The Prince from Another World Wants to Save the World

Chapter 1: The Plan Must Be Precise (1)

“Ah! This wasn’t part of the plan!”

As soon as I woke up in bed, I grabbed my face in frustration.

Ugh, damn it. Curse everything.

Right after the regression, it’s now the 514th year of the Empire, and I’m 16-year-old Claude, the notorious imperial prince.

This place is the Lunembreth Estate, where I’ve been living after being kicked out of the palace.

For reference, Lunembreth is my mother’s family’s estate.

The family is famous for producing exceptional elixir makers for generations… But that’s not what’s important right now.

There is no summoner after me!

So what? Why does that matter?

In the end, wasn’t this supposed to be my last shot anyway?

Sure, this is my final regression.

But there’s a big difference between dying and ending it all myself, and realizing there’s no backup for this world. No pressure, right?

Over the course of nine regressions, I’ve lived here for a total of over 90 years. That’s more than three times the length of my life on Earth. Because of that, this world now feels more like home to me.

I’ve developed deep attachments—both fond and bitter—and now, I even feel a responsibility to save this world from its inevitable doom.

Even if it’s not for me.

If Roa could pass on the intel I’ve gathered about the otherworld invaders to the next summoner, they would be able to start off much better prepared.

And through enough repetitions…

Someone would eventually succeed in saving this world, right?

My final goal in this regression was to stop the fifth wave, which I barely managed to summon last time but failed to stop.

If the fifth wave is the final one, then that’s perfect.

But if there’s a sixth wave, I had planned to confirm the scale and strength of the enemies pouring out, and end it cleanly there.

(After all, if I saw it, Roa would too.) The next summoner would then be able to prepare for it.

But now I’m the last one!

Ugh! This is a scam! I’ve been tricked, people! If this was going to happen, Roa should’ve told me from the start!

The reality is that there’s no one after me, and if I fail this time, this world is done for.

That can’t happen!

It mustn’t. I refuse to let it happen.

I need to finish everything here and save this world. There are too many people here that I care about.

I had hoped that someone else would take over the burden of saving them in my stead.

But now I can’t rely on any future summoners. It’s up to me to finish it all here!

I must, no matter what, with my own hands…

“Your Highness!”

At that moment, the door burst open and a woman dressed in a maid’s uniform rushed in.

“Your Highness! I heard noises! Are you alright?”

Seeing her face brought me back to my senses. Whew, now’s not the time for this. No matter what, I need to stick to the plan I’ve laid out for this final regression.

“…Head maid.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I am the head maid. Did you have a nightmare?”

The woman cautiously examined my face.

Rania.

Rania, the one who always starts each regression with me, is the head maid in charge of the Lunembreth estate.

What she’s hiding, though, is that she’s actually my mother’s younger sister.

In about three or four years, if I manage to keep myself from falling into ruin, she’ll reveal the truth to me herself.

So, essentially, she’s my aunt. And here’s where I have a choice to make.

If I want to quickly progress down the elixir maker path, I can reveal Rania’s true identity to her first.

Rania is already one of the best elixir makers in the world.

In the underground of the estate, there’s a large elixir-making laboratory that she and the other maids use.

By improving my relationship with her, I can leverage this to produce the elixirs I’ll need for the upcoming war against the otherworldly invaders.

In my sixth regression, I used this from the start and had pretty good results.

But in the end, I barely managed to stop the third wave, learning the hard way that timing is everything.

“It wasn’t a nightmare…”

I stared intently at Rania, trying to focus.

Rania is a woman in her thirties with black hair, a stark contrast to my mother, who was famous for her beauty and blonde hair (which eventually elevated her to the position of empress).

Rania had never married, choosing instead to stay and preserve the family’s legacy while keeping her identity hidden.

She is, without question, my staunchest ally. I took a deep breath, going over the plan I had meticulously crafted before the regression.

“Huu… huu… huu…”

“Your Highness, are you feeling unwell again today? Forgive my insistence, but please consider drinking the elixir I’ve prepared…”

“Bring it.”

