To describe Maximilian Lewin Royale in a word, it would be well-bred. He had his mother’s diligence and his father’s strength. Everyone knew they could expect much from him as the next king, and he’d gone his whole life with people praising him as a prince who made their country proud.
Until his brother was born with black hair.
In the kingdom, black hair and black eyes were special traits that only manifested in those with royal blood. Maximilian might have looked like he had black hair under indoor lighting, but any time he was outdoors in the sunlight, it was clear that his hair was a bit too red to fully call it black. His eyes had a similar hue, but his hair was what really stood out. While hardly anyone would have said to his face that it would have been nice if his hair were darker, it was very obvious to him that his vassals all sighed in the shadows. They’d think he was perfect if it weren’t for his hair. When Edward was born with the glossiest black hair around, it was even more obvious. And once his little sister, Jadwiga, was born, the mutterings continued on.
In an ironic twist of fate, Maximilian, who was born to a woman with royal blood, had less of the royal color than the children born to a woman with no royal blood. His siblings’ hair was darker than their father’s, their uncle’s, and even their grandfather’s, who died when they were very young. Most of the royal family’s appearances to the people took place outside, and the second-born prince Edward was always next to Maximilian at these events. In the sunlight, Edward’s hair looked blacker than ever, especially compared to how red Maximilian’s looked. Even if Maximilian was too far away to hear the citizens’ voices, he could guess what they were saying.
If only his hair were a little darker... He had been cursed to hear those words his whole life.
However, he knew that it wasn’t hair alone that made a king. He knew his little brother wasn’t planning on overtaking him to become king either. Though he knew this, and he wasn’t the type of person to let such trivial things get to him, at some point he’d begun to develop an inferiority complex.
Black hair was just a symbol. It wasn’t a requirement to succeed the throne. Maximilian held that sentiment close to his chest and studied as hard as he could to learn everything he needed, trained his body and mind, and devoted himself entirely to what was best for the kingdom. He proactively studied in foreign countries to learn more about their governments and to secretly come into contact with any mages they might have.
Indeed, mages.
It had been over thirty years since mages suddenly stopped appearing in the kingdom. As a result, distortions in the barrier were happening more and more. To make matters worse, not only did the distortions allow monsters to invade, but there was a possibility they could have a negative impact on the climate. For a kingdom so reliant on farming as their main source of income, it was a matter of life-and-death.
A kingdom losing its ability to trade with foreign lands would always end in tragedy. No country had the ability to one-sidedly support another country long-term. The larger a kingdom was, the wider the range where monsters could appear, thus the greater a burden it became. All things considered, the kingdom was currently doing quite well for itself, but only because the Stewart family’s silk had skyrocketed their economy. The Stewart family ruled over the border land of Pallas. The fact that their kingdom was relying so heavily on a family living on the border—a place that regularly has land falling to ruin—was nothing short of walking a tightrope. If they didn’t find a mage to repair the barrier in the next few years, the kingdom wouldn’t have a future.
That sense of danger was what pushed Maximilian forward, so he found himself in the Western Empire—a place with more mages than anywhere else—time and time again. Any time he had available, he’d say he was going to study abroad, but he was truly hoping to find the opportunity to meet with a mage.
And then it came. However, that opportunity only served to crush his hopes for good. The mage he finally came across wore a hood to hide their face. The moment they revealed themself, Maximilian was astonished.
The mage was a woman. And not only that, but she had dark brown hair and black eyes. The kind that only someone with royal blood could possibly have.
“What?!”
“Maximilian Lewin Royale. You will be under my control from now on.” All it took was his momentary shock at the sight of her hair and eyes for the mage’s magic to take effect.
From that day forward, Maximilian’s body was no longer his own. Someone who was not him was eating, sleeping, speaking with people, and giving orders that Maximilian himself would never have given. All the while, Maximilian could only watch. Even if he knew the horrible things the Western Empire was plotting, he couldn’t communicate it to anyone. Just like that, he became the driving force behind those horrible schemes.
No matter how much he internally yelled or screamed, cried or pleaded, all that came out of his mouth was more orders for the Western Empire to invade the kingdom.
“Prepare the ships.” Stop it, please.
“Outfit them with cannons.” Stop it, please.
“We’ll send a hail of bombs to the kingdom.” Stop it, please!
“We move out while the king is absent on his field trip.” Stop it, please!!!
The country he’d sworn he’d protect was about to be broken by his words.
Someone, please stop me. Someone...
Please...
Anyone...
“Did you say something, Prince Maximilian?” The prime minister raised his head from the mountain of paperwork he was dealing with in his office. Before him was the firstborn prince, who’d just returned from studying abroad in the Western Empire.
“Ah, I was saying that we’ll be receiving several dozen ships from the Western Empire at the Simmons port tomorrow.”
“Ships from the Western Empire? And that many? We haven’t received any notice of such a thing...” The prime minister pulled out the list of ships permitted to enter the Simmons Harbor to check.
“My apologies. I forgot to mention that I’d invited a few of the nobles I’d befriended in the Western Empire while I was studying over there, so there’s no paperwork about it.” The prince offered a bright smile as if to ask the prime minister to let it slide.