Obelia's Beloved Princess [ONGOING]

Chapter 19: Obelia's Sun and Light To The Empire

It was now a few hours into the debutante, and the party was still as lively as ever. Different people continued on to dance and chat with each other. They seem to never get tired of the overflowing presence of rich nobles alike. Their conversations simply drifted around their own riches and everything else in between. 

As for Anastasius, he found himself beside Odette yet again. The sibling-duo stood side by side, chatting about the current party. 

"Are you ready for the surprise, Odette?" Anastasius asked. 

The question made Odette ticked off. Ever since the start of the night, that's all Anastasius has been saying. What was he even referring to? There was no surprise, just a simple debutante with plenty of nobles. Why couldn't he just tell her straight up what he was talking about?

"I don't even know what you're talking about, Anastasius." she replied with a sigh. "what am I supposed to be ready for?"

Her older brother ignored her question and his hands drifted to her shoulders. He leaned in close as to whisper to her ear, "what did father mean when he told you that you were the true light of the Empire, hm?"

Odette practically gasped in surprise and pulled him away. Those were the exact words the former Emperor said to her, just moments before he died. "How did you know even know that?!"

Anastasius shrugged his shoulders. "I always knew. He told it to me, too. Back when we were little, he reminded me to protect you because your powers were extraordinary."

The Princess took a step back. "What?"

"Father did not know how to unleash your powers, Odette." he said. "but I know how. And we're going to show it to the whole Empire tonight."

Before Odette could even protest, Anastasius held her wrist and pulled her to the stage. He then snapped his fingers, and then all of the lights dimmed. There only came a faint light from the moonlight, up above the crystal clear ceiling that showed the night sky and its stars. After that, the crowd went silent.

All eyes were now on Anastasius and Odette, who were standing hand-in-hand on the stage. 

Anastasius cleared his throat. "Long ago, my ancestor-- Emperor Aeterenitas created the Land of Shadows out of spite and loathe to those who exiled him. The forbidden land is now inhabited with different monsters who grow strong in the presence of darkness."

He paused, checking to see if everyone was paying attention. They were-- all of them were listening attentively. So, he continued: "it made the Empire weak and separated. Plenty of lives were lost, and we thought that there was no solution to the Land of Shadows."

That was when Anastasius pulled Odette close to him. He glanced at his sister for a solid second-- she looked utterly clueless as to what he was talking about. 

"We were taught to believe that there was no hope left," he declared. "but we are triumphant now."

Everyone seem to talk amongst themselves as they heard Anastasius' little announcement. What was he talking about? For hundreds of years, no one has dared to get rid of the Land Of Shadows. Sure, some tried-- but they all failed. And died a miserable death, just being stuck in the so-called forbidden land. 

The whispers among the guests grew louder, what was there to announce? The Land of Shadows has already been there--- and it wasn't expanding, nor did it bring harm. Only those who tried to enter were either injured or traumatized. There were, however, also some who were triumphant because of the eternal light from the High Priest. 

Still, the eternal light was limited. The Church could only provide so little that the Hunting Expedition was only held every hundred years, just enough for a flock of brave men to enter the Land of Shadows.