“Now, should I ask Jamon or should I ask Irmin?”

“What do you think?”

“Please make that decision yourself.”

Davi seemed unwilling to offer any more help than that.

I had been relying too much on Davi.

I should act like an adult and just ask the first person I run into. I wasn’t one to overthink things.

* * *

If possible, I would have preferred to bump into Irmin. Conversations with Irmin were somehow more comfortable than with Jamon.

However, Irmin was nowhere to be seen in the palace until the sun set, probably hanging out with Kabir. As a result, I ended up meeting Jamon first during dinner time.

“Hello.”

“……?”

Jamon looked at me with a puzzled expression as I entered the dining hall.

We usually ate separately.

But with Hans not around and wanting to have a conversation, I asked the maid about Jamon’s dining schedule and made my way to the dining hall.

I naturally took the seat opposite him. The servants hurried to prepare my meal.

“Let’s have dinner together.”

“…Do as you please.”

Jamon seemed to have gotten used to this side of me.

The meal was quickly prepared. The palace meals were always delicious.

“I have something I want to ask.”

“What is it this time?”

“Does Your Highness dissatisfied with the Crown Prince’s abilities?”

It was a rather sensitive question, as evidenced by Jamon’s eyebrows twitching. Of course, it was none of my business.

While cutting his meat, Jamon replied.

“My brother is a man of exceptional talent.”

The recognition of his abilities came quickly for someone who was supposed to dislike him.

It seemed Irmin was indeed competent.

“He’s just lazy.”

Lazy, that was the problem.

From my perspective, Irmin seemed to enjoy his leisure too much. He would escape the palace every day using transformation magic. Today was no exception.

“Do you think if he wasn’t so lazy, the current situation wouldn’t have occurred?”

“I acknowledge my brother’s abilities too. Annoyingly, he’s objectively superior to me.”

Even if their relationship was strained, Jamon believed that if Irmin had only been diligent, things wouldn’t have come to this point.

‘Irmin….’

Just thinking about Irmin gave me a headache. He was always the problem.

* * *

Upon hearing that Irmin had returned, I jumped out of bed and headed to his room.

I was worried because it was a very private space, but Irmin gladly welcomed me.

Entering the room, there was Irmin, already changed into his pajamas.

“Good evening. Why are you not asleep?”

“I was waiting for His Highness.”

“Ahaha, how embarrassing.”

Even though I was staring at him with a rather stern expression, Irmin took it in his own stride.

“What kept you so late?”

“I was hanging out with Kabir.”

“Spending hours with Kabir?”

“Killing two birds with one stone, taking a tour of the village too?”

A sigh escaped me involuntarily. I found myself immensely empathizing with Jamon’s feelings at that moment.

“I had a conversation with His Highness today.”

“Really? What did Jamon say?”

“Surprisingly, he readily acknowledged the Crown Prince’s abilities.”

“He had to. I am a genius, after all!”

Irmin exclaimed proudly, which was annoying.

With a clearly displeased expression, I said,

“If you had been diligent from the start, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

“Ah, but I dislike that.”

Irmin’s response was shamelessly nonchalant.

“I am inherently an active person. I dislike working. It’s like wasting my natural talent.”

“Then why not give up your position as the Crown Prince?”

“I dislike that idea too.”

What was he trying to achieve? It made me understand why Jamon was so eager to replace him.

“Have you ever considered taking your role a bit more seriously?”

“You sound just like Jamon.”

Irmin flopped down onto the bed.

“I’m just enjoying the last bits of freedom I can have. Try ascending to the throne. You won’t even be able to enjoy this much.”

“…”

I couldn’t say I didn’t understand his feelings. If there was a time to enjoy any semblance of freedom, it was now, as the Crown Prince. If not now, he would have to sacrifice himself for the empire for the rest of his life.

“You wouldn’t be like this if you ascended the throne, would you?”

“Of course not. It’s precisely because I’m prepared not to be that I’m enjoying myself now.”

Listening to both sides, I understood the sentiments of both.

Neither could be blamed. Couldn’t they just have a conversation together? The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like the fastest solution.

“I have one more question.”

“Ask away.”

“Do you think, once His Highness ascends the throne, he will do well?”

“No.”

Irmin’s answer was resolute.

“It’s not that I underestimate Jamon’s abilities. He might even do better than me.”

“Then why?”

“He’s too tender-hearted. He’ll face many things that will hurt him.”

I agreed that being tender-hearted was an issue.

So, Irmin did care about Jamon in his own way. It would have been easier for me if Irmin also disliked Jamon.

After the conversation, I returned to my room.

I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

In that state, I zoned out and then called for Hans.

“Hans.”

[Manager: Yes.]

Hans appeared in the chat window immediately.

