The Third Prince Of Darkness

The broader a person's potential Kaizer power, the faster their growth multiplier, or rather, their development speed, increases. That's why I had already become incredibly strong. Even though I attended formal magic and physical strength lessons in the palace, it wasn't enough. To realize my full potential, I had to go to the Dragon Academy.

I would only stay there for a few years, and once I was strong enough and had carried out all my plans, I would return to overthrow Richard.

After all, within at least five, but at most ten years, a war with Alpshar was inevitable. Of course, if Alpshar performed a miracle, the war might happen even earlier. But no matter when such a war occurs, Richard won't be able to win. Even if the Tamerid Empire formed a coalition with the Tiamat Empire, I don't think they could defeat Alpshar.

I have tons of reasons for thinking this, but the biggest reason is because of my meeting with Alpshar. After meeting him, I realized how great and terrifying a monster he was. Without a doubt, he was extremely cunning and highly skilled in the art of war. As a former historian, I can confidently say that his potential shows me that Alpshar could conquer the entire continent.

That's why it would be ideal for me to become king and start preparing for war immediately. Other kings and emperors have probably also noticed the Alpshar threat, but they probably think Alpshar would lose against a coalition the north might form. That is utter stupidity. Even now, Alpshar alone could defeat the Tamerid Empire. And as time passes, Alpshar will only grow stronger.

If I were king right now, I would form the northern coalition by now and march on Alpshar with my army. But unfortunately, I'm not king yet. Still, at the very least, I could use the newspapers to show the north the threat of Alpshar, and I've already ordered the publication of several newspaper pages about Alpshar.

For now, newspapers are selling much more than I expected in all the major cities of the Asina Kingdom and the two empires.

It seems that the literacy rate in this world is much higher than I had predicted. But that actually makes a lot of sense. After all, the hierarchy in this world is based on Kaizer power, and if you want to develop your Kaizer power, your path will inevitably lead to books. That's why the literacy rate on the human continent is probably over fifty percent.

Anyway, I'll think about all this later. Now I finally need to go to the Dragon Academy. I stood up and stretched well. Then, as I pulled the blanket, I revealed Roxanne's face underneath. The next few moments unfolded just like yesterday morning. I got up, went to the bathroom for a shower, prepared a light breakfast in the kitchen, and then woke up Roxanne.

After we had breakfast together, we left the hotel and headed toward the portal used to reach the Dragon Academy.

•••

"Remember, Roxy. Never take off the ring I gave you. These rings change our voices," I said as I placed the ring on Roxanne's finger. I had bought these pairs of rings before we left the Asina Kingdom, but we hadn't needed to use them until now. But at the Dragon Academy, we had to.

However, it seemed that Roxanne wasn't particularly interested in what the ring I had placed on her finger did... She was more interested in the fact that I had put a ring on her finger. For a moment, she looked at the ring on her finger in shock, and then with the same astonishment, she looked at the ring on my finger, which was identical to hers except for the color.

Then she looked back at her ring, then at mine again. Throughout this entire process, since we were standing in the middle of a beautifully designed street, people walking by started to look at us, wondering why we had halted in the middle of the road.

And just like Roxanne, they misunderstood and began to gather around us, clapping. Some men even patted me on the shoulder to congratulate me.

"Yes! Yes, a thousand times yes!" Roxanne shouted, jumping into my arms and hugging me tightly.

Throughout the entire process, I was wondering how I had gotten myself into this misunderstanding. However, I smiled to avoid attracting attention and whispered into Roxanne's ear, "I love you to but.... you misunderstood.."

"Roxy... You understand why I gave you this ring, right? ... I mean, it's a magical artifact used to change voices," I whispered into Roxanne's ear.

"I know... But the point is, you gave me a ring, right?" Roxanne asked, smiling.

"Yes, I did..."

"And this ring matches yours, doesn't it?" Roxanne asked, still with a silly grin on her face.

"Yes... But the reason is—"

"In that case, we're engaged now!" Roxanne shouted with joy.

Of course, the surrounding crowd heard Roxanne and misunderstood everything again, starting to applaud. Sighing deeply, I set Roxanne down. Those two red eyes looking at me were shining with happiness, and the wide smile on her face revealed her gleaming white teeth, expressing her joy.

"Yes, yes, we're engaged now..." I said and left a passionate kiss on Roxanne's lips. This time, the crowd understood correctly when they saw our kiss and clapped even louder.

---

Luckily, we somehow managed to slip through the crowd and finally reached the portal. After showing Roxanne's documents and my royal emblem, we successfully obtained permission to pass through the portal.

"How's my voice?" I asked Roxanne after activating the ring.

"... Though I prefer your original voice, I like this one too. It suits your age better," Roxanne replied.

Roxanne's voice also sounded more like an alluring mature woman's to me. But I was completely sure that our voices had changed.

Afterward, Roxanne held my hand tightly and, with that sweet smile still on her face, we passed through the portal. The next moment, my vision blurred, and I could see nothing but the red mist of the portal. However, just a few seconds later, the red mist dispersed, and I was able to take a few steps forward.

I could still feel Roxanne holding my hand tightly, and, as the official had instructed earlier, we started walking. After about half a minute, the red mist completely cleared, and my vision returned.

I felt my stomach churn and my head spun slightly. But in the next moment, when I looked around, I realized we were in an enclosed space. A little distance away, I noticed two men and a well-dressed woman.

"Step forward," the woman said. "Names?" she asked.

"I'm Arthur Connan, and this is—"

"She can speak for herself, can't she? Or is the girl beside you mute?" she cut me off.

"I'm Anna Luxiad," Roxanne grumbled in response. Thankfully, when I squeezed her hand tighter, she understood not to do anything foolish.

"This is your student ID from now on. Don't lose it. And these are your points. You should know how the point system works, but if you don't, you can find someone outside who will teach you for a few hundred points. You can also find someone to give you a tour of the academy for a few hundred points.

Now, if you have no other questions, step outside," she said as she handed us our student IDs and point slips, which resembled paper money, before putting on her glasses.

We both stepped out room afterward and exited the portal house. As Roxanne and I took our first steps into the Dragon Academy's campus, the view that greeted us was truly breathtaking. The academy's buildings were adorned with intricate details reminiscent of East Asian architecture. The roofs were covered with red tiles, elegantly carved with upturned edges.

The stone pathways, though they seemed centuries old, were impeccably maintained. The vast gardens surrounding the buildings were filled with flowers of every color, and the ponds created a peaceful atmosphere. Most of the students walking around wore heavy robes and moved silently from place to place, but their eyes carried a sense of focus and determination.

This was the massive island where the Dragon Academy stood... And this island was literally floating dozens of meters above the ground. It was said that the island was at least ten times the size of the capital of the Tamerid Empire. And there were likely tens of thousands of students here.

A smile spread across my face as I took in the magnificent view of the sprawling, horizontal, but incredibly beautiful buildings. This place... This new place was going to be my home for a while.

The view that surrounded us was so mesmerizing that I saw Roxanne looking around with dumbfounded eyes. The floating island had an aura of grandeur, and the academy, with its majestic structures, symbolized a center of power and knowledge. I could already feel that my time here would bring me great growth.

As Roxanne and I walked along the wide stone paths, I looked up at the smaller, but still floating, little islands in the sky above us.

It was truly a sight everyone should see at least once in their life. And I was incredibly happy to know that I would wake up to this magnificent view every day from now on. Of course, the beautiful women I noticed here and there would undoubtedly add to the charm of this already wonderful scene...

____

!The next chapter will feature a time skip!