The Second Prince of the Kingdom of Ra, Lethers Ra Dragonheart
He is a warlike individual who loves martial arts and fighting, known in the empire as the “Mad Dragon.”
He earned this nickname due to an incident that occurred a few years ago at the border.
It was similar to an event that took place between the borders of India and China in his past life, where fighting squads consisting of martial artists engaged in a brawl.
Using weapons would lead to casualties and political complications. However, if they simply stood down or responded weakly to provocations from the opposing country, their nation’s pride would be at stake.
As a result, both armies agreed to engage in a fight under the rules of bare-handed combat.
In this other world, a similar incident happened at the border between the Kingdom of Ra and the Zers Empire.
The difference was that instead of using weapons, they used magic and preferred one-on-one duels instead of a brawl.
In a culture where “duel culture” still existed, one-on-one matches were an understandable form of engagement.
If it had ended there, it would have been just a small happening and wouldn’t have garnered much attention.
The problem was that Prince Lethers himself participated as a contestant for the Kingdom of Ra.
“Ha ha! I’ve heard there are strong ones in the empire, so I came for an experience!”
“…I request a moment for a tactical timeout.”
Upon seeing this, the commander of the Zers border garrison immediately asked for a timeout.
He summoned the commander of the Ra Kingdom’s garrison and grabbed him by the collar.
“Hey, you crazy fools! Bringing royalty to win a match is cowardly!”
“Are we crazy enough to pull such a stunt just to escape decapitation? The prince insisted he wanted to do it himself, what could we do?”
But the Ra Kingdom side also had their own issue.
Prince Lethers insisted on participating, and they tried to stop him until the very end.
After hearing the circumstances, the Zers soldiers couldn’t find anything to say.
“Really?”
“Really…”
A mad prince coming all the way to challenge someone to a fight?
What on earth, what kind of prince is this?
They were left speechless.
“Ha…”
“Ha…”
The sighs of the two armies filled the room.
In the end, an unspoken rule was added: fight, but avoid bloodshed as much as possible.
In short, watch over the prince to ensure he doesn’t get hurt.
But the outcome was unexpected.
Bang! Crash!
“Ha! Is this the extent of the skills of the strong soldiers of the empire? I’m disappointed!”
“C-Comander! That prince! He’s incredibly strong!!!”
Lethers truly was strong.
The representative of the empire, Zergas, fought seriously after ten years of training only to be completely outclassed by the prince.
As a result, the disgraced empire decided to expand martial arts dojos and increase the training intensity of their army.
In the Kingdom of Ra, Lethers was hailed as the “Dragon of Victory,” restoring the nation’s pride.
This incident marked the moment the “Mad Dragon” became known to the empire, called the [Border Duel Dispute Incident].
The reason I know this in detail is that I was there at the time.
We were hastily transporting supplies to substitute for the troops mobilized due to the appearance of the prince.
I could see soldiers and what looked like high-ranking individuals engaged in fierce battles in the distance, but I was so caught up in my work that I didn’t really pay attention.
I now regret not having shown a bit more interest back then, as it seemed more like someone else’s problem.
“As it turned out, Yuren, I ask you to partake in the visit of Prince Lethers, the second prince.”
I was called back to the minister’s office, a place I thought I would never return to.
I resented fate for pulling me back here so quickly.
“So, what am I supposed to do?”
Minerva explained in response to my question.
“What Prince Lethers requested is to meet and spar with you after the official events.”
“Spar? Are we talking about that kind of spar?”
As a fan of the Legend Fighter, I understood why he wanted to meet me.
I had also gone to events to meet famous game developers.
But why in the world did he want to fight me?
If he wanted to fight, he could challenge his strong special forces.
“Yes, he wants to experience the skills of Yuren, the creator of the Legend Fighter.”
“I’m just an ordinary wizard… Is it really necessary for me to do this?”
I felt truly wronged, as I just wanted to develop games in peace.
The Minister, Herness, sighed at my plight and said,
“Does an ordinary wizard create an arena for martial arts and become a champion?”
“That’s… an accident…”
To be honest, I felt wronged about that too.
I only helped people relax a bit and played some intense games.
Besides, the arena was a recent affair; how did the Kingdom of Ra even find out about it?
“We did discuss your story, but they provided information about the arena champ that we weren’t aware of, so it seems you’ve captured their interest.”
“Ah… Okay…”
Oh no, was I being monitored?
I felt chills at the thought of how much interest a neighboring country had in me.
However, Minister Herness took a sip of coffee and unexpectedly said something.
“But it’s also a good opportunity.”
“Pardon?”
I was about to get in a duel with a prince from a neighboring kingdom, and he calls it a good opportunity?
Was he not well lately?
As I thought that, Minister Herness looked incredibly serious.
“This is also a chance to restore the empire’s dignity that fell due to the [Border Duel Dispute Incident].”
It seemed like he held that incident close to heart.
At such a high position, it was understandable that he would equate the country’s dignity with his own, but his expression seemed a bit off.
Shouldn’t he be focusing on the imperial military or elsewhere?
“No, I’m just an ordinary…”
“Please, Yuren. I’m sure the Queen will be pleased as well.”
Whaaaat!
Pulling out the Queen card here?
Like the way royal decrees hold absolute power in Korean historical dramas, the current orders from the Queen have overwhelming authority in the empire.
Ignoring them could lead to being branded a traitor, forced to escape to another country—what a hassle that would make life!
Damn! Should I just democratize this place?
While I was contemplating how to escape, I played my last card.
“But… if I accidentally hurt the prince, wouldn’t it blow up into a major incident?”
I’m just a mere citizen of the empire, even though I’m a wizard.
Any accident during the spar, such as casting magic accidentally and injuring the prince severely, could lead to a diplomatic crisis.
However…
“We also spoke about that, and the Kingdom of Ra said they wouldn’t have any issues with that at all.”
“Really!?”
“Yes, in fact, they would consider not engaging properly an insult to the Kingdom of Ra.”
“Oh my goodness…”
What kind of belligerent prince is this?
Is this man born in the wrong era, like someone from the Stone Age?
“Thus, don’t worry, Yuren. As long as the prince doesn’t die, there shouldn’t be any problems—just as long as he doesn’t die.”
“Ah… Okay…”
At that moment, I heard a voice from the Minister’s eyes.
“Beat him until he’s on the brink of death,” a voice that should never have been spoken from a Minister.
Once the discussion was settled, he set down his coffee cup and said.
“It seems our discussion has concluded, so Yuren, you shall follow Minerva from now.”
“Wait? Isn’t the Kingdom’s visit next week?”
From what I knew, the visit to the Kingdom of Ra was scheduled for next week.
It felt way too early to be here now, but Minerva dropped a bombshell.
“For your training, we’ve invited martial arts masters from within the Imperial Army.”
“Excuse me?”
What do you mean by inviting martial arts masters? What kind of madness is this?
Even though I wanted to study martial arts due to the fighting game phase, I never expected it to go this far.
“Although there’s only a week left, with their help, you can become much stronger in that time.”
The Minister spoke with the most serious expression I had ever seen.
Again, his voice echoed in my head.
“Beat him until he’s on the brink of death.”
“Wait, I’m just…”
“Then, Minerva, I’ll leave Yuren to you.”
“Understood, Minister Herness. Now, Yuren, please come with me.”
And just like that, I was dragged off by Minerva.
I would then go on to learn martial arts from the distilled essence of the empire’s martial experts—beings with an average age of 357 years across humans, elves, and dark elves.
They say there’s no end to learning.
But now, I was itching to stop studying martial arts and return to my main job: wizardry.
