For the first time in a week, the king has visited Hero in the dungeons. “King, please tell me, what is the meaning of this?”
“Worry not Hero, it is a mistake.”
“The princess is she alright?” His second instinct behind his own survival was concern for a friend.
“Perfectly fine. I found a much stronger bodyguard for her.”
Hero was surprised. He had been promised that job for the last year. It was part of his countrywide campaign of good deeds.
“I understand your confusion, but I needed you for a much more important plan of mine. How much do you know about the corruption in the church? Most notably the orphanages.”
“They allow Hiro to come and prey on the girls. It’s easy to get a girl to throw away her life and come with you if they have nothing else in their life, but that's the only thing I've seen.”
The king scoffs. “Is that all you’ve seen? All you can infer from the actions of the people associated with it?”
“I mean, the main church does things I don’t agree with. Collecting mandatory donations, being able to pay off your sins. Those aren’t moral.”
The king brings Hero back on track. “You’ve seen nobles adopt orphans right?”
Hero nods.
“Why would a person with that much power bring an orphan into his family?”
“Because he wants to take care of a lost child.”
“Tch. You really think that?”
“Of course.” Up until it was questioned Hero had no reason to question it.
The king pulls a scroll out of his purple robe. Inside it is a key to the cell. Written on it is the address to a prominent noble. “Hey, I know this guy. He adopts often.”
“Exactly. Go pay his basement a visit. Come back when you're not so green.”
I stand behind the princess in her science class. While the teacher is busy giving a speech on how certain elements can be stored in magical crystals. It’s all very drab. The demonstration is just children putting magic essence into monster crystals. It’s cool to know that I can reuse monster crystals like batteries. It’s interesting but boring. For the sake of my own sanity, I seek entertainment. It’s a science room after all. I should check out the ‘scientific’ display cases in the back. One cabinet is committed to magical sciences that I can’t make heads or tales of. The other is anatomy. Complete with one of those hanging plastic skeletons that you see in many science rooms. I shuffle over to the prop skeleton in the corner as I touch it I realize that it’s not plastic. It’s a real human skeleton. I look both ways and then add it to my inventory. 50 DP is 50 DP.
There’s a burst of light and the class screams. I turn around. Some blond chick has poured too much magic into her crystal. It exploded and a ray of white light flies from her hands. It recoils, pushing her hand back, carving a line through the classroom right towards the princess. I curse to myself and spring into action, but I’m too slow. The princess is hit by the power of the beam.
Her face is burnt red. She grabs the table, digging her nails in and taking a deep breath.
“Oh my god. I’m so sorry princess.” The blond hair girl is running down the aisle to check on the well being of the princess. Prin lets out her breath and puts on a smile. “It’s alright. It was an accident after all.”
A pop is heard above the blond girl. A small sack of rice is floating in the air. “The hell?” It falls, hitting the blonde girl in the head. She begins to cry. A few of the boys stand up and white knight for her. A boy with black hair and glasses speaks up. He’s almost in tears. “How could you do that, princess?”
“I didn’t!” Prin squeaks out.
Another man steps forward to protect the blonde girl. He is about five foot he holds a rapier around his waist. One hand rests on its handle. “T-the prime minister’s son?” The boy nods. He pushes his red bangs out of his eyes and stares daggers at the princess.
“You’re the only one who can control space magic! Who else could it have been?”
“I don’t know, but it wasn’t me.”
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
“Humph. You’ll never be a queen by telling lies like that.”
The blonde girl was taken to the nurse's office by three boys. Prin was in tears about being accused with something she didn’t do.
Prin ran up to her brother. He was two years older and had been attending the university for two years already. “Brother.” Surely the family bond that was in the game would still be intact? It wasn’t until the third act in the game that he turns on his sister. I rush towards him so eager to see an ally that I intend on hugging him. He holds up one arm. A football move that is called a stiff arm. It collides with my chest and I fall to the ground. “How could you do that to her? It was uncalled for. A member of the royal family can not act like that. Don’t think that just because you’re my older sister that your spot on the throne is secure. I can still overtake you with my actions.”
“I didn’t do it. I don’t know how it happened! Why will no one believe me? The bag just came out of nowhere.”
“I’m not talking about the science room incident. The bullying the rumors, placing a dead mouse in her locker! There is no proof but everyone knows that these are your doings.”
