… The sound of footsteps echoed slowly…
— Kyrion, huh? — murmured Keltherion, with a smooth but weighted voice, as he slowly walked toward me.
Each of his steps reverberated through the dimly lit room, as if the very floor could feel the weight of his restrained fury. In the shadows, only part of his face was revealed — the half illuminated by the cold glow of the torches. His half-closed, merciless eyes never left mine.
— You know… it's been a while now that, every time I call Aurëalis, so Lyssandra and I can see her… she seems different. — He stopped, just a few steps from me. His shadow, long and imposing, covered almost everything between us.
— Before the classes began at that school… she was still the same girl she had always been. Reserved. Serious. Discreet, yet kind. She talked to everyone, yes, but never let herself get carried away. She was… incorruptible.
Keltherion sighed heavily, as if carrying the weight of memories that refused to stay in the past.
— She was… and still is… the living symbol of everything Lumina stands for. Purity. Nobility. Discipline. Even at such a young age, she always carried a maturity far beyond her years, as if she had been born to be more than just an heiress — as if she were destined to be the light that will, in due time, guide our kingdom to eternal glory.
— Her beauty is indescribable, yes… but that's not what it's all about. It goes far beyond appearance. Aurëalis inspires. Her presence transforms. She is admired not just by us, but by all the realms — even by those who look at us with distrust. And through her, Lumina began to shine with even greater intensity. A brilliance that surpasses borders, that grows stronger every day, as she becomes an extraordinary female. Wiser. Stronger. The very embodiment of a god.
He walked in circles for a moment, with his fingers tapping restlessly against his fist.
— Do you understand what I mean, Kyrion? She is not just our daughter. She is… influence, power, symbol. And because of that, anyone would do anything to have her by their side. Anyone.
His voice faltered for just a second, betraying a layer of pain and paternal pride. He stopped again, but this time his eyes pierced into mine like blades.Then, in the blink of an eye, his body moved with impossible speed. In an instant, he was inches from me, with his face just a breath away. The light in his eyes — incandescent, furious — looked like a supernova about to collapse.
— But then… she entered that damn school. And everything started to change.
The rage in his voice was controlled, but sharp as glass. He stepped back a few paces, clenching his fists tightly enough to make the joints crack.
— At first, even Lyssandra tried to justify it. "She's happy, that's all," she said. "Friends she hadn't seen in a while, a new environment, freedom… She's just adjusting."... And Yeah, that could be it... But I… I'm not that naïve. I'm not so easily deceived.
— Seeing the way she had been acting, I realized I had to make a difficult decision… but a necessary one. Send one of our best investigators to observe her — secretly. Someone who, even aware of the risks of watching her, and her skills to sense any kind of surveillance, was experienced enough to carry out the mission.
— As soon as he infiltrated, he began sending me daily reports. And, little by little, strange signs began to appear. Unexplained disappearances. Sudden mood swings. Excessive smiles. A happiness… out of place. And even something I thought would be difficult, like spying on her in secret, turned out to be incredibly easy, since she seemed lost in her thoughts most of the time.
Keltherion turned sideways, as if recounting a personal tragedy to a stranger in a tavern.
— And then... one day, I received a message. The worst of all. One that almost broke me into pieces the moment I saw it.
He then turned to me with a furious gaze.
— You know what it said?
I remained calm, even tough my muscles were extremely tense beneath my skin. Deep down, I could already guess the answer.
— No. What did it say? — I said.
He let out a bitter laugh. And then, without warning, his fist struck my stomach with brutal force. The air rushed out of my lungs, as if sucked into the void.
— Ugh… Cough… Cough… you… bastard… — I muttered, gasping, trying to catch my breath.
Keltherion ran a hand through his hair, breathing deeply, and let out a satisfied sigh.
— That… was great. I needed that.
He straightened up and began pacing again, now calmer.
— The message said… that Aurëalis was meeting someone. Frequently. And because of that, she was changing. Truly changing.
He then closed his eyes for a moment.
— I was right. Unfortunately, I was right.
Then he stopped, and a dense silence fell between us.
— But for me, the worst part wasn't knowing she was seeing someone — he said, with a heavy and filled with resentment voice.
— The worst part… was finding out who she was seeing.
And suddenly, he turned in a wild motion, and a punch struck the side of my face. My blood — dark, thick like the void — splattered to the ground.
