Bound and seated, Verdandi looked visibly exhausted.
"There sure are a lot of guests."
"We’re not just any guests."
"You..." She looked at Davey and smirked. "Humans don’t seem to know how to be cautious."
"It's not the world, it's me." Davey calmly raised a dark aura in his hand.
"What?!" A look of shock appeared on Verdandi's face. "You! How did you...?!"
Perhaps he knew about the forbidden technique. It was not surprising. If one remembered the power of Hercules over almost 10,000 years, it would not be strange.
"It'd be easier to talk if you knew what it was," Davey said calmly, eliciting a sarcastic laugh from the woman.
"I see. I was wondering how that arrogant one woke up... You're the culprit."
"What are you talKing about?"
"Don't play dumb. The powerful wave of energy I felt from the west of the continent, that was you."
At her words, Davey felt a sinKing feeling inside.
"You awakened not just me but numerous entities in the East. It was all you."
Verdandi laughed scornfully at Davey. "Good job. I wonder what the people of this continent will think when they see what you've done."
"Davey..." Perserque, seated on his shoulder, reached out a small hand to stroke his cheek.
However, Davey responded gravely.
"I broke the taboo."
"..."
"Hey, Abyssal Princess."
Verdandi glared at Davey fiercely. "Don't call me by that name."
"Drawing lines on a pumpkin doesn't make it a watermelon. You know what it means to break a taboo, don't you?" It was partly a hunch, but Davey's intuition hit the mark. "Considering the consequences, as the Saint of the Goddess Freyja, I cannot let him be."
Verdandi’s eyes widened in shock. "What, what did you say?!"
"From now on, I will eradicate everything related to the taboo and execute King Greid Malon Briouk, who caused this situation."
"Ha! Execute the King? I might not care about human lives, but is that even possible...?"
"It is. You see, I'm in a position now where I can shake the entire continent with just a few words. I may not be a King, but playing tyrant is feasible. The only reason I don't is that there's no gain for me. But the taboo is different. If mishandled, the entire continent could be obliterated."
"Oh."
Davey said sternly, "Tell me, who are you really? What do you want?"
"Hmph! Do you think I'd tell you..."
"Let's go, Perserque. We must handle this by the procedure."
"W-Wait!" Verdandi yelled, attempting to stand, but the chains yanked her back down.
For someone of the Abyssal Princess's caliber, she should have been able to snap them with sheer strength.
"Will you tell me?"
"Foolish talk. I have nothing to do with that dimwitted human King..."
"These days, relationships don't mean much. A mother and child can be unrelated, right?"
Verdandi fell silent at Davey's words.
"Make your choice. Either the King dies, or you talk. And by the way, you better not think about lying."
At Davey’s cold tone, Verdandi clenched her teeth. "You're insufferably cruel."
"I'll gratefully accept the compliment. So, will you tell me or not?"
“...”
“Let's go.”
“Wait a second!”
“What?”
At Davey's question, Verdandi hesitated and her expression grew more irritated. “Um... wait, wait a minute!!”
As Davey turned away without a word, she desperately struggled to get up. “Please! Don't harm the child! Just kill me instead!”
“Then speak.”
“Tsk…”
“Go…”
“I’ll talk, okay! I’ll tell you!”
At Verdandi’s outcry, Davey chuckled softly. A Princess from the Abyss, ready to sacrifice her life for a human. It felt like he had seen it all in his lifetime.
The witch's execution was carried out. A large cross was erected in the capital square of Briouk, and beneath it, logs and mediums to intensify the flames were stacked. There was no overlooKing the fact that the witch might rampage before she died. The magical book, assumed to be the source of her power, was confiscated and stored securely in the Kingdom's treasury, humorously named 'The Demon's Book.'
“Die, witch!”
“Damn you! Bring my son back to life!”
Hateful slurs poured from the crowd. Even as she was hit with stones and cursed, the girl, with her face covered by a robe, showed no reaction.
“Stop throwing stones! The knights escorting her might get hit!”
Despite the angry shouts of the knights, the fury of the crowd did not easily subside. Monsters brought upon by her existence. Many were killed or injured in the first attack of Braga, so the hatred was justified. Led silently by the knights and tied to the cross, even more stones were thrown at Verdandi.
Any normal person would have bled from such hits, but she had no wounds. The Prince stood proudly watching the scene, while the King was absent. The execution was about in an hour. She endured numerous curses without changing her expression.
“Do you regret it?”
Though he was absent, King Greid Malon Briouk was looKing at the capitol square through a high tower window. Noticing Davey, the King looked surprised. “Hmm? You are… Ahem. Prince Davey O’Rowane. What brings you here?”
“I have something to discuss with you.” Davey asked calmly, “Do you regret becoming King?”
The King remained silent, seemingly puzzled. “Prince, even if you’re revered as the Holy Prince, receiving respect from every nation, this audacity...”
“Did you think that, by becoming King, you could help the witch? But now, faced with the situation of having to kill her, do you feel regret?”
