8. Aiden's Outing

Looking at the map of the Royal capital Irin, I decided to head to Evernight Street in the South-Western capital region as it was closest to me and had a Night market too.

After walking for fifteen minutes and looking at everything on the way with curious eyes, I reached the Evernight Street's Night Market and Oh boy, it was gorgeous!

"...I didn't expect it to be so lively and beautiful!" I marveled under my breath in awe. The scenery was unlike any mall or anything I had seen in my previous life, but it still had an impact greater than any mall could have.

The Evernight street lit with magic lights was bustling with people buying various things, merchants trying to sell their goods, performers demonstrating their arts, and friends enjoying themselves happily together. Evernight Street was so lively that I had to ask Char if there was a festival today that I may have forgotten. 

Everyone looked so delighted with their family and friends that I felt deep admiration and respect for my father sure, maybe he loved to torture his only son during practice, but he was a great king nonetheless and I, as the only prince of the country could feel the weight of responsibility that I would have to carry in the future when father would step down from the throne.

After admiring the smiles on the people's faces, my father's rulership, and feeling proud of being reincarnated as the son of such a man, I started feeling slightly emotional, so I quickly started talking nonsense with Char to distract myself.

"Char, do you think there would be sweets here that I don't get to eat in the Castle?" I asked trying to get myself in a better emotional state, gazing around the shops to find something sweet I hadn't eaten yet.

[How would I know about that, Host? I am a part of your soul, so I have the same knowledge as you about this world.]

'Tsk, Useless as ever.' I thought ignoring the fact that Char could hear my thoughts as I was already past the point where I would need to hide anything from her, after all, she was the only one I could talk to freely including my previous life.

[Host, I have told you again and again that I am not Useless! It's you who asks questions that I don't have any answers to if you were-]

Ignoring Char's angry yapping as background noise, I wandered my gaze from shop to shop and saw a lot of interesting things that made me excited; such as a Mango bun, a cocoa stick, a Caramelized Honey Apple Pie, a Wooden Dragon, and Magical Raven dolls. I even saw some sweets that I hadn't seen or eaten in the castle.

"They all look so enticing but..." I opened my Magic bag and grabbed the coins that I brought with me, "...I don't know if these would be enough for all of them." 

The currency used in the whole Mortal Realm of Melux was known as 'Azov'. When I was making preparations to get out of the castle, I kindly "borrowed" 1000 Azov from the same servant that I had "borrowed" clothes from, but I have no clue as to how much 1000 Azov value because I don't know what the normal price of the goods is in this world.

"Well, if these weren't enough, I could always use my charm to get some discount, after all, who won't give a discount to a Cute Little Kid, right, Char?" I said with a slight mischievousness.

[...You are quite sly, Host, you know that?]

"Seems like you agree too then..." I ignored what Char said, raised my fist, and shouted excitedly, "...LET'S ENJOY OUR FIRST OUTING!!!"

Hearing my shout a lot of people turned their heads towards the idiot of a prince who was shouting in the middle of a crowded street, feeling embarrassed by all the stares I quietly went into a corner, activated [Stealth], and blended into the crowd and thus beginning my first adventure in this world that I would remember as the most horrifying moment that I have ever lived in either world.

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I wandered around the shops sometimes making puppy dog eyes and even crying to get a discount as 1000 Azov was way less than I thought them to be. A mango bun cost me 50 Azov to buy, a Wooden Dragon cost 700, five cocoa sticks had me spend the rest of 250 Azov that I had left, and I couldn't even try the new sweets, nor could I buy the Magical Raven dolls that were priced 1000 Azov even after I tried all of my tactics to get their price down.

"Sigh~ I hadn't known 1000 Azov was so little money that I could only buy some sweets and- Crunch" I bit off the Cocoa stick that I was holding, "Oh, it's pretty good!!"

[Host, it's 1:55 in the Night, I think you should head back to the castle.]

"Oh, C'mon It's the first time I came out of the walls, let me enjoy a little long--" 

BOOM 

My words got cut as a blast echoed throughout the capital sourcing from the castle and was soon accompanied by more blasts of the same kind.

I hurriedly hid in a corner to take shelter from the blast as the Happy and lively Evernight street plunged into a chaotic stampede where everyone trampled over each other without any mercy to ensure their safety and survival.

'W-What's happening? Why ...Why are they killing our citizens?' I thought, frightened, as the frenzy among the people increased as soldiers wearing the symbol and armor of Our kingdom started slaughtering people left and right without any mercy or should I say with Joy on their faces.

Helpless cries of innocent people getting slaughtered echoed throughout Evernight Street which was filled with the laughter of friends and families just a minute ago, Seeing the stalls and shops selling sweets, and toys getting decorated with Human heads was something that I hadn't even dreamed I would see and never did I hope so.

I wanted to stop those soldiers who were killing innocent civilians by revealing my identity and ordering them in the name of Everhart, but my legs and vocal cords had given up, no matter how much I wanted to stop those maddened soldiers, the bloodbath happening in front of me had me incapacitated by fear of getting killed.

'N-No, I can't become paralyzed. I ...I am the prince of the Kingdom; I have to stop them.' I thought, tightening my resolve, remembering the smiling faces of citizens and the teachings of Father; I picked out the Royal Emblem from my Magic Bag as the symbol of Everharts and tried to put force on my legs to get up, but Char interrupted me before I could have done anything.

[Host, what are you trying to do? You should care more about your survival at the moment!]

'B-But they all are my citizens, aren't they? Father said that All of the Citizens and their safety are my responsibility as the country's prince.'

[Yes, they are your people, but we don't even know yet what they are after and why are they attacking? Maybe their target could be you, you know that don't you, Host?]

'I...' I couldn't come up with anything to refute Char's words as maybe I was just living in the shade of the lie that I understand what it feels like to bear the responsibility of other people's lives on your shoulders but when it came to taking the responsibility of these innocent lives, my legs and voice gave up in fear of my death.

I was afraid I might become alone again after getting a second chance to live happily with people I cherish. It doesn't matter if some random person died as long as it wasn't anyone I loved, right? If I died protecting someone I don't know and never met before, then how would I feel the happiness that I haven't felt in my previous life, how would I know what it feels like to make friends, what it feels like to fall in love, what it feels like to see the smile on your parents face because of you, what it feels like when a father pats the back of his son proudly. How would I feel any of these feelings if I died protecting the life of some unknown person whom I have never even met before?

"S-Save my child..." "Som... Someone P-Please ...Please save my child!!" As I was going down the dark spiral of selfish thoughts, a terrified scream of a woman brought me back to the gruesome reality. I looked toward the direction her scream came from; there I saw a mother asking for help as her infant child was not far away from the ongoing onslaught of the maddened soldiers. 

She looked towards me just for a second with hopeful eyes then quickly turned around to ask other adventurers who were trying to fend off the soldiers, maybe because I would have looked like a normal scared child to her as well but to me, that desperate look of help was everything that was needed to pull me outside of the abyssal spiral of my selfish thoughts because in this life, I am not just a normal person who doesn't have any responsibilities to hold. In this life I am the Prince of a Kingdom and a prince's greatest responsibility is to ensure his citizen's safety even if he has to put his own life in danger to do that.

*Ding*

[Trait (Royalty) has been evolved into (True Royalty).]

*Ding*

....

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