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“Oh dear, oh dear.”

“Are you alright?”

He winced before replying, “I’ve been wanting to order them not to use marble for the flooring in the tower.”

Julian mumbled as he turned his head over. He then suddenly looked at me before trying to stand up again. But he tripped once again.

‘I don’t think this is because of the floor, rather it’s because he’s weak.’

I shot him an incredulous look. He did not refuse my outstretched hand.

“Sorry but does this happen back in your palace?”

I asked since he looked so used to this.

“Hahaha. My aides always asked me to rest whenever I tried to head somewhere…”

His awkward smiles remained as bright as ever.

“Is it alright for a prince to be this carefree?”

He winced before saying, “Well, it’s not something I can fix. Brother has told me to work out more but I didn’t have much time to do so.”

I paused. Because the way Julian called Castor was so intimate.

His long blonde hair that had completely unravelled when he collapsed continued to sway.

“It had been a long time since I had last talked to brother. He’s so cold. I didn’t even receive a birthday present from him. As disappointed as I was… I would have been ecstatic just to receive one flower.”

Julian seemed to be talking to himself.

“… Do you like Castor?”

“Hm? That’s a strange question. How could I ever hate him?”

Castor and Julian were brothers who were competing for the throne. Moreover, Castor had massacred Julian’s people countless times.

‘I mean, he probably never tried to hide that he killed them.’

Nevertheless, the affection in Julian’s eyes was sincere.

“There’s no way you wouldn’t know the number of people Castor has killed.”

“I do.”

He smiled bitterly.

“But there is a type of love in the world that can never be gotten rid of. It’s because he is my family.”

Castor. So, there were people left in the world who were willing to protect you. How fortunate he was to have a family that cared for him like this.

“Brother will never atone.”

“But you still like him?”

Julian flashed a bright smile towards the one Castor had killed before.

“Yes, I do.”

I let out a scoff.

“Will you continue to come visit?”

“We’ll see.”

“If we’ve met sooner, we would have hit it off pretty well.”

The words uttered by the naive slightly stung but I still smiled.

“You and I will never get along.”

***

Silence fell upon the hallway.

No, it was because I was not talking which was why the patrols who were escorting me remained silent as well.

Some even stole a few glances my way. Soricks did too.

“Will you be visiting the tower again, princess?”

“Well… Soricks, more importantly, the 2nd Prince told me that he will be convincing the templars following him. Can I trust him?”

Of course, since he wasn’t free to move, he would be writing letters and sending them out.

“For the unfortunate people who follow me, I want to help.”

Other than those who had been found guilty, Julian’s forces remained in place. And the number of people who made up his forces was not small.

Soricks paused to think for a moment.

“Considering his character, there would be no reason for him to deceive you, princess. But I can’t say that he’s not scheming something.”

And he was confident that it would be easy for me to meet Julian again.

“No one will be able to recall your face for a while thanks to Rodos’ hypnotisation. There won’t be a problem if you choose to visit him again soon.”

While I had been meeting Julian, Soricks and Meta’s screening of the tower seemed to have gone smoothly.

‘Soon…’

There was only one reason why Julian had changed his mind at the last minute. It was because I had told him about the Succession Ceremony.

“His Majesty is handing the throne over to brother?”

He seemed to have found himself feeling a complex mix of feelings. For a moment, he felt disappointed for failing to grab the throne but he soon looked unconvinced.

He then proposed to help by persuading those who followed him. But he looked concerned as well.

“We’ve arrived.”

At some point, we arrived at my palace. With Soricks’ help, I got off the carriage.

There had been an unexpected guest waiting for me in my palace.

“You’ve arrived, mistress?”

Rebecca, who must have just arrived before me, lowered her head. Instead of answering her, I looked at the person standing next to her like a statue.

‘Auresia?’

Wearing a bright dress with her light purple hair cascading down before her, Auresia stood before me.

‘It’s been a while.’

She spoke almost insincerely.

“What seems to be the matter?”

Holding back my surprise, I asked her. Surprisingly, she replied with a smile.

