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Sister Eli was the first person I laid eyes on, not my birth mother, nor my sister Elise.

Sister Eli passed away at the age of 75, a peaceful death from natural causes. Sister Lily recounted finding her peacefully sleeping, her breath stilled forever.

I clasped my hands together and offered a prayer to the unknown. Whether there was a god or heaven in this realm remained uncertain, but I felt compelled to send my thoughts to her nonetheless.

I felt a presence behind me, and Sister Lily joined me, offering her prayers silently. After a few moments of solemnity, we finished our prayers together.

Turning to me, Sister Lily remarked, "You\'re up unusually early. I was expecting you to sleep in."

"Well, I\'ve got classes today, so I had to rise with the sun," I replied.

"Ah, right. You still have class on the sixth day of the week, huh? But are you going to be alright? You know the Holy City is quite a journey from the Academy City. It takes three days by normal means. Won\'t you be terribly late?" she inquired with concern.

"I\'ll be fine," I assured her, though I didn\'t elaborate on why.

"Is that so?" she responded, clearly sensing that I was holding something back, but she didn\'t press me further. "Anyway, I couldn\'t help but notice Alice seemed upset. Did you do something to her? Again?"

Alice and I were no strangers to conflict, but this felt different. It ran deeper than our usual squabbles. Truth be told, even after all these years, I still struggled to understand the complexities of a woman\'s heart. Despite my skill, which could decipher what it took to win a woman over, I remained clueless about what truly lay within their hearts or minds.

It seemed that old adage about a woman\'s heart being a mystery wasn\'t too far off the mark.

"I did something to her, and it wasn\'t our usual clash of egos. It was worse," I confessed vaguely to Sister Lily. I couldn\'t bring myself to disclose the specifics, fearing her reaction would mirror Alice\'s anger.

"Is that so?" Sister Lily responded, seemingly understanding my reluctance to delve deeper. She didn\'t press me further. "Well, if you\'ve wronged her, the least you can do is apologize. Sister Eli always stressed the importance of owning up to our mistakes."

"I suppose you\'re right," I conceded.

"Good. If you understand, then don\'t waste any time. Apologize to her and make amends," she advised.

I nodded in agreement and made my way back to the orphanage to face Alice.

Upon reaching her room, I knocked softly, but there was no response, only silence.

"Alice, if you\'re there, it\'s okay if you don\'t respond," I spoke softly. "I just need you to hear me out. Even if you don\'t forgive me, that\'s okay. I just want you to listen."

Taking a deep breath, I continued, my voice filled with sincerity, "I know I\'ve done something terrible to you, and I fully understand the extent of my wrongdoing. I\'m deeply sorry." With a humble bow in front of her door, I expressed my remorse. "I truly mean it. I\'m really sorry." With that, I turned away and left.

As I walked away from her room, a faint sound reached my ears, but Alice remained silent behind her closed door.

Several hours later, I departed from the village without having the chance to speak to Alice further, returning to the Academy City.

***

Meanwhile...

Julius\'s POV

From atop one of the tallest buildings in the Capital City of Milham, I gazed down upon the sprawling metropolis below. Drawing in a deep breath, I focused my mana, forming a fiery orb in the palm of my hand. With a flick of my wrist, I unleashed the destructive power within.

"Inferno."

The fireball hurtled toward the ground, igniting upon impact with a deafening explosion. Flames erupted in all directions, engulfing everything in their path. The force of the blast sent bodies flying and seared flesh upon contact.

As the inferno raged on, I watched with cold indifference. To me, these people were nothing but insignificant ants, unworthy of mercy. They deserved to burn for their sins.

And burn they did, as my flames consumed them without remorse.

As chaos and screams reverberated below, I stood atop the towering edifice, my laughter ringing out like a macabre symphony. I knew the magic knights would eventually arrive, but they were powerless against me. No matter the extent of my atrocities—be it demanding women, perpetrating genocide, or wreaking havoc—I remained untouchable. I was a prince, and they were mere magic knights.

I was their superior in every way.

"You seem to relish in this chaos, Prince Julius," remarked the man standing by my side. He had been confined to a wheelchair, his body swathed in bandages, with one of his arms and legs missing, when I first met him. But now, miraculously, he stood before me with both arms and legs intact. He must have sought out someone with a healing skill capable of regenerating lost limbs.

"Of course I am," I replied, my smirk bordering on insanity. "Why wouldn\'t I? If only I hadn\'t been so blind and foolish all these years, I would have unleashed this madness long ago."

"It\'s all well and good to indulge your killing spree, but don\'t forget the King\'s Game is fast approaching. If you exhaust yourself too much now, you\'ll be sluggish when it counts," he cautioned.

"What do you mean? There\'s no way I\'d lose in that competition. I\'m the strongest. No one can stand in my way," I retorted confidently. "Don\'t underestimate my strength. Even if the other competitors are renowned fighters and mages, I\'ll rise to the top.

I\'ll be the victor."

"Your half-sister is entering as well, along with her trusty knight. And among the first years, there\'s trouble brewing. Especially with that woman," he added.

"Pfft," I scoffed, hacking and spitting disdainfully. "You really think some skillless woman stands a chance against me? Did you see how she cowered when she faced me? Pathetic."

"Well, if you\'re that confident. Just heed my warning though. There\'s something about her that feels... different. If you find yourself in a fight with her and realize you\'re outmatched, it might be wise to throw in the towel or hightail it out of there," he advised.

His words grated on my nerves, igniting a simmering irritation within me. There was no way in hell I\'d let some woman, or anyone else for that matter, best me in combat. My determination burned like an inferno, fueled by arrogance and pride. "I don\'t fucking need your advice. I\'ll do whatever the hell I please."

"Fine," he conceded with a heavy sigh, a sense of resignation evident in his tone. "But for the love of all that\'s holy, be cautious. The last thing you want is to end up decapitated. You\'re still destined to rule this kingdom, and by extension, this whole world, Prince Julius."

"I know," I replied with icy coolness, my voice oozing with confidence and defiance. Raising my hand in a brazen gesture, I channeled mana into my palm, conjuring yet another fireball with a wicked grin. "I\'ll seize victory in the King\'s Game and demand my father relinquish his title to me."

In truth, the King\'s Game didn\'t typically bestow prestigious titles like king or duke upon commoners. For those of humble birth, the most one could hope for was a fief and the title of knight. However, for a prince like myself, the stakes were much higher. Winning the King\'s Game meant I could claim the throne itself. Of course, there was no guarantee my father would willingly abdicate.

After all, he had sat upon that throne for so long, ruling with an iron fist. He wouldn\'t simply hand it over to someone who had merely won a contest.

Well, If he resisted, I\'d have no qualms about forcibly seizing his crown—by any means necessary.

"And once I ascend the throne of Milham, I\'ll command the most formidable group of knights in the world—the magic knights—to conquer this realm. We\'ll start with... ah, what was the name of that faltering kingdom again?" I inquired, a predatory gleam in my eyes.

"Kingdom of Bethlan," he declared with a steely resolve.

The moment the name left his lips, I unleashed another searing fireball, igniting a cataclysmic explosion that reverberated through the air. The cacophony of screams below only fueled my elation, their terror a symphony of victory.

"We\'ll start with that kingdom," I proclaimed, my voice ringing with conviction. With a swift movement, we vanished from our perch, leaving behind only echoes of destruction and the promise of conquest.