Rise of the Fallen Kingdom’s Third Prince

“You…?”

Cedric felt fear.

For him, the unknown did not exist.

The fact that humans fear the dark.

The fact that humans shrink away from beasts.

Cedric was never shaken in any situation because he understood the reasons for it.

To him, emotions were nothing more than accessories under the control of reason.

Therefore, he had never felt true fear toward anyone.

But now, for the first time, Cedric feared another being.

He did not understand it.

He could not grasp exactly what Cory, who stood before him, was.

The perfect pattern he had built was beginning to crumble.

Cedric asked in a dazed voice.

“Why…?”

Cory was supposed to take his hand. That was what he was meant to do.

Betray Yuri in hopes of a new world and burn with hatred toward humans—that was Cory’s role, that little monster.

If not.

If not, then—

“Then what was it that I saw that day?”

Cedric remembered that moment with absolute clarity.

Laurent, corrupted by black magic, had a heart as scarred as if it had been burned, deformed and bristling with thorns toward anyone.

Every human who saw his face despised Laurent, and he, in turn, despised all humans.

It was so easy to turn a radiant young man into a repulsive monster.

And yet, there was one who did not turn away.

Cory.

That little half-orc clung to Laurent with stubborn tenacity. Intrigued, Cedric followed him in disguise.

The life of an ugly, small half-orc was miserable. Even if he could now use magic, humans never acknowledged him, and Cory always lived covered in filth.

All because of his repulsive face.

Ridiculous.

Cedric once again despised humans, who, driven by instincts engraved in their genes, abandoned even the moral concepts they themselves had created.

If he had been Cory, he would have killed them all with magic already.

But Cory did not erupt in anger.

It was then that his interest began.

What was that half-orc thinking? He wanted to know more, dig deeper.

So he began to look into his emotions. He could not see the deepest parts, but it was not difficult to read the emotions floating on the surface.

Normal.

So normal that he could not understand why he endured so much.

He even had the common desire to become someone others feared.

And then that day came.

Laurent, unconscious from an injury, lay in bed. Cory watched him silently.

That ugly being had a face so hard to read that he could not even tell what expression he wore.

Why did he look at him like that, doing nothing? Could it be pity?

While watching him, Cedric once again looked into Cory with black magic.

And then—

He felt astonishment.

There was pure joy there, clear and untainted, like nothing he had ever seen before.

He had never witnessed an emotion of such purity. Cedric even rose from his seat, mouth open, and let out an exclamation.

Yes. This was it.

This was humanity. This was why he despised humans.

Because, upon seeing someone they loved fall into disgrace and be scorned, a human could feel such pure happiness.

Cory.

Ugly, hunched, limping.

That little monster who kept crawling after the light called Yuri Briol, only to end up lowering his head upon realizing his reality.

His discovery gave Cedric a joy different from what Yuri brought him.

Cory became the symbol that reminded him both of the inefficiency of the old world and the low nature of humanity.

That was why he took him in.

Just as he had calculated, Cory obeyed, with his eyes set on a new world where he would not be despised.

That was supposed to be all.

Then why?

Why was this guy trying to stop him now?

“Why…?”

As he looked at Cory, who was staring up at him, Cedric felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

A curious tremor in the muscles of his face.

The same expression he had when looking at Laurent.

Then could it be that now he was feeling that same pure emotion from that moment?

What the hell was this guy? Or was his mind so twisted that it had been completely damaged?

“I don’t know, Cory. What exactly are you?”

For the first time, Cedric admitted his ignorance.

[I…]

Cedric felt fear again. He could not imagine what words would come from Cory’s mouth.

But he could not move. Like a condemned man awaiting his sentence.

Cedric could only watch as Cory’s mouth opened.

***

Cory remembered the moment he met Cedric.

“Doesn’t it seem strange to you? That you, being able to use Dragon Tongue, live in this reality where those pathetic humans, who can do nothing but plow fields and hunt rabbits, despise you.”

“I…”

“I’m going to remake this inefficient and unjust world.”

“That’s impossible.”

“No, it’s possible.”

Then Cedric stared at him intently.

In his pupils, Cory saw something horrible. He was so shocked he even forgot to breathe.

The darkness and resentment dwelling there were deep enough to devour the entire world.

That was why Cory made a decision. He would follow Cedric.

For Yuri, he would deceive him.

There was no other way to stop that man. Cedric literally wanted to destroy the world.

He would probably be misunderstood.

Maybe they would cut off his head without giving him a chance to explain.

Maybe he would forever be remembered in history as a traitor who betrayed a favor received.

He was afraid.

But there was no other choice.

Cory pretended to help Cedric while searching for what he could do. And that was how he arrived in Zveta and met Jane.

“You can’t hide what you are. I thought that, being taken in by His Highness, you might have learned at least a little humanity, but in the end, you’re no different from those filthy, vulgar orcs. Did you betray your own and now crawl before the Empire? Damned half-orc…”

Insults like that did not affect him.

He heard worse things every day. The important thing was that, to deceive Cedric, he had to mistreat her.

