How to Live as the Enemy Prince

Senyu River was a large river running through Kyrisis, the capital city of the Kingdom of Kyris. It’s name had also been used for one of the buildings within the Royal Grounds and it flowed diagonally through the city.

(T/N – I’ve decided I’m going to use ‘Royal Grounds’ for the royal family’s residences because it's not just one palace, its a collection of palaces and pavilions so it makes more sense) 

The Royal Grounds were located to the northeastern and central parts of the river and the royal road, which went from the main gate in the southwest of Kyris, crossed the Senyu River and continued to the Royal Grounds. 

After Hatusara’s death and after Sispanian departed, it was the construction of the royal road that revived the Kingdom which had stagnated. It stretched from Kyrisis and connected to many major cities, it was considered an extremely important part of the kingdom’s infrastructure that had revived Kyris.

Clop clop, clop clop 

(How do you guys feel about these onomatopeyas? I’ve been trying to translate korean onomatopeyas to make it more familiar to english speaking audiences but tbh they’re really awkward – might leave them out entirely idk)

On that royal road, two wagons, one pristine white, and one glistening black – were headed to the Royal Grounds. 

The carriages that ran side by side both boasted extravagant appearances, with large glass windows and shiny exteriors coated with pearl powder. 

The difference was that one was decorated with golden leaves on a white background the other other was decorated with nacre on a black background. 

Nacre, also known as ‘Mother-of-pearl’ was highly coveted in Kyris as despite it being the largest kingdom on the continent, Kyris did not have access to the sea. Pearls could be formed in freshwater so they were not difficult to obtain, but mussels, which were used to make nacre were – and so in Kyris, the price of nacre was even more than that of gold.

The man who was sitting in the white carriage had his gaze fixed on the black carriage next to them. There was a sense of discomfort in having his carriage travel side by side with the black one in all its extravagance and he clicked his tongue, 

“Look at that, that is what you call a rolling mound of money- is the frivolousness not excessive?” 

The butler, who had been sitting on his perch at the front of the carriage heard the remark and looked over at the window,

‘He’s saying that like golden leaves are cheap – is it time to be criticising others about their frivolousness?’ the butler thought.

If the owner of the white carriage had not been wearing shoes embedded with diamonds imported from Tensil – then the butler would not have thought such a thing. 

On the outer wall of the white carriage, there was a painted crest of a Griffin wiedling a sharp sword – it was the crest of the Brissen; the family of Queen Silica and the man with diamonds on his shoes was Viscount Lennon Brissen, the second son of the Marquis of Brissen.

“Is it the Siegfried’s carriage? No, there’s no way elephants that are only big in size would be so ostentatious,”

The elephants of Kyris was a term describing the Seigfreid family – that had never coveted the throne but had the power to do so – they were formidable enough that no one could touch them – which is why they were named elephants, one of the biggest herbivores even lions would hesitate to mess with.

However now that he had crossed the Siegfrieds off the list, Lennon could not bear his curiosity and asked again,

“What kind of man is it that would throw away so much money on a carriage?” There were no other families in Kyris apart from the Brissens and the Siegfrieds who had the means to own a carriage like that. 

“I just saw it coming out of Teinansha street. The crest is on the other side, so I am unable determine which family’s carriage it might be-”

“Teinansha?”

“Yes, that’s where the mages gather,” Lennon frowned at the butler who had explained things kindly to him. 

“Do you think I asked because I didn’t know? Why are you so slow?” 

Lennon said something that would have made Calian and Silica mock and laugh at him if they had heard, so he shut the butler up before once again pulling back the curtains on the large window to look out at the black carriage. 

However there was a thick closed curtain on the black carriage’s window so there was no way of knowing who was sitting inside. 

“Was there anyone with such wealth among the magicians?” 

“Should we move to the other side and look at the family crest?” 

“Do it,” Lennon nodded, and the butler gave the order to the carriage driver. 

The white carriage slowed down, allowed the black carriage to go ahead of them, then picked up speed again towards its left side.

Lennon quickly moved his hand to peek through the curtains of the window and caught a glimpse of the crest.

“That crest is complicated. What’s that, flowers? One, two…”

The carriage moved a little further forward, allowing him to see the crest more clearly and when he saw it properly, Lennon rubbed his eyes hard.

“Am I seeing this right?” he said in disbelief.

Then the butler looked at the crest outside and spoke kindly again.

“Seven red flowers and a silver wand, My Lord.”

“You think I don’t know that? Shut your mouth!”

Seven red flowers, a silver wand! Impossible!

“Haaa. I’m crazy. How could he be here? Why is he going to the palace?” Lennon muttered to himself frantically.

The butler didn’t know who the crest belonged to, and he had been silenced by his master, so the butler just stared ahead.

Meanwhile, the two carriages also passed through the streets of Anansha, home to the nobility. And soon, the other nobles heard of the extravagant black carriage headed to the royal palace. 

“A vine of red flowers around a silver wand?”

The nobles, who heard of the crest carved on the outer wall of the carriage, sent their servants to check up on the rumours. 

Then, when the servants came back to confirm that there was indeed such a crest on the side of the carriage,  the nobles said, one by one, after the other, “You must be seeing it wrong.”

No way.

“What reason could Alan Manasil have to come to Kyris?” they would say, and smile calmly – even as they dropped everything they were doing that day and made the preparations to head to the Royal Grounds.