Arthur (POV)
I was born mere moments apart from Charlotte, my stepsister, and from the very start, we were inseparable. Together, we were raised within the gilded walls of the palace, our lives meticulously shaped by the weight of royal expectations. Our education was the finest, our training the most rigorous, our futures already written in the cold ink of duty. And yet, in all that we shared, I excelled. I was the one who surpassed every task set before us—be it in studies, combat, or royal protocol. The praise from tutors, from nobles, came pouring in, but there was one voice that always remained eerily silent: my father's. The Emperor.
He never spared me a glance of affection. His gaze, always soft with approval, was reserved entirely for Charlotte, who, despite her weaknesses, managed to capture his heart. I, in contrast, felt like a ghost in my own home—an unremarkable shadow drifting unnoticed in the grand halls of power. If it weren't for the pressure of the court, I was certain he would have crowned her his heir without hesitation. Even when I earned the title of top student at the Academy, ranking above everyone else, my achievements were met with nothing but indifference from him. To him, I wasn't even part of the family. I didn't belong.
He didn't bother to seek a fiancée for me, either. I stopped caring about his indifference long ago. I had grown used to the silence between us, to the absence of his attention. So, I ignored him. I stopped acknowledging his calls, stopped greeting him when I crossed his path. Why should I? That old bastard had never even bothered to look me in the eyes. Now, after all these years, he wanted to talk? He could go to hell.
At the Academy, life continued on, smooth and uneventful, or so I thought. Charlotte's pathetic fiancé, Noah, was here too. But he wasn't the same lovesick fool I once knew. There was a new fire in his eyes now, a quiet confidence that radiated from him. He walked through the halls like a man who no longer cared if the world crumbled around him, as if nothing and no one could touch him anymore.
For the first time, I saw him stand up to Charlotte, and a strange satisfaction swelled in my chest. It was something I couldn't fully explain. There was something oddly gratifying about seeing her frustration, her fury. I smirked to myself. This bitch has toyed with his feelings long enough. It's time she gets what's coming to her.
Noah, once the innocent and naive boy I had watched from the shadows, had finally transformed into someone unrecognizable. A man. A man who no longer bent to Charlotte's whims. And, of course, he wasn't alone. He had a beautiful woman by his side, a friend, who only seemed to further infuriate Charlotte. It was perfect.
"Hahaha. Is this karma, Charlotte? It's beautiful," I thought, savoring the scene. For the first time, I felt the frustration I had suppressed for so long melt away with each of her scowls. I no longer cared about my bastard father's expectations. I was free from his cold indifference, free from the weight of a future that would never be mine.
But then… everything changed.
Why is he this strong?
The unease inside me grew. I had known Noah had changed, but how could he stand toe-to-toe with me now? The realization hit me like a wave of icy water when I saw him fight Charlotte. I watched as his blade cleaved through her, splitting her body vertically. His eyes—cold, calculating, devoid of warmth or mercy—locked onto her with a chilling hatred that sent a shiver up my spine.
In that moment, I understood. Noah cannot be allowed to exist.
He had become a threat. And I had to eliminate him before he could challenge me further.
From that day forward, I trained with an obsession, pushing my body past its limits, until I collapsed from exhaustion, only to rise again. I grew stronger, but deep down, I knew it wasn't enough.
Power.
The word echoed in my mind, a siren call I could not ignore. I need more strength. I need to kill him before he becomes a threat to me.
Days passed, and with each passing hour, my hunger for power only deepened. I trained in secret, my mind clouded with thoughts of vengeance. Little did I know, I was being watched.
"Do you seek power, human?"
The voice slithered into my mind, dark and seductive, like a whisper from the abyss.
"I—"
Before I could respond, an excruciating pain ripped through me, coursing through every inch of my body. I screamed, the agony unbearable, as if my very soul were being torn asunder.
The laughter that followed was like a thousand voices, a cacophony of madness that echoed in my skull, making my blood run cold.
"Kekekekekek! Now it'll be fun."
The sound of that laughter reverberated through me, and I realized, with growing dread, that I had already made my choice. The darkness had found me.