The Shut-In Prince’s Splendid Social Debut — Me, a Villainous Imperial, Have Spent the Last Fifteen Years Fighting the “Wicked Thoughts” Eating Away at My Mind. When I Finally Returned to High Society, There Were Way Too Many People I Didn’t Recognize — - Chapter 12: Yoald, Dies

When Naphna rushed to the scene, a bizarre spectacle unfolded before her.

At the center of the commotion stood a tall young man with unfamiliar blond hair, his back turned to her. For some reason, he was gripping a female knight by the face and lifting her into the air.

Moreover—

“…………Fugo…………Fugogo!”

He was firmly pinching her nose with his fingers.

(How cruel… Putting fingers in someone’s nose…)

The female knight was being forced into an expression that made Naphna instinctively sympathize with her as a fellow woman.

She had no idea what intention lay behind such behavior, but regardless, it was an act that trampled upon human dignity.

Naphna drew her sword to bring the situation under control, glaring at the young man.

“————You there, put that person down.”

The young man turned toward Naphna.

His face showed slight surprise. Yet it was also an expression that somehow did not exceed the bounds of his expectations.

Silky blond hair. From beneath slightly long bangs, clear sky-blue eyes peeked out.

A deep sky—so vast it felt as though it might swallow one whole.

An indescribable unease struck her, as though even her consciousness were being peered into.

The young man remained unmoved by Naphna’s words or the sword pointed at him.

(…So he has no intention of obeying.)

His attire was intricately designed.

However, the seat where the trouble had occurred was reserved for those positioned at the very bottom even among lower nobles.

Unconsciously, Naphna frowned as she looked at him.

“—You are a lower noble, correct? State your name.”

She asked sharply.

Her awareness as one whose name stood among the “Six Flowers,” the representatives of the six kingdoms, drove her toward justice.

She could not leave the outlaw before her as he was.

“…I am not someone worthy of stating my name. Besides, no matter what name I give here, you wouldn’t believe it anyway, would you? —Naphna Selene Perdraon.”

For a lower noble, his tone was excessively arrogant.

While sensing a strange incongruity in that, Naphna’s impression of the young man before her grew exceedingly poor.

He was the type of person who would be rejected first in social circles.

“What do you mean…?”

“Exactly what I said. You already judged me to be a ‘Villain’ with those clear eyes of yours, didn’t you? After all, you pointed a sword at me. I wonder—if I tell you my name, will you you truly be able to admit your mistake?”

That way of speaking displeased Naphna greatly.

In essence, it was the same as saying: Are your eyes merely knotholes?

Because it indirectly belittled the “Trust” and “Achievements” Naphna had built until now.

“…………I have no obligation to hear such things from someone whose identity is unknown. I told you to state your name, didn’t I?”

She asked again in a low voice.

Then the young man declared a shocking name.

“————My name is Yoan Joachim Rodenze. The Third Prince of this country.”

The venue erupted into chaos.

Shock. Doubt. Then hostility.

With the young man’s words, the hall instantly became a crucible of confusion.

“…Tsk.”

“It seems you cannot believe it.”

Naphna lost her words.

The young man who had seemed like a lower noble causing trouble had declared himself the Third Prince.

Naturally, she could not believe it.

Yoan, who had supposedly been a shut-in until now, had suddenly appeared at a social gathering and was humiliating a female knight as though putting on a performance.

However—

Somewhere in her heart, the thought of what if lingered.

Perhaps the time had finally come.

But Naphna did not want to admit it.

Because if it were true, the young man before her would be her fiancé.

“…Impersonating a member of the Imperial Family is punishable by death. Even so, do you still intend to call yourself Third Prince Yoan…?”

“Yeah.”

The young man continued to assert the same claim.

There was no strength in his voice. Instead, she sensed fatigue.

Within his expression, the faint flicker of disappointment toward Naphna appeared and disappeared.

“Tsk…”

Naphna flinched at a gaze she had never experienced before.

Because that gaze conveyed the truth.

“No… that can’t be…”

Even as her heart resisted accepting it, Naphna’s clear mind had already concluded with near certainty that the young man before her was indeed Third Prince Yoan.

Therefore, she decided to reset the situation.

First, she lowered the sword she had been pointing at him.

“…Could you put that person down? There is something I wish to confirm with you.”

“Yeah, I don’t mind.”

