The Crown Prince Who Raises a Side Character-Chapter 23: New Adventurer Bern (21). Fishing

A person could die from sheer frustration.

Malcolm, the woodsman of Frencia, had recently been unable to shake off that thought.

This damn bastard!! Couldn’t even hold off for just an hour, a mere moment of sleep? Because of you, my sister’s gone!

If you were having trouble staying awake, you could’ve woken someone else up! How could you not do something so simple?!

Die! You worthless piece of trash! You should die right now!

Malcolm was frustrated.

He was so frustrated that he felt like he might lose his mind.

Having lost his parents early in life, Malcolm had only his younger sister to rely on. Together, they faced the world, and they had become each other’s only family.

So, when the mysterious disappearances started happening in Frencia, Malcolm burned with a determination like no other.

No matter who or what the culprit was, he would never allow anyone to harm his sister. His one and only family would be protected by his own hands.

Yet, how could he, of all people, let his sister fall into danger because of something as trivial as a moment of sleep?

He had stayed active the whole time during the night watch, keeping his drowsiness at bay. He chewed on a bitter, sour herb that kept him awake.

His mind was clear, his eyes wide open.

He felt like he could easily stay up the entire night without issue.

But then, why?

"...It felt like my memory just got cut off. I was standing by my sister, keeping an eye on her, or so I thought. ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) But then, I started feeling dizzy, and before I knew it, I woke up on the floor, and everyone else was beating me senseless."

He desperately tried to explain, but no one believed him.

They only saw it as an excuse, a way to cover up his failure for not staying awake.

Peer pressure is a terrifying thing.

At first, Malcolm had fought back, defying the accusations, but as the criticism and blame piled on, his sanity was gradually worn down.

Now, even he couldn’t trust his own memories.

Perhaps it was truly his fault that his sister had vanished, and the guilt was driving him insane. That was why Bern’s offer of "clearing his name" sounded so sweet.

He was even willing to spill his heart to these strangers who had suddenly appeared at such a late hour.

After hearing his story, Bern turned to Blanca.

"Blanca, do you know any magic that can make someone fall asleep?"

"...Are you suggesting someone used magic to put this person to sleep and then committed the crime?"

"Sleep often comes on without the person realizing it, without them noticing they’re falling asleep. And these people have been gradually worn down, both physically and mentally, for so long. So if someone suddenly lost consciousness, they probably wouldn’t even recognize it as an outside intervention."

Blanca nodded at Bern's speculation.

"That makes sense. I’ve never learned it directly, but I’ve heard that intermediate-level sleep spells often have the side effect of making the person forget what happened before they fell asleep."

If the culprit had used this type of magic, it would explain why Malcolm felt like parts of his memory were missing.

The problem was, this was still just a hypothesis.

"But, will people believe that without evidence?"

"There is evidence. Magic leaves unique traces behind, and if the person is a skilled mage, it’s possible to track these traces. And luckily, we have a mage here."

"Huh?"

Blanca looked around, confused.

Where is there a mage other than me?

At that moment, Renya, who had been listening, suddenly went into over-the-top mode.

"Wow, sister! How much longer are you going to keep surprising this poor brother of yours? I didn’t know you had such an ability!"

What the hell is he saying now?

Blanca was about to firmly deny having any such abilities when Bern, who had been standing beside her, put a hand on her shoulder.

"I believe in you, Blanca. As the best mage of the Eastern Branch, I’m sure you can do this."

"Uh, uh, well..."

Blanca, whose natural instinct was to be practical and sincere, found herself at odds with her own nature. She wasn’t one to boast about her abilities, and she had always looked down on adventurers who exaggerated their skills.

But, as Bern's hand rested on her shoulder and his soft voice whispered encouragement, her resolve began to waver.

And so...

"Of course. It’s quite a difficult task, but if anyone can do it, it’s me."

Blanca ended up saying what she had always despised—exaggerating her abilities.

It seemed like falling for a bad boy could lead to dangerous situations.

***

Thankfully for Blanca, Bern didn’t push her to use magic to find the culprit based solely on traces alone.

He knew that, with his background as a knight and the systematic training he received at the Imperial Palace, his magical knowledge was superior to hers.

Though it wasn’t something she could accomplish now, he was fully aware of that.

But what about the others, who didn’t know all the details?

"Are you saying that people didn’t just fall asleep from exhaustion, but that magic was involved?"

"They say that Blanca the mage is the best in magic in the Eastern Branch. The guild even promised her high benefits to join as a direct member, but she turned them down and stayed an adventurer."

"It seems she’s going around meeting the victims who lost their families due to unnatural sleep, starting with Malcolm. Apparently, there are magical traces only a mage can detect, and she plans to use them to find the culprit."

Rumors about Bern’s group—specifically about Blanca—spread quickly across Frencia, a city troubled by the disappearance incidents.

And the more the rumors spread, the paler Blanca’s face became, almost matching the color of her hair.

"Bern, is this really okay? If it turns out that I don’t actually have the ability to detect magical traces, it’s going to be a disaster...!"

But Bern was calm and collected.

"It doesn’t matter. The important thing is that the culprit believes that we have this ability."

"Do you really think it’s human?"

"Even if it’s not human, I’m sure it’s an intelligent being. It also seems to know the city’s layout quite well. There are too many unnatural circumstances to believe it just randomly abducted people without knowing anything about them."

Bern’s prediction was that if the culprit knew someone was going around trying to track magical traces, they would react in some way.

"But if the culprit is a skilled mage, they likely understand how difficult it would be to trace magic. Do you really think they’ll believe that a 3rd-grade adventurer has that ability?"

"Yes."

"How?"

