The Heroic Tale Of A Villainous Prince Chapter 13

Episode 13: Deophil

The renowned adventurer party, known as “Dawn’s Shield,” was famous for prioritizing safety. Their leader’s catchphrase, “No life, no future,” reflected their commitment to survival and returning safely from their quests. They were highly skilled in handling unexpected situations and had a reputation for rescuing other parties in need within the dangerous dungeons they explored.

The guild held Dawn’s Shield in high regard, even entrusting them with training new adventurers. Each member of the party possessed expensive and powerful equipment, particularly focused on defense and survivability, surpassing other guilds at that time.

However, the fate of Dawn’s Shield took a tragic turn when the party was completely wiped out.

According to the investigation report by the Kingdom’s Knights, the bodies of several adventurers were discovered in the forest, which served as Dawn’s Shield’s training ground. It was later revealed that these bodies belonged to the members of Dawn’s Shield, except for their leader and the new adventurers they were mentoring.

Scattered around the bodies were fragments of shattered magic rings, and their equipment, ranging from cheap to valuable, had been stolen.

Initially, suspicion fell on the leader of Dawn’s Shield, but he had multiple alibis backed by numerous testimonies, and there was no apparent motive for his involvement. Furthermore, valuable items were stolen from the party’s base, and the presence of shattered magic ring fragments near the bodies quickly cleared him of suspicion.

Through the course of the investigation, the true culprit was revealed to be Deophil, a notorious thief known as “Ringbreaker,” who had been causing trouble in society even before this incident.

The item Deophil possessed was an ultra-rare cursed magic ring called the “Oathbreaker Fang.” Deophil wore it on his right hand, emitting a sinister black aura. Whenever the aura touched an opponent, it unconditionally destroyed one random magic ring they were wearing.

In other words, every time Deophil’s right hand, equipped with the “Oathbreaker Fang,” made contact with someone, one of their magic rings would be destroyed. Magic rings were vital for utilizing magic, so losing all of them meant losing the ability to wield magic.

Amidst the tense situation, Elinne, who was kneeling before Deophil, spoke while keeping a steady gaze on him.

“It seems like you’ve been quite beaten up.”

While keeping her gaze fixed on Deophil, Elinne, who was kneeling, spoke.

“That’s why I said he’s a bad match . He’s a man who has been evading the pursuit of the Kingdom’s Knights. He’s not an easy opponent. …You should understand that much, too.”

“You’re noisy. I just didn’t like the Ringbreaker.”

While it was true that a blacksmith like Elinne would find someone like Ringbreaker disrespectful, there seemed to be more to her thoughts.

“Is that really all?”

Elinne was no fool; she had grasped the situation in this short time. As an exceptional blacksmith who could unleash the power of magic stones and utilize their potential effectively, she understood the vast difference in strength between herself and the opponent.

She had anticipated this outcome. With that knowledge, Elinne confronted Deophil.

“…,”

Despite my inquiry, Elinne remained silent.

What weighed on her heart? What was she thinking?

At this moment, I couldn’t comprehend it. That’s why–

“For now, let me hear it after we defeat him.”

“…Aren’t you burdened by that too?”

“Well, let’s see.”

I positioned myself in front of Deophil, as if shielding Elinne.

“I’m sorry. It’s a tag team.”

Scene transition

Before Deophil stood a young boy.

Black hair, black eyes. Despised by society, a true cursed child.

(Does it even matter?)

Deophil wasn’t always the thief he had become. He was born in an ordinary village, harbored dreams like anyone else, and chose the adventurous path, which was the antithesis of peace.

“I will make this party reach A-rank! That is my dream!”

Deophil diligently completed small tasks, raised the rank, formed a party with like-minded comrades, and steadily accumulated achievements based on reliability.

However, things began to change in Deophil’s second year as an adventurer.

While Deophil’s party members were rapidly improving the skills and achievements, Deophil alone struggled to grow.

The reason behind this was that all of Deophil’s party members possessed high-rarity magic rings, while Deophil didn’t own a single rare one.

It was not an uncommon situation, but it made Deophil feel left behind. It felt as if the feet were sinking into a muddy swamp, and each day was filled with suffocating impatience.

Deophil yearned for power, just like the party members who possessed powerful magic rings. It was during this time that Deophil received the [Oathbreaker] magic ring from a friend met at a tavern.

Even among adventurers, who were synonymous with freedom, there were rules. Absolute rules that allowed for freedom. One of them was the prohibition of using forbidden curse magic rings. By Deophil’s second year as an adventurer, he were well aware of this.

It seemed that the other person was also troubled by such a dangerous item and half-forced it upon Deophil. Deophil had no intention of using it, but he thought he could sell it for money. So, he accepted it with a carefree mindset.

Above all, the forbidden curse magic ring boasted a higher rarity than any magic ring owned by Deophil’s party members. Deophil kept it close as a charm to soothe the impatience, instilling a sense of superiority and calmness in the heart.

That was the extent of it.

One day, while exploring a dungeon…

Deophil’s party was attacked by thieves. The thieves took advantage of the fact that incidents inside the dungeon were less likely to be exposed and that reinforcements were scarce.

Several of Deophil’s comrades were injured in the surprise attack. They fought back and managed to reduce the number of enemies, but the enemy still had the upper hand.

(At this rate… we will be wiped out…!)

Only Deophil and the party leader remained standing.

the comrades were immobilized due to the injuries. Moreover, if they didn’t escape the dungeon soon, the lives would be in grave danger. They needed a trump card to overcome this predicament.

