Elsewhere, in the Northern Mountains, far from the grounds of Eda, a hooded figure stood before a giant mirror. Like water, the mirror rippled as the image of Elias flickered into view.
"Your life… comes with a cost," the figure murmured. "And the prophecy marches forward."
The mirror darkened, and a voice answered from within.
"Then it begins."
Within the warmth of the Western Tower, Consort Elias seeped his body into the warm bath, letting the water lighten his weight—but then it was nothing. The ache in his heart and the burden on his shoulders did not go away; rather, they intensified.
Something was wrong. Though the bath smelled of roses and jasmine, he could smell it… he could feel it. Just like hours ago in the chamber with Rowan, but this time it didn't leave so quickly. His body leaned backwards, much to his discomfort, and his eyes grew heavy…
Then he saw her.
Wrapped in a black cloak, she stood before the shrine of the cursed gods. Her hands carried blood in skulls, and fire burned within them.
"Elias…," she screamed, her echoes loud as a banshee, and her lips trembled.
Elias raised his hands to his ears, but it wasn't enough to shield them from the screeching voice or its echoes… Then it bled.
He stepped back, his hands pounding in the air as he tried to escape the hallucination, but the fog wouldn't budge. He was trapped.
"Descendants of the one who shouldn't exist… But then, two bloodlines: one of ruin and another of redemption." The figure raised her eyes, staring into him as if ready to see the truth within his soul.
"A curse planted in blood and sealed by lust." Every word dripped like venom.
"Be warned, beta."
Elias's body trembled, but his lips parted, and he dared to ask.
"What curse?… What blood?" He half-cried.
The woman smiled, but her smile sent shivers down his spine.
"You were not meant to return so easily," her words dripped like water. "The bond has been twisted. A curse… planted in blood, sealed by lust." She repeated. His heart pounded. His fingers tightened.
"What do I do?" His words trembled.
"You carry something now… something precious." Her head tilted, her smile curled wickedly. "Something doomed."
Elias barely had time to process it all when she moved fast, her face inches away from his. Her eyes were cold as the depth of a frozen lake.
"He will not save you next time." Her voice wrapped around him like a cold embrace, and with that, everything shattered. The woman vanished.
Elias rose from the bath, his hands to his throat as he gasped for breath. His lips parted to call for help, but then—silence… and darkness.
When he came to, his eyes snapped open. The room was cold. His body trembled despite being wrapped in warm clothes. By his side knelt Sonia, her hands trembled as she held him. Her eyes carried nothing short of dread and panic. Kim hovered close, pressing a cold cloth to his forehead.
"Consort!" Sonia cried in relief as his eyes fluttered open.
"Thank the goddess," Kim muttered and quickly carried him to the bed. Elias sat for a while, taking in everything. It all felt too real…
"We thought…" Kim began. But Elias smiled faintly.
"I'm fine," his voice croaked more than he had intended. He stood up, but his body swayed, and Kim quickly caught him.
"No… you're not," Sonia snapped. "You fainted in the bath! We heard the crash. Kim nearly kicked the door down." She was on the brink of tears.
"It was just the heat… nothing serious," Elias lied through his teeth. "How long was I out?" he demanded.
"Ten… ten minutes," Sonia stammered.
"And the Prince?" Elias's eyes narrowed.
"Still to be informed," Kim added.
"Don't."
One word—and the air froze.
"Consort… he has to know," Sonia said, but Elias shot her a stern look.
"Why?"
"He worries about you," Kim replied from his spot by the door. Elias's smile tightened. He didn't know who to trust—not even the one he was married to had proven worthy.
"Maybe the herbs were too strong." But the way his fingers trembled betrayed him.
Kim frowned.
"You were ice cold when we pulled you out. The water burned—but you were not. No burns… just cold. And gone."
Sonia bit her lip, clearly still trying to piece together what the fuck just happened. She was his maid. The temperature had been just right, but minutes later it burned—and the one inside was cold as ice.
"I said I am fine," Elias groaned.
They didn't argue anymore. Not because they believed him, but because they had learned there were things better left unspoken within the walls of the palace.
Later that evening, Elias stood alone at his window, a blue robe over his fragile shoulders. His mind replayed the vision—or the hallucination. Whichever it was. He could make out her face, but the familiarity dwelt within her presence… She was no stranger.
Deep down, he wished he could vanish without a trace. Until the moment he died for the third time, he had been grateful—but not anymore.
His clawed hands dug deeper into his skin. Death had felt like an escape. The only chance he got… he was brought back. Elias sighed heavily, his gaze settling on the shimmering moon—a witness to his plight and pain.
"If wishes were horses…" he murmured. Then his hand traveled to his stomach. It wasn't empty.
Her words repeated in his mind like a broken record. He carried something… it was never the heat.
He breathed heavily, then turned. His gaze settled on the door, where Kim stood behind. Something was wrong with him. His life was fast becoming a rollercoaster ride, but deep down, he was no longer sure who he could trust.
Not when he was surrounded by vipers and poisonous snakes, all looming in the dark, waiting for the right time to strike. His eyes felt heavy. Tears fell at will. His fingers tightened around his stomach… he could feel it.
"Funny how I fought this fate, and here I am—even without knowing… I've long been cursed as the next cleansing sacrifice."