A Happy Life in the Empire - The Princess Once Called a “Failure” Becomes the “Most Important Person” as a Hostage in the Empire - Chapter 3

I had been living in Rockwell for a while now.

Ever since that monster incident, the townspeople had started treating me differently.

People who were once cold toward me now greeted me with smiles.

During my time in town, I learned something important.

For some unknown reason, monsters hated me.

No, rather than hate, it seemed more like fear.

Since I arrived in Rockwell, monsters had stopped coming near the town.

They still appeared occasionally, but whenever I rushed over, they fled immediately.

It was almost amusing how quickly they turned tail and ran.

Before I knew it, people started calling for me whenever a monster appeared.

That had become my “role” in Rockwell.

In the kingdom, I was mocked as a “failure” and given no purpose.

But here, I was part of the town, and people relied on me.

“Sophia! A small monster showed up in the eastern fields! Can you take care of it?”

“Yes! I’m on my way!”

I took off running, still dressed in my tunic.

“Gwo!? G-Gwooo!!”

The moment I arrived at the eastern fields, the monster bolted.

It trembled violently, as if pleading, “Please, spare my life!”

“You saved us, Sophia! Thanks to you, our farm work is going so much smoother!”

“With this, our harvest will increase a lot! Thank you, Sophia!”

The townspeople beamed with happiness.

“No, I didn’t do anything. I can’t even use magic. I was just standing there…”

“But that ‘just standing there’ is already helping us. We really appreciate it.”

Seeing the happy faces around me, I smiled too.

Being needed and making others happy—this was a joy I had never known in the kingdom.

◇

One peaceful day, the town was suddenly buzzing with big news.

Prince Alto of the Empire was coming to Rockwell.

Apparently, he was traveling across the empire in preparation for his future as the next emperor.

The town was excited to welcome such an important guest.

“Sophia, have you ever met Prince Alto before?”

“Prince Alto… I’ve heard of him, but I’ve never met him.”

I was busy helping the townspeople prepare for his arrival.

We decorated the streets with flowers and set up simple tables in the plaza.

“Oh? Even a princess of the kingdom hasn’t seen him before?”

“My position in the kingdom was… unfortunate. I was never invited to official events like treaty signings.”

“Tch, those fools in the kingdom have no sense. You can drive away monsters, yet they ignored your value. But more importantly, Prince Alto… No offense, but the truth is, he played a major role in the war victory against the Luminar Kingdom.”

“I see… Now I’m getting nervous.”

As we continued working, I asked the townspeople about Prince Alto.

Since I was now living in the empire, I wanted to learn as much as possible about him.

However—

“Actually, I don’t know much either.”

“He’s never had a reason to visit a small town like this before.”

“I’ve never seen him myself, but I’ve heard he’s strict and well-mannered.”

That was all the information I could gather.

◇

The next day, Prince Alto arrived in Rockwell as scheduled.

A group of elite knights led the way, kicking up dust as they rode. Behind them followed a carriage carrying the prince.

We, the people of Rockwell, welcomed him with applause.

“Thank you for your warm reception.”

Prince Alto stepped down from his carriage.

His appearance was more impressive than I had imagined.

He had short silver hair and striking, sharp features that seemed to glow. His deep navy-blue eyes were filled with authority, commanding the attention of all who looked at him.

His military-style jacket bore the imperial emblem, embroidered in gold thread. His posture was dignified and calm.

“Prince Alto, welcome to Rockwell! I am the mayor of this town.”

“Thank you. Mayor, do you have the documents prepared?”

“Yes, they are right here.”

Prince Alto had requested the town’s regular report for the empire.

The mayor had been instructed to have it ready in advance.

“Let me take a look.”

Without engaging in idle chatter, Prince Alto began reading the documents.

The townspeople watched nervously.

I stood at a distance, observing the situation.

“Hm? The number of monster-related damages around Rockwell has dropped drastically in recent times.”

“Yes! Thanks to that, our crops are growing very well!”

The mayor responded cheerfully.

However, Prince Alto gave him a sharp look.

“There must be a reason for such a drastic drop. Explain it. If there is a reason, that is.”

Prince Alto clearly found the report suspicious.

He likely thought the mayor had altered the numbers to make the town look better for his visit.

“We didn’t take any special measures, but ever since a certain woman arrived, monsters have stopped coming near…”

The mayor hesitated slightly.

“A woman?”

“Yes. Princess Sophia, who came from the Luminar Kingdom as a hostage.”

