I Obtained the Final Boss' Power

Chapter 66 : Her Highness the Princess (2)

Her Highness the Princess (2)

Thanks to Louis and Klein's actions, the demonkin who had infiltrated the imperial palace were subdued.

The knights who rushed belatedly to the garden surrounded the two, but cleared up the misunderstanding when they realized the corpses were demonkin.

The demonkin, realizing their disadvantage, surrendered without resistance.

The knights who took them captive began to interrogate them.

"How did you manage to transform into squad leader Kellemore?"

"......."

"Answer me!"

The demonkin who had disguised himself as Kellemore was unilaterally beaten by the knights.

Since he wouldn't open his mouth easily, the beating intensified.

Meanwhile, other knights ran up to Louis and Klein to thank them.

"I am Asrai, second squad leader of the Imperial Palace Guard. I sincerely thank you for discovering them."

The knight who introduced himself as Asrai bowed his head to them with genuine gratitude.

It was because they had uncovered spies within the palace that even they, as palace guards, had failed to notice.

"I don't know how I can ever repay you."

"......."

"Um... Excuse me, but why are you staring at me like that?"

Louis leaned in and stared intently at Asrai.

As Asrai began to feel uncomfortable under the suspicious gaze, it happened.

"Is this person also a demonkin?"

"No. He's human."

Louis responded to Klein's question, relief visible on his face.

It was only after receiving an explanation that Asrai understood what that meant.

"So, you can determine who the spies are, is that right?"

"Strictly speaking, only this guy here can do it."

Klein emphasized that it was Louis's unique ability.

Somehow, these two had spotted the demonkin hidden within the imperial palace.

Since no one else had noticed them, Asrai felt ashamed as a knight.

"In any case, I feel inadequate. To be getting help from outsiders like you."

"There's nothing to be done. It's impossible for anyone in the palace to see through their disguises right now."

It was an ability that achieved perfect transformation at the cost of losing combat strength.

There was a weakness in that they became weaker than ordinary people, but to any detection, they would only register as the one they were disguised as.

Of course, such a perfect disguise required another price.

The original person being copied had to be absorbed.

"The real people they transformed into are probably dead. The disguise is achieved at the cost of devouring the target."

"Th-then, does that mean Senior Kellemore is...!"

With bloodshot eyes, Asrai turned to the demonkin.

Burning with anger, he drew his sword and cut off the heads of several demonkin under interrogation.

But it wasn't a meaningless action. That display instilled fear in the remaining demonkin.

"Spit out your purpose at once. If you don't, you'll lose your heads just the same."

Under Asrai's murderous aura, the demonkin felt their breaths constrict.

Louis spoke to him, who was pressing them on from all sides.

"There are likely more than just these. I can sense a strong scent of the demonkin throughout the palace."

While interrogation was important, if Louis was right, there was no time to focus all attention on these ones.

At his words, Asrai let out a big, self-deprecating sigh.

"I keep making a fool of myself."

"To be honest, it's not unexpected. Think about how His Majesty was before the Crown Prince's deposition."

After the Crown Prince, desperate for magic power, made a pact with the Great Devil, everything in the palace must have changed.

With the demon's power, the Crown Prince dominated His Majesty's mind.

Practically, after that day, the emperor was no longer the ruler of the empire.

It was the Crown Prince, controlling him like a puppet, who became the real leader.

Furthermore, any group closely affiliated with that Crown Prince was the same.

The dark mages and demonkin were included in this.

Ultimately, those who ruled the empire were followers of the demon.

With that taken into account, it made sense why demonkin had free rein in the palace for so long.

"Now that His Majesty has regained his senses, demonkin can't come and go as easily as before. That's why abilities like these disguises became necessary."

"Then the group called 'Saber' that protects the royal family, too..."

They're all the same faction.

Just look at Garce, whom they killed that time, as proof.

"I can't even imagine what kind of things the Crown Prince did here after making a pact with a demon."

As Klein said, the mess made by the Crown Prince likely went far beyond just one or two things.

To clean it up, the first thing His Majesty did upon recovering his mind was to depose the Crown Prince.

Leaving for the Holy Nation now was also part of this cleanup.

"What suffering, all because of one wayward child."

"What about his other child?"

"You mean Princess Estelle?"

His Majesty had another child.

The second Princess, Estelle. Fortunately, unlike her brother, she was not involved with demons.

However, regardless of her will, it's highly likely she was forced.

How many stood by her side while the Crown Prince ruled the palace?

"Not to mention her dear brother, her father was controlled by him, and the vassals in the palace followed her father's orders..."

Klein, tallying up the process, clicked his tongue.

For Princess Estelle, the palace might not have been a home but a living hell.

To this, Asrai added a comment.

"In fact, after regaining his senses, his Majesty apologized deeply to Her Highness. But Her Highness apparently did not trust him and instead became even more fearful of him."

If she was so afraid of her own father, that says it all.

No one would have listened to her, no matter what she said.

Even if she had the 'Mind's Eye'.

"Now that it's come to this, let me help with the aftermath. I should be able to find hidden demonkin or traces related to them."

"Truly? Thank you so much!"

As Asrai expressed heartfelt thanks, he whispered into Louis's ear.

"You're not just doing this out of the goodness of your heart, right?"

Louis wasn't the type to take action out of pure altruism.

Klein knew full well that Louis usually acted for his own benefit.

"If we make them indebted like this, they won't dare mess with us."

"Heh. True enough."

Klein snickered in agreement.

They had not only subjugated the Great Devil and returned the Emperor to his senses, but were also helping clean up the palace.

