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 40

—It’s over.

Zarex was quite a formidable opponent, but, well, I never thought I’d lose.

Reincarnated as the cheat character Esmeralda, not to mention having the magic sword Levandest at my disposal.

With even a decent level of player skill, overcoming this situation would be easy.

In the original scenario, the protagonist is defeated by Zarex here.

Prince Lucias and President Cornelius are assassinated, and the world plunges into chaos.

If that happened, there’d be no way I could afford to build my kingdom, so I’m really glad we won safely.

“Is everyone alright?”

Just to be sure, I asked the adventurers and Muller―

“Yes, not a scratch on me!”

“Prince Esmeralda, I had you all wrong…!”

“You said you like my breasts, right!? You can touch them anytime!”

There are some weird responses, but it seems everyone is safe.

…Or rather, Muller, stop flaunting your chest here. That’s not quite right. I really want to touch it, though.

Afterward, Queen Clophe rushed to the scene, but it seems none of the conference participants died.

(There was also an apology for recklessly letting Muller go, but I’ve forgiven her. Of course, because an important ‘breast’ asset has been added, there’s no problem at all)

For now, the summit of the three great powers…has been resolved. Not only did the plan go well, but we were also able to win over Muller, so I’d say it was quite successful.

The remaining problem is―

“Prince Esmeralda. To prioritize the safety of your people over yourself… the rumors about you were completely wrong. You are a real man.”

Suddenly, Zarex laughed while planting his great sword into the ground.

“……!”

“You were still conscious…!”

The adventurers all start to be on guard, but it’s nothing to worry about.

Just in case, I dealt significant damage to his legs, and indeed, Zarex is now trembling in his feet.

He certainly won’t be able to stand up any time soon.

“I’m utterly defeated. In both swordsmanship and conviction, it was my complete loss. With a ruler like you, perhaps the Virginia Empire could have walked a different path.”

“……”

At those words, Muller showed a complicated expression.

…The Vefeld Kingdom is riddled with ugly struggles for power, but the Virginia Empire has its problems too.

Knowing a bit about the situation makes me feel indescribably mixed feelings.

“Ha, well, don’t get so gloomy.”

I said while patting Zarex’s shoulder. He’s injured, but well, I’m not obligated to be gentle with him.

“For now, breasts are justice, right?”

“Kukuku…No doubt about it.”

Zarex smiles lightly.

So he’s a fan of big breasts too. We could have indeed enjoyed a good drink.

“Prince. It seems you’re on good terms with the Elf Kingdom.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“―I admit you as a man, so I have to tell you. Our companions have also launched an attack on the Elf Kingdom. To fulfill the wishes of our client.”

“Eh,” Queen Clophe raised her voice high.

Her expression turned pale in an instant.

“Fufu, worry not Clophe. I’ve already anticipated this.”

Towards the queen, I say with a sly smile.

“Anticipated…you say?”

“Yeah. Why do you think I chose you as my companion for this summit, and not the Sword Emperor Mirua?”

“Ah…!”

Clophe’s eyes widened in realization.

“The Elves have reached a level sufficient to counter the terrorists. Don’t worry.”

★　★　★

“You’re late!”

“Guh…!”

I, Sword Emperor Mirua Laines, was dispersing the terrorists attacking the Elf Kingdom one after another.

It wasn’t a small number.

Countless terrorists surged here, launching attacks on the Elves from all directions.

—Probably, some major incident is occurring at the Three Great Nations Summit right now.

And amid that trouble, Yurisia must have launched a mass kidnapping of Elves.

Whether she’s right or not, Mirua was thinking this could be roughly the course of events.

—Yurisia is truly despicable.

Just imagining her face makes me nauseous.

However, even that was anticipated by Prince Esmeralda.

I was truly saddened when I wasn’t chosen as the companion for the summit, but probably, Prince Esmeralda had foreseen even this.

If Queen Clophe were here, she would definitely be the first target.

So in a way, the safest place—The Three Great Nations Summit—was chosen for Queen Clophe to prepare for this attack.

Also.

“Ku…kuh…! Impossible!”

“Why are the Elves overpowering us…!”

The assaulting terrorists seemed quite experienced on the battlefield, but the level of the Elves now surpassed even them.

Initially surprised, the Elves are now capable of firmly retaliating.

…Moreover, we’re in a state of mass-producing Last Elixirs.

We’re overwhelmingly dominant, unable to even think of reasons for losing.

“Let’s go! To repay the favor for training us by Esmeralda-sama!!”

“For Esmeralda-sama!!”

Seeing everyone rallying for Prince Esmeralda, I was on the verge of tears.

He was treated as incompetent at first.

He was feared by the Elves at first.

Now, everyone is risking their lives for Prince Esmeralda.

Everyone respects Prince Esmeralda.

Therefore, I must also resolve.

To get through this crisis without letting anyone die…