After the carnage, Adel walked back toward the carriage. Bloodstains marred her pristine uniform, but her expression was as flat as a slate. There was no remorse, no guilt, no thrill—just emptiness.
Cassius followed behind her. Unlike Adel, he didn't head straight for the carriage. He stopped by each corpse. He crouched beside them, murmuring a few words, showing respect to the dead before moving on.
Adel let Cassius take the reins to steer the carriage, while she sat silently in the corner of the coachman's bench. The carriage lurched forward, continuing the trip.
Bump. Bump. Crunch.
I felt it as the wheels ran over the bodies scattered on the road. The carriage shook with each grisly impact.
"Cassius," I called out, my voice tight. "Stop by the nearby river. Adel needs to clean herself and change her outfit."
…
A few hours later, we stopped at the riverside. Adel retrieved a fresh uniform and a towel from her trunk. She walked toward the river without a word.
I opened the carriage door myself and followed her down to the bank.
..
Adel washed the blood from her skin with methodical efficiency. I stood a few paces back, watching her reflection in the water.
"This is my first time seeing you like that, Adel," I said softly.
Adel paused, water dripping from her hands. "Does My Lady feel scared of me now?"
"I don't… have feelings like that," I admitted. "I just find it surprising. I heard from my mother that you are a former assassin… so what you did back there wasn't shocking in itself. But… are Martia and Livia the same as you?"
Adel resumed scrubbing. "Their paths are different from mine. They are former guards and mercenaries… but in terms of skill and prowess, we are the same."
"That is more relieving then," I sighed. "It is assuring to know that the twins will be safe... Take your time to wash yourself, Adel."
I excused myself and walked back up the bank.
Later that night, after dinner, a familiar feeling of dread washed over me. I felt uneasy, unwell.
It is coming.
I immediately stumbled out of my pavilion and went to Adel, who was tending the fire. I grabbed her sleeve.
She turned her head toward me, concern flashing in her eyes.
"COUGH! COUGH!"
Blood sprayed from my lips.
Adel saw it instantly. She scooped me up and carried me back into the pavilion. Through my fading vision, I saw Cassius and Valerie recoil, their faces staggering with shock at the sight of me coughing blood.
Adel laid me down on the mat. "Stay here, My Lady," she said urgently, then sprinted to the carriage to retrieve the medicine Sofia had prepared.
While she was gone, I kept coughing, my chest heaving. Slowly, my vision blurred. The world lost its edges.
And in a second, I lost my vision completely.
It was blank.
There was nothing. No library, no strange rooms, no hallucinations like usual. Just an endless, silent blank space.
The next morning, I woke up on my own. The sun was already high.
Adel hadn't woken me up.
I left the pavilion, rubbing my eyes. When I stepped outside, I saw something surprising.
Adel was in a bad state. Her face was bruised, her lip split, and there were dark marks on her arms. She moved stiffly.
I rushed to her. "Adel! What happened?"
She just kept quiet, avoiding my gaze.
I turned to Cassius and Valerie. They looked away, equally silent.
A cold realization washed over me. I remembered the sensation of losing control.
"IS IT ME?" I whispered, horrified. "DID I DO THIS TO HER?"
They lowered their heads and didn't say anything. Their silence was answer enough.
The first time I did this to Adel was years ago, when I tried to help the four children from the street. I managed to take down both Adel and Lady Octavi while unconscious. Over the past seven years, the same thing kept happening. When the Dianoia overwhelmed me, sometimes I wrecked everything around me in a blind fury.
Every time I regained consciousness and asked Mother, Adel, or Sofia about it, they kept silent. They refused to explain the monster I became.
"Cassius, Valerie," I ordered, my voice trembling. "Lay Adel down in my pavilion."
They nodded and gently carried Adel inside, laying her on my soft bed.
…. … .. .
After a long journey, we finally arrived at the Capital City.
The massive gates loomed ahead. However, a long line of carriages stretched out before us, waiting to enter. Most were trader caravans, with a few personal carriages mixed in.
The wait would be hours. Adel, still recovering but refusing to rest, couldn't take the delay. She climbed down from the carriage and walked toward the gate guards.
While waiting for Adel, I turned to Cassius and Valerie, who were sitting on the grass nearby.
"We have reached the Capital, so your escort duty will be ending," I said. "What will you do now?"
"Hmmm?" Cassius shrugged. "We still haven't decided or thought about anything after this."
"And what are you doing here?" Valerie asked, eyeing me curiously. "Someone from the Aurelius family, without guards, going to the Capital alone? Surely you have a reason."
"Just meeting my betrothed," I answered simply. I didn't mention the Royal Decree; meeting my fiancé seemed like a sufficient reason.
"Your betrothed? From which family could betroth someone from the Aurelius family?" Valerie scoffed.
"Surely you know about it… which family dares to seek it from my family?"
Valerie froze. Her eyes widened. "There will be no family who dares to do that, unless the Roy— WHAT!!!" She gasped. "Don't tell me it is the Royal Family."
"Who else?"
"Which one?"
"The eldest one."
