The Crown Prince Who Raises a Side Character-Chapter 61: Phantom Thief Dauphin (5). A Conversation Beneath the Crescent Moon

Ashamed that his doppelgänger magic had been (had not been) seen through by Claudia, the Crown Prince poured himself into improving the spell.

He realized that just tinkering with it during breaks, as he had before, would take far too long to see any real results.

So first, to carve out more time for analyzing and improving the magic, he confiscated all of his subordinates' paperwork and completed an entire week's worth of duties by himself.

You might ask why he didn’t always work like this, but from the Crown Prince’s perspective, this move came with considerable risk.

Because when people see someone working hard and doing well, they’re impressed at first—but later, they just start to expect it.

Finishing a week’s work in one day doesn’t mean you get to rest for six. It means you’ll be expected to do even more during the remaining six.

No need to look far—the very reason he ended up sharing the Emperor’s workload at such a young age was because people around him kept praising how capable he was until he got carried away.

And then there’s the issue of morale among his subordinates.

When someone struggles for over a week to finish something, only to see another person breeze through it in a single day, the sense of futility and loss that person feels can be immense.

If it happens just once, they might see it as an incredible stroke of luck and feel grateful. But if it happens too often, it will inevitably lead to a decline in the organization’s overall efficiency.

Still, despite all those risks, he dedicated the time he made to nothing but perfecting the doppelgänger spell. The results were as follows:

– In the past, spilled blood or severed body parts would immediately convert into mana, making the duplicate easier to detect. But now, the new clone could leave behind physical traces for at least a week, allowing for a far more realistic performance.

– The disguise capability had improved drastically. Unless the observer was at least a 6th-rank or higher, even a weakened clone would be impossible to see through.

– Previously, the clone had a base of 4th-rank strength and could reach mid-5th rank when self-destructing. Now, it started at the low end of 5th-rank and could reach the upper edge of 5th-rank power under the same conditions.

It goes without saying—it’s much harder to improve something that was already good than to turn something mediocre into something decent.

Considering the original spell was one used by a high demon, the Crown Prince’s success in upgrading it this far in just over a week was nothing short of extraordinary. It wasn’t for nothing that high demons barely considered humans worth acknowledging.

And now, using this improved “Doppelgänger Magic Ver 2.0,” the Crown Prince customized Dauphin’s abilities to his liking.

If he had to sum up the concept in a word: “Toolcraft Specialization.”

Just as phantom thieves use smoke bombs, fire flasks, gliders, disguise masks, and other tools to pull off their heists, Dauphin was able to create a wide array of gadgets and use them with masterful precision.

He even deployed dozens of temporary golems—active for only one night—to multitask in ways no single body could. With a suit that boosted his physical strength, he could perform at near-knight levels. And he used self-made magical trump cards to wield all sorts of spells.

Unlike other clones, this one required a fair amount of preparation and materials in advance. And aside from tool use, its specs were average at best. Even so, the ability was enough to let a single person toy with one of the kingdom’s largest cities.

Unless the Count of Sarnos personally dispatched an elite knight order, there was no way a mere guard would have the right to even talk about catching someone like Dauphin.

—That would’ve been the reasonable assumption.

Vrrrmmm!

A strike ripped through the air. Dauphin ducked and pressed down on his wide-brimmed hat, narrowly dodging it.

As he leapt back, he threw a handful of cards. Several stiff trump cards lodged themselves into Dahlia’s armor and released a fierce electric shock.

Normally, that would’ve been more than enough to incapacitate someone.

Fssshhh!

But Dahlia didn’t even flinch. As if completely unaffected by the electric surge, she charged forward and thrust her spear.

Dauphin’s eyes widened—and then he grinned with delight.

“Oh-ho! How did you endure that? Do you have some kind of special defensive artifact?”

The answer came not in words but in another jab.

The spear lunged for his shoulder. Dauphin rolled sideways to evade it and, in the same motion, hurled a wire tipped with heavy weights at both ends toward her.

The wire spun like it had a will of its own and forcibly wrapped around Dahlia’s body, binding her tight.

“A custom-made binding wire! Even aura blades can’t slice through it instantly—you’ll have to saw away at it!”

If this were Bern the adventurer, he wouldn’t have wasted time bragging about his gear. But this was the cheerful phantom thief Dauphin.

All the others he’d fought so far had been such violent brutes that talking to them felt pointless. But this young lady seemed different.

With that in mind, Dauphin spread his arms wide, about to boast further about his tools—

Rrrrip!

—and froze as Dahlia simply tore the wire apart with raw strength, no aura, no tricks.

“Wait a moment, now. That’s kind of insulting to me as the craftsman—oh no!”

Though he seemed clumsy and full of openings, Dauphin still responded perfectly to every attack. Dahlia narrowed her eyes behind her visor.

Vrrrmmmmmmm!

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Her strikes became even fiercer. With each swing of her spear, the air within the room whipped into small gales. Dauphin had no choice but to retreat through the hole he’d originally used to enter.

In such a confined space, there was only so much dodging he could do against a spear wielded with terrifying strength.

With nimble movements, Dauphin made it onto the rooftop—and Dahlia leapt after him.

The crescent moon hung in the sky above.

As if revealing his true nature, the thief kept talking even as he dodged Dahlia’s direct and forceful spear attacks.

“Come to think of it, what’s your name? I’ve met many guards before, but never one with your level of skill!”

“You talk way too much...! Like hell I’m giving my name to a thief!”

