Tinasha looked at the spirits on either side of her and snapped her fingers. “All right then… let’s do a little trial.” In response, the two spirits teleported to other points around Simila, so that they formed a triangle with Tinasha. Tinasha stretched out her right hand, palm facing up. “Despair that refuses sleep soars through the night. The moon shines on the far side of the sky, a prayer that can never cross over. “So shall it be defined, so shall it manifest. Power as power shall seek that line. Upon disappearing it will turn to nothing in the air. “I command the procession to never end. Hidden words confront form.” As the queen recited her incantation, the two spirits also began their own. An enormous array stitched together in the sky, Tinasha’s spell intermingling with those constructed by Karr and Mila to make an intricate configuration. The mages controlling the snake noticed the unique magic and looked up to the sky. At first, Tinasha and her spirits had remained invisible in order to observe the group. Now they appeared proudly as embodiments of devastating power. As the mages below realized the spell was like a net entrapping them, they trembled with fear. “Hey! Put up a barrier…” “We can’t, there’s no time!” They were right, for not a moment later, the spell was complete, and its magic triggered. Silver chains manifested, glittering as they fell onto Simila. An argent web now hung on the snake’s gigantic form. Power began to burst as it blanketed the evil god. A flash of light seared the world. Moments later, a delayed boom from the explosion rent the air. A Cezar mage crouched to the ground, ducking and covering his head. Hot wind whipped up pebbles that buffeted his body. There came the horrible sound of bits of flesh whistling through the air. Seconds later, all was silent again, and the mage gingerly looked around. Beyond a cloud of dust lay the ebon form of Simila. The mage stood up to assess the situation—but that was when a strange sensation made his hair stand on end. He looked down. Scattered black residue was tangled around his feet. Very slowly, it crawled up his legs. “Ahhhh!” he shrieked in fear, but there was no need for that. The vestiges of Simila leaped up farther on his body from that momentum, wrapped around his throat, and tore into him. “Oh no… That’s revolting,” remarked Tinasha, her face twisted with disgust as she watched this all play out from above. Her attack had blown up half of the snake, but the residue was devouring nearby mages to reconstitute itself. In a matter of seconds, the evil god had created a dozen moving corpses and had returned to its original shape. Tinasha could also tell that it was drawing up more power from its tail, which was connected to the hole. Slowly, Simila lifted its head to face its enemy in the sky. Eyes as red as blood fixed right on Tinasha. Its scarlet tongue flicked out as if it were locking onto its prey. There was no doubting this unsightly creature was an evil god. An ordinary person would have already collapsed from fear, but Tinasha regarded it evenly, meeting its crimson gaze. As she watched, the serpent slowly drew its head back. Then it launched itself at Tinasha, swift as the wind. It whizzed through the air at such a speed that it was invisible. But she had expected this. As Tinasha expanded her defensive barrier, she dodged to the left of Simila’s maw. The snake noticed this, however, and twisted itself in midair, turning to grab her. With a frown, the queen began to cast a new spell while maintaining her defensive one. “Take that!” she cried, sending herself and her barrier flying through the air to kick both feet at the snake’s head. The recoil bounced her away. Then she brought both hands together and released more magic. An intangible pressure twisted Simila’s neck, and an ear-piercing shriek escaped its throat. “Ugh, it’s so loud…” Tinasha teleported over to Karr to escape the writhing serpent. Despite the force tightening around the evil god’s body, it showed no signs of weakening. “We’re in quite the predicament. We can use these makeshift measures to keep it restrained, but that won’t solve anything for good,” grumbled Tinasha. If she didn’t completely eliminate this thing, the corpses out on the plains would keep moving. But she was up against something very powerful, not an opponent that would go down easily. Karr gazed down at his master. “What do you wanna do, little girl?” “Hmm… mmm… can we cut off the power coming from that hole?” Karr glanced over at the pit the snake had crawled from, and then over at Mila, who was floating a distance away from it. The evil god was still wriggling about, trying to break free of the pressure on its neck. “Not with two of us,” Karr answered. “But I think five could do it.” “Then that’s what we’ll go with,” the queen decided. “What’ll you do once the supply is cut off?” Karr inquired curiously. Tinasha smiled. Her dark eyes narrowed like she was looking at something far in the distance. “Do you remember when I was made the way I am now?” Karr let out a little gasp. Of all the spirits, he was the one who knew exactly what she was referring to—that incident four hundred years ago when she absorbed huge amounts of magic. Karr had been the ruling king’s spirit at the time, and while he hadn’t been in the room, he’d pieced together what happened based on the flow of magic. “Hey… are you really