“I don’t know how you got to the Empire, but… how insolent.”

Since he had always been somewhat clumsy, no one suspected his poor performance.

He used an incomplete Voice Authority of Power to knock Jane unconscious, keeping her alive.

He took her, along with many other prisoners, under the pretext of using them as test subjects.

During that process, Cory understood what he had to do.

Yes, he truly experimented with the Voice of Power, but it was not a power to harm people. He decided to use his ability to hinder Cedric.

“Jane, I might fail. But I will do the best I can.”

The ritual to sacrifice people and offer them to a god from another world was so evil and powerful that interrupting it was no easy task.

Cory spent entire nights practicing the Voice of Power.

And he finally succeeded.

He engraved his Voice of Power on the prisoners’ foreheads, so that neither black magic nor beings from another world would dare touch them.

He believed he finally understood the meaning of the Voice that Cruar had taught him.

Now everything depended on Yuri Briol. And he exceeded Cory’s expectations.

The Anti-Imperial Alliance was formed, and after many ups and downs they reached Zveta.

There, Cory’s plan bore fruit.

Cedric believed he had succeeded, but the god from another world did not receive the compensation that had been promised, and so it could not act with full force, retreating to the beyond.

And now.

Cedric, defeated by Yuri, wanted to destroy everything. And Cory stood alone before him.

Cedric shook his head.

“Did you stop the ritual using Dragon Tongue? Lies. Impossible. You can’t stop me with that. Orders are always…”

[Thanks to you.]

“Me?”

[Thanks to you, I understood.]

Cory placed a hand on his chest. He knew himself well.

He was ugly and unpleasant, with a weak body, a crooked spine that kept him from walking normally.

Although he possessed a dragon’s vocal organ, it was so weak that he could not use it freely like Cruar.

That he could stop Cedric was impossible.

But—

“Cory. Did you feel joy seeing Laurent become something so horrible? Isn’t that right?”

Yes, that was true. It was an honest answer, born from the depths of his being, without a single lie.

However, Cedric was also wrong. Cedric said he felt satisfaction seeing Laurent fall into disgrace.

No, that wasn’t it.

Cory shook his head. He certainly felt joy, but the reason was different.

Upon seeing Laurent, who was so twisted and spat venomous words, the first thing he felt.

Upon seeing the young man who had always shone and been admired by all turn into a monster, the true feeling that arose within him—

If someone had asked him at that moment. If Cedric had asked him.

Cory would have answered without the slightest doubt.

Appreciation.

I feel appreciation for you.

I, Cory, appreciate you.

Even if your appearance becomes unpleasant. Even if you spit venomous words and raise your thorns.

I care for your well-being, I wish you peace, and, in the end, I wish you happiness.

“That’s absurd. You’re lying, Cory. Shut your mouth. Don’t say any more. You…”

The world offered him bouquets of flowers when he was handsome, but contempt, ridicule, and spit when he became ugly.

But my feelings of appreciation have not changed. Whether beautiful or ugly, I still appreciate you just as I did at the start.

And, in the moment I realized that, I understood that I was already human.

“Nonsense… it’s all nonsense…”

I wanted to be human.

Yuri Briol.

The first person who gave me light, like a sun. There was a time when he asked me what my dream was.

I answered him.

“I want to be recognized by people, to live and interact with them.”

That was my dream.

Even if they despised and bullied me, I still wanted to be human. Because, having been born as an ugly and unpleasant half-orc, I understood better than anyone how bright it was to be human.

I wanted to live among them, laugh and talk together, be recognized as one of them.

But now no longer.

I no longer need recognition.

Laurent changed.

His face became horrible, his mouth spoke cruel words. Even so, the appreciation I feel for him did not change.

That’s why, at that moment, I realized that I was truly human.

I feel sorry for Laurent, but that filled me with joy.

I am human.

More than all those who spit on and despise Laurent and me. Much more.

Inside, I was already human.

And so, I experienced a happiness born from the depths of my being.

“Shut your damn mouth! That’s impossible. Cory, don’t say any more. Just come with me to a new world and…”

What is it? What made me feel appreciation even seeing Laurent become something so horrible?

What makes a human being human.

Where does this feeling come from? Being as small, ugly, and lacking as I am, I could never know.

I can only revere it and adore it.

The heart.

That amazing moment I can feel vividly.

Can there be a greater miracle?

Once, Lady Cruar told me that when I understood why language becomes magic, I would be able to freely use the dragon’s vocal organ.

Yes.

She was right.

At that moment I did not understand it, but now I do.

We were born as different beings. Since we cannot fully connect from heart to heart, we desperately try to reach the other through language.

That’s right. I will never be able to complete killing intent. The will to kill is something I can’t comprehend.

The only thing I can do is—

To share the most amazing thing I know, put all my sincerity into my words.

Come, Cedric.

Listen.

This is the one and only true language of power I possess.

“No… I won’t listen. Cory, from the start to the end you’ve only spoken lies and nonsense. Don’t do it. I will never…”

Language of Power.

Affection.