How to Live as the Mad Duke's Fake Daughter

“…You are here.”

Dust from the ceiling of the dungeon settled on white shining skin.

Igdrasil, who was sitting on the stone floor, slowly got up.

A handful of her hair, connected to the world tree, fell into the blue well.

Whoo, whoo.

The evil spirit at the bottom of the well sensed the presence and cried out.

Igdrasil laughed softly, as if the terrible cry was a friendly greeting.

“The child you created is trying to kill me. Are you satisfied?”

Whoo, whoo.

The evil spirit, which was once a demon, let out an incomprehensible scream.

Nevertheless, Igdrasil continued to speak.

“Ah, yes, I know. The reason you made a demon out of the princess’ body was just for the sake of the duke. You wouldn’t have expected this.”

The entire palace tower shook. It was due to the shaking of the earth.

Countless civil wars have been fought in the empire for thousands of years, but this is the first time that the rebels have invaded the imperial palace.

Even though the entire imperial palace was in chaos, Emperor Igdrasil was visiting the magic tower in an infinitely leisurely manner.

Going to meet the evil spirit every afternoon had been her daily routine for thousands of years.

“However, don’t you sincerely wish for me to die as much as you hate me?”

Igdrasil jokingly spoke, shaking her head and laughing.

“I’m not going to die yet. I haven’t accomplished my purpose.”

The emperor collected the hair that had spread in the well. The cry of the evil spirit stopped, and silence came to the dark dungeon.

Igdrasil’s voice softly spread over the still waters.

“In this war, even if you hate me even more…”

She lowered her eyes bitterly.

It was an expression she had never shown to anyone except the evil spirit at the bottom of the well.

“I’m going to kill the Demon King.”

There was no response or opposition.

But Igdrasil didn’t care. It’s as if she was used to conversations where she didn’t get an answer.

She put her head together and approached the cog connected to the evil spirit’s restraint ball.

“The gods made creatures according to their greed.”

Clink!

She grabbed the chain with her glowing hand. The chain made with the magical power of the World Tree crumbled in her hand in an instant.

“Zaccadius, the beast god, instilled tremendous physical abilities in the first beast. Thanks to it, he had more force than anyone else, but he couldn’t control his power and used to tear his comrades to death.”

Whoo, whoo.

When one arm was freed, the evil spirit cried again.

Igdrasil walked through the prison like she was on a walk, breaking the chains that bound its limbs one by one.

“The human god, Ram, gave the first creatures excellent reproductive abilities. The first human, she endured labor pains and gave birth to a child, then she died…”

Clank, clank!

The moment she cut the last chain with her bare hands, the evil spirit jumped out of the well.

The black evil spirit knocked down Igdrasil and opened its mouth wide.

Shark-like pointy teeth threatened the noble emperor.

It had a violently murderous aura, but Igdrasil was not afraid at all.

“And the first spirit created by the plant god Flora, I…”

The black fangs stuck in Igdrasil’s shoulder.

The evil spirit bit the emperor like a hungry wolf.

Instead of screaming in pain, Igdrasil held the evil spirit in her arms with a faint smile.

“…I’m holding the Holy Land with my whole body.”

Igdrasil slowly rose to her feet, hugging the evil spirit.

“Let all who worship me trample on my body and live.”

She climbed the steps of the tower. Although her thick feet stepped on the stone steps, there was no sound of footsteps.

As soon as they reached the top of the roofless tower, huge shouts rang out from under her feet.

“Waaaaaa!”

“Annihilate the rebels!”

“Let the Imperial Army teach them a lesson!”

At midnight, the imperial palace was completely devastated.

Fires erupted in all directions, and the armies with different flags engaged in a fierce bloody battle.

A constant scream echoed through the night sky.

“…Flora, the plant god, made me such a being.”

Igdrasil looked down with dry eyes as if the crumbling imperial palace could be someone else’s house.

“As a tree that must embrace those who lean on me while living a life with no end in sight. The humiliation of having someone set my body on fire, the pain of being eaten up by monsters… It was a hardship that I had to endure alone.”

Whooo. Whoo…

The evil spirit that was chewing on Igdrasil’s body groaned and struggled.

Igdrasil slightly pulled the evil spirit and yanked out its teeth.

Not a single drop of blood came out of the deeply pierced tooth.

The cross section of the wound, like the bark of a tree, twitched a few times, then quickly filled up.

