The Prince Is Dead, So Let’s Start Over Everything Again! - Chapter 3.9

“Oh my goodness…”

“Why would clothes be abandoned in a place like this?”

I should have answered that question earlier.

“They’re bandits…”

Bandits were living on this mountain.

It seemed my 4th life was hopeless.

“Oh, these little ones could fetch a good price.”

“Hey, little one next to her, take off your hood too. Let’s see that face.”

The bandits looked us over and chuckled maliciously.

They approached me and the 3rd Prince leisurely, cornering us.

Behind us, a large rock had appeared at some point.

Our escape route was blocked.

I said it felt like we were rabbits being driven into a trap, and it really was true.

“M-Miss Lurupel, quickly hide behind me…”

The 3rd Prince, though trembling, tried to hide me behind him.

Of course, there was no way I, being a fist size larger than the 3rd Prince, could be hidden by his small body.

Who’s looking after whom?

I sighed and picked up a branch from the ground, grasping at straws.

It probably wouldn’t be of much use, but it’s slightly better than having nothing.

“Oh? Our pretty one, are you trying to hit Uncle with that?”

“Oh my, how scary.”

The bandits chuckled at me dreaming of futile resistance.

Their eyes were all crazed. The yellowed whites of their eyes shining greasily was grotesque.

Unconsciously, I took a step back.

“Let’s see this little one’s face too.”

While I was hesitating, one of the bandits approached the 3rd Prince.

The bandit grabbed the 3rd Prince by the collar and lifted him up.

The 3rd Prince’s small feet dangling in the air looked utterly pitiful.

“Oh, this one’s pretty too? Both of their hair colors are a bit disappointing, but still, we’re lucky today.”

“Let go! How dare you not release me!”

The 3rd Prince struggled with resistance weaker than a chick’s wing flapping.

He flailed his arms and legs while desperately chanting a spell.

As I suspected, nothing shot out from the 3rd Prince’s fingertips.

I rushed at the bandit before it was too late.

“Yah!”

And I struck the bandit’s leg hard with the branch I was holding.

“Argh!”

The fragile branch snapped in half instantly. The bandit also screamed and collapsed on the spot.

The 3rd Prince, dropped by the bandit, rolled and landed next to me.

Even then, the bandit was still groaning and unable to get up.

‘…Huh?’

Isn’t this a bit… strange?

It was just an eight-year-old girl hitting with a branch, is that really so painful?

Of course, strictly speaking, I wasn’t just any eight-year-old girl.

I had taken Taekwondo for 2 years, Hapkido and Kendo for 1 year each, under my mom’s pressure.

I learned them in elementary school and now can’t even remember the first Taeguk form, but anyway, I was a beneficiary of early martial arts education in South Korea.

Could this be how my real parents’ obsession is paying off?

I guess Mom and Dad did have some foresight after all…

“Hey, are you kidding me? What are you doing, unable to handle one little kid?”

Another nearby bandit approached with a frown.

Before he could reach out to me, I quickly picked up a new branch. Then I struck the back of his knee with it.

“Aaaagh!”

This bandit also screamed and fell instantly.

“M-Miss Lurupel? Have you learned swordsmanship?”

“…No? …Probably not?”

Since possessing Hariella’s body, I had never tried to learn anything.

All I had learned were etiquette, dancing, and musical instruments. All of these were forced upon me by Count and Countess Lurupel.

As for swordsmanship…

Hariella had never even held a toy sword.

“Argh!”

“Aaaagh!”

But why are these bandits falling so easily?

Are they actually made of marshmallows despite their big build?

I defeated the bandits one by one while imagining absurd scenarios.

Somehow, I felt uneasy.

How should I put it… The situation felt too contrived and unrealistic.

What is this? Is this perhaps a scene from the original story?

“You… you little brat!”

Like typical minor villains, the bandits who had been attacking one at a time finally got enraged.

They all rushed at me simultaneously.

“Miss Lurupel! It’s dangerous!”

At that moment, a small spark unexpectedly burst from the 3rd Prince’s hand.

“…A, a magician! It’s a magician!”

The bandits who were reaching out to me hesitated and stepped back.

They glanced at each other, exchanging some kind of meaningful looks.

It was ridiculous.

A kid who knocks down ten bandits with a branch isn’t scary, but a kid who uses magic is?

“I heard magicians always return grudges twofold…”

“…I’m out of this!”

Several bandits turned their backs and ran away.

I watched their retreating figures with an astonished look.

Right… I thought things were turning out strangely.

So this was it. It’s that thing where the male protagonist awakens to protect the female protagonist in danger.

Considering this was a world of a third-rate romance novel, it wasn’t strange at all.

I felt completely deflated.

I threw the branch I was holding onto the ground.

Anyway, it was clear that the remaining bandits would also run away, overwhelmed by the so-called dignity emanating from the 3rd Prince’s small body and his supposedly beast-like aura.

“…But isn’t that spark too small?”

“For a magician, he seems quite unskilled in magic?”

Huh, or not.

Some of the more daring remaining bandits readjusted their grip on their weapons.

One bandit swung a wooden club at the 3rd Prince.

‘Well, I’m sure he’ll block it just fine.’

I waited quietly, not wanting to interfere with the 3rd Prince’s growth.

As expected, the 3rd Prince once again produced sparks from his fingertips.

‘But… isn’t it too small….’

The problem was that the spark was even smaller than a match flame.

The 3rd Prince’s magic was worse than nothing.

The bandits completely ignored the spark on the 3rd Prince’s hand and swung their wooden clubs at him.

The 3rd Prince was hit squarely on the head, and collapsed to the ground.

“Gasp! Your Highness!”

At the same time, my vision started to blur.

“No! Don’t die! What is this? Wasn’t this supposed to be an awakening?”

In a panic, I snatched a wooden club from a bandit and quickly dealt with the remaining bandits.

Maybe because the weapon was better, with each swing of the club, two or three bandits fell.

But my vision was getting darker and darker.

I tried to maintain balance, but it didn’t work as I wanted.

I finally staggered and fell forward.

No! My 4th life!

It felt like I was really about to enter my 5th life.

Suddenly, an unidentifiable figure appeared out of nowhere.

Even with my blurry vision, I could tell it was a man with black hair.

“Oh… To take down so many bandits alone, what a talented child.”

The man cut down all the remaining bandits with a single sword stroke, then approached me with steady steps.

His strong arms lifted me up.

“Don’t worry now. I will personally help you and your companion.”

That was indeed a kind offer.

…But who are you?

I was so curious about the man’s identity.

But I couldn’t ask that question.

My blurry vision finally turned completely black.

Farewell, my 4th life…