DOTD Chapter 6

Only a few years ago. 

 

The long-lost prince of the Usher Empire has suddenly returned to his rightful place.

 

《Louis Usher》

 

The prince arrived in the imperial capital in a state of disarray. 

 

Covered in blood and armor. He slaughtered everyone who stood in his way, adult, and child alike.

 

And while the people in the castle were panicking, it happened.

 

The Emperor had been killed.

 

All the imperial standing army was helpless, and when they got close to him, they couldn’t even swing their swords, as if their souls were being absorbed.

 

Even in the middle of the day, only his surroundings were dark, as if there was no light. It was as if the god of evil had manifested himself.

 

The strange sight terrified the people.

 

Louis approached the throne, picked up the Emperor’s scepter from the ground at his feet, and turned around weakly.

 

He surveyed the vassals and soldiers who gazed at him in awe, trembling with fear.

 

No one made eye contact with him, but if anyone had looked into his eyes, they would not have recognized him as human.

 

Within the pupils, which should have been blue, there was an evil aura like black smoke.

 

Crown Prince Serhent drew his sword, but it shattered as soon as it clashed with Louis’s blade.

 

“Ugh, where did you come from, reveal who’s behind this!”

 

“Brother. It’s me, Louis.”

 

The voice that came out of the sharp, icy expression was as slow and gentle as it had been before he blackened.

 

It sounded like a demon doing a human impersonation.

 

“What, what, how could you, you!”

 

“My brothers, my parents, the imperials. Do you think I don’t know what you’ve done?”

 

Louis, the hidden prince, was rumored to have been kidnapped as a child and disappeared, but behind the scenes, there was a shady deal between the Archmage and the Imperial Family.

 

The former Archmage, notorious for his use of black magic, had been experimenting with taboo experiments and needed a strong child to help him carry them out. 

 

The prince of the Usher Empire, the so-called Child of God, fit the mold.

 

In exchange for Louis and a handful of talented mages, the Emperor agreed to the deal. It was a small price to pay for the prince of an empire.

 

However, the experiment ended in the death of the previous Archmage within a few years of its execution, and no one expected Louis, who possessed demonic powers, to kill the Archmage and disappear.

 

He lived in hiding in the Bennet Kingdom for a time, but eventually returned to the place of his birth, the Usher Empire. Late, but with revenge.

 

The tip of Louis’s sword touched the Crown Prince’s throat.

 

White as a sheet from the terror that coursed through his body, the Crown Prince spat out words.

 

“Louis yes, whatever you think you know, it’s a misunderstanding. We’ve been trying to find you!”

 

“Misunderstanding? Of course not, you sold me to the devil.”

 

Louis looked pitiful. 

 

Normally, his beautiful face had the power to melt a person’s heart.

 

But now, it was nothing but a demon’s face that abominably mimicked human expressions.

 

Kneeling on one knee so that they were at eye level, Louis grabbed the Crown Prince’s trembling head.

 

“So here I am, back as a demon. Are you satisfied?”

 

“Aaaahhh!!”

 

The Crown Prince screamed as his eyes rolled back in his head, burning black from the grip.

 

Soon his heart stopped beating, and his body shriveled up like a centuries-old mummy.

 

Louis tossed the crumpled corpse haphazardly, dusted off his hands, and stood up.

 

Now he was the only one standing there, his feet on the ground.

 

Paying no heed to his ruined surroundings, Louis sat down on the throne, lightly holding up the Emperor’s urn.

 

His expression was far from satisfied, but rather bored. The revenge he had long sought was too easy and too boring.

 

His next guest was Count Geraldine.

 

He knelt at Louis’s feet, a man of great diplomacy, quick to grasp the situation as one of the Emperor’s closest advisors.

 

“… Greetings, Your Majesty, the dignified new Emperor of the Usher Empire.”

 

“Clever, if you pulled out a sword, your head would be blown off before you could swing it. State your name.”

 

“I am Hughes of the House of Geraldine.”

 

“You are hereby appointed aide-de-camp to the Emperor from this time forth.”

 

“It’s an honor.”

 

Count Geraldine and the imperial soldiers who came with him followed suit, and each knelt and swore their allegiance.

 

And just like that, the Empire had a new Emperor, and the palace had been turned upside down. 

 

The whole process took only a few hours.

 

News of Prince Louis’s survival and the fact that he had single-handedly killed the Emperor and Crown Prince and taken the throne spread like wildfire through the capital.

 

Less than half a day later, the people were faced with another change.

 

The new Emperor, Louis Usher, declared war on the continent. 

 

It was the day that the first winds began to blow, filling the continent with the odor of death.

 

🦋

 

And now. One day, about five years after the outbreak of the Continental War, a different breeze was blowing in the imperial palace of the Usher Empire.

 

“Your Majesty, it is said that the wild dogs have become active.”

 

The hounds were experiments created with demonic power.

 

Count Geraldine had served the Emperor for over five years, but he could never forget the creepy chill he always felt whenever he was in the Emperor’s presence.

 

He felt like a small animal standing in front of a predator. 

 

Their shoulders slumped of their own accord, and the hairs on his head stood up. Even if the Emperor did nothing, to threaten.

 

After hearing Count Geraldine’s report, the Emperor stepped out of the darkness.

 

His robes wrapped tightly around his body, making his large frame seem even more imposing.

 

And his eyes, devoid of the slightest hint of a smile, looked so cold that it wouldn’t be strange to see him slash someone to death in front of them.

 

If Bella had seen him now, she would have turned on her heel and fled, there was nothing left of the old Louis.

 

“Where was the last trace of the test subject?”

 

“The Land of Gold, the main area of activity for the mages, they say. If you order me to, I’ll send the most recent ones there, and get her…”

 

Bam— 

 

With a resounding thud, the ground collapsed right in front of the Count’s feet.

 

The mere mention of her in someone else’s mouth was deeply offensive.

 

Louis frowned and fiddled with the handle of his sword.

 

“Leave.”

 

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

 

The Count bowed and stalked out of the room.

 

Louis stroked his chin with his fingers. At last, the news he’d been waiting for.

 

“At last…”

 

He covered his face with his large hands and let out a small laugh.

 

“You’re back.”

 

There was an unexpected warmth and tenderness in his voice, dry with no emotion.

 

“Bella.”

 

When Louis said her name, a smile came to his face, a smile no one had seen since he became Emperor.

 

For a moment, he recalled the days he’d spent with her. 

 

At that moment, the evil that had always been at his side dispersed momentarily.

 

Back then, when he had lived with his friends in the Bennet Kingdom, he had known that one day he would attack his beloved Bella. 

 

Somehow, it seemed like it would happen.

 

And so it was. What he didn’t catch was her preparing to flee.

 

But it wasn’t until Bella had completed her teleportation spell that Louis realized, he couldn’t let her go. 

 

It was too late. He couldn’t let her go now.

 

He had to have her.

 

The first thing Louis did before he captured Bella was stealing a god’s treasure, a treasure that was a match for her, the Heart of Andra.

 

Perhaps if Luis attacked Bella, the sword would keep her from dying. It has the power to offset the demonic power that Louis possesses.

 

Sure, it might take her a while to revive. 

 

But she’d survive, and that’s all that matters.

 

Bella didn’t know anything about it. The fact that she survived Lewis’s attack and didn’t die was all preordained.

 

It was all planned. By Louis.

 

“Never again.”

 

With Bella awakening with the Heart of God, Louis’s plan was complete.

 

“You will not escape me, Bella.”