Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Youngest Prince, Milimos

I was a typical Japanese college student, nothing out of the ordinary. I joined the literature department, worked part-time to earn some pocket money, and spent enjoyable times with a small group of close friends. They recommended some popular anime and light novels to me, so I became somewhat of a casual otaku.

My turning point came during winter break when I returned to my hometown. I didn't want to deal with the peak travel season, so I left my apartment near the university right after my exams ended, took the bullet train, and transferred to a local express train late at night. It was the last train of the two-car formation, and it was snowing outside.

Due to the snow or perhaps a mistake made by the driver, I'm not sure what caused it, but an accident occurred. The train derailed and overturned, and I was thrown out of a window that had broken due to the impact.

When I came to my senses, I found myself waking up as Prince Milimos Nonette of the Nonette Kingdom. I was only five years old at the time. Not only did I retain memories of my past life up until the accident, but I also had memories of growing up as Milimos.

Although I was a prince of a small and weak country located in the mountains, I was the youngest of seven siblings. My parents loved me, but they didn't give me an education to prepare me for becoming a king, such as imperial studies. Instead, they gave me an education to support my future siblings who would become the king. I was taught to swing a sword to become a soldier, taught arithmetic to become a merchant or bureaucrat, and sent on tours of workshops to make connections with craftsmen.

In the midst of all that, what captivated me was the [magic] that existed in this life but not in my past life.

Most people in this world can use simple magic.

Of course, I had the aptitude to use magic as well.

After practicing, I was filled with an incredible sense of awe when I first lit a flame on my fingertip.

Unable to forget the impact of that feeling, I continued studying magic whenever I had free time.

My magic practice progressed smoothly.

I became able to perform even the difficult magic that children struggled with.

While my mental maturity from knowledge of my past life helped, it was the result of numerous practices and failures and the lack of entertainment as a pastime.

Contrary to the common trope in light novels of gaining magic through knowledge of scientific facts from a past life, it didn't really help in learning magic.

Presumably, this world and my past life operated under different principles.

Anyway.

When it came to magic, I became known as a child prodigy.

I was praised for it, but not overly so.

In retrospect, it was because I knew there were those better than me.

And those superior beings were the citizens of the Magic Empire, Majistri-Prunburu.

The magic technology that small countries like the Nonette Kingdom possessed couldn't even compare to the technology held by the empire.

It was said that even if I were called a child prodigy in the Nonette Kingdom, I would only be considered slightly above average in the empire.

That's why my father, King Chorlex, decided to...

"The magic skills have improved enough, now direct that passion towards swordsmanship," came the request.

The country of Nonette is a small mountainous country. In this world of magic, not only wild animals but also monsters appear in the mountains. And the duty of subduing these monsters is carried out by warriors, not by wizards.

In this world of magic, spells that can defeat living creatures with a single blow cannot be activated with just one word - at least not with the spells known in Nonette. Therefore, it is inevitable for mercenaries and soldiers to accompany the wizards.

However, if the monsters are weak, the warrior can defeat them with swords and spears. Of course, when facing strong enemies such as monsters, a wizard is essential. Many monsters cannot be defeated without a magical blow, and fighting with only weapons often results in many casualties.

However, strong enemies such as monsters do not appear frequently in populated areas. The people's concern is mainly the damage caused by weak monsters. Consequently, the evaluation of "why do we need wizards?" becomes more prevalent.

The scarcity of wizards capable of hunting big game also contributed to this evaluation. As a result, the misconception has spread that the warriors who fight with weapons are the ones protecting people's lives.

This misconception seems to have affected the king - Cholorex, who should have known the country's situation well. As a result, I was forced to reduce my time learning magic and allocate it to sword and spear training.

Every day, there were grueling training sessions like torture.

My sensible opinion that it was too difficult for a boy just over ten years old to endure was rejected.

In the midst of such daily life, I carried my worn-out body and tried to think of ways to somehow manage.

The first thing that came to mind was to strengthen or repair my body through magic. Magic could do many things, and it was a common method in fantasy stories I read in my previous life.

However, the magic in this world only had the ability to affect things outside of the body. In other words, it seemed impossible to strengthen muscles or heal muscle pain.

I believed that this common sense should be questioned and spent a year experimenting with applying magic to my body.

But it was impossible.

Later, I learned that even at the peak of magical technology, the Magistri-Plumburum Empire, they had determined that it was impossible to strengthen the body through magic. It was impossible for me to create such a thing just by thinking about it for a year.

However, the attempt to strengthen the body through magic was not in vain.

