Chapter 6 Part 1
To prevent any more trouble, Rien needed to disappear before his lord returned. He smiled like a well-meaning person as he gathered his thoughts.
“Was the request fulfilled as desired?” he asked.
“Yes, it was excellent,” came the response.
“That’s a relief. Please contact me again if you need anything else.”
Rien prepared to flee. If he left now, his escape would be successful. But just as he turned around, he collided with a solid chest. He cautiously lifted his gaze to see red eyes staring back at him. There was a faint bloodstain on Aksion’s shirt.
“Ah, haha. Excuse me.”
His heart pounded with fear. He needed to act like he didn’t know this person and get out quickly. He had to survive now, even if he might die later. He forced his rigid body toward the door.
‘Survive now, make money later,’ Rien thought as he managed to escape.
“He got away,” Aksion remarked.
“Do you know him?” someone asked.
“Yes, someone I used to know,” Aksion nodded.
“We should leave now,” he suggested.
“Yes,” came the reply.
Judging by the atmosphere, their meal was already ruined. ‘Well, at least I got a little something to eat,’ Elia thought. The food here was quite good; perhaps she should come back another time.
On the way back to the carriage, Elia focused on the hand holding hers. ‘This feels like another date,’ she thought. ‘A bit of a failed date, though? Am I overthinking things?’ She chastised herself for being so on edge that she ended up chasing someone unrelated.
‘Still, it’s not so bad,’ she reflected. When she had turned back time, she had sworn never to become a sacrifice, even if the world ended. But she kept having regrets. ‘I will find a way,’ she vowed, gripping the hand she was holding tighter.
Aksion was watching her as she resolved herself.
* * *
Spring’s signature banquet had begun. The first festival of the season drew a large crowd to the capital. The carriage entered the city’s gates. Outside, the scenery was dazzling, but the atmosphere was chaotic due to a scandal involving the youngest princess.
“The royal family had always maintained strict decorum,” Elia mused. The current emperor was highly sensitive about honor. He could not tolerate any scandal associated with the royal family and was known as a benevolent ruler in public. However, the prophet was a blemish he bore quietly.
Many ridiculed the emperor for believing in the prophet, but that changed when the prophet saved the crown prince’s life. ‘I wonder if the prophet will show up this time,’ Elia pondered.
The prophet, who had foreseen countless events, was currently secluded in one of the palace’s corners under the pretext of training. Though Elia associated the prophet with the world’s destruction, she had yet to find any concrete evidence.
“Elia? It’s time to get off,” Aksion’s voice broke through her reverie.
The carriage had stopped long ago, but Elia had been deep in thought, staring at Aksion. “You don’t need to rush. What were you thinking about?” he asked.
“I was thinking about the prophet,” she admitted.
Aksion seemed puzzled by the unexpected topic. “The royal family’s prophet?”
Elia nodded. In the empire, there was only one true prophet; the rest were deemed impostors and eliminated by imperial decree. “If it’s about him…”
Aksion’s expression turned serious. Elia quickly asked, “Do you remember something?”
“When I was very young… I heard by chance that my father was looking for a sword, and the prophecy came from the royal family’s prophet.”
It was a story from when the duchess was still alive. She had lamented to young Aksion that the prophecy had driven her husband to become distant, blaming the sword for his coldness.
“Did the Mahart family have contact with the prophet?” Elia felt a spark of realization.
“Can you tell me more?”
“That’s all I can recall right now. I’ll let you know if I remember anything else,” Aksion replied. He seemed unable to recall much due to his young age at the time.
As he watched Elia, she felt a twinge of disappointment but managed to console herself. The Sun Sword being transported by the temple had been a fake, and Duke Mahart had attacked, believing it was real.
‘Did the temple know it was fake?’ she wondered. ‘Why did they need the Sun Sword?’
The empire’s temple worshiped the god of light, Seheraien. Initially, Elia had believed the Sun Sword to be Seheraien’s sacred weapon, but she later realized its true origin was the goddess her tribe worshiped.
‘Did they deliberately spread false information? How far does this go?’ Elia needed to meet Duke Mahart again.
“Elia, I have a request,” Aksion said.
“Yes?” she replied.
Aksion leaned on her shoulder, clearing her mind of its complicated thoughts. “Give me your hand. It’s dangerous with so many people around.”
She offered her hand, and he took it. Then, she remembered something. “Oh, right,” she said, pulling out a small jewelry box—two, actually.
“These are from Popetcherian,” she explained.
Inside were matching bracelets, each with a different colored sapphire set in a finely crafted ring.
“Purple and black,” Aksion noted.
Popetcherian had requested Elia and Aksion’s magical energy. While everyone is born with some magic, the amount varies. Popetcherian used a small amount of their magic to create the bracelets.
“Isn’t he talented?” Elia said. She had thought he was only skilled with sapphires, but his work with precious metals was exceptional. She was sure these would sell out quickly. Elia took his wrist. “Let me put this on you.”
The purple one was for Aksion, and the black one for Elia. Aksion looked at the bracelet on his wrist.
“It feels like I’ve seen you in a new light,” he said.
“What do you mean?” Elia asked.
“Never mind,” Aksion shook his head, though he seemed to like the bracelet, caressing the purple sapphire as if it were a treasure.
“Do you like it?” she asked.
“Because it contains a part of you, Elia. I’ll treasure it.”
A magic-infused sapphire was indeed valuable, but Aksion had grown up around many precious things. As he touched the bracelet, he asked, “Elia, do you find my magic repulsive?”
His hesitation suggested nervousness. His magic, inherited from his family, should have been a pure white, but was tainted black by the darkness within him.
‘It would stay the same even if he mastered the darkness,’ Elia thought. Her communion with Aksion was meant to help him harness the darkness without being consumed by it.
“I’ve never thought of it that way. Actually…” Elia looked at the black bracelet, finding it as beautiful as obsidian.
“Elia, you’ve never feared me,” Aksion said, holding her hand. He lowered his head and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of her hand.
“That’s because I know you’re not someone who would be swayed by your magic,” she replied.
His eyes, bright as rubies, held a pure gaze filled with affection for her. ‘Why does he do this?’ Elia wondered, averting her eyes—not out of dislike, but because she was too embarrassed to meet his gaze. Since his confession about being more proactive, she felt particularly self-conscious.
Understanding her feelings, Aksion smiled.
