… … As in Rudevan’s example, people who had been brainwashed by the devil confessed that they were vaguely aware that their behavior was somehow different from normal.
Klaus turned the pages of the book he was reading.
The explanation continued along with the sound of pages turning.
The sound was light, but the content was overly heavy.
However, despite recognizing such heterogeneity, the brainwashed parties try to ignore the heterogeneity, thinking that the brainwashed contents are their true wishes.
If this movement continues, the perception of heterogeneity will gradually weaken, and the brainwashed content will be mistaken for the victim’s true wishes… … .
It was when Klaus was deeply absorbed in the contents of the book.
I heard the sound of the study door opening.
Klaus didn’t lock the study door. Because he didn’t need to.
All of the books in the library were memorized in his mind, and he had placed a spell on confidential documents to make them meaningless for outsiders.
Most importantly, there are no assassins in the Empire who could be Klaus’ rivals.
The most precious thing in his study was a golden circular sacred object on the desk.
According to legend, the well-being of the world can be seen through this small sacred object.
So all Klaus had to protect was the sacred object.
However, Klaus was the only one who could see the holy relic in the first place.
There was no need to protect it from invisible people, so as a result, there was nothing for Klaus to protect in this space.
Putting everything aside, there were only a handful of people who would open the door and enter the study of the first prince of the empire.
And today’s visitor was one of those notable figures.
“older brother.”
Klaus raised his head at the sound of Rudyard’s voice coming from in front of him.
Rudyard was frowning.
His face was as gentle as a puppy, so even when he was frowning, there was a part of him that looked gentle.
It was a face that made it sound like the right thing to say even if it was wrong.
But Klaus knew how much inflexible stubbornness lay beneath that gentle face.
Klaus only checked his expression and turned his attention back to the book.
There was absolutely no seriousness in the voice that came out between his lips.
“My beloved brother has been looking for me a lot lately.”
“I have something to tell you.”
“Rudiat, who was always busy with swordsmanship, somehow kept looking for me, reading books in the library, meeting women…”
“I’m not joking, I have something serious to tell you.”
Only then did Klaus close the book he had been reading “What is Brainwashing” with a click.
Instead of looking at Klaus’ desk, Rudyard made eye contact with Klaus with straight eyes.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about it.”
“what brings you here?”
“You probably know that I’ve been a bit strange lately.”
“I’m not sure?”
“Didn’t you just say that? I was trying to pursue a swordsmanship, but I kept talking to my brother about investigating demons and hanging out with women.”
“Really? I was just wondering if my younger brother, whom I love, was upset about having fun like me. That can happen during puberty.”
“You know you can’t compare me like that, brother.”
Rudiot frowned for a moment, then relaxed his expression.
He loved his genius older brother, and he never harbored any unnecessary feelings other than the naive jealousy of his childhood.
So, rather, this was just an expression of his impatience.
He cleared his throat and spoke again.
“…Anyway, I also found something strange about myself like that. So I’ve been observing myself more carefully lately.”
“so?”
“I think the point where I became strange was after I encountered Lariette Sebes.”
“Go ahead.”
Klaus’ expression slightly distorted, but Rudeat didn’t seem to notice.
He spoke out the story he had been thinking deeply about.
“When I first saw Lariette Sebes, my eyes were strangely focused on her.”
Rudiott thought of Lariat. Her dazzling blonde hair seemed to shimmer before her eyes.
“I’ve never been interested in women, but this was the first time I had my gaze so intensely focused on someone wearing a dress.”
“so.”
“…Maybe that’s why. Normally, if someone wanted to train with me in swordsmanship, I would have laughed and declined, but for some reason, Lariette, when she said that, I thought it might be okay to train together.”
“……Yes?”
Klaus’ voice trembled.
However, Rudiot, who was already immersed in his own story, did not stop talking.
“Furthermore, at first I thought we only needed to spar once, but her swordsmanship skills turned out to be better than I thought, and we ended up clashing swords with each other every day without even realizing it.”
Rudyard bit his lip.
The sight of Lariette swinging her sword with her sunshine-blond hair flowing was as vivid as if she had drawn it before her eyes.
“Normally, I would never have done it, but I kept wanting to cross swords with her.”
“so……?”