thinking of absorbing that thing?” “Not much of it is made of magic. I will divert away the souls and flesh and take in only the raw power. Once it no longer has the strength to stay manifested, it should fall apart on its own,” Tinasha explained, her light tone belying the severity of what she was proposing. Karr gave her a warning. “That does sound logical, but it’s really dangerous. What if you take in too much magic and you explode?” “If it starts to feel like I can’t handle it, I’ll drain some of it away,” she stated, flashing the spirit a reassuring smile. It was hard to tell who was the master and who was the servant. Tinasha ever placed herself in the most dangerous positions. Once the spirits answered their queen’s call and appeared, they were free to carry out her orders as they saw fit. But that, in turn, meant that they could not render aid unless called upon. Tinasha was the type to avoid relying on others, to a reckless degree. She would first try to solve the problem herself. Karr, who had known the young woman since her childhood, grew occasionally frustrated with how stubborn she could be. As he looked between his master, still so small, and the gigantic coils of Simila, he snorted. “I guess this is the only way…” None of them knew if there was a limit on the power feeding into the serpent from that hole. That made a prolonged head-on battle disadvantageous. The surest way to eliminate it would be with its power supply cut off. Karr acknowledged Tinasha’s plan, and she nodded. “Go ahead, then.” As she spoke, Tinasha summoned up three more spirits and positioned herself before Simila’s vermilion eyes once more. It had finally shaken off the constraints she’d placed on it. Farsas held the front line and gradually began to push the Cezar troops back. Magical explosions detonated constantly, blasting apart the Cezar forces. Witnessing that power from the very front of the vanguard, Oscar gave a wan smile. He said to the spirit woman floating next to him, “Wow, was the war with Tayiri four hundred years ago like this?” “No,” answered Lilia. “The corpses are moving much slower and burning easier this time, so things are going far more smoothly. We also didn’t have as many mages from Tuldarr… It was particularly hard fighting against the cavalry.” “I see,” Oscar responded. Lilia flicked out a hand and a lightning bolt blew away some cadavers. Without stopping to check that it had worked, she moved on. The four spirits the queen had left were flitting about the front lines, providing support all over. They were immensely strong, which came as powerful reassurance to the Farsas troops. “The hard part is not being able to see the end of all this,” Oscar muttered to himself, clearing away a swarm of rotting warriors as he steadily pushed the front line forward. Just then, he detected something sharp and bloodthirsty heading for him from the side. Glancing over, he saw a cavalry battalion amid the corpses. At its forefront, a man clad in armor and armed with a longsword glared at Oscar with blazing eyes. Oscar regarded him with bemusement. The cavalry soldiers, so determined to fight, stood out among the lethargic dead. With a roar, they suddenly charged for the front line. The man in the lead was headed right for the king. With a shrill cry, he lifted his sword high overhead. Oscar yanked his horse’s neck aside and met the blade with his own. The man’s voice was a growl as he gave his name. “I am Tauma, a Cezar general. I know you to be the king of Farsas. You will battle me.” “Sure, but… are you even alive?” Oscar jabbed. Tauma gave an unpleasant grin. “Why don’t you find out for yourself?!” The man’s sword came whistling down for Oscar’s life, but he parried it handily and counterattacked. All around the two, mounted fighters on both sides clashed. Those mages mixed in were handling the corpses. The stench of blood and steel commingled over the plain. Deep down, Oscar was shocked by how skilled Tauma was with a blade. His technique blended strength with accuracy. Even in a regular battle, he would be worthy of commanding a unit. However, that was as far as it went. The exchange continued almost methodically until Oscar abruptly sped up his next thrust. Tauma narrowly evaded it, but he couldn’t dodge the one after. Akashia sank into the joint between the armor plates at his shoulder, and then Oscar poured strength and speed into cutting Tauma down from his horse. The serpent’s head lanced forward like an arrow, closing in on Tinasha. She barely dodged to the right; it missed her by a hair. Black thorns formed on the evil god’s skin and homed in on her. Tinasha whipped out the dagger at her waist and sliced at the sharp barbs. As she leaped farther back, she lopped off the tips. “Ngh…” There was a stab wound on her left thigh. Blood dripped and scattered on the breeze, but she ignored it and cast a new spell. “Rise forth, o spray—” Tinasha fired off five orbs of light with exact precision. As each struck Simila, black filth burst forth with a muffled whump. The substance wriggled slowly through the air before returning to the snake’s body. The serpent lifted its head in Tinasha’s direction; evidently the attack had accomplished nothing. “It’s like one endless, muddy mess. Oh, are we ready?” muttered the queen as she raced through the air. She glanced down at the hole after receiving word from one of her spirits. The five of