"Your Highness, wake up, wake up please..."
In a haze, Leo Vickery sensed someone calling him.
Instinctively, he opened his eyes and saw the young girl before him.
With her light golden hair and a maid's outfit, her small hands fidgeted nervously, her eyes filled with anxiety and a touch of helplessness.
"Lilith?"
Leo Vickery recognized the girl, but this only deepened his confusion.
Hadn't he been off to war against the gods with the Demon King?
Wait!
He had been... reborn!
Memories slowly resurfaced.
Leo Vickery, the third prince of Lionara, notorious for his vile temperament, had caused so much trouble in the royal city.
So, the king had exiled him to Stoneton, a nearly deserted town.
But it was this exile that set the wheels of fate in motion.
Stoneton, located on the kingdom's border, was adjacent to the Sunset Forest in the south, home to elves and the cunning, ferocious jackalfolk.
To the west lay the dreaded Infernal Marsh, rumored to be inescapable for those who dared enter.
But, of course, that was for others to worry about.
Leo Vickery, well-versed in the Infernal Marsh, had come to understand it deeply.
During his time as the lord of the small town before his reborn, he had encountered hell magic – potent sorcery from the underworld.
This not only granted him immense power but also morphed his character into something even more cruel and volatile.
Driven by inner rage, Leo Vickery embarked on a path of vengeance against others.
His plan for revenge was not exactly smooth sailing.
Those he targeted were backed by formidable powers, even divine favor.
Leo Vickery had come close to death numerous times but had somehow survived.
And finally, he partaked in the ultimate war between Hell and the deities.
"I remember fighting the Goddess of Wishes, Aelthas. I complimented her beauty, but she flew into a rage, vowing to fight to the death. Then, I pierced her chest with my sword..."
He sighed inwardly.
"Utterly unreasonable!"
Now, Leo Vickery had pieced together his current situation.
The war between the Demon King and the gods had caused such immense destruction that it even rippled through time and space.
Leo Vickery, whether by misfortune or fortune, had returned to the past, to the time just after he had been exiled to Stoneton.
"Interesting."
Realization brought a smile to his lips.
But then, his smile froze.
On his arm, Leo Vickery noticed a strange pattern: a wreath, but the flowers forming it were mandrakes, ominous harbingers.
It was a curse, from the Goddess of Wishes, Aelthas.
[The Curse of Wishes]
[Effect 1: You can make one wish come true each day.]
[Effect 2: Whatever wish you make, your enemies will receive double.]
[Effect 3: Wishes can only affect you, and any state-altering wishes last only one day.]
"My wishes will grant my enemies double?" Leo Vickery mused.
"Doesn't that mean if I seek any benefit, my enemies will gain even more?"
His disdain was evident.
"Such a malicious curse, Aelthas, but do you really think this can thwart me?"
Leo had many enemies, and the Goddess of Wishes' curse seemed to target his vengeful heart.
If he wished for power or treasures, his foes would gain double the strength and riches, becoming even more formidable than him.
Yet, how to turn this curse to his advantage, he hadn't figured out yet.
More pressing was the sight of his young maid, Lilith.
She was standing by his bed, her eyes red and swollen, her body trembling slightly, causing noticeable fluctuations in her chest.
She was on the verge of tears.
"What's wrong, Lilith? Did someone bully you?"
Leo Vickery threw off the covers, swung his legs out of bed, and stretched languidly.
Lilith, biting her lip, finally looked up at Leo, her voice laced with urgency, "Your Highness, you must attend to the town's affairs now. "
"Moreover, we are running low on many supplies, and many guards are thinking of deserting. If they leave, the jackalfolk from Sunset Forest will tear us to shreds."
"But most importantly, Prince Rain Vickery will arrive tomorrow to inspect your governance."
"If he finds the town in such a state, he will report back to the king... and then, Your Highness, you will be banished from Lionara."
Leo Vickery turned to look at Lilith, his expression unreadable.
Lilith quickly lowered her gaze, not daring to meet Leo Vickery's eyes.
