- 43 minutes ago
I Choose That Halfblood Prince - Full
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00:00The agony of having my divine core ripped out was still tearing through my chest, raw and relentless.
00:05I lay sprawled across the altar as Castian's fingers plunged into my chest without hesitation.
00:10He carefully lifted the core fragment and presented it to the nymph before him.
00:15Lyanna, from this moment on, you are a true goddess.
00:17His voice carried a tenderness I had never once received.
00:20If not for deceiving her into giving up half her divine core, I would not have spared her a second
00:24glance.
00:25He tore out my divine feathers one by one, he shattered my divine bones inch by inch, and Lyanna looked
00:31down at me from above, her smile laced with poison.
00:34Thank you, sister. Thank you for giving your life to make me whole.
00:38In my previous life, to help the man I had grown up with survive the ninefold thunder trial, I carved
00:43out half of my own divine core with ausitation.
00:46The first thing he did after ascending the throne of storms was drive a blade straight into my heart.
00:51Then darkness, deep as the abyss, swallowed everything.
00:55I snapped my eyes open and found myself standing beneath the vast radiant dome of Mount Olympus.
00:59Lightning flickered faintly within the clouds above.
01:01Aurelia, give me your answer. Who will be your king consort?
01:05Zeus, king of the gods, sat upon his golden throne.
01:09Hera, seated on her peacock throne, studied me with a gaze that pierced through everything.
01:14In the center of the hall stood dozens of ambitious heirs among the divines.
01:18I am Aurelia, daughter of Apollo, god of the sun, and Eos, goddess of the dawn, the most noble bloodline
01:25on Mount Olympus.
01:27Zeus had once decreed that whoever I chose as my husband would rightfully inherit the supreme throne of storms.
01:33And now, carrying the phantom pain of my torn heart, I had returned to the very moment where fate would
01:38be decided.
01:39Your majesty, I choose...
01:43Wait!
01:44The arrogant voice cut me off without warning.
01:46Cassian stepped forward, wearing the divine blade I had once begged Hepnitis to forge for him.
01:50The most handsome prince on all of Mount Olympus.
01:53The man who had killed me with his own hands in my past life.
01:55Dropping to one knee, he glanced at me with undisguised disdain.
01:59Father, I know Aurelia is hopelessly infamorated with me, but the only one I truly love is Lyanna.
02:03The hall erupted into stunned whispers.
02:05Zeus' face darkened, while the princes who had shown little interest moments ago now watched with burning intensity.
02:11Everyone knew what marrying me meant.
02:13Power, dominion.
02:14But I understand Aurelia cannot live without me.
02:16Cassian adopted a tone of false generosity.
02:19I am willing to show mercy, and allow her to keep her title as princess and remain by my side
02:24as a consort.
02:25Lyanna and I have already sworn a blood oath before the fates.
02:28If I betray her, may I fall forever into Tartarus.
02:31Zeus flew into a rage.
02:32The thunder scepter slammed against the ground, shaking the entire divine hall.
02:36Insolence!
02:37A lowy nymph who stole her place among the divines compare herself to the daughter of the sun?
02:42Cassian turned toward me, impatience clear in his voice.
02:45Aurelia, what are you waiting for?
02:46I have already granted you the honor of staying by my side.
02:49Hurry and thank the king of gods.
02:50I stared at his face.
02:52My fury hardened into a cold, mocking smile.
02:55Lyanna, that nymph.
02:56After the titan war, my mother gave birth to me on scorched land and hid me in a cave.
03:01That nymph's family discovered my unawakened divine core, and in their madness sent their own daughter to Mount Olympus disguised
03:07as a divine princess.
03:08For a full century, she fed like a leech on the glory and privilege that were meant to be mine.
03:13It was only when the phoenix flame within my fully awakened that her lies were burned away.
03:17My mother enraged, had intended to bring down divine punishment.
03:21Lyanna fell to her knees clinging to her ankle and begging for mercy.
03:25And somehow managed to cling to her worthless life.
03:28Her parents, however, were later torn to pieces during a beast spawn attack.
03:31In my previous life, I had even felt guilty for that and yielded to her at every turn.
03:36Until the moment I died, when she whispered in my ear with a smile.
03:39The beast spawn had been lured there by her own hand to silence them.
03:43The hatred was so intense, my nails dug deep into my palms.
03:47Golden divine blood dripped onto the polished marble floor.
03:50The phoenix flame within me roared, my skin burning like heated iron.
03:55But I forced the killing intent down.
03:57Death would be far too merciful for them.
03:59I wanted them alive, watching as they sank into endless ruin.
04:02I drew a slow breath.
04:03The corner of my lips lifting into a cold, predatory smile.
04:07Your majesty, I have made my choice.
04:10All eyes locked onto me instantly.
04:11Cassian lifted his chin, his face full of a victor's arrogance.
04:14I stepped forward to the throne, etched a name into Zeus's palm with divine power,
04:18and conveyed my plan through divine will.
04:20His pupils tightened slightly.
04:22Surprise flickered for only a moment before turning into cold approval.
04:26Since you have decided I will prepare a wedding unlike any the world has ever seen.
04:30Zeus's sharp gaze shifted past me and struck Cassian.
04:34As for you, return to your palace and remain confined until the wedding begins.
04:38Cassian lowered his head, unable to hide the satisfaction curling at his lips.
04:43He believed this grand wedding was a compromise made for him.
04:47What he did not know was that the bride was not me.
04:50It was that wretched nymph.
04:52When I stepped out of the side hall, Cassian was still waiting in the corridor,
04:56with Lyanna clinging to his arm, looking fragile and pitiful.
04:59Sister, she said as she approached, her eyes shimmering with tears.
05:03Thank you for your generality, for making this possible.
05:06Cassian immediately pulled her into his arms.
05:08Auroraia, Lyanna's parents died because of you.
05:12Shouldn't you at least offer a few relic artifacts as compensation?
05:14I watched the nauseating performance in silence.
05:17Seeing that I did not respond, Cassian's tone softened just slightly,
05:21though reluctant languered beneath it.
05:22Aradia, I have one more request.
05:26Lyanna's power is too weak.
05:28She cannot withstand a divine pot.
05:30I need to borrow your divine core.
05:33For a brief moment, my mind rang with a sharp, piercing hum.
05:38I was seconds away from losing control,
05:41from letting the flames at my fingertips erupt and reduce them both to ash.
05:45But that would be far too crude.
05:46Just as the tension thickened into suffocating silence,
05:49a low, magnetic voice cut cleanly through it.
05:52Princess Auroraia,
05:53His Majesty the King of Gods has sent me to escort you.
05:56The speaker was a young man with black hair and dark eyes,
05:59tall and composed,
06:00with a pair of partially formed horns at his crown,
06:02a mark of a divine bloodline not yet fully awakened,
06:05a symbol of his half-blood identity.
06:07On Mount Olympus,
06:08where bloodline meant everything,
06:10he was branded as inferior.
06:12But I remembered him.
06:14Lucian.
06:15In my past life,
06:16he had been like a cold shadow,
06:18quiet,
06:18withdrawn,
06:19never seeking favor,
06:20always lingering at the edges.
06:22Until the day I died.
06:23While the gods stood by and looked upon my corpse with indifference,
06:26only he broke through the barriers in a frenzy
06:28and dropped to his knees in the pool of my blood.
06:30His trembling hands gathered what remained of me,
06:33and scorching tears fell onto my face.
06:35He buried me at the peak of Mount Olympus,
06:37planted a golden apple tree,
06:39then drew his sword,
06:40and alone and without hesitation,
06:41charged toward Cassian's throne of storms,
06:43he went to his death
06:44for a woman who had never once truly seen him.
