Aldes ran fast down the city's stone street. His breathing was heavy. He pulled the porcelain mask off his face and stuffed it into the pocket of his black cloak. The cold night air swept directly across his real face. The sound of his footsteps clashed loudly with the puddles on the street.
The rain just stopped. A strange light shield enclosing the city limits. The fact that I was murdered in the past and potentially created a paradox. Villavia acting strange. The potential outbreak of war.
Aldes bit his lower lip. His brain worked to process the series of events simultaneously.
Damn it. I have only been in this world for two days. Can I not live my normal life as a prince first?
Sst.
A soft whirring sound swept through the air. Aldes stopped his footsteps instantly. He looked up, staring straight at the sky.
The white light shield covering the city slowly faded. Its light dimmed and then completely disappeared from sight. The night stars and the full moon were clearly visible again, illuminating the city.
Gone?
Aldes stood frozen.
"What happened... Tominus?" he muttered softly.
The air beneath the soles of his feet suddenly distorted. A round dark hole opened right under the soles of his boots.
"What is th—"
Aldes's words were cut off. Gravity pulled his body forcefully down into the black hole. His vision went pitch black. His stomach felt nauseous, pulled by the spatial pressure.
The next second, light entered his eyes again. The night wind blew incredibly hard, slapping his face and blowing his hair.
Aldes looked down. He saw rows of stone building roofs and crowds of city citizens looking incredibly small from where he was right now.
Wait. I am in the sky?!
Someone gripped the back collar of his cloak tightly. The strong grip held Aldes's body to prevent him from falling to the ground.
Aldes turned his head to look back. Tominus stood floating casually in the air.
"Have you made your adventurer card?" Tominus asked with a flat tone of voice. The king's facial expression looked very calm, as if he were in his palace reading room.
"Huh? What?" Aldes answered in confusion. His heartbeat raced incredibly fast, pumping blood throughout his body.
Tominus released his grip from Aldes's cloak.
Aldes's body was now suspended by invisible telekinetic energy. He floated stably in the air without falling in the slightest.
"Father? What is—"
Aldes's sentence stopped instantly when he shifted his eyes to look to his right side. His pupils shrank drastically.
He saw the Viona envoy frozen silently floating in the air. Both of the man's hands were behind his back as if tied tightly by transparent handcuffs.
The middle-aged man's face was covered in fresh blood residue. The envoy stared blankly and full of despair at Tominus, then shifted his gaze to stare intently into Aldes's eyes.
"You," Aldes said softly.
"Kill him," Tominus said calmly. He stared straight at his son's face without blinking.
"What? Kill? Wait, what are you saying? Why?" Aldes widened his eyes. His jaw muscles tensed.
Beneath the sky of the city square.
Several citizens squinted and pointed upward. They recognized the two figures floating high in the air.
"That is Prince Alddes!" a man shouted loudly.
"And His Majesty! They managed to save the city!!" another citizen replied. Cheers began to echo, breaking the panic.
Shifting back to the night sky.
"This person used a witch's ritual magic," Tominus said flatly.
"If I had not stopped him, all the lives in this city would have been lost."
"So in short, this person deserves to die."
"That light shield earlier was a ritual?" Aldes asked. He frowned, digesting that fact.
"Kill him. I want you to be the one who kills him," Tominus said, ignoring Aldes's question. His baritone voice grew heavier, pressing the air around them.
"This is an order from me."
Aldes fell silent in confusion. He looked at the Viona envoy, then turned back to look at Tominus.
"I have never killed before," Aldes said.
"That is why," Tominus answered quickly.
"If I am killed, whoever my successor is will become a killer and a conqueror."
"Starting with him."
Tominus raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.
Click.
Instantly, a long sword with a dark red blade materialized in Aldes's right hand. The metal hilt of the sword felt cold touching his palm.
"That sword will be yours after you kill him."
"Kill him, my son."
Aldes looked hesitant. He looked down at the sword in his hand. His fingers gripped the hilt of the sword very stiffly.
He took a deep breath. Cold air came out of his mouth.
Slowly, Aldes moved his body, floating closer toward the Viona envoy. He raised the sword and pressed the sharp edge of the blade right against the man's neck.
"Why?" Aldes asked softly. He stared straight into the Viona envoy's eyes.
"Why did you do something as stupid as this?"
"Didn't you just advise me not to become an adventurer a few hours ago?" Aldes said.
"You knew there was a zero percent chance of success. You knew you would die. And you knew your kingdom would be destroyed if it went to war with us."
The Viona envoy slightly widened his eyes in surprise.
"Advise? Wait... you?"
The man then laughed lightly. Blood dripped from the corner of his lips, piercing the rain.
"How ironic."
"It turns out it was you, Prince."
The Viona envoy fell silent for a moment, feeling the coldness of the sword blade on his neck before speaking again.
"I am tired."
"I have nothing left to fight for besides my kingdom."
"As you know, my family is gone. There is no one I can protect. No one I can be proud of. Love. And..."
"Be my reason to live."
"Dying like this is better than dying of old age or dying from a weird mission."
"Do you not think like that, Prince?"
"By planning to kill all the city citizens?" Aldes asked coldly.
"Yes," the envoy answered flatly.
"Besides, I was bound to fail. So the risk of me actually killing the citizens was very small."
"What if it succeeded?" Aldes asked.
"Then so be it. That is their destiny."
The envoy then turned his neck to look at Tominus.
"You are the most disgusting, greediest, most evil, and immoral king I have ever known."
Tominus did not respond at all. His facial expression did not change in the slightest.
Aldes listened carefully. He tilted his head, staring at the envoy.
"Before I kill you..."
"Allow me to ask something."
"What letter did you send through the adventurer service?" Aldes asked.
Tominus raised one eyebrow hearing the question.
"A letter?"
The Viona envoy smiled faintly, showing his bloodstained teeth.
"I will not tell you, idiot."
"Now hurry and kill m—"
Slash.
Aldes swung his red sword in a single, incredibly fast twisting motion. The sharp blade cut the Viona envoy's neck before the man could finish his sentence.
Fresh blood spurted into the air, splashing the front of Aldes's black cloak. The envoy's head detached from his neck and plummeted toward the roofs of the city buildings below.