The Red Dragon Hotel, the Twelfth Prince's room.
There were still six hours until the auction began.
Prince Mumuzawa knitted as he chatted idly with Dio.
Across from her, Dio watched her calmly, occasionally offering a few words in reply.
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Over the past few days, Prince Mumuzawa had summoned him for a chat every day, then started slipping roundabout questions about supernatural abilities into their conversations.
Sometimes she pursed her lips and tried to look dignified; sometimes she burst into silly laughter at his stories.
She did not seem to have many friends...
But sometimes her mood suddenly sank, and she began talking about cruel things.
Like now, when Mumuzawa suddenly brought up the royal succession in Kakin:
"...The royal succession is cruel, isn't it? Though I've always believed I have what it takes to become king..."
"But on the day we were attacked, I felt like nothing but a completely useless burden. I depended entirely on you to protect me, Mr. Dio..."
Dio replied calmly:
"Your Highness, there's no need to belittle yourself. Protecting you is our duty as guards. You're no burden."
The Twelfth Prince had made very few appearances in the manga, but those had still revealed something of his personality.
As Dio had previously concluded, Mumuzawa, the Twelfth Prince, was simply an ordinary girl with a naturally quiet disposition.
Perhaps if she had been born into an ordinary family, she would have lived an ordinary, happy life.
But she had been born into royalty. Her mediocre talents meant that even if she had not been the first eliminated from the succession war, she would have died at another prince's hands sooner or later.
At Dio's stock response, Mumuzawa's eyes dimmed a little.
Though she claimed to have what it took to become king, she was well aware of her own lack of ability.
But she had no other options. As one of the lowest-ranking princes, she had nothing.
She kept telling herself, over and over, that she could become king, trying to make herself believe it.
But this time, she seemed to have truly glimpsed hope...
Mumuzawa mentally pumped a fist to encourage herself and could not help asking again:
"Are there really no special abilities in this world that can change a person? Like the [Nen] you mentioned that day, Mr. Dio?"
This was far from the first time he had been asked that question, but Dio gave the same cold, stock response:
"Your Highness, please put your faith in science... This so-called [Nen] is merely a technical term we martial artists use among ourselves..."
"Do you have any other questions, Your Highness? If not, I need to return to my patrol."
Hearing this, Mumuzawa could only suppress all her emotions, outwardly maintaining her dignity as a prince as she softly gave her assent.
Dio sighed inwardly, rose, and left Mumuzawa's room.
With a soft thud, Mumuzawa was left alone in the room. She continued knitting slowly, her movements growing slower and slower until they stopped.
She stared blankly at the sweater in her hands, not knowing who she was knitting it for.
That day, Dio had carried her through a hail of gunfire and then blocked the bullets before her eyes. For an instant, her heart had truly skipped a beat.
At the time, she had genuinely imagined that Dio had been sent by heaven to save her. Why else would he have tried so hard to rescue her?
She had even sent her personal maid outside so she could speak to Dio alone, eager to learn everything about him.
Yet he probably really was just a very capable guard, nothing more...
The greater her hopes, the greater her disappointment.
"I read too much into it..."
"It's all right, it's all right. I'm a child of the king. I'm a child of the king..."
Mumuzawa unconsciously lowered her head and clutched the knitting needles so tightly that her hands trembled...
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