MBHE | Chapter 1.2

Secretly leaving the castle and living quietly until the hero defeated the demon king, then coming out to explore the world? Iellon knew this world wasn’t that easy. It wasn’t a safe world where a child could survive alone. Escaping was not feasible with a child’s body.

In this situation, all he could do was live quietly, like a mouse. It was much better to live as a prince and cater to the protagonist than to go out and be killed by bandits.

‘But still…’

If there was one thing that bothered him. If ‘Iellon,’ who constantly hindered the hero’s party and gave them trials, making them stronger, did nothing, wouldn’t the hero be unable to grow strong?

Then who would defeat the demon king? Who would save the world? If people died and got hurt, wouldn’t it be Iellon’s fault for not following the path he knew?

No matter how much he pondered, no solution came to mind, and he couldn’t do anything with a child’s body. A life flowing without a goal exhausted him.

To be honest, just surviving was overwhelming. Reading books, attending classes, wielding a sword. Iellon’s life consisted solely of those three things.

Walking down the corridor, there were attendants who dared not lift their heads to meet his eyes, and the emperor, his father, didn’t even glance at him. The inorganic eyes, like looking at a doll, sometimes gave him chills.

The only person who stayed by his side, Helen, would glare coldly and pick up a whip if Iellon made even the slightest mistake.

It was thanks to his adult mind that he could maintain composure in such a situation, but if he had truly been a child, it would have been natural to become withdrawn and develop compulsions.

Meanwhile, drinking poisoned tea and surviving, encountering assassins several times, also did not positively influence the formation of a child’s personality.

Time passed in a blur, and Iellon was smoothly becoming the crown prince. It was natural, as there were no other surviving royal children, but even if there were, he was becoming competent enough to be chosen.

Though he appeared to be a child, his mind was that of an adult, so it might have been inevitable. Still, accepting new things with pre-existing knowledge in a world where everything from language to culture was unfamiliar was quite challenging.

But Iellon managed. Even if it was a struggle to avoid deeply contemplating the unbelievable reality of being reborn as a character in a book.

Then, in spring, when the snow melted and flowers began to bloom, eight-year-old Iellon learned that two women in the imperial palace were pregnant around the same time.

Iellon immediately knew which of the two would give birth to the protagonist. In fact, it was impossible not to know. Carpe had the lowest-ranked mother among all the princes and princesses.

Until he was eight, Iellon hadn’t decided how to act. What actions would lead to a satisfying outcome for everyone? How could it be a happy ending?

Pondering that made him feel overwhelmed, as if tears might come at any moment. Though it still felt like a dream, the pain and fatigue were all real.

So Iellon decided to meet Carpe. Before the hero’s mother fled with the child, he thought he should at least see his face. Then he would think. That’s what he decided.

The room where the hero was to be born was quite shabby. A tired-looking woman and an old midwife. Only those two were there to witness the hero’s birth, but an unexpected person suddenly appeared.

With a light knock, the person entered, their silver hair shimmering in the moonlight breeze, smiling brightly. There was only one child with silver hair in the imperial palace. Iellon Leronan.

“Your Highness! How did you…?”

“Don’t mind me. I just wanted to meet my sibling.”

Watching the face go from surprise to terror, Iellon carefully closed the door. The candle flickered in the breeze but didn’t go out.

The woman, watching Iellon like a rabid dog, soon gritted her teeth and swallowed her screams as labor pains resumed.

The hero’s birth was neither grand nor sacred. Like any other child, the baby was born amidst pain, its cries pitifully weak.

The woman’s face, holding the baby wrapped in clean but worn swaddling clothes, was covered in sweat. Yet it shone with unmistakable joy. ‘Soon, you’ll lose your life because of that child.’ She looked so happy that he wanted to say such words.

Finally, 『Heroes Never Die』 began. Iellon, who had been both dreading and anticipating this moment, was slightly surprised by his indifference.

At that moment, the woman holding the weakly crying baby called out to the silently sitting Iellon.

“…Would you like to hold him?”

Seeing the woman gesture uncertainly, Iellon, with a similar expression, rose from his chair.

Approaching almost as if entranced, he faintly recalled the thought that this baby might kill him one day as he slowly extended his arms. The cloth, warmed by body heat, touched his white arms. The baby was lighter than expected. So light that he feared it might be blown away by a breath.