Klaus was wondering if he should cover his mouth now, at least for the sake of the maids who were changing his brother’s blanket – there was a high possibility that his brother would kick the blanket later.
However, Rudyard was so engrossed in his words that he couldn’t even see Klaus’s expression.
“That’s not all. As you know, I’m not a person who is easily influenced by what others say.”
“yes.”
“But after hearing the story of Lariette Sebes, I came to believe that Elena Sebes was connected to the devil. So I even asked my brother for a favor.”
“That was definitely strange.”
Klaus nodded appropriately, remembering Rudeat from his childhood, who said he did not believe in demons.
Of course, there was nothing very strange about it.
This was because Klaus clearly remembered Rudyard’s bloody fight with the demons before he returned.
However, Rudiot, who had no way of knowing his memories before returning, kept his mouth shut and shook his head.
“Yes. As a result, my brother’s investigation did not reveal Elena Seves’ suspicious nature, so what Lariette Seves first told me was nothing more than a baseless slander.”
“But in the end, wasn’t it you who heard that and entrusted me with the investigation? Just hearing you say it, it seems like you’re talking about it without any responsibility whatsoever.”
Klaus narrowed his eyes at the implications coming from Rudiot’s words.
Despite Klaus’s reaction, Rudyard simply nodded.
“Yes. Your point is correct, but I have bigger concerns.”
Rudeat took a deep breath.
“I think it was Lariette Sebes who colluded with the devil and brainwashed me.”
The serious gaze suddenly dropped.
Klaus stared at the cover of “What is Brainwashing” on his desk.
“Already…! That’s an original idea that presents a perspective I hadn’t thought of before.”
“I’ll allow you to just call me crazy, young lady.”
“You crazy bastard!”
Hey, you crazy guy! You just fell in love with Lariette!
I keep looking at that person, I remember that person clearly, I do favors for them that I wouldn’t normally do, and I want to see them again and again!
How can this not be love?
“Your Majesty, you think the same as me, right?”
“maybe.”
Klaus frowned tiredly and then smiled.
It was a joke no matter who saw it, but this time the ridicule was justified!
I think I’m in love with Lariette, and it’s not enough to confess, so what? devil? Devil?
I held back the feeling that was about to explode and asked again.
“So, the misunderstanding has been resolved?”
“huh?”
okay. yes. A misunderstanding that will be resolved a long time ago… … .
“……uh?”
Ugh, not like this, huh? What?
Why is it a question?
why? Tell me I did a good job of clearing up the misunderstanding, quickly!
“Oh, didn’t you clear up the misunderstanding?”
No? Did you solve it?
Tell me you solved it!
“Is there any reason why I should do that?”
“Yes? No, didn’t you say that you have the same thoughts as me? His Highness Rudyard,”
“It seems like you like Lady Lariette Seves.”
“And yet you didn’t resolve the misunderstanding? Why?”
Klaus answered with a very calm expression.
“Why do I have to tell you that my stupid younger brother is experiencing his first love?”
No, over there. You can’t say that.
You couldn’t handle it yourself, so you came to complain to me, you human!
“Are you claiming that’s the reason?”
“If I had to insist on one more thing, wouldn’t it be possible that what Rudeat said is really right?”
“majesty!”
“Of course, love can come like a spark. There could be many different stories. However, as Rudeat claimed, he fell in love with her right away. If I had to ask, it would be an award.”
“W-what?”
They say you can’t speak when you’re so shocked, but is that really what it feels like?
I’m saying it because you don’t know much, but if you think about the fact that I fell in love with you right away, from a romantic perspective, can I interpret that the relationship before returning stimulated Rudeat’s memories? That’s what novels are originally, right?
However, when I actually said that to Klaus, I couldn’t stop talking because it felt like I was exposing Lariette’s personal history.
‘I can’t freely reveal the fact that Lariat has returned.’
There’s no way you can do something like this without permission.
To add a little bit of exaggeration, revealing the fact of regression in a regression is closely related to the growth of the protagonist.
If you tear the cocoon to help a butterfly break out of its cocoon, the butterfly will die!
While I was silent due to various concerns, Klaus made the next comment on his own.
“So I decided to just investigate Lariat Sebes as Rudyatt wanted.”
“Yes? What?”
