The Girl Who Was a Doll

-Several years ago-

“Chancellor Willingham, why should I, a member of the Royal Family, require something as tiresome as a familiar? I am no magician. I do not require the protection of some beast on the battlefield. My father, the Warring King, found no such need for these gimmicks.”

A young prince looked skeptically at the man known as the Chancellor, who had just advised him to perform a summoning ceremony, something that was typical of a low-tier magician. The majority of summoned beings were low-level creatures that would soon perish when any real fighting happened. The only noteworthy point was that they gave a small boost to the summoner through its growth.

The inherent stats of humans were far more impressive than that of typical creatures, unless it was that of a mythical being. Especially for someone like Prince Oswald, who received the best instruction of swordplay Sistina could offer and high-class equipment, a familiar would simply drag him down. The ability gap that quickly grew between the Master and Summon made it difficult for many creatures to survive for long unless the Master truly cared for it.

“But your Highness, you are turning 15. Do you not aspire to become even greater than your father, the current King? For someone to escape from the shadow of the great leader who united the Kingdom of Sistina, one must stand at an even higher pedestal. The people must see you as someone superior. Would it not be wise to take advantage of every opportunity, no matter how trivial?”

The Chancellor had a point. Simply becoming the next king and taking over what his father had already achieved would grant him no recognition, no eyes of admiration. When matters of ambition in respect to others became a point of topic, it touched Oswald’s nerves. And the Chancellor knew that was exactly the case.

“Surely, a future king that has the potential to carve his name in the annals of history would summon something truly magnificent to match your grand self.” The Chancellor continued to butter him up, knowing that it would change the young prince’s mind.

“Fine! I’ll do it! But don’t expect me to treat it well. I’ll reap the benefits and discard it when it fails to keep up any longer.”

The Chancellor smirked at that moment. “Why stop there? Allow it to perish and summon another one. You will continue to grow stronger with each cycle.”

Summoned beings were expendable. Once the summon died, another one could be brought forth in its place. Because of that, stat increases continued to be piled onto the summoner. However, this practice was frowned upon, as it involved consciously neglecting, or even, murdering for one’s own benefit.

The prince turned towards the Chancellor with an upturned brow at his immoral suggestion. However, the temptation of power had kept his ears open.

“Not to worry, my Prince. No one would even have to know about your summoning. As the Chancellor, there are many opportunities for one such as myself to send your ‘pet’ into a skirmish. You just need to sit back and watch your stats rise.”

Truly, the Chancellor traveled to many places on his own. If he were to use a familiar and ‘happen’ to lose it, no one would be there to witness it. Thinking about it now, wouldn’t the man himself have used such a tactic for his own benefit?

“Chancellor, have you-“

“Of course, your Highness,” he said, cutting the prince off. “How else do you suppose that I have become so strong? It will be our little secret.”

The Prince gulped. Now, he had been let in on a piece of dirt about the most powerful magician of Sistina. Sharing such a detail could not be done so half-heartedly. The prince took it as a sign of loyalty, a chain that tied them together, which further convinced him to tread down that path.

In truth, the Chancellor was using this ploy to ensnare the support of someone powerful, but gullible. Those who had the potential to greatly impact the world were likely to summon something equally as influential. Namely, he had hoped that the young prince would somehow call upon an Electi, the greatest of all summoned beings.

The first few times were a bust. After Prince Oswald performed the summoning ceremony in a secret chamber, the Chancellor made good on his promise to train the summoned creature to a certain point before creating an ‘accident’ to sever the connection. This repeated several times while the prince watched his numbers slowly creep upwards.

After almost a year of this, something different happened. Instead of a creature, a young girl with black hair appeared before them. She looked foreign in appearance, like those that originated from Sanshiro. However, she was wearing clothing of fine quality, fit for a young girl of nobility attending studies.

Yet, they were both in for a surprise when she opened her eyes.

“Rika-chan?! Rika-chan?! Doko?! Henji tte!”

The girl deliriously looked around her as if she was searching for something or someone. The foreign tongue that she spoke gave them little hope that they could calm her down with words. A darkened expression of fear was plastered on her face as her eyes danced around the enclosed space before resting upon the two men.

Prince Oswald felt a bloodthirsty glare coming from her, eyes of rage like she expected them to attack her. It didn’t help that he instinctively drew his sword to instill fear upon her. Yet, unarmed as she was, it had failed to truly intimidate her. It was as if a madness had infected her as she charged forward.

Thinking that a mere girl would do no harm, Oswald steeled his guard and swung his metal-greaved arm to stop her. As soon as her fist collided with it, the prince suddenly regretted his decision.

An immense force tore his arm back and knocked him off his feet, causing him to barrel into the stone wall. The unexpected fierceness of her attack knocked him witless as his eyes turned to the shattered armor around his broken forearm.

Quickly bouncing back to his feet, Oswald was about to slice her with his sword, but the Chancellor had already moved between them. Casting a spell before her, the girl’s steps began to falter before she collapsed to the ground.

“There. I have knocked her out with ‘Wind of Slumber’.”

After healing the injured prince’s arm back to normal, the two walked over and stared at the unconscious girl. The Chancellor was the first to open her status window, pointing to the source of her monstrous strength, an impressively high Atk value. In the midst of the chaos, Oswald had forgotten that he had summoned a unique being.

“Congratulations, my Prince. You have called upon an Electi, and one who wields formidable destructive power. Quite fitting for someone who shall rule at the top.”

Though that was indeed something remarkable, Oswald found it to be a bit of an annoyance.

“Well, what do we do with her?”

