Aralyn stood up from where she was sitting.
This was not the time to be sad about certain circumstances. She had to practice how to use her emotions for power. She changed her clothes and went to the training ground. Luckily for her, nobody was around. She took an orb from the counter placed there. It was what the guards and other people used to train to fight better.
Once the orb is taken and the person smashes it on the floor, it creates a kind of illusion that makes someone feel they are in the battlefield and the orb releases dangers for the person to fight with. It was very risky to do that without someone there to guide. The things that was going to be released couldn't kill the person but could certainly injure the person.
Aralyn held the orb in her hand and raised her hand high. She closed her eye and muttered, "1, 2, 3, SMASH!" Immediately she broke it, smoke clouded her and she felt herself pulled into something.
She opened her eyes and saw herself face to face with the Zarkrath.
She thought in her mind, I wasn't able to kill you before but now I shall.The Zarkrath then laughed, "You foolish girl. You broke the orb that contained a lot of dangers and it's not only me you will fight? You broke it with no one to help you. I shall devour your soul."
Aralyn wanted to summon her sword but she remembered why she did this , she wanted to practice how to fight with her emotions.
The Zarkrath lounged at her with its sword, but Aralyn was quicker. She dodged, rolling aside with sharp precision. Anger burned in her chest, rage at her father, her stepmother, even her mother. She formed a swirling fireball in her palm, fueled by those emotions.
"Ah! Take that!" she shouted, hurling the flames.
The Zarkrath dodged the first four blasts, but the fifth struck its side. It let out a guttural cry and vanished into black smoke.
Aralyn spun, eyes searching the darkness. "You monster! Come out! What? are you scared I might actually kill you?"
Then, a soft voice echoed. "Aralyn…"
She turned. Her mother stood before her, eyes heavy with sorrow. The ache in Aralyn's chest flared, but she clenched her fists. No. She wouldn't be fooled. She shaped her sadness into knives and flung them forward. The illusion dropped, the Zarkrath lay wounded.
Aralyn stepped over it, cold fury in her eyes. "So much for your cheap tricks."
With one swift motion, she drove the blade into its neck. It vanished into ash.But she didn't relax. She knew better. Each orb contained five dangers, this was just the first.
Without warning, an arrow flew toward her face. She caught it inches from her eye.
She looked up and saw multiple arrows flying towards her....using the power of fear, she shielded herself from the arrow and made them freeze.
Above her, a shadow moved. A figure dressed in black, like a silent ninja warrior, held a glowing bow. His eyes glowed darkly.
"Let's see," he growled, "if you can freeze a thousand arrows at once."
Aralyn smirked. She was wise enough to know she didn't have the strength to fight blindly nor the strength to freeze 1,000 arrows are once , but power wasn't always physical.
The ninja readied his bow, aiming to strike.
Aralyn's icy blue eyes turned colder. She raised her hand and, with a whisper of frost, froze him solid , from his toes to the base of his neck.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" he shouted.
"Why should I?" she said calmly.
For a moment, a fake smile , one exactly like her stepmother's , flashed through her mind. That smile alone was enough to ignite her rage.
Her hand curled into a fist. BAM!
The ice shattered , and so did the ninja.
"Two down. Three more to go," she muttered.
"Fighting with no weapon but emotions. Now that's cool." a voice said.
Just then, she heard footsteps. Turning slightly, her gaze landed on a man with green hair and sapphire eyes. Too perfect. Too unreal. He was handsome , dangerously so.
Shit.
What am I even thinking?
Of course this was an illusion. She couldn't be drooling over a guy who wasn't even real…
And not even as handsome as that Demon Lord.
Wait — why am I thinking about him now?!Aralyn shook her head sharply. She needed emotional clarity. Distraction meant death.
The stranger chuckled, catching her off guard.
"I know you're mesmerized by my beauty… but the question is — can you get past it?"
He raised a demonic flute to his lips.
That's when she realized.
He is a demon.
Then he started blowing on the flute, creating melodies. But immediately, the music began to play, it caused a strange sensation. Aralyn was scared , truly scared. She slumped to the floor, covering her ears.
The melody was dangerous. It wasn't just a sound; it was feeding her false memories , whispering lies into her mind. "You will never find your mother again."
"Stop! Stop!" Aralyn cried out, but the demon creature simply sat there, clearly unbothered, continuing to play the haunting flute.
Aralyn squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn't let the melody take over. She couldn't get lost in false memories.
Suddenly, her tail emerged, glowing with a silver light so bright that even the demon paused and opened its eyes , the shine too blinding to ignore.
Aralyn summoned her magic, extended her tail, and forcefully grabbed the flute , snapping it in half.
Her hands were still on her ears, but now... she could finally remove them. She was free from the cursed melody.
The demon cried out, "My flute! My flute!" Then, slowly, it began to disappear.
But peace didn't come , not yet.
Two more monsters to kill. Aralyn, still on the ground, was breathing heavily. Then, the ground trembled as water began to fill the space around her.
She was a fox , and foxes couldn't breathe underwater.
She struggled to stay calm, panic rising as the water covered her.
"I need to breathe," Aralyn gasped, half-laughing at her fate. "What do I do now?"
She raised two fingers weakly. Her only chance was to bring the siren , the monster causing the flood , to the brink of death too. Only then could she draw on its power.
She cast a freezing spell. The water froze around them both.
