The Cursed Forest Where I Was Exiled Had Somehow Been Designated As A Sanctuary. - Awakened to the Purification skill, I, Surrounded By Divine Dragons And Great Spirits, Become The King of A Nation - Episode 1

The Crown Prince of the Arclight Kingdom, Zess Arclight, regained the memories of his past life when he was twelve years old.

During the oracle ceremony where one receives a profession and skills from the gods, I saw the status displayed in my field of vision and thought, “It’s just like a game.”

Then, all at once, the memories of my past life came flooding back.

What I remembered was that I was just an ordinary young person living in the country of Japan.

And then, I was managing the dry cleaning shop that my parents, who had died in an accident, used to run all by myself.

His memories of his past life end with a runaway car crashing into the store.

In his final moments, he gazed at the gushing dark red bl00d and thought, “It seems like it would be a hassle to clean this mess up,” an oddly misplaced sentiment.

Since I remembered such a past life, there was a certain sense of understanding in being granted the profession of a “cleaner.”

However, the disappointment towards Zess, who was given the profession of “cleaner,” was strong.

In this world, where one’s profession is thought to reflect their way of life, the “cleaner” is ridiculed as if it were a servant’s job.

Gradually, the pressure from the nobility and aristocracy intensified.

Three years had passed since the Ordeal of the Divine Oracle, and Zess had completely fallen out of favor within the royal castle.

Even so, the minimum education required for a crown prince is still being continued.

After finishing my classes that day, I noticed that the surroundings were unusually busy as I walked through the castle.

“Speaking of which, today was my younger brother Bauman’s oracle ceremony.”

Prince Bauman Arclight, the Second Prince.

He turns twelve today and is set to undergo the oracle ceremony, just like Zess did three years ago.

The castle is noisy because people are coming and going for the ceremony.

Avoiding the gaze of others, I pass through the familiar corridor and proceed along the colonnade leading to the backyard.

There, the maids were busily doing the laundry.

“Oh, Lord Zess!”

When the maid who noticed Zess’s appearance raised her voice, their gazes all turned in unison.

The maids all rushed over with bright smiles on their faces.

“Zess-sama, I tried the cleaning method you taught me the other day, and the dirt came off more easily!”

“That’s good to hear.”

“Lord Zess, Lord Zess, look! The dinner sauce spilled here, but it fell so neatly, right?”

“Yeah, even if you say it, I don’t understand.”

“Lord Zess, I am――!”

While the maids were boasting about their achievements, a sharp voice from behind them interrupted.

“You guys! Don’t bother Lord Zess too much! It’s a nuisance, you know!”

Head Maid

At the maid chief’s sharp reprimand, the maids who had gathered in front of Zess hurriedly returned to their tasks.

“Lord Zess, please don’t spoil them too much. They get carried away so easily.”

“Ahaha, well, it’s fine, isn’t it? As long as everyone is having fun.”

“Honestly, you and your ways…”

The head maid wears a wry smile, half exasperated and half affectionate.

Under her, a maid who had appeared from afar hurried over.

“Head maid!”

“What’s wrong, Lara? Why are you in such a hurry?”

“Actually, the formal attire that Lord Baumann will wear for the afternoon oracle ceremony…”

The maid hands over her clothes to the head maid.

It’s a familiar outfit even for Zess.

To be honest, I wore it during the oracle ceremony three years ago.

However, that white-based formal attire was stained black as if it had been smeared with ink.

“What’s going on here?”

“Actually, Mr. Bauman accidentally spilled ink while trying on the clothes earlier…”

“Seriously, that wicked prince. Is he getting a kick out of watching us panic? — Oh, Lord Zess, this is…”

Remembering that Zess, who is also of the same royal family, is nearby, the head maid covers her mouth.

“I didn’t hear anything. More importantly, it looks like that stain won’t come out easily.”

“Yes… I have a spare formal suit, but if I can’t get it cleaned properly, there’s no doubt I’ll be punished…”

To the maid who was on the verge of tears, Zess smiled and said, “It’s okay.”

“Lord Zess, no way…”

“Shh, quiet.”

While keeping the head maid who noticed something at bay, Zess placed his hand on his formal attire.

“Cleansing”

Zess uses their skill.

The ink-stained formal attire is enveloped in a bubble-like light.

And when that light subsided, the tuxedo that had been so dirty became clean.

“See, this isn’t a problem anymore, right?”

“Uh, th-thank you very much!”

The maid, looking deeply moved, bowed her head and made her way back the way she came.

While watching her back, Zess mischievously smiled at the head maid.

“If they find out that I, the prince, used my skills for everyone, I’ll get scolded, so keep it a secret, okay?”

“Honestly, you really are something else.”

The head maid’s wry smile, which appeared once again, was filled with reverence, unlike before.