them were floating in a circle above the pit the snake’s tail connected to. An intricate spell configuration had already appeared. “Then let’s get started…” On the queen’s command, magic suffused the array. A spell pattern written in crimson emerged over the hole and cut through the tail. A burning, crackling noise sounded as interlocking rings slowly revolved. Sensing something abnormal had struck its body, Simila turned back toward the pit. Its red eyes blazed as it focused on the five spirits. It never had a chance to strike, for a cool voice commanded, “Over here.” Tinasha held out her arms. Simila craned its neck until she was within its sights. With an arresting smile, she intoned her spell. “The very first and very last despair you meet shall be me. Now let us dance.” The snake’s murderous fury and the woman’s compassion locked together in the air between them. Tinasha flung her arms open wide and a gigantic spell appeared. As the serpent lunged to rip her soft body apart, Tinasha sent the magic hurtling toward it. Silver threads billowed out into a veil of sorts that settled over the evil god. Immediately, a plume of oily smoke rose from the serpent, and an acrid stench of rotten flesh wafted on the breeze. With a flick of her slender fingers, Tinasha sank her spell deeper into the gigantic serpent. There was a sound like the tinkling of the finest chains being drawn. The silver threads were dismantling the flesh, human souls, and magic that made up Simila’s body. Dark, discolored flesh dripped to the ground, while the human souls turned to pale light. Tinasha diverted both away while pulling in the magic that remained. Recognizing that its very existence was gradually waning, Simila seethed with more resentment than ever as it glared at Tinasha. Its black head lowered a fraction. Then it lunged for her, its jaw open as wide as it could go in an attempt to swallow the young woman whole. It rammed into her protective barrier at a terrifying speed, but the magic shield held firm. Tinasha had no words to describe what was happening The magic she had taken in circulated through her body. She could feel her blood growing hot. Some sort of exquisite pain racked her frame. At times, attacks grazed the queen’s skin and sent blood flying, but she was indeed steadily dismantling the snake. The spirits observed the process, all with different expressions. The spell they had cast did a masterful job of keeping back the sinister power that was attempting to creep out of the hole. One spirit peered into the dark pit. “Will this disappear once that snake does?” “Probably. It looks like the terms of manifestation are centered within the serpent. We’ll need to clean up the hole, but it shouldn’t be too difficult once that thing is gone.” “Will our queen be all right?” another spirit asked with obvious concern, but Karr only gave a wan smile. Their master had a fragile body, but the power within it far surpassed theirs. She was very much like a witch in that way, although it was a mystery how a human became one of them. Perhaps it was because human lives were so unstable that occasionally one shone with fearsome radiance. The snake glided through the air. The silver threads eating into it pulsed with the glow of magic. Pure red blood trailed in Tinasha’s wake. Tinasha flew up to dodge another lunge of Simila’s head. Then she placed both hands on its body and slid herself around its circumference. She poured magic into every spot she touched, disassembling the creature. Only about half of Simila’s corporeal form remained. “Dissolve…” With all ten fingers, Tinasha manipulated the spell. Bit by bit, the gigantic head lost shape, leaving only those wicked eyes. As Simila’s power diminished, Tinasha’s grew immensely. When it seemed that victory was inevitable, Simila abruptly ruptured, scattering in all directions. Its enormous form turned to black filth and dispersed. The spirits looked up at the dark remnants floating in the sky. “Is it over?” “No…” Karr gasped. Bits of black gunk were swooping down on Tinasha one after another. With an annoyed click of her tongue, Tinasha attempted to flee, but the filth entwined around her legs before she could. Shaking it off was useless, as it hardened instantly, giving the remaining bits plenty of time to gobble up her delicate frame. “No…” The queen was no longer visible. There was only a pulsating, bulbous black blob floating in the air. Snapping out of her stupefied state, Mila made to shoot off into the air. “Mila! Don’t get close to it!” Karr shouted to stop her. The red-haired girl whirled to face him, fury clear in her glare. “We need to get it off her now! It’s going to use the magic she sucked in to possess her!” “If you abandon the spell, she’ll never win completely. Have a bit more faith!” Karr’s words rang true, and Mila fell silent. They were the ones keeping Simila from its power. If they stopped, and the gunk grew stronger, it would consume Tinasha. Gnawing on her lip in frustration, Mila returned to her post. The spirits all gazed upward. A weakly pulsating sac hung in the air beneath the blue sky like something ripped from a nightmare. “Lady Aeterna, the world is not only what we can see with our eyes. So many invisible layers are stacked together, and we call these planes of existence. From heavenly virtues to the depths of the sea, one world encapsulates all of that.” She had heard that somewhere before, although she couldn’t recall where or when. It was very dark. Why was she in such a place? An unnamed consciousness drifted in a space without time. Wordless whispers surrounded her. Resentment, resignation, and grief swirled about her like stagnant water. The place opened by human flesh and souls. The interior of a bottomless hole. It was so very bleak. There was nowhere to go. “You should just go to sleep,” whispered Resignation. “All things end in tragedy,” whispered Grief. She was puzzled. Is that really so? “There is no way you’ve never held a grudge against someone,” whispered Resentment. She gave a bittersweet smile. Yes, she had held grudges. But she could not remember them now. She sank deeper into the darkness. No, she wasn’t falling. Planes of existence were slowly passing through her. At the bottom of the hole was a murky sea. The human world was actually flimsy and treacherous. This was the place below its bottommost layer. The human realm was like a tiny boat drifting through a stormy ocean at night. Once anyone learned of the endlessness beneath, fear would overtake them and rob them of happiness. She observed herself sinking through the depths as if it were happening to someone else. Exhaustion permeated her, and a faint grin came to her lips. Then she became aware of the expression, and it turned sharp and wry. She could smile. No matter how bad it was or how sad she felt, she could smile if she wanted to. “You’re so scared you can’t help it,” something whispered. “I’m not scared,” she answered, and she stretched out one ivory hand. “What do you want?” “I want,” came the reply. “I want to become one. Then there will be true stability. An incomparable peace of mind. The undermost layer the human soul can reach will catch every drop.” “I don’t mind. But you are the same as me.” “The same.” The words echoed around. She continued. “When you acquire me, I also acquire you. From the beginning, we have always been connected. It’s only our names that are different.” The darkness was silent. Confusion developed. After a while, an answer came back from the drifting sediment. “Then we are still different.” The darkness asked for her name. She thought for a bit. As she scanned the lightless expanse, her lips formed the words, “My name is undefined.” She still lacked a title to represent her being. She had not yet hit on one, nor had she transformed into anything else. However, she did know one thing. “My element is—innovation.” Each person was born with an element they were unaware of. However, she now understood hers. Her words evoked its true essence. A change began to ripple through the gloom. At first, she thought she had begun to float upward, but realized she wasn’t moving. Innumerable planes of existence were passing through her. All of them were part of the world. She knew each and every layer. Her soul knew them. So she touched the world and discovered the foreign objects placed inside it and the gazes trained on it. She turned to look back at the planes passing by her. “Are you waiting?” They were quickly moving very far away. Even the things she had understood were vanishing. She had never been a special piece of the puzzle. Yet the destiny she’d been given and the fate she’d chosen made her something different. Under Mila’s watchful glare, the black mass gradually shrank in size. At first, she thought she was imagining it, but she wasn’t. The sac contracted as though being sucked into its center. Then it ruptured open with a muffled sound. Magic, souls, and remnants of flesh went flying, and in the middle of it all was a floating woman. The backlash from the magic sent her glossy black hair whirling up behind her. Her wet, dark eyes burdened with sorrow were downcast. Power erupted from her right hand, clearing the air. At the same time, the hole from which Simila had manifested shrank as well. The dull, stagnant feel in the air faded, and Mila cried out, “Lady Tinasha!” She glanced at the spirits, smiled, and attempted to wave at them, but flinched. “Oo-ow… I haven’t felt pain like this in… four hundred years…” “Of course you haven’t. You’re saturated with magic,” Karr replied, shaking his head as he teleported to his master’s side and gathered her up. “We’ll handle the cleanup. You should go rest.” “Urgh… sorry about this…” What power Tinasha hadn’t absorbed was floating on the breeze. Although the hole had shrunk, it wasn’t closed yet. If they didn’t work more spells to get things sorted, all of it would end up rooted here. “Should I send you to Tuldarr?” Karr asked. “Oh… no, please bring me to the fortress of Ynureid.” “All right.” Tinasha looked to all five of the spirits present. “Thank you,” she said to them. They bowed silently in response. A smile bloomed on the beautiful queen’s face, and she and Karr vanished. The wind ran across the battlefield. There may not have actually been a breeze, but to Oscar, it felt like there was. The body before him lay collapsed and motionless. And it wasn’t just that one. One by one, the corpses toppled to the ground in a wave that left the Farsas army speechless. Cezar’s forces, which had already been reduced to half their original number, instantly dwindled to almost nothing. The Cezar cavalry paled to see their fighting cadavers rendered motionless. Until now, they had been at a disadvantage, but the wall of moving dead had kept them safe