—This isn't a simulator, so stop calling it an "event," Silas— I whispered as I slid through the shadows of the corridor like a stain of oil. —Quit using that terminology. You're breaking my focus.
—"Oh, come on, Tetsu. Metaphors make existence less… sterile,"—Silas replied, and I could almost picture him shrugging somewhere inside my mind. —"Besides, think about it. You're in a castle, surrounded by secrets, with a 'health bar' blinking every time your nose starts bleeding. If this isn't an extreme difficulty stage, I don't know what is."
—"Focus, 03,"—Julian cut in, his voice sharp as a scalpel. —"Three guards on the lower level. Patrol pattern: circular. Inefficient. You can pass through the blind spot on the right if you keep your heart rate below sixty."
I followed Julian's instructions for movement and Silas's for direction. We crossed the guest wing and entered the royal administration area. The air here smelled more strongly of incense and that cold magical presence that always surrounded Elara.
—"This is it,"—Silas whispered, suddenly serious. —"Room 402. The Princess's office. The event is active, Tetsu. Go in without knocking… but be careful. What you're about to see isn't meant for a soldier's eyes, but for those of a 'friend.'"
I stopped in front of the white oak door. No guards. Elara wanted privacy.
I activated my sensors to detect heat through the wood. One heat source. Completely still.
I opened the door just a few millimeters.
Elara wasn't seated at her desk signing decrees.
She was standing in front of a massive window, her back to the room. She wasn't wearing her fur cloak or her crown—only a simple blue silk dress that made her look much younger… and much smaller.
She held something in her hands.
A small crystal fragment, glowing with a dim, pale light.
She was crying.
Not loudly. It was the kind of silent sorrow that freezes inside your bones before ever reaching your eyes.
—"Affinity with the Ice Princess: five percent,"—Silas joked softly, though his voice carried sadness. —"Come on, Tetsu. Break the ice. Literally."
I stepped forward. The sound of my boot against the marble floor cracked through the silence like a gunshot.
Elara didn't turn right away. She didn't assume a defensive stance. She simply closed her eyes and pressed the crystal tightly against her chest.
—Percy, I told you I wanted to be alone—she said, her voice trying to sound firm, but fracturing at the edges.
—I'm not Percy— I replied, stepping out of the shadows. —He's much louder.
She stiffened and spun around, hiding the crystal behind her back. Her eyes were red, a violent contrast against her pale skin.
—Tetsuo…— she murmured, regaining her icy mask in an instant. —What are you doing here? This is an invasion of royal privacy. I could have you thrown into the dungeons.
—You could— I nodded, taking another step closer. —But Silas said this was an "important event," and he's rarely wrong about timing.
She frowned, confused by the name I mentioned, but before she could call the guards, I pointed toward the object she was hiding.
—That crystal…— I felt a magnetic pull in my chest. —It has the same frequency as the tower's flash. That's why you're afraid.
—It's none of your concern what this crystal is!— she snapped, retreating toward the window, trying to conceal it.
But the closer I got, the brighter the fragment glowed, shining with a blinding white light—like a missing part of me was screaming for recognition.
—Julian, what is that thing?— I asked internally.
—It appears to be… Information,— he whispered, stripped of his usual arrogance. —A data transfer module. Just as the katana acted as a catalyst to connect us, that object is a bridge.
So it's the key to getting them out of there, I realized.
—Exactly, 03,— urgency flooded his voice, so intense I could almost see him striking the glass of his capsule inside my mind. —I don't know what that princess is hiding, but we need that object.
—Elara, why do you have it?— I asked gently, crouching down to her level. —Is this the "Eye" they spoke of?
—SHUT UP!— she screamed, unleashing years of bottled rage. —YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!
She struck me desperately. I didn't move. The blow landed squarely—my head barely shifted two centimeters, but the sound echoed through the room.
She didn't stop.
She grabbed my shoulders, shaking me violently as questions spilled from her mouth like a broken loop.
—Why? Why are you like this? Why did they do that to you? Why…? Why…?
Her eyes locked onto mine, overflowing with panic.
—That world of ashes… people trapped inside crystals… inhuman training,— she said, her voice breaking. —I've seen it all through this thing. I don't want to hurt you—but I can't put my people in danger either.
She clung to my clothes as if I were the only solid thing left in a collapsing world.
—What should I do?— she whispered, her plea cutting straight through me. —Help me, please, Tetsuo. I just want to go back to those days with Lya… when everything was simple. I don't want to hurt anyone. Anyone.
She stared at me, her face soaked in tears.
—Promise me you won't either. Please.
I stayed silent for a moment, processing the weight of her tears against my chest. I couldn't lie—not by nature—and Julian never let me forget that I was, at my core, a weapon.
—I can't promise that this kingdom will never be attacked,— I began, my voice carrying a gravity that stopped her sobbing. —But what I can promise you—
I took her by the shoulders, forcing her to meet my gaze.
—Is that whoever the enemy is, I will protect this kingdom—and I will protect you as well!— I declared, my voice resonating with a resolve even Silas hadn't predicted. —I'll do it so you can reclaim those happy times. So you can truly live, Elara!
She stared at me, eyes wide, breath caught in her throat. I no longer saw an unbreakable iceberg—I saw a cold so absolute it burned, radiating a strange warmth.
For the first time, someone wasn't speaking to her as a crown to be defended, but as a person worth saving.
—I told you this afternoon: I chose to trust you, and I still do,— I said more softly.
I tried to help her stand, but her legs—drained by the emotional backlash of the crystal—gave out. Before she could fall, I slipped my arms beneath her knees and back, lifting her into my arms.
Elara gasped in surprise, instinctively clutching my neck as her feet left the ground. According to S.E.C. protocol, this was tactical inefficiency; to her, it was a blatant violation of royal etiquette.
Neither of us moved.
—Now I need you to trust me too, alright?— I gave her a sideways smile, tilting my head slightly.
—"Affinity unlocked,"— Silas whispered, genuine tenderness in his voice. —"Well done, Tetsu. You're learning how to be an anchor for someone else."
Elara hid her face against the hollow of my neck, trying to conceal the blush creeping up her cheeks.
—Yes,— she whispered faintly, her fingers tightening around my jacket.
At that moment, the crystal pressed between us released one final pulse of warmth. It wasn't data or an alert—it was a dull vibration, like a heart beating again after being frozen for centuries.
What time is it?— I asