“Then you were trying to reverse my time?” Angelina asked with a soft gasp.
The fallen tianshi nodded. “My curse finally came halfway undone. After so long, I was able to use magic for myself. Thus, I broke off a tree branch to fashion a wooden doll. I enchanted the doll to look human and launched it across the lake. Once the doll had sung and prophesied on my behalf, I sent the traveling performers to your home. So long as I killed the last queen, I would be free. I would only need to wait for this seal to weaken.”
The fallen tianshi looked up at the ceiling, squinting in response to the glare. Dust motes danced in the light pouring from the windows.
“Angelina,” he continued. “I would have gained my freedom if you hadn’t been born. This curse will lift when the last queen dies. The magic finally deteriorated enough for me to move my upper body. Just a little while longer, and I would have been free…”
As the fallen tianshi slumped his head, Angelina glared up at him. “Return Fodder to normal!”
“Why?” he asked, returning his gaze to her. “He caused you so much anguish. If you open your heart in response to a small amount of kindness, you’ll be used like me. They will drain every drop of goodwill from you.”
“Fodder’s not like that.”
“You believe him? The cruel emperor who’s scorned as a demon? He even killed his own father!”
Angelina nodded. She hadn’t been able to trust her father until recently. Furthermore, the lavish presents he gave her always left her utterly confused. But I understand now, she thought. He sings me lullabies and gives me expensive clothes woven with magic because he loves me. I can’t doubt Father any longer. He put his life on the line to protect me, after all.
“I’m my fodder’s beloved daughter!” Angelina declared, looking up at the fallen tianshi.
“My descendants doubted my love,” the fallen tianshi replied with a scowl. “They didn’t believe me. They couldn’t believe me!”
“…No. I don’t think that’s true! They probably couldn’t believe in themselves! They were afraid of you abandoning them. I understand that, too. No matter how often Ryuho says he loves me, I’m still afraid of him hating me someday. For some reason, I don’t think I’m worthy of love. I trust Ryuho, but I don’t have confidence in myself. That’s why I worry about him hating me someday.”
The fallen tianshi’s eyes widened as he regarded Angelina.
“Even so, your descendants shouldn’t have bound you here,” she continued. “That was wrong. They should have striven to be worthy of love!” Here, she balled her hand into a fist, her eyes burning with rage as she looked up at the fallen tianshi. “What do you want to do?”
“What good will come of hearing my desires? You’ll lose the Yulan Secret Arts if you don’t recast my seal, remember? In all likelihood, you won’t be able to open the drawer containing the time-reversal sheet music.”
Angelina hung her head, considering the matter thoroughly. I want to save Father, but I want to help this tianshi as well. What’s the correct decision? What should I do? Inheriting the secret arts would probably be best for Jinlong, Yule, and Father. Yet I would be robbing this tianshi of freedom by doing so. I would be using him and prolonging his suffering. Should I choose Father or someone I just met? Usually, a person would choose their father. Still, I can’t just abandon this tianshi. What should I do…? Someone tell me the right answer.
Thoughts continued swirling around Angelina’s mind.
The ancient Yulan incantation translated to “Forgive us.” The former queen must have felt guilty when she sacrificed this tianshi. She must have regretted her decision each time she used the secret arts. She prayed for his forgiveness the entire time despite believing she had no choice but to bind him. In that case…
“This could cost me everything, but…” After trailing off, Angelina lifted her head. “But I’ll try to open the drawer and free you at the same time.”
The fallen tianshi smiled faintly. “You might be able to withdraw the sheet music, certainly, but you won’t be able to inherit the secret arts.”
“That’s fine. I only want to save you and Fodder.”
“You might not be able to cross the lake and return home either.”
“Don’t worry about that!” Angelina exclaimed, looking up at the fallen tianshi with a smile. “Hisame and Ryuho helped me out on the way here, too.”
The fallen tianshi squeezed his eyes shut and bit his lip. If he relaxed his guard, tears would probably spill from his eyes. I no longer wanted to trust humans, he thought. I no longer wanted to see light pink hair. I didn’t care if the Yulan people were eradicated. Yet now…
The fallen tianshi opened his eyes. A girl looked up at him with an earnest expression, her eyes the same azure as his. Her irises were the blue of Heaven—the home to which he could no longer return. Angelina’s pure-hearted nature radiated from her gaze. She was the opposite of the fallen tianshi, who had lost the ability to even trust a child. His heart had become far more sullied than his blackened wings. When he realized that, the fallen tianshi looked away, unable to hold Angelina’s gaze.
Angelina waited patiently as the fallen tianshi remained silent, not pressing him for an answer. At last, he took a deep breath, his lips quivering. Words he longed to speak but had remained unutterable began to rise from his throat. Nevertheless, he bit his lip and shook his head. He swallowed back the words, unable to speak them to the last princess—the progeny of his tormentors. As the skin of his dry lips cracked, blood seeped from the cut, the scent of iron tickling his nostrils.
Look what I’ve become, he thought. And yet, I still cling to life in this pathetic state. Can I do so from here on out? Will I remain like this forever?