06:47I studied him for a long moment,
06:48then the flames around me faded,
06:50and I offered him a completely unguarded smile.
06:53Let's go.
06:53Stop.
06:54Cassian's voice cracked like a whiff
06:55as he stepped forward,
06:56glaring at Lucian.
06:57You worthless half-flood.
06:59What right do you have to stand beside Aurelia?
07:01He is my future king consort.
07:03That alone gives him the right to walk at my side.
07:05I did not spare Cassius even a glance.
07:07Instead of throwing a tantrum here,
07:09you should go prepare for the ascension trial in five days.
07:11Try not to die in the lightning.
07:13Lucian stiffened for just a moment.
07:14A flicker of surprise crossed his dark eyes,
07:17and a faint flush crept behind his ears.
07:19At the mention of the trial,
07:20Cassian's anger instantly gave way to arrogance.
07:22A mere divine trial means nothing.
07:24Even without your divine core,
07:25I will crush it underfoot.
07:27Five days from now,
07:28you better be ready to become my woman.
07:30I ignored the barking behind me
07:31and walked down the corridor with Lucian at my side.
07:34The king of God's plan.
07:36I said,
07:36You already know it?
07:38Lucian stopped.
07:39Then, without hesitation,
07:40he dropped to one knee.
07:42Your highness,
07:43I, Lucian,
07:44swear this oath before the fates.
07:45If I ever betray you in this life,
07:47may my soul essence be torn apart,
07:49and may I suffer eternal torment in Tartaros.
07:52A blinding dark gold light burst from his brow and shot into the sky.
07:56Thunder roared across the heavens.
07:58This was a supreme law witnessed by Zeus himself.
08:00A vow bound by the soul.
08:02Unbreakable.
08:03I removed the starfall pendant from my waist.
08:05It was a sacred artifact forged by Selman,
08:07goddess of the moon.
08:08I fastened it onto his belt with my own hands.
08:10I believe you.
08:11Princess Aurora.
08:13His voice trembled,
08:14horsey with emotion.
08:15Even if I burn my bones and blood to nothing,
08:17I will never fail you.
08:19My palace stood at the easternmost edge of Mount Olympus,
08:22where it welcomed the first light of dawn each day.
08:25At the center of the courtyard grew a golden apple tree,
08:28nurtured by my mother from a branch of Yggdrasil.
08:30It symbolized home and sanctuary.
08:33For a hundred years,
08:34I had tended it with the light of dawn
08:36and nourished it with moonlight
08:37until it grew into a towering giant.
08:40But when I stepped through the gates,
08:42what greeted me was a silent ruin.
08:44My maid, Myra,
08:45stumbled forward and collapsed at my feet.
08:48Her translucent wings were tattered,
08:50her dress stained with dirt.
08:52Your highness,
08:53they cut down your tree!
08:54I shoved the gates open.
08:55The golden apple tree,
08:56the one that carried a century of my devotion,
08:58had been severed at its base.
08:59The massive trunk lay fallen,
09:00golden leaves scattered across the cold stone
09:02like divine tears of blood.
09:04Golden sap poured endlessly from the wound,
09:06while unripe fruit fell into the dirt,
09:07shriveling and rotting in moments.
09:09Everything was destroyed.
09:10Slowly,
09:11I lifted my head.
09:12My eyes burned red with overwhelming fury.
09:15Cassian stood casually in the center of the wreckage,
09:18idly twirling the divine blade forged by Hephaestus.
09:21Drops of golden sap still clung to its sharp edge.
09:24His expression was relaxed,
09:26as though he had merely crushed an insignificant insect.
09:29What gives you the right to touch my tree?
09:31My voice was soft,
09:33colder than winter wind.
09:34It was just a useless tree.
09:36Cassian shrugged,
09:37unconcerned.
09:38Lyanna likes Lumaine Rose.
09:39Starting tomorrow,
09:40this place will be cleared and replanted with roses.
09:42This is my domain.
09:43You are about to belong to me.
09:44Cassian's expression darkened at my defiance.
09:46He strode forward,
09:47towering over me.
09:48Aurelia,
09:49understand your position.
09:50If you anger me,
09:50I can withdraw my offer to marry you at any time.
09:52When that happens,
09:53even if you beg at my feet,
09:54I would not spare you a glance.
09:56He was waiting for fear,
09:57waiting for submission.
09:58But I only looked at him coldly,
10:00as if I were staring at a rotting corpse.
10:02Cassian,
10:03put away that disgusting arrogance.
10:05My future husband could be a hound from hell,
10:07and it still would never be you.
10:08For a split second,
10:09the killing intent in my eyes unsettled him.
10:11Then he let out a mocking laugh.
10:13Other than me,
10:14who on Mount Olympus would dare marry you?
10:16Do not forget,
10:17the King of Gods personally ordered preparations for our wedding.
10:20Of course.
10:21In his arrogance,
10:21he believed that grand ceremony was meant for him.
10:24He could not possibly imagine that,
10:25on that very day,
10:27the bride waiting for him would be the monster he cherished most.
10:30Enjoy your last days of glory, Cassian.
10:32I watched his retreating finger,
10:33a cruel smile curling at my lips.
10:35In five days,
10:36I will show you exactly what it feels like to fall into hell.
10:39Five days later,
10:40the Abyss of Thunder.
10:41A terrifying chasm carved deep within the mountains of Mount Olympus.
10:45A scar left behind when Zeus split the earth with his thunder scepter.
10:48The Abyss plunged endlessly into darkness.
10:51The charred rock walls bore the violent marks of ancient lightning strikes,
10:55while within the eternal black,
10:56violet gold lightning slithered and hissed like venomous serpents.
11:00The gods had gathered.
11:01Zeus sat upon the supreme throne at the edge of the Abyss.
11:04The twelve principal gods arrayed on either side,
11:07their presence pressing down like a raging sea.
11:10Unexpectedly,
11:11Lyanna had dared to come as well.
11:13She wore a flowing white gown,
11:15her golden hair adorned with lumina roses,
11:17clinging delicately to Cassian's arm
11:19as though she were already a crowned queen.
11:20Cassian caught sight of me from afar
11:22and immediately strode over with Lyanna,
11:24a confident, calculated smile on his face.
11:27Aurora,
11:28today's trial will depend on the divine core within you.
11:30I answered his shamelessness with silence.
11:32Then his gaze shifted past me and froze.
11:34Luian stood quietly at the edge of the Abyss.
11:37He wore plain black leather armor,
11:39his posture straight as a blade.
11:40At his waist hung the Starfall pendant,
11:43glowing softly with moonlight.
11:44How does a mung like you possess the Starfall pendant?
11:47Cassian's veins bulged at his temples,
11:49fury nearly consuming his reason.
11:51Lucian did not even bother to draw his weapon.
11:53He simply met Cassian's gaze,
11:54cold and distant,
11:55as though looking at a speck of dust.
11:57Sensing the tension,
11:58Lyanna quickly pressed herself against Cassian's arm.
12:00My love, do not be angry.
12:01That pendant must be a cheap imitation Aurelia found.
12:04A lowly half-blood like him
12:05would probably turn to ash
12:06before surviving even the first strike of lightning.
12:09Cassian regained some of his arrogance
12:10and let out a cold snort,
12:12casting me a finna-warning glance
12:13before tumming away.
12:16The trial began.
12:18The son of Ares was the first to leap into the Abyss.
12:20A deafening roar followed
12:21as violet gold lightning crashed down upon him.
12:24His scream tore through the air
12:26as he was hurled violently against the rock wall.
12:28The sound of shattering bones echoed clearly.
12:30He barely survived the first Heaven's judgment
12:32before losing all ability to continue.
