Chapter 66

66

"Um...?"

Goodness, I didn’t expect the emperor to come out of the ruins as mad as this.

I fiddled with the crown, a useless gesture, and turned my head. When I looked at Sharent Clow, he nodded silently.

"You can kill him."

No, sir. Are you crazy?

‘Why are you doing this to me?’

Is Sharent Clow finally deciding to kill the emperor and take the throne? And he’s starting with me?

‘Am I just a discardable card to you?’

"You always say things in such a harsh way."

"There’s a letter left behind. I also saw the words that say he won’t pass on the responsibility even if he dies."

"If I don’t write it that way, you won’t come, will you?"

Sharent Clow, you cruel bastard.

Of course, he’s confident, which is why he can say such things to me.

I put on the crown with my trembling hands.

A strange magical power spread through my body, and I slowly closed and opened my eyes.

The world in front of me changed dramatically. People and the world became translucent, as if I could touch anything.

‘Attack?’

How am I supposed to attack? I clenched and unclenched my small hand.

A dark shadow swirled around the emperor. There were shadows in various places in the office. When I reached out my hand toward the shadows, they wrapped around my hand.

My mind was numb.

Even though I was thinking clearly, my spirit and body felt detached, as if I could do anything and everything.

I looked down at my hand wrapped in shadows.

Can I kill someone? I slowly raised my head.

The emperor and Sharent Clow were looking at me, their eyes wide with surprise.

I extended my hand, wrapped in shadows, toward the emperor.

The emperor was staring at the tips of my fingers.

〈Crush.〉

The shadows flew toward the emperor’s body.

Crack! Bang!

The transparent barrier surrounding the emperor shattered like glass.

Instead of the emperor, the sofa was torn to shreds, and cotton flew into the air.

At the same time, something poured down from the ceiling.

The moment I thought it was a group of people in black clothes, a flash of silver streaked across my vision.

Clang!

A sword with a blue blade was right in front of me.

Sharent Clow, who blocked the sword that was too fast to see, was holding a spear in one hand and deflected the onslaught of the black-clothed people’s swords in one go.

At the same time, he wrapped his other arm around me and held me tightly. The threat of death, which had been right in front of me, moved away.

"What is this?"

"I’m sorry, my guards overreacted. Have them step back."

His voice was muffled and buzzing.

The emperor and Sharent Clow were having a conversation.

The emperor seemed to have given an order, but the guards hesitated.

Their gazes were fixed on me.

I could feel the hostility. Sharent Clow struck the floor with his spear again.

If I left it like this, they would threaten me.

I might die again.

The shadows, reacting to my emotions, writhed violently. The shadows that were attached to the guards started to gather around me.

The people who needed to be killed were already determined. Anyone who threatened me was an enemy.

I glared at the emperor’s guards while holding onto Sharent Clow’s clothes.

"Shelina."

A voice came from far away.

No, who is speaking? I felt like I was drifting further away from the world.

The black shadows started to crawl up the legs of the guards one by one.

The guards dropped their swords one by one. I could see their hearts beating in the center of their chests.

The shadows crawled toward them.

I couldn’t take my eyes off this strange scene.

The shadows started to struggle and thrash. Watching this gave me a strange sense of pleasure.

Is this my emotion, or someone else’s?

"Shelina Clow!"

A loud voice like thunder filled my vision with darkness.

I couldn’t see anything.

I couldn’t see the people who needed to be killed.

When I struggled, the person holding me patted my back.

"It’s okay, Shelina. It’s okay."

He tried hard to calm me down.

The strength in my body slowly drained away.

I let go of the clothes I had been gripping tightly, and my body slumped. Something heavy that had been on my head fell off.

"It’s finally coming off."

The darkness in my vision slowly gave way to light.

Eventually, I could see Sharent Clow’s palm moving away.

"Shelina, are you okay?"

"…Sharent."

My head throbbed.

As I stood there, Sharent put a pacifier in my mouth.

‘He knows that I feel calm when I suck on this.’

I sucked on it a few times and tilted my head back.

‘It feels like a dream.’

It was a very short time, but it felt like a long dream.

