Lewd King's Bucket List

Volume II: Pity the Fool

The murder of my mother was… not well received.

That was most definitely putting it mildly!

Hope had no way to hide his crime — he had murdered the Warrior Queen, after all. He pleaded his case. No one listened.

Yet, as the new nominal authority of Catatran and titular commander of the frontier, I pardoned him! And no outsider dared to act upon sheer hate because of a threat that 'I'd' call back Catatran forces.

It was Despair who puppeted me into doing such a thing. It's not like five-year-old me had a concept of law or the true gravity of the situation.

All I knew at the time was that the woman called my 'mother' tried to kill me, and Hope saved me.

Me, the pitiful fool raised to be a hollow reflection of my father's image.

In any case, I had no idea what it meant to be a prince, king, or leader of any sort. I had received very little education at all; nor did any revere me.

All I had known in life were the four walls of my tent, Hope and Despair's backs, and the contempt in my mother's eyes.

Well, I also knew death — or at least had an idea of what it was.

So, I had known Hope killed my mother.

Yet it wasn't as if I had a cultivated bond with her.

In fact, it was Despair who stepped up and acted like a parental figure to me. Even if our interactions were mostly limited to him spouting random fabricated stories of heroes or teaching me to swing a stick like a sword while he stood guard.

As for Hope, the other guard who's back I was well acquainted with…

Hope was more like the older brother type.

He joked with me. Teased me for liking Despair's stories. He also taught me to play cards during the few times he could enter the tent and interact with me.

Bottom line is…

I felt no regret for pardoning Hope. I still don't. If I had my current intelligence then as I do now, I'd follow the same path. Actually, I'd be even more thorough in my pardoning and would have framed Hope as a hero right then and there!

'…'

Ah, I'm getting off track.

This is the story of Ixion the Greatly Terrible! Not the story of Hope.

But unfortunately for that man, his story is quite tied to mine.

So, let me summarize Hope's post-murder story for you, Pax.

Hope was a free man after he killed my mother.

A hated man, sure, but 'free.'

Although he didn't stay hated for long. There were two main reasons for that.

First: It's not like my mother's mental state was a secret — hardly anyone doubted Hope's story. In fact, most were not even mad at Hope for killing her; more so, they were mad they lost her strength.

Therefore, all it took for their anger to ease was Hope's rise.

In no time Hope displayed potential even greater than the queen he felled; even eclipsing her power in the span of two years.

Truly! His rise to prominence was unprecedented in an awful lot of ways!

He wasn't a once in a generation talent, no…

He was a once in existence talent.

As for the second reason…

I was called a product of his actions.

But what about toddler Ixion — the big-headed, naïve, cute seven-year-old king — was so special that people would forgive regicide?

I'd awakened my Aspect incredibly early. A highly ranked one at that.

I also showed unfathomable talent!

Sadly for me, it was more "once in a century" than "once in existence…"

In other words…

From my mother's death, the front lines had gained two prodigies. Both of which promised to be more potent than their predecessors.

Plus the third.

Despair had also gained some notoriety.

Yet his strength was almost a non-factor in the forgiving of Hope, so that's a moot point.

And, unlike Hope and I, he preferred to stay low-key. He tended to hide his strength and let Hope take the glory.

He was still known to be strong, yes. But only as strong as he'd like people to believe.

Well, maybe that sentiment was misguided…

Hope and I were powerful against the Scourge, but Despair's abilities were more aimed toward dealing with intelligent, humanoid foes. So, perhaps he had truly been trying his best and got outshone by a toddler.

Ha! Serves him right!

That bastard…

With all the preliminary stuff out of the way, it's time for the focal point — back to me!

As I alluded to earlier, I was given no time to learn what it meant to be a royal.

Nor did I learn what it meant to be a child.

I, the king, didn't even receive a formal education. I was only taught the most basic and important fundamentals. Thankfully, because of my Aspect awakening and my inherent intelligence, I absorbed everything well. If not for that fact, I'd probably be just another dumb king.

Well, I also must thank a few around me who saw their five-year-old king as a human and not a tool for warfare.

Particularly Drath and Delia.

But aside from typical learning, I was immediately thrown into bootcamp and made to fight young adults and old men alike — aspiring soldiers. Aspiring soldiers who were strictly ordered by the regional commander at the time to not hold back.

And most didn't.

After all, the threat was immediate sentencing to the front lines for any who dared have mercy on the kid!

Sure, that was what they were there for.

Or at least what most claimed to be there for.

But it was a sad fact that most wanted to claim valor; to claim they enlisted and fought heroically against the Scourge!

Very few actually wanted to fight.

But at least some of them had a semblance of choice in the matter.

I was taught to only hate and fight the Scourge.

I was never taught why.

I was never taught what I was defending.

I was never taught love.