Dungeon Defense (WN)

The palace was unusually rowdy that day.

The servants moved around more hastily than usual and the maids would gather and chat whenever they could.

The entire palace was enveloped in a tense mood. The sound of whispering came from one hallway while the sound of muttering came from another. The Habsburg Palace that normally boasted its silence was unusually loud today.

And there was one person who definitely didn’t miss this shift in mood.

“Sebastian, did something happen?”

“Ah, Your Highness Johanna…….”

A man in his forties let out a ‘darn it’. The man had worked in the palace for decades and did not reveal his emotions on his face. Even a servant of his level could only sweat nervously while in the presence of this little princess.

“Ah, that face means that something definitely happened!”

The young girl with silver, spiraling hair hopped up and down.

“I’m sure of it! I’m a hundred, no, a thousand percent sure!”

“Your Highness’ words are making me sad. What kind of face did I make to make Your Highness so certain?”

“Hehe. Even if you try to feign ignorance now, the water has already been spilled, Sebastian.”

The girl shook her index finger from side to side.

“Sebastian, you may be one of the best servants who has worked in this palace for 37 years, but you have one bad habit. Whenever you lie, you habitually bend your back ever so slightly.”

“Eh, really?”

The man turned pale from shock. This is a big problem!

As the most experienced servant in the palace, Sebastian would handle not only official work but unofficial work as well. In other words, he would often receive confidential orders from the emperor or the prince. He can’t let his emotions out. If the young princess is right and he does have a habit……then he might have unintentionally leaked some information to several nobles!

“Of course I’m lying. Stupid idiot Sebastian. Did you believe that?”

“…….”

“There’s no way this strict palace would promote a man with a bad habit like that to be our first-rate servant. Especially you, Sebastian, who’s the fourth son of a duke and doesn’t have anything to inherit since you’re an illegitimate child.”

The girl grinned brightly.

“In other words, this means you were able to climb up this high while relying on your powers alone, Sebastian. There’s no one who is as self-made as you within this palace that’s corrupted by bribes and connections. You really are amazing.”

“T-Thank you very much……Your Highness.”

“Yeah? You’re grateful, right?”

The man couldn’t help but feel anxious.

“Yes.”

“You’re so grateful that you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for me, right?”

“Y-Yes……of course. This humble one is always prepared to sacrifice himself for the royal family at all times.”

The girl was in awe.

“Jeez. I recognized your loyalty a long time ago. That’s why you’re the pride of Habsburg’s interior ministry. Mister Sebastian whose unparalleled sincerity and wit helped you succeed in life despite being the fourth son and the illegitimate child of a duke.”

The girl grabbed on to the man who was twice her size and smiled slyly like some old man.

“So hurry up and tell me what happened last night. If you do, then I won’t tell the high steward about how unsightly our Sebastian was in front of the imperial princess. Huhu.”

“…….”

Johanna von Habsburg.

She was the 2nd Imperial Princess of the Habsburg Empire, one of the absolute powerhouses of the continent alongside Frankia to the west and Anatolia to the east. This 14-year-old young lady was also referred to as the ‘Terrifying Ruler’ among the hundreds of servants and maids who worked in the palace.

In the end, the veteran servant, Sebastian, surrendered.

“Hoo, very well, then. I will tell you everything.”

“Yay! I did it! I defeated Sebastian―!”

Imperial Princess Johanna raised her arms.

Sebastian smiled bitterly. Imperial Princess Johanna was definitely a stubborn tomboy, but she was overflowing with a type of cuteness that made it hard to hate her. You could say that she had a charm that made people automatically lower their guards.

This was probably the reason why there have been no problems even though Imperial Princess Johanna would bother them almost every single day. In this regard, Imperial Princess Johanna was incredibly different compared to her little sister, in other words, Third Imperial Princess Elizabeth. Her Highness Elizabeth was renowned for being a genius, but she was strangely difficult to approach…….

“You absolutely must not tell anyone about what I am going to tell you.”

“Mhm, okay. I swear on Sebastian’s conscience and honor!”

“……May I ask why Your Highness is swearing on this humble one’s conscience and honor and not your own?”

“Tsk tsk. A man shouldn’t worry about such trifling matters.”

Sebastian let out a deep sigh.

“Last night, we discovered a man who had infiltrated the palace.”

“What, here!?”

The Imperial Princess opened her eyes wide like a frog in surprise. It was the reaction that Sebastian was expecting, so he let out a laugh.

“Yes, indeed. The sound of something falling in the lake on the west side of the palace was heard last night. A maid who happened to be passing by at the time heard it. She panicked and called for the guards and when they got there, they discovered a man in the pool.”

“W-wow……. He managed to get through the palace’s barrier on his own? While avoiding the thousands of security spells and hundreds of guards?”

Sebastian nodded.

“Yes. That is why there has been an uproar. People think that there might be a hole in the palace’s absolute defenses. Furthermore, this is a secret that has yet to spread to the maids, but…….”

He got close to the Imperial Princess’ ear and whispered.

“Surprisingly, the man who fell in the lake is not a swordmaster, a mage, or even an assassin. They say that his compatibility with mana is absolutely abysmal. He got over the palace’s absolute barrier without using force or magic!”

Imperial Princess Johanna shuddered.

It wasn’t surprising that she’d be scared, Sebastian thought to himself as he nodded. She may be called the ‘Terrifying Ruler’, but she was still a sheltered 14-year-old girl. The fact that this man with an average amount of strength and magic could’ve targeted her life must be a rather big shock to her.

However, that was nothing but an assumption.

“Amazing―!”