— WITH A… — he roared.
Then another blow, this time to the other side of my face, made me stagger, and more blood ran from my mouth.
— …VOID DRAGON! — he finished, slamming his fist into my face one last time.
Pain pulsed through my skull. My body swayed. But I remained conscious. Silent.
Keltherion was breathing heavily, panting, overcome by emotion.
— You have no idea how much rage I felt. I wanted to storm that damned school. Tear you away from there. Make you bleed until you never even thought about Aurëalis again! Even if it sparked the flames of a new war between our kingdoms... it would've been worth it.
He turned his back for a moment.
— But Lyssandra… she held me back. Said there was still time. That we could solve this with less uproar. That I should stay calm.
He let out a short, joyless laugh.
— So, I took a deep breath. I waited. I kept watching. And the more I saw, the more I knew, the more it consumed me. But I held it in, and kept every piece of that rage stored for a more oportune moment.
He turned back to me, with steady eyes.
— And then... finally, the right moment came. But to bring you here, we first needed to get Aurëalis out of your side. Because the way things were, she'd never leave you. So... we just needed a pretext. A simple reason. Something innocent enough to call her back home — a disguise. A performance. While behind the scenes… the real plan was already in motion: to capture you and make you pay.
He stepped closer again, with his gaze even colder than before.
— And in the end, you were brought here, Kyrion, for this final… conversation of ours. —
— Ha… Cough... Cough... And does Aurëalis know you did… all this? — I asked weakly, forcing a sarcastic smile despite the taste of blood still dripping from my mouth.
My mocking look, even in pain, seemed to cut Keltherion's pride like a blade. His expression of superiority twisted briefly, and the muscles in his face tensed with restrained anger. But instead of lashing out, he simply closed his eyes slowly, inhaled deeply, and with a cold smile, continued:
— Hahaha… Do you really think you're going to get under my skin more than you already have? Not now.
— As for your question… here's a hint: if I were you, I'd worry more about what's about to happen to you, and not whether she knows or not. Got it, you little shit?
This time, his footsteps echoed with more purpose, firm, like the prelude to another beating. His presence carried the kind of weight that could crush even a soul. He drew nearer, with his eyes burning like live embers, hungry for more violence.
But before his fists could once again find my face, something interrupted the moment.
… Knock... knock... knock…
Three slow, dry knocks broke the silence of the dark cell.
Keltherion stopped instantly, going still. The sound echoed through the damp, cold walls like a grim omen.
— Huff... Huff... Not going to answer that? — I mocked, breathing hard.
He turned with reluctance and walked to a part of the darkness to the left of the cell. His fingers found something metallic, and then, with a heavy creak, the cell door opened. The corridor's light sliced into the gloom like a blade.
At the threshold stood a tall man with impeccable posture and a thick, carefully trimmed mustache, waiting with reverence. Undoubtedly one of Keltherion's personal butlers — his presence exuded formality and urgency.
They exchanged words in low tones. I couldn't catch it all, but the butler's voice was serious. When the short exchange ended, Keltherion turned back to me once more.
— Seems like… at least for now, you've been saved by fate, boy.
He pulled out a white handkerchief and began wiping the blood from his hands as if cleaning up after an unpleasant dinner.
— But don't worry, I'll be back soon to continue our conversation…
With one last scorching look, he crossed the doorway. The metal shut behind him with a click, and the light vanished, returning the cell to worn-out gloom, where flickering torches barely kept the shadows at bay.
Silence.
— Tsk… Damn it… — I murmured to myself, spitting a bit of blood onto the floor.
My body ached. My thoughts, even more.
— Who would've thought… Keltherion in person... Tsk... Looks like I'm really screwed.
I looked up and stared at the cracked ceiling.
— So… something was going on with Aurëalis, huh?
Her name hovered in my thoughts at that moment.
— Tsk... If only I hadn't doubted Lyrielle so much… Maybe I...
My jaw clenched. That wouldn't help.
— No, Kyrion. What's done is done. Complaining won't change anything. The only thing that matters now... is finding a way out of here as fast as possible.
As my body struggled to stay upright and my thoughts began to form escape plans, the scene shifted.
In another part of Lumina Castle, far from that damp cell, Keltherion walked swiftly through long, luxurious corridors. His destination was the princess's chamber, where Aurëalis had remained locked since the day she returned from the school.