(—-…!)

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A warmth emanated from Deophil’s pocket. It felt as if the forbidden curse magic ring was whispering, urging him to use it. The truth was, if Deophil didn’t use it in that moment, they would all be annihilated. Not only that, the comrades would die. They would be killed.

“Uoooohhhh!”

When Deophil regained the senses, he found himself using the [Oathbreaker].

An evil aura surged from the forbidden curse magic ring equipped on Deophil’s right hand, causing all the other magic rings to shatter.

However, there were still magic rings remaining on Deophil’s left hand.

Yielding to the whispers of the demon, Deophil attacked the enemies in front of them with reckless abandon.

And when Deophil regained the senses, countless shattered fragments of magic rings were scattered at the feet, while the thieves lay lifeless.

The power of the forbidden curse magic ring had been enough to overcome the numerical disadvantage.

The party leader, also in shock, looked at Deophil with astonishment. With a trembling body and voice, he was about to speak words that would forever change the fate:

“…If you had such power, why didn’t you use it from the beginning? If you had… if you had…!”

But those words never left his lips. The party leader paled at the realization of what he was about to say, immediately apologized, and rushed to aid the injured comrades.

Although they managed to escape the dungeon with the injured party members, some of the comrades were severely wounded and did not survive.

As a consequence of breaking the adventurer rules by using the forbidden curse magic ring, Deophil had the adventurer license revoked.

Strict monitoring of forbidden curse magic rings was enforced throughout the kingdom, leaving them with no recourse.

What shocked Deophil even more was that not a single person, not even a party member, stood up to defend them.

“There’s no other way… There’s no other way, right? I have no choice but to give up.”

“If I was going to be deprived of everything anyway, maybe if I had used the Forbidden Curse Magic Ring from the beginning, my comrades might have been saved. I convinced myself that it was punishment for abandoning other people’s lives in order to save myself.”

“The dreams I once held, of becoming a successful adventurer, of elevating the party to Rank A… I have already let go of them.”

What tormented Deophil afterward was the curse of the Forbidden Curse Magic Ring.

Created through forbidden arts, these rings possessed immense power but consumed the wearer’s magical energy while equipped, each with its unique constraint.

In the case of the ‘Oathbreaker Fang,’ it demanded a regular offering of a certain amount of magic to the ring. In other words, it required continuously using the ‘Oathbreaker Fang’ to destroy other magic rings, and should it be not fufilled, the user’s soul would be consumed.

Anyone who had once used this power was bound by destiny to offer magic to the ‘Oathbreaker Fang’ until the death—a contract and constraint with the devil bound to the magic ring.

It mattered not whether the ring was equipped or not. On the contrary, if one carelessly lost the magic ring, the soul would be devoured without discussion.

Thus, Deophil had been destroying numerous magic rings and sacrificing the own magic to the devil residing within the ‘Oathbreaker Fang.’

“I see, indeed. We cannot allow someone with such constraints to wander freely as an adventurer.”

As Deophil sensed the binding nature of the ‘Oathbreaker Fang’ from the whispers of the devil, they laughed at themselves self-mockingly.

From that point on, his downfall was swift.

Initially, he made an honest attempt to find work, but the influence of the Forbidden Curse Magic Ring gradually transformed his hair to black. Unable to secure a decent job and burdened by the constraints of the ‘Oathbreaker Fang’ magic ring, he had to regularly feed the ring.

Turning to a life of crime became inevitable.

Using the same tactics employed by the thieves who had attacked the party, he targeted adventurers one by one in the dungeon, defying the constraints. It was a perilous tightrope act they performed every day.

During that time, Deophil gained knowledge.

He learned that the party he had once belonged to had risen to become a renowned force. They were trusted by the guild, held in high regard, and even involved in training new recruits.

“I had given up on everything. I had forsaken my dreams.”

“Yet, my comrades were striving relentlessly to achieve theirs.”

“They disregarded me, someone who had sacrificed everything to protect them, and I ended up descending into the life of a thief.”

Meanwhile, the original party members were making steady progress, dedicated to realizing the aspirations.

“I heard that party is on the verge of reaching Rank A. the progress is astonishing.”

“I heard it’s because of the exceptional accomplishments in rescue operations.”

“Rescue operations? Is that about assisting adventurers trapped in the dungeon?”

“Yes. It seems the party leader was once attacked by thieves in the dungeon. To minimize such incidents, they proposed and initiated rescue operations within the guild.”

“I see… That’s truly commendable.”

An incidental conversation he overheard in town unexpectedly stirred something within Deophil.

“What… is this feeling…?”

A viscous, murky weight settled in his lungs.

“Even though I had given up, even though I had forsaken everything, there were still comrades striving in the opposite direction, pursuing the dreams.”

…The devil whispered.

“It hungers. Feed it. Devour everything.”

“Oh… I can devour to my heart’s content.”

Eventually, Deophil killed over ten adventurers, pushing the party to the brink of destruction.

…That party’s name was ‘Dawn’s Shield.'”

“What… are those eyes?”

“A young boy stood in his path. Within his black eyes, the same darkness of resignation was apparent, yet amidst that darkness, a faint glimmer of light flickered.”

Eyes that seemed to refuse to surrender to surrender.

“I can’t bear you any longer!!”

Shrouded in a jet-black aura, Deophil lunged toward the black-haired boy.