"Lilith, are you questioning me?"
His voice was detached, cold enough to send shivers down one's spine.
"Or do you hate me?"
Lilith's complexion changed instantly, and she shook her head frantically in denial. "No, Your Highness, I was just concerned about you."
"Concerned?" Leo Vickery's response was noncommittal.
Originally, Lilith was not his maid, but her gambler father had sold her to Leo Vickery.
Coupled with Leo's outrageous behavior, it was only natural for Lilith to harbor resentment towards him, providing Leo with an opportunity to experiment.
He was well aware that Lilith harbored hostility towards him.
Hostility meant she was an enemy.
Therefore—
The wish was activated!
"I wish for one hundred gold coins to appear in my pocket." Leo Vickery silently made his wish.
But instead of immediate fulfillment, several names appeared:
Rain Vickery, Lilith, Delilah Starfield...
All bore grudges against him.
"So, it's like this: the double effect of each wish can only work on one of my enemies, and I can even choose which one."
Leo mused. "Aelthas, you do play a cunning game!"
"To repay your curse, next time we meet, I'll be sure to stab you a few more times."
Dismissing these thoughts, Leo unhesitatingly selected Lilith.
Then, a mysterious force materialized, and the wish came true.
Leo Vickery reached into his pocket, which was now brimming with gold coins.
More dramatic was the scene with Lilith.
Her maid's attire had only a small pocket at the abdomen, far too small for the two hundred gold coins that were not a modest sum.
Consequently, the overflowing coins tumbled out of Lilith's pocket, clinking crisply as they hit the ground.
"Lilith, pocketing the domain's wealth, do you know the consequences of this?" Leo questioned her.
Panicked, Lilith's voice trembled, "Your Highness, I didn't, these gold coins just appeared in my pocket. I really don't know how this happened..."
"Is that so?" Leo Vickery reached towards the pocket on Lilith's abdomen and emptied it of the gold coins.
"One, two, three..."
"Two hundred gold coins in total. According to the kingdom's laws, you'd be sentenced to hanging, and your body displayed on the gallows for a month."
Leo spoke casually, indifferent.
Lilith was incredibly tense, her heart gripped by fear.
"This demon, what is he planning now!"
She was certain these sudden gold coins were Leo Vickery's trickery.
But hadn't the rumors in the royal city said this third prince of Lionara was unskilled and lacked magical talent?
"Your Highness, I really didn't..." Tears welled up in Lilith's eyes, despair consuming her.
Yet, the expected punishment never came.
Instead, Leo Vickery took out five gold coins and placed them in Lilith's pocket.
Gently wiping the tears from her eyes, he spoke softly, "Lilith, you are mine, how could I bear to harm you?"
"Take these five gold coins and buy yourself a gorgeous dress. When my brother arrives tomorrow, I want to see you in your most beautiful state, understand?"
Hearing these words, Lilith's emotions stabilized slightly.
Yet, she realized she had fallen into an abyss with no escape.
With Leo Vickery now wielding magical powers, did she have any hope of leaving, let alone killing this demon?
Lilith left Leo Vickery's bedroom, her soul seemingly adrift.
After her departure, Leo Vickery sunk into contemplation, analyzing the experiment with his recent wish.
He concluded two things:
"First, anyone who harbors hostility towards me can be considered an enemy."
"Second, I can seize my enemy's possessions."
This realization buoyed his spirits.
It meant that at times, by making a wish, he could reap triple the rewards.
However, Leo also understood the limitations of the Goddess of Wishes' curse.
Some overly extravagant wishes, beyond the Goddess's capabilities, were unattainable.
But this was sufficient for him.
Knowing how to grow stronger, Leo Vickery had ample experience.
What he needed now were time and resources.
However, time seemed not to be on Leo Vickery's side.
The next day, Rain Vickery arrived in Stoneton with his personal guard.
He was ready to judge Leo Vickery and inform the king of his crimes, intending to eradicate the pest that was Leo Vickery once and for all.