Reverse Scale (4)

7.

The Crown Prince, along with his close aides, stealthily hid himself in a small town. It was more of an escape than a flight—indeed, an escape from reality.

"First, let's send an envoy to suggest surrender."

I surrounded the small town with the Duke Ivansia's Knights, the Imperial Knights, and my own vassals. We then formally sent an envoy to propose surrender politely.

Of course, the Crown Prince, who had fled from reality, was not in any mood to observe such formalities.

According to the envoy who returned, His Highness the Crown Prince screamed, "You are invaders from another world! I am the foundation of the Empire! I will never bow my head to the likes of lowlifes from another world!"

I clicked my tongue after hearing the news.

"How foolish."

Yes. If I had intimidated the Crown Prince without any justification, I would have been treated as an invader from another world.

There were quite a few nobles and citizens of the Empire who disliked the other world. If handled well, the Crown Prince's argument that we must stand against the threat of the other world could have gained traction.

However, I had the legitimacy granted by the Emperor.

From the clothes I was wearing to the Empire's attire, I was none other than the wife of the Duke of Ivansia, acting under the solemn command of His Majesty the Emperor, not a monarch from another world.

Checkmate.

"What are you planning to do now?"

Sylvia approached me and asked. She, being well-versed in the affairs of the Empire, was assisting me.

"Based on my past experiences with him, I would advise you to drop any expectations of his surrender. That man. Once he sets his mind on something, he does not relent."

"So what if he doesn't surrender?"

"Heh, so?"

I grasped the hilt of the holy sword.

"I'll capture him."

That night, I alone climbed over the city walls.

The Crown Prince's forces were seemingly prepared for a siege, as the security was quite strict. Which is to say, it was [quite] strict but not nearly strict enough. If they wanted to stop me, they needed to have set up an immensely meticulous and terrifying security, not this, my good man.

Less than an hour had passed before I infiltrated the Crown Prince's bedroom.

"Huffff… Uhhhhm…."

The blonde Crown Prince was deeply asleep, oblivious to the world, even though the knights outside his bedroom were all knocked out.

I snickered and poked his cheek.

"Hey. You. Aren't you going to wake up?"

The Crown Prince squinted murkily at me. He still hadn't grasped reality.

"Ughhuh, hmm… What… is it…?"

"What is it, indeed? How can you not prepare yourself properly? I am the one who married your first fiancée and has taken your second fiancée as a vassal."

"What…? Heuk!?"

Only then did the Crown Prince's eyes snap open. I had been waiting for this moment. I immediately flicked the prince's eyelid with my finger.

"AAAACK!? My eye, my eyeeee!?"

The Crown Prince covered his face and fell from the bed.

"Tch. That was a light tap, and you're making such a fuss."

"Guards! Guardssss! There's an intruder! An intruder has appeared! What are you guards doing!?"

"Your guards are all knocked out. You udon noodle vongole mussel jjamppong bastard. You seolleongtang leftover noodles that don't come out even after 30 minutes of ordering. Can't you tell that I'm gently stroking your eyebrows?" (ED: udon noodle vongole mussel jjamppong are different types of noodles)

"Guards! Guardssssss!"

I crouched down and looked down at the Crown Prince.

The so-called condescending pose.

The Crown Prince, having never expected to find himself in such a position due to his royal birth, shuddered violently as our eyes met.

"W-Why is no one responding to my call…!"

"Because I've covered a 6-meter radius around us with an aura dome. No matter how much you whimper, the sound won't reach outside the barrier."

"That's impossible—-"

"It's happened. And it will continue. Crown Prince. Since I don't like facing you either, let's finish this quickly."

I pulled out a scroll from my bosom. It was an imperial edict stamped with the Emperor's seal.

"What, wha… What is that…!"

The Crown Prince, recognizing the seal, gaped. I flicked my finger and this time hit the Crown Prince's lips. "Huiiik!?" A truly disgraceful scream echoed.

"My dear child. For your simple little head, I will personally paraphrase His Majesty the Emperor's sublime words."

I smiled broadly at the Crown Prince whose lips were now burst open.

"From today, you will be studying abroad in our world."

