How to Live as the Enemy Prince

Calian was fully proving himself to be worthy of being a member of the Royal Family of Kyris. It was no exaggeration to say that with those eyes and hair, he truly did resemble Sispanian.

It wasn’t just his figure. The clothes that Calian was wearing caught their attention as well.

He wore pants and a shirt of the same white colour, along with a fitted navy blue jacket that came down to the knees.There were no ornaments except the button on the long jacket, so that the focus was drawn instead to the jewel sparkling on his neck.

If it were not for that, the nobles would not have been so awestruck. Gracing his throat was a ruby pendant that shone exactly the same colour of his eyes, a colour that the original Calian would never have chosen.

“It seems as though he is saying he will no longer live in hiding,”

“Surely, that must be it,”

They did not know that Franz’s description of his ‘bloody eyes’ had left such a deep impression on Calian that he had simply not made the connection of the ruby on his neck being the same colour as his eyes – nor the impression it would make on the nobility around him. 

The nobles freely gossiped and interpreted the meaning of Calian’s simple clothes and single ornament between themselves until they realised they had yet to greet him. 

They hurriedly bowed – it was a large difference to how they would reluctantly nod their heads forward previously. 

Whatever the circumstances in the past, Calian, who had appeared before them in the form of the flawless perfect prince, looked into the eyes of each and every single of the nobles who bowed to him – before the corners of his lips curled up into a small smile. 

“My pleasure,” Calian kept his greeting as simple as possible, it wasn’t exactly a great rhetoric but the short greeting seemed to show exactly how leisurely he felt in this situation. 

After this, he immediately sat down. He didn’t bother engaging in conversation, instead feeling relaxed that his duty for the night was done, and now all he had to do was relax and zone out. However, this time, it was his short remarks that caused the buzz of gossip to spread. 

“‘My pleasure’? It’s almost as though he is seeing us for the first time? What does this mean!”

Soon the nobles began to try to dig into the hidden meaning of Calian’s short words with sharp glances among themselves and puzzled murmurs. 

‘Whoops,’ Calian sighed,

He thought he would draw attention, but he didn’t expect it to be to this degree and in his desire to get things over with, he had forgone formalities with the nobles.

“It’s alright your highness, I know there was no deep meaning behind your greeting so there is no need to worry,” Yan comforted Calian with a whisper. 

If either of them had grasped the severity of the situation properly, then there would not have been a laughable situation in which the value of Kyris’ rubies skyrocketed and the eager procession to locate Sispanian’s nest – which had been empty for 500 years – would not have taken place. 

And there would not have been impatience festering in the heart of the person who had been watching Calian closely.

—

‘Siegfried’s Summer Night,’

Among the songs composed by Olive Wrench, a famous violinist and composer from the Kingdom of Riverne, there was one that was considered the most magnificent by far.

The song, titled ‘Siegfried’s Summer Night,’ was a masterpiece that expressed the emotion Wrench felt when she was invited to Kyris Palace.

Siegfried Pavilion, regarded as the most heavenly building on the grounds, was a large, oval-shaped banquet hall supported by platinum-plated pillars and crystal walls. 

When lit at night, it was like standing inside of a beautiful gem.

The violin’s melody captured the solitude of the palace hidden behind it and the joy of facing the glittering Siegfried Pavilion on a summer night. Many who listened to the music shed tears of joy and sorrow.

‘If you are a musician, you must play this piece at Siegfried Pavilion at least once’ was a common sentence spoken among musicians. 

The name of the hall came from Duke Siegfried, who was one of the two greatest military families of Kyris, alongside Marquis Brissen. The founder and first patriarch of the family was Duke Quitros Horne Siegfried, one of the eight heroes of the War of Gods.

Coincidentally, Quitros died on a midsummer night, and it was said that Duke Siegfried regarded the song as more highly than all the others in the Kingdom.

That famous song was echoing in that famous crystal hall now. The people gathered inside the banquet hall for the evening event began to lower their voices and appreciate the music. A man who just arrived at the entrance of the Siegfried Pavilion burst into a jovial laugh and said,

“I can’t believe I arrived just when this song is playing! This is why I can’t help but love it!” 

Several nobles turned and greeted the man warmly.

“Duke Siegfried, welcome!”

The great man, the sole Duke of Kyris, the current patriarch of the Siegfried family and one of the five sword masters of the continent, hummed the melody and pretended to play the violin. The crowd burst into laughter.

“Seeing your motions – I am becoming more curious about Your Grace’s violin skill,” 

“When you have time to take a break, come down to my place – I’ll be happy to let you hear me play.”

“Then I will look forward to your performance,” 

“Of course. Isn’t there the saying ‘there might be a Seigfried without skill with the sword but there is never a Seigfried without who cannot play the violin’?” The Duke declared. 

“Really? That’s an interesting story! Haha!”

While such revelry was taking place at the entrance of the Pavilion, Calian who had been heading to the Siegfried Pavilion’s halls on Raven’s back, turned back to smile.

“He seems like a very pleasant person. What was his name? Slayman…”

Yan, who was staring at the man with disgust, replied to Calian as the prince was sorting through his memories.

“Duke Slayman Horne Siegfried, the master of House Siegfried.” The Siegfrieds owned a very large estate to the south of Kyris, where there were empty nests that used to belong to Sispanian.”

The powerful Siegfried family could have taken interest in the throne, but instead they spent more than 500 years dutifully protecting Sispanian’s territory.

He had heard this story when he was still Bern, and was impressed with this honourable duke.

“Yes, indeed.”

He was the type of person that Calian admired. Of course, one could not forget the duke’s loyalty to the king, but what attracted Calian to him was his ancient, deep-seated devotion.

“That violin, I want to hear it, too.” Calian looked at the duke with a favourable impression in his mind.