For a moment, I thought Prince Rodd noticed me, but it seemed that was a needless concern .
I was currently in a forest a bit away from the imperial castle .
From there I used a magic artifact to watch the Demon Queenâs fight .
Originally this magic artifact was a prototype developed by the Empire to allow anybody and everybody to use teleportation magic .
It was meant to open a door, a Gate if you will, allowing people to easily go to and from distant lands . However, the plans were abandoned .
Itâs not as though the project ended in complete failure, but opening a large Gate required magic gems of high purity and an immenseâalmost demon-like amount of magical energy . As an extra, the burden would break all of the magic gems involved . It was clear that the cost was too high .
Previously, I had used this to assist the former queen, Lishe, in her attempt to assassinate Rei Taylor .
It was only because I had magic gems from the Demon Queenâs prized stash and Rates, a being who held abnormally large amounts of magical power, that I was able to execute a large scale teleport at that time .
However, I need not make use of it in such a luxurious way .
Just a few centimetresâif I could open a Gate that could carry my gaze, that would suffice .
These artifacts were very rare so they werenât something I could use repeatedly, but now was the time .
Now, while that loathsome Rei Taylor and Claire François were fighting the Demon Queen .
While their attention was concentrated on the Demon Queen, I decided that I would steal what was most important to them .
That of course, would be their daughters .
They had decided to raise orphans with whom they had no blood relations . To me it was nothing more than playing house, but to them it appeared there was nothing more precious .
They had stolen everything from me, so now, I would steal from them .
After the ill-fated revolution, I had been thrown into prison .
Having lost the Empireâs backing, I offered my diplomatic expertise to avoid capital punishment . However, that terrible lifestyle could not even be compared to the one that I had lived prior .
It was as though I had been returned to the circumstances in which I was born .
Though I was originally a noble, we were at the very bottom . In the worst case we wouldâve been even worse off than the Orso family . We were on the verge of collapse .
While we did have nobility, it was only in name .
My father drowned himself in alcohol, and though my mother constantly lamented our situation, she made no attempt to improve it . It was that kind of home .
A realization came to my young mind .
Were I to remain in this household, I would only rot .
I had to find some way to break free .
What I did was very simple .
I studied .
While the Royal Academy at that time was still but a social venue for the nobility, if one strongly desired knowledge, there was no better place .
Even while subjecting myself to the cold glares of high rank nobles, I fervently studied, graduating at the top of my class .
After graduating, my abilities secured my position as a bureaucrat .
At that time, the Kingdomâs governing body was largely corrupt . There were very few nobles who could properly accomplish their duties .
Even there, I was treated coldly, but as I was getting work done, I was never ostracized .
You could say that I was simply being used .
With the high ranking nobles who had abandoned themselves to leisure always in the corner of my eye, my days where work chased me both day and night continued .
I had long abandoned my family .
My father and mother occasionally begged for money, but I ignored it all .
A household such as this, that would not even better my reputation, at best just served as proof that I was in fact a noble .
Eventually my family had stopped contacting me . Shortly after, it came to my knowledge that my parents had commit suicide .
Without feeling anything, I inherited what was left to me .
My family had a large outstanding debt .
In order to pay it all back, I again threw myself into my work .
These days were without hope .
My turning point came when the previous king, Rousseau took the throne .
Rousseau, who had become king at a young age, prioritized function over form . He established policies that benefited the competent regardless of their social standing .
It had seemed like a pipe dream, but Rousseau appointed me .
I had outmaneuvered the nobles who had once looked down on me, taking charge of Rousseauâs practical affairs .
This is also when I met Lulu and Lishe, who would later become queens .
Because the two were exceedingly high ranking nobles, almost all of the men around were of lower rank than they were .
Perhaps because of that, neither of them discriminated against me .
Instead, they properly assessed my abilities .
Though it was a past that I wished to distance myself from, I had developed a romantic interest for the two . Yes, I had come to know something useless and pointless as love .
Even after Lulu had become the queen, we continued our rendezvous .
Having gained her backing, I aggressively forwarded my position .
The beginning of my collapse was caused by Luluâs pregnancy, with my child .
This child, clearly different in appearance from the eldest prince Rodd, was named Sein .
I had resolved myself to face ruin .
Regardless of how much Rousseau advocated a meritocracy, I doubt that he would let this go .
To cling to as best a position that I could, I recorded my conversations with Lulu, grasping for a weakness I could exploit .
Though I thought it was a pointless struggle, I had to avoid becoming like those damned parents of mine .
Curiously, Rousseau did not censure me .