“Does a mother need a reason to come see her daughter?”

Both of us knew that that made no sense.

“That’s not something someone who had never met me in this palace should say.”

“Do you feel bitter over that?”

I shook my head.

“I see. I came to talk to you about something.”

Auresia glanced at the sky.

“But I’m afraid that’ll be difficult to do given how late it has gotten. I’ll come visit you again.”

She bowed her head elegantly.

“Wait, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Auresia was now holding many of the keys to my questions. As I grabbed her hand, she turned to face my way in momentary surprise.

“Rather than a talk, I came to provide a suggestion.”

Her eyes glazed over.

“A suggestion?”

“I wanted to teach you.”

She returned to her monotonous expression before saying.

“You’ve awakened, haven’t you?”

‘How did she know that?’

Auresia continued as if understanding my reaction. She grabbed my shoulder as if to tell me not to move.

“The Head Templar of Death is informed when their heir is born.”

She spoke so softly that I wouldn’t have been able to hear her if I hadn’t been concentrating.

“There are too many eyes and ears here. So, could I let you know again at a quieter location?”

“… Sure.”

There was no way to tell what she was plotting. But I would need to find a quiet place to talk to her for me to find out.

“Alright. Send a letter to my palace.”

She let go of my hand before slowly backing away.

“I’ll see you next time.”

I stared at her as she slowly moved away. Her footsteps let out no sound. As if she had been a shadow.

“… What happened?”

“She came right when I returned to the palace.”

Rebecca replied calmly. If she had been here since Rebecca’s return, she must have been waiting for three hours.

‘She had been waiting for me.’

My awakening had been top-secret. So, what Auresia said must have been true. My curiosity had been suddenly piqued.

‘I’d get to know more when we meet again.’

The reason behind her sudden offer to teach me.

***

“It’s the duty of the head templar.”

A few days later, we met again. She had addressed what I had been curious about.

“Once the Heir of Death is born, the Head Templar of Death has to serve her wholeheartedly. Because she is a powerful being.”

“More powerful than you.”

“Of course.”

She smiled broadly. The way her eyes curled when she smiled was as beautiful as ever.

“I still have no idea when my room has become a place for secret meetings.”

Amor had grumbled discontentedly. He looked seriously uncomfortable.

“You promised not to complain.”

“I said I’d provide a place. I never said I wouldn’t complain.”

“Hmph, you’re not easily fooled.”

Amor stared at me incredulously before scoffing.

“Since you came to see me immediately, am I right to say that you chose me first?”

“Yes, you’re right.”

Auresia alternated her gazes between Amor and I.

“I’m a little surprised. I thought you’d end up with Rom’s child.”

“You mean Dane?”

“Yes. You were friendly with him when you were children. But you seem to have forgotten that as well.”

At the end of her sentence, Auresia shook her head.

“Forget it. It doesn’t matter.”

We were now in Amor’s room. Just as Auresia requested, I had searched for a quiet place to talk the day before but it had not been easy. We would need a templar who was capable of casting barriers but Auresia refused to meet in a place with too many people.

If I couldn’t seek the patrols for help, I naturally went to Amor. No, I had no choice but Amor.

He had kicked up a fuss at first but he eventually gave up his room.

‘But why doesn’t Amor like Auresia? They shouldn’t have met before…’

It was strange.

“We’re running out of time so I’ll quickly get started. I’ve told you what the Power of Death entails. Do you remember?”

“Immortality.”

Yes.”

Auresia gave a slight smile. She looked so young, it was hard to imagine she had a daughter.

“What can you do with it?”

Before I realised it, she was holding a small dagger in her hand.

“H-hold on.”

She lowered the blade into her flesh. And blood gushed out of her wound.

“What are you doing?”

“The Power of Death allows you to feel no pain. And just like that.”

Auresia winced.

“You heal quickly.”

The grotesque open wound healed in an instant. Leaving no scars behind. I stared at her fair skin blankly.

“You don’t need to stare, you can do this too. Will you like to give it a try?”