"Oh, I almost forgot the most important thing."
"Pardon?"
The most important thing? What could that be? Surely he wasn't about to deport me for being an illegal immigrant, right?
As I struggled to calm my racing heart, stunned by meeting royalty for the first time, the Crown Prince pulled out something very familiar from his coat... the first volume of
"Could you autograph this for me?"
"... Excuse me?"
"An autograph. Please make it out to George, Mary, and Edmund."
"Ah, understood."
With trembling hands, I slowly scribbled the requested names inside the book. But wait, what I wrote wasn't in English?
I froze as I looked at the proud creation of King Sejong the Great, Korean characters, clearly visible in the Crown Prince's eyes.
How could I make such a mistake!
"What kind of writing is this?"
"Oh, that... I apologize, Your Highness. These are the characters from my home country, Korea, or Joseon. If you'd like, I can rewrite it."
"No need. This makes it unique."
Nodding in satisfaction, the Crown Prince spoke.
Really? Is this okay?
"Besides, Joseon... I vaguely remember hearing about it. I've even been to Japan once. Got a dragon tattoo on my arm there, want to see it?"
"No, thank you!"
Feeling a bit let down, George lowered the arm he was about to roll up.
Who is this guy... Am I really looking at the Crown Prince of the British Empire? Not just some frivolous playboy?
As I stared in disbelief, George smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"Don't be so tense. This title of Duke of York is just as uncomfortable for me."
"Ah, yes."
"You may not know, but I wasn't destined to be the Crown Prince. That was my late brother's role. Even Mary, who is now my wife, was meant for him."
I vaguely recalled a story Mr. Miller had told me.
The original Crown Prince died suddenly before his wedding, and his younger brother had to take over.
When I first heard it, I thought it was just another case of royal succession. But hearing it from the person himself, expressing those feelings, felt quite surreal.
"Even though it was an unexpected arranged marriage, it makes me want to treat Mary even better."
"Hmm. That's a noble sentiment."
But what does that have to do with me? As I thought that, George chuckled and said,
"But you see, Mary's favourite thing, the one that makes her smile the most, is you. How could I not be jealous as her husband?"
What am I supposed to do about that?
"Hmm. I'm just an ordinary writer."
"I know. But perhaps when you get married, you might understand this feeling. That's human nature, isn't it? Lately, seeing Edmund brings out similar smiles."
"That's... good to hear. But, Edmund?"
"I was going to name him Edward. After my late brother's nickname, Eddy. But after reading
So, he changed the future king's name because of
This has to be some kind of prank, right?
"Well, what I'm trying to say is..."
As he threw me into a panic, George pulled out a cigar, cut it, and lit it with a flourish.
Even after years in England, I still couldn't get used to the smell of tobacco...
"I'd like you to be my friend."
"... Pardon?"
Suddenly, this frivolous royal dropped a bombshell.
What is this now? The future king of the British Empire wants to be friends with an ordinary novelist?
I mean, I get that he and his wife are my fans, but still.
"Your Highness. As I said earlier, I am Korean, from Joseon."
"So?"
"I'm not British, nor am I a noble. And you want to be friends?"
"I wasn't supposed to be king, either."
"No, but..."
Seeing how he persisted, he truly seemed to have a knack for being a king. The problem was he was using that talent to force friendship on me.
As I sighed in frustration, George chuckled, shaking his head.
"I understand what you mean. With my grandmother's absolute rule, I must seem like just another blue-blooded figure."
"No, well..."
"But for me, that kind of gaze is nothing but a burden. I just want to travel the world like I did as a naval officer, collecting stamps, hunting, and reading books."
"Hmm... But as a prince, aren't you required to maintain a certain level of dignity?"
"Is that how it is in Joseon?"
Well... I came from there, but how would I know about life in the Joseon royal court? I was just an ordinary citizen of South Korea.
George, who had been chuckling, shook his head, exhaling cigar smoke as he spoke.
"At least I never received that kind of education. But suddenly, after my brother died, I became the Crown Prince, and do you know what the tutors said to me? They nitpick every little mistake in my words and claim my intellectual level is on par with a railway porter..."
"Ah, haha. Hahaha."
"That's why I can't help but like your writing."
"Uh, um. Yes. I understand what you mean."
My writing is known for being easy to read.