from the Farsas troops. Suddenly, that buffer was gone, and discomfort was clear on their faces. Oscar eyed the Cezar soldiers, smirking. “I guess that means… she won.” No one was there to confirm it, but the dramatic change spoke for itself. To his attendants, Oscar said, “Let’s mop this up quick and head back. I’m sick of looking at those dead things.” Sunlight poured down from the cloudless sky. On almost all the bodies blanketing the plain, there were no scars and no spilled blood. The nightmarish landscape was sure to make stories of this battle the stuff of legends. Sylvia was there at the rampart to receive Karr and Tinasha when they teleported over. The young blond mage hurriedly showed them to a guest chamber so Tinasha could rest. The room was sparsely decorated, but Karr breathed a sigh of relief as he lay his master on the wide bed. As he scrutinized Tinasha’s pale, bloodless face, he asked, “How do you feel? You okay?” “I’ll be back to normal after a little sleep. Thank you.” “Good,” Karr replied, his face solemn as he gave the queen of Tuldarr a brisk pat on the head. It did occur to him that this wasn’t the sort of thing to do to one’s master, but to him, Tinasha was still the kid who’d lived in the detached wing of the palace. “All right, Mila’s still shaken, so I’m going to go and help get things wrapped up. You take care of our little girl, pretty lady,” Karr said to Sylvia. “I will!” Sylvia chirped, both fists clenched with determination. She brought over a clean cloth right away and wiped the sweat from Tinasha’s forehead. “What happened out there?” “I’m not too clear on that myself. My memories are hazy… I was in this weird place, and I feel like it made sense at the time, but… for some reason, I can’t remember now,” Tinasha answered. “Ah, that sounds like a dream. Although with dreams, you can still remember everything when you wake up.” “Yes, exactly. But in any case, I believe Cezar’s forces should be severely crippled. The corpses are all dead for good.” “Then that means the king will be coming back soon, too!” Sylvia exclaimed with a grin, which made Tinasha smile, as well. When Oscar saw her, he’d probably chastise her for doing something reckless. Absorbing the magic that made up an evil god was not a feat for a normal person. When Tinasha took in all that magic four hundred years ago, the pain had been so awful that she’d been bedridden for a week. Even so, Tinasha wanted to see him. Feeling supremely sleepy, she closed her eyes. That was when a man’s voice sounded in the room. “We’ve got to hurry. I don’t want to run into that Akashia swordsman.” Both women’s eyes snapped wide open at the unexpected intrusion. Reflexively, Tinasha cast a spell. But just before she could complete it, something cold touched her wrist, and the spell dissolved. “Huh?” Sylvia was sent flying. She hit the wall and slumped to the floor. “Sylvia!” Forgetting her own agony, Tinasha tried to vault from the bed and run to her friend. Someone grabbed hold of her arm before she could, however. A man’s soft voice whispered in her ear, “You can have a nice long rest once we arrive. There’ll be plenty of time.” Everything went black. As Tinasha fell into darkness once again, she reached out. However, there was nothing to catch hold of. She lost consciousness. Most of the remaining Cezar troops had been subdued. Some had fled toward their homeland when Simila vanished. A cursory interrogation of the prisoners of war revealed that Cezar had long been controlled by Simila and the cult centered on worshipping it. The current king, in particular, did whatever the cult founder said, leaving royal family members and magistrates powerless. Speaking out against decisions was tantamount to asking for death. All the while, the founder amassed sacrifices from all over the country to make a corpse army. Among those bodies given were living people who forfeited their lives to Simila for the sake of the long-awaited war against Farsas. The cruelty and tragedy sounded like a terrible joke. Oscar made a face. “Should I kill that cult leader?” He hadn’t seen any such person during the fighting. Perhaps they were safe back in their own land. Still, now that Tinasha had destroyed the object of their worship, the cult and its leader would lose power. Things inside Cezar would probably fall to pieces, but that lay outside Oscar’s area of responsibility. While arranging for post-battle cleanup, Oscar headed back to the fortress to go and see the woman who had won the day. Naturally, he was aghast to discover something had happened that no one could have foreseen. “What’s going on here?” Kav shrank back in the face of the king’s indignation. Face pallid, he explained what had happened. Someone had abducted Tinasha from the room where she was resting. Sylvia had also been present and had been seriously wounded during the attack. Kav had learned of the events while healing her. Fury blazing in his blue eyes, Oscar asked, “Did he have silver hair?” The first possible culprit Oscar thought of was that demon king. He wouldn’t put a stunt like this past someone like him. However, the answer he got indicated otherwise. “No. It sounds like she didn’t get a very good look at his face, but he was wearing black mage robes,” Kav replied. Oscar mulled that over, and then another possibility occurred to him. “Could it be… Valt?” Reports had identified a male mage as