The Invincible Aloof Yandere Princess Falls in Love with Her Younger Court Mage's Fatherly Warmth! ~She Clung to Him So Much That the King Fired Him. When He Made Marriage His Official Reason for Resigning Under Royal Order, the Light Vanished from the Princess's Eyes~ - Volume 2 - Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Salvation, and the Prelude to Violation

This is from Scarlet’s point of view.

—

Scarlet closed her eyes tightly and desperately fought down the sick feeling rising inside her.

In the middle of the wildly swaying light, she was being sent flying to some unknown place.
The feelings in her heart were completely different from the time she had been sent away with Albert before.

What flashed through her mind were the looks directed at her in the plaza just moments ago.
From the countless eyes of people came strong condemnation, or outright rejection.

…No matter what, she couldn’t help remembering the days back in her hometown.

“Everyone is going to bully me again. And, a-and above all… to Al-kun…!”

—He must be disappointed in me.

She had only wanted to be useful to him.
She had only wanted to apologize for digging up his old wounds.

And yet he had made that face… She had never seen Al-kun show his emotions so openly before…

“Uu, I’m sorry… I absolutely have to bring the princess back… Otherwise Al-kun will never… forgive me…!”

Half sobbing, she prayed desperately for the transfer to end soon.
Having lost almost all composure, the fact that she was a knight, or the crime of harming royalty, had completely slipped from her mind.

…Because he was the first person who truly understood her.

This terribly ugly world.
Because she was different from other people, because she was strong, even her parents, relatives, and everyone in the village refused to speak to her properly.

Chased out of the house, doused with sewage, pelted with stones… and in the end even caught in anti-monster traps.

In a world like that, the only thing she could do was read the hero tales she had taken from home until the pages wore out, and at least in her daydreams become a hero loved by everyone.

If she hadn’t been lucky enough to catch the knights’ attention and come to the capital, she would have stayed alone and lonely forever.

In such a cruel world.
Even after she distinguished herself as a knight, no one ever truly understood her.

The only person who shared the same pain as Scarlet was—

“If you say ‘misery loves company,’ I can’t deny it… but still…!”

Even so… even if he himself wasn’t aware of it—
it had been love at first sight.

Scarlet understood it instantly.
She could sense the emptiness swirling inside him.
She thought that he must have gone through something similar to what she had.

So she spoke to him, gradually grew closer, and used her position in the division to secretly look into his background.

She quickly learned that he was a genius who had become a court mage at the youngest age in history.
And that because of his achievements, he had been chosen to instruct Princess Killriera in magic.

Just as she thought.
Somewhere in her heart she felt a faint, dark joy realizing that he too was someone who had been shunned by those around him because of his talent.

After that, she spoke to him more actively than before, trying hard to deepen their bond.

His gentle nature, his thoughtfulness, the way he seemed so mature and somehow包容 for someone younger than her—Scarlet became completely captivated.

Because until then, she had never once been able to talk naturally with anyone…

But even that comfortable relationship with him was something she had no choice but to force forward, even if it meant pushing too hard.

Yes—because of the coup that started with Killriera.

After that incident, Albert had been given an important position in the kingdom.
And Killriera, perhaps having let go of something, began closing the distance to Albert even more than before.

If things continued like this, she would be left behind.
That fear led her to accept the nomination request.

A lot happened during the request, but in the end, they had grown closer.
The comfort of following his gentle voice, the way it sometimes made her chest and lower stomach tighten… it felt so good.

That was what she had thought.

“—The princess will definitely go much further ahead of me…! If this continues, Al-kun will be taken away…! But, but if I don’t bring the princess back, Al-kun will hate me—!!”

Scarlet’s heart was torn into a thousand pieces.

Scarlet, whose emotions had not yet fully matured, was—in truth, once the thick shell around her heart was peeled away—simply a delicate girl.
The feelings she directed toward Albert were close to blind faith.

But precisely because she was like this, she understood.
Of course Killriera thought of Albert as someone special—but the reverse was also true.

Even so, there was one thing Scarlet never got wrong: what she had to prioritize above all else.

It was fine to be second now—
at least, just let her stay by his side…

That desperate prayer… was completely drowned out by anxiety the moment the transfer light vanished before her wide-open eyes.

“Hurry, the princess…!”

And what lay beyond where the light had faded was

a facility that looked similar to the one she had seen once before.

—and a rough welcome by the edge of a sharp sword.

“Great job procuring a valuable star-omen user. I never expected you’d bring the princess herself—that was a surprise. Now then… disappear before you leak any more unnecessary information…”

“!”

The large sword of the big man who used 【Transfer】 came swinging down.

Scarlet instantly activated her ki, drew the sword at her waist, and somehow managed to block it.

And then… her emotions exploded.

“Because of you…!!”

“I didn’t want to do something this sneaky either… Well, I guess you should blame yourself for being so careless.”

“Shut up!!”

Two masters clashed fiercely, sparks flying violently right from their second meeting.

But precisely because they were both masters… Scarlet’s near-worst condition directly decided the outcome.

Unlike last time, the unknown tactic of using short-range 【Transfer】 right from the start was also a huge disadvantage for her.

With so many terrible conditions stacked against her, Scarlet couldn’t fight the way she wanted… and the conclusion came quickly.

“—It’s over, general of Atlas. I don’t have any personal grudge against you, but… well… die.”

“Uu…! Give her back, the princess! Give her baaack! Al-kun’s, uuuu…!!”

“See ya.”

The white blade was raised toward Scarlet, who had fallen to her knees.

The large man clearly had no enthusiasm for this, but there was not the slightest trace of mercy on his face.
As if he knew nothing of the storm raging inside Scarlet’s heart, he swung the sword upward.

Scarlet thought:

—In a life where nothing good ever happened, the only salvation had been Al-kun.

She wanted to stay with him longer. She wanted to be useful to him.
She wanted to spend more of that comfortable time together.

In the end, even from her most beloved Al-kun… will I die while still being hated…?

No, no way…

“—Help me… Al… kun…”

The words that spilled out along with her tears

should have been coldly cut down—

“—I heard you. Suu-san’s voice.”

“…Why… you!?”

A figure wrapped in golden light suddenly appeared.

A literal savior appeared, and with one blow sent both the sword and its owner flying—the sword that had been about to take Scarlet’s head.

The ki-reinforced blade bent heavily, and the large man was slammed together with it into the nearby wall.

Flying debris and dust rose up, but they were instantly vaporized by the surging star-omen energy.

And then.

Albert directed an absolute-zero gaze toward the rubble beneath him and let quiet anger spill from his lips.

“Are you… prepared?”

—

For Scarlet, the mere fact that Albert had come to save her was already salvation itself.

After this, it’s just a matter of beating up the enemies and rescuing Killriera.
But Killriera is not the type of princess who just waits quietly either, so it seems she’s plotting something on her own…