"The eldest one, huh… so The Crown Prince…" Valerie paused, her brow furrowing. "Wait a minute… that is different from what I read and saw."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked, leaning forward.
"Perhaps you don't know it?? The rumors and the news… around the news boards all over the Kingdom, there is always a paper or a painting about them."
"Again, what are you talking about? And what is 'them'?"
"I can't tell you clearly about it," Valerie said, glancing at Cassius. "But how about we try to look at it in the city? Surely there will be something about it on a news board."
In the meantime, Adel returned from the gate. She was accompanied by three heavy-armored guards; two wore helmets, one did not. They walked around the carriage, checking the wheels and the trunk, while the unhelmeted one spoke with Adel.
Adel handed them a document—the permit with the Aurelius stamp and emblem.
The guard nodded respectfully. In a few seconds, they waved us out of the queue. We rode past the line of frustrated merchants, escorted by the three guards, and passed through the gate without waiting.
Once inside the city walls, the guards left us.
I needed to know what Valerie meant.
"Adel," I called out. "Is there a news board around here?"
"News board?" Adel looked back, confused. "What wind blows that My Lady wants to see a news board?"
"I just heard something interesting from Valerie, and I want to see and read it."
"Something interesting, huh?" Adel turned a fierce glare toward Valerie.
"So is there one around here?"
"Surely there must be one. Let me look around."
Adel scanned the busy street. "There is one, My Lady. On our right."
She turned the carriage toward a large wooden board erected in a public square. A crowd of people was gathered in front of it.
We stopped beside the road. Before Adel climbed down to open the door for me, I heard her whisper something to Cassius and Valerie.
"Prepare yourselves… [mumble]… drive away the people."
What did she mean, 'prepare yourselves'?
Adel opened the door. I stepped out and walked toward the board, flanked by my three protectors. We pushed through the crowd until I was at the front.
The board was huge and wide, covered in parchments. There were job postings, notices about missing persons, official decrees, and paintings depicting recent events.
However, I spotted one section on the right that was particularly crowded—mostly with young girls.
I walked toward it. Adel stayed back, whispering instructions to Cassius and Valerie.
As I got closer, I heard snippets of conversation from the girls.
"So romantic…""They are so lovey-dovey…""So fond of each other…"
My curiosity piqued. I pushed my way to the front.
There, pinned to the board, were stories and paintings.
It was the story… of the Crown Prince… with Lady Anna.
I read the articles one by one. The newest one was posted just yesterday. It described them walking in the Royal Gardens, looking for all the world like lovers.
I turned to a girl standing next to me.
"Excuse me, can I ask you something?"
"Yes?" she beamed.
"What do you think about their relationship with each other?"
"Surely they are betrothed!" she gushed. "But… I don't know why they do not proceed further and announce the wedding."
Betrothed?
"And when did this rumor start?" I asked, keeping my voice steady.
"Are you perhaps not following it? Or did you just start following it now? But I can tell you, it started seven years ago. Somehow, someone started to write about them, and a few months later, a painting was published about their closeness."
Seven years ago…
So they started to stay with each other for that long.
And this was why… the Crown Prince… never… stepped a foot… in my home… again… or took a look at me… in these past seven years.
After hearing that, a dark, boiling sensation rose in my chest. Anger. Annoyance. Irritation. It was a chaotic mix of emotions.
I remembered this feeling. It was the same feeling I had back then, when I saved the four children in the alley. The feeling of losing control.
I gripped my hands into fists, my nails digging into my palms.
Suddenly, a low laugh escaped my lips.
"Ha.. ha.. ha.. ha.. ha.. ha.. ha.. ha…"
It started small and slow, then grew louder, more hysterical.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Adel was suddenly beside me. She grabbed my shoulder and my hand firmly.
"Calm down… My Lady… it is just words from someone… just keep calm…"
"I know it…" I hissed, my body trembling. "Even though I don't know him well… BUT… I feel irritated about it, Adel."
"Perhaps it is the feeling of jealousy."
"NO!! I AM NOT JEALOUS ABOUT HIM WITH LADY ANNA!!"
Unconsciously, I swung my arm.
WHAM!
With superhuman force I didn't know I possessed, I threw Adel away. She flew several meters through the air and crashed into the ground.
The crowd screamed and scrambled back in terror.
Cassius and Valerie rushed to Adel, helping her up. They stared at her arm in shock. Adel's right hand was pitch black, glowing with gold glyphs—she had used her Black Transmutation to block the blow, and yet she was still thrown like a ragdoll.
Adel got up, dusting herself off, and walked back toward me. Cassius and Valerie formed a perimeter, keeping the terrified crowd away.
"That is the feeling of jealousy, My Lady," Adel said calmly, approaching me slowly. "It is okay if you feel like that… but to let you drown in your emotion… Is that okay, My Lady?"
"HAHAHAHAHA! SO THIS IS JEALOUSY?"
I laughed harder, throwing my head back. I felt the tether to my sanity snapping. I lost control of my body completely.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"CRAP! …THIS IS BAD!! …THIS IS BAD!!" Adel shouted, drawing her daggers as I descended into madness.