being responsible for an attempt to poison Tinasha before she took the throne and for planting Delilah in the castle. Word had it that he bore a close resemblance to a Yardan court mage by the name of Valt who had visited Farsas before disappearing overnight. And the Simila cult sent Delilah to Farsas Castle. Everything was coming together. Valt’s aim was Tinasha all along. He had tried to extricate the young queen from Farsas and take her for himself. Oscar cursed himself for taking so long to realize this. Mila, evidently unable to stand it any longer, shouted, “Karr! This is all your fault! Why weren’t you with Lady Tinasha?!” “I’m sorry…,” Karr replied, hanging his head and making no attempt to defend himself. Mila looked like she wanted to start in on him, but Oscar interrupted. “Tinasha and I are the ones responsible. Can you track where she’s gone?” “Unfortunately… I can’t sense Lady Tinasha’s magic at all,” Mila confessed. “I think she’s either closed it off herself or something powerful has sealed it.” That left them with no trail to pursue. Irritation washed over Oscar, enough so that it showed on his face, a rarity when he was in the presence of others. “I’ll contact Legis first. Whoever abducted Tinasha may have sent a demand to Tuldarr.” The last time Tinasha was taken, Oscar had managed to retrieve her right away. He wanted to hope that this time would be no different. An unshakable dread settled deep within the king of Farsas, however. Oscar closed his eyes and remembered Tinasha’s clear smile from the last time he saw her. Legis was shocked to hear the news Farsas delivered. The queen had left the country with the mages she was training and her spirits a few hours prior. No matter her opponent, he hadn’t doubted that she would prevail. It had certainly never crossed his mind that she might vanish. Oscar went straight from the battlefield to Legis, where he was received in a salon reserved for confidential discussions. As soon as the king of Farsas caught sight of Legis, he bowed his head and apologized. “What happened is entirely my fault. I am deeply sorry.” “You don’t need to bow to me. She must have been negligent to some degree,” Legis replied. Tinasha herself had asserted that the single most crucial thing for a mage was meticulous preparation. And now she had fallen for a meticulously laid trap. Her enemy had bested her. As Legis sat down, unpleasant scenarios ran through his mind. “It’s possible we’ll receive a ransom demand… but if we don’t, it only spells greater danger.” Tinasha was a queen, after all. Her kidnappers might’ve only been after the woman herself. If that were the case, it would be very difficult to catch those responsible. Before Legis lost himself in speculation, Oscar said, “Farsas is also considering invading Cezar. Evidently, it is under the control of a religious cult at the moment, and it’s extremely likely that the man who abducted Tinasha is connected to that organization.” “Ah… isn’t it possible that her captors have already fled Cezar? If so, then rushing in after them might put Farsas at a disadvantage.” “I’m aware of that,” Oscar replied flatly. He had no interest in invading other countries, a fact made clear by how he hadn’t pursued Druza during their incursion. Plus, if he invaded Cezar now, other countries would naturally turn vigilant. Of course, it was obvious that Cezar was the one in the wrong, as it had mounted an army and brought in a forbidden curse, to boot. Yet it was Farsas that stood as a leading member of the Great Nations, and that was soon to be linked by marriage to Tuldarr. The country was perpetually in the spotlight, and thus subject to greater scrutiny and suspicion. All this was at the source of Legis’s concern. And Oscar was grateful for his candid thoughts. Legis’s advised prudence wouldn’t change Tinasha’s situation, though, and Oscar wanted to strike fast. Legis seemed to sense that determination in the other man and got to his feet, a pensive look on his face. “While she is… the queen of our country, I will leave this matter to you. To Tuldarr, she is like an unexpected stroke of luck. And that good fortune has always been directed at you. For that reason, Tuldarr will not criticize anything Farsas does in regard to her. We will work with you however we can, so please do everything to help her.” Oscar bit back a sigh. Legis must have known why Tinasha had come to this era. Tinasha likely hadn’t confessed as much directly, but the answer had been there if Legis had searched. A woman with such immense magic and authority had traveled four centuries to meet Oscar. Quite a few men would’ve found such a thing off-putting. While Oscar understood that Tinasha could be a handful, it came as a package deal with her intrepid spirit and her childlike innocence, making her a rare woman in his eyes. He wanted to make her his and never let her go. He certainly didn’t plan on relinquishing her to someone who’d taken her by force. “Thank you for your kindness. I promise I will bring her back,” Oscar declared with a bow. He then bid farewell to Legis and departed Tuldarr. There was no telling what the future held, but the king of Farsas stood on the front lines with firm resolve to forge his own tomorrow. “There aren’t very many enemy forces left. We could overrun them,” reported Mila, once Oscar returned to Ynureid, and he nodded. Most, but not all, of the spirits