Chapter 102: The Prince in Chains

Words : 1016 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

Chapter 102: The Prince in Chains The hair was so soft, so fluffy, that it had a comforting, healing quality. He could have kept stroking it forever. Tenby had frozen in shock, he opened his eyes wide, but what truly sent a chill down his spine was the sharp, ice-cold gaze stabbing him from behind and it was from Dominic. Tenby’s face had gone pale too, he visibly shaking under the intense stare that felt like it could turn steel to frost. Shiao Yi had no choice but to calm Dominic down by stroking his golden hair, kissing him, whispering again and again—despite the embarrassment—that no one could compare to Dominic, that Dominic was the most important one. Only after all that did the anger finally melt away. Even now, remembering it made Shiao Yi want to look off into the distance in shame. It was a deeply awkward memory. Tenby himself looked like a solid middle-aged man—average build and height, at least by this world’s standards. However, his bright green eyes were burning with passion, shining with the powerful light of someone with strong conviction. They were the eyes of a man who truly believed in something. When Shiao Yi saw those eyes, he couldn’t help but feel a desire to support him. Although if he ever said that aloud, Dominic would definitely become difficult again. So he kept that thought to himself. "So, what you’re saying is... the prince you’re all trying to protect is already in the hands of the current regime?" Dominic asked Tenby to confirm. Tenby nodded, his expression grave. "Prince Jircniv isn’t known yet to be the prince," Tenby said quietly. "However, because Count Dunrossil opposes the military regime, he is being kept like a hostage. But it’s only a matter of time before people find out who he really is..." When the purge of the royal family happened, Jircniv was away from the castle. The trouble began when Ailsa, the Count Dunrossil’s daughter, was forcibly taken by the king during the public garden gathering. From that incident, Ailsa became pregnant with Jircniv. Enraged by the king’s actions, Count Dunrossil refused repeated royal requests to send his daughter to the royal harem. Instead, he hid Ailsa in his own estate. Because of that, the king and his inner circle never knew Ailsa was pregnant, nor did they know about Jircniv’s birth. Fortunately, that secrecy ended up protecting the royal bloodline. Count Dunrossils, who strongly opposed the military regime’s violent takeover and their cruel rule that ignored internal affairs, secretly formed a royalist movement to support Prince Jircniv as the future king. However, the Count was known as a stubborn man and never hesitated to show his frustration toward the current regime. Because of that, he was placed under tight surveillance and couldn’t move freely himself. "So, we were gathering allies and waiting for a chance to rise up," Tenby said. Tenby had originally been the captain of Count Dunrossils’s private knights. After being dismissed, he went into hiding among the common people and began seeking out those who hated the current regime or who desperately wished for the return of the monarchy. He quietly gathered them as comrades. "Still, the oppression against dissenters was harsh. Arrests were merciless. The military regime’s surveillance network is frighteningly thorough. And with the prince already in their hands, even if they don’t know who he is yet, we couldn’t make a move." If they made a mistake and revealed their existence too soon, the entire organization could be destroyed. More importantly, if the prince were to be killed, everything would be lost. Dominic looked at Shiao Yi as if asking a question and Shiao Yi gave a small nod in return. Tenby wasn’t lying. He had openly and honestly shared everything about their situation. In fact, they were probably already at their limit, pushed into a corner with no way out. "If I can break Prince Jircniv out of the castle," Shiao Yi asked, "can the royalist faction rise up all at once?" Tenby’s green eyes sparkled with tension as he answered with difficulty, "We’re ready. We’ve been prepared to stand up at any moment. But the castle’s defense is too strong. If we just storm in with a group, we’d be crushed by the overwhelming size of the military." "In that case, we—Rosaria—will help," Dominic said, confidently. If multiple actions were taken at the same time on different fronts, it might be possible to catch the regime off guard and create an opportunity to win. If Rosaria could show that it had helped them without meaning any harm to Dalmasca, they might be able to build a friendly relationship between the two countries in the future. The carriage, where the secret talks continued, took a day and a half to reach the capital. By the time the bells rang at noon on the ninth day, they had arrived at the gates of Rabanastre, the capital city of Dalmasca. ... Aaron finally came back to his senses. He pulled himself together just in time to talk properly with the gate guards, which allowed them to enter Rabanastre without trouble. It also helped that Stuart, who had been driving the carriage, was registered as a hunter with the guild in Rabanastre and had already taken on many requests, earning the guild’s trust. Even though Dalmasca was always watched carefully as an unstable neighboring country, the decision by the Supreme Commander to plant someone so deeply and for such a long time had clearly been a wise move. The capital city was surrounded by a strong outer stone wall, and inside that, there was a middle wall protecting the districts where nobles and temple officials lived. Deeper still stood a tall inner wall, protecting the castle that used to be home to the royal family. That castle now served as the central seat of power for the current rulers. The government of Dalmasca ruled from a place completely cut off from its people. This was very different from how things were in the Kingdom of Rosaria.

Chapter 102: The Prince in Chains

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