Normally, the mayor just called me by my name, but in this formal setting, he made sure to use my title.

“Ah yes, Julius did mention sending the princess as a sign of loyalty to our empire.”

Prince Alto scanned the crowd.

When his eyes met mine, he stopped.

“You are Sophia?”

“Y-Yes!”

I bowed deeply.

“You don’t seem to have much magic, yet you are driving monsters away?”

The mayor quickly answered, “That is correct!”

“Whenever Princess Sophia appears, the monsters flee. She doesn’t use magic, but somehow, they are terrified of her. I swear, the numbers in the report are true!”

“…I see.”

Prince Alto narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

Then he turned to one of his knights and gave a quiet command.

“Send an urgent message to the capital. Summon the royal appraiser. He must arrive here by tomorrow, no matter what.”

“Understood!”

The townspeople murmured among themselves.

I, too, was confused.

(A royal appraiser? What does he want to check…?)

Meanwhile, Prince Alto spoke to the mayor.

“Mayor, I need to change my plans.”

“What do you mean…?”

“I was supposed to leave immediately, but I will stay until tomorrow.”

“Of course! We will gladly host you!”

“I appreciate it.”

For the first time, Prince Alto smiled.

Seeing that, the mayor and the townspeople all breathed a sigh of relief.
◇
The next morning, a new carriage arrived in Rockwell.

“We’ve arrived! The court appraiser sent from the imperial capital is here!”

One of the townspeople said this.

We welcomed the carriage just like we did yesterday.

“Prince Alto, I apologize for making you wait.”

“No, no, I’m the one who should apologize for calling you so suddenly.”

A man, the court appraiser, stepped out of the carriage.

He was a thin, middle-aged man.

He wore long, narrow glasses and carried a bag filled with strange tools in his hand.

“So, Prince, what would you like me to appraise?”

“Actually…”

Prince Alto whispered into the appraiser’s ear.

I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but it was clear that it was an important matter.

As the conversation went on, the appraiser’s face slowly filled with surprise.

That was fine, but—

(They’re definitely talking about me…!)

The problem was that they were discussing me.

After all, the whole time they were talking, they kept looking straight at my face.

“Sophia, come here.”

“Y-Yes, Prince Alto… Did you call me?”

Hearing my name, I nervously stepped forward.

“Don’t worry. I won’t hurt you. This is just to check your magic power.”

“Check my magic power?”

“That’s right. Just bear with it for a little while.”

Prince Alto gave the appraiser a nod. “Go ahead.”

“Then, let’s begin.”

Just as expected, the appraiser started examining me.

He carefully inspected my entire body with a tool that looked like a magnifying glass.

Then, he activated some mysterious magic.

For a brief moment, my entire body glowed.

But there was no pain—only a slight cool sensation.

“…Hmm.”

The appraiser put away his tools and turned to face Prince Alto.

“Well?”

“Just as you suspected, Your Highness.”

“I knew it.”

Prince Alto crossed his arms and looked at me.

I couldn’t help but wonder what they had discovered.

“U-Um, Prince… Is there something wrong with my magic power?”

“No, there’s nothing wrong. But… it is unique.”

“Unique…?”

The appraiser answered this question.

“Lady Sophia, as a princess of the Luminar Kingdom, you must know that magic power has different attributes.”

“Yes, I do. My attribute is ‘None,’ right?”

Magic power could have different attributes, like fire or water.

There were many types of attributes, and some people had more than one.

The type of attribute determined what kind of magic a person could use and how effective it would be.

In my case, my magic power was ‘None.’

Simply put, it meant that I didn’t have any particular attribute.

In my kingdom, they called it ‘the nothing of the useless.’

My magic power was weak, and I had no attribute—so I was worthless.

That was how the kingdom saw me.

“No, you are not without an attribute.”

“Huh?”

“The technology in your kingdom was simply not advanced enough to determine your attribute. But here, in our empire, we can identify it accurately.”

“So, you were appraising the attribute of my magic power just now?”

“Exactly. And we have discovered your true attribute.”

“My true magic attribute…”

The appraiser nodded and spoke with a firm voice.

“There is no mistake. Your magic attribute is ‘Demon King.’”

“Demon King…?”

It was an attribute I had never heard of before.

Not fire, water, light, or healing—Demon King.

“Hey, what’s this Demon King attribute?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t even know magic had attributes in the first place.”

“Same here. Isn’t magic just magic?”

The townspeople were confused.

I, too, was bewildered, unable to understand what was happening.