Before obtaining her current life, Angelina wouldn’t have been able to imagine his dilemma. In the past, she’d never had any family with whom she’d been reluctant to part from. Yet now, her feelings were complicated. Choosing between one’s family and the love of one’s life would be incredibly painful.
I have the best possible life right now, she thought. Could I part from Feilong, Kyril, and Ryuho? Not to mention Marfa, the knights, and Junshi?
When Angelina glanced at Ryuho, he looked back at her with a puzzled expression and grinned. “What’s the big deal if he can’t go home?” Ryuho asked. “I came all the way to Jinlong by chasing after Shua! The person who’s able to make the journey should just do that!”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Angelina replied.
Relief washed over her. After Shua had become a hostage, a worried Ryuho had traveled from Nanran to Jinlong to see her. Moreover, Shua couldn’t return to Nanran until her term as a hostage ended. In that sense, her situation was the same as the fallen tianshi’s.
As Angelina and Ryuho grinned at each other, the troupe leader sadly regarded them.
“Is something wrong?” Feilong asked him.
Despite looking a bit flustered, the troupe leader fixed a smile on his face. “No, they just seem to get along very well.”
“You couldn’t be more mistaken!” Feilong bellowed, squeezing Angelina in his arms.
“Um, Ryuho and I are good friends, y’know?” Angelina pointed out.
“Yeah, best friends!” Ryuho added.
Kyril, the troupe leader, and the other traveling performers all laughed.
“Well then,” the troupe leader said. “Would you like to turn the crank to finish the show, Princess Angelina?”
Angelina nodded emphatically and jumped down from Feilong’s lap. “I sure would!”
“Stop right there, Lina!” the emperor shouted. “You should never approach a stranger alone!”
Angelina turned around and waved at Feilong lightly. “Don’t worry, Fodder—I’m wearing the clothes with your magic cast on them!”
As her words suggested, Angelina’s clothes were special. First, the fabric had been crafted from magic silkworm thread. Second, it had been woven by singing Vinkas, who were said to have divine power. Last, Feilong—the strongest man in the empire—had personally cast protective magic on the outfit. Furthermore, protective magic had been cast on Angelina herself, not just her clothes. If someone tried to touch her with malicious intent, a crackling flash of light would ward them off.
“That’s right,” Kyril said. “What could anyone do with you, me, and the knights here, Father?”
Feilong nodded at that.
“I’m here too!” Ryuho shouted, standing up and joining Angelina’s side. “She’s not alone!”
Angelina took Ryuho’s hand, and the two circled around the barrel organ.
“Now then, place your hand on this crank, Princess of Yule,” the troupe leader instructed.
Angelina found that address strange. She was the Imperial Princess of Jinlong, not the Princess of Yule. Nevertheless, she placed her hand on the crank without considering the matter too deeply. At once, the airy sound of the wooden pipes filled the room. Then, the music from the earlier performance drifted from the barrel organ again.
“This song has an interesting trick to it,” the troupe leader said. “If you turn the crank backward, it produces a different song.”
Per his instructions, Angelina turned the crank backward. As she did so, the Tianshi’s Protective Seal on her palm heated up and shone with light. Overcome with surprise, Angelina tried to pull her hand away. However, the troupe leader pressed her hand down and forced her to continue turning the crank.
“No, stop it!” Angelina squealed.
Angelina’s dress produced a crackling noise while shining with an ominous purple light. The garment’s protective magic had activated, rendering the barrel organ’s sorcery visible. Ryuho yanked the troupe leader’s hand off Angelina’s. “Stop it!” he bellowed, shoving the man away.
In response, the troupe leader donned a satisfied smile while stumbling backward. “The music can’t be stopped now!”
True to his words, the crank—which had started turning vigorously thanks to his strength—didn’t stop. Thus, music and purple light blended together to assault Angelina.
“Lina!” Feilong shouted, standing up and raising his hand.
The purple light coiling around Angelina’s dress changed trajectories and headed toward Feilong instead. As a result, he bore the brunt of the magical attack rather than Angelina. As his face twisted in pain, he gathered the purple light in his palm and threw it back at the troupe leader—a perfect magical rebound.
A magical rebound broke a spell before it was completed and reflected the spell back upon the caster. If the caster’s spell was powerfully wicked, the rebounded magic could sometimes result in death. When the purple light struck the troupe leader, he fell on his backside and let forth an anguished groan. The magical light enveloped his body like mist, produced a crackling sound, and sank into his body.
“Fodder!” Angelina cried.
“Father!” Kyril shouted.
Upon seeing Feilong, both his children fell silent. He hadn’t been able to rebound the purple light entirely. It sank into his body through his palm and glowed from the inside. His body flickered in time with the music and then shrank to the size of a child.
“Apprehend the performers!” Kyril ordered.
As Yuen twisted the troupe leader’s arms behind his back, the knights surrounded the other performers. Meanwhile, Junshi closed the door.
“We have to stop the music!” Angelina shrieked.
She and Ryuho pressed down on the crank with all their might. Gradually, the music grew slower. Soon, the barrel organ ceased making sound altogether. At the same time, Feilong’s body stopped shrinking, and the purple light disappeared.
An incredibly small, naked boy sat in the pile of clothes that Feilong had been wearing. He appeared to be around three years old. Seeming utterly perplexed, he gathered up the robes in an attempt to protect himself.