đźź Chapter 73:
🟧 POV Number One (Khefi):
"Dad, what are we eating today?"
"I found some bread. It's old, but still edible."
I still remember this conversation with my father from my childhood. We used to go for days without food. My father had no job because no one would accept him anywhere.
It all began when the kingdom fell into a severe economic crisis after a terrible drought struck the land, destroying our agricultural production.
We were once one of the world's biggest exporters of crops of all kinds—but the problem was that agriculture was all we exported.
The people demanded that the king find a solution to this disaster, but all he did was borrow money from neighboring kingdoms.
The king was helpless, unable to come up with any real plan except taking on debt. But even that so-called solution only added to our troubles.
Eventually, the neighboring kingdoms stopped lending us money, demanding that we repay our debts. Within a few short years, our country plunged into a true famine.
Voices rose, demanding the pathetic king's removal and the election of a new ruler worthy of this nation. But the problem was that among all those calling for a new monarch, not one person dared to shoulder that responsibility.
They were all afraid—afraid to become a black mark in the nation's history. Everyone knew that whoever took the throne would be doomed to fail.
It would take a miracle to save the country from this disaster.
That miracle came in the form of the Vitalis Crystal—a stone capable of stimulating plants to grow at incredible speed. It was discovered by a traveler who experimented with it on crops; with only a little water, the plants grew rapidly.
The news spread like wildfire. The man who discovered the crystal was a genius in both science and politics, and as his fame grew, the people demanded that he be crowned the new king.
The pressure on the palace was immense—so strong that the reigning king eventually surrendered his crown and power to this traveler.
That traveler became the man now known as King Orik.
And the king who was dethroned… was my father.
For a few short years, I was a prince of this land. Then I became just an ordinary citizen… and eventually, nothing but a piece of trash in society's eyes.
I didn't resent my situation at first—because of my father. But over time, I understood that the people would never forgive those who had led them to such misery.
Until that moment, I accepted their hatred. My father was a failed king who led the nation into its darkest days, and I saw our suffering as nothing but the consequence of his actions—even if I was punished for something I hadn't done.
We fell into extreme poverty. My mother—the former queen—died because we couldn't afford treatment for her heart disease.
And still, I accepted it all.
But everything changed when it came to murder.
My father was killed in the most brutal way imaginable—by a man whose son had died of famine and disease during my father's reign.
It happened the moment I walked into our home. My father lay dead, and the killer was trying to murder my brother, Rey, as well.
"Because of your father, my son died! So I'll do the same to you!"
He had carried his hatred for us all these years. But it had gone too far. I couldn't understand what Rey or I had to do with any of this.
Rey fought back as best he could. The killer didn't notice me—so I took the chance and stabbed him with a knife without mercy.
"You lunatics! Wasn't it enough that you killed my father?! What did we do to deserve this too?!"
Rage consumed me. I kept stabbing him even after he was dead—until Rey stopped me.
"Khefi, stop! He's already dead… please stop."
We fled our home after that, searching for a new place to live—somewhere far away, somewhere different. We couldn't stay in that kingdom anymore.
A few days later, news spread that the former king had died.
No one punished his murderer. He walked free.
That's when I realized it—your parents' sins will follow you, even if you had nothing to do with them.
It didn't matter if we were good or bad; to the people, we were nothing but filth.
So if that's how they saw me… why should I obey anymore?
A desire began to burn inside me—to destroy this country, to make it suffer worse than ever before. I swore to myself that I would burn this kingdom and its people to the ground.
Rey and I fled to a neighboring kingdom using transport wagons. There, we forged new identities. We stole—money, food, whatever we needed to survive.
With what we stole, Rey opened a small shop and learned the arts of trade and politics, while I worked as a hunter.
Years later, we returned to our homeland and continued our lives there. No one knew we were the sons of the former king.
During that time, I began forming a gang made up of the homeless and the desperate. They were the perfect people to serve my cause—
A group willing to do anything in exchange for the chance to survive. I became the man who saved them from misery.
My gang grew larger and more powerful with time.
Meanwhile, Rey's success in trade led him to be appointed Prime Minister by King Orik himself, who had recognized his talents.
Behind the scenes, Rey secretly built the EconPulse Company—which became the backbone of the kingdom's economy and the public face of our criminal network.
We'd long heard rumors of the explosive Red Ruby Stone, and during this period, we secretly imported large quantities of it.
That stone would obliterate the capital entirely—and with the Vitalis Crystal, no one would survive the explosion.
And now, Orik's foolish son is in my hands.
Once I have his older brother too, this kingdom will witness a royal massacre.
The barrier surrounding the palace has already been breached by four intruders.
As for me, I've gathered enough Vitalis Crystals—and even the hidden reserve within the palace, whose location I forced the prince to reveal After transferring Olivan's skill — who was the fake boss to me.
At that moment, Rey, Prince Elithius, and I were underground beneath the palace, heading toward the reserve of Vitalis Crystals stored there.
Elithius, now under my complete mental control, led the way. He was the only one whose mind I could manipulate—his weak will couldn't compare to that of his father or brother.
When Number Four brought him to me, the prince was completely broken inside. He couldn't even comprehend how the situation in the capital had turned so catastrophic.
Clearly, he blamed himself for everything.
As we made our way to the reserve, I suddenly collapsed, struck by a wave of dizziness. Rey immediately came to my side.
"Khefi, are you okay? It must be your heart—let me help you walk."
"It's fine. It's nothing serious. It happens sometimes."
"You say that, but you forget—our mother died because of it."
"I know… but it took years for her. It only started for me a year ago. Let's keep moving."
We finally reached a massive, tightly sealed gate.
We blew it open completely—and when we stepped inside at last, we found it…
The point where this kingdom would finally be obliterated.