Well, it's just that my English isn't that advanced, so I manage to keep up.
"Still, calling me a friend feels quite excessive and a bit overwhelming."
"Well, if it's too much, feel free to decline. You can send me signed books from time to time, and I'd be more than grateful."
"No, I can't do that."
I replied immediately.
"It wouldn't be polite to decline such a rare opportunity. Just a moment."
I stood up briefly and went into the kitchen. I opened the whiskey collection that Mr. Miller cherished.
If Mr. Miller found out, he'd be furious, but he would understand given the situation—after all, this is the Crown Prince.
Besides, I could always replace it with my own money, right? I'm not sure how expensive it is, though.
"Normally, I don't enjoy alcohol, but on a day like this, wouldn't one or two glasses be alright?"
"Oh! I didn't expect you to be so generous."
"Well, I tend to go all out when I spend."
Mostly when it comes to gacha games.
Anyway, the Crown Prince George before me was no different. It felt like I was being presented with a limited, top-tier connection without even rolling a gacha. I can't resist this.
Of course, it's not like I expect anything special in return.
Power, after all, is like the sun—getting too close can burn you.
I'm just an ordinary novelist, so I don't need to worry about that. I'll maintain a casual friendship and be satisfied with the occasional benefits.
Yeah, thinking of it that way makes it easier to handle—like I've gained a wealthy brother.
I'm not a big deal, after all, so there's no need to stress over it.
As I spoke, I realized that the Crown Prince in front of me didn't seem like someone who would take such impure thoughts too seriously.
Through the strong whiskey, layer by layer, George and perhaps even his father, Edward the Prince, started to reveal their emotions.
The feeling of pressure.
The immense burden on heirs to succeed the great Queen Victoria is no joke.
I certainly only know Queen Victoria; I'm not familiar with the kings that followed.
Hmm, but how capable do you have to be to carry such a burden? I'm curious to find out.
"So, as much as possible, my mother and I plan to avoid the headaches of political affairs when we inherit the throne. Other kings in different countries panic at the thought of democracy, but honestly, I don't intend to waste my life on politics."
"Good choice. No one acknowledges your hard work anyway. With plenty of money, it's best to live comfortably and do what you want."
"That's exactly what I mean! Finally, I'm hearing what I wanted to hear!"
Maybe I was a bit tired, but as we opened up like this, I felt a bit light-headed.
So, somehow, we found ourselves talking freely.
"No, I mean, why did you have to kill Peter? Do you know how much my wife cried?"
"Goodness, that sounds oddly familiar. Really? Is there an Im-Pak-To, Im-Pak-To!"(T/N: I can't find anything about this, if any readers know about this please comment about that)
"That's utterly bizarre. Does it make you feel good to toy with someone's feelings like that?"
"Of course! I made that person angry! I can manipulate that person's emotions! You know, in Chinese, that's written as *感動*, meaning 'to move someone's feelings.'"
"Oh, that's very 'sensational.'"
Speaking of my writing...
"To be honest, Your Highness, I'm really disappointed in you. How could you use my work at your wedding without giving any sponsorship?"
"Now that's petty! If you think about it, my wife and I essentially promoted your writing for free. How could I expect to pay you for that?"
"Ah, if I start accepting payment for everything, I'll end up with strange characters in fan creations! Like erotic doujinshi!"
"What on earth is that!?"
We reminisced about old wedding tales.
"Speaking of which, you write incredibly fast. Do you have any other hobbies?"
"Well, writing itself is a hobby."
"My word. You should try to develop some other interests. How about hunting? I'm quite the marksman, you know. You should come to Norfolk sometime. Stay at my York villa for a few days, and we can go hunting."
"Hmmm. To think you'd dare say that in front of someone from the archer tribe! Fine! I can confidently say that when I was in the military, I shot twenty times and hit the target every single time!"
We talked about visiting each other's homes.
To my surprise, George, the future king, turned out to be quite a down-to-earth person.
Hmm, wait.
A down-to-earth royal who wasn't meant to be king.
It seems like a fantastic story idea is brewing.
"Your Highness."
"Hmm? What is it?"
"About the copyright I mentioned earlier."
"Uh-huh."
"Would you consider repaying me in another way?"
"Hmm? How?"
"Perhaps by appearing in my novel?"
As in, using your body to repay me.
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