"Follow the light…."
Victor shook his head; what was once barely a whisper was now loud enough to fill his mind. His hand trembled as he took a step backward.
The king raised an eyebrow at this, narrowing his gaze at him, "What is it? Have you not decided yet?" He asked, a hint of disappointment laced in his voice.
Taking a step towards Victor, he added, "You are the crown prince. Indecisiveness will only lead you to your ruin."
The queen's eyes widened at this; she understood the implications. With a hurried voice, "Your Majesty! There is no need to go that far! I'm sure he has come to a decision!"
But the man only narrowed his gaze further. "He is the crown prince. My supposed heir! If he cannot make a quick and sound decision, how can I be assured that he will make a decision when he takes my throne?"
Victor gritted his teeth at his father's words, a man stern as a military commander, "I have made my decision, Father." He muttered, his eyes flaring with determination.
"Then choose."
Clenching his jaws, Victor stepped forward, walking towards Martha, who was looking at him with a worried gaze.
But he wasn't looking at her. His gaze remained on the six vials, each shining in a different color; each gave him a different element.
'I'll choose fire; it's a combat—'
"Follow the light!"
'Ah! Fucking stop! You are messing with my head!' Victor cursed inwardly, biting his inner cheeks to stop himself from cursing out loud.
He wasn't this easy to get rattled. He was always level-headed and didn't get worried easily. But ever since that whisper, he has been rattled. He felt like a bug was crawling in his ears, going deeper with every minute.
But still, clenching his jaw, he stepped forward, reaching Martha. He stared at the vials, his trembling hand hovering over them.
'I'll choose fire—'
"FOLLOW THE LIGHT!"
The voice echoed once again, pressing on his mind, followed by a sharp pain, causing him to wince and shiver in reaction.
The pain lingered, growing more and more intense with each passing second. Victor screamed inwardly; he shut his eyes close while his face reddened.
The people frowned at his reaction; his mother paced towards him. "Dear, Are you okay?!" She asked as she held him by his shoulders.
Martha, too, gazed at him in worry, her hands tightly holding the case. Every cell in her body urged her to care for Victor, but she resisted, glancing at the king.
The king gazed at his son with cold eyes, his eyes squinting at Victor's condition, while his mother pleaded, "Your Majesty, please, let's postpone the ritual for a day. Victor isn't well!"
But the man shook his head. "The ritual cannot stay incomplete. He must choose."
"But—"
"He must choose!"
The queen could only bite her lips in frustration. How could he not see his own son's condition?! His body was burning while his face had turned red. This wasn't a state where a man could make sound decisions!
But the king stayed firm.
Meanwhile, Victor was groaning in pain; he felt like his brain was being stabbed by thousands of needles. The loud voice now had turned into an irritating scream, like metal scratching against metal.
"FOLLOW THE LIGHT!"
"FOLLOW THE LIGHT!"
"FOLLOW THE LIGHT!"
Victor couldn't take it anymore; he snapped open his eyes, which now had turned red. "Aahhh! Fuck! Alright! I'll choose the light! Now get off me!" He yelled as he snapped his gaze towards the golden vial.
Without waiting a moment, his hand shot towards it, pulling it towards his mouth, and before anyone could even realize, Victor had drunk the whole bottle.
CRASH
He then threw the vial on the ground, letting out a satisfied groan as the pain began to subside at a visible pace.
His body felt light, as if he was floating in the air while heat crept up his body, gradually taking over.
But he wasn't conscious to feel the heat as his eyes rolled over and his body went limp. He fell back into his mother's arms with a small smile on his face.
Meanwhile, silence has overtaken the group as they slowly begin to realize just what had happened.
Victor's mother stared at him in a daze. Her body shuddered as she struggled to make coherent thoughts, 'D-Did he just…?'
It was unbelievable, to say the least. From all the options her son could choose, he chose light! The most difficult of them all.
"So, he chose light…" The king's voice trailed off, disappointment etched in his face. He didn't care about the little outburst Victor made as he drank the serum.
The decision has been made. It didn't matter if Victor was being coerced or forced. He cannot go back.
Throwing a pitied glance at his eldest son, he turned to his youngest, Hubert, who was grinning ear to ear. "Hubert," he called him, "Call upon the lords; I have an announcement to make!"
He then turned towards the door and began to leave when the queen's hurried voice stopped him, "Your Majesty! Husband! P-Please! Victor is intelligent! I'm sure he has a reason to choose light! You don't have—"
"Then let him prove it!"
The king cut her off, glancing at her before he walked away, leaving the room.
Hubert, who was now practically glowing with joy, stared at the sleeping Victor. 'Heh! In the end, you dug your own grave, brother!' He exclaimed inwardly.
He then snickered at Victor before he strode out of the room. He had a lot of work to do and rumors to spread.
Meanwhile, the three women, the queen, Martha, and the princess, stared at Victor. Each in a daze in their own thoughts.
'Why…Victor?' The queen mumbled as she hugged her son, 'Just why did you choose light?!'