The Strongest Dull Prince’s Secret Battle for the Throne

Chapter 212: That which support the Heart

Uu

Leticia woke up in a dimly lit prison.

Both of her hands were bound by the chain that hung from the ceiling and she couldnt move her body.

In her hazy mind, she realized that she was captured and deep despair covers her heart.

I waskidnapped..

What she is despairing at is not the fact that she was kidnapped. It was at the fact that it happened inside the Empire.

She never intended to cause any trouble for the Empire. Thats why she has made many preparations.

She was supposed to establish a friendly relationship with the Empire and then die in the Kingdom. However, she currently faced the worst possible result.

This would surely lead to war between the Empire and the Kingdom.

The man she loves and the country she holds dear will have to fight against each other.

A sharp pain runs through her heart.

Then, someone called out to such Leticia.

Are you awake?

Uu

The prison was lit up at the arrival of the owner of that voice.

Leticia averts her eyes from the sudden brightness but when her eyes get used to it, she turns her eyes to the owner of the voice. Then, when she saw the appearance of the person who called out to her, Leticia made a steep expression.

There stands a bewitching beauty. The woman wears clothes that highly advertise her skin while showing a soft smile.

the woman possesses the characteristic black skin with the purplish silver hair of the Dark Elves.

Why is a Dark Elf.?

Dont look so disgusted. I have been with you several days already after all.

Several days..? Dont tell me, Catherine was!?

I killed her. I extracted her memory out as well. It was a hassle but thanks to that I manage to get close without you noticing.

Kuh

Well, dont blame yourself. When you are in the Empire, the imperial family who was assigned as your entertainer will always be by your side. Even if she was the captain of your escort, she only stands outside of your room. Without a lengthy conversation, noticing an illusion like that is impossible. Especially when you have me as your opponent.

Saying so, the Dark Elf snaps her fingers and changes her appearance into that of Leo.

The fake Leo has a frivolous smile that the real Leo would never have on his face.

I can copy the appearance of the person I touched with illusion magic. Well, the only one among the Elves who can imitate others appearance so perfectly is only me though.

Stop talking to me with that voice and appearance..!

Oops, scary, scary. So you dont like seeing the appearance of the man who loves you huh?

Saying so, the Dark Elf reverted back to her original appearance.

Leticia glares at the Dark Elf but she also noticed the tattoo on her shoulder.

The tattoo looked like a book with a pair of devil wings sprouting from it.

Leticia recognized that symbol.

Grimoire!?

Good answer. I am Babette, one of the leaders of Grimoire. The Matriarch of the Dark Elves.

So foolishto think that they would have me kidnapped by Grimoire.!

As expected of Saint-sama, you have a keen mind. I told you right? You are not at fault. The one who is to blame is the Kingdom.

I will not allow a fanatic who doesnt mind sacrificing people for their own research to blemish the name of the Kingdom!

So you still care about the Kingdom? They told us that they wouldnt mind handing you over as our research material to earn our cooperation you know? In other words, you got sold out by them.

Even soit is still the country I loved.

Babette snorted at Leticias words.

However, dry applause can be heard from behind Babette.

Appearing from behind her is a wrinkled petite old man. The robe-wearing old mans appearance exudes a gloomy feeling.

As expected of the Saint. Your spirit is truly innocent. It was like I am looking at a pure white canvas.

You took your time huh? Auguste.

It took a while to finish the preparation.

Alright, the Saint is already awake so lets start right away. There are some sharp people inside the Empire. It wouldnt do if we take our time.

I know that.

Saying so, the old man called Auguste took out a bottle.

He muttered something at the bottle and brought the bottle to Leticia.

Then, countless black chunks of smoke began to circulate around Leticia.

This is..dead spirits!?

I freshly picked them up for you. They are my dear pawns that will dye the Saint with blackness.

Just, what on earth are you trying to do..?

We are thinking about using you to summon a Demon you see. Quite a High-ranking one too. Normally, when summoning something like that the vessel wouldnt be able to hold. Well, with the user of the holy staff herself as a vessel, this should go well.