“What were you doing?”

[Manager: 1]

“Should I just give everything up and go to the Celestial Realm?”

[Manager: If you want.]

It was hard to tell if he was serious or just nonchalant because of the lack of enthusiasm.

I absent-mindedly twirled my hair in frustration.

“My head hurts so much. I shouldn’t have gotten involved in the first place…”

[Manager: That’s true.]

“What should I do now? I’m clueless.”

[Manager: Why not think back to your original intentions?]

My original intentions?

Indeed, back then, I would do anything for points. Now that points accumulate without much effort, my obsession with them has diminished.

‘If I were the person I was when I first started.’

I would have probably been enjoying the current situation. I would have been thrilled to have new material for my broadcasts.

After all, the worst-case scenario would just be the empire falling apart. And that was none of my concern.

Since when did I start caring so much about others? Maybe I’ve grown too soft or maybe I’ve just grown attached to the people here.

It’s all about having fun. Why was I worrying about others’ situations and feelings? It was time to go back to my original intentions, just as Hans suggested.

I jumped out of bed and exclaimed,

“Hans, you’re the best!”

[Manager: I didn’t do much though;]

“I’m going to start a broadcast tomorrow. Goodnight.”

[Manager: ;;Alright.]

It had been a long time since I felt this excited about a broadcast.

With a buoyant heart, I fell asleep.

* * *

I woke up today full of energy.

“Back to basics!”

I declared and immediately hit the start button for the broadcast.

Even though it was morning, viewers started flocking in.

[Lloading: Wow, a morning show!]

[PleaseShakeACarrot: Good morning!]

[Stress: It’s been a while since you started broadcasting this early.]

“I’ve made a decision, everyone.”

[Plong: He’s going to say something weird again! Yay!]

[Gold2: Let’s hear itㅋ I’m curious.]

“I’ve decided to go back to basics.”

[AsparagusCharm: ? Did you ever lose it?]

[MadelineTastesGood: You’ve always been consistent.]

[Something: lolㅋㅋ]

The reactions were not quite what I expected when I finally decided something.

This was a virtual world, after all. Getting too immersed was a mistake.

Jamon? Irmin? Whatever happens to them, it didn’t matter. Letting everything go felt liberating.

“What shall we do today?”

[OnlyFinley: Let’s go see Jamonㄱㄱ]

[Lloading: JamonJamonJamon]

Jamon’s fanbase seemed to have grown quite a bit. I couldn’t quite understand what they found so charming about him.

But if that’s what the viewers want, I’ll go. Jamon won’t be there in the morning, but I can just wait for him. It’s not like I have anything else to do all day.

I picked up a book and headed to the garden. It was a place I visited almost as often as my room in the palace.

“Nemoh, Nemoh―”

I hummed a little tune while looking for Nemoh. As usual, Nemoh came running at the slightest hint of someone’s presence.

‘At this rate, isn’t it more like a dog?’

I wondered if I had gotten the traits of cats and dogs mixed up.

After settling down, I placed the cat on my lap and started scratching its chin, eliciting a purring sound.

It was a peaceful time, so serene that I felt sleepiness creeping in.

‘Maybe I’m still a bit sleepy.’

Drowsiness still lingered.

After a long yawn, I lay down on the long bench.

“Please wake me up with a donation alert if something happens.”

[Stress: Truly shameless.]

[PleaseShakeACarrot: That’s our sis!]

[OnlyFinley: Sleep tight― I’ll wake you up!]

Next to me, I could hear the cat’s purring, and the sunlight was warm. Sleep was inevitable.

“……”

* * *

How much time had passed?

I sensed someone’s presence and suddenly opened my eyes.

“……?”

Slowly lifting my eyelids, I saw Jamon’s face right in front of me. Both of us were startled and jumped at the unexpected eye contact.

Jamon, who had been crouching, hurriedly stood up.

“…You seem pretty relaxed, sleeping in someone else’s garden.”

“I was sleepy. What were you doing?”

“Nothing, really.”

Really nothing? He seemed too close for that.

I felt a bit guilty for Jamon, but I too had observant eyes.

Glancing at the chat, I saw a flood of donations and a chatroom on fire. I must have slept deeply not to hear the donation alert.

[OnlyFinley has donated 10,000 points!]

– Seriously the best

[Gold2: I’m a fan of Jamon from today]

[Isaac: 2222]

[Gold2 has been muted for 5 minutes.]

[Isaac has been muted for 5 minutes.]

[PleaseShakeACarrot: lololol]

[Lloading: What now, manager was here lolol]

[Something: He’s jealous lol]

[Manager: **]

What on earth did Jamon do to cause this? The Jamon I saw just had his usual stoic expression, so I had no idea what was going on.