Chapter 229

Chapter 128: The Two Faces of Light and Shadow

“Is this really the time to discuss such matters? Look, I’ve already obtained one of the Three Sacred Treasures—the Light Gun!”

It was rumored that the “Light Gun,” said to possess the power to pierce through anything, now rested in Regina’s hand.

Akuri couldn’t help but sigh. Originally, she had yearned for the Three Sacred Treasures that she could not obtain. Yet, they were now unexpectedly within reach.

At this moment, Regina also noticed the crown in Akuri’s hand. The golden glow, carrying some form of magnetic attraction, immediately grabbed her attention.

Could this be another artifact known as the Golden Crown?

“If we have gathered all three sacred treasures, then let’s hurry to save Ash!”

“No, there is still something else that needs to be settled.”

“Something about the both of us, you, me, and Ai-chan!”

Huh?!

Regina was confused.

She was the daughter of the Selfish King, Akuri was a Pretty Cure, and although Ai-chan possessed mysterious powers, she was just an infant.

What could possibly connect them?

“This Golden Crown works like a world recorder, containing all knowledge in its records.”

When Akuri first touched the Golden Crown, memories flowed from it directly into her mind.

“You must grasp it if you have the courage to know the truth.”

“I want to see what happens next!”

Regina firmly grasped the Golden Crown. At the moment her fingers made contact, a series of images flashed before Akuri’s eyes, sending her back to the peaceful days of the Poker Kingdom before it was invaded.

Thus, Regina saw everything Akuri had seen.

In the past, the legendary Pretty Cure had triumphed but failed to completely defeat the darkness called the Selfish Ancestor. She had merely sealed it deep within the Poker Kingdom with the Golden Crown’s power, aware that this seal would eventually break.

Indeed, the passage of time loosened the seal, allowing a trace of darkness to escape, infecting the Poker Kingdom’s princess and causing her to fall ill.

The queen died due to complications during childbirth, and the king, seeing his precious daughter on the verge of death, decided to use the knowledge of the Golden Crown to save her, which meant breaking the seal and bringing ruin upon his kingdom.

On one side were his beloved subjects, and on the other, his beloved daughter. Even though a king must consider the greater good, he is still a father. How could any father watch his daughter face death?

His love led him to save his daughter, but at the cost of destroying everything.

As a result, the king broke the taboo, unleashing that “darkness.”

The Selfish Ancestor, immediately infected his body using his selfish desire to save his daughter, transforming him into the current Selfish King. Similarly, the people who fled out of self-interest, wanting to be faster than others, turned into Selfish Beasts.

Later, Princess An used the other Sacred Treasure, the Light Gun, to fight the Selfish King. She had a chance to kill him, but out of mercy she only sealed him temporarily with the power of the treasure.

But because of that moment, the darkness fell upon the princess, staining half of her Spirit Heart black due to her reluctance to hurt her father out of love.

Such was the terrifying result of selfishness born from love. If the former Ash had known this, he might have marveled at how even the Pretty Cure world could be more cruel than some harsher worlds.

Princess An then took drastic action. She split her Spirit Heart into two. One half held her small love for her father went to the Selfish King, becoming Regina. Hence, she cared deeply for her father.

Her great love for the entire world transformed into Akuri, who was adopted by kind people, explaining why Akuri possessed a strong sense of justice and believed she once fought the Selfish Beasts.

Both unable to choose between kinship and the world, Princess An chose to place the fate of this world into these two beings born from half of her Spirit Heart.

Princess An herself had regressed into a baby, Ai-chan. She likely needed to grow up again before she could return to being princess.

“This… is the truth?!”

The overwhelming information instantly overwhelmed Regina, causing her to kneel and tears to stream down her face.

Knowing that her father had done everything to save her, she was overwhelmed with emotion.

“We, and Ai-chan, were originally one person. We should have been Princess An!”

Earlier, Akuri had excused themselves to keep Ai away, bringing Ai-chan alone because she knew Ai would stop what needed to be done.

“But I am no longer the same as the original Princess An!” Regina saw clearly. Her interactions with her father, with Ash, were all her own memories.

“So do I.”

Akuri felt the same. Her memories with her adoptive grandmother, with friends at school, and with the other Pretty Cures were her own!

“But we are indeed the light and shadow split from the same Spirit Heart!”

“Ash without a doubt is also possessed by the Selfish Ancestor. To defeat such an entity, we need the complete power of a Spirit Heart!”

Regina understood her meaning.

Whether it was Akuri or herself, they were incomplete. Like CureAce’s transformation lasting only five minutes, and Regina’s power being unstable, they both needed external assistance to maintain their strength.

Now, whether saving Ash or defeating the Selfish Ancestor, they required a greater power. If they could awaken the true Poker Kingdom’s greatest weapon, Princess An, together with Pretty Cures, victory was nearly assured.

There was only one way to make their fragmented hearts whole and truly powerful.

“Then let’s do it!” Regina raised the Light Gun, understanding why she always disliked Akuri. “You are light; I am shadow. Even if it doesn’t happen now, a clash is inevitable, right?”

“Exactly!”

Akuri pulled out her eyeliner case, preparing to transform.

Now that the truth was revealed, the similarities and differences in their hearts prompted them to confront each other.

“PrecureDressUp!”

CureAce faced off against Regina, both prepared but hesitating.

“Whoever wins will be responsible for defeating the Selfish Ancestor and returning Ash!”

“That suits me—let’s make it so!”

As they reached a consensus, the battle call echoed.