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The Kingdom of Aetheral, a kingdom who forbids the use of magic.
They have a god that they believed in, and they believed that magic and its creatures were nothing but a devil's work.
I am cursed, a hundred years ago. Because I desired something I shouldn't desire.
"A mere human cannot be a God without power..." The god's words pierced into me that moment.
A light that blinded us all came, the prophet they're talking about.
"I desire to be immortal, a human that cannot die and will live eternity..." And shall they give to me.
I am now nothing but a monster in human form, I shouldn't have wished that, I should have saved her instead.
Maybe the people were right, magic is nothing but a devil's work. It's forbidden, and should not be seen by mortals so they wouldn't be driven by greed.
"Your majesty, my brother..." It's been so long since someone called me that.
I remember it like it was yesterday, a hundred years ago, my brother already had a grandson to take the next crown.
...
"Brother! Brother!" my little brother happily called out for me as I was laying down under an oak tree that was planted by our grandfather when he was reigning.
I remember how the warm wind always hit my skin tenderly, I was resting in the sea of grass after a brutal sword training. Nothing can beat the peaceful life I have before.
"Brother! Don't sleep yet!" My little brother, Lucian, suddenly jumped on my belly to keep me awake. I groan in pain that I felt and I turn to the side just jokingly ignoring him. I can feel him pouting in response, I let out a little chuckle.
"Stop ignoring me!" he punched my arm, it was weak and soft. Now I remember how much I cherish my little brother. If only I could do more when I lost him.
Our mothers are different, the first Queen, my mother died due to her terminal illness. She used to be the Duke's precious daughter, but when the King chose to wed her, she had no choice not to refuse even though she had a terminal illness.
According to her diary, life in the castle is not like what they describe in the fairytale books. Being wed to a masked king is not her dream at all. She spent her last days in the castle suffering in carrying me in her womb. She has no choice but to conceive me just to survive in the castle.
My mother has a pride she took after her father. She would rather die bringing the next ruler in this world than getting executed just because she refuses to do her duty. She was indeed an admirable queen of the kingdom.
My little brother's mother, the first and only concubine the King kept, was kind and soft. They said that unlike the former queen, she did not have any pride. Raised as a black sheep of a small family of the count, she was easy to submit. She was the most beautiful woman in her generation and that's the reason the King decided to wed her too. What a disgusting man, I can imagine how much my mother suffered to see her husband wed to another.
The concubine refuses at first but, due to her fear of getting abandoned in the Barrel Zone, it was a threat from her father, she eventually submits and wed to a King that is almost old enough to be her father.
They said that the relationship between my mother and her were bitter, but when I read my mother's diary, it was rather a beautiful friendship between them. She tried to protect my mother by being the bad concubine and tormenting my mother in the face of the people.
It was a disgusting little play that the royals should play in order to keep their people entertained. Are we a ruler? or a clown, an actor who only acts in what the people want. If only I can change that fact and raise my pride. I was greedy for power, and it destroys me.
Revenge? No, I just want to show to the people that even gods cannot make me kneel. But it was a mistake that I made, yet I did not regret it.
"Brother! Wake up!" My little brother, Lucian, keeps shaking me while I hold my laughter.
"Hmph! You're so mean!" he pouts again, I looked up at him as he crossed his little frail arms and looked away from me.
"I'm awake..." I chuckled and raised myself up. This is my precious little brother, just like her mother, he was easily frightened and soft, too soft.
The council of the kingdom was pushing him to be the crown prince not because his mother had influence but in order to control the royalty easily. The King, our father, however thinks that's bullshit, he was only a child who knew nothing but to obey.
At the end, he put me on the throne as the crown prince.
"I have a question..."Lucian said to me when he took the seat beside me.
I should have stopped him because sitting on the ground will only dirty his expensive clothes.
"I visited the town yesterday with mother..." he continued, "I already know that because I trail them behind secretly.
"I saw a performer, she was great, but the knights immediately chased her away...why?" he didn't know that magic is forbidden in the kingdom, yet I don't know the reason for it. But I kept a secret, I can wield not only a sword but a magic called aura.
"They probably chased her away because she came from the Barrel Zone..." I make an excuse, just mentioning magic in this kingdom was a taboo. People believe that it was a work of a devil that will soon destroy the kingdom.
"Why did the people in the Barrel Zone hate so much?" he sadly asked me, and I don't know either, but I cannot just say that, I want him to think that I know everything so he will be comfortable to lean on me. It's just me and him.
"It's because they were dirty, they stole things and were nothing but greedy pigs..." That's right, they were greedy pigs thinking they can climb the stairs and stand equally with royals like us. I hated them to death, because I believed that I'm becoming like one of them.
"They haven't done anything wrong, brother....They just want to live..." he continued to defend them. That's right, I hated the fact that only class status is the one thing that separates us.
I've seen worse while standing beside the King. Nobles, slaves, peasants, they all the same. They were driven by greed, just like me. I want the attention to rise, to see them all behind me, to have everything that mother couldn't take when she was alive. That's right, I was a mere mortal who desired to be greater than god.
...
I still remember how Lucian looked at me that day.
Unlike me, he was innocent, he only knows that I was a perfect big brother he can look up to. And I want to keep it that way.
As years passed, I became stronger and stronger. I learned how to control 'aura' in my mother's diary. I trained my body to have a lot of stamina and to handle 'aura' in my body.
"Aura is not something to be underestimated, it was a manifestation of magic often used by the swordmasters in the west" my mother stated in her diary.
I sometimes wondered why this kingdom forbids magic even though it can help the military power. If a lot of knights have 'aura' like me, we could just handle everything easily and invade the south. That's what I thought, not until the King summoned me in his chamber one night.
"My dearest son..." he called out to me while he was laying in the bed. I never once question my father why he's like this. He was a healthy King when the sun was out and yet the moment the clock hits midnight, he turned into a frail old man. I can imagine how much my mother suffered dealing with this kind of monster. The same monster that has blood flowing in my body.
I looked down at him, it was the first time I saw my father seem vulnerable. I guess he was aging, so am I. His healthy glowy skin is now wrinkled, the smile that shines brighter than the sun, the people adored is now nothing but a creepy old dirty geezer's smile. Is this really my father?
That's when all the blood in my body drained. The moment I saw him come out from the shadow, from behind the curtains in the window. It's impossible, I always use my 'aura' every time I enter any room so I can sense any unwanted guest. But how can I not detect him? Perhaps he knows how to use 'aura' too.
"My dearest son..." he repeated what my father just said. The King I'm looking for is now standing looking healthy near the balcony windows. He looks like the King laying down in the bed near me, but younger.