“Pardon?”

“Bring the elixir. I’ll drink it.”

“Oh! Yes! Right away!”

Rania, looking shocked, ran out of the room. I gritted my teeth as I braced myself for the terrible condition of this body.

“Damn this wretched body… I never got used to this at the start.”

My stomach felt nauseous, my head was foggy as if shrouded in mist, and…

My entire body ached as though I had arthritis or nerve pain.

How did it come to this?

This kid, at only 16, had been chugging down strong alcohol like it was water and eating so little that his body was in a constant state of malnutrition.

But if you dig deeper, there’s a bigger issue.

My late mother, Empress Rayline, was the emperor’s second wife.

The emperor had six children from his first empress.

Then, when the emperor was smitten by my mother’s beauty—she was only twenty—the original empress died during childbirth.

Naturally, my mother was elevated to the empress’s seat, and she gave birth to me, earning the emperor’s favor even more.

Given these circumstances, how do you think my older siblings viewed me?

Among them, my second brother, Jess, was the worst, using unimaginable methods to bring me down.

“Your Highness! I’ve brought the elixir!”

Rania returned hurriedly with a small vial of elixir.

“It’s the same elixir I gave you last night. It doesn’t taste good, but if you drink it slowly, it should help…”

“Give it here.”

I snatched the vial from her and downed it in one go without even pausing to breathe.

Gulp, gulp…

“Your Highness is finally drinking the elixir I made…”

Tears welled up in Rania’s eyes as she looked at me in awe.

No wonder. Rania had been diligently offering this elixir to Claude every day since he was exiled to the estate after causing a major incident in the palace.

– Your Highness, I’ve prepared a special elixir for your health. It’ll improve your health, and you might even grow taller.

Though the taste is bitter… I made it just for you, so please drink it.

But the twisted Claude, just from the smell, had thrown the vial at her face.

– Ugh! What is this? You expect me, the imperial prince, to drink this garbage? Get it out of here! I don’t even want to see it! If you don’t want to die, stay out of my sight!

Ah, Claude, you idiot.

Why did you live like that?

Anyway, after learning all this in previous regressions, I’ve always made sure to establish a good relationship with Rania. After all, she’s my aunt by blood.

“…I feel a bit better after drinking it.”

I let out a long sigh and looked at Rania. She stared at me in shock, as she always did during the first few days after each regression.

Later, when I asked her about it, she said it was because my eyes, which had looked like those of a corpse, suddenly appeared normal again.

“Your Highness, your eyes…”

“Huh? What about my eyes?”

“Oh, nothing. Forgive me, but… did you drink the elixir I gave you last night?”

Of course not.

I remember it clearly, even now, just after the regression.

Last night, Claude had taken the elixir Rania had left on the table and tossed it out the window.

But if I tell her that, it’ll only make her more suspicious. I went with the same explanation I had used many times in the past—safe and effective.

“No, I drank about half of it, but then I tossed the rest out because it tasted too bad.”

“Half? But that means you still drank some, right?”

“So what? I’ve taken a sip of your elixirs from time to time, haven’t I?”

“Really? So that’s why your condition seems… different this morning…”

“Why? Do I look strange to you?”

“…No, Your Highness. May I ask how you’re feeling right now?”

Rania wiped her teary eyes as she asked. I added a bit of acting, pressing my fingers to my temples.

“I feel terrible, as always. Hmm… or maybe not. Something feels different today.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Usually, I feel like I’m burning up inside, but that’s gone now. Strangely calm.”

“You mean the anger in your chest has subsided?”

“And my head

is clearer. I used to feel foggy and dizzy all the time, but now everything feels crisp and sharp.”

“…Then I think I can finally tell you today.”

Rania suddenly looked determined and bowed her head solemnly toward me.

“Your Highness, the main ingredient in the elixir I’ve been giving you is an antidote. You’ve been poisoned for a long time.”