Heights of Ambition

“There are quite a few candidates this year. How about this young man for this time?”

“M-me?”

“What! What are you talking about!”

The person the priest pointed to was Seimus. Unlike Seimus, who pointed a finger at his own chest with a dazed expression, Ethan was absolutely aghast. Forgetting all etiquette toward the clergy, he began to jump up and down in protest.

“Why! I did it last year, and the year before that too!”

Ethan’s face turned beet-red as he vented his fury. The role he had played was, essentially, a bridesmaid. Although it was formally called the role of the ‘Knight,’ one only had to look at him standing beside the Imperial family member during the ritual to realize he was just an escort.

Ethan had held that position every year, so it was only natural for him to be livid now that the role was being handed to Seimus.

“Well… however,” the priest began, looking troubled.

The priest hesitated, wondering if he should actually say it, then avoided Ethan’s gaze and spoke with a hint of apology.

“It is because the Young Lord is a bit… short.”

Crack! At those words, Ethan froze, his mouth hanging wide open. To be fair, Ethan was on the smaller side. Given the stature of the Duke and Duchess of Berringen, a brilliant future was surely in store for him, but for now, Ethan was smaller in both height and build than his peers.

Though it was cute, it wasn’t suitable for assisting in a solemn ritual, and the priest had simply pointed out that practical reality.

“Brother…….”

A shell-shocked Ethan turned to look at me. Despite his pitiful expression, the fact remained that his height had been a bit of an inconvenience, so I had no choice but to look away.

Unable to take it any longer, Ethan finally burst into tears.

“Waaaaah!”

He cast a quick glance back as if hoping I would catch him before he left, but when I didn’t stand up, he puffed out his lower lip and ran out with a loud wail.

Feeling as though Ethan’s tears were his fault, Seimus fidgeted in his seat, at a total loss.

“S-shouldn’t we go after the Young Lord?”

I simply laughed at his goodness, seeing him so anxious that Ethan might get hurt or run into bad people. Despite having suffered through Ethan’s temper multiple times, his first instinct was to worry when he saw him cry; he was truly a kind soul.

I waved my hand and told him it was fine. Seimus couldn’t shake his worry, but in truth, his concern was unnecessary. There were no “bad people” inside the Imperial Palace, and even if such a person existed, they would be slaughtered by the knights guarding the palace from the shadows.

‘Besides, Ethan won’t even leave the Crown Prince’s Palace, so he won’t get hurt.’

It was obvious where he was going. He’d go to his own room in the palace or to my room and cry until I came to comfort him. Whenever he was upset with me, he was too scared to actually get angry, so he protested like this instead.

“Ethan is fine, so you don’t need to worry.”

“But still…….”

The worry that filled Seimus’s face as he glanced at the door was soon replaced by excitement at the priest’s following words.

“I… I’m the one helping?”

“That is correct, Young Lord. In the past, only the Young Lord of Berringen was by His Highness’s side, so he was the only choice for the Knight role. But now that there are more of you, it’s quite nice to have options.”

“Ah.”

As I’ve mentioned many times, because this Empire was founded by God, everyone from nobles to commoners revered Him. Therefore, participating in a ritual for God was an immense honor.

People lined up for this job, but since I kept only Ethan by my side, the Temple—not wishing to offend me—had no choice but to keep picking Ethan.

“Oh, but the Young Lord of Berringen……”

“Do not worry.”

Seimus, who had been rejoicing, hesitated as he remembered Ethan again, but the priest comforted him.

“While only one person can play the Knight who assists the ritual, several others can join as acolytes.”

Unlike the Knight and I who would be at the front, the acolytes simply followed behind. Even so, many coveted the position just to be part of the ceremony. However…

‘I only ever had Ethan.’

Ethan had even driven away those who gathered the courage to approach. At the time, I didn’t stop him because it was more convenient that way. It was entirely my fault that Ethan turned out this way. It was my silent permission that made his personality so obsessive. Much like how constant favors are eventually mistaken for rights, because I never got angry or stopped him, Ethan naturally came to believe that the spot by my side belonged solely to him.

‘That said, I don’t want to distance myself from him now.’

I didn’t want things to become awkward with Ethan. He was annoying at times, but it was a fact that I genuinely liked him.

I know that overindulging a child turns them into a brat, but since he only acts like a brat toward me, maybe it’ll be fine after I’m gone.

I looked down at my palm. Poison still remained in this body. The poison would grow stronger along with me and eventually consume me. My body feels fine and healthy now, but the fact that I am dying remains unchanged.

