I Became the Youngest Prince in the Novel

Chapter 26: The Dream of Stars (2)

At the towering gates of the majestic Agnes Empire's royal palace, a woman stood, her face a puzzle as she gazed at the imposing entrance.

She was a sight to behold with her raven-black hair cascading down her back and eyes burning as red as blood.

Her name was Liushina Bloodwalker, a dedicated follower of Zion.

"Who would have thought I'd end up here?"

Liushina was standing outside the palace, fulfilling Zion's command to infiltrate it after taking care of the secretive assassins of the 'Night of Rest' and tracking down the one who pulled the strings.

Despite never having set foot in a royal palace or even a lord's country estate, Liushina found herself oddly comfortable.

"Zion kept his word after all."

Since arriving in the capital and carrying out Zion's orders, she'd taken more lives than ever before.

It wasn't entirely satisfying yet, but Liushina felt optimistic about the future.

According to Zion, they were only getting started.

"Hmm-hmm~"

She hummed to herself as she prepared to pass through the palace gates when suddenly,

"Your identity or permit for entering the palace, please."

The gate-keeping soldiers demanded in a formal tone.

"Do I need one of those?"

Liushina answered, taken aback.

The soldier looked at her in disbelief before shaking his head,

"Without it, you can't enter."

"But I have to. My master ordered me to."

"Your master? Do you mean the person you work for? Could you share their name?"

"Hmm..."

Confusion washed over Liushina's face.

She realized she didn't even know Zion's full name.

"I don't know his name, but he's a thin, scary-looking man with wide, intense eyes..."

She mimicked Zion's gaze but her effort was in vain.

"Please leave."

Firmly, one of the soldiers dismissed her, gently nudging her shoulder as he did so.

And then,

BANG!

Suddenly, the soldier who had touched her was thrown back at an unseen speed and crashed into the palace wall.

A hush fell over the scene.

And then,

"It wasn't me, he just stumbled backward... I guess you won't believe me, huh?"

As a beast-like form began to appear where the soldier had touched her, Liushina hurriedly pushed it back, trying to find an excuse, but it was already too late.

"Attack! Get in formation!"

With a deafening cry, soldiers and knights began to rush towards her.

"Seems like I'll have to force my way in."

Watching them charge, Liushina felt a surge of crimson energy start to radiate from her being.

"What a wicked energy!"

"Prevent her from entering the palace at all costs!"

The knights were taken aback by her ominous aura, calling out their orders with urgency.

"I'll try not to kill... but a few might end up dead in the scuffle, right?"

A hint of eager anticipation sparked in Liushina's eyes as she faced the knights.

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Raei Translations

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'Besides, even if it's his time to go, that power won't fade right away.'

The Celestial Sea.

A formidable force accessible only to the direct lineage of the Agnes family.

Zion locked eyes with Emperor Urdios, whose gaze was filled with the stars of the Celestial Sea.

The frail old man before him was once a force to be reckoned with, having mastered the Celestial Sea in his prime, crushed all competition, and ascended as the world's ruler.

No amount of age or sickness could instantly drain that power.

In fact, it would be more peculiar if it did.

"...You're certainly not Zion."

The Emperor declared, studying Zion.

One could tell by just looking at his eyes.

Eyes that carried the born authority of a ruler.

Indeed, the eyes of Urdios's own son did not carry such a trait.

However, the gaze of the man standing before him, Zion Agnes, bore the hallmark of a ruler.

And one thing was certain.

"Zion can't feel or control mana. He was born under a celestial curse. He can't learn magic or swordsmanship."

Only a select few, including the Emperor, knew this fact.

His inability to harness the Celestial Sea was part of the same issue.

Yet, two black stars swirled in the depths of Zion's eyes the Emperor was studying, a power similar but profoundly different from the Celestial Sea, alien and unsettling.

At the sight of those eyes, Urdios could feel himself instinctively recoiling.

"Who are you?"

With a considerable effort, the Emperor quashed his unease, stared into Zion's eyes, and asked again.

In response, Zion offered a knowing smile and a counter question.

"Who do you believe I am?"

Zion knew from the start that his body couldn't sense mana.

But that didn't hinder Zion.

After all, the Black Star wielded a power entirely distinct from mana, the fundamental energy of this world.

"A demon... Yes, nothing but a demon makes sense. Only a demon could possess such eyes and power. Have you come to claim me?"

It wasn't a figure of speech.

The Emperor truly thought Zion could be a demon.

He wasn't entirely off the mark.

Among the various titles attributed to Zion during his reign, "demon" was one of them.

"Why bother when your end is already near?"

Zion responded to the Emperor's question with a frosty smile.

The figure before Zion was technically his host body's father, Emperor Urdios, ruler of the world.

Yet Zion displayed no deference or affection for him.

From the outset, Zion bore no reverence for the emperor, and Urdios had never displayed paternal care for his son, Zion Agnes.

Moreover, it was Urdios who had kept Zion Agnes in the palace, treating him as if he didn't exist.

'No matter, it's irrelevant now.'

Zion felt nothing for the elderly man before him.

His objective was straightforward - to extract what he needed.

"However, I do have a question."

Zion leaned in slightly, fixing his gaze on the emperor.

"What is it?"

"Who reduced you to this state?"

It was a valid question.

Those who reached a certain level of power could reconstruct their bodies to maintain their youthful prime, and their lifespan would extend accordingly.

But it was clear an external influence had reduced the emperor, a being nearly as potent as a 'god,' to his current state.