“She appears to speak a foreign tongue, finding no choice but to defend herself in this moment of confusion. Likely, she holds no understanding of the power bestowed upon her. An Electi is special, a true gem of a summon. You will gain much more from using her than tens of summons at this rate. Training her would be far more beneficial in the long run. After all, an Electi’s power is unbridled and distributed in part to the Master.”

“But how will we train her? We cannot even understand her actions.” The prince had doubts in his mind, but they were once again overrun by curiosity and temptation for power.

“Leave that to me. For now, it would be best to block her previous memories with a spell.”

Oswald turned to his partner in crime with shock. “Y-You, you can do that?!”

“I can do many things that you are not aware of. But fear not. It is a touchy and mana-intensive procedure, so performing it is not easily done.” The Chancellor sighed, implying that he wouldn’t have had a chance to do it without others noticing. “At least, I can block some of her more recent memories. They are likely the cause for her state of belligerence.”

Oswald nodded. “Very well. Do what you must. I look forward to the results.”

The prince exited the room, leaving behind the Chancellor with his Electi. As the door slammed and they were left alone in silence, a toothy grin spread across the magician’s face. This had been exactly what he had desired – a toy of his own to experiment with.

Immediately, he set to work rewiring his new ‘doll’. It was not until many hours later that the two of them emerged from that room, the Chancellor satisfied with how he had adjusted her.

Of course, one could not hide an Electi as easily as other summoned beings. For that reason, it was publicly announced that this girl, named Saki, had been called to this world by Chancellor Willingham.

Fortunately for him, she had a basic understanding of English, despite being poor at speaking with it. At the minimum, she could interpret the orders he had her follow. No longer containing the urge to attack others on sight, she had become a docile, obedient girl who steadily worked through the challenge of adapting to this world. A loyal doll for her owner in which he could grasp control of.

Yet, the power of her attacks, the blessing of being an Attack-based Electi, made her a fearsome opponent and valuable asset. A large mallet was provided to her as a primary weapon; the bulky weight and awkwardness of the weapon forced her to narrow the focus of her aim. Such a unique choice of weaponry was meant to restrain her destructive nature by limiting her attack options. Much effort was required for each swing, forcing the user to make conscious decisions as to where to direct her blows.

Over time, both her physical training and language skills improved. By then, Saki had fully entrusted herself to her ‘Master’, Chancellor Willingham. Like a wise mentor, he had carefully raised her self-confidence and given her a new purpose in this world. Though she had difficulty recalling how she had ended up here in the first place, it didn’t matter as long as she continued to be encouraged by him.

As for Prince Oswald, he was pleased by the significant gains in his parameters, particularly in defense. He took advantage of his sturdy build by defending the northern border from attacks. With him charging in and crushing any attempts to invade, the Empire of Purnesia had to give up its plans to cause disorder near the borders.

Though Saki was blindly devoted to the orders of the Chancellor, something seemed to spur her heart when a certain platinum-haired girl came into her view. Granted, she had always looked fondly at cute girls around her, so she paid it no mind at first. After that girl defeated her in combat, it felt as if a part of her former self started calling out to her.

Not long afterward, flashes of her former life kept popping up, mostly in her dreams. Glimpses of another girl, one that felt close to her, haunted her mind. A look of fear on her face, a splash of blood dyeing the surroundings, a shriek of terror echoing around her – fleeting images pricked at her mind, drudging up many questions with no way to answer them.

Who was she before? Why could she not recall who that girl was? How had she arrived here in the first place?

Furthermore, why were there moments in which she recalled nothing as to how time passed by?

Facing the chef and knight in combat, whom she had befriended before, her doubts about her Master’s intentions only grew from that point on. Something deep down told her that he couldn’t be trusted. That his sweet words of encouragement had all been a trap. That once again, she would be betrayed.

‘Betrayed? By who was she betrayed by before?’

She hardly had the time to question herself before the Chancellor noticed her shift in behavior. Having guessed that her memories were slowly returning to her, he quickly enacted the next part of his plan.

Secretly, the Chancellor had been controlling Saki periodically, especially when it came to their work. With a single command, he was able to turn the gentle, reserved girl into a cold-hearted, ruthless killer.

Much of the disorder throughout the kingdom was settled by the Chancellor through the hands of Saki the Destroyer. Her title had not been for show, nor was it due to her immense power. It had been whispered by the Chancellor’s enemies, those in hiding who happened to witness her ‘work’.

Those that opposed them were ‘destroyed’. Those who fought against them were slain. Whether it be thieves, rogue soldiers, or entire towns, the Chancellor’s duty was to round them all up and have Saki pound them into unrecognizable lumps of flesh, one by one. The Chancellor simply smirked as he detected hints of hidden zeal as she carried out these duties in the name of justice.

Her memories of these events were locked away, along with the ones from her previous life. In the meantime, Saki was allowed to continue about her life, innocently thinking that everything that she did was for the good of all.

Chancellor Willingham would savor the moment that he would return her memories, and the ensuing chaos her mind would result in. She would have to face the truth of her actions, and the realization of that would drive her mad enough to fall into the depths of demonification.

And that moment was undoubtedly now. Her true master, Oswald Gallon de la Sistina, had fallen into despair, having seen his role as King crumble around him. Connected to her Master, his sorrow and bitterness leached into her body, infecting her core with its maliciousness. All that was needed was a final push.

With a final flip of the switch, the Chancellor unveiled everything that she had done in this world – the many lives that she had taken, the towns that she had demolished, and the ruthlessness of her other self.

More shocking than anything, it had not been entirely the fault of the Chancellor’s control over her. In the last corner of her mind, the memories of her previous life came back to her at last.