“Helping the maid in the backyard suits you, Mr. [Cleaner].”

“Baumann…”

After leaving the backyard and returning to the colonnade, the younger boy speaks to Zess.

The one wearing a sarcastic expression was the second prince, Baumann, who had just been mentioned earlier.

“Unlike you, I’ll be bestowed with a royal-like profession. After that, you’ll be of no use to me.”

While watching his younger brother leave with a laugh, Zess shrugged his shoulders.

If you want the throne, I can give it to you anytime. After all, as the crown prince, I can’t even do laundry casually.

Zess recalls the incident in the backyard.

In my previous life, I claimed to be a professional in laundry as a cleaner.

However, the skills bestowed upon me in this life boast a performance that leaves such professional techniques in the dust.

Zess, who had a natural inclination to clean things that were originally dirty, was frustrated with his current life where he couldn’t freely use his skills.

Cleaning dirty things.

I have hardly tasted that joy in this lifetime.

Even if you are bestowed with the best skills, if there is no opportunity to utilize them, it would be a waste of talent.

If possible, I want to live leisurely in the countryside and make full use of this skill.

Zess’s wish would come true in an unexpected way.

◆　◆　◆

“Prince, Zess Arclight. I hereby disinherit you.”

“……Huh?”

That evening.

Zess, summoned to the king’s chamber, could hardly believe the words of his biological father, Keiras, seated on the throne.

At the king’s command, the guards stationed in the hall surrounded Zess and pinned him to the floor.

While being tied up with ropes by the guards, Zess shouted.

“Please wait, Father! What is the meaning of this treatment?!”

“Never call me father again! You fool!”

Keiras shouts irritably.

“The reason I have kept you alive until now, despite your so-called profession as a ‘cleaner,’ is solely because you had some value. However, that value, as insignificant as it was, just vanished a moment ago.”

In response to Keiras’s words, Bauman appears from behind the throne.

“Just now, my son Bauman has completed the divination ceremony and has been granted the title of Conqueror. There is no longer any reason to place a failure like you in the royal family. You, who have threatened the stability of the royal family, will be punished with the sentence of being cast into the forest as a traitor to the nation!”

“Na――!”

The central continent where the Arclight Kingdom is located. In the center of that continent, there exists a vast forest where ferocious monsters dwell.

The land, also known as the Cursed Forest, does not belong to any nation due to its danger and barrenness.

And in the Arclight Kingdom, there was a punishment even harsher than the death penalty: sending wrongdoers into such a forest.

That is the punishment of being sent to the forest. It is the ultimate punishment in the kingdom.

The wizard waiting in the hall begins to cast the teleportation skill.

Seeing that, Zess shouted in a panic.

“Pl-please wait! A forest execution, that’s just…”

“Give up, brother.”

“Ugh, Baumann”

“The role of being a spare brother is over now. If you’re no longer needed, you’ll be discarded. That’s all there is to it, right?”

As I was left speechless by Baumann’s biting remarks, the “Teleportation” skill activated.

“Farewell, the greatest stain in the history of the kingdom.”

Just before consciousness fades, Keiras murmurs.

As that whisper echoed deep in my ears, a sense of floating enveloped my entire body.

Up and down become ambiguous, and I am thrown into the turbulent flow of light and space――.

When he next woke up, Zess was lying in the forest.

Zess, with both hands and feet bound, lies on his side and gazes at the flowers and trees around him.

“Sure, I wanted to relax in the countryside, but… this is too much.”

Abrupt disinheritance. Sudden exile. The place they were cast out to is a dangerous forest teeming with monsters.

It’s far from a leisurely situation.

“…I mean, my clothes got dirty…”

Looking down at my clothes, now covered in dirt as I wriggled like a caterpillar, I let out a sigh.

However, it suddenly comes to mind.

“Cleansing”

Wrapped in the light of skill, the dirt stains completely disappeared.

Zess, overwhelmed by an indescribable pleasure at the sight, rolls on the ground once more.

“Cleansing”

To become beautiful.

Rolling on the ground again.

“Cleaning”

It became beautiful.

Repeating the same thing several times, Zess’s eyes sparkle with excitement.

I felt liberated from something I had been enduring for a long time.

“Wait, what am I doing? No matter how you look at it, this isn’t the time for something like this.”

Shaking my head, I come to my senses.

My hands and feet were bound, and I was thrown alone into a dangerous place.

For now, I have to do something about this restraint—at that moment, I thought.

“GYAAAAAA――――!!”

A roar thunders just above.

Zess twisted his body and lay on his back on the ground, then looked up cautiously.

From between the branches and leaves that cover the sky, the massive form of a dragon with jet-black wings flaps into view.

And the dragon, with its jaws wide open, was descending towards Zess.

“No way!?!?!”