"St, study abroad? What nonsense is this?"

"Well. It's called study abroad to sound nice, but it's actually exile. You bastard. Did you really think you could get away with trying to poison Raviel and threatening the Emperor?"

The Crown Prince's face turned pale. He must have realized that I held all the evidence.

"I have countless nobles who follow me. They will never tolerate such tyranny!"

"That's the funny thing. If things stay as they are, all of them will be implicated in treason and lose their heads. But I am going to give them a chance."

"A chance…?"

"Yes. A chance to cut ties with you and save their own lives."

I tapped the Crown Prince's forehead with the scroll. Each time the edict touched his forehead, the Prince twitched and shuddered.

"The nobles didn't join you in treason. [His Majesty the Emperor has ordered you to study abroad in another world.] But [you were afraid and unfamiliar with going to another world, like a teenager throwing a tantrum saying no.]"

"Ah…?"

"You didn't throw the tantrum by yourself. [You begged the nobles to please hide you.] And the nobles, unable to refuse the Crown Prince's request coldly, [secretly hid you here,] but the secret didn't last long before [His Majesty found out.]"

The Crown Prince looked up at me dazedly.

I raised the corners of my mouth.

"Still don't understand the situation? This is my scenario. According to this, the nobles don't have to bear the sin of treason. They only remain guilty of indulging the immature whims of a worthless Crown Prince."

"...!"

"Now, if you alone are sent to study abroad, it's a happy ending for everyone. I wonder how the nobles will react, huh? Oh my, will they say, 'We will follow His Highness the Crown Prince even if our families are destroyed and our heads roll?' What do you think?"

"Aaaack! Aaaaaack!!"

The Crown Prince, finally grasping my true intentions, began to struggle frantically.

"You plague of another world! You, it's all because of you! Everything fell apart after you came! You took away not only the cute and lovely Lady of the Golden Silk but also the Duke Ivansia's daughter! If it weren't for you—"

"Please have sweet dreams, Your Highness."

I pressed a point on the Crown Prince's body.

"When you wake up, the world will have changed."

And then, the Prince's world went dark.

8.

"—–Heuuuk!"

The Crown Prince bolted upright.

He was sweating profusely and gulped down his saliva.

"Was it, was it a dream? Phew…"

"Did you have a nice dream last night?"

"Kiiiiiaaaaaaaak!!"

As soon as he saw my face, as if he had seen a terrible monster, the Crown Prince jumped.

"Where, where exactly is this place!?"

"This is the 29th floor. Dear customer."

I grinned broadly.

"It used to be a school genre stage managed by [The Corner Librarian]. Among my vassals, there was a fellow named Kim Yul who lived here."

"Ha, Haa?"

"Of course, such information is useless to you. The only Crown Prince of the Empire, destined to wear the Emperor's crown. The only piece of information you need to remember is that in this world, no one will treat you as the Crown Prince."

Knock knock.

Someone knocked on the door from behind.

"Come in."

"Yes. I'm coming in."

With a lively voice, Sylvia entered through the door. What greeted her was a two-pyeong studio apartment. No, calling it a studio was too generous—it was actually a goshiwon. (ED: 2 pyeong = 6.6 Sq meter and goshiwon is a tiny single-room for rent)

Sylvia looked around the room and immediately furrowed her brow.

"Wow, it's so cramped… Family Head, can he really live in such a tight space? It seems absolutely impossible to me."

"That is now the reality he must face. Did you speak well with the goshiwon owner?"

"Ah, yes. Their eyes lit up the moment they saw the gold bars, and they said they look forward to our patronage. They seemed to think we are some kind of mafia from abroad."

Good.

The 29th floor was currently operating as an academy city. Babylon had schools too, but a systematic public education system hadn't yet been established. Thus, the 29th floor, where time was fixed to the era when Kim Yul lived, was being used as a venue for education.

"Si, Sylvia…?"

The Crown Prince, completely unaware of these circumstances, was stunned by Sylvia's appearance.

Sylvia, dressed in modern clothes instead of a voluminous dress, flashed a grin.

"Yes, Hwang-tae. It's Sylvia Evanail."

