The Third Prince Of Darkness

(Third Person POV)

In a wide, dimly lit basement, a man with his hands and arms tied was desperately trying to say something, but his words were incomprehensible because of the gag covering his mouth. The man appeared to be in his forties, and with his bald head, he didn't look very handsome. He looked more like that annoying relative most families have. However, his incessant tears made him appear even worse. The tape on his mouth was wet from his drool, making the scene even uglier.

The sound of the basement door opening was heard, and the noise of sturdy shoes descending the stairs echoed in the basement as someone calmly walked down. A man of average height slowly descended, one hand resting on the railing. The man tied up below realized this was the person who had kidnapped him, and his fear turned into panic.

When the man descended the stairs, he slowly sat down on the chair directly opposite the bound man. At that moment, the kidnapped man finally saw his captor's face and was confused by what he saw. Despite having a well-developed body, the captor's face was that of a boy who had just entered puberty. He had bright blonde hair and light blue eyes and was quite handsome, despite his age. He looked like he belonged to a noble family, not like someone who would kidnap people.

The young man wore expensive clothes, and his black leather gloves matched his stony expression. He resembled a professional serial killer, though his age made this hard to believe.

"You must be Baron Hans, right? Naturally, you must be wondering why I kidnapped you" he spoke, his voice genuinely that of a boy who had just entered puberty.

"Mm-mmm! Mmm-MM!" Baron Hans tried to speak, but the gag in his mouth was too thick and sturdy.

"First of all, I should clarify that I have no personal problem with you, but I have to kill you because the Maid Guild requested it. Yes, the Maid Guild. Isn't it funny? A prince taking on a job for the Maid Guild, but fortunately, they don't know I'm a prince."

Baron Hans tried to comprehend the words coming from the young man's mouth, but couldn't make sense of them. Maybe the person in front of him was crazy? "I hope he's not a lunatic," thought Baron Hans.

"Ah, you're wondering what the Maid Guild is, right?" the young man asked, as if Hans had asked him a question.

"Well, let me explain. The Maid Guild is a guild involved in espionage activities across the human continent. When you request information from this guild, they ask for something in return, which can sometimes be money or sometimes the killing of a person. In short, you can buy information from them through mutual agreement. Of course, this guild is highly secretive, and it took me a long time to learn about it. Anyway, the guild asked me to kill you in exchange for information," the young man said in a calm tone.

"Mm?!" Baron Hans tried to say something again.

"As the name suggests, the Maid Guild was founded by maids. They obtain their information from the maids who are members of the guild. And finally, regarding why they want to kill you... I think you know the reason very well, Hans. Among the dozens of maids you killed last month was a member of the Maid Guild, and that maid's mother was a council member of the guild. In other words, even if it wasn't me, someone else would kill you" the young man said, intertwining his fingers.

"Ummm!" Hans broke into tears, unable to accept his fate, and the disgusting fluid dripping from his nose made it hard to look at his face.

"Frankly, I am not a defender of justice wearing golden shoes,  Hans. As I said before, I have no personal problem with you. I'm killing you in exchange for information I wanted, but ultimately, killing someone who deserves to die will at least prevent me from feeling guilty. Especially since this will be my first kill in both of my lives. I don't want to feel bad. Now that I've eased my conscience, it's time for you to die," the young man said, getting up from his chair.

"Ummm! ~Ummmm!" Baron Hans tried to crawl away, crying.

The young man approached Baron Hans and removed the gag from his mouth. "Any last requests?" he asked.

"Please, spare me! I'll give you everything I have! I'll give you all my wealth!" Hans said, crying.

"Didn't I tell you before that I'm a prince? I don't need your money... Actually, maybe it would be good to have a secret fund... And lastly rest assured, your wife and children won't suffer because of your crimes," the young man said. Hans was shocked when he saw a sword emerging from the young man's shadow and cursed the wheel of fate that allowed such a monster to kill him.

---

(Ethan's POV)

"Oh no, no, no."

My stomach clenched suddenly, and I felt the burning taste of stomach acid rising up to my throat. I noticed my face turning ghostly white. I tried to cover my mouth with trembling hands, but it was futile; I couldn't control myself. My whole body shook as I bent forward and retched. I tried to deal with the intense nausea. Fortunately, something inside me seemed to limit this nausea after a certain point. Over the past six years, I had realized that the dark element suppressed emotions like fear, sadness, or excitement that would make me appear weak.

Eventually, I cleaned everything up, grabbed the bag, and left the basement. This was my first kill, and even though I knew the man I killed was a bad person, I felt guilty. In the end, I realized that the dark element was suppressing my emotions again, and honestly, most of the time, I found it useful.

I rushed up the stairs, dashed outside, and after one last check of the bag in my hand, I set off quickly.

Half an hour later, I approached a small shop in the city center. It was obvious from the appearance that it was a store selling women's primary materials, and when I entered, I could feel some women glaring at me with slight irritation. I approached the counter and saw a woman sitting on a chair below. She seemed to be knitting something with a needle and thread.

"I heard the finest threads are grown on Pomegranate Island" I whispered as I leaned in closer to the woman.

She looked at me in surprise, and her astonishment grew when she realized I was a man.

"Sorry, could you please repeat that?" she asked.

"I heard the finest threads are grown on Pomegranate Island," I said, this time with a firmer voice.

"Oh yes, our new silks have arrived! Please follow me," she said and led me through a back door to another room. Soon, she opened a hidden door leading to the basement, and I took a deep breath, relieved that I would finally enter.

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