At Davey's question, the angered King hesitated and then glared at him with a stern face. “What are you trying to say, Prince? Depending on your answer, you might be accused of insulting the King. Even a Holy Prince can't be entirely above the law.”
“Before that…” Davey trailed off.
The words that followed made the King's eyes widen.
“It seems you don’t understand how dangerous it is to break the taboo.”
The King's face paled.
“It doesn't matter what’s behind it or how you've led as a benevolent ruler. In this world,” Davey continued, “there are things that can be done and things that shouldn't be done, sir.”
“Did you already know?”
“I happened to find out. BreaKing a taboo isn't immediately obvious.”
“I see. I was careless.” The King, looKing defeated, stared back. The look on his face was one of resignation, almost relieved. “So, what will you do with me?”
“I'm in a difficult situation myself. Just as one problem is resolved, another crops up. Therefore, I made a decision. This matter might come back to haunt me. Either way, it's a major issue for me,” Davey said calmly, paused for a moment, and then slowly moved his hand.
Simultaneously, blood splattered in the dim stone chamber. The blood may be slightly different, but it was said that blood always showed its true value.
The witch's execution was about to begin. The title of the continent's greatest beauty was one to be held in high esteem. In the past, Verdandi was considered one of the six greatest beauties, but even further back, she was a famous figure who held one of those distinguished titles. Yet, no one knew that she once was that very beauty, Verdandi.
Time had moved on. The fiercely burning torches seemed ready to consume Verdandi at any moment. However, not everyone looked on with pleasure.
"Public executions... aren't exactly the best method, after all."
"One is punished to serve as a lesson for a hundred. It's an effective system for instilling fear, but such executions only highlight the value of human life and often have the opposite effect."
Illyna sighed and turned her head. "Davey? Where have you been?"
"It's nothing."
"Is that so? Hmm... But why are you dressed like that?"
Following her words, Davey looked down at his outfit. "Well, sometimes you have to dress up."
The attire Davey wore was not his usual simple and neat outfit. Instead, it felt overly formal, almost ceremonial in pure white.
"It's about time."
At Davey's words, Illyna and Reina looked puzzled. Just then…
"Oh no, am I late?"
Everyone's eyes turned to the young woman panting as she ran toward them. Lena, the sole candidate for the Saintess position in the present era. She was the only woman soon to undergo the ceremony to become the next Saintess.
"Haah... Haah... Davey! Aren’t you walKing too fast?"
Davey simply nodded in response to Lena's playful complaint with her elongated speech.
"You must have had a tough journey."
"How is Lady Alice doing?"
Seeing how Lena, who once had a strained relationship with Alice, still cared for her made Davey think she was not entirely normal. Alice, now a professor at Heins Academy, had once referred to Lena as a dimwit whose mind was full of flowers. Of course, Lena's altruistic nature was probably why she was chosen in the first place.
"Hehe. You look splendid. The outfit, I mean."
"You look beautiful too, Candidate Lena."
"Beauty is but a luxury for a cleric like me."
Despite her words, Lena truly shone, proving the saying that clothes make the woman.
Lena's unexpected appearance and Davey's cryptic behavior left everyone baffled. Their expressions hardened as Davey began to approach the center of the square.
"Witch! Speak your last words!"
Amidst the cool breeze, Verdandi, with her flowing hair, silently lifted her head. She looked at the furious crowd and chuckled. "Why bother with words now? Just light the fire."
A knight stepped forward angrily.
"Execute the sentence!" At Prince Greid Malon Briouk's command, the knights brought forward their torches.
"Hold on!"
Lena, the Saintess Candidate, appeared, parting the crowd. The holy knights escorting her stood guard, and Davey walked out from behind her.
Taken aback by Davey's sudden move, Greid called out to him. "Davey... Your Highness?"
Davey responded formally, "In the name of the Saint, I will take custody of the witch's body."
"What?! What do you mean?" Startled, Greid stood up abruptly, his gaze meeting both Davey's and the subdued Verdandi's.
"The power of a witch doesn't simply disappear when burned. The situation has escalated, Your Highness. Just moments ago, King Greid Malon Briouk passed away due to the residual curse spread by the witch."
The square fell into an eerie silence upon hearing Davey's words.
"I will use the power of the Holy Empire to imprison the witch and remove all remnants of her curse. Then, we will execute her following the Holy Empire's procedures."
"Lies! What are you talKing about? Captain! Find the King!"
Davey, with a stoic face, said, "You have no choice, Your Highness. If we proceed with this execution, many in this Kingdom will die from the witch's curse. Even if I'm not from the Holy Empire, I must use its power to save at least one life."
Confusion and fear began to spread across the square. Public opinion was turning. Yes, things would become easier if the situation turned chaotic.
"Davey, are you still intent on killing her?"
Perserque's question resonated. Did he really think that burning the Abyssal Princess would settle everything? The Princess of the Abyss would not die from such a method.
Shortly after…
"Your Highness! Your Highness! The King... The King..."
Prince Greid’s face twisted in despair as he collapsed, speaKing sorrowfully, "My father..."
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