Ophelia's POV
I did not know that the other estates… could be this beautiful.
I was so focused on our land that I did not know I could travel as well. I was so hooked on improving myself that I forgot I needed to live my life as well.
I did not know there was something so beautiful like this…
The Kingdom of the East is the most beautiful place I have ever seen—no, the most beautiful place that could ever exist. The sky stretches endlessly, bathed in hues of gold and lavender, as if the heavens themselves were painted with the softest strokes of a dream.
Everything here feels like it was crafted by the hands of the gods, untouched by time, unspoiled by sorrow.
The towering spires of ivory and glass reach toward the sky, gleaming under the sun's embrace, their reflections dancing like stars on the surface of crystal-clear rivers.
Flowers bloom in a riot of colors, spilling over marble archways, weaving through cobbled streets, their fragrance so intoxicating it feels like I'm breathing in pure magic.
Like I am breathing a whole different magic that I know nothing about. That a mage like me would be most interested in.
Beyond the city walls, rolling emerald hills stretch as far as the eye can see, kissed by the golden glow of dawn. Wildflowers sway in the breeze, painting the fields with splashes of violet and blue, while ancient silver-leafed trees stand as silent guardians, their branches whispering secrets to the wind.
And then there's the palace—the heart of the kingdom—glowing with an ethereal light, its beauty so unreal that I sometimes wonder if it's merely an illusion. But it isn't. It's real.
"You live in a wonderful world…" I whispered in huge awe.
"You are lucky." I smiled as I stared at him.
He was not looking at his home… he was just staring at me.
Which is weird because I am not the most beautiful scenery there is here.
"Yeah, I'm lucky." He smiled at me.
"Let's head inside, my father might be waiting for us." He invited me in which I obviously accepted.
While we were walking in, I felt every kind of emotions that I do not know I am capable of feeling. I am so hooked in every details of this place that this unmatched emotions started etching from the very sides of my heart.
"Are you lonely?" Suddenly, the words have escaped my mouth. It is a question I did not particularly thought about.
"Why would you ask me that?" He looked at me strangely.
"I am guessing you're the only son." I made an excuse. Even though the truth is, I just want to know if I am just the lonely one here or we'll make two.
"No, I am not."
"Which question did you answered?" I laughed a bit.
"Oh!" He snapped.
"I am an only son and no, I am not lonely." He cleared it out for me but the thing is, I still find it really vague.
"How can someone like you, who does not have any siblings, not feel loneliness?"
He looked at me with his wandering eyes and I immediately knew how good of a person he was. Unlike everyone I have met, there was some sense of comfort in those gazes and his aura had been clear and clean.
This man… he might have had the best life.
"I do not feel lonely because I have people like you around me." He said it so casually and immediately looked away.
"Humans are difficult to understand." I muttered under my breath.
"Immortals have all the time to understand us, it's okay."
That was like a wake up call for me.
After living for the last fifty years, why didn't I thought about it? Or maybe another fifty years with him would allow me to open the closed door for these people?
I picked up from the pace as he was walking fast.
As soon as we reached the room which I supposed belonged to his father, we were greeted by guards and maids. I could sense sadness and how they were all gloomy.
The king must have been dying.
"The physician had made it clear that his grace is already dying. You might be the only person he's been waiting to see." The guard said.
"They came here? Haven't I told you all that I do not want him to see incompetent aider?" The prince suddenly changed his tone and behavior.
So this must be the kind of love daughters and sons have for their parents?
"We cannot help it. Anytime, he'll experience sudden death and we need to be there for him." He enlightened the prince though I can see how he was already closing his mind from the possibilities.
"Let us in, I've brought the mage." He introduced me.
I could only look at them and watch them all bow at me as if I deserve that kind of respect.
As soon as I've entered, I immediately saw the Queen crying beside the King. This was a scene I did not expect at all.
"Samuel? Where have you been?" The queen shifted her attention to her son who were just walking to them.
"Your father has been suffering because he wants to see you one last time. You shouldn't have dragged it out." She whispered, her tone of voice laced with so much pain.
"I've brought the mage, Ophelia. I know she can help us heal my father."
I looked at his mother and saw how her eyes regained the hope she had lost.
"Ophelia? You're the elf?" Her voice sounded as if she was about to lose the ability to talk. She kneels before me and held my hands so tight. I could feel her desperate need for me to save her husband.
"Please save the king… I am begging you. He still has many years to live and I want him to spend his time fulfilling his wish for this land. Please, I am begging you." She sounded helpless that I cannot help but feel pity for her.
"Let me see what I can do for him." I said and helped her stand up. I do not want the Queen to be kneeling before me because that would make her throne and crown shake.
I gently walked beside the king and realized how his state was different from Rosalia. He looked like he still wanted to live and there was so much will he had in his body.
I held his hands and the overflowing energy has been transferred to my body. All the courage… the desperate need to live… and his love for his family.
"Do you want to live?" I asked.
His eyes opened and it met my gaze. He may not say the word but I know that his will to live was strong enough for me to grant his wish.
"Power cannot be created without sacrifice." I whispered in the air.
"Are you two willing to trade some of your years for him?" I stared at the queen and at the prince who seemed to be debating it.
"Do we really have to trade our lives? Is there nothing else we could do?" The queen seemed skeptical.
"No. No animals could ever measure up to the value of the years your lives has. The lifespan of animals are different from yours, we cannot use them as it would create imbalance in the scale." I explained.
"Use me." The prince suddenly blurted out.
"What?!" The queen was in a huge disbelief. "No, I do not want you to die early."
"Do not grant my son's request." She seemed to be firm with her decision.
I stared at him. "I will not do something your mother did not consent to. I guess, we'll have to let your father side and just move on." I let go of his father's hands and felt all the emotions leaving my body as well.
I watched how the two of them started fighting their own battles. "I cannot create miracle without giving up another. Otherwise… this will all just be a huge mistake that will fall back on me."
The prince looked at me and smiled. "My years would never measure up to the greatness of my father. If you will allow me to just give him some of my life and make sure he will continue aiding for his people, then this might be the first time I will be making a good deed that he will be proud of."
I stared at the Queen back and realized she had not been expressing her strong disapproval now.
"Come here." I urged him.
He sat beside me and held my hands the same time I am holding his father's.
"I cannot see the future. I do not know whether the amount of years I will took from you will kill you today." I expressed the backfire of the decision he had to make.
"Do you want to still go on?"
"Yes." There was no hesitations in his voice.
He did not think it twice nor took his time to make some excuses so he wouldn't have to trade his life for his father's life. He did not breathe heavily or pause for a bit.
He knew what he was doing.
But why do I feel like there was something in me that was preventing me from performing something I would regret in the future?
Why would I regret this? Why can I feel something I am not supposed to be feeling?
"What's holding you back?" He asked.
"I'll be fine."
I stared at him blankly, not understanding myself.
"I don't know." I let go of his hands, not taking any grasp of why I was doing these things.
"I don't know why I do not want to take away your life for you." I took a step away from the bed.
"What are you doing? You're supposed to be helping me." He begged me. The way his eyes was persistent makes me feel guilty.
"I don't know why I am starting to feel emotions over things that do not bother me before." I whispered in the air as I continued to take a step backwards.
What is happening with me?