some more when you return to the palace."

Adonis smiled. "Sure."

Godfrey gave Prussia a polite bow.

"Please take care of my little brother."

A faint blush crept up Prussia’s cheeks.

"I... I’ll try my best." (¬////¬)