The Author's Will

91 | Time Limit

　　A small shadow loomed over the royal bedside, completely enshrouded in a dark mantle that concealed the entirety of their face. A slim, child-like figure had somehow slipped into the sleeping chambers of Theodore and Yestala's bedroom. From their slight frame, it was unlikely that this assailant was Giselle - the woman labelled responsible for their deaths.

Irene only gazed from the sidelines in horror as the figure gently hovered their gloved hands over the sleeping faces of the imperial couple. A thick, black miasma emanated from their palms, as dark and abysmal as an endless pit. The spell flickered and permeated the air around them like a cloud of poison.

It was then that Theodore's past self found himself being roused from his slumber - evidently not a part of the small stranger's plan. Theodore froze, his body paralysed by the smoke and his blue eyes filled with horror and awe as the figure suddenly threw the blanket over his eyes, preventing him from seeing their face beneath the shadows.

It wasn't a frightening way to die. Theodore soon fell into unconsciousness, and the assailant vanished into the night through the window. The miasma remained settled right above their noses as they slept, before sending them into an eternal rest. Theodore and Yestala never woke up the next morning.

Irene couldn't believe her eyes.

To think that this was all it took for the empire to be thrown into turmoil.

"I was killed harmlessly — but still killed, nonetheless." Theodore clenched his fists, staring at the bed where he drew his last breath. Irene remembered hearing somewhere that when the emperor and empress's bodies were discovered, it was believed they had been poisoned to death. But no one could put their finger on how they consumed it.

Yet what baffled her the most, was that they weren't killed by Giselle or any obvious enemies, but a child. She raised a hand to her chin in rumination. "Why would someone so young do something like this...? From their size, they looked no older than nine or ten."

"It's likely that child was just a pawn for someone else. I wouldn't be surprised if he or she was murdered later, to hide the evidence," Theodore answered, his gaze shifting towards the arched windows where the little figure disappeared. "I don't know how Giselle died, but it's unlikely that she was involved in our deaths. No matter how you see it, she would have benefitted from us being alive. It's also strange that Daniel and Mikael were left completely alone, despite being the most vulnerable and likely targets."

He was right. Whatever the motivations behind this enigma were, Irene recognised that they were surrounded by more questions than answers. All along, this moment had seemed nothing more than an unresolved mystery she believed was an underdeveloped part of the novel she wrote, in her previous life. Now armed with the truth - she understood that the significance of this moment far surpassed her initial perceptions.

In the current era, the influence of the dark magic guild was on a steady ascent, and Irene found herself lacking information about their activities and motives. It seemed possible that Rudien and Sir River held a greater understanding of these matters, deliberately keeping her and Mikael uninvolved after the events with Sophia Cather.

But that couldn't last with her emergence as the Second Saintess, Irene quickly grasped that her association in these affairs was inevitable, whether she welcomed it or not.

The scene unfolded like a vanishing room of enchantment, shimmering away before Irene's eyes. Once again, she stood amidst a vast field on a cliff, overlooking the expansive ocean. Theodore stood by her side, and as they returned to the very place where she first awoke in this ethereal realm, a sudden flinch crossed the emperor's features, as if he had sensed something amiss.