had expressed a desire to work with their master’s fiancé in her absence. First, they had gone to Cezar’s capital—the obvious starting place—for reconnaissance. Once the red-haired girl finished her report, she wrinkled her nose and tilted her head to one side. “If you used the army, wouldn’t it turn into a whole big thing and strand you there until everything resolves?” “Yep, which is why it’s a sort of last resort. We need to finish this as quickly as possible,” Oscar said. They didn’t know how many people they were up against, nor what their nature was. Based on how cleverly Tinasha’s abduction was carried out, it was clear that even if her captors were in Cezar, they would escape swiftly upon learning Farsas was invading. They might even have time to silence anyone who knew what was going on. “I wish there was a more surefire way to do this,” Oscar muttered. Karr and Mila said nothing. The king looked from the two spirits to his advisers and attendants. When his gaze landed on Doan, he suddenly recalled something. “Oh yeah… she put a protective barrier on me. Could we use that to track her?” “What? Oh, so she did. I would have never noticed without you pointing it out,” Mila commented. “She really did… It must be connected to her,” said Karr. “Could it work?” asked Oscar. Mila and Karr exchanged glances. Karr crossed his arms, making a face. “Not right now. We can’t see where the magic leads to. But if she were close by, it might lead to her.” “So I could be the key to tracking her down?” the king asked before falling into thought. No one missed the dangerous gleam in his eyes. The darkness said nothing. When Tinasha was little, she had read somewhere that it was only the living who attached meaning to death. Was it salvation or repentance that they sought from it? Regardless, it didn’t concern the departed. They no longer existed. Tinasha believed that human thought was sacred. However, when she learned that fact, it suddenly seemed like humans were not capable of genuinely mourning the deaths of others. It all felt so… tragic. When she awoke, she was lying on her back in an unfamiliar room. Her head was fuzzy, and her memories were a jumble. Tinasha slowly stretched both arms upward—and discovered something odd. A silver bracelet was touching her left wrist. It was thick and ancient-looking. Its appearance was not what made it unusual, however. Her wrist was not inside the bracelet. Instead, layers and layers of fine chains kept her wrist and the bracelet bound tightly together. “What in the world…?” She touched the bracelet with her other hand; nothing felt off about its hard exterior. Letting her arms fall, Tinasha yawned. Her body was heavy, and she wanted to sleep for just a bit longer. Just as she closed her eyes to pass out—a memory flashed through her mind. “Nnn!” With a wordless cry, she came back to her full awareness. She leaped to her feet, on top of the bed. There was no one else in the plain and yet spacious room. Rubbing at her aching head, Tinasha climbed to her feet. “Mila?” she called, which made her notice what was wrong. There had been no magic in the word. She couldn’t summon her spirits. That wasn’t all. When she tried to cast a spell, her magic scattered. Only two times in the past had her power been so completely blocked. The first was when she’d touched Akashia, and the second was when she’d been in the Lake of Silence. Dully, she stared at the bracelet attached to her. “I’ve been kidnapped…” She hoped that Sylvia was all right. Wondering where she was, Tinasha went over to the door that led to a balcony. Her room appeared to be on the second floor, overlooking lush greenery. The expansive gardens were not well maintained by any stretch of the imagination, and she inspected them with interest. Tinasha could make out a faint reflection of herself in the glass. She was still wearing her battle mage attire. Her own blood dotted the fabric in places. The dagger she’d carried and all her other magic implements had been taken. Scratching at her temple, Tinasha went back to the middle of the room and picked up a wooden chair. She hurled it at the door, and it flew through the air. But as she had feared, no cracks formed in the glass from the impact. There was only the sound of the impact. The chair toppled to the floor, one leg now twisted. “Hmm… this is a pretty sturdy barrier,” she commented. “So violent,” a man remarked dryly from the one doorway in the room. He had light brown hair and eyes of the same color. His appearance exuded intelligence, and he wore a calm smile. Tinasha spoke his name. “Valt?” “It’s been a while. I’m glad you were able to take the throne with no trouble,” replied the mage who’d used psychological magic to sneak into the court of Yarda. Here was the man who had apparently been involved in numerous plots against her. Cautiously, Tinasha turned to face him. “What do you hope to achieve? Who are you really?” Valt only laughed, but Tinasha didn’t miss the bizarre glint that flashed deep in his eyes for just a moment. She couldn’t use magic. No one could search for her. Truly isolated and helpless, Tinasha still drew herself up to her full height and fixed her gaze on him. That made Valt grin. “I’m not going to hurt you. I only want to talk. Come, I’ll make tea.” With that, he turned and left, leaving the door open. Tinasha wasn’t sure what to do, but in the end, she followed