SS1: The Prime Minister’s Heir

I glanced at the tongues of flame eating my ancestral mansion. The blaze slowly crawled from one place to another. Fuming dark-hued smoke rose, coloring the bright day a shade darker. As the flares advanced, the crowd grew. But instead of stopping the fire, the swarm only watched the raging inferno with sighs.

No one helped to stop the fire—not even the servants whom my Uncle had hired. Or maybe among them was the one who started the flickering embers. The moment the princess regent announced the betrayal of my uncle. All the people who once boasted unwavering loyalty to us vanished.

“Loyal to Artus?” It made me smirked. “Fakes.”

I watched the fire grow brighter and brighter. Weirdly, I do not feel any regret at all. Even if it was all mine, I had no grief. There was nothing aside from relief. Flashing memories waltzed along with the flying flickers, playing with my serene thoughts, back to the first day I met my uncle.

Come to think of it. It felt like I was seeing the same sight ten years ago. After the murder of my parents, several nobles claiming to be my family came knocking. Some showed some papers showing my ‘supposed’ parent’s debt. Some took care of me while amassing the wealth of my clan for their own benefit. They threw me from one household after another, treating me as cabbage aside from the goods I owned.

Then, I met my uncle–the prime minister of the kingdom of Carmandy. He saved the eight-year-old me from the overreaching claws.

He single-handedly ruined all those opportunistic worms in a single swoop. A great number of so-called nobles went to the gallows. Soon, he reclaimed all my family's assets. Then he did something outlandish. He transferred everything into my name. And with the seal of the king, it became a decree that even he could not change. A strange decision if you asked me. He was stupid and righteous; I thought.

Unlike the nobles that I knew, he was not greedy for power. Incorruptible. However, as soon as I returned from the southern borders, I heard a lot of shocking news. The loyal man betrayed and killed his best friend, the king. Poisoned the royal family. Led by the corrupt nobles. Hired the infamous assassin’s guild. And planned the death of Victoria–that cute innocent girl.

Perhaps what I learned in the south was true, ‘power corrupts absolutely.’

I thought my uncle was an exception.

I stared at the burning mansion, a tired sneer drifting. I watched the towering flames with interest and uttered. “Good riddance.”

I felt pleased watching the legacy and treasures of my household swept into oblivion. After all, it brought nothing but tragedy to me. I had linked our affluence and gold to the death of my parents. The greedy bastards who tried to control me were after it. It was nothing but a curse.

Aside from that, well, I don’t really care about the bloody wealth of my family. They could rot for all that I care. Now, what should I do? I heard my uncle was still at large. I’ll look for him.

“Oh, I still have to get that thing.” I strode towards the flames, preparing to enter the mansion.

The crowd shouted, warning me of the flame, but I ignored them. I rushed inside, kicking the once-revered door. A light blue aura covered my entire body, shaking away the hands of fiery hands approaching me.

I ran past the living room, the kitchen, the dining room, rushing upwards the stairs, and eventually arriving at my father’s room. I wanted to enter without using the barbaric way. Unfortunately, I got no keys in me. I pulled out my sword, letting the blue aura enveloped the whole steel. I lowered my knees, taking a stance to build my strength before slashing ahead. After all, the master’s room had crazy magical security. Magic had enchanted the door with a lot of protection spells. Just looking at it proves my point as it remained unscathed despite the smothering blaze.

Here goes nothing.

I took a deep breath, roaring as I swung the sword with all my might. The blue aura clashed against the thin flickering shield, shaking it to the core. Yet, it did not shatter. There were no signs of breaking. If one is not enough, how about two? I gave it another slash but this time I sensed a little cracked appearing, making me grin. My training in the southern borders did wonders - slashing this door was far easier than cutting some war orc’s shamanic armors.

I gathered the aura to the tip of my sword, lunging straight to the crack. The plan was simple. Make the small crack and then strike it again to make it a bigger crack. It was on the slow side, but it's nothing but effective. This was one of the effective but simple arts of the hard-headed brutes in the southern bastion. No need for thinking. If you see an opening, ripped it wide-open! Despite its crude nature, it works most of the time.

Blue sparks waltzed, drifting into the oozing smoke. The steel sword clashed against the magically shielded door. Slowly but surely, the barrier cracked, shuddering before it fell like porous glasses. I immediately kicked the door open, hoping to get the only heirloom my parents had left me.

The room remained the same; the flames had not touched one bit of the room. It stayed just as it was before I left for the south. Unchanging even after I destroyed the door. I strode inside… and froze.

“Oh, who do we have here?” A familiar man whom everyone had thought was already dead sat before the couch, gazing at me. Then he smiled. “Welcome.”

Did I whiff something dangerous? The black smoke? I rubbed my eyes, wearing the blue aura again, wondering if someone had cast illusion magic. Yet, the man remained there, sitting in peace. He ignored the burning flames outside the door, chortling.

So I asked. “Is this hell?”

“Watch your mouth, brat. Anyway, you’ve grown big,” frowned the man. He was still a hard person to talk to. Yes, just like when my uncle introduced me to the man when I was still young.

“K-king Elric?” I trembled.

Soon, another voice echoed, “Elric, I already found the book. You want to search for Victoria, huh? What about your wife? She’ll rip you to shreds once she knows that you’re planning something behind her back again.”

“Nah, if I don’t go, she’ll be the one going for sure.”

“And the princess rege…”

The bulky monocled man stopped his nagging, turning towards the visitor, “Zoldis?”

“Uncle?”