12:35The challengers that followed fared little better.
12:37The strongest among them managed to endure
12:40only three strikes of lightning.
12:42A shadow darkened Zeus's gaze.
12:46Cassian.
12:47At last, it was his turn.
12:50Cassian strode into the center of the Abyss
12:51with absolute confidence
12:52and to everyone's shock,
12:54Lyanna gathered her skirts and followed him.
12:56Gasps erupted across the crowd.
12:57Even the original force of the Abyss
12:59could tear a fragile ninkth apart in an instant.
13:01Do not be afraid, my love.
13:02Cassian caressed her cheek.
13:04With Aurelia's divine core protecting me,
13:06I will not let you suffer even the slightest harm.
13:08Lyanna closed her eyes, deeply moved.
13:10Then she opened her mouth
13:11and forcibly adjusted her life core.
13:13It was a thumb-sized crystal glowing faintly green.
13:16The moment it left her body,
13:17her once radiant skin rapidly withered,
13:19turning dull and lifeless.
13:20Her golden hair faded to gray
13:22and deep wrinkles spread across her face like crack bark.
13:24Lyanna, have you lost your mind?
13:25Cassian shouted in suscrot.
13:27For you, I would give everything.
13:28She gasped weakly,
13:30forcing a fragile, sorrowful smile.
13:32Completely moved by this twisted display of devotion,
13:34Cassian's eyes reddened.
13:36He took the green crystal and fused it into his own heart.
13:39Then he raised his head and spread his arms toward the sky.
13:43He intended to summon all nine strikes of the trial at once.
13:48The heavens were instantly swallowed by storm clouds as dark as ink.
13:53Violet gold lightning transformed into colossal dragons,
13:57wringling through the sky.
13:58The destructive pressure bore down so heavily
14:01that even the assembled gods struggled to breathe.
14:04Has he lost his mind?
14:05Zeus rose to his feet,
14:07the thunder scepter blazing with light.
14:08To invoke all nine heavens judgments at once?
14:11This has never happened in all the history of Mount Olympus.
14:14At the center of the storm,
14:15Cassian locked his gaze onto me,
14:17his eyes filled with desperate hunger and expectation.
14:19Luria!
14:20Give me your divine core!
14:22Help me through this trial!
14:23My response was to stand there,
14:25arms crossed,
14:26cold and unmoving.
14:27The phoenix flame within me lay still,
14:30like a silent abyss,
14:31offering not even a trace of protection.
14:34Cassian's smile frozen.
14:35Auraria,
14:36what are you doing?
14:38Are you still throwing a tantrum?
14:41Do you not want to marry me anymore?
14:43For the first time,
14:44the arrogance etched into his face began to crack.
14:46Panic spread through him like poison.
14:49If all nine strikes fall,
14:51I will be annihilated!
14:53Will you really just watch me die?
14:55I remained moanless,
14:56like a flawless marble statue.
14:58A thunderous explosion shattered the sky.
15:01The first heaven's judgment fell.
15:03The violet gold lightning enveloped Cassia instantly.
15:06Amid the deafening roar,
15:07his scream tore through the storm.
15:09Blinding arcs of electricity scorched his golden hair
15:11and pierced straight through through the armor forged by Hephaedreus.
15:14He coughed up a mouthful of blood,
15:15streaked with flecks of gold.
15:17The lightning was destroying his divine bloodline from within.
15:20No!
15:22A more horrifying scream followed.
15:24Because Lyanna's life core had been fused into Cassian,
15:27the destructive force of the heaven's judgment
15:29surged back through the blood oath
15:31and struck her as well.
15:32The fragile crystal cracked with a sharp snap,
15:35fractions spreading across its surface
15:37before it shattered completely.
15:38Her life force drained away like a broken floodgate.
15:42In mere moments,
15:43her youthful body collapsed
15:44into that of a shriveled old woman,
15:46her skin wrinkled and grotesque.
15:47No!
15:48Do not look at me!
15:49My face!
15:50Cassius, save me!
15:52She wailed,
15:53rizzling on the ground in despair.
15:54But Cassius could not even save himself.
15:58He dropped to one knee like a dying beast,
16:01his armor shattered,
16:03his body torn open with wounds deep enough to expose bone.
16:06There was nothing left of his former pride.
16:08He struggled to lift his head.
16:10The arrogance had vanished from his bloodshot gray-blue eyes,
16:13replaced by raw, primal fear.
16:15Lyria, save me.
16:17At last, I moved.
16:19The sound of my heels echoed against the marble
16:22as I walked forward,
16:24one step at a time,
16:25toward the edge of the abyss.
16:26Hope flared wildly in Cassian's eyes.
16:29Then, before his desperate gaze,
16:31I turned cleanly away and walked straight toward Lucian.
16:33I took his hand, large and rough,
16:35and laced my fingers with his,
16:37raising them high for all to see.
16:39My voice,
16:40amplified by divine power,
16:42rang clearly across the entire abyss of thunder.
16:45Who said I would marry this worthless man?
16:47The only one worthy to be my King Concord is Lucian.
16:51The starfall pendant stands as witness.
16:53Silence fell over everything.
16:55Then, in the next instant,
16:56an uproar more deafening than the ninefold thunder itself erupted throughout the entire divine hall.
17:00The daughter of the sun chose a half-flood?
17:03Look, that is the starfall pendant of the moon goddess.
17:06Gasps of shock rippled through the gods one after another.
17:08At the bottom of the abyss,
17:10Cassian seemed to collapse entirely,
17:12as if the strength had been stripped from his bones.
17:14He lay there in despair.
17:16No, that is impossible.
17:17The one you loved was me.
17:19Above,
17:20the second heaven's judgment had already taken form.
17:22It was no longer violet gold,
17:24but a deep violet black.
17:26The true color of chaos lightning.
17:28A force of absolute destruction.
17:30Aurelia!
17:32His final scream tore out of him like the last cry of a dying beast.
17:39The second strike fell.
17:41The violet black storm swallowed him whole.
17:44His screams were so agonizing,
17:46they sounded as though they came from the deepest fires of hell.
17:49When the lightning finally dissipated,
17:51the entire assembly drew in sharp breaths.
17:54The once radiant prince now lay like a charred husk in a pool of blood.
17:57His golden hair had turned to ash.
17:58His armor melted into his flesh.
18:00His limbs twisted at unnatural angles,
18:02and it was impossible to tell whether he still clung to life.
18:04Zeus let out a disappointed sigh.
18:06With a light tap of a scepter,
18:08the storm cloud's hand vanished instantly.
18:11Spare his life.
18:12He still carries the blood of the divines.
18:15The king of gods delivered his cold judgment.
18:17To everyone's surprise,
18:18Cassian's will to survive flared violently.
18:20Dragging his shattered body,
18:22he crawled towards me through the blood.
18:23Each movement left a grotex trail set behind him.
18:26Then, with a dull thud,
18:27he collapsed to his knees at my feet.
18:29The man who had once carved out my heart
18:31and killed our unborn child
18:33now knelt before me like a broken animal.
18:36Aurelia, I was wrong.
18:37His voice rashbed like sand scraping against stone.
18:41Please, I swear I will only love you from now on.
18:43I looked down at him.
18:44The ocean of hatred from my past life surged within me,
18:46transforming into a cruel sense of satisfaction.
18:48Without hesitation,
18:49I lifted my boot and kicked him to the ground.
18:51He fell onto his back.
18:52His clouded eyes went with disbelief.
18:53I bent down gracefully,
18:55my face close to his ear.
18:56The stench of burnt flesh nearly made me recoil,
18:58but I maintained a cold smile.
19:00Cassian.