“That’s a perfectly respectable answer for a guard, I’ll grant you—but precisely why I must ask.”

His cape fluttered wildly, then suddenly billowed outward, blotting out Dahlia’s view.

She swung her spear to force the cape away—only to find that Dauphin was already perched on her spear’s blade, looking down at her.

“What do you fight for?”

Dahlia slammed her spear down like brushing off dust. Dauphin flipped backward through the air—landing not on the roof, but in open sky.

Far above the spear’s reach, the phantom thief calmly walked through the air itself.

Dahlia’s eyes widened.

“Flight magic?”

“If it’s all the same, I’d prefer you call it ‘magic.’ Sure, it’s a mix of various spells compared to what true technicians use, but still.”

Dauphin shrugged and continued.

“This city is full of trash. No—honestly, it’s impressive in a deeply negative way. It’s a miracle this country is still functioning at all.”

Dahlia remained silent.

He knew that silence meant she was trying to assess whether or not she could attack him, but Dauphin didn’t mind.

It would be far more shameless for someone who initiated a conversation in the middle of combat to expect their opponent to politely listen.

“The trash you’re trying to protect is no different. The number of victims who’ve suffered because of him is too great to count, and even now, those people continue to suffer without proper compensation. And you—knowing that—still choose to protect him?”

Normally, Dahlia would’ve ignored the words of a mere thief.

But this time, she replied without even realizing it.

“The fact that he’s a villain doesn’t justify what you’re doing.”

Through the slit of her visor, her bright green eyes pierced through Dauphin.

“If someone commits a crime, they should be punished. But that should happen through the proper process and according to the rules—not just because you don’t like them, so you go around smashing everything! People might cheer for you, but you think that makes you something special? What you’re doing is still a crime! You’re just a criminal!”

“Hmmm.”

Dauphin stroked his mustache.

Despite the harsh criticism, he didn’t seem particularly offended.

In fact, he almost looked pleased by what she said.

“Yes, I suppose an individual arbitrarily judging and punishing others could be considered a social evil. After all, that kind of behavior leads to the collapse of order.”

“Then turn yourself in. Now. If you surrender peacefully, I promise not to break anything when I arrest you.”

“I’m afraid that’s impossible. Even if you didn’t lay a hand on me, others surely would... And just because I’m not the answer doesn’t mean your side is.”

“What?”

Dauphin threw his arms wide and raised his voice.

“Order! Rules! Proper procedures! All well and good—noble, even. But those only mean something when the system is actually working. Tell me—do you really believe the laws and order of this city are functioning properly?”

Dahlia didn’t answer.

Or perhaps that silence itself was her answer.

Appreciating her honesty, Dauphin’s smile deepened.

“Maybe breaking the system leads to bloodshed and chaos. But is it right to ignore the suffering of those crushed beneath it? If we’re so afraid of the blood that might spill, is it better to let the rot fester? Isn’t it more just to endure a little pain now and cleanse it for good?”

“That’s just sophistry. Who gave you the right to decide that?”

“I told you—this isn’t about being right or wrong.”

With a powerful push off the air, Dauphin glided downward, stopping just inches from Dahlia’s face.

“No matter what anyone says, I believe what I’m doing leans toward good. It may not be absolute or perfect, but it tilts the scale toward good more than evil. And that’s enough for me. So I act. Isn’t that simple?”

You can’t always deliver a perfect answer.

But if you consistently choose actions that are 60% good and 40% bad, the world will improve by at least 20%.

That’s all the reason he needed to act, Dauphin claimed.

“To me, my actions are good. To me, I can stand by what I’ve done. Even if the world sees it as chaos or disorder—if I wanted to /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ follow the rules and procedures, I wouldn’t be a phantom thief, would I?”

He leaned in closer, as if trying to see the face behind her visor, and spoke:

“What about you? Do your actions meet your own definition of good? Can you stand by them, proudly, to yourself? If so, then I have nothing more to say. Even if we can't walk the same path, that too is a path worth respecting.”

But if not—

If she couldn’t call her actions good, and if even she couldn’t stand by them—

“Then don’t hesitate to set yourself right. The moment you turn your back on your own conscience and deceive yourself, you become no different from the very people you once despised.”

Dahlia’s green eyes widened.

Then she gritted her teeth—and shoved Dauphin with all her strength.

Dauphin, seemingly intending to use the momentum to his advantage, leapt back with ease... but her push was far stronger than he expected, and he briefly lost his balance, stumbling mid-air.

Grabbing at his chest and trembling slightly at the mouth, he looked almost like he was trying to suppress pain.

“By the way... are you really just a guard? If you chose that job on your own, I won’t pry. But if it’s because you’ve got nowhere else to go and you’re being treated unfairly... I could recommend a better employer.”

“Shut up! You criminal!!”

As if declaring she would no longer be swayed by that silver tongue, Dahlia extended her spear.

Then, she swung it down with all her strength.

Dauphin used a transparent wire he’d set up earlier to leap into the air and dodge the blow—but the ground beneath him wasn’t so lucky.

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Dahlia, who normally pulled her punches even against criminals, had struck without thinking—and the full force of the attack landed squarely on the roof.

KRRRAAAASH!

Roughly a quarter of the building beneath them collapsed.

“Ah!?”

With a startled cry, Dahlia fell along with the debris she had just created.

Floating above, blinking in surprise, Dauphin began to sweat coldly as he watched.

‘...If I’m not careful, I might become the first doppelgänger to die at someone else’s hands.’