With a favor this big, it would be hard to make an enemy of Louis, even if he were the Chaos Dragon.

"It will take a bit of time, though."

"Don't worry. They have that reliable woman with them."

If the squad members with Silia were there, there was nothing to worry about.

And so, the two decided to stay at the palace until late into the night.

"But will we be able to meet Her Highness the Princess here?"

That thought suddenly crossed Louis's mind.

****

"What do you mean, she's not here?"

A group of demonkin was gathered in a subterranean cavern hidden in the mountains on the outskirts of the capital.

Their leader, Lapleon, questioned Estelle, dissatisfied with her answer.

"It's true! There was no Hero among them."

"Haa..."

He let out a sigh, covering the tattooed part of his face with a hand.

No Hero among them? Lapleon found it hard to accept Estelle's answer.

"Was it the same with their assigned officer?"

"Yes..."

Estelle had used the Mind's Eye to examine the soldiers of the 7th Legion who had recently arrived at the capital.

Both the officer and squad members—none were the Hero of prophecy.

Except...

"So, what did you find?"

"......"

That was difficult to answer.

Except for the squad leader, Silia, the rest had a dark aura.

The black-haired girl she met last was especially shocking.

"Well... it's..."

"Hahaha, is that so?"

Lapleon withdrew his hand from his face with a smirk.

The eye with the tattoo began to glow red.

"Ugh...!"

"I told you not to lie, didn't I?"

Triggered by his gaze, a curse activated, and Estelle coughed blood.

Her whole body felt as if her blood was boiling and her organs were burning, sending her screaming in agony.

"No Heroes? Then who subjugated the Great Devil? Outside of them, there's no one suspicious enough to be a candidate."

Estelle felt both pain and resentment.

In fact, unfair circumstances had plagued her for a long time.

After discovering her brother was without magic power, Estelle had been secretly tormented by him.

He had nothing, so why was she the only one with talent?

The Crown Prince never stopped denouncing his sister in that way.

Hearing such things from one's family was a deep wound for an immature girl.

Then one day, her brother suddenly gained magic power.

At the same time, their father's condition changed.

He listened only to her brother, pretending not to hear her at all.

It was because he was brainwashed by demonic power, but Estelle had no way of knowing this.

To her, her father only seemed like a bad parent who doted on her brother.

She hated both her brother and her father.

She also hated everyone in the palace who didn't take her side.

In the end, she came to hate everyone. She could see the true nature of people in their hearts.

Even if she tried to reveal her brother's nature, everyone dismissed her as foolish.

'Unfair...'

The people who once praised Estelle were gone.

Even those who claimed her Mind's Eye was a mark of the chosen were no exception.

Not knowing her brother had manipulated things, Estelle decided:

They're all liars.

I can't trust anyone.

No matter what, I won't trust anyone from the palace again.

As a result, even after her father regained his senses, Estelle remained distrustful.

She thought it was all an act.

She figured any apology was just hypocrisy.

Of course, it was inevitable.

The father who always ignored and looked down on her was now an object of fear.

Ultimately, Estelle became a recluse, shut away in her room.

Even after her brother, the root of her misery, disappeared, she kept her distance from the world.

Then, when her father left for the Holy Nation, she finally realized that she was under some sort of curse.

The curse gave Estelle periodic pain.

Sometimes, her body would act on its own, making her do things she normally wouldn't.

But through the Mind's Eye, she was able to discover the source of the curse.

Estelle immediately gathered her guards and stormed the demons' lair.

Since only she knew the exact location, she had to join the operation herself.

Every time she spoke the word 'curse', unbearable pain assaulted her, so she had trouble explaining to the knights.

But they followed her orders without question.

For someone who had only experienced suspicion, to be trusted again felt almost like hope.

Yet, the instant they arrived at the lair, the knights were annihilated.

All those who might have rebuilt her trust were slain on the spot by the overwhelming power of the waiting demonkin.

[Kukuku... We've been waiting for you, Your Highness.]

It was all part of the demonkin's plan.

They had deliberately triggered the curse to give away their location, luring Estelle and her soldiers.

In the end, the slaughtered soldiers provided material for the demonkin's disguises.

It was a nightmare.

She prayed that all of this was just a bad dream.

"Your Highness. Is your life not precious to you?"

Lapleon's curse made Estelle drift in and out of consciousness.

She was a slave now, not the Princess of the Empire.

The demonkin took pleasure in her misery.

"If Her Highness keeps up this attitude, there's nothing else we can do."

Were they about to kill her now?

At the height of Estelle's fear, the demonkin threw something before her eyes.

"P-Pri...ncess..."

It was one of the knights she had brought with her.

He had survived by some stroke of luck, but his whole body was soaked in blood.

"If you can't do the job properly, your retainer will pay the price instead."

With a knife held to the knight's throat, Estelle's pupils shook violently.

With her head bowed, she cried out.

"Don't! I promise I'll do better this time, just once more...!"

"That's exactly why we're doing this."

All her life, she had known only suspicion and distrust, but through this ordeal she was certain of one thing:

It's wrong for an innocent person to die because of her.

Estelle screamed for them to stop, but the demonkin's blade had already come down on the soldier's neck.

Shhk!-

A chilling sound of flesh being sliced filled the air.

Estelle's eyes went wide with shock.

"Kyaaaah!!"

What was severed wasn't the soldier's neck, but the demonkin's hand.

Standing before Estelle, sword in hand, was a young girl.

Turning her head, the girl asked Estelle:

"What's going on here?"

Estelle was left speechless when she saw Rio again.