MBBK 02

Chapter – 02

“Huh? A new route? Was there a hidden route in this game?”

I couldn’t believe my eyes as I stared at the words floating in front of me.

[(NEW) “Maybe it’s better if I become the king!”]
You couldn’t find a suitable candidate to make king, so you decided to become the king yourself.

A route where I become the king?

While I was still confused, a quest window popped up next to it with a “NEW” tag.

[(NEW) Main Quest — “Prince in Training! Greetings!”]
You have decided to become the king! Declare your ambition to the king and trigger the [Right to the Throne] quest.

Condition: Passive skills [King’s Blessing], [Queen’s Care] activated.

I stared at the conditions scrolling down and doubted my eyes.

“Activate Queen’s Care already?”

In <To You the Crown>, you obtain special skills as your affection increases.

In other words, if you fail to raise affection properly, you become helpless against enemy attacks.

[King’s Blessing] is relatively easy to activate, but the first thing that caught my attention was [Queen’s Care].

To raise affection with the strict Queen Rosetta, you need several conditions. And most importantly, to get that skill, you must attend a royal ball…

The next available ball after today would probably be Prince Wilhelm’s birthday party. Even at best, that’s two months away.

But—

[Royal Etiquette] 10 achieved
All sub-quests cleared.
Time limit: 6 days 23 hours 59 minutes

Seeing the “59 minutes” turn into “58 minutes,” my mind went blank.

One week? They want me to do all of this in one week?

Attending a ball two months later is already impossible.

Which means the only ball left… is today.

“…This is insane. Becoming king is impossible…”

Or is it?

Now that I think about it, it’s not completely impossible.

If I can just attend today’s ball…

If I show a good enough performance there, I can obtain the skill itself.

I’ve already died so many times that I remember all the royal etiquette.

“…Right. There’s no rule saying Astarote can’t become king herself.”

Why didn’t I think of this sooner?

My determination flared up as I stood abruptly.

This is definitely a chance.

If I succeed, I might be able to save him.

“Did my precious daughter sleep well?”

Just as I thought that, he appeared.

A man with soft pink hair, so handsome he could be called a “man of the century.”

His identity was—

“Dad.”

The king’s younger brother, and Astarote’s only father—Grand Duke Halstein.

The tragedy of Grand Duke Halstein is well known across the continent.

The younger brother of the promising and beautiful king fell in love with a woman six years older than him, despite countless marriage proposals.

As soon as he came of age, they married.

Soon after, they were blessed with a child born of their love.

Everything seemed like it would last forever.

But it didn’t.

His beloved wife died from postpartum fever.

Left alone with a newborn baby, Halstein was only twenty years old.

In a kingdom where marriage itself was already late, their marriage had been unusually early.

The king himself even suggested remarriage to the grieving younger brother.

But Halstein refused every proposal and raised his daughter alone.

“You make me happy every day, my star.”

“Dad, really…”

“My star is as dazzling as ever today.”

It felt like some parental buff—he starts with affection level 100.

In this game, which is already cruel to Astarote, the only reason I survived at all was because of the beautiful memories with my father.

‘I never had a love like this.’

I don’t want to remember my real life.

That’s why it hurts even more that I had to watch my father die four times already, powerless each time.

“Come on, let’s get ready. Today we’re meeting His Majesty.”

Only after experiencing it myself did I understand how painful it is to lose someone in front of you.

To do that, I must meet the king first.

His gentle smile, his warmth, his big arms—

Only after being held by him again did I realize.

I don’t want to see him die anymore.

“Dad.”

“I love you, my star.”

Looking at his bright smile, I made a decision.

This time, I will definitely reach a happy ending with my own hands.

“So our little star has come as well today.”

King Rodrigo—my great uncle—loved his niece so much that even his way of speaking sounded playful.

From experience, I knew I didn’t need to act too childish in front of him.

“Your Majesty, Asta is already ten years old. She is already a proper young lady.”

“It’s better to show maturity.”

If I don’t—

“Let’s see how much you’ve grown.”

King Rodrigo was 2 meters tall and weighed 140 kg.

A muscular man whose physical strength I could never beat even as an adult.

Unlike my gentle father, this man could easily handle anything physically.

“I think she’s gotten heavier!”

“How rude to say that to a lady!”

“How dare you talk back to me?”

Even so, he is like a second father to Astarote.

“You won’t actually punish me, right?”

I stuck out my tongue and smiled.

“You little brat! Do you think I won’t?”

Even though he shouted loudly, I just laughed.

“I’m Your Majesty’s only niece. You wouldn’t get angry at your precious little star, would you?”

It wasn’t until my third playthrough that I could even say things like this.

Your confident behavior increased King Rodrigo’s affection by 10!

King Rodrigo Affection: 60 (▲10)/100

Royal family members start at 50 affection.

Among them, Rodrigo is the easiest—he quickly reached 60, unlocking the first skill.

Finally, the first passive skill activated!

I quickly read the skill window.

[(NEW) Passive Skill — King’s Blessing Lv.1]
You can freely move inside the palace.
If Astarote is in danger, King Rodrigo will be alerted.

Range: 500 meters around King Rodrigo

“How could I ever be angry at you? Tell me anything you need.”

In this game, skills are divided into passive and active types.

Passive skills are always active.

The most important one is [King’s Blessing]. With this maxed out, nothing in the palace can stop me.

For now, it only allows movement, but that alone is essential.

“I succeeded. Time for the next mission.”

To get Queen’s Care, I need an excuse to stay in the palace as long as possible.

I quietly whispered to the king.

“Since I haven’t been here in a while, please let me stay a few days.”

The effect activated immediately.

The king nodded with a wink.

“Very well.”

Just by his expression, I knew—it was a complete success.

[Passive Skill — King’s Blessing Lv.1 is active.]

“You haven’t been here in a while. Tell me how you’ve been. I’ve missed my adorable niece.”

“Shall I?”

While I was raising his affection, my father became visibly jealous.

“If you want to talk, do it at a proper distance. Astarote is my daughter, not my brother’s.”

Then King Rodrigo patted my head proudly.

“My little star’s curly hair is adorable. And those golden eyes—just like our royal lineage.”

“She is my daughter, half me and half my wife.”

“All citizens of the kingdom are my children. That includes my little star.”

Why are grown men so childish?

Between the two of them glaring at each other, I chose the smartest answer.

“Then I’ll go greet Queen Rosetta!”

The real challenge starts now.

[Queen’s Care] is not easy to obtain.

I immediately ran toward Queen Rosetta.