Chapter 94 - Prince Fans
This is a good question. Regarding the Second Prince, Ruo Manni had previously focused on his cultivation and character. Hearing Sheila gossip today sparked some curiosity in her.
“The Second Prince’s situation is quite special. Sheila, you know that with his cultivation and academic performance from two years ago, he couldn’t possibly get into our Xuan Gu Academy,” Mina-Olli said softly, and Sheila nodded in agreement.
“Later, the Second Prince was inexplicably secluded for two years. When we saw him again this year, he was already a Level 5 Initial Warrior. His cultivation has grown so quickly, but having missed two years of schooling, his foundation must be quite thin. The King and the Crown Prince probably want to start from scratch and hone the Second Prince properly to prevent him from revealing his true self again,” Mina-Olli quietly responded, showing that she knew quite a bit about the Second Prince.
Sheila blinked and lowered her voice, saying, “It is said that the Crown Prince had a hand in getting rid of the Second Prince. The Queen has been frantic for the past two years, trying every possible way to find him. Some royal relatives have spread many rumors unfavorable to the Crown Prince, claiming that the assassination two years ago that seriously injured him was orchestrated by the Queen, and that the Crown Prince took the Second Prince away in retaliation.”
“Don’t believe everything you hear. We have always believed that the Crown Prince is not that kind of person. Someone like him would never stoop to such actions. Those people don’t think that the Queen has caused such a commotion, yet King Adam, their father, has had no reaction. He must know where the Second Prince is,” Mina-Olli scoffed.
“The facts prove that those people are just overthinking. The Crown Prince has always acted with fairness and restraint. If it weren’t for his pressure, how could the Second Prince achieve what he has today?”
Ruo Manni looked at Mina-Olli, who seemed like a little fan of the Crown Prince, and wanted to say, “Dear, where is your loyalty? You are supposed to be the fiancée of Hua Deli, and inherently opposed to the Crown Prince. Is it really okay for you to praise him like this? Have you considered your fiancé’s feelings?”
However, as a die-hard fan of the Crown Prince, Ruo Manni naturally agreed with Mina-Olli’s words and wanted to tell her that she had great insight.
Mina-Olli glanced back at Ruo Manni and asked, “Why are you looking at me with such a strange expression?”
Of course, Ruo Manni wouldn’t reveal her true thoughts; who knew how this noble girl might interpret them and distort her original meaning?
So, Ruo Manni smiled and said, “Her Highness the Queen has a motherly heart and doesn’t want the Second Prince to suffer. The Crown Prince, being the elder brother, has to be the strict father. Otherwise, who knows that the Second Prince’s martial talent is even better than the Crown Prince’s?”
From Ruo Manni’s perspective, she supported the Crown Prince both personally and publicly.
In the novel, the Crown Prince worked tirelessly to seek a way for the entire Gumera star domain’s humanity to survive, and he was not jealous of talent, having supported Hua Deli and other young heroes.
Thus, Ruo Manni felt that the title of the number one male god of the Gumera star domain could only be borne by the Crown Prince; Hua Deli was merely a substitute.
As for the Second Prince…
To be honest, Ruo Manni’s impression of the Second Prince was very complex, and she found it difficult to articulate clearly.
In reality, the image of the Second Prince was quite different from the one in the novel; it was as if he were a completely different person.
In the novel, the Second Prince was entirely a pampered young noble spoiled by the Queen, complete with a “chuunibyou” (a term referring to a middle-schooler who believes they have secret knowledge or powers).
During the early to mid-stage of the novel, the Second Prince was repeatedly instigated by the Queen and others in the royal family, developing thoughts of competing with the Crown Prince for the throne.
With the support of the Queen’s faction and those with ulterior motives within the royal family, the Second Prince caused considerable trouble for the Crown Prince.
Before the aliens were about to invade, the Second Prince was manipulated into causing the death of His Majesty the Emperor, which led to a split between the military and political sectors of the empire during a time of disaster. This left the Crown Prince struggling to handle both diplomatic and domestic issues simultaneously.
If it weren’t for the Crown Prince’s significant reputation and authority within the imperial military and political spheres, quickly and decisively resolving those troublesome matters, it’s possible that before the aliens even arrived, the Gus Empire would have destroyed itself from within.
While the Gus Empire united as one to fight against the aliens, the Second Prince completely disappeared from the scene. Later, in the latter part of the novel, he reappeared as a royal heir and pressured Hua Deli, attempting to seize the throne.
In the novel, the Second Prince is a very typical villainous side character who brings disaster for a millennium.
However, in reality, when Ruo Manni looked around, she noticed that aside from being a bit arrogant, the Second Prince did not have many major flaws.
Not only did he lack the qualities of a spoiled young noble, but he also trained harder than Hua Deli and the others.
The most significant difference was that, by the end of the novel, the Second Prince was still a Level Four martial artist at the age of forty or fifty. In contrast, the real Second Prince was only sixteen this year and was already a Level Five initial-stage martial artist.
At first, Ruo Manni suspected that such a dramatic change in the Second Prince might indicate he was a reborn individual, which could explain his remarkable transformation.
However, after spending a month together in special training, Ruo Manni carefully “observed” and confirmed that the behaviors and speech of the Second Prince, Dean Atchison, and several other young nobles were quite similar. Especially in the Second Prince’s eyes, there was a youthful energy that only young people possess, which gradually dispelled Ruo Manni’s earlier suspicions.
Regardless, the fact that the Second Prince had undergone such a significant change indicated that there were differences in his surroundings compared to the novel.
Ruo Manni estimated that if the Second Prince was not a reborn individual, then he likely had someone around him who could greatly influence him, possibly a reborn person.
In the current interstellar environment, Ruo Manni did not have any aversion to reborn individuals. On the contrary, she hoped that the more reborn individuals there were, the less likely it would be for this world to collapse. She wished that many reborn individuals who had experienced the interstellar apocalypse would appear.
Most reborn individuals who had gone through the interstellar apocalypse would likely hold a desire to change their fate, prevent the alien invasion of the Gumera star domain, and save humanity.
Individuals like Aoi Dan, who only thought of using their rebirth as a “prophet” to make money, harm others, and compete with the female protagonist for the male lead, were probably one of a kind.
Although Mina-Olli’s expression did not change while listening to Ruo Manni’s insightful remarks, she was somewhat surprised inside.
This girl often acted in ways that exceeded Mina-Olli’s expectations, both in her words and her demeanor.
If it weren’t for her confidence in the authenticity of the information collected by her family, Mina-Olli would hardly believe that Ruo Manni’s background as a commoner from a third-tier star was true.
After spending a few months together, not only she and Sheila but also Hua Deli and Dean Atchison all agreed that Ruo Manni’s eloquence, knowledge, and courage surpassed that of most commoners from the Capital Star.
Especially her courage, which was not something an ordinary person could possess; typically, people would not behave this way when faced with young nobles like them.
Before meeting Ruo Manni, Mina-Olli had never considered that she could befriend a commoner from a third-tier star. Moreover, this commoner from a marginal star inadvertently added quite a bit of trouble to her life, yet she could not bring herself to feel any aversion toward her.