Zion had his suspicions regarding this external factor, but he believed it would be more reliable to hear it directly from the emperor.

"...Hahaha!"

The emperor, who had been gazing at Zion with lifeless eyes, suddenly burst into laughter.

Zion observed the laughing emperor with a composed expression.

"So, you're not with them after all? Interesting. I was mistaken. To imagine such a distinct power was akin... Cough!"

Urdios, whose words were previously incoherent, interrupted himself with a fit of coughing before continuing.

"For over four hundred years, since the first Emperor Agnes founded the empire, we've been the only kingdom in the world. It marked the true dawn of humanity."

The consolidated empire embraced all regional cultures and ushered in a golden age for humanity.

The progress since then had been unprecedented.

But that era was short-lived.

"At the furthest southern end of the continent. A place called 'the world's end' due to its barrenness, a demon realm spontaneously emerged."

The demon realm.

A domain inhabited solely by demonic beings.

This place abruptly appeared from 'the world's end,' a lifeless, desolate location, as if something had materialized from nothing.

"We were clueless as to how or why the demon realm surfaced. The demons were bent on eradicating all life, and we were preoccupied with defending against them."

Countless wars ensued.

Battles waged between the demons led by the Demon King and all other life forms, with the empire at the heart of it.

"Numerous heroes rose and fell, and countless lives were sacrificed. That's how we preserved the empire. However, about a century ago, the demon realm abruptly stopped all invasions. We didn't understand why. Regardless, humanity celebrated and relaxed. After all, the prolonged era of warfare had seemingly concluded. But... it was a false reality."

With these words, a fleeting trace of bitterness flickered and vanished from the emperor's eyes.

Zion regarded the elderly emperor, his voice steady as he broke the silence.

"The demon realm never stopped their invasions."

Caught off guard, the emperor's eyes widened. He stared at Zion for a moment before replying.

"...You're aware? Indeed, the demon realm merely altered their tactics. Rather than confronting us head-on, they gradually infiltrated the empire, humanity's domain, over roughly a hundred years."

So, the demons had spread throughout the empire like a complex spider's web.

So meticulously and covertly that their presence remained unnoticed.

Even the imperial city was no exception.

"By the time I discovered the truth, it was too late. My body had already been ravaged by the demon poison they had stealthily administered."

Urdios gestured towards his frail body as he confessed this.

His arm quivered from the simple motion.

His physique had sustained irreversible damage.

"I was rendered helpless."

Reduced to wasting away, day by day.

"If I had attempted to root them out clumsily, it would have resulted in the empire's instant collapse, and there was no way to accurately detect them. Needless to say, I never determined who administered the demon poison to me."

An overwhelming sense of impotence.

The enemy had infiltrated the heart of the empire, leaving the emperor powerless.

"Is that why you've refrained from naming a successor?"

Zion asked the emperor, having listened attentively.

Just because an emperor names a successor doesn't guarantee their ascension to the throne.

But their legitimacy can suppress competition and intrigue to some extent.

The sole reason he hadn't named a successor was due to the threat.

"Correct, because I couldn't ascertain who had consorted with them. Or, there might already be someone who has become a puppet of the demons."

Such was the extent of the demons' penetration into the imperial city.

And the fall of the empire was increasingly imminent.

At least, that's what Emperor Urdios believed.

After a moment of mournful sighing, the Emperor redirected his attention to Zion.

"Entity assuming the guise of Zion Agnes, what exactly are your intentions in the imperial city?"

A question imbued with the authority and dignity of the Great Agnes Empire's emperor.

"I intend to devour it."

Zion's gaze was unwavering as he responded.

"...Pardon?"

"I plan to devour this royal palace, the imperial city, and this empire. Without exceptions."

An assertion so absurd it seemed unnecessary to refute.

However.

"Hahahahaha!"

The emperor broke into laughter.

For, oddly enough, he believed that the being before him might genuinely execute his stated intentions.

"Indeed, it would be preferable for a demon to consume us rather than the demon realm dismantling this empire."

Given the demonic infestation throughout the empire, human efforts to repel them were futile.

Hence, entrusting it to a demon seemed fitting.

The chuckling emperor, his words reduced to a murmur, addressed Zion once more.

"The 'Eye' exists within the imperial city. A secret guard passed down from our forebears for situations such as these, they are strictly obedient to the emperor's commands."

This shadow organization resided in the empire's underbelly, manipulating all global information behind the scenes.

The emperor was confident that they, of all groups, had remained untarnished by the demons.

"Seek out the 'Eye'. They might already be aware of the situation and taking measures. I severed our connection the moment I was poisoned to conceal their existence from the demons, but you should be unhindered."

This was information already within Zion's grasp.

The eternal shadow.

One of the preeminent intelligence organizations in the Ploshimar Chronicles, later coupling with 'Moon's Eye'.

It was also the primary target Zion wished to seize upon entering the royal palace.

Even with knowledge of the chronicles and foresight of the future, he did not possess omniscience.

It was this intelligence that filled in the gaps.

"Understood."

Zion, who would have pursued this lead even without instruction, offered a quick reply before promptly turning away.

There was nothing more to extract from the emperor, and he needed to proceed to 'Dream of Stars', his primary objective in the royal palace today.

"Even when you locate it, handling it might prove challenging. Allow me to offer a small assist."

The emperor's fading voice echoed behind Zion.

Zion offered no response, exiting the ailing emperor's bedchamber.

Creak.

Silence and darkness reclaimed the room once more.

"I eagerly await the outcome."

There, the emperor, his eyes shut, murmured softly.

***

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