"Oh! My Sylvia! My nightingale with the name of the Golden Silk! You must have rushed here to save me from the clutches of this devil…! I trusted, no, I only trusted you. My delicate Golden Silk!"

"Eww. What is this? It feels like I opened up a diary filled with dark history."

Sylvia made a disgusted face.

"Anyway. I also took care of all sorts of miscellaneous paperwork while greeting the goshiwon owner, Family Head. Starting next week, that Crown Prince will be able to enroll in school. He'll become the transfer student, the blonde prince."

"Good work."

"Really, it's nothing but hardships… But I shouldn't be the one to say this. The bureaucrats of this stage are too corrupt, aren't they? The administration is as full of holes as a sponge."

"Well. It just proved the omnipotent power of gold bars."

"I wonder how much you fed them…"

The Crown Prince watched us chatter heartily, completely losing his soul.

"Si, Sylvia? Do you not recognize me? And… why did you call me 'Hwang-tae' earlier?" (ED: Hwang-tae (황태), his new name, is taken from the Korean of Crown Price i.e. 황태자)

"Ah, right. I almost forgot."

Sylvia rummaged through her briefcase and pulled out something. It was a card.

"This will now be the only means to verify your identity, Your Highness"

Sylvia courteously handed over a newly made student ID card. On the ID, the Crown Prince's photo was printed, his eyes half-closed.

The text on it read:

+

[Student ID]

Name: Kim Hwang-tae

Affiliation: Shinseo High School

+

"…Kim Hwang-tae?"

"Yes. That's your name from today."

I sent him a zesty smile.

"Hwang-tae, you're a second-generation expatriate who happened to return to the country. But you've been kicked out of your home and are living alone in this goshiwon. Naturally, you have no allowance, and you'll need to find part-time jobs or menial work to earn money. Do you understand?"

"Part-time job? Menial work? What nonsense are you spouting!"

"Yes, it seems our Hwang-tae hasn't grasped the situation at all, which I find quite satisfying."

I patted Kim Hwang-tae's head.

"If you're three months behind on rent here at the goshiwon, you're out. If you skip school for more than a week, you're out. To our Hwang-tae, who has been pampered as royalty his entire life, this world might feel quite harsh. But, Hwang-tae… that is precisely! The real reality!"

"...."

"Endure it! Cheer up! You can do it!"

I clenched my fist tightly.

"Although no one in this city will treat you as a Crown Prince! And they won't care where you've come tumbling from! Originally! The world! Doesn't care about you at all!""

"...."

"Work! As a student, there won't be many ways to earn money. But, that's just how it is…! Earning money is inherently hard…! Work and work hard, and with your effort and sweat, secure enough food to survive the day! If you can't, you might starve to death… You'll die, perhaps…! But that, too, is the natural course of things!"

"....."

"Hwang-tae!"

I grabbed Kim Hwang-tae's shoulders.

And I asked him, face looking as if his soul had left his body.

"How long have you ever gone without food?"

"What…. Wha…?"

"Don't worry. If you starve for a couple of days, you'll see the world differently! I'll be cheering for our Kim Hwang-tae's new life from afar! Fighting!"

I put down 30,000 won and turned my back.

Sylvia also bowed deeply to Kim Hwang-tae.

"Farewell, Your Highness Hwang-tae. Honestly, if you had ever sought me out after I became indebted to the Family Head, I might have done something for you now. Well. Can't be helped! I too will support you from a distance!"

We both swiftly left the room.

As we walked down the gloomy staircase, Sylvia said,

"So, how many years do you plan to keep him before sending him back to the Empire?"

"Send him back? Why send him at all. He should live out his life here. The second prince has already been designated as the successor; even if he returns, what awaits him but further purges? Leaving him here is a mercy, true mercy."

"You really are a devil, Family Head…"

From beyond the goshiwon staircase, a desperate scream was heard.

That day, a blonde prince, a foreign student, transferred to the 29th floor's Shinseo High School.

According to later stories, Kim Hwang-tae, who had fasted for four days straight, eventually started helping with menial tasks for the goshiwon owner and began his second school life.

Hang in there, Kim Hwang-tae! You are the protagonist of this spin-off!