— Erik —
"T-Take back what was stolen from us... take it back..."
Those were the last words my father said to me before he died. Since that day, I have tried with all my strength to honor his will.
But... had I really tried my best?
Adel's words kept echoing in my head.
It was true that I had trained a lot and studied everything I could... and yet, looking back, my progress felt like an illusion. Nothing I had done seemed to bring us any closer to liberation.
"My prince, what happened?!"
Right after Adel left, Alfred entered and, seeing my blood-stained hand pressed to my neck, rushed toward me.
"It's just a surface wound."
"That doesn't change the fact he dared attack you!"
The anger in his voice was obvious, and I truly appreciated his concern. But I couldn't let emotions cloud our judgment.
"I was the one who attacked first."
Alfred widened his eyes. His shock was understandable. I had never been the type to act on impulse, not without calculating every possible outcome first.
"But how..."
"I was swayed by his words. Pretty pathetic, don't you think?" I mocked myself.
I was usually the one who stayed in control during discussions. But with Adel... I could never win. I didn't want to admit it, but no matter how insane that guy was, he was impossible to stop.
"Don't say that. Some people are simply impossible to deal with, and that boy... he's one of the worst of them."
I understood exactly what Alfred meant. Adel was an enigma: fearless, ruthless, and apparently without personal desires. A person like that... was impossible to read.
But more than his behavior, it was his words that tore me apart.
It was like he dug into my insecurities with bare hands, laid them out on the table, and mocked them one by one.
An unbearable feeling.
"Alfred... do you think I could become a good king?"
"Did he say something to you?"
Seeing my silence, Alfred took it as a yes.
"To your question... I don't have an answer."
A long sigh escaped my lips. Not even him... not even Alfred could see me as a worthy future king.
But could I blame him?
Until now, I had done nothing that made me worthy of the crown.
Then I felt his hand firmly rest on my shoulder.
"The future is full of unknowns. No one knows what will happen, or whether the choices you make will be right or wrong. A king is not defined by what he promises... but by what he leaves behind. The person you are today may not have the qualities of a great king, but you are still the future king this kingdom needs most."
I lowered my gaze, reflecting on his words, then clenched my fist.
"I'm tired, Alfred."
"I know."
"The people who should be my subjects are treated like slaves. Our kingdom has become a shelter for criminals and a playground for the perverted fantasies of the nobles from the continent!"
"I understand."
"You taught me patience. To wait for the right moment, to stay in the shadows. And maybe... that was the right approach back then. But now? We can't stay passive anymore."
I looked up, determined.
"As much as I hate to admit it... I feel that with Adel, something might change."
I hadn't known Adel for long. And if I had to list his flaws, even an entire book wouldn't be enough.
But despite all that, he was determined. He had that crazy spark in his eyes, that fire that made it impossible to imagine anyone stopping him from reaching his goal.
And maybe... that's exactly why every word he said weighed like a mountain.
"We still have no idea if there's a hidden force behind him."
"I know. And I still have doubts. But if we remain motionless... we'll be accomplices in our downfall."
I lowered my voice.
"From the start, thinking we could take back the archipelago alone was an illusion. Almost no one recognizes the crown anymore."
Alfred sighed heavily. He couldn't deny it.
"If we don't change, we'll end up accepting this condition as inevitable. And I... I don't want my future heir to carry this burden."
"Even if that means siding with someone who might be worse than a monster?"
I stopped. I thought for a moment, then answered firmly:
"Maybe a monster is exactly what we need."
You said I wasn't desperate enough, Adel? Then let me prove you wrong.
— Adel —
"Ptf... HAHAHAHA!"
When I got far enough from the Merchants' base, the laughter I'd been holding in burst out.
Some people nearby turned to look, confused and a bit weirded out. But who cared?
"Haah... I didn't think I could say all that crap with such a serious face."
The truth? Almost nothing I said to Erik was genuine. I made it up on the spot, pulling bits from random quotes, old books, and cheap motivational speeches.