The young man answered obediently and released his grip from the female knight’s face.

“Kuh…”

The female knight glared at him.

Naphna herself also found this point strange.

(This is odd…)

Even if he truly was Prince Yoan, restraining an Azellan Imperial Knight with one hand should require a level difference of at least ten.

The average level of an Azellan Imperial Knight was around Lv. 30.

At minimum, Yoan would need to be Lv. 40 to accomplish such a feat.

To do that immediately after recovering from being a shut-in? Impossible.

Just as suspicion filled her gaze—

“Do you want to check my status? …Ah, unfortunately, you cannot do that, can you? Because asking someone to show their status might be taken as calling them a weakling.”

“…Tsk.”

For some reason, the young man blocked the method of verifying his status.

Furthermore, while speaking to Naphna, his gaze remained fixed on the female knight from earlier.

“No. In urgent situations, that does not apply. Could you show me your status?”

“I see. —But I refuse.”

The young man firmly declared his refusal.

Naphna frowned suspiciously.

“…Why?”

“Because priority matters. I still haven’t received an apology from that female knight over there. I cannot accept it if she claims she didn’t know I was the ‘Third Prince.'”

His words implied that the trouble originated with the female knight.

Naphna attempted to confirm the situation neutrally.

“…Could you explain what happened?”

Since Naphna showed neutrality, the young man began speaking openly.

“Then I’ll explain. I know that I am Yoan Joachim Rodenze, but for some reason this female knight keeps calling me ‘Yoald Decimal.’ She even kindly prepared a nameplate like this. Well, I think it’s a good name, but overwriting someone’s name without permission is not acceptable. After all, that would be rude to the mother who gave me my name, wouldn’t it?”

With a dark smile, he pointed toward the nameplate on the table.

Indeed, the name “Yoald Decimal” was written there.

Naphna narrowed her eyes.

If the young man’s claim was true, the female knight had committed a grave offense.

“…Is that true? Did you fabricate this person’s name?”

She directed a sharp gaze at the female knight.

“N-No, Naphna-sama! This person is lying! His name is Yoald Decimal! In the first place, Third Prince Yoan has shut himself away all this time without ever appearing in public, hasn’t he? Why would someone like that suddenly come to a place like this?!”

The female knight raised her voice.

Her reasoning made sense.

In this place, there was no one who could guarantee whether Yoan was genuine.

Therefore, the only thing that could prove it was Status.

However—

“…That is the claim of the Imperial Knights. I can understand your reasoning to some extent. Certainly, nothing here proves I am Yoan. …Very well. If you insist on continuing this claim, I will follow it through to the end. Go call the person in charge. Military Minister Serbul Nolla Grotes. Until that man bows his head— I will not disclose my status.”

“~~~~Tsk!”

For some reason, it sounded as though the young man was intentionally escalating the matter.

It felt as though he was turning the question of “Who am I?” into a black box—raising the stakes like a gambler at a casino.

“Tsk! Naphna-sama! You witnessed his outrageous attack on the Imperial Knight Order earlier! Can someone who behaves like that truly be called a Prince of this country?! Furthermore, Yoan-sama is Naphna-sama’s fiancé! Impersonating that name is an insult to both Naphna-sama and Yoan-sama! Please—condemn that man with your sword…!”

“Oi oi, are you trying to stain your master’s wedding with blood? That’s absurd. Haa… talking with you is pointless. Can you hurry up and bring the important person already?”

The female knight and the young man presented completely opposing claims.

(This is going nowhere…)

Even if Military Minister Serbul were summoned, the situation would only grow more complicated.

If the young man truly was Prince Yoan, then this would create a direct conflict with the Imperial Knights.

Frankly speaking, it would be a disastrous move.

Naphna could not understand it.

Therefore, there was only one way to resolve this situation.

“—Yoan-sama, please disclose your status.”

She spoke with a stern expression.

“Naphna-sama…?!”

“I see. So it comes to that…”

The smile vanished from the young man’s face.

“————Are you going to stand in my way? Naphna Selene Perdraon.”

His gaze turned severe.

It was not the gaze one would direct toward a fiancée.

Yet Naphna did not waver.

“That is not the case. Since this is a celebration of an engagement anniversary, I judged that further confusion is unnecessary. —Please, for my sake, could you settle this matter here?”

