The last time I heard someone mention Princess Rastima, it had been a long time ago.

Back then, the emperor hadn't yet fallen into slumber, the little swan hadn't been born, and she was deeply self-blaming because her friend had chosen to die willingly.

That period was indeed rare for her, as a time when she didn't want to focus on anything.

Focusing solely on wasting her time in the Imperial Palace and learning new skills, she ignored many things.

But...

The period mentioned by Heisen was too special.

So special that she immediately made a connection.

"Is it related to Mad King Rudelson?"

Heisen nodded and said:

"Others don't clarify the inside story, but as one of the secretaries of Ense, you should have some understanding, right?"

"The Mad King's reinterpretation of the Book of the Dead wasn't to create the Undead Legion."

"On the contrary, forming the Undead Legion indicated that his original plan had failed."

"The New Book of the Dead aimed to create a type of high-level creature residing in the shadow realm, which you call curse spirits."

Heisen put down the empty wine bottle and gestured for Lumi to fill his beer glass.

Lumi snorted:

"Can't you pour it yourself?"

Heisen, unfazed, said: "Isn't it because I'm getting old, and it's inconvenient to drink?"

"Boring, you're about to be promoted to legend."

Though saying that, she still poured him a drink.

Heisen took the glass happily, muttering "fine wine must not be wasted," drank it clean in a few gulps, then lovingly held the glass and said:

"The Mad King hopes that curse spirits possess unwavering loyalty and fearless courage."

"Of course, there's one more important point."

"The essence of curse spirits must intertwine with the lord they swear loyalty to."

"This way, even without the King of the Living Dead performing a resurrection ritual, the curse spirits will draw strength from their lord's shadow and revive after being destroyed by enemies."

"As long as the lord survives, they will have eternal life and limitless resurrection capability."

"In fact, many suspect that the Mad King and his Rudelson Organization have long completed the theoretical foundation of curse spirits, but before they could create actual curse spirits, they..."

He belched.

No matter how strong the curse spirits were, they couldn't withstand an emperor, a peerless hero like Him.

He just charged forward and hammered their lord into Rudelson paste.

The maid captain fell into deep thought.

"Why did His Highness Louis mention curse spirits, did he receive some clues about them?"

In a daze, she recalled what Louis had said when they parted.

...

"Olivia, make sure you don't become a curse spirit, or I'll set the whole world aflame until all living things are annihilated."

...

"This is no joke, I think I really have the capability and could carry out such a thing."

...

Instinctively, Lumi shuddered.

She had laughed it off before without saying much.

But now she suddenly felt that His Highness Louis wasn't joking.

—After all, she knew that Louis once, under the alias of adventurer Caesar, had his slime devour the New Book of the Dead grimoire.

With the Mad King's capabilities, who could guarantee there were no hidden tricks in it?

Perhaps His Highness really inherited the Mad King's knowledge.

"Looks like there's yet another reason to protect our silly little swan."

But the next moment, Lumi's expression slightly changed.

"Wait, why is it our silly little swan, not Her Highness Beatrice?"

Lumi, successfully misconstrued.

His Highness Louis, what are you planning to do with our little swan?

Heaven have mercy.

When Louis said those words, his true intention was to test if the little swan had been reincarnated from his world-destroying IF timeline.

Who would have thought it would lead to such a big misunderstanding by Lumi.

And what was our protagonist Louis doing?

He was at the Prince's Mansion, pondering a very serious question.

About the little swan.

In careful reflection, the things the little swan did in this lifetime indeed seemed to deviate significantly from what was written in the diary.

After all, in the originally planned future, though Beatrice did have people nurturing the original owner, it apparently wasn't under the guise of the Prince's trial.

Previously he thought it was because his resistance to [Great Sin: Greed] had earned Beatrice's recognition, thus unlocking the true path of the prince.

But now looking back, perhaps the little swan was overly diligent during the Prince's trial.

Something's fishy!

Plus, in the original timeline, the little swan seemed to have never been able to lift her body's curse.

So much so that in the ten years when the original owner seized power and confined the little swan's actions, she was almost always asleep.

But why did she lift the curse so quickly in this lifetime?

However, she's not one to conceal her thoughts.

But from just now's probe, Louis could be certain that the little swan's genuine inner ridicule was real and unmistakable.

That highly suggests the little swan didn't come from the IF line where he led the Curse Binding Legion to hoist the battle flag against the world.

But the poisoning incident of Jino's son, Rein Kaichen, wasn't mentioned at all in the initial future diary.

If the little swan truly came from the original timeline reincarnated, then where did she obtain this information from?

He placed this matter temporarily in his mind.

Whether the little swan is a reincarnator or not, her purposes tend to align with his.

Protecting Beatrice is their common goal.

...

Louis temporarily suppressed his doubts, read for a while longer, and then fell into a deep sleep.

In a daze.

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