“What?” Is the only response I can give. I didn’t even know about those things. They happened in the game, but they shouldn't have happened yet. Anon steps forward. “I have been with her the whole time. She hasn’t done any of those.”
“Perhaps she did them while you were asleep?”
“I don’t sleep.” Anon states and for the first time, I realize that he doesn’t sleep. At night he just goes out to smoke and doesn’t come back for a few hours. Does he sleep then?
My brother scoffs. “Don’t lie to defend her. My sister will drag you down with her when her cardhouse crumbles.” He scowls at Anon then perks up. “Actually. You are her bodyguard. You would have had to of seen her committing these evil deeds. If you could see the light of the girls magic and join her side then we would have a foolproof case for getting my evil sister expelled.”
“See her light?”
“Her glorious light.”
Anon laughs at my brother. This hurts his pride as a noble. “Fine then. Cower in the dark. But when the light comes. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” My brother storms off.
“Bit of ah we prick, int-he?” Anon says while mimicking a cockney accent. I’m already panicking. “That was a line from the end of the game. This is all moving too quickly. I’m going to die.”
Anon smiles. “Sounds like the light magic girl is the problem. I can always just kill her.”
“No! You can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“She’s a child!”
“I could kill a child easily. They are weak.”
“You can’t kill children.”
Anon has an indignant look on his face. Like I just insulted his abilities.
Hero broke the lock with his sword. Under the cloak of darkness, he had snuck into the underpants of the noble’s mansion. That is to say. He is creeping down the storm shelter and into the basement. He holds his holy sword in one hand, feeling his way through the darkness. A door blocks his path. Bright light spills out from the base of it. Faint murmurs can be heard from the other side. Hero tries the handle but it doesn’t turn. It’s locked. He readies his foot, sending it slamming into the space right below the door handle. The door flies open.
The room is lit by thousands of candles stacked on top of each other. A figure in red robes stands in the middle of a twenty point star. A dead child on each point of the star but one.
“What is the meaning of this?” Hero exclaims. “Why would you do this?” He trudges over candles to get closer to the man. He steps over one of the bodies and recognizes the face. “No.” It’s one of the kids he helped at the orphanage.
“How dare you interrupt my ceremony! Do you know who I am?” The man in red pulls back his hood. It’s the duke. The owner of this castle. The one who adopted all these children from the orphanage. “It’s you?” Hero exclaims in anguish. “Why?”
“Guards!” Screamed the noble. A sound of metal shoes rushed downstairs.
Hero rushes the duke. Tackling him to the ground. “Why did you do this?”
“For favor from the dark gods.”
“They were so young. They were my friends. I thought you were giving them jobs as maids, but this? You were using them as sacrifices?”
The duke is remarkably calm for being pinned to the ground “Well they also served as a relief for the guards. Their young bodies where tight fits, but after a few nights with the knights and .... Well, you know?” The duke gives a sadistic smile. Hero takes his sword the puts it to the noble’s neck. “You will never get away with this!”
The duke laughs.”What? Who’s going to punish me? You? If you even hurt me then you’ll be executed. The king knows full well what I do. Your society runs on vice. Children like you should just wake up or die.” The duke fades into shadows then reappears behind the hero. The guards have arrived they point spears at Hero.
“How can you call yourselves guards of the people when you protect child murderers?” Hero appeals to the guard's humanity.
“Guardians of the people?” The guards laugh. A guard takes his helmet off. His fat face scarred to hell and back. “The guards in this city don’t protect the people. We protect the nobility. They pay us. The people don’t pay us.” He laughs as he plunges his spear forward. Hero doges. He grabs the spear with his free hand and cuts off the head of it with his word. “I am going to take you to the king. He will have you pay for your crimes.”
The entire group laughs again. “The king? Oh, how scary. We really are afraid of the king.” A guard quips. The duke opens his lipless mouth to speak. “Why do you think are here? The king sent you didn't he?”
“I am here to root out your corruption!”
“No. The king sent you here to be the vessel. The final sacrifice to the dark gods above. The king wishes to resurrect his brother into your body.” The head guard pulls back his headless spear. The duke produces a ceremonial sacrificial dagger. He ties it to the tips of the spear. “Just one cut and this ritual will be over.” The other guards move forward, crunching candles underfoot. Hero backs up. Intent on not being cornered. The guards prode at him with their spears. Hero takes another step back. Tripping over the body of one of the orphans. The head guard steps forward and brings the spear down upon him.