Chapter 200: The Princess Sisters

"Eh, I just heard it from hearsay, didn't take it seriously, didn't take it seriously."

Li En spent a great deal of effort finally clarifying things to Knight Karn.

He merely happened to hear it, and had no other intentions.

"There is no second princess! The prophecy is nothing but the babble of frauds! Those damned priests, those damned scoundrels!"

Seeing the furious old knight Karn, Li En realized he had probably stepped on a landmine.

He was actually quite wronged—second princess, royal bastard, weren't those things you yourself brought up?

Well, now there's also prophecy and priests.

"Sigle? Hmm, that sounds familiar—Giant Sage Sigle, the seer who predicted the coming of the Magic Tide."

Seeing that old knight Karn clearly didn't want to talk, Li En guessed further questioning would get no response.

He politely took his leave and returned to his small group.

Looking back, he saw Karn still scolding someone—likely instructing young knights not to spread or believe rumors, threatening to break the legs of anyone who let rumors leak from here.

But when the princess herself walked over, she fell silent all at once.

【Learned partial truth of the past event.】

The response from the Heroic Soul Catalog and Heroic Soul Cards indicated that the prophecy dismissed as rumor seemed to be the key to everything.

"Snake?"

But this time, Li En received no reply.

He had vanished somehow, seemingly busy with something—no matter how Li En called out, he never returned.

Li En wasn't in a hurry; if it was called a rumor, and the old knight reacted so violently, it must have circulated widely for a long time, even regarded as the cause of disaster.

So, if he went back and asked the elders, he'd likely find some clues.

Li En's group prepared to rest for the night, adapting to the surrounding environment; with the mage tower's construction, this would become the most valuable resource hub in the near future.

But he never expected to hear the prophecy's content from someone so unexpected.

"That prophecy? It's been around for a long time—over fifty years ago, something about 'the second princess will bring the kingdom's downfall.' I can't recall the exact wording, but it was definitely the Giant Sage's prophecy."

The exact details were unclear; more accurately, they had distorted over time, yet the core message remained clear enough.

"When the Kingdom of Aitherlin gave birth to its second princess, the kingdom would face utter ruin. Legend says the current queen had a younger sister, but she was apparently the former king's illegitimate daughter."

As a native of Morsidilca, Victonia naturally knew of these events from over a decade ago.

When neighboring kingdoms suddenly suffered catastrophe, they naturally gathered intelligence.

The prophecy of the kingdom's fall naturally became a hot topic in Morsidilca for a time.

To Victonia, it was merely a recent anecdote she'd heard.

"Second princess brings downfall? Hah, prophecies aren't real. Things are bad now, but the kingdom hasn't fallen yet, has it?"

As an "outsider," Li En could judge this calmly.

Since the kingdom hadn't fallen, the prophecy must be flawed.

He shook his head; prophecies are produced in vast quantities—only those that "guess right" get dug up later.

Isn't the kingdom still standing?

"Actually, there's another interpretation of the prophecy," the dark elf Victonia mused. Previously, she could treat it as someone else's gossip, but now that she was involved, she needed to pay closer attention.

"The rumor says the princess's sister also bore a daughter with the Hero."

Li En was stunned; the Snake's earlier words had already confirmed this wasn't a rumor.

He thought for a moment, then suddenly looked up.

"So… the daughter of that princess is the real second princess? She'll bring a new catastrophe upon the current kingdom?!"

Victonia shook her head, her gaze sweeping toward someone in the distance.

Seeing Dainya observing the construction, she continued.

"It's said the princess's daughter was born earlier… Princess Dainya herself is the second princess of this generation!" At that moment, Li En was utterly stunned—he remembered the Snake's earlier words.

"This girl's had a hard life—all because of that scumbag Lex."

Everyone's eyes inevitably turned to Dainya; Li En now understood why Karn had reacted so violently.

This wasn't a past rumor or historical stain—it was a crisis the royal family and kingdom currently faced.

If the sole royal heir, Dainya, were crowned the "Princess of Doom," the entire kingdom might fracture.

"These rumors are common in the former Aitherlin cities. Many people directly call Dainya the 'Doomed Princess,' claiming her birth fulfilled the prophecy and triggered the Dragon Disaster."

【Learned partial truth.】

The Heroic Soul Catalog once again confirmed the truth of this information. This time, Lex's Heroic Soul Card reacted even more strongly.

It seemed emotionally stirred—Li En could even sense its anger.

"Shut up, scumbag, waste."

Li En immediately felt disgusted and slammed it back down.

Isn't this whole mess your fault, you loser who can't control your damn impulses? Why should I clean up your mess?!

These rumors may not be true, but the rulers of the former Aitherlin cities would work hard to spread and validate them.

This could directly destroy the royal family's legitimacy, turning rebellion into popular support and legal justification: "You're the reason the kingdom fell—how dare you accuse us of betrayal?"

Though using prophecy to shift blame is absurd, to most common people, it makes perfect sense.

At least, it gives them a target for their anger and hatred—Dainya.

At that moment, Li En understood why Dainya's fate line, as described by the Snake, was so bleak.

No matter what disaster struck the kingdom afterward, she'd likely be sacrificed.

"Does Dainya know?"

Li En shook his head, dismissing his own naivety.

He guessed Dainya almost certainly knew—these things couldn't be hidden.

She must have carried the title "Doomed Princess" all this time, yet still remained so strong.

"What a poor girl," Li En and the Snake thought the same thing at once.

—

The old capital—or rather, the rumored former Linshe City—wasn't as empty as most tales claimed.

"There are cultists, fire elementals, ferocious birds, dragon derivatives, over three hundred kinds of rare monsters here. Inside the city: murder, robbery, rape—nearly every crime imaginable. Yeah, truly a place where freedom runs wild."

The ancient royal palace, long neglected, housed a golden-haired girl with crimson eyes sitting by the window, cheerfully swinging her tiny white feet.

She watched the corpses hanging from the city walls, clapping happily.

"Just recently, some bastards tried to deceive this innocent little girl."

"What did you do to them? We're short on hands—don't waste them."

The "girl" reading on the bed had the same face, but couldn't be fooled for a second.

"Giggling, I made them do to each other what they wanted to do to me. The scene was truly disgusting." Her bell-like laughter echoed through the room.

"Really," the girl on the bed began to complain, then suddenly fell silent.

The older "sister" stood up, suddenly gazing toward the southwest—the direction of Huiguang City.

"Get ready. We're leaving."

"What? Mom, you never let me go out!"

The girl leapt off the windowsill; candlelight illuminated her face—a visage at least seventy percent similar to Dainya's.

But unlike Dainya's poise and dignity, she grinned with unrestrained, innocent glee, tinged with the mischief of a spoiled child.

"Found it. The appointed time has come. Let's go meet your sister—and your filthy"

The woman, equally youthful in appearance, smiled just as gleefully.

". ilthy, idiotic, stupid, filthy, disgusting, idiotic father."

"Uh, Mom, you said 'idiot' twice."

"He deserves it. He deserves it, darling."

(End of Chapter)