19:01I whispered softly,
19:02so only he could hear.
19:04When you carved out my divine core in our last life,
19:06did you ever imagine you would end up like this?
19:08His pupils shrank to pinpoints.
19:10Confusion turned to shock,
19:12and then to a terror so deep
19:13it seemed to drag him into an abyss.
19:15At last, he understood.
19:17He was not the only one who had been reborn.
19:20You?
19:20You also came back?
19:22From that future?
19:23His teeth chattered uncontrollably.
19:25I straightened without answering.
19:27He collapsed completely,
19:29trembling in the pool of blood.
19:35I turned and took Lucian's hand,
19:38firm and warm,
19:39pulling him towards the center of the abyss.
19:41Go.
19:43This time, I will stand with you.
19:47But his feet did not move.
19:49He remained at the edge,
19:50as if rooted in place.
19:52What is it?
19:52I asked, turning back.
19:54Behind us,
19:55Cassian suddenly burst into vicious laughter,
19:57clinging to his last shred of hope.
19:59A coward!
20:00You chose a worthless man
20:01who does not even dare enter the trial.
20:03Lucian ignored him completely.
20:04He lowered his gaze to me,
20:06those dark eyes deep as endless night,
20:08filled with a kind of quiet,
20:09overwhelming tenderness
20:10I had never seen in anyone,
20:11in any lifetime.
20:12Your Highness,
20:13this time,
20:14I want to do it myself.
20:15He said,
20:16his voice low and steady.
20:17I froze.
20:18The fury of the lightning
20:19will damage your divine core.
20:20I will never allow your foundation to be harmed.
20:22His thumb brushed lightly
20:23across the back of my hand,
20:25sending a faint shover through me.
20:26Before I could argue,
20:27he released my hand.
20:28Then he turned,
20:29like a warrior stepping onto the battlefield,
20:31and walked straight into the abyss of thunder.
20:33When Lucian's tall, dark figure
20:35stepped into the golden pool
20:36at the bottom of the abyss,
20:37murmurs rippled through the stands.
20:39A half-blood with impure rensity.
20:41How many strikes could he possibly understared?
20:43I heard none of it.
20:44Every sense I had
20:45was locked onto the man standing below.
20:47He stood at the center of the abyss
20:48like an unwielding war god.
20:49He removed his heavy black leather armor
20:51and cast it aside,
20:52leaving only a thin linen shirt
20:53clinging to his body.
20:54The golden water soaked through the fabric,
20:56outlining the powerful planes of his chest
20:58and the sharp definition of his abdomen,
20:59a form so perfect
21:00it would have left
21:01even the greatest sculptors in awe.
21:02He closed his eyes,
21:03fists clenched at his sides,
21:05allowing the power within him
21:06to break free of its restraints.
21:08Above, storm clouds gathered once more,
21:10but this time there was no wild lightning.
21:13Instead, a suffocating stillness
21:14spread through the sky
21:15as if some ancient beast,
21:17slumbering for tens of thousands of years,
21:19was slowly opening its eyes.
21:21Only one bolt?
21:22A god scoffered.
21:23The laughter died instantly.
21:24What formed in the clouds
21:25was not ordinary lightning.
21:27It was a pure black bolt
21:28that devoured all light,
21:29like the primormidial darkness
21:30at the birth of chaos.
21:33There was no thunder,
21:34no roar,
21:35only absolute destruction.
21:37As it descend,
21:38space itself tore apart,
21:39revealed fractures of shifting color
21:40beneath reality.
21:41Primordial lightning.
21:42Zeus rose abruptly from his throne,
21:44his expression shaken.
21:46This is lightning from the dawn of the universe.
21:48I have not seen it
21:49in tens of thousands of years.
21:51The black bolt struck Lucian
21:53squarely across the back.
21:55There was no explosion,
21:56no flame.
21:57Only darkness swallowed him whole.
21:59Seconds later,
22:00the darkness receded.
22:01Lucian still stood.
22:02He had not moved a single step.
22:04His soaked linen shirt remained intact,
22:06as if what had struck him
22:08was nothing more than a passing breeze.
22:10Silence fell.
22:11Then the entire assembly erupted.
22:13Not a single injury?
22:14That is impossible!
22:15On the ground,
22:16Cassian's face twisted grotesquely
22:19with envy and despair.
22:21Lucian did not open his eyes.
22:23His jaw remained tight.
22:25The second strike fell.
22:26Two bolts of primordial lightning
22:27descended together.
22:28He stood unmoving.
22:29The third,
22:30three bolts intertwined.
22:32The fourth,
22:32four converged strikes.
22:34The fifth,
22:35five massive black bolts
22:36wove into a net of destruction,
22:38enveloping the entire abyss of thunder.
22:40Even the unbreakable rock walls
22:42began to collapse.
22:43At last,
22:44blood appeared.
22:45Black arcs scorched his bronze skin,
22:47leaving terrifying marks.
22:49Crimson seeped through his clothing.
22:51His brow tightened.
22:52His teeth clenched.
22:53Clearly enduring agony
22:54that tore at the soul itself,
22:56yet he did not make a sound.
22:57The fifth strike ended.
22:58I thought he would stop there,
23:00just as he had in my previous life.
23:02Enduring five Heaven's judgments alone
23:04was already enough to elevate him
23:06among the greatest on Mount Olympus.
23:08But he did not move.
23:09He stood like an indestructible blade
23:11embedded in scorched earth.
23:13I stepped forward before I realized it.
23:15A tremor in my voice I did not recognize.
23:17Lucian?
23:18He opened his eyes slowly
23:19and looked at me from afar.
23:20Blood streaked across his sharp features,
23:22yet he gave me a faint smile,
23:24wild and gentle at once.
23:26Your Highness,
23:27I can still fight.
23:30The sixth Heaven's judgment
23:31descended with catastrophic fury.
23:33Six bolts of primordial lightning
23:35merged into a single pillar of darkness,
23:37as vast as a column
23:38holding up Mount Olympus itself,
23:40and crashed down.
23:41The space around it
23:43groaned under the strain.
23:44The beam swallowed him entirely,
23:46and my heart clenched violently.
23:48When the light faded,
23:49Lucian was on one knee.
23:51His body was torn with deep, jagged wounds.
23:54Blood poured from him,
23:55staining the golden pool,
23:56a dark crimson.
23:57His face was pale,
23:58his muscles trembling from exhaustion.
24:00Yet he planted his hands against the ground
24:02and forced himself upright.
24:03He did not fall.
24:04Six strikes of primordial lightning,
24:06a feat unmatched in thousands of years
24:08among the Divines.
24:08Zeus trembled with excitement upon his throne.
24:10Good. Excellent.
24:12This is the true brilliance of the Divines.
24:14Lucian breathed heavily.
24:15Though his movements were slow,
24:16he maintained the dignity of a warrior.
24:18My thanks, Your Majesty.
24:19Turning toward Zeus,
24:20he bowed his head.
24:21He began to leave the Abyss,
24:22dragging his blooded body behind him.
24:23Wait.
24:24I loosened my outer robe
24:26and stepped past the boundary of the Abyss
24:27without hesitation,
24:28entering the battlefield he stood in.
24:31Your Highness.
24:33For the first time,
24:34fear appeared in Lucian's dark eyes.
24:36I walked straight to him
24:38and took his burning hand,
24:39ignoring the blood that covered him.
24:41Do not be afraid.
24:42I looked up at the storm clouds
24:43still churning above.
24:45Three strikes remained.
24:46Aurea,
24:47have you lost your mind?
24:49Zeus's voice thundered overhead.
24:51The fire within you
24:52is the origin of divine flame.
