Reincarnated as the Hated Villainous Prince, I Thought I Could Live Freely in This Life, but Unconsciously Acted Like a Saint ~Trying to Create an Evil Kingdom, but for Some Reason I'm Highly Respected by Everyone~ - Chapter 1

“Wha…?”

My memories from my previous life resurfaced the moment I was blown away by my mentor, the Sword Emperor, Mirua.

“What are you dozing off for? In the battlefield, showing even the slightest of gaps can lead to death, Prince Esmeralda!”

Esmeralda.

Hearing that name, I recalled the situation I was in.

Esmeralda Dia Vefeld, the fifth prince of the Kingdom of Vefeld.

At the age of 18, unlike his brothers, he is not the queen’s child, and as the fifth prince, his birth was rather mediocre. With no talent for magic or swordsmanship, he was a boy who had lost all hope for the future.

He was also someone who abused his royal status to commit all sorts of tyranny.

That was supposed to be the character setting of Esmeralda.

Even though he wasn’t an outstanding character, I remembered him well because I had played through the RPG game many times.

And now, for some reason, I was living as Esmeralda.

I was supposed to be living in Japan, not the Kingdom of Vefeld, working as an average middle-aged salaryman.

Although it was a distant past, I remember my previous life well.

Having wasted my opportunities as a new graduate by joining an insignificant company, quitting and then moving to a sparkling (lol) startup, I was burdened with an intense workload by superiors younger than me…

And I have no memory of leaving the company completely exhausted.

Either I collapsed from overwork or I was involved in a car accident.

The details are unclear, but such things are trivial now.

I was desperate in my previous life. I wished I could start again, if possible. More specifically, I wanted to be reborn into the world of the game I had played over and over again.

And now, that wish had come true.

I even had the status of a fifth prince, so there was nothing more I could ask for.

During my school days I had to placate those at the top of the caste, and when I entered society I had to ingratiate myself with terrible superiors.

I hated my previous life because I couldn’t live the way I wanted to.

That’s why my reincarnation as Esmeralda was a stroke of luck. Becoming the game’s protagonist and saving the world made me sick. Like the character of Esmeralda, I wanted to live according to my desires…

That was my wish.

In this case, the first thing I wanted to do was to see if the knowledge from the game could be applied here.

“Get up, Prince Esmeralda! A moment ago, Prince Balfred, who was practicing, showed remarkable spirit!”

Sword Emperor Mirua said as she approached me with an exasperated look on her face.

Sword Emperor Mirua Laines.

She was said to have mastered two of the world’s strongest schools of swordsmanship, making her the strongest swordsman of the current era.

With long white hair down to her waist and a slender figure, you would never guess that she was such a master swordsman.

(And let’s not forget, she also has big breasts.)

If I wanted to test my game knowledge, she was the perfect opponent.

“No, my apologies. I was lost in thought.”

“Lost in thought…?”

“Yes. I was thinking about how I could make you admit defeat.”

“Haa…”

With that, Mirua sighed with resignation once more.

“I always tell you, swordsmanship cannot be mastered overnight. Before you try to defeat me, learn the basics first.”

“Ah… right.”

As I replied, I slowly got to my feet.

In the game of my previous life, there were several events where I had to fight Mirua. As a hardcore gamer, I remembered her moves perfectly.

And probably…

“Hmm…”

As I held my sword at the centerline, Mirua narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Prince Esmeralda, what has come over you all of a sudden…?”

“Nothing in particular. Now pick up your sword. We still have more to do.”

“…”

After a moment of surprise, Mirua also took up a fighting stance.

Just as I thought. I could tell just by the stance I took with my sword.

Compared to my previous life, my body felt much lighter and the sword felt strangely familiar in my hand.

In the background setting, Esmeralda was not completely incapable, just lazy. It wasn’t explicitly stated in the main story, but in truth…

Oops.

“I’m coming, Your Highness!”

While I was lost in thought, Mirua suddenly kicked off the ground and charged at me.

As befits the name Sword Emperor, her speed was astonishing.

If I let my guard down for even a moment, I would be subdued instantly.

But – I knew this technique!

“Fuh!”

I instinctively moved my blade to the right. The shock of the impact traveled up the sword into my hand immediately.

“Incredible…!”

Mirua’s eyes widened, clearly not expecting her attack to be blocked. Her chest also heaved with the effort.

The maneuver she was attempting was the Instant Piercing Strike of the Xerneas School.

A technique that focused on speed, closing the distance to the enemy in the blink of an eye, and delivering a quick blow. In the game, there was a preparatory move before it disappeared, indicating whether it would reappear to the right, left, or behind.

To dodge her perfectly required slightly different timing for each direction, making it a formidable challenge.

But to me, who had nothing but games to comfort me, such details were trivial.

“Hmph, but this is no time to be satisfied with a coincidence, Your Highness. On the battlefield-”

“Whoever lets their guard down first dies, right?”

I cut her off with a grin, and at that moment, Mirua leapt high into the air.

Her previous move, the “Instant Piercing Strike”, was powerful, but it didn’t leave her open. Her ability to immediately follow up with another devastating technique was part of what made her such a strong character.

“Oooohhh!”

Engulfed in flames that envelop her entire body, Mirua falls toward me with great momentum.

This move was surely the Valeria School’s “Dragon Flame Dive”, a technique that dealt massive damage to the entire party in the game. Even though it was restrained in practice, I hadn’t expected such a powerful move.

Of course, I’m familiar with “Dragon Flame Dive” as well.

Although it’s a powerful move that can nullify even a perfect guard, there was actually a way to counter it.

It was time to cast an earth spell.

The spell to be used was “Soil Wall”.

A spell that could completely block any attack once. It was a complicated spell that was difficult to use effectively, but as a hardcore gamer, I had used it many times before.

Clang!

Mirua’s sword came crashing down from above, but of course, it didn’t even leave a scratch on me.

“How could that be…!”

She exclaimed, taken aback.

Even the strongest Sword Emperor couldn’t launch such a powerful technique without leaving herself open.

Now, the sword technique to use in return… Let’s try the “Dazzling Sakura Strike” of the Xerneas School.

“Sei!”

With a sharp yell, I launched an attack on Mirua, not stopping at a single strike, but continuing with two, three more – each movement flowing as I danced around her, delivering a total of five blows. The faint pink traces of my sword’s path resembled cherry blossom petals fluttering in the wind.

It was one of the more powerful techniques in the Xerneas School, and I remembered that it consumed a considerable amount of CP to use in the game.

And with that, I landed a few meters away from Mirua and sheathed my sword.

By the time I had sheathed my sword,

“Esmeralda…sama…!”

Sword Emperor Mirua, for some reason, addressed me with an honorific, her ample breasts swaying as she knelt on one knee.

Huh…?

Did she just address me with an honorific?