Chapter 7: Encounter at the Royal Castle

"Mm… nnhh…?"

I woke up on an overly soft bed and stretched my back. Looking around, I realized I wasn’t in my familiar room above the tavern, but in a guest chamber of the royal castle.

Apparently, there had originally been a room meant for the king. However, although it had been cleaned regularly, no one had ever expected it to actually be used. It had been practically abandoned for years—dusty, with furniture that had long since grown old—so I had been told to use this guest room instead.

Honestly, even though it was meant for guests, the bed felt so different from what I was used to that it actually made sleeping harder. I wondered if the day would ever come when I’d get used to this.

"...I wonder if Mom’s okay."

Yesterday, I had suddenly pulled out the Holy Sword—and as a result, I had ended up becoming the king of this country. Naturally, what worried me most was my mother back home.

She usually carried herself with strength. With her solid build and booming laugh, she was the kind of person who could knock out drunken adults who picked fights with her. Both in appearance and personality, she was the very image of a tough, big-hearted mom.

But despite that, she was actually quite sensitive.

Even setting that aside, her son suddenly becoming king was far too abrupt. She might not even be able to process it. If I hadn’t regained the memories of my past life, I probably wouldn’t have stayed this calm either—I might have just begged to be sent back.

The reason I didn’t do that was because I knew it would be useless… and because I understood just how significant it was that I could participate in the "King’s War," given the current state of the country.

"At this point, I should probably try to remember the story and everything…"

It was still early morning—I had woken up before sunrise—and my mind was unusually clear, so thinking shouldn’t be a problem.

For now, I needed to recall whatever I could about Legenda Septima Rex.

Since this wasn’t a game, things wouldn’t play out exactly the same, and I had no idea how much of it I could rely on. Still, at the very least, I hoped it would help me mentally prepare. Some might call it escapism, but I told myself that looking back was important.

"More importantly… why can I even pull out the Holy Sword…?"

There was only one condition required to draw the Holy Sword.

But fulfilling that single condition meant becoming—quite literally—the only person in the world who could do it.

The fact that I could pull it out—and that Hikaru could do the same in the game—was, frankly, nothing more than luck. The probability of it happening was absurdly low.

Or rather, the condition for the Holy Sword choosing its wielder was apparently: "the man most loved by mana particles in the world."

I say "apparently" because I couldn’t be sure how much of the game’s setting applied here. Even in the story, no one knew this until the sword’s creator explained it.

"'Mana particles'… if I remember correctly, they’re in the air, and when you breathe them in, they generate magical power inside your body… something like that."

In this world—where monsters didn’t exist—magic was one of the key fantasy elements. And as the name suggested, magic itself did indeed exist here.

Magical tools were deeply integrated into daily life. Without them, I honestly felt like I might have died from stress after regaining memories of my previous life—they were just that convenient.

Anyway, back to the point.

Being "loved by mana particles" was, simply put, the same as having a high rate and volume of magic generation.

"The Holy Sword’s abilities are basically useless without magic…"

On top of that, the sword judged not your current magic reserves, but your potential—which made things even more troublesome.

People who couldn’t use magic didn’t even recognize its existence. And for those who had never used magic even once, it was as if their magic was sealed—neither leaking out nor revealing how much they had.

That was why every village was ordered to send its children to the royal capital once they came of age. No matter how remote the place, there was no telling where a child with the potential to become a Sword King might appear.

Even so, I never imagined something like this would happen to me.

Ever since pulling the Holy Sword, I could sense something flowing through my body. It was a strange, unfamiliar sensation—almost unpleasant.

This was probably magic.

"After this… I think I’m supposed to train in the royal castle, right?"

Legenda Septima Rex was the first installment in a series. It wasn’t an action game or an RPG, but a visual novel.

Depending on your choices, you would end up on different heroine routes. And depending on those same choices, you could even die.

But this world was reality.

There were no choices displayed.

And even if I tried to follow the same decisions as in the game, I didn’t have the raw ability of Hikaru, the original protagonist. That path would likely lead to my death.

