CH 196

“So, that’s Empress Cecile. She certainly lives up to the rumors. Is she masking herself using a ring? Ugh, her image keeps blurring. Anyway, all I need to do is whisk that empress away,” Ruin, the crown prince of the Hyun continent, smirked with a look of satisfaction.

When the people known as sages had first approached him with their request, Ruin had bluntly responded, “Are you people really telling the crown prince to cross the seas right now and kidnap the empress of another country?”

Ruin had honestly doubted his ears at first. In the first place, he disliked the sages. This occupational group, referred to as priests in the continent across the sea, were prone to bothersome nagging. He would’ve sent the sages away, had it not been for the appearance of the Taoists, who were the equivalent of the mages of this continent. The sages and Taoists of the Hyun continent were not on good terms, yet they came together, bowing their heads to beseech the crown prince to accept the request.

“Let’s first put aside whether it’s right to openly discuss a kidnapping. Explain the purpose of your request.” Ruin couldn’t fathom what spurred this abrupt request. It would’ve been understandable if they’d asked him to capture some phantom beast from another continent, but to bring over a woman?

“If our thoughts are correct, the Empress Cecile is the ‘Ender’ of legend.”

“What did you say? The Ender?” Ruin immediately straightened up from his leaning posture, and growled like a beast. “I trust that you’re not speaking lightly?”

Ruin grabbed the sword next to him, and it began to emit a humming sound as if it was alive. The sword didn’t speak in human words, but the sages and Taoists realized that the sword was asking, “Master, are they today’s meal?”

“O-of course, we of all people deeply know the weight that name holds!” the sages and Taoists had stammered, quaking in fear.

Ruin released the sword at seeing them blanch from the fear, though the sword continued to hum, as if asking to be fed. “If what you speak of is true, then I’ll go. I doubt any of you lot will be able to face off against Emperor Estian.”

The expressions of the sages and Taoists twisted, but they swiftly bowed to hide the distaste in their expressions. After all, the crown prince wasn’t wrong.

“I didn’t know I’d end up fighting the emperor in this manner,” Ruin muttered, cupping his chin.

Who deserved the title of ‘strongest’ was a favorite topic discussed among the people, and there were always two names mentioned when this subject came up: Emperor Estian and Crown Prince Ruin. Since the two resided in continents separated by the sea, they were not in a position to cross over freely and there was no reason for the two to cross swords. That’s why the people of each continent could only insist the representative figure of their respective continents was the stronger of the two men. However, it seemed that the time had come to satiate the curiosity of the masses.

Ruin gazed at a smiling Estian and sighed. That monstrous emperor was smiling. What made him so happy? It was the sight of the empress eating the apple. And now he had to steal the empress from that emperor.

“Looks like this won’t be easy, but… I think it might be worth it.” Looking at Cecile again, Ruin muttered with a breezy grin, “The Ender… I was a little worried about what I’d do if I took her to Hyun continent only to discover she isn’t the Ender, but… she can just marry me then.”