Nevertheless, he forced himself to remain calm, trying to convince himself that this would not happen. Moreover, this contravenes all the Empire's laws and principles regarding succession and titles: when the eldest son is still alive, under no circumstances can the second son be recognised as heir to the throne, even if the first son himself were to abdicate... Or rather, the eldest son could not relinquish this destiny even if he wished to.
According to the laws of the Empire, this was the eldest son's destiny, his fate and his responsibility, and there was no greater shame than attempting to abandon his duties.
For this reason, too, he felt suspicious of the record and could not trust it; for even if he were judged to be insane, according to the laws of the Empire—and particularly the laws of the Imperial Family—he would have had to be put to death before the title of Crown Prince could be passed to the second prince.
But once again, he could not risk anything without a clear understanding of his situation.
Despite being the Crown Prince, he had been abducted at the age of eight or thereabouts from the heart of the Imperial Palace; this alone was terrifying and aroused suspicion, but what he went through afterwards was even more terrifying
The kidnappers who managed to abduct him from the heart of the imperial palace failed to keep him; he was snatched from them and subjected to severe torture. They spoke of 'taming' him, after which he was put up at auction and sold as a slave. He was bought by a group of deranged individuals who subjected him to every kind of horrific human experiment, to the extent that he even forgot what he had been like he was abducted
The only thing he always reminded himself of, never forgetting it and repeating it for two years in his head like a broken record without wavering, was his name and his title
But even he had begun to doubt himself just a few days ago as to whether this was his true identity, especially since everyone was already treating him as if he were a madman suffering from delusions, believing himself to be a prince despite being merely an experiment; so he killed them all in a fit of rage in the end - True, the reason he killed them as soon as he could wasn't really because of the experiments they were conducting on him, nor the fact that they had bought him, but because they dared to deny his identity and did not treat him as the Crown Prince of the Great Hagelmark Nordreich Empire ought to be treated.
In any case,
his doppelgänger spoke again in the same cheerful, carefree tone that sent a shiver down his spine.
"Shall we kill them all? Just as we did with those fools, so that no one will dare to think we are not a prince. How dare they?"
Although I wanted to say that he was referring to the kidnappers, I understood what he said
After all, in the mental hospital I was treated as if I were delusional when I said I was a prince and demanded to be treated as such; the carers treated me exactly like the kidnappers, as if they were playing along with some madman's charade.
That is why I became angry, and after careful planning, I made sure they would never think or believe again
Those blasphemers.
I was roused from my thoughts by the sound of breathing near my ear and a whisper as soft as a devil tempting me. He whispered to me in a tender, pitying voice:
"Let's kill them… all of them."
I felt a thirst.
"Let's kill them."
My desire for it grew
"Why should we let them decide our fate?"
He's right… how dare they
"So… before they take everything from us again"
Let us exterminate them... just as I did in the record
Let us kill them
It is all right. I am not like them; I shall not humiliate them by stripping them of their royal names, nor shall I rob them of their identity
I shall kill them with the honour they denied me. See how generous I am being with them
Let's kill them; if they remain alive, they will desecrate the laws of the Empire and proclaim an illegitimate heir to the title of Crown Prince, whilst the legitimate heir is still alive and breathing, yet humiliated and stripped of his identity
So, to atone for this desecration... I will kill them.
Their blood alone will be a fitting sacrifice of atonement.
I shall kill them and scatter their blood in the throne room
They are all sinners
I opened my eyes calmly and raised my body... or rather, I tried but failed miserably, as I felt numbness throughout my entire body, which brought back a part of my consciousness and dispelled the moment of delirious madness in my head... At the same time, the alarm systems surrounding my body and bed activated, alerting whoever was on the other side outside my room
Before I could react, the door swung open and a woman entered, dressed in white—the kind worn by therapists and researchers, the very kind that brings all my nightmares with it. It made me shudder and set off an alarm in my head, and as she approached me, my body reacted instinctively despite the numbness, and a heavy intent to kill surged through me, instantly colouring my vision red. Without delay, I pounced on her, ignoring my body's protests against my swift and rough movements.
We both fell to the ground; she seemed to be screaming and saying something, but I ignored her completely, my hands around her neck and a single thought in my head:
Kill her...
Madness had completely taken hold of my mind, and I lost any clarity I had previously gained