“I endured that terrible life for my god.”

Igdrasil looked up at the full moon. The night sky she had created with her imagination was still beautiful today.

“After becoming the greatest creature and giving victory to the plant god Flora… I believed that she would take me away and make that fantasy real.”

She lowered her head and looked at the evil spirit in her arms.

“Until the end of my life… I believed so.”

Her white cheeks were cracked like a drought-stricken ground.

Hair connected to the branches of the World Tree flew as if hit by a typhoon. A distant voice was scattered in the gust of wind.

“It turns out that we are all just toys to the gods. If it breaks, throw it away. The proof is that so many people are dying while doing nothing.”

Igdrasil did not speak for a long time, then smiled softly.

“Even though God betrayed me, I still want to kill the Demon King. Not because I’ve lived for it for thousands of years…”

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

“For you.”

The emperor ascended the wall. Broken chains and moonlit hair intertwined behind her back.

“The reason why you can’t leave the world is because of the curse the demon king put on the demons a long time ago.”

Whoo, whoo.

The soul that had been trapped in the body of an evil spirit for thousands of years cried out incessantly.

“Hold on a little bit. After I get rid of the Demon King, you, too, will be able to rest.”

Igdrasil gently patted the shoulder of the unknown evil spirit.

“Isn’t that the only wish you’ve had since I caught you?”

She added softly as she looked at the desolate land.

“I mean, freedom.”

The ground rumbled like thunder.

The building collapsed and the ground cracked. The entangled soldiers lost their balance and scattered.

“If I give you back your freedom now, if I die…”

Even when the whole world shook, Igdrasil stood upright.

“Will you at least forgive me?”

The faint voice could not reach anyone and was scattered in the commotion.

As if not expecting an answer, Igdrasil immediately changed her holding posture and smiled.

“Okay, then, let’s go.”

She grabbed the long chains and jumped off the tower.

Her shiny hair fluttered wildly as if to cover the darkness.

“To save those who died but can’t never die.”

In the next moment, the emperor and the evil spirit disappeared without a trace.

***

Before the reception, Benny and the Bauner family all went together as an observer to watch the war in the eastern continent.

I thought the atmosphere would be as heavy as seeing a brutal battlefield, but it wasn’t at all.

As observers who came to view military strategies, everyone laughed happily and shared refreshments as if they were on a picnic.

There was even a lady drinking red wine while watching the battle at the foot of the hill through a telescope.

I lay face down on the table, listening to screams and cries from afar.

The lukewarm wind shaking the screen made my stomach feel uncomfortable.

As I secretly grabbed my sore stomach, the crowd was buzzing all at once.

“Hey, who just got the head blown off? Is it Viscount Heming?”

“Did he use ranged magic? That’s great.”

“I’m gonna have to write down the archmage’s name. Just in case. I’ll get him scouted to the army.”

The observers from all over the empire acted as if the war in front of them was a fun play.

I felt dizzy. I got up from my seat because I thought I would vomit if I stayed still.

I got out of the crowd and went into the shade of a tree, but Benny followed me without adjusting the telescope.

“Are you not feeling well, Princess?”

His silver hair and pale body clad in a sparkling uniform glistened in the sunlight.

I didn’t have the energy to smile and said that it was okay. Then I leaned my back against the tree and sighed.

“…A little.”

Benny thought carefully, as if guessing why I was exhausted, and then asked carefully.

“Are you feeling guilty?”

It was a reasonable guess. Because we were just watching the war unfolding right in front of our eyes.

The observers cheered when the soldiers under their feet successfully killed the enemy, and criticized them as cowards when they ran away.

But the cramped feeling that filled my heart was not guilt.

“…That’s not it. We came here to refer to the military strategy.”

I couldn’t save everyone dying during the war, and I didn’t feel like it. However, this situation itself was unbearable.

I squatted down in place, confirming that people’s attention was elsewhere.

“…It reminded me of the past.”

“If it was the past…”

“When I lived in an ant cave.”

I shrugged my shoulders as I grabbed the falling bonnet.

“People who lived above the ant cave looked down at me and ridiculed or scolded me. Just like we are now.”

“The roles are reversed.”

I lowered my head, feeling somewhat depressed at the calm words. I felt uncomfortable even though I was standing in a comfortable position wearing much better clothes than when I was a beggar.

“…Benny. If I became a completely different person, would it be even me?”