Naphna carefully weighed all circumstances and concluded that this was the best solution.

Taking both sides into account, the balance leaned toward the possibility that the young man truly was Yoan.

However, considering the mysterious power he had shown earlier, she could not be certain.

That was precisely why she needed to resolve this quickly before it escalated further.

“…Do you understand what you are saying?”

“Yes. Exactly as I said.”

In other words, she was offering to take full responsibility for the conflict.

If Naphna used her name as a guarantor for Yoan, dealing with the aftermath—including punishing the female knight—would become simple.

It should not have been a bad deal for the young man either.

Therefore—

“Then fine. …Status.”

The young man finally agreed.

Naphna stepped closer and checked his status.

—

Yoan Joachim Rodenze Lv. 9

—

(It really is him…)

What filled Naphna’s chest was not surprise, but disappointment.

Chaos was what Naphna hated most.

To her, the young man’s behavior—throwing fuel into the chaos himself—felt utterly alien.

Naphna turned toward the silent hall.

“…Status confirmation complete.
This person is —Third Prince Yoan himself.”

The moment she announced it, the hall exploded with noise.

“”Ohh…!””

Cheers and excited murmurs filled the room.

Since Naphna had guaranteed his identity, there was no longer any doubt.

In other words—

For the nobles, this was a scoop.

However, there was something Naphna had to do immediately.

“—Apologize to Yoan-sama.”

Her voice was cold.

Since Yoan had been confirmed as genuine, the disturbance had to be concluded.

Depending on the situation, Naphna herself might have to deal with the female knight.

“Kuh…! I am………… deeply sorry…………”

The female knight forced out an apology while glaring at Yoan.

The lack of sincerity was obvious.

But Yoan’s condition had been fulfilled.

The matter was settled by force.

“…Yoan-sama. With this, let us conclude the matter for now.”

“Yeah. If you insist that much, I suppose I’ll forgive her. —But remember this. The reason I stepped back was to save your face. If that Imperial Knight ever appears before me again, I will hold you responsible first. Do not forget that…………Piki piki.”

Yoan smiled.

Around his eyes, a strange blue lightning-like glow flickered.

“Tsk…”

What was that just now?

Cold sweat ran down Naphna’s back.

She had sensed something unknown—something beyond human limits.

(So this is… Third Prince Yoan.)

It seemed true that he had accepted the “Revelation of the Hero.”

However, something still felt off.

First, Yoan’s level was 9.

That was clearly insufficient to restrain an Imperial Knight.

Something was wrong.

Second, whether he truly followed the “Revelation of the Hero.”

The common belief was that a Hero embodied rage and cared little about bloodshed.

Yet despite having his name falsified, Yoan had not immediately taken the female knight’s life.

In fact, his response had been far kinder than Naphna expected.

(I still cannot be certain…)

“…Understood.”

Naphna nodded.

His words essentially meant: Deal with the female knight.

However, since he had not explicitly ordered her execution, it implied that life or death did not matter.

Naphna herself had no authority over the Imperial Knights.

At most, she could negotiate with their superiors and have the woman stripped of her title.

If Yoan understood that—

…No. Jumping to conclusions was unwise.

For now, Naphna had to act.

(—Before Yoan-sama gains any more power…)

She turned again toward the female knight.

“Then, members of the Imperial Knights, could you restrain this person—”

“N-Naphna-sama?! Th-That’s wrong! I only followed orders—”

The female knight hurriedly tried to explain herself.

But her words were cut off.

“————That will not be necessary.”

A man suddenly appeared, interrupting her.

A man in his mid-twenties dressed in luxurious garments.

Before anyone could react—

His sword flashed.

Boto…

Something heavy struck the ground.

A head.

The female knight’s head.

Her headless body collapsed to the floor, sinking into a pool of blood.

“———Those who commit rudeness toward a member of the Imperial Family are unworthy of belonging to the glorious Imperial Knight Order. Though it may be presumptuous of me, I have disposed of her here.”

His long navy-blue hair reached his shoulders, and he wore the uniform of the highest rank within the Imperial Knights.

He was handsome—but his exaggeratedly elegant mannerisms made it clear he was fully aware of that fact.

“I am honored to meet you for the first time, Third Prince Yoan Highness. —My name is Serbul Nolla Grotes. Please remember it from now on.”

The Military Minister of this nation announced his name with theatrical flair.