My Beloved Princess ~The Boy Called Incompetent Rises with Only a Sword and the Princess's Devotion~ - Chapter 063: The Concept of Death

What is death?

It is defined as the state where the soul separates from the body and cannot return.

When the human body ceases life activities, it can no longer tether the soul to the body, forcibly expelling the soul externally. This state where the soul has left and cannot return is defined as “death.” In this state of “death,” high-grade recovery potions and healing magic don’t take effect. Meaning, physical regeneration becomes possible only while the soul dwells in the body.

The Soul Transfer technique Elesia Ignoosis uses is an evil art that processes souls to create vessels for accepting Elesia’s soul.

The soul that becomes a vessel is processed into something similar yet different from a soul and fixed to the body, so even when life activities cease, it won’t be expelled externally. Yet conversely, when viewed from the body, the vessel is recognized as the legitimate soul. Meaning, though physically dead, because a soul exists, by definition it’s “alive.”

Elesia defined this contradictory state as “undeath.”

And when the body is in an “undeath” state, all recovery methods remain constantly effective, enabling physical regeneration and revival any number of times. For example, even if slashed from right shoulder through torso in one stroke and apparently perished, physical regeneration remains possible. Elesia could revive base subjects any number of times.

Six life support devices installed in the Teacher Building basement. Currently only one operated, containing blonde girl Alice. Inside the liquid-filled container, bubbles rose gurgling, green liquid circulating around the sleeping girl.

“Ah, bringing her back was definitely correct.”

While gazing at the blonde girl through glass, Elesia Ignoosis’s eyes sparkled ecstatically. Running fingertips across the cold transparent container, Elesia exhaled “Oho.”

“So similar to my former self. Though I could have discarded her, I grew fond, so it can’t be helped. Besides—”

Where Elesia gazed coldly, a girl wrapped in red and black dragon robes—Upper School uniform—lay rolled onto hard stone ground with shackles fitted on hands and feet. Whether unconscious, she remained motionless in an unseemly posture.

“Hehe, unlike this main body that can’t move freely, Alice can move around the academy without restrictions. Nevertheless, unexpected harvest. Using this girl to summon Princess Kuroyō to the Teacher Building ensures my victory.”

Princess Kuroyō seemed capable of making calm, rational judgments, but in truth, she was lenient and soft toward those who’d opened their hearts to her. She surely couldn’t abandon this girl raised like a blood sister.

And in this Teacher Building, from returning from Beast King Forest until today, she’d spent long hours spreading curse formulas throughout. So to speak, the entire Teacher Building was in a state of being a cursed object. Successfully luring her to this place, even Princess Kuroyō had not one chance in ten thousand of victory. Elesia imagined the noble Princess crying, screaming, begging forgiveness, and trembled with ecstasy throughout her body.

“Ah… this time I’ll definitely make you mine.”

◇◇◇◇◇

Elesia Ignoosis, the unparalleled sorcerer, was a murderer.

When still human, despite high status as a marquis’s daughter, under the pretext of magic experiments, she abducted domain citizens and indulged in cruel acts endlessly.

To Elesia, everything except herself held equal worthlessness. She’d never once felt guilt about killing people. Days of slaughter exploiting high status continued for some time.

However, when even the marquis household’s power couldn’t conceal those misdeeds, she readily abandoned her noble status and fled. Becoming a wanderer.

Elesia’s single purpose in committing limitless cruelty: maintaining her beauty. Meaning, achieving immortality. For that purpose, discarding status was trivial.

In towns wandering Elesia visited, missing persons appeared continuously. Needless to say, her doing. However, cunning Elesia maneuvered skillfully, never once having matters exposed.

At this point, Elesia had hypothesized that achieving immortality required processing souls, and many victims resulted from those experiments.

Approaching mid-twenties, Elesia felt anxious. Because her skin’s luster began showing shadows. Even achieving immortality, at this rate she’d be fixed with ugly appearance. That anxiety drove her toward further madness.

It happened when annihilating a certain village. From blazing flames, that man appeared.

“You seem to possess unparalleled magic talent. Good, decided. I’ll make you my disciple.”

Toward the man saying selfish things, Elesia unhesitatingly thrust a knife at his throat. However, the man laughed. Not a single drop of blood flowed from that pathologically white neck. Feeling fear for the first time in her life, Elesia attempted magical attacks, but all magic was nullified, not reaching the man.

And Elesia was forcibly made that man’s disciple—Great Mage Alkis Faust.

Though Alkis had already achieved immortality, he wouldn’t teach Elesia the method. Naturally, Elesia expressed strong dissatisfaction, but:

“I teach nothing. So steal as you please.”

That was his educational policy.

And time passed, about ten years.

Though Elesia had stolen much magic from her master Alkis, she absolutely couldn’t decipher only the immortality secret art. Elesia was already thirty-four. Her beauty obviously showed decline, and interest in immortality was fading.

Then one day, her master returning from a long journey said:

“I’ll now die. So I’ll show you this last thing. Great Mage Alkis Faust’s final great magic created in his lifetime. Precipice Phantasm Space!”

It was a space that achieved something akin to virtual immortality. While her master had unveiled his ultimate grand magic and was reveling in excitement on his own, Elesia remained skeptical.