Are you sane? If you think that a Demon can use someone like me as a vessel then I recommend you redo your study.

I know. Normally, a Demons vessel is a fresh corpse of someone who mentally close to the Demons. If not then the Demon will be forced out due to rejection. Someone whose mentality is close to that of a Demon would undoubtedly be evil. You are certainly on the other end of that spectrum. However, it would be fine if I just turned you evil, right?

What

The Dead Spirits I collected will show you their horrific death and their unreasonable life. If you cant endure it and despair at the world, you will be the perfect vessel for the Demon. Moreover, you can use the holy staff as well. This is quite a unique experiment dont you think.

..I will not give in.

Do your best to resist then.

Saying so, Babette and Auguste leave the prison.

Then, one of the Dead Spirits that was circling around Leticia jumped into her body.

Before she noticed it, Leticia was standing in the middle of a village.

In front of her is a mother who is holding her child to protect him from Auguste.

Auguste used magic and strangled the child right inside the womans arms while laughing at them. Seeing that, the woman screamed in despair.

After thoroughly enjoying their cry of despair, Auguste murmurs to himself.

This is all for the sake of dyeing the Saint black. If you are going to hold a grudge then you can hold it against the Saint.

WAIT!

Leticia tried to stop him but this is only something like an illusion. It is the image of the past that already happened. A bystander like Leticia can not stop it.

Auguste then proceeds to strangle the woman.

After the woman is dead, Auguste disappeared, leaving behind a pair of a woman and a child that has already turned into skeletons.

Leticia was mourning their dead but a grudge filled voice was directed toward her.

[[Its your fault.]]

This is..the voice of the spirit?

[[You are just a false saint! If you are a saint then bring my child back to life! Why does he have to die!?]]

..Im sorry..

[[I dont need your apology! Why did you get caught!? Its all your fault! RETURN HIM TO ME! RETURN ME BACK TO MY HUMBLE LIFE! I DONT CARE ABOUT ANYTHING AS LONG AS HE LIVES!]]

Each word pierces Leticias heart.

It was easy for her to refute it.

It was easy for her to tell them that she is also a victim. After all, that is the truth. However, Leticia did not choose that.

She cant bring herself to refute them as she is the cause of their death.

Therefore, Leticia continued to accept all their neverending grudges.

[[YOU DIE TOO! I WONT ALLOW YOU ALONE TO SURVIVE!]]

That is right..if you want my life I will gladly offer it to you. However..before that, can you wait?

[[YOU ARE STILL HOLDING ON TO YOUR LIFE HUH! YOU HYPOCRITE!]]

Yes. I am a hypocrite. I am called the Saint simply because I can use the holy staff but I have never done anything like a saint at all. All I did was kill soldiers from another country for my homeland. I am no different from a murderer. Even soI dont want to cause any more dead than I already have. I will offer my life if you want me to but if I lose myself now, I am sure that many lives will be at risk. There will be another mother who loses their children again.

[[N, No! That is not good!]]

Yes. Thats why I must endure this. For that sake, can you help me? So that no one else has to suffer the same regret you have.please give me your strength.

Saying so, Leticia gently embraces the black smoke that floats in front of her.

Then, the black smoke shines white in an instant.

Please have a peaceful sleep after I get through this.I will head over to your side as well.

[[..No..if you can have a life then live.and give birth to a child. Connect more lives in my place.that will be your atonement.]]

That will be difficult

[[..so you are the Saint. You are very warm.]]

After saying that, the smoke scattered away. Leticia managed to purify it with a conversation and send it to the afterlife.

Leticia did not fight against the Dead Spirit. She simply comforts them.

The only thing she can do is to talk with them. However, to do that, she has to accept their hellish grudges.

An ordinary person might get their heart broken immediately. After all, this is all happening inside her mind. The plane where there is no concept of time.

Still, Leticia did not stop facing the Dead Spirits.

It is not good for Dead Spirits to wander close to Leticias noble heart.