In the "King’s War," there were overseers to prevent fatalities, but that didn’t mean accidents couldn’t happen. In fact, even in the game, Hikaru could die depending on the choices.

To begin with, I barely remembered anything beyond the pairings. I didn’t remember the choices, and even details about the characters had faded.

I hardly remembered my past life anymore.

I was Toma now. I could barely even recall the name I used over a decade ago.

And with Hikaru becoming Hikari here, I couldn’t even be sure how much of the original game applied. At best, this knowledge would serve as mental preparation.

Well… not entirely useless.

If I could find the original pairings, my excitement would probably break through the heavens. Just witnessing their precious relationships might give me the strength to endure anything.

"I was supposed to be here for a pilgrimage…"

There was no point regretting what had already happened. Given the system of this country, this outcome had probably been inevitable sooner or later.

If someone saw me brooding like this, my childhood friend—who was bold yet surprisingly sensitive—would definitely worry. She had chosen to stay behind for my sake, so making her worry was unacceptable on a personal level.

Anyway, I couldn’t recall the finer details, but I had managed to remember some important points. I should organize them.

In the world of Legenda Septima Rex, monsters—those mysterious creatures—didn’t exist. At least, not in the early stages.

In one route, a hidden boss was revived, throwing the entire world into chaos. But that required a number of luck-based conditions, so I would exclude it from consideration.

Well, from the second game onward, the story continued in an IF timeline where that hidden boss wasn’t defeated. So maybe it wasn’t entirely luck-based after all.

Still, given the timeline—and the fact that I had never seen anything like that in my life so far—I assumed the hidden boss hadn’t revived in this world.

"In other words, battles will revolve around the 'King’s War'… against other humans."

The "King’s War" was exactly what it sounded like: a battle between kings.

It could take many forms—one-on-one duels, team battles, even large-scale war-like conflicts with armies. But at its core, it was always a conflict between kings.

While there were no monsters, there were people known as demi-humans and other "different races." Compared to pure humans, they possessed superior physical abilities or unique powers, so I couldn’t assume I’d only be fighting ordinary humans.

In particular, the royal family of Draconia—who called themselves the "Dragon Kings"—were exactly what their name implied: beings resembling dragons, mythical creatures, but in humanoid form. They could breathe fire and fly through the sky.

They were unquestionably the strongest nation and royal lineage in this world.

Even in the game, fighting them felt like a forced-loss event. You would only stand a chance near the end of the story—and even then, barely.

In any case, if I ever had to fight them, there was no doubt that my current self wouldn’t stand a chance—even with the power of the Holy Sword.

So it wasn’t even worth thinking about.

"But aside from Draconia, there are plenty of other troublesome countries too…"

Every single one of them had incredibly strong personalities.

And since each of them had a partner, I distinctly remembered pressing my face against the screen just to watch their romantic developments unfold.

Watching their relationships grow while I matured into a full-fledged shipping fanatic was an absolute joy.

They were practically my reason to keep living, so you could say I was a fan of all of them.

But still—that’s that, and this is this.

Now that I had to assume every one of them could become my enemy, their abilities were something I had to treat with the utmost caution.

That said… if the atmosphere ever turned romantic, I fully intended to glue myself to the scene, eliminate every unnecessary noise—including my own breathing—and burn every second into my memory through sheer force of will.

"Your Majesty, I have come to assist with your morning preparations."

"Huh? Oh—ah, right. Yes, please come in."

Before I knew it, the sky had turned pale and the sun had already risen. That meant I had spent over an hour lost in thought.

Still, since it felt like I had managed to organize my information, I’d call it a success.

"Excuse me," came a voice as the door opened quietly.

The ones who entered were an elderly man who looked like the very embodiment of the word butler, and my childhood friend in a maid outfit, her silver hair tied at the nape of her neck and sparkling in the morning light.

"...Wait. Why are you dressed as a maid?"

"...If I’m going to stay with you, I need to work, don’t I? I told the minister that, and he said it would help you relax if someone familiar was around… so they made me a maid."

Judging by her expression, it clearly hadn’t been her first choice. Hikari’s face was as red as a boiled tomato.