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

"Well, I’m someone who can easily defeat the representative knight of a whole territory, so it’s not unreasonable to think that my companions are on a similar level."

It was an almost arrogantly confident statement.

Yet, when Bern said it, it felt less like boastful arrogance and more like stating an undeniable fact.

"Of course, there’s always the chance the culprit will panic and run or hide, but if that happens, we’ll just use a new method. The previous team wasted at least a month, so if our time is the same, we have plenty of room."

Bern shrugged casually.

His attempt at humor didn’t quite fit with the situation, but Blanca couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

"Yeah. It’s just the beginning, there’s no need to be shaking in fear over the results yet."

Blanca could feel the tension and weight in her shoulders loosen.

As always, with Bern, there was a sense that somehow, things would work out.

Luckily or not, the "new method" Bern had planned would not come into play just yet.

On the second night of their investigation, the fish took the bait.

***

The night in Frencia was eerily calm.

However, this was not the calm of peace; it was the stillness born from tension, the sense that something could happen at any moment.

As evidence, buildings of any considerable size in the city had their lights lit, and those too poor to afford oil or candles at least had fires going in their hearths, desperately trying to stay awake.

How foolish, thought the man, gazing down at the city.

Whether standing guard, lighting fires, or locking doors, such actions meant nothing to him.

If he decided it, the watchmen would fall asleep, the fires would be extinguished, and the doors would open.

Such was the power of magic.

Such insignificant tricks of humans could never stand in his way.

Yes, only magic could oppose magic.

Thus, with a calm demeanor unlike usual, the man headed toward his destination.

A small mansion near the lord’s residence.

With its tall, thick walls and iron bars protecting it, it was a stronghold that no ordinary thief would dare to break into, but the man was unconcerned.

After all, it wasn’t his role to disable those barriers.

He took out a black orb from his pocket and used magic on it.

The mana he poured into the orb expanded rapidly, transforming into mist that flowed inside the mansion.

The presence that had been felt inside the mansion quieted, and soon the door opened from the inside.

A woman, probably in her early twenties with sky-blue hair, walked out with empty, hollow eyes.

'Sleep-inducing magic' 'Magic to control an unconscious body'

The first magic put the obstacles to sleep, and the second forced the target to move on their own.

These two spells were the key to why he had been able to abduct victims without interference, no matter the obstacles.

The high, thick walls, the securely locked gate, and the person inside who had willingly opened the door—none of it mattered.

Even if the victim was in a difficult position, unable to escape alone, the man could simply manipulate others around them to help, and the problem was easily solved.

The more people he made sleep, the more he controlled at once, the more mana it consumed, so he preferred simpler targets. But with his magical abilities, even a mansion with over a hundred guards on watch could be easily overrun.

“I came to check just in case, but I guess the rumors were false.”

Ready to flee if necessary, the man relaxed when he saw no immediate threat.

"However... Hmm. This is an unexpected gain."

Seeing the defenseless, much more beautiful adventurer standing in front of him, the man smiled.

At that moment, his fingers brushed against her cheek.

“Are you going to keep your hands there?”

Her voice sounded polite at first, but with an underlying edge that suggested she might snap any moment.

Before the man’s brain even processed the words, an overwhelming shock struck his abdomen.

“Gah!”

The body-enhanced strike from the man’s strengthened body hit his solar plexus directly, bending his body in half. Without hesitation, Blanca punched his face with the flat of her sword.

Thud!

The man’s body hit the floor, sprawling out. As Blanca quickly tried to restrain him, the orb in the man’s other hand began to pulse with magical energy, and his body was drawn into the shadows as if sinking into water.

“Ugh?!”

Blanca hurried to grab him, but before her hand could reach him, the man was entirely absorbed into the shadows.

Immediately, the shadow seemed to take on a life of its own, rushing across the floor and walls as it began to flee.

The reason the man came here without knowing exactly how strong Blanca was was simple.

By using this third spell, he had calculated that he could escape, even in the worst-case scenario.

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As the shadow dashed, the man thought to himself:

Damn, they faked being caught by my spells. If they resisted from the start, I would’ve noticed something was off. But if they can pull off something like this, they must be much stronger than I imagined.

Blocking the castle gate and fighting off intruders was one thing, but letting the enemy in through an open gate and then fighting them was a completely different level of difficulty.

The number of forces, or in this case, Blanca’s mana—likely ten times greater than his—was a factor. But the real difference lay in the quality of the power. Magic levels were far higher than he had anticipated.

I should avoid this city. There’s still not enough sacrifice for the ritual, but I’ll have to finish it in a rush—

Just as the man was planning his next steps, a sudden pain pierced through him.

“Wha—!”

The man was forcibly pulled out of the shadow space.

In front of him stood a young man with red hair, and the man looked at him in disbelief.

The two spells he had used earlier were mid-level spells.

Even with the power of the "treasure" he received from his master, a 4th-grade or similarly skilled opponent could easily repel them.

His confidence in being able to attack the lord's mansion came from knowing that someone like Gudrun, the representative knight of Frencia, would have likely resisted his spells.

But this last spell, the "Shadow Beast Control Magic," was a different matter.

This was an advanced spell, one not learned by him but passed down to him with the "treasure"—a magical entity that belonged to his master.

The shadow beast was impervious to physical attacks, and even magical attacks would only deal minimal damage.

But this adventurer in front of him had inflicted a fatal wound on the shadow beast in a single strike, forcing the beast to expel him.

The man couldn’t understand how this was even possible.

Could it be that this adventurer was on the same level as his master?

“Who are you?”

The red-haired adventurer cut off the man’s words.

“I have a lot of questions, but we can discuss them later.”

Bern spoke softly.

“We can talk later, but for now, let’s let you sleep.”

Fwoosh!