However, this also chipped her heart away as well. Just because she can endure it doesnt mean that she is not hurt.

Resisting or fighting against it would be better as Leticias heart was gradually getting exhausted.

Nevertheless, Leticia did not give up no matter what kind of grudge she has to face or how nightmarish death she has to witness.

It was not the love she has for her homeland that supports her heart.

Leticia loved her country. She still loves it even now. She obtained the staff in the hope to save everyone who lives in her country.

But right now, that country is of no concern to her.

It is something else that supports Leticia today. She is not being supported by the love she has for most of her life but by the unwillingness to harm the Empire.

And at the bottom of her heart was the existence of the man who loved her.

She cant bear getting consumed by a Demon and laying waste to the homeland of the man she loves without replying to his proposal.

If she turns into a Demon vessel here, it will be a curse that binds him for his entire life. She doesnt want to give him such a thing.

Thats why Leticia continued to endure.

No matter how painful it was, the thought of his face gave her the strength to bear it.

She thought that seeing him cry would be more painful than this.

Then, after she sent the last Dead Spirit to the afterlife, Leticias consciousness returned to the prison.

She was sweating all over. Her throat is parched. Her head is aching.

In the midst of her hazy consciousness, she muttered one name.

..Leo..

He told her that he needed her not as a saint, but as herself. When was the first time she felt it?

Five years ago, when she first met him, she only saw him as a prince of another country.

But now it is different.

His smile, his words, the memory of the last few days she has with him strongly supported Leticia.

She can not allow everything to end here.

I have to protect this landI must protect Leo.

Her determination renewed, Leticia raised her gaze.

Babette and Auguste had just returned.

Hey? How is she doing?

My? All the Dead Spirit disappeared!?

What do you mean?

I cant believe thisthe freshly collected grudge filled spirits of the deadyou purified all of them..!?

I..will not give in

Hahaha!! This is good. You are above my imagination. Auguste, lets get serious. With this, we might be able to summon something of the Demon Lord class you know.

I know. Seriouslyit seems like it is time for me to unleash my prided Dead Spirits.

Saying so, Auguste takes out more bottles.

The sinister feeling she got from them is incomparable to before.

Alright, Im heading off to oversee the other unit. I will leave the rest to you alright?

Such a busy lass huh. Dont you want to witness the moment the Saint got dyed black?

I am interested. But even in the off chance, I dont want the Empire to get in our way. No matter how much they hurried, they will not be here for a while though. Still, I need to make preparations.

Saying so, Babette left the prison.

Auguste then joyfully deploys his Dead Spirits on Leticia.

Guh..! Kughh!!

The scene she witnessed before pale in comparison to what is being shown to her right now.

They are the Dead Spirits that were killed in a way that makes them leave behind their regret and hatred in this world as much as possible.

They are Augustes prided possessions. Such grudges can not be solved only through conversation.

Leticia could only endure it.

Then after who knows how long the time has passed.

Doesnt knowing where her self is anymore, Leticias heart has become so weak that she wants to cover her ears to escape the voices of the Dead Spirit.

Still, Leticia desperately kept her ego intact.

She simply thinks about Leo. That she is not alone. As Leticias mind is hanging on the last thread, Auguste tries to add even more Dead Spirits to her torture.

However, at that moment.

Loud noises can be heard in the prison.

Nn? What is happening?

It, Its a raid!

A raid!? Dont be stupid! We remodeled this hideout from an Empires village! Theres no way that they could find us so easily!

Auguste yells at his subordinate.

If they use a place that stands out as their base then the Empire will notice them.

Therefore, Auguste remodeled a village and used it as their hideout. The first Dead Spirit that was sent to corrupt Leticia was the inhabitant of that village.

They have a camouflage that no one should be able to see through.

Having confidence in that, Auguste denied the possibility that they got discovered.

However, at the next moment.

He had to admit the fact that they have been discovered after seeing the person who barged into the prison.

Prince Leonard!?

I will have you return Leticia to me!

Saying so, Leo cut down Augustes subordinate without any hesitation and headed for Auguste.