‘Since I’m going to die anyway, wouldn’t it be better to leave things as they are rather than have our relationship sour?’

Since he follows me so devotedly, Ethan will likely suffer for a lifetime once I die. So, part of me wanted to treat him well while I was still alive.

While I was lost in thought, Seimus seemed to have finally decided to accept the offer. Watching them celebrate, I turned to Chase, who was standing idly by, and asked:

“Will you come along that day as well?”

I was asking if he wanted to go as an acolyte. I was worried he might run into the people from the Great Forest while I was occupied with the ritual. Chase was about to shake his head but paused to think.

“Do the acolytes also sleep at the Temple?”

“They do.”

Everyone participating in the ritual stays overnight at the Temple. The Temple where the ritual is held isn’t very close, and by the time we finish the street parade and the ceremony, it’s usually somewhere between evening and night.

There’s no need to push ourselves to return after the sun has set, so unless there’s an emergency, we just sleep there and return to the palace the next morning.

Upon hearing my words, Chase finally nodded.

“I would like to participate as well.”

The look in Chase’s eyes as he spoke was dark. I was a bit worried that he was still troubled by something, but I looked away, pretending not to notice. We settled on Seimus as the Knight and Ethan and Chase as acolytes, concluding the day’s business.

“Since the Knight has changed, we’ll have to adjust the costume.”

The priest grinned. Seimus was taller than me; if he tried to wear Ethan’s clothes, they would probably only serve as a shirt. It was a remark that would have brought Ethan to tears had he heard it.

Once the priests left, I headed to my room, leaving the two of them in the drawing room. When I opened the door, as expected, Ethan was sprawled facedown on my bed.

Since I couldn’t hear any crying or any other sound, it seemed he had fallen asleep. He looked uncomfortable hugging my pillow facedown, so I gently rolled him over, only to see the pillow was soaked with tears.

I have plenty of pillows, so soaking one didn’t matter, but Ethan’s face was still tearful, as if he were sorrowful even in his dreams. Both his eyes were swollen.

When I poked his eyelid with my fingertip, a stream of tears leaked out from the corner of his closed eye.

“Hic……”

Brother, you’re too much. Ethan sobbed pathetically in his sleep. I let out a little chuckle. In this world, Ethan was the only one who gave me, the Crown Prince, unconditional love.

The Emperor was heartless, and while the Empress had maternal affection, she was a typical noblewoman. Nobles never raise their children with their own hands. It was the same for the Imperial family; I, too, was raised by the hands of many maids.

I loved myself more than anyone, but Ethan loved and followed me to a degree that surpassed even that. That’s why I couldn’t bring myself to hate this kid.

‘He was pretty annoying when I was just a reader, though.’

Seeing how much he mouthed off to the protagonist, Chase, from Chase’s perspective, made me want to flip him over and give him a good smack. I pressed down on Ethan’s other eyelid with my finger. Again, the tears pooled there spilled over.

“Ugh…… Brother?”

Ethan seemed to wake up because someone kept poking him. Rubbing both eyes as he sat up, he saw my face and burst into tears again, feeling the sorrow all over.

“That was my spot!”

“Uwaaaaah!” He wailed, throwing himself into my arms. He seemed resentful that the role he held every year had been taken away. I stroked the back of his head and spoke.

“Last year, you almost fell down the stairs because you carried the water basin wrong.”

At those words, his small back flinched. Back then, it ended with just a broken basin, but it was a situation where he could have easily tumbled down the stairs and been seriously injured. He caused an accident at least once every single year, so even if he promised not to do it again, it wasn’t exactly believable.

“But… but……”

“You’ve done it all this time, so wouldn’t it be okay to rest a little? At least until you grow enough to not make mistakes.”

“……And when is that?”

“Who knows.”

Since Ethan barely reaches my chest right now, wouldn’t he need to grow at least as much as Chase? Chase was about a hand span shorter than me.

At those words, perhaps deciding he couldn’t lose to Chase, a look of grim determination entered Ethan’s eyes.

“Brother, I’m going to grow. Bigger than Chase, and bigger than Seimus too.”

I said “Sure,” while stroking his hair. However, there was a fact that both Ethan and I were overlooking: we were all in our growth phases. That meant not just Ethan, but Chase and Seimus were growing too.

Ethan had a determined look as if he would surpass them all, but since no one was going to stop growing just to wait for Ethan to catch up, nobody could predict when his resolution would actually be fulfilled.