him. Once they reached a large dining table, Valt began to brew tea. “Go on and have a seat. It’ll be ready soon,” he said. Despite the vast size of the mansion, the layout was not an aristocratic one. The kitchen and the dining rooms were connected, like in a commoner’s home. Tinasha sat at the table while continuing to inspect her surroundings, and before long, cups of tea were brought out. When she took a sip, Valt smiled from his seat across from hers. “How does it taste?” “I make better tea.” “That’s a shame,” Valt answered with a laugh. Tinasha stared at him coldly. “So? What did you want to talk about?” “Must you rush? How are you feeling? You’ve been asleep for almost a full day.” “I wanted to rest for a little longer, but you’ve gone and done something ridiculous.” “I certainly didn’t expect you to absorb components of Simila’s physical form, but I should have known better. I did wish you’d waited a little longer, considering all the hard work I put into it, but it all went swimmingly.” Picking up on all the hints he had dropped, Tinasha couldn’t help leaping to her feet. “You were the one who manifested Simila?” “Yes, I was.” “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? That was—” “Oh yes, I’m aware. And while I know how this sounds, I was only a tool in all of that. I merely did what I was instructed to do. It was the people of this country who decided to sacrifice their fellow citizens,” Valt said. Seething with rage, Tinasha spat, “That’s not a very good excuse.” “It’s not one at all. They did everything of their own volition. Honestly, if you look at it, you and your fiancé are partially responsible.” “What does… that mean?” she questioned, knitting her brows as she kept her eyes fixed on the grinning Valt. Their gazes met. Had her magic not been blocked, the power might have crackled in the air around her. Such was the intensity in her glare. It was Valt who looked away first. He gave an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders. “You should sit. Doubtless, you’re tired. Ah… if you’d like to change clothes, I’ll get you something to wear.” Backing down, Tinasha pursed her lips. After a moment of indecision, she eventually sat back down. “Even if you do, I can’t put it on with this in the way,” she replied, lifting her wrist to indicate the bracelet. She couldn’t put her arm through a sleeve with that thing attached to her wrist. “Why is it on this way?” “Ah, sorry. Only a member of the Farsas royal family can open or close that,” he answered. “What?!” “It’s called Sekta. It’s a sealing ornament with the same properties as Akashia, and it’s been passed down for centuries as a royal heirloom. Although I suppose no one there actually remembers it exists. My grandfather borrowed it from the Farsas treasure vault about forty years ago, as we suspected you would wind up in this era.” “Excuse me?” Tinasha said, unable to suppress the shiver that ran up her spine with that last bit. If Valt was speaking the truth, then just how far back had this been planned? Were they really after her, someone from the distant past who may or may not arrive in this time period? Glancing at how pale she had gone, Valt gave an uncomfortable smile. “Well, now that you’ve received some warning, let’s dive right in. This is the truth that I wasn’t able to tell you earlier. I… no, we are after Eleterria. You know what that is, don’t you? The red and blue magic orbs that can take you into the past. We’d like you to get both of them for us.” The darkness in Tinasha’s eyes froze over. It was then that she understood what the wheel of fate revolved around. “Why do you…?” “Why do I know about them? Or why do I want to use them? I know because I am aware of many things. More than even you,” Valt replied, his lips quirking up into a sneer that veiled something unreadable. “One is in Tuldarr, and the other is in Farsas. You’re the best person to retrieve them. We actually wanted Delilah to get the one in Farsas, but she was no match for you. And now that you’re the queen, it should be a simple matter.” Suddenly, everything fell into place. The treasure vault in Farsas and the one in Tuldarr. Breaking into either was extremely difficult. Perhaps because of the Farsas royal family’s cavalier style, that country took a perfunctory view of its treasure vault. But Tuldarr’s was filled with priceless magic treasures. Only those authorized could enter. If Tinasha had married Oscar without becoming queen, even she would not be granted entry. Which was why Valt had separated Tinasha from Farsas and forced her into negotiating with him. “What… are you going to try and change if you have both?” she asked. “I can’t tell you that just yet. But I will if you work with us and get both of them.” “You think I’m going to cooperate with you?” “I certainly hope so.” Tinasha felt dizzy. Despite not knowing why Valt sought the orbs, it was plain that letting him have them was unacceptable. There was no telling how those little spheres could alter the world. They held tremendous power in the hands of someone with wicked intentions. Tinasha had to stop Valt at any cost, regardless of whatever harm it brought upon her. Inhaling deeply, Tinasha calmed herself and cleared her face of emotion. Just as her refusal was on the tip of her tongue, a loud male voice roared angrily from the corridor outside. “Valt! I know you’re here!”
Chapter 75
39 min read