His personality? It matched perfectly with the doctrines of his faction.
The qualities of a king? I had no idea.
And that part about despair... well, that wasn't entirely a lie, but I wasn't judging him for it.
Why risk everything for a lost cause when you could enjoy leading the richest faction in the archipelago?
Honestly, I felt nothing for Erik. No respect, no hate. Just... indifference.
And the same went for his faction.
The only reason I chose to ally with them was out of convenience.
Erik had a legitimate claim to the throne, and that made the cause of independence more... acceptable.
If they ever became a problem, I wouldn't hesitate to cut them off. It would complicate things, sure, but at least I wouldn't have a thorn in my side.
I wasn't seeking glory.
I didn't want to be a symbol or a public figure.
I just needed a force that obeyed — and the archipelago was the only place where that was possible.
At the moment, my relationship with the Merchants could be summed up in one word: distrust, and it was time to shake that up.
Knowing what kind of person Erik was, I knew he would refuse the dungeon expedition. That's why I provoked him.
I threw in his face all the uncomfortable truths he was trying to ignore. Truths that a proud person like him couldn't accept... at least not without reacting.
Then, I threw him a lifeboat — my "trust" in him.
Changing someone's opinion wasn't that difficult; all it took was doing or saying something unexpected. In that moment, their brain would hesitate. Their image of you would be shattered, and curiosity would creep in.
By saying things like "you have potential" or "I know you can do better," I created an emotional bridge between us.
Surely, Erik still saw me as a threat — but now, the nature of that threat had shifted. From something to avoid... to something necessary.
Slowly, I would shift that threat into usefulness, then into trust, and once I gave them what they wanted, into respect and reverence... or betrayal.
Honestly, I hoped we wouldn't get to that last part. It'd be a pain to eliminate them, replace them, and rebuild everything from scratch.
If everything went well, tomorrow they'd give me a positive answer. If not, it just meant I had poor judgment.
Vzzz.
While I was lost in thought, I felt the rune activate. I immediately thought the misfortune was back — but to my surprise, it glowed gold.
At first, I thought it was my sister, but then I realized it made no sense for her to be here. And in fact, looking around, I didn't see her.
I walked around a bit, trying to find who it was reacting to, and after a few tries, I found the target.
The weird part was... I had no idea who he was.
On the side of the road, looking sickly and barely able to stand, a man was begging for money.
Many passersby walked by, throwing him a glance, then ignoring him.
I stared at him for a while, trying to remember if we had ever met, but nothing came to mind.
With no other option, I approached.
The man looked up. In his eyes, there was deep exhaustion, but also the fear of death.
"D-Do you have some change, kid?"
"Why are you in this state? Drugs?"
The man looked almost offended.
"I've never touched that stuff! Cough-cough... I worked in the mines, and I hit a poisonous gas pocket—cough! I just want to buy an antidote, I can't leave my son alone—cough, he's- he's still too young..."
I listened to his story in silence — not because I cared, but to see if it sparked any memory, and it didn't.
As for the pity I should've felt for him, I simply couldn't feel it. There were countless sad stories in the world, and feeling something for each one of them... in my view, was pointless.
Still, it was strange. I was pretty sure I hadn't met him in my past timeline. So how were we connected?
Honestly, I didn't know what to do. Then I remembered what the World's Will told me: repay them.
It seemed this man wouldn't survive without that cure. So if I gave him the money... wouldn't that be enough to repay him?
"How much do you still need?"
"A-A thousand valis more."
That was a ridiculous price for a normal person in the archipelago — but not for me, who'd been into the dungeon many times.
"Here."
I tossed him a pouch of coins.
The man looked at me with suspicion, like he thought it was a trick. But when he opened it, his eyes widened.
"Enough, right?"
His eyes filled with tears, and he bowed several times in gratitude.
"I-I'll never forget this favor!"
I just motioned for him to leave, not giving any weight to his words.
As he walked away, I felt no change in myself. I thought I'd wasted money — but the next moment, the rune on my wrist started to burn.