When I tried to directly infuse the magic power used for magic into my muscles, I felt the magic power being repelled by my muscles.

Wondering what it was being repelled by, I tried the same thing again while meditating.

Then I realized that the warmth that the muscles themselves produce was bouncing off the magic power.

Upon closer observation, I noticed that the magic power was passing through the thin areas where the warmth was and following a predetermined route. I realized that this situation where magic power was passing through a specific route was what made it feel like blood flowing through the body.

So what was the power that the muscles themselves had to repel magic power?

At this point, I didn't know what it was, so I tentatively defined it as "qigong."

Because when I activated this power, the muscular strength generated by my muscles increased and my injuries healed faster. I thought this phenomenon was similar to the qigong I had heard and seen in my previous life.

Having learned qigong (temporary) in this way, I began to train using that power. 

At first, it was difficult to do qigong while exercising, but over time and with practice, I became able to do it. 

Once I had become accustomed to using qigong, I began to train in swordsmanship and spear-fighting with it. 

After I became able to manipulate qigong skillfully in matches, despite being only eleven years old, I was able to overwhelm adults with my strength and skill. 

Well, I couldn't win against the strongest warrior in the country, Komita Tua, the captain of the Royal Guards, though. 

As I was leading such a daily life, just a little bit before my twelfth birthday, I was summoned to an audience with my father, King Chorex. 

I had been studying magic on my own, and I had been continuing to train in sword and spear techniques and making progress. 

Not understanding the reason for the summons, I decided to ask my father what he wanted of me while maintaining the proper etiquette I had learned in this life. 

"Father, I was summoned here, but did I do something displeasing?" 

Deeply puzzled, I asked him, and he covered his face with his hands. 

"Milimos, my child, you have obeyed my instructions and have been diligently training as a warrior. I commend you for that, but I don't hold anything against you." 

Perhaps because we were having a conversation in the audience chamber, my father spoke like a king. 

When I tilted my head, wondering why I had been summoned, he gave me a wry smile. 

"You use Holy Magic during training, don't you?" 

"Holy Magic? That's the first time I've heard that term. But if you're referring to the power I use during training, then yes, that's correct." 

To make it easier to understand, I used qigong with all my might. 

Even though I would tire out in a minute, it was possible to emit an invisible pressure in all directions that even a slow-witted person could perceive. 

In fact, even my father sitting on the throne could feel the pressure and was slightly taken aback. 

"...That is Holy Magic. However, if you don't know the name of the technique, does that mean you learned that power on your own without learning it from anyone else?" 

"Yes. I stumbled upon it accidentally while using magic and have been practicing it voluntarily ever since." 

Although I answered truthfully, my father's concern deepened as he covered his face with his hands. 

"At any rate, I understand that you can use Holy Magic. And the reason why I called you here is..."

Father had a pained expression, as if struggling with the decision he had to make, and spoke in a hesitant voice.

"By recommendation from various sources, we have decided to appoint you as a marshal of the national army."

"...I am honored to receive the royal decree, but as a marshal is the pinnacle of the military, are you suggesting that a child who is about to turn twelve, namely me, should assume this position?"

I thought it was a reasonable question, but Father replied with a wry smile, as if to admonish me.

"That twelve-year-old child can use magic to defeat monsters and has the power to overcome ordinary warriors with holy art. Moreover, that child is the youngest prince of a certain country. Considering his future potential, don't you think he is more than qualified to lead the military?"

When I thought about it, it was certainly true.

Nonette was a small country with a small population, which meant that the likelihood of talented individuals being born was low. There was no room to let the prince, who showed potential to become a capable warrior, play around. Rather, if the prince could be placed at the top of the military, it would not be a dream for the royal family to lead the helm of the military.

Furthermore, if I were to become a young military officer serving the state and the royal family, it would eliminate the possibility of me becoming king, which would provide peace of mind to my older siblings who were being educated to become monarchs.

"So, I am just a decoration as a marshal, right?"

"For now, you can think of it that way. Let's proceed right away and present you with the royal decree and the medal that represents the marshal's position."

When Father waved his hand, the Prime Minister, who was my uncle, the Duke Avkoro, approached with a tray that held a rolled-up paper and a golden badge.

"Milimos, congratulations on your appointment as marshal. Well, you are still a young marshal, so we'll assign Alektem, who knows everything from the top to the bottom of the military, as your guardian. Please understand."

"Understood. I am just a figurehead marshal!"

I nodded energetically like a boy.

Then, Father and Uncle looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders together.

There were doubts about their actions, but anyway, I became the youngest marshal of Nonette, a small country.