24:55If it is damaged,
24:56I ignored him.
24:57Closing my eyes,
24:59the phoenix flame within me
25:00erupted like a waking volcano.
25:02Golden red fire surged into the sky,
25:05forming a great phoenix
25:06that spread its wings around us,
25:08shielding us both.
25:09The seventh heaven's judgment
25:10roared as it descended.
25:13Seven bolts of primorval lightning
25:15merged into a monstrous dragon.
25:17Its abyssian jaws wide
25:19as it roared and plunged downward.
25:20Lucian instinctively tried
25:21to pull free from my grasp
25:22to shield me with his body,
25:24but I tightened my hold.
25:25Our fingers locked together.
25:27This time,
25:28we face it together.
25:30The black lightning dragon
25:31swallowed us whole.
25:33Pain beyond words
25:34tore through every nerve.
25:35Primordial lightning rampaged
25:36through my veins,
25:37clashing violently
25:38with the divine flame at my core.
25:39It felt as though my bones
25:41were being crushed piece by piece.
25:42I bit down hard enough
25:43to taste blood.
25:44Driven by sheer will,
25:45the phoenix flame surged,
25:46wrapping itself around
25:47the destructive force
25:48and forcing it,
25:49little by little,
25:49into submission.
25:50When the lightning faded,
25:51we were still standing,
25:53our hands still tightly joined.
25:55Lucian's voice was hossy with pain.
25:59Your Highness,
26:00your hand.
26:02I glanced down.
26:03Dark, charred cracks
26:04had spread across
26:05the back of my hand,
26:06golden divine blood
26:07seeping through.
26:08I wiped the blood
26:09from my lips
26:10without concern.
26:11It is nothing.
26:13Two more remain.
26:14The eighth heaven's judgment
26:15descended.
26:16Eight bolts of black lightning
26:17wove together
26:18into a vast net of darkness,
26:20sealing off the sky
26:21as it crashed down.
26:23The pain was
26:24ten times worse
26:25than before.
26:26A sharp fracture
26:27rang from my divine core
26:28as fine cracks
26:29spread across it.
26:30The phoenix flame
26:31flickered violently
26:32on the verge of collapse.
26:33My vision blurred,
26:35but I did not let go.
26:36Lucian's grip tightened
26:37around mine like iron.
26:39A force both fierce
26:40and strangely gentle
26:41surged through our joined hands,
26:43pouring into my body.
26:44We endured the eighth strike.
26:46My skin was covered
26:48in fractures
26:48like shattered porcelain.
26:50Luian was worse,
26:52drenched in blood
26:53as though he had risen
26:54from a crimson abyss.
26:55Yet when he looked at me,
26:57his eyes burned
26:58like living stars.
27:01The ninth strike.
27:03The final judgment.
27:04The storm clouds
27:05contracted violently,
27:07compressing all their
27:08destructive power
27:08into a single point.
27:10What emerged
27:10was a thread-like black needle
27:12so fine
27:12it was nearly invisible.
27:14Zeus rose abruptly.
27:17His expression shaken.
27:19That is the needle of chaos.
27:21Auraria,
27:21leave the abyss immediately.
27:23I did not retreat.
27:24Instead,
27:25I stepped forward,
27:26placing myself
27:27slightly ahead of Lucian.
27:28The black needle
27:30pierced through
27:30the phoenix flame
27:31effortlessly.
27:33It tore through
27:33my flesh and bone,
27:35driving straight
27:36into my core fragment.
27:37A sharp crack echoed.
27:39Fractures spread
27:40through my divine core
27:42like a collapsing canyon.
27:44Pain surged
27:45like a tidal wave,
27:47overwhelming everything.
27:48At the moment
27:49my core was about
27:50to shatter completely,
27:51Lucidian let out
27:52a wild roar.
27:56He pulled me
27:58into his burning embrace,
27:59pouring all of his soul
28:01and power into me.
28:02His strength was fierce
28:04yet impossibly gentle,
28:05wrapping around
28:06my breaking core,
28:08forcing it back together,
28:09reshaping it.
28:11He was willing to drain
28:12every drop
28:13of his divine blood
28:14to keep me alive.
28:16The ninefold thunder trial
28:17was broken.
28:18The storm clouds
28:20vanished in an instant,
28:21replaced by a radiant
28:23golden light
28:23that pierced the heavens.
28:25It was Zeus's blessing.
28:27Divine power
28:28flowed over us
28:29like long-awaited rain,
28:30repairing our bodies.
28:31Within my restored
28:32divine core
28:33surged a terrifying
28:34new strength.
28:35Lucidian's transformation
28:36was even more astonishing.
28:38The small horns
28:39atop his head
28:39grew rapidly,
28:41forming majestic
28:41dark gold crown horns.
28:43His tattered clothing
28:44turned to ash,
28:46replaced by a suit
28:47of black armor
28:47etched with flowing
28:48ancient runes.
28:50An ancient,
28:51primordial pressure
28:51awakened within him,
28:53a presence powerful enough
28:54to rival Zeus himself.
28:58The gods fell
28:59into stunned silence.
29:01Even Hera's eyes
29:02flickered with unease
29:03and shock.
29:04In the distance,
29:05Cassian lay collapsed,
29:06like a lifeless husk,
29:08his spirit utterly broken.
29:09This was no inferior
29:11half-blood.
29:12This was the purest,
29:13direct lineage
29:14of the primordial god
29:15Uranus,
29:16older and more noble
29:18than any bloodline present.
29:20Zeus descended
29:20from his throne,
29:21something he had
29:22never done before,
29:23and approached
29:24the edge of the abyss.
29:25My child,
29:26from this day forward,
29:27you are the first heir
29:29to the throne of storms.
29:31Your grand wedding
29:32with Aurelia
29:32will be held
29:34in three days.
29:35Lucian dropped
29:36to one knee,
29:37offering a flawless
29:38knight's salute.
29:39I submit to your will,
29:40your majesty.
29:41I stood beside him,
29:43watching as the man
29:44who had once lingered
29:45in shadows
29:45finally stepped
29:46into his rightful light.
29:48The frozen weight
29:49of hatred
29:49that had bound my heart
29:50across lifetimes
29:51quietly melted away,
29:53undone by his
29:54unwavering devotion
29:55and quiet resolve.
29:56Three days later,
29:58Mount Olympus
29:59welcomed the most
30:00extravagant wedding
30:01in thousands of years.
30:02The entire divine mountain
30:04shimmered beneath
30:05radiant magic.
30:06In the courtyards,
30:07golden fragments
30:08of starlight
30:09hung from every branch,
30:10while garlands
30:10woven from lumina roses
30:11and laurel leaves
30:12stretched for miles.
30:13The fates themselves
30:15appeared in divine form
30:16to bestow their blessing,
30:18and the nine muses
30:20played golden harps,
30:22their voices carrying
30:23songs of eternal love.
30:25I wore a wedding gown
30:26woven by my mother
30:27from the very first
30:29light of dawn,
30:30its long trail
30:31burned with sacred
30:32golden fire
30:33borrowed from
30:34my father's chariot
30:35of the sun,
30:37dazzling beyond words.
30:39At the far end
30:40of the crowd,
30:41Lucian walked toward me
30:42with steady steps.
30:43He wore a sharply
30:44tailored black suit,
30:45the starfall pendant
30:46resting at his waist.
30:48In his dark,
30:49endless eyes,
30:50there was no trace
30:51of gods or power.
30:53There was only me.
30:56He knelt before me,
30:57gently lifting my hand.
30:59My princess,
31:00will you allow me
31:01to be your blade
31:02and your shield,
31:04and walk eternity
31:05at your side?
