After Noel discovered Leticia, the royal palace was thrown into chaos. The Wings, who believed they had thoroughly protected Leticia, were all in shock.
To make matters worse, Leticia’s condition, after being attacked, rapidly deteriorated. Fortunately, there was nothing physically wrong with her, but she cried so much that she could not compose herself.
The problem was that even Leticia herself did not know why she was crying. The Wings, watching her from the side, felt as if the sky was falling.
“Kailas, is she really alright? Your Highness! Please check again, properly. Hurry!”
Noel urged her comrades, her cheeks wet with tears. She hated herself for being so engrossed in training that she didn’t notice anything until Leticia ended up like this. Banessa, standing nearby, was in a similar state. He bit her lips until they bled, waiting for the doctors’ diagnosis.
“Don’t worry, Sir. Both the Saintess and the Royal Heir are healthy. But, of course, you need to be careful for a while.”
At the doctor’s words, Banessa tightly closed his eyes.
“Due to the shock of this incident, the Saintess has exhausted a lot of her energy. If she overexerts herself any more, it could be really dangerous.”
Despair washed over them. As a Wing, they had failed to protect Leticia, and as a Principality knight, they had failed to protect the Queen and the Royal Heir. If even the slightest harm came to either of them, they would never forgive themselves until their dying day.
“Leticia!”
At that moment, Dietrian arrived. Leticia weakly lifted her eyelids. Dietrian hurriedly approached her.
“Leticia, are you conscious? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Leticia, looking at him with tear-stained eyes, moved her lips.
“I have something to ask. I want to talk, just the two of us.”
“Understood.”
As Dietrian nodded, the Wings quickly left the room. Dietrian looked sympathetically at her swollen eyes and then checked her hand.
“I heard your hand was injured. Did it hurt a lot?”
“My hand is fine. Kailas treated it right away.”
“Then why did you cry so painfully? What exactly happened?”
Leticia, looking at him silently, whispered.
“Dietrian. Is it you?”
“What?”
“Are you taking the curse in my place? Is that it?”
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, Dietrian flinched. He quickly hid his agitation, but it was enough. Leticia, looking at him sorrowfully, whispered.
“…Actually, Rehir tried to activate the curse. But he failed. Then he told me. There were no traces of the curse left. So I realized. It was obvious. I never broke the curse. Where else could the traces go? Only you are left.”
Dietrian’s face showed a troubled expression. Leticia weakly leaned her face against his shoulder.
“Without telling me, I hate you.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“I know it couldn’t be helped because of the child.”
“Leticia.”
“I know. You hid it for my sake. Knowing my personality, you had no choice. Honestly, it’s just a complaint…”
In the past, she would not have accepted his choice, but now the situation had changed. They had become parents. She still loved him. She would give her life for him without hesitation, but not now. At this moment, protecting the child as parents was the most important thing.
So, for the time being, even knowing that Dietrian taking the risk was the best option, her heart still felt like it was being torn apart. It felt like her whole body would crumble from the sorrow. Leticia whispered tearfully.
“I saw a bird.”
Maybe the reason her heart was so shaken was because of that bird. As soon as she remembered its receding figure, she cried again. Dietrian gently stroked her back as she sobbed silently.
“It was such a beautiful and lovely blue. Watching that bird leave hurt so much. I shouldn’t have let it go, but I did…”
“Leticia.”
“I don’t know why I’m like this.”
Leticia burst into tears. Dietrian held her tightly. Her sorrow was completely conveyed to him. He swallowed his pain and closed his eyes.
* * *
Night had fallen over the royal palace. Julia, looking haggard, began to speak. The flickering candlelight cast deep shadows on her face.
“It wasn’t the power of darkness.”
Since the incident, Julia had been the busiest, running around everywhere. She thought the darkness had infiltrated due to a problem with the barrier she had set up. But that wasn’t the case.
“There was no problem with the barrier. There were no damaged areas. We searched everywhere, but nothing came up.”
She had been guarding the royal castle ever since she became the head of the knights. Although this time she wasn’t dealing with people or beasts, the defense principles were the same. One shouldn’t let their guard down just because they repelled an intrusion. There would definitely be another attempt. To prevent that, she needed to know who the enemy was and what their weaknesses were. After spending hours on it, she could say for certain.
“It wasn’t darkness that attacked Her Highness. This much is clear.”
“…So that’s why my spirits didn’t recognize Rehir’s minions.”
Banessa muttered gloomily. The flames of purification burned all evil, reacting most sensitively to darkness. Even if Julia’s barrier had missed the darkness, the flames of purification should have noticed it. Instead, the spirits of light were flying around joyfully while Leticia was being attacked. The more time passed, the more her guilt turned into anger towards Rehir.
“If it wasn’t darkness, then there’s only one possibility left.”
Calisto pressed his temples as if he had a headache.
“Rehir must be using a different power, something other than darkness. It must be something pure, like the power of light, which darkness couldn’t even imitate.”
The problem was that using light was not easy for darkness. Just as a hand stained with soot would eventually stain a white cloth, no matter how careful one was, the power of light would inevitably be tainted by the touch of darkness. So it was even more perplexing how Rehir’s minions penetrated the barrier of the Wings. Calisto muttered in frustration.
“It’s my mistake. I underestimated Rehir. I should have anticipated that he would be this prepared.”
No matter what method Rehir used, his minions managed to neutralize the Wings’ barrier. This was not something that could be done in just a few weeks, no matter how powerful they were. It went against the very obvious law of nature, that black paint would eventually stain a white cloth. They must have been preparing for a long time.
“No matter what that lunatic did, that’s not what’s important right now.”
Noel spoke, her eyes burning with hatred towards Rehir.
“The important thing is that his minions are still alive! They could break through the barrier and approach Leticia again! They might have already infiltrated the palace!”
“Noel, that’s unlikely. His Highness and Ahwin are protecting the Saintess right now. Please calm down.”
“Calm down? Did you just tell me to calm down? The Saintess is hurt! How can I calm down when that lunatic attacked the Saintess!”
“Kh… Please refrain from swearing. My daughter is listening…”
The doctor said, covering Irene’s ears with a frightened face. Hearing about Irene made Noel, who was about to snap back, pause.
Seeing her pale father, Irene shook her head. She knew everything despite her young age, but she found her overprotective father frustrating. Still, she understood his feelings, so she just shrugged. Then she gently held Noel’s hand tightly.
Though not the reincarnation of the High Priest, she empathized with Noel’s sorrow and anger as a fellow Wing.
Feeling the small hand wrap around her, Noel’s face contorted as if she were about to cry. Despite Irene’s composure, she felt ashamed for becoming emotional as the First Wing. With a trembling voice, Noel apologized to the doctor and Irene.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t act like an adult. I’m sorry, Irene. You must have been very scared. I won’t…”
As she spoke, a surge of emotions overwhelmed her. Seeing Leticia’s blood had unleashed all the fear she had been suppressing all day.
After witnessing Ahwin’s near-death right next to her, the thought of her loved ones getting hurt became a tremendous fear for Noel. She quickly turned her head to hide her expression but couldn’t hold back her tears.
Seeing Noel like that, Irene sympathetically pulled away the doctor’s hands covering her ears. She approached Noel, who was silently crying with her face covered, and hugged her waist tightly.
“Sister, don’t worry.”
“…Okay.”
Noel barely nodded. Julia watched the two of them and gave a bitter smile.
“The child is better than the adults.”
Saying this, she closed her eyes for a moment and let out a long sigh. Thanks to Irene, the tense atmosphere eased slightly. However, there was still someone deeply troubled: Banessa. Julia glanced at Banessa beside her and joked.
“Banessa, do you want me to hold your hand too?”
“…What?”
Banessa looked at Julia in disbelief.
“Are you joking right now?”
“What’s wrong with a joke?”
Julia shrugged.
“Will frowning solve anything? Can scowling make Rehir’s minions disappear?”
“…No, it can’t.”
“You need composure to get things done. Especially in times like this, you must not be swayed by emotions. The more desperate you are, the more you must not lose your calm.”
“You’re right. But.”
Banessa laughed weakly and slumped his shoulders.
“It’s hard to stay calm. You know it too. If it weren’t for Her Highness, I would have lost my leg.”
“Yes, I know.”
Julia nodded.
“I’m the same as you. She saved Enoch for me. That’s not all; I owe Madam Mano a lifelong debt of gratitude. So I will definitely protect Her Highness.”
Mano had changed Julia’s life, taking better care of her than her own mother who abandoned her. She wanted to bring joy to Mano. Julia whispered softly.
“So that Madam Mano can hold the royal heir, and be happy for a long time with Her Highness, whom she cherishes like a daughter, I will do anything. That way, Madam Mano’s wound from losing her son can heal a little.”
“…Yes.”
“And for now, you don’t have to worry. I have instructed the spirits firmly.”
Julia said in a deliberately cheerful voice.
“I told them not to let any unauthorized power in, even if it’s not the power of darkness.”
While everyone was resolutely setting their hearts on protecting Leticia for their own reasons, the blue bird sent by Rehir had already reached the outskirts of the royal palace. Just like when it arrived during the day, the palace was protected by a shimmering transparent barrier. The bird, which had been about to nonchalantly pass through the barrier, quickly changed direction and perched on a branch. It tilted its head.
Something has changed?
The barrier, shining white under the moonlight, felt different. The bird stared at the barrier with its jewel-like black eyes. It sensed a change but couldn’t pinpoint what was different.
But I must go.
Being a soul fragment devoid of intellect, the bird couldn’t think deeply. Rehir’s command echoed incessantly in its mind.