Her master, Alkis, had already attained true immortality. What meaning was there, now, in achieving only a limited form of immortality confined to a specific space?

Perhaps Elesia’s reaction being void shocked him greatly, as Alkis bent his policy enough to explain the formula in detail. It was constructed with terrifyingly complex, bizarre formulas worthy of Great Mage Alkis Faust’s final work, and Elesia couldn’t understand most of it.

But Elesia had a flash of inspiration.

A tiny portion of the vast formula. The section describing soul processing formulas.

That information later became a major hint for inventing Elesia Ignoosis’s greatest great curse, “Soul Transfer.”

“I don’t need immortality anymore. Don’t need rejuvenation either. Because I can choose whatever body I like!”

Soul Transfer was curse magic hijacking others’ bodies mentally.

In magic studies classification, it fell under mental manipulation, but reality differed slightly. Rather than hijacking minds, the expression hijacking souls was more appropriate. It wasn’t unstable things like possession, but meant reincarnating as that person itself.

Transplanting her own soul into others’ bodies and hijacking those bodies. Repeating this, Elesia had lived through eternity. Already over 1000 years old.

The procedure was thus:

First, obtain the body to hijack. Elesia called this the base.

Next, Soul Transfer formulas were applied to the base’s tanden, after which Elesia’s soul was sent into the base through a kiss. Within the base’s mental world, the Soul Transfer formulas were activated. The base’s soul was then crushed limitlessly with curse power, refined and processed into a state known as a “vessel.” This vessel served the role of accepting Elesia’s soul and permanently anchoring it to the base.

And what made Soul Transfer truly terrifying was the ability to freely enter and exit once-hijacked bodies. Meaning, with two bases A and B, Elesia could freely travel between A and B, and even if A’s body was destroyed, she could escape disaster by transferring to B’s body.

The sole defect: inability to operate two or more bases simultaneously.

“Instead, perfect hijacking becomes possible.”

Elesia distinguished currently used bases as main, reserve bases kept as spare.

Dragonkin bases were especially Elesia’s favorites. Bodies were robust with high resistances, capable of withstanding advanced magic stress. And most delightful, everyone selected was beautiful. Similar to enjoying dress-up dolls.

Nevertheless, in recent years she hadn’t created even a single spare. Because the dragonkin race had an extremely strong pack solidarity consciousness, bloodily searching if even one person went missing. Creating spares became insurance, but if thorough investigation sensed their existence, Elesia’s identity might be exposed. Not creating spares was because dangers exceeded receivable benefits.

However, she’d found a base worth risking that danger to obtain. Because the dragonkin race’s Princess Kuroyō, praised as a once-in-millennium talent, appeared right before her eyes. Beauty entrancing even same-sex Elesia, and high magic aptitude. The ideal base. She wanted to obtain her using any method.

◇◇◇◇◇

Well then, Elesia jumped down from the platform.

Turning her back on the gurgling, bubble-spitting life support device, she directed cold eyes once more toward Kōran rolling in the basement corner. Grinning, Elesia showed a malicious laugh.

“About time now. After school when classes end, the Teacher Building becomes deserted. I don’t want to stay long in such a gloomy place. Yet too late would pass evening roll call time, causing huge commotion. If so for a mere female student, all the more for a princess.”

Pretending innocence as always, skillfully luring Princess Kuroyō to the Teacher Building shouldn’t be too difficult. Moreover, she had the trump card called Kōran. When push came to shove, she could mention her name.

“Why, I’ll just say she collapsed so I’m letting her rest in my private room, and she’ll follow worriedly. Actually, Kōran is in my grasp.”

Climbing basement stairs.

Light footsteps echoed in the confined space surrounded by stone bricks.

Exiting the secret underground space, Elesia lit the preparation room. Then operating a hidden lever, quietly closed the basement entrance.

“Hehe. [Eternal Prison] preparations are flawlessly complete. I’ll make this your grave marker, dragonkin Princess. Prepare yourself.”

The evil formation that Elesia, suffering great defeat in Beast King Forest, meticulously prepared over more than a month spread, enveloping the entire Teacher Building. If activated, a darkness field would deploy, light would be lost from within the Teacher Building, enveloped in complete darkness.

“Yes. 100% darkness means my [Abyssal Mist] effect is fully demonstrated, perfectly nullifying all attacks. You can’t do things like steadily accumulating damage as in Beast King Forest.”

Just activating the formation secured a certain victory.

And that activation would be performed by operating the curse orb hidden in the adjacent private room’s desk drawer. First obtaining the curse orb and concealing it in her pocket while luring Princess Kuroyō—operation success was virtually guaranteed.

Unable to suppress impatient feelings, Elesia couldn’t hide her evil smile. But wearing such an expression would make sharp-intuitioned Princess Kuroyō wary, so she shook her head as if dispelling worldly thoughts, arranging a false innocent face.

She placed hands on the door connecting to the private room.

Just open the door and obtain the curse orb stored in the desk’s upper tier.

That should have been all—

Simultaneously with the door opening, she sensed human presence. A bad premonition came. And what flew into short-statured Elesia’s eyes was Princess Kuroyō sitting brazenly at the desk. Holding up a lamp, she directed it toward Elesia as if dispelling darkness.

“As expected, it was you. Instructor Fūga.”