Loop {Reincarnated As The Weak Female Protagonist?}

Chapter 4

The Genra family is a powerful family in the Western Empire who have many ore mines. The Count and Countess have a daughter and elder son who is running one of the mines away from the house. That was about it that was known about the family.

In the Western Empire Imperial Palace:

Quietly he sneaked onto the balcony. He opened the doors and entered, making sure to not make a sound.

"Ahem." a voice said coming from the table in the room. On the couch sat a young man with black hair and red orange-ish eyes like a burning fire. In front of him was a cup of coffee.

"Sneaking out to the village again are we, Prince Zephyr?" the man said folding his arms at his chest.

"Ah...um Duke Ren, listen it's not what it looks like." the prince said and fiddled with his white bangs.

"Mmm...how shall I explain this to his Majesty?" Ren said pretending to think. He liked teasing the prince. It was amusing to see him panic.

"Duke!" Zephyr said nervously.

"You're the heir to the thrown your Highness. Don't you think you're acting a little reckless?" Ren asked.

"Look, see it as doing research on the common folk. " Zephyr said.

"You still have quite the work Prince Zephyr. Now isn't the time for your 'research'." Ren said pointing to the desk full of papers.

"A-...r-right...that." Zephyr said nervously. Ren sighed and got up.

"Let's make a deal. If you get through at least half of that work by tonight, we can go to the market festival." Ren said. He knew exactly how much the prince wanted to go but his father, the Emperor, was against it.

"W-what?! Really?! But my father already forbade me from going?!" Zephyr said.

"I can pull a few strings." Ren said with a smug smile. He was the Duke after all.

"Alright, deal!" Zephyr said immediately.

The first prince of the Western Empire and the next heir to the thrown, Prince Zephyr. He was never truly interested in being the heir but despite his lazyness, he was a smart kid when he needed to be. He grew up with the young Duke Ren. Duke Ren inherited the Dukeship from the age of 15. His parents both died in a rainstorm when their carriage slipped off a mountain. Despite inheriting the Dukeship from such a young age, the Duke was incredibly intelligent. Many saw him as a young genius. (Mostly because of his many lives in the previous years)

He and the First Prince sneaked out of the palace many times and pretended to be commoners to explore the village when they were young. Even now if they both have time they go out for some fresh air.

Of course the prince has a younger sister which he cares for dearly.

But there was something that only the first princess and the Duke knew about the prince. He had mysophobia and didn't dare to ever make any physical contact. The slight contact with anyone or anything made him nauseous. Going to the village and breathing in the fresh air outside sometimes helped but when he stayed too long in the village environment, he became nauseous and sometimes even fainted.

Everyone saw it as a curse that was cast upon him by the enemies of the Imperial Family. He had trouble coping with it for a while but after a few years of watching his father drink away his worries for his son not being able to inherit the throne, Zephyr just pretended to be fine. People even started to believe him exept the Duke and Princess. If any more rumors were be spread about his curse, he might as well lose the title Crown Prince.