Back when she worked at the tavern, she always wore pants for mobility rather than skirts. So naturally, I had never seen her dressed like this before.

Seeing her now made me realize all over again that she was a top-tier beauty—easily on the same level as Alicia in terms of sheer material.

To be honest, my heart was pounding a little… but it was embarrassing, so I hoped she wouldn’t notice.

"Hikari, you may speak with His Majesty, but refrain from doing so in that manner in public. These habits must be maintained at all times, or your true self will slip out at crucial moments."

"Ugh… Understood, Master."

"Please address me as Head Butler, not Master. Now then, Your Majesty. My name is Sebas, and I serve as the head butler of this royal castle. Should you require anything, simply call my name and I will come at once."

The elderly butler who introduced himself as Sebas smiled warmly before bowing.

Every movement he made was practically perfect. I found myself clapping before I even realized it.

In both my previous life and this one, I had never met someone like him.

To me, butlers were practically mythical creatures—like dragons.

So the mere fact that one was standing right in front of me was oddly moving.

"Now then, I must apologize, but we will need you to change immediately. I understand it may not be to Your Majesty’s liking, but the castle is quite busy at the moment and cannot afford delays."

"O-Oh, that’s fine. Um… then I’ll change, so if you could step outside—"

"I’m afraid not. If I may be so bold, I would like to assist you with changing. The structure of Your Majesty’s attire differs greatly from what you have worn until now."

He had a point.

Looking at the clothes he had taken from the wardrobe, they resembled formal wear. Unlike my old clothes—which only required sticking my head and arms through—this outfit was far more complicated.

There were frills attached in several places, and just imagining myself wearing them made me sigh internally.

Still, I’d just have to endure it for a while.

Since the "King’s War" was unavoidable, I would eventually need to undergo combat training as well.

When that happened, I’d have no choice but to wear something easier to move in.

For now, this was probably about getting used to formal attire so I wouldn’t look like the clothes were wearing me during diplomatic meetings with other nations.

With that hopeful thought—maybe I’d look decent once I got used to it—I allowed Sebas to dress me.

During the process, Hikari squeezed her eyes shut, her face still bright red, doing everything she could to avoid looking in my direction.

I’ll just say this much:

She looked incredibly cute.

Once I was finally dressed, Sebas led the way through the castle while I trudged along, dragging the heavy clothing behind me.

"By the way… is it really okay that I don’t know anything about royal etiquette?"

"You will likely receive an explanation from Minister Depron later. However, I believe the minister’s intention is that mastering only the minimum required etiquette will suffice. Though for Hikari, as a maid-in-training, she will need to learn quite a great deal in a short time."

"Ugh…"

Hikari looked utterly miserable.

But that was only natural. We were commoners who had lived our entire lives running a tavern. There was no way we could suddenly master noble etiquette overnight.

Apparently, I only needed the bare minimum since I had other priorities.

But she was probably in for a rough time.

Still, knowing the level of talent she had with the sword, I couldn’t help but feel it was a bit of a waste. Maybe I should talk to someone about that later.

"Your Majesty, this is the office of the head of our nation’s Magical Research Department. It has been decided that you should first learn about magical power and magic directly from the director."

Lost in thought, I realized we had arrived sooner than expected and lifted my head.

The Head of Magical Research.

Quite literally the most important person in the country when it came to the study of magic.

The inventions of past directors had greatly improved the lives of commoners like us. Calling them benefactors of the people wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

In particular, I would gladly kneel and thank the director responsible for the improvements to toilets.

Unaware of the heartfelt gratitude swelling within me, Sebas knocked on the lavish door.

A moment later, loud scrambling noises came from inside.

Then the door burst open with incredible force as two children rushed out.

Their appearances were exactly the same as in the game.

And to me, they were one of my favorite ships.

"Welcome!!! I am Clarisse Burn, the one in charge of magical research here!!!"

"I told you to stop acting so arrogant in front of His Majesty!!! Don’t blame me if you get arrested for disrespect!!!"

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

They’re so precious—!!!!!!!