31:05I clasped his hand
31:07in return,
31:07my fingers brushing
31:08the callies on his palm.
31:10I will.
31:10The moment our vows
31:12were sealed,
31:12a rain of golden light
31:14poured from the heavens.
31:16Fate itself
31:16had been rewritten.
31:18The celebration
31:18lasted for three days
31:20and nights,
31:21the laughter of the gods
31:22nearly shaking
31:23the stars themselves.
31:24On the final night,
31:25Lucian took my hand
31:26and led me away
31:26from the noise,
31:27into the palace gardens.
31:28I stopped suddenly,
31:29covering my lips
31:30in disbelief.
31:31Where ruin had once stood,
31:32a new golden apple tree
31:34had grown,
31:35already taller
31:35than both of us.
31:37Beneath the silver glow
31:38of the moon.
31:39It shimmered softly,
31:40its branches full,
31:41a few young golden fruits,
31:43already beginning to form.
31:45I went to your mother
31:45and asked for a new branch
31:47of Yugdura.
31:48Lucian wrapped his arms
31:48around me from behind,
31:49resting his chin lightly
31:50against my shoulder.
31:51His breath carried
31:51a faint trace of wine,
31:52his voice quieter than usual,
31:53almost shy.
31:54I am sorry.
31:55I used all my strength,
31:57and this is as far
31:58as I could grow it.
31:59My princess,
32:00can you wait for it
32:01to grow taller?
32:02Memories of the past
32:03flooded my mind.
32:04The shattered golden leaves,
32:06the tree that had been
32:07cut down without mercy.
32:09And now,
32:10this man had rebuilt it
32:11with his own hands.
32:13He had given me
32:14a home again.
32:15I turned,
32:16wrapping my arms
32:17around his neck,
32:18rising onto my toes
32:19as I pressed my lips
32:20to his.
32:21He froze instantly,
32:22rigid as stone.
32:23But after a brief moment,
32:24restraint gave way.
32:26His hand slid
32:26to the back of my head,
32:28pulling me closer,
32:28while his other arm
32:29tightened around my waist,
32:31drawing me firmly
32:32against his chest
32:33as the kiss deepened.
32:34Beneath the newborn
32:35golden apple tree,
32:36even the stars
32:37faded into the background.
32:38When the kiss ended,
32:40I rested against his chest,
32:42listening to the powerful
32:43rhythm of his heartbeat.
32:45I like it.
32:46He said nothing.
32:48He simply buried his face
32:50in my hair
32:51and held me tighter,
32:52as though I were something
32:53he had lost once
32:54and finally found again.
32:56All the defenses
32:57I had built,
32:58all the sharp edges
32:58I carried,
32:59quietly fell away
33:00within his embrace.
33:03The seventh day
33:04after the wedding,
33:05I reclined langely
33:06on a chaise in the courtyard,
33:07sipping divine wine
33:08from a crystal glass.
33:09Every morning,
33:10Lucien would nourish
33:10the golden apple tree
33:11with his powerful chaos energy.
33:13In just seven days,
33:14it had already grown
33:14several feet taller.
33:15Your highness!
33:16Cassian and that Lyanna
33:18have come.
33:18They have been kneeling
33:19in the mud
33:19out outside the palace gates
33:21for an hour.
33:21I swirled the amber liquid
33:23in my glass,
33:24a cruel smile
33:25curling at my lips.
33:26At last,
33:27drag them in.
33:28Moments later,
33:29two miserable figures
33:30wrapped in tattered
33:31black cloaks
33:32were thrown into
33:33the courtyard
33:34like refuse.
33:35Cassian reeked,
33:37barely able to stand.
33:39Lyon lay sprawled
33:40on the ground
33:41like a lump of decay.
33:42The skin at her neck
33:44shriveled and lifeless
33:45beneath her cloak.
33:47Kneel properly,
33:48my voice was cold.
33:50Cassian stiffened
33:51instinctively,
33:52his old arrogance
33:53flickering for a moment
33:54before collapsing.
33:55His knees slammed
33:56onto the marble.
33:57Lyanna did not even
33:58dare lift her head.
34:00Cassian trembled
34:02as he pulled back
34:03his hood.
34:03The face that had
34:04once captivated
34:05countless admirers
34:06was now ruined.
34:08His golden hair
34:09had nearly all fallen out,
34:10what remained thin
34:11and ragged.
34:12His pale skin
34:13had turned a sickly
34:14gray-green,
34:14and from his neck
34:15to his cheeks,
34:16slick scales
34:17had begun to grow.
34:18The Heaven's Judgment
34:19had not only destroyed
34:20his divine core,
34:21it had twisted
34:22his bloodline.
34:23He was devolving
34:24into something base.
34:26something like a fish.
34:28Cassian suddenly snapped,
34:30yanking Lyanna's hood away.
34:31Aurelia!
34:32I was cursed
34:33by this wretched woman!
34:34Lyanna let out
34:35a shrined scream,
34:36desperately trying
34:37to cover face.
34:38Too late.
34:39Her face was that
34:40of a withered corpse,
34:41skin cracked
34:42like dead bark.
34:43Sparse white hair
34:44clung to a markled scalp,
34:46her clouded eyes
34:47bulging outward
34:47in a grotesque stare.
34:51Cassian shouted frantically.
34:53It was her!
34:54She cast a vile
34:55love-cursed on me,
34:56clouded my mind.
34:58The one I truly loved
34:59has always been you,
35:00Aurelia.
35:01He struck Lyanna
35:02across the face,
35:03sending her flying.
35:04Then he lunged at her
35:06like a mad beast,
35:07fists raining down.
35:09If it were not for you,
35:10I would not have
35:11lost everything.
35:12Die!
35:13Die!
35:13You are lying!
35:15Cassian,
35:16you said it yourself.
35:16If I helped you
35:17trick Avarian
35:18to giving up
35:18her divine core,
35:19you would make me queen!
35:21Lyanna curled on the ground,
35:22spitting blood
35:22mixed with broken teeth.
35:24Her voice
35:24sisterly with hatred.
35:25Shut up!
35:26Cassian roared,
35:27panic flooding his voice.
35:28She screamed back.
35:29What did you say
35:30when you were on top of me?
35:32You said Averlia
35:33was nothing but a tool to you!
35:34That once you had
35:35her divine core,
35:36you would snap her neck
35:37with your own hands!
35:39Cassian's face
35:40drained of all color.
35:42His fists fell harder,
35:43striking her again.
35:45I will kill you,
35:46you lying rat!
35:47I watched the farce
35:48with mild interest,
35:50until boredom crept in.
35:52Enough!
35:53The word was quiet,
35:55yet carried absolute authority.
35:57Cassian stopped immediately.
35:59He crawled toward me
36:00on his knees
36:00like a beaten animal.
36:01Aurelia,
36:02you heard it all.
36:03I am innocent.
36:04Give me another chance.
36:05Let me stay by your side.
36:07Lifting his scaled face
36:08in desperate feeling,
36:09he reached out
36:10with those webbed,
36:11repulsive hands,
36:12trying to grasp
36:13the hem of my dress.
36:15These were the same hands
36:17that had driven
36:17a blade through my chest.
36:19The same hands
36:20that had held
36:21another woman
36:22while mocking me.
36:23I lifted my foot,
36:25clad in golden armor,
36:26and crushed it down
36:27on the back of his hand.
36:32The crack of breaking bone
36:33rang out,
36:34followed by his scream.
36:36Cassian,
36:36do not hide behind
36:37talk of curses.
36:38That magic only worked
36:39because your heart
36:40was already twisted
36:41by greed for power.
36:42You did not love her,
36:43and you never loved me.
36:44You only desired
36:45my divine core.