And the baby…

A swollen, ugly face, a small nose, a small mouth, silver hair like threads. The tiny body, so small that it was a wonder it was alive, heaved with each breath.

“…You look like me. You look like me. Like family.”

The prince, unknowingly steeped in loneliness, blinked. The newborn baby smacked its tiny lips.

At that moment, stars sparked, and the world clicked and moved. Someone pressed a button, and gears began to turn, scattering dust. He even thought that the world, ridiculously colorful yet entirely monochrome, was now shining brightly.

Iellon instinctively realized. This world is a stage prepared for you.

The baby, unaware of who was staring at him with wide eyes, wiggled his fingers. The fingers of the hero who would eventually defeat the villain and save the world were very warm.

The prince, holding the ugly, small, warm baby, quietly brushed away the water droplets that fell on the baby’s face.

My brother. My Carpe. The protagonist I loved. My hero.

“Let’s make a deal. Of course, it won’t be a bad condition.”

The eyes, unchildlike, stared directly at the woman who had just given birth to the hero. The candle flickered, and the woman nodded with a strangely serene face. On the night the hero was born, the stars moved along a path different from their original destiny.

♣ ♣ ♣

Carpe, who should have left the imperial palace right after birth, has been living here for five years now. This means the original story has been derailed from the first chapter. But Iellon had no intention of letting the story go astray.

‘The butterfly effect can’t be ignored, but not everything will change.’

He knew the general future and had some power. A happy ending for his cute little brother wasn’t just a dream.

After training, Iellon carefully massaged his aching arms as he returned to his room. The knight commander, known as one of the strongest in the empire, showed no mercy just because he was a child.

Of course, it was good for Iellon, who sincerely wanted to become stronger and had reasons to do so, but it was undeniably tough.

“Your Highness has talent. There aren’t many things you can’t achieve with effort, but innate reflexes are something else. You’ll become an excellent swordsman.”

Even someone who didn’t flatter said this. The original Iellon was quite strong as a mid-boss, so with effort, he could reach a certain level.

But such ambiguous strength wouldn’t be enough to realize his plans. As he walked, thinking about how to become stronger, Iellon stopped abruptly.

“Carr, what are you doing here?”

“Hyung…”

A tear-streaked face slowly rose from a crouched position. As he quickly ran over and hugged him, he felt the hot, feverish body trembling. Unlike Iellon’s dull red eyes, Carpe’s clear blue eyes were wet and shimmering.

Carpe, who could be said to live solely by Iellon’s mercy, had a very narrow standing in the imperial palace. Iellon, gritting his teeth, asked his brother.

“Why are you crying? Did someone say something? Where’s Dilla?”

“Mother…”

Carpe’s story was this: today was a pre-arranged day to have tea time with his mother, and he made a small mistake there.

A mistake in etiquette occurred due to his small hands, and Freesia blew up, clinging to it and raging. Perhaps she was angry because Carpe didn’t eat the cookie Philip gave him, or maybe she was venting her usual rising anger in the wrong place.

Unaware of this, Carpe thought Freesia was angry because of his mistake and was terribly frightened. Dilla stood in front of Freesia, who was about to scold him, saying she would take the punishment instead. After Dilla was taken away, Carpe came to find Iellon alone.

“Di, sniff, Dilla got in trouble because of me, sniff…”

As he patted the small back, Iellon thought calmly. She would be fine. No matter how crazy Freesia was, she hadn’t completely lost it yet, so she might beat her a bit but wouldn’t take her life.

‘She’s been quite annoying lately, but it’s not time yet. I can’t get rid of Freesia now.’

Having finished his thoughts, Iellon slowly detached Carpe from his embrace. The child, clinging like a puppy to its mother, was unbearably cute.

“Dilla will be fine. She’ll probably just get a scolding.”

“But… Mother was really angry.”

“When has hyung ever lied?”

“Um, that time you gave me medicine saying it was candy.”

“That was because you had a cold and refused to take it.”

Carpe, with his flushed face from the fever, frowned adorably. He wanted to indulge his rare tantrum, but he couldn’t leave him sick.

“Other than that?”