The siren began to resist, trying to melt the ice. But Aralyn forced all her remaining power into maintaining the freeze. When the siren was nearly drained, she muttered:
"Give me your power."
Suddenly, her arms dropped. Her strength was gone. She stopped breathing.
Is this the end?
As the darkness closed in and she began to inhale , expecting cold death , she gasped. Air.
"Wait… air?" she said, surprised. "My spell worked!"
Her happiness was brief , the siren was swimming toward her, teeth bared.
But Aralyn took that flicker of joy and turned it into power. With a pulse of emotion, she drained the water away completely.
The siren couldn't breathe without water, and after several violent shakes, it finally vanished.
"Phew…" Aralyn exhaled, slumping slightly. She was tired. "The battle was harder than I expected," she said with a weary smile, "but I smashed everything."
Just then, the floor began to tremble beneath her feet.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Loud, thunderous footsteps echoed. Aralyn's eyes widened in surprise as an 8-foot giant appeared before her.
Her final mission in the illusion: defeat the giant.
Aralyn knew that emotions alone wouldn't be enough this time. With a sharp breath, she summoned her sword and shouted, "Come at me, giant!"
The beast charged toward her. Aralyn dashed forward, agile and determined. With three clean slashes of her blade, the giant fell , sliced into pieces.
"Just a big-for-nothing giant," she muttered, brushing her hair back. But a sharp pain on her shoulder made her wince , the giant demonic claws had torn her skin.
The illusion faded. She was back in the training ground, exhausted.
Without waiting, she returned to her room. Thankfully, Pearl and Paulina weren't there , otherwise, they'd start another long lecture.
After washing up, she changed clothes and sat down to bandage her wound. Just then, a bird flew in through the open window, a letter tied to its leg.
She took it and unrolled the message:
Dear Aralyn,
It's me, Callistus. I'd like us to meet at the forest to discuss some things.
Tap this letter if you can't come.
Double-tap if you can.
Aralyn brought a finger to her lips. She didn't know what to do. Her father — the king — had strictly forbidden her from leaving the palace until her wedding day.
But… she couldn't miss this meeting.
Maybe this is the chance I need, to plan my escape.
The only problem was how she was going to leave the palace. She couldn't use teleportation magic , her energy was completely drained.
"What can I do now?" she muttered.
She double tapped the letter and, with a whisper, it disappeared into thin air. Then she went to her wardrobe and pulled out a cloak. Without wasting time, she called for Paulina and Pearl using a summoning spell.
Almost immediately, Paulina and Pearl arrived.
"My lady," Pearl said, eyes wide, "where are you going? It's not safe outside the palace."
"I have to go," Aralyn replied calmly. *"It's somewhere important. I'll be back soon."
She looked at them seriously.
"I don't want either of you to alert anyone that I'm gone. If anyone asks, give them a proper excuse."
Then she turned to Paulina.
"Can you use your witch power to make me invisible?"
Paulina hesitated, visibly concerned.
"My lady, I…"
"Please," Aralyn cut her off gently but firmly.
Paulina sighed, gave in, and nodded.
"Okay."
She chanted a spell, her hands glowing faintly, and cloaked Aralyn in invisibility , a powerful enchantment that allowed Aralyn to turn it off or on at will."Thank you," Aralyn said with a small smile.
"Please be back on time," Pearl and Paulina said in unison.
"I will."
And with that, she began to move.
Aralyn finally reached the front of the palace.
Paulina's magic was incredibly effective , even with hundreds of guards posted, not a single one noticed her presence.
She walked further and making sure she was far enough from the castle. Once she felt the distance was safe, she turned off the invisibility spell. Outside the palace walls, there were people, strong ones, who might sense her magic. The last thing she needed was to be mistaken for a spy.
She adjusted the cloak tightly around her and started walking with purpose. Still, she couldn't help but enjoy the fresh air. It felt good to be out, away from the suffocating atmosphere of the palace. The breeze kissed her skin gently, and she allowed herself a small smile. Freedom, even briefly, was refreshing.
When she finally reached the forest, she looked around cautiously. There was no one in sight.
Was this a trick? she wondered, her eyes narrowing.
Then, the sound of fluttering wings broke the silence. She spun around, and there he was.
Callistus.
His white, heavenly wings stretched out magnificently, gleaming under the forest light. A pure-blooded celestial. His presence was ethereal, almost blinding in its beauty.
"Trying to show off your wings, huh?" she teased.
Callistus chuckled. "I'm sure you're amazed at how much bigger, stronger, and more beautiful they look."
With a poof, the wings vanished, and he strolled toward her. "That reminds me... I haven't seen your tail yet. The rumors about it are so—"
"I'll show you later," Aralyn said with a small smile. I don't have the strength right now.
She stopped speaking mid-sentence, her cloak slipping slightly as she adjusted it to see him better.
Callistus suddenly frowned. "Why do I smell blood?"
"Oh," she said casually, "it's probably from the wound I got during training."
Without hesitation, Callistus stepped closer. His fingers brushed her shoulder where the fabric had darkened. Blood was soaking through.
"You're bleeding heavily," he said, his tone turning serious.
Aralyn's cheeks flushed. "It's not that bad," she tried to assure him.
But his concern deepened. "What kind of training were you doing to get wounded like this?" he asked, eyes narrowing slightly.
"Urm".....