36:46In this life,
36:47you have loved
36:48no one but yourself.
36:49His face turned ashen,
36:50his body trembling
36:51as though plunged
36:52into ice.
36:53No,
36:53that is not true.
36:55I withdrew my foot
36:56and wiped my boot
36:57with a silk cloth
36:57in disgust.
36:58Get out!
36:59You and your precious nymphs
37:01can rot together
37:01in the mud,
37:02tormenting each other
37:03until there is
37:04nothing left.
37:04I waved a hand.
37:06Throw them out.
37:07Spread the word.
37:08Anyone who dares
37:09approaches my palace again
37:10will be executed.
37:12The guards dragged
37:13them away roughly.
37:14Aurora,
37:15you cannot be this cruel.
37:17Cassian's screams
37:18echoed through the corridor.
37:20Lucian stepped out
37:20from the shadows
37:21and,
37:22with practiced ease,
37:23pulled me into
37:24his broad,
37:25warm embrace.
37:26His thumb brushed lightly
37:28against the back
37:29of my neck.
37:30Did that disgust you?
37:31I leaned into his chest
37:33and let out a quiet breath.
37:34I was just thinking.
37:36In my past life,
37:37he never once spoke
37:38of love to me.
37:39Now that he has fallen
37:40from everything,
37:41he suddenly can't
37:42stop saying it.
37:42Lucian's voice
37:43was low and cold.
37:45Because those cheap lies
37:47are all he has left.
37:48Only cowards beg
37:49with false tears
37:50after losing everything.
37:52I tilted my head up
37:53to look at him.
37:53His sharply defined jaw
37:55was tense,
37:56his dark eyes devoid
37:56of any hunger for power.
37:58There was only an intense,
37:59unyielding possessiveness
38:00towards me.
38:02Will you always love me?
38:03I looped my arms
38:04around his neck.
38:05He lowered his head
38:06and pressed a burning kiss
38:08to my forehead.
38:11Until the universe
38:12collapses
38:13and time itself ends.
38:16That night,
38:17I dismissed everyone
38:19and entered the heavily
38:19guarded divine treasury
38:21alone,
38:22carrying a lantern.
38:23Moonlight filtered
38:24through the glass dome above,
38:26illuminating rows
38:27of divine artifacts.
38:28These were all items
38:29I had once bestowed
38:31upon Cassius,
38:32now reclaimed
38:32after his fall.
38:33The blade forged
38:34by Hephaestus.
38:36Sacred water
38:37from Athena,
38:37the golden apple
38:38of Aphrodite.
38:39My fingers
38:40taste lightly
38:41over the cold metal
38:42before finally stopping
38:43on a chain
38:44that glimmermed
38:45with a chilling
38:45silver light.
38:46The godsbear chain,
38:48a tool used to bind
38:50and torment
38:50lesser divines.
38:52Once,
38:53Cassian had asked me
38:54for it,
38:54claiming it was
38:55for Lyanna's protection.
38:56I lifted the chain,
38:58weighing it in my hand,
38:59then deliberately placed
39:01it in the most visible spot
39:02near the ventilation opening.
39:04The next morning,
39:06Myra rushed in,
39:07flustered.
39:07Your Highness,
39:08someone broke
39:09into the treasury
39:09last night.
39:10It was that old witch Lyanna.
39:11She stole a silver chain.
39:13Is that so?
39:14I set down my golden cup,
39:15a knowing smile
39:16curling at my lips.
39:17Let her take it.
39:18The bait has been taken.
39:20Three months later,
39:21a scandal swept
39:22across Mount Olympus
39:23like a storm.
39:24Cassian was dead.
39:25He died in a remote,
39:27barren ditch
39:27granted to him by Zeus.
39:29His body was found
39:30floating in the foul water,
39:31completely decayed,
39:32reverted to its base form.
39:34A palm-sized golden carp
39:35covered in resting soils.
39:36The remnants of his divine core
39:37had been forcibly carved out.
39:39The killer was Lyanna.
39:41The powerless nymph had,
39:43under the cover of night,
39:45used the stolen
39:46gods bond chain
39:47to strangle Cassian
39:48until he stopped breathing.
39:50Then she tore open his chest
39:52and dug out the ruined core,
39:54attempting to devour it
39:55to restore her beauty and power.
39:57But she was a fool.
39:58Cassian's core had already
40:00been destroyed
40:00by the Ninefold Thunder Trial,
40:02saturated with violent,
40:04chaotic energy.
40:05The moment she swallowed it,
40:06that power erupted within her,
40:08tearing her apart from the inside.
40:10She died.
40:13Her corpse reverted
40:14to its true form,
40:15a grotesque water spirit.
40:16She sprawled in the foul mud
40:17by the stream,
40:18its shriveled scales falling away,
40:20hollow eyes staring blankly
40:21at the ashen sky,
40:22its mouth and nose
40:22filled with filthy slum.
40:23It was said that when she died,
40:24she still clutched
40:25the godsbane chain in her hand.
40:28The barbs had pierced
40:29deep into her bones,
40:30fusied with her rotting flesh,
40:31impossible to remove.
40:33It was also said
40:33that as she drew
40:34her final breath in the mire,
40:35she cried out for her mother,
40:36the very mother
40:37she had once lured
40:38beast's family to devour,
40:40just to bury her own lies.
40:42When I heard the news,
40:43I was resting in Lucian's arms
40:44beneath the lush canopy
40:45of the golden apple tree.
40:46Myra described the gruesome scene
40:48in vivid detail,
40:48her tone filled with satisfaction.
40:50Lucian set aside the parchment
40:51in his hand
40:52and looked down at me.
40:53What are you thinking,
40:53my princess?
40:54I met his gaze,
40:55my smile bright as dawn.
40:57I was thinking of a joke.
40:58There is a flower
40:59in the mortal world
41:00called Lumina Rose.
41:01Lyanna loved
41:02adoring herself with it.
41:03Lucian raised a brow slightly.
41:04And?
41:05I have already sent people
41:06to plant fields
41:07of Lumina Roses
41:08all around the muddy pit
41:09where she was buried.
41:10He paused.
41:11Then a low, rich laugh
41:13escaped his chest.
41:14The expression in his eyes
41:15softened,
41:16filled with indulgence.
41:18He reached out
41:18and ruffled my hair.
41:20My princess,
41:21you grow more resistible
41:22by the day.
41:22I smiled and closed my eyes,
41:24resting my cheek
41:25against his warm chest.
41:26Sunlight filtered
41:27through the golden apple tree
41:28and his embrace
41:29felt warmer than the sun itself.
41:30The hatred that had clung
41:31to me across lifetimes
41:32finally faded away
41:33within this quiet,
41:34peaceful world.
41:35Time passed swiftly.
41:36To the gods,
41:37a century was no more
41:38than the blink of an eye.
41:39The golden apple tree,
41:40once regrown from a single branch,
41:41had long since surpassed
41:42its former glory.
41:43Its massive trunk
41:44required three people
41:45to encircle it,
41:46its dense canopy
41:47stretching wide enough
41:48to block out the sky.
41:49The golden fruit it bore
41:50shimmered beneath the sunlight
41:51like countless miniature suns.
41:53Over the past hundred years,
41:54Lucian,
41:55as the first heir
41:55to the throne of storms,
41:57had worked decisively
41:58alongside Zeus
41:59to restore order
41:59to Mount Olympus.
42:01With overwhelming strength
42:02and unyielding justice,
42:03he earned the respect
42:04and awe of every god.
42:06Even Hera,
42:07known for her sharp tongue,
42:08once declared
42:09before the pamphlet,
42:10Lucian is more worthy
42:12of that supreme throne
42:13than any other.
