Royal Blood: Chapter 8 (Patreon)

Chapter 8: The Prince and the Paupers

The only way out was through.

With a huff, I stalked over to the alcove right next to the door. There was a jade band there, and I slipped it over my arm. It was a divination blocker, and apparently it linked back to the house’s own wards.

I could read between the lines. It meant that even if the Royal Augury couldn’t find me, the assassins could. And if I took it off, well.

No reason to waste my time thinking about stupid decisions.

For making a wise choice in the face of difficult circumstances, you gain 1 Wisdom

+8 Exp

You’ve leveled up!

10 Stat points awarded

Additional skill slot unlocked

I grinned, bringing up my character sheet. At least one thing was going according to plan. I continued to dump all of my stat points into luck. In for a penny, in for a pound like they say!

Still, so far the boss had told me not to use any of my skill slots. Apparently backstab was a skill for chumps. I got it. Really, a knife to the back of the neck would have such a huge critical modifier that it would kill anyone close to your level.

It would kill someone more than ten times your level with just a few stabs.

I fingered the knife inside my jacket before stepping out of the house. I didn’t lock the door. Boss didn’t trust me with a key, and I knew from experience that there were wards for that as well.

Best week of my life was when Elysia had one of her maids put up a set of privacy wards around my chambers. I’d finally been able to get some alone time. Of course, eventually Father had her take them down, something about the integrity of the Palace Wards or some garbage. Didn’t take a genius to see what was really going on there.

But in any case, I was here now.

I stuck my hands in my pockets and started down the street. As the house suggested, we were in the merchant district of Iduneth. As a major trading hub, that was the largest part, though the borders were a little unclear.

I looked towards the center of the city. Let me tell you, it was a real trip being able to see the Duke’s palace, no inner curtain walls or anything. Or maybe I’d just gotten used to living in the lap of luxury.

I meandered over to one of the many bazaars in town, coming up to my favorite pie stand. “Hey there, old man.”

“Alex!” The red-faced merchant grinned. “How’s my favorite customer?”

“Don’t you say that to everyone? I’ll take two meat pies, please.” Ah, meat pies. If I’d been reborn a chef, I could have taken over this entire world with ‘meat pies’. Of course, as a prince I wasn’t exactly allowed in the kitchen. It’s the little things that the Isekai books don’t talk about. “Just buying for me today.”

“Your uncle out of town?”

I shrugged. “He’s just busy right now.”

“Sure, sure.” Martin, the pie merchant, reached over and opened his enchanted cabinet. The inside was runed to keep food piping hot, and he’d set it on wheels. “That’ll be 5 silver, as usual.”

“Please.” I rolled my eyes. “Did you get the cart just to upcharge me that much? I’ll give you 1 silver each.”

“Ah but that’s the reason I charge so much.” He gave a jovial laugh. “No one else sells pies fresh as if they just popped out of the oven! Still, you’re a friend, so I could do four. I have to make my investment back, is all.”

“Let’s cut to the chase and settle on three and a slug.” I spread my hands. “It’s all I have to spend today; uncle didn’t give me much spare change.”

Martin sucked his lip, then nodded. “Hmm, but only because you’re my best customer.”

This time I laughed, passing over three silver and the copper slug—a half silver, essentially—from my pocket. “That one might actually be true.” I had more money, of course, but after a full week of dexterity drills, slipping out the four coins I needed without revealing I had any more was child’s play.

“It’s all true, it’s all true.” Martin waved a hand, passing me my pies. He knew me by now, so he had wrapped the second one. Training to be an assassin was hungry work. “A merchant has to be a man of his word, after all.”

“Any word about when the library will open back up again?” I started on the first pie. The crust was rich, flaky, and every bit as warm as Martin advertised. “Been trying to get in all week.”

“Give it another few days.” Martin sat back on his stool, raising one hand to wave at another set of potential customers. “Hot pies here! Fresh out of the oven! Hot pies!” He turned back to me for a second. “You know how it goes. Someone is accused of stealing a book, and suddenly the Duke turns the entire city upside down.”

I chuckled, stepping to the side as a pair of young men came over to bargain for their own pies. I didn’t say a word as he started them at five silver per pie.

I’d known Martin for a long week.

Just like I knew the whole lost book thing was just a cover for searching for me. Or who knows, maybe someone did actually steal a book, but certainly nothing that would involve the Royal Guard poking around. I took a bite of my pie, secure in the knowledge that every city in the empire would be searched for something important that had been ‘lost’.

Couldn’t let the plebs know that a Prince of the Blood had been kidnapped.

And here he stood, eating a pie.

I hummed tunelessly as I made my way down one of the main thoroughfares. The smooth cobble was warm beneath my boots, and the pie was warm in my stomach. I had a few days to myself before Boss did his best to kill me through exhaustion when he came back. Gave me time to work on my other skills.