Sein was accepted as the second prince and I had become the Kingdomâs prime minister .
Was it possible that Rousseau was still in the dark?
No, some of his glances toward Sein held sadness, so he had surely realized .
However, he was a coward who would not put that to words .
This was when I questioned whether this man was fit to be king .
I had obtained the position of prime minister .
At this point, I may as well aim even higher .
With that in mind, I secretly made contact with the Kingdomâs enemy, Naa .
In exchange for making the Kingdom one of Naaâs vassal states, the Empress promised that Iâd have authority over it .
Everything had been going so well .
With just a little to go, I would become a countryâs king .
It was then that Rei Taylor and Claire François took my blood, sweat, and tears returning them to absolutely nothing .
Those two divulged my secret dealings with the Empire and as though that wasnât enough, they ended the aristocracy, completely changing the countryâs political environment .
With my ambitions to lead the countryâs new government crushed, I was incarcerated .
It was all their fault .
Having lost everything, I swore vengeance on them . .
Relying on Lishe I managed to break out . However, the Empire had long abandoned me .
It was the Demon Queen who had taken me in .
The Demon Queen asked for my cooperation to kill Rei Taylor and Claire François .
Though the Demon Queen was terrifying, our interests aligned so I accepted .
If I could enact vengeance on those two, I no longer cared .
The fact that she was the spitting image of Rei Taylor irked me, but I endured, resolving to one day make use of her .
However, both Rei and Claire were tenacious .
The assassination that I used Lishe to orchestrate, and the kidnapping that I had prepared Lana for since before my incarceration, they had overcome both of those .
My hatred only continued to grow . With no place for it to go, it rampaged violently within me .
And now, I faced my greatest opportunity .
Directing my attention at the girl named Mei, through my Gate, I very subtly woke her .
âMmâŠ?â
The girlâs eyes faintly opened .
Through the Gate, I fixed my gaze on them .
âNow, Mei or whoever . You will now serve as my hands and feet . â
ââŠâ
The girlâs eyes seemed to melt and dim .
It was the effect of my suggestions .
I had become convinced of my success .
In spite of thatâ
âSalas, thatâs as far as you go . â
â!?â
From the girlâs mouth, I heard a voice that couldnât have come from a child .
That voice was one that I knew .
âDor François!?â
âBoth my daughter and granddaughters are currently standing up to destiny itself . They donât have the time to get mixed up with someone as insignificant as you . â
âWhat was thatâŠ!â
I wracked my confused mind to think .
What, just what was happening?
âFrom now on, weâll have you roam through an unending dream until you die . Whether you curse everything or regret your actions, do as you like . However, the rest of your days will be spent in that dream . â
âWait, Dor!â
âYou may have something that you want to say, however, this message is but a recording . I no longer have the ability to stop this . â
âWait⊠please wait!â
âFarewell, Salas . Go on and wait for me in hell . â
As the voice cut off, my field of view completely changed .
When I came to, a rundown mansion was in front of me .
It was a familiar sight .
This was where I was born and raised .
âWhat⊠is thisâŠ?â
Taking a look around, there were several eyes peering at me from the shadows .
âFather⊠Mother⊠Baron Thompson and Earl YaleâŠ! Lily, and Lana tooâŠ!â
Beginning with my parents, all of the people that I had cut down to further myself began appearing . They all peered at me from the shadow of the pillars or from the other side of the window .
âDonât lookâŠ! Donât look at meâŠ! Iâm different from all of you! I refuse to let things end here!â
Unable to bear the weight of the resentment I felt from their gaze, I broke into a run .
I ran, and ran, until I thought Iâd be okay, but then realized .
I was still in front of my childhood home .
âS-save me!â
As I shamelessly begged for salvation, I continued to run .
No matter how long, or in which direction I ran, in the end I found myself in front of the same mansion .
And again, Iâd be under the scrutiny of those eyes .
The scene only repeated itself .
ââŠEnd⊠just⊠end it already!!â
Suddenly the mansion disappeared and I was surrounded in a pitch black void .
Not knowing where I was, not even knowing what ground I stood upon, I was encased in a total ignorant darkness .
âWhat the⊠what the hell is this placeâŠâ
I desperately sought help, but no voice replied .
This space, where not even sounds seemed to reverberate, what in the world was it?
Dor had said that Iâd be trapped here until I died .
A place like this⊠would be where I met my end?
âNo⊠I donât want an end like thisâŠ! Someone! Someone save me! Uwaaaahh!!â
Though I continually screamed within the darkness, ultimately, the hand of salvation never came .