42:15The mystery of his origins
42:17had also come to light.
42:19His mother was no mortal woman,
42:21but the last sacred guardian
42:23of the lineage
42:24of the primordial god Uranus.
42:26To escape those who hunted her,
42:28she hid among mortals
42:29with Lucian in her arms,
42:31until Zeus's
42:32vengeancely discovered them.
42:33As for me,
42:34my power had undergone
42:36a transformation
42:36after enduring
42:37the primordial lightning
42:38alongside Lucian.
42:40My phoenix flame
42:41and his chaos lightning
42:42fused perfectly,
42:43evolving into something
42:44entirely new.
42:46Thunderflame.
42:47It carried both
42:48the endless vitality
42:49of rebirth
42:49and the absolute
42:50destructive force
42:51of chaos.
42:52The storm phoenix.
42:54Every spring
42:54in the mortal world,
42:55Lucian and I
42:56would leave behind
42:56the rigid formality
42:57of Mount Olympus
42:58and wander as we please.
42:59Sometimes we searched
43:00hidden valleys
43:01for trace of Lumita roses.
43:02Other times,
43:03we simply sat side by side
43:04atop a solitary
43:05snow-covered peak,
43:06sharing a flask
43:07of divine wine
43:07as we waited
43:08for the sunrise.
43:09Whenever I grew drowsy
43:10against his shoulder,
43:11he would gently
43:11pull me into his arms,
43:12shielding me
43:13from the cold winds
43:14with his cloak.
43:14You are the future
43:15king of gods.
43:17I teased him
43:18more than once.
43:19Why do you spend
43:20your days
43:20like a wandering poet?
43:21Each time,
43:22he would press
43:23a soft kiss
43:24to my temple
43:24and give the same answer.
43:26No throne weighs
43:27more than being
43:27by your side.
43:28One day,
43:29I stood beneath
43:30the towering
43:31golden apple tree,
43:32gazing up at the fruit
43:33that glittered
43:34like stars.
43:35Lucian came up
43:36behind me
43:36without a sound,
43:38his strong arms
43:39wrapping firmly
43:40around my waist,
43:41his chin resting
43:42against my shoulder.
43:43The scouts have returned,
43:44he said,
43:45his voice low and warm.
43:47In the eastern continent,
43:48the Lumina Roses
43:49are in full bloom
43:50this year,
43:51entire mountains covered,
43:53like a sea of violet stars.
43:55Do you want to go see them?
43:59I turned to meet
44:00his glaze.
44:01A hundred years
44:02had left no mark
44:04upon his perfect features,
44:05only deepening
44:06the calm authority
44:08that came with power.
44:10Yet the way
44:11he looked at me
44:11had never changed.
44:13It was the same
44:14as it had been
44:14on that long day
44:15in the abyss of thunder.
44:16Intense.
44:17Unwavering.
44:18Certain.
44:19Of course,
44:20I said with a smile.
44:22We became
44:23two streaks of light
44:24cutting through
44:24the layered clouds
44:25of Mount Olympus,
44:26crossing the vast
44:27rolling waves
44:28of the Aegean Sea,
44:29and finally descended
44:30into a quiet
44:31Neymane Valley
44:31eastern continent.
44:32Just as the scouts
44:33had said,
44:34Lumina Roses
44:34bloomed wildly
44:35across the mountains.
44:36Under the soft glow
44:37of moonlight,
44:37their violet petals
44:38shimmered with a
44:39dreamlike radiance,
44:40like a flowing galaxy.
44:41The evening breeze
44:42stirred the endless
44:43sea of flowers
44:43into gentle waves,
44:44their soft rustling
44:45like a lullaby
44:46whispered by the earth itself.
44:47Lucian held my hand
44:48firmly as we walked
44:49deeper into that
44:50violet dream.
44:51Aurelia.
44:52He suddenly stopped,
44:54his voice
44:54carrying a rare tension.
44:56What is it?
44:57He turned to face me.
44:58The pale moonlight
44:59traced a silver edge
45:00along his tall,
45:01powerful form.
45:02Then the man
45:03who commanded
45:04the awe of all gods
45:05knelt before me,
45:06carefully,
45:06almost nervously.
45:07He drew out a ring
45:08from within his inner robe.
45:10It was not a divine relic
45:12adorned with jewels.
45:13It was a simple band,
45:14shaped from wood,
45:15its surface carved
45:16with two overlapping leaves.
45:18I cut a branch
45:19from the golden apple tree
45:20and carved this myself.
45:21His ears had turned
45:22faintly red
45:23and for once
45:24he avoided my glaze.
45:26It has been
45:27a hundred years.
45:28I still owe you
45:29a real wedding ring.
45:30I read the records
45:31of mortals.
45:32In their world,
45:33a ring represents eternity
45:34without beginning
45:35nor end.
45:35At last,
45:36he lifted his eyes
45:37to meet mine.
45:38They burned with sincerity
45:40and quiet longing.
45:41Aurora,
45:42will you marry me again?
45:44Not for the throne
45:44of storms,
45:45not for the alliance
45:46of the divines,
45:47only because I am Lucian
45:49and you are Aurora.
45:50I looked at the simple
45:51wooden ring in his hand.
45:52It held none of the brilliance
45:54of the starfall pendant,
45:55none of the sharp perfection
45:56forged by the god
45:57of craftsmen.
46:00It was only a piece of wood,
46:02shaped with patience
46:03and care into a circle
46:04that symbolized forever.
46:05And yet,
46:06in that moment,
46:07it was more precious
46:08than any crown in existence.
46:09I slowly extended
46:10my left hand,
46:11my voice trembling
46:12with emotion.
46:13I will.
46:14His fingers shook slightly
46:15as he slid the ring
46:16onto mine.
46:16The rough grain
46:17pressed against my skin,
46:18warm with his touch.
46:20In the next instant,
46:21he rose and pulled me
46:21tightly into his arms,
46:23his hand firm at my waist
46:24as he kissed me deeply.
46:25It was a kiss that bound
46:26soul and flesh together.
46:27Around us,
46:28the lumina roses
46:28swayed gently,
46:29their violet glow
46:30surrounding us
46:31like a tide of light.
46:32The moon hung high above,
46:33the stars bearing
46:34silent witness.
46:35Far away,
46:35the lights of Mount Olympias
46:36fleckered against the night.
46:37The gods might still
46:38be celebrating,
46:39the muses still singing,
46:40the fates still weaving
46:40their endless threads.
46:41And I,
46:42after enduring betrayal,
46:44pain,
46:44and fire,
46:45had finally found my eternity
46:46in the arms of the man
46:47before me.
46:47Later,
46:47my maid Myra once asked me,
46:50Your Highness Me,
46:50you and Prince Lucio
46:51planted another golden apple tree
46:53in the mortal world.
46:54Why does it never grow any taller?
46:56I looked at the wooden ring
46:57on my finger and smiled.
46:59Because it does not need
47:00to grow anymore.
47:01Why not?
47:02She asked,
47:03puzzled.
47:04Never told her the answer,
47:05but I knew it well.
47:07Because a true home
47:08is never a cold palace,
47:09nor a towering divine tree.
47:11A home is a person.
47:13The one who will draw his blade
47:15and stand alone
47:16against the throne of gods
47:17when the world casts you aside.
47:19The one who will protect
47:19your shattered soul
47:20even at the cost
47:21of his own destruction.
47:22The one who,
47:23after gaining everything,
47:24will still carve a simple
47:25root for you
47:26with his own hands.
47:27The one who promises
47:27to love you for a hundred years,
47:29a thousand years,
47:30ten thousand years,
47:31and proves it with his life.
47:32The one who wants to
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