I did wish he’d tell me his name already. Calling him ‘boss’ all the time was getting old.

A pair of hands darted out of a nearby alley, and I reacted without thinking. I caught the wrist, turning and pulling just like I’d been drilled.

A moment later, I found myself blinking down at a girl in a ratty tunic and cloak, her other hand still reaching abortively towards my pie.

“Shit!” My head snapped up, catching sight of another few faces in the alley. “He’s gotta have some skill! Beat it!”

In a flash, they’d all darted back down into the alley, vanishing into the darkness.

I looked back down. “Friends of yours?”

The girl bit her lips, red eyes flashing. “They woulda been, for some pie.”

I tilted my head, taking a look at her. Tanned skin, red eyes, and snow-white hair: surefire signs of demon blood in her family tree. And here she was, looking hungry, about my age, and she’d bumbled into me of all people in the middle of a city of thousands.

I sighed. I bet she was surprisingly cute under all that dirt, and had a tragic backstory to go with a mysterious, uncontrollable power. I’d heard about this.

The mythical waifu bait.

Still, if the universe was going to throw someone who obviously had a cheat skill at my feet, what was I gonna do? Send her on her way with some money out of a misplaced sense of chivalry? I was an assassin now, not a prince.

A prince like Ambrose would have just dragged her back into the alley and had her ‘make it up to him’.

With another sigh, I yanked the girl up to her feet. She really was all skin and bones; I was a fucking ten-year-old with less than thirty points in strength. “Tell you what, how about I’ll be your friend.” Immediately her gaze turned suspicious, but I had the perfect counter argument. I held up the small bundle Martin had wrapped for me. “I even have some pie.”

Her eyes latched onto the red and white checkered scarf that held the food, and I don’t even think she noticed the bit of drool leaking from the corner of her mouth. “No butt stuff.”

I almost fell over. “What?!”

She glared, crossing her arms. “Y-you heard me. No butt stuff, okay? Now are you gonna give me the pie or—”

“Oh my fucking god just take the pie.” I shoved it into her hands. “I’m ten, and you can’t be much older than that.”

“I’m fourteen!”

I raised an eyebrow. “Sure you are.” I shook my head. “Goddamn, is this supposed to be some kind of eroge instead? Please tell me it’s not posted on that site.”

On second thought, I did have a friend or two who were wannabe authors. Zack had a horrible tendency of using real people in his shitty fanfic…

I shook my head. Some things just weren’t worth thinking about, you know?

“Anyway,” I said. The girl froze, face buried in the pie. “That didn’t take you long. No, no.” I raised my hands. “Keep eating, I don’t want the pie all over my shirt.”

She glared again, but, more tellingly, she also kept eating.

“Tell you what.” I turned back to my own pie, finishing it in two quick bites. “I do need your help with something.” I smiled. “There’s another pie in it for you, if you do.”

She continued to look at me suspiciously, even as I licked my fingers clean. I rolled my eyes. “Promise it doesn’t involve any ‘butt stuff’.”

Her cheeks went as red as her eyes.

“Interested? Well, come on then, you can eat while we walk.” I turned and started walking. If she didn’t follow, well, I’d done my good deed for the day. If she did, that was just more proof that she was clearly a waifu—or else she was just really hungry, but hey, she got more pies, and I got someone to throw rocks at me.

After a second, I heard the sound of footsteps pattering after me.

For convincing a reluctant enemy to become an ally, you’ve earned 1 Charisma!

+16 exp

And Titan’s resolve continued to scale. Really, the first levels were the worst. No one would let me do anything as a prince.

I led the girl to my favorite practice spot. It was, amusingly, only a few streets from Iduneth’s Library. As a major trade hub, they had a big one, and they also had all sorts of nooks and crannies to explore.

I ducked into a crawl space. As an adult, I would have had to go on hands and knees, but as a ten-year-old I just had to duck. There was a grate only a few feet in, but it was loose, and I easily tugged it out of the way, beckoning demon girl through before pushing it shut behind me.

The drain or whatever it was opened up into a small, impromptu courtyard. Buildings pressed close on all four sides, but between them there was an area about ten feet by ten where they didn’t quite fit together.

“Okay!” I made my way over to the sack of training supplies. I had a couple of round rocks, some rope, and various bits of random junk. Usually I juggled when I wanted to work on Dex, but usually I didn’t have a training partner. I tossed the bag of rocks over at her feet. “I want you to throw those at me one at a time.”

She frowned, taking out one of the rounded stones. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Does it matter? I’ll buy you a pie for every ten times you hit me.” Her eyes lit up, flashing crimson in the light. “There we go.” I turned around, looking for a good spot. “How about you—fuck!”

I threw myself to the side, rubbing my back where she’d beaned me with a rock. Hard. “I didn’t say to start.”

She grinned, showing a row of sharp teeth. “You didn’t say not ta’.”

I glared, taking my stance.

“You won’t get nine more.”