The Imperial Princess clenched her fists and shouted. Her voice was so loud that it echoed through the halls. It was so loud that it surprised the maid who was at the end of the hall and made her look towards them.

Nevertheless, the girl got all giddy as if she forgot all of the palace’s manners. Sebastian tried to calm her down.

“Y-Your Highness? Your voice is too loud. Why are you……?”

“It’s amazing! The fact that a really normal man who can’t use auras or cast spells managed to practically get right up to our noses is amazing! It sounds like a story from the past! He could’ve been a hero! He’s really amazing!”

“Your Highness, your voice……please, your voice.”

Imperial Princess Johanna’s excitement-filled voice stopped there. She slowly turned to look at Sebastian. At that moment, an unknown chill traveled through Sebastian’s spine. All traces of her childishness was gone as she stared at the servant with a sharp gaze.

The blood of a ruler. A dignity that could only be possessed by people who were born with the ability to rule over humans was present.

Sebastian started to sweat for a different reason than before. Did he perhaps―overstep his boundaries and try to order her around too much? The girl before him was one of the most highborn ladies in the world. Did he end up annoying someone like that?

The Imperial Princess spoke up the moment Sebastian felt like her savage beast-like gaze was squeezing down on his heart.

“Tell me where he is, Sebastian.”

“……Pardon me?”

“The hero of the lake. He was probably put in a cell somewhere. Tell me which cell.”

Sebastian’s mouth fell open in shock.

“D-Do not tell me. Does Your Highness intend to meet the intruder!?”

“There is nothing to be surprised about. I am obviously going to meet him. Do you think I would ignore something as interesting as this? I definitely have to meet him.”

“Please reconsider, Your Highness!”

Sebastian got down on his knees without any hesitation.

“The matter regarding the intruder is currently like a bomb within the palace.”

“And it just now became my bomb.”

The Imperial Princess didn’t back down.

“If I can’t meet that man, then I’ll explode first. Sebastian, know that the day I explode will be the day that Habsburg falls.”

“Your Highness, even His Majesty the Emperor is furious about this incident! If Your Highness approaches a matter as huge as this simply because of your curiosity, then at best you will lose the trust of the palace people and at worst you will incur the wrath of His Majesty the Emperor!”

Imperial Princess Johanna went silent. She stared at Sebastian quietly for a while. She then raised the corners of her mouth.

“My Sebastian whose sincerity and loyalty are admirable. I’m sorry, but this is a matter that I should handle above anyone else.”

“……Pardon?”

“Hmph. You can only think of one thing at a time, huh?”

The Imperial Princess laughed through her nose.

“You said it yourself, Sebastian. You said that it was a maid who first discovered the hero of the lake. The maid then immediately called for the guards.”

“That is correct. But what is the problem?”contemporary romance

“Think about it. Someone broke into the palace. And it was done by an incredibly incapable commoner……. Who do you think would have to take responsibility for this?”

Imperial Princess Johanna extended her fingers on her left hand before folding them down one by one.

“The guards who maintain the public order within the imperial city? This was done by a single person and not a group, so it’s hard to treat this as an example of the public order becoming bad. That’s out. The mage tower that cast the 3,680 protection spells on the palace? Then I guess we would have to announce that those respectable mages are less capable than a talentless commoner, but we can’t start a tiresome confrontation like that. That’s out.”

Oh dear, the 14-year-old Imperial Princess said theatrically.

“There are no external problems, so where else could the problem lie?”

Ah, Sebastian let out a sound.

“Internally……this means there was a sympathizer on the inside, Your Highness!”

“That’s right, you stupid idiot Sebastian.”

Imperial Princess Johanna nodded her head.

“There’s now going to be a tense battle of nerves between the lady-in-waiting and the palace’s royal guards. This matter became convoluted because the maid who witnessed it first went to the guards before reporting to her superior. If the maids of the lady-in-waiting handled the matter on their own, then they could have easily passed the blame onto the guards. But…….”

“The achievement of imprisoning the lake man was split in half between the lady-in-waiting and the royal guards……. Therefore, they cannot shift the responsibility to either side!”

“Huhu. One wrong move and the head of either the head maid or the captain of the guards could get sent flying.”

Sebastian now realized how severe the situation was. The Emperor was undoubtedly angry. Blood might drift through the air at any moment…….

“I guarantee you that the hero of the lake is probably half-dead about now. The maids and the guards must’ve tortured him all night in rotation demanding to know who their connection was. Tsk tsk……I was wondering why I didn’t see Captain Herci at morning training. Well, if I don’t step forward here, then who would?”

Imperial Princess Johanna shook her head.

“What do you intend to do, Your Highness?”

“Hm? Are you curious?”

“Yes.”

The Imperial Princess grinned.

“If you’re curious, then tell me where my hero is located. This Terrifying Ruler will handle everything.”

“Haa, who would think that I would get wrapped up in this kind of mess after working here for 37 years…….”

The earnest servant made a sad face.

The Imperial Princess paid him no mind as she pushed him from behind. Sebastian started to walk down the hall feeling defeated.

“Oh right. What is our hero’s name?”

“Is he our hero now instead of your hero……? Understood. Mm, he has a rather unusual name. I personally do not know where his name comes from.”

“Hm? What kind of name is it?”

Sebastian recalled the layout of the underground prison as he answered.

“He’s called Lolita, Your Highness.”

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. Nothing much to really say. I won’t spoil this segment too much since it’s the first chapter, but as I mentioned before, this ‘What if?’ segment is going to be 6 chapters long. I guess the author had fun writing this one.

I’ll see you guys in the next chapter.

done.co