When I turned my head, I saw the emperor examining the artifact and a guard crouching and trembling nearby.

As I stared at the emperor, he lifted his head as if he felt my gaze.

"You seem to have some light back in your eyes."

The emperor observed me carefully.

‘Light in my eyes?’

Feeling drained, I leaned on Sharent Clow and looked at him.

Sharent Clow sighed softly. The spear he had been holding was now on his wrist.

‘Now that I think about it, it can do that too.’

Artifacts can change their form according to their owner’s wishes.

I reached out to the artifact, and the emperor smiled and hid it behind his back.

No, sir. I’m not a child. I wouldn’t say, ‘Oh! It’s gone?’ I saw it, so give it to me quickly. I want to wear it on my wrist in case of an emergency.

"Just now, your eyes looked like those of a dead fish."

"…Sharent?"

Why not just say they looked like the eyes of a dead flatfish?

I glared at him, and the emperor shrugged and sat on the only intact sofa.

Thanks to this, Sharent Clow and the emperor ended up sitting side by side, a strange sight.

"It’s better not to let children use this, young duke."

"I don’t plan to, even without you saying so."

"Magical artifacts are extremely dangerous. If they can turn a child into this, they can probably corrupt an adult’s mind. They are clearly different from holy artifacts."

The emperor made a light judgment.

By the way, the empire only had three holy artifacts.

Actually, that’s just luck. You can’t know what will come out of a ruin—whether it’s a monster, a mystery, or a magical artifact—until you enter it.

"Didn’t the former head of the Silophia Magic Tower own two magical artifacts? Was it Hella?"

The sudden mention of the name made my shoulders tremble.

I saw Sharent Clow’s gaze briefly touch me and then fall away.

Sharent Clow slowly nodded at the emperor’s words.

"I heard he owned two magical artifacts."

Who knew they were all cheating like this behind the scenes?

If I had known, I would have said the artifact had no owner. There were no assassinations in Silophia due to its inaccessibility.

"Even though it doesn’t seem like it, the artifact is quite powerful. The temple’s artifact has the power to purify, and Ely can even heal the dying…"

The emperor’s gaze moved slowly with a smile.

Sharent Clow’s eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"Your spear can summon lightning, right?"

The holy artifact’s ability is impressive.

I didn’t know it could summon lightning. Now that I think about it, when Sharent Clow holds the spear, small flames seem to spark.

"Everyone pretends not to care, but they keep sending expeditions to the ruins. No one wants to be without the power that surpasses humans."

"I’m not interested."

"Anyway, this magical artifact can move something invisible to the eye and kill people just by moving the eyes. It’s clearly a weapon of destruction."

Most magical artifacts are like that.

There are hardly any that aren’t weapons of destruction.

Magical artifacts often gain their value by seeing blood or killing someone.

Holy artifacts exert a positive influence, but even they can be misused by humans.

‘If it had the power to heal, it would have been hidden.’

If people knew the young princess’s artifact had such power, they wouldn’t have left her alone.

Incurable diseases, people dying from amputated limbs, shortened lifespans, and bodies deteriorating everywhere.

If it could heal all of that, there would be many who would target her.

Moreover, the owner was still a young princess. She would be an easy target for assassins.

‘The emperor had foresight.’

If I were in charge, I might not have thought to hide it. I would have just tried to protect it.

Seeing various things while growing up in a child’s body, I sometimes wonder if I really had the qualities to lead others. I don’t think I was meant to be in a position of authority.

I clenched my teeth and pushed forward, but I only knew how to kill people, starting from the bottom. Those who learned to govern and lived for that purpose were clearly different.

"I don’t understand why this artifact chose your niece as its owner."

"…I think the same."

Sharent Clow took the crown and put it back in the box. It seems he won’t give it to me.

It’s a bit disappointing. It would have been perfect to wear when I left home. It would have been useful in dangerous situations.

As I looked at him with a disappointed expression, Sharent Clow got up from his seat.

"I don’t plan to give it to you, so forget it."

"My…"

"No."

Hey, do you have to be so mean and say it’s not mine?

I glared at him, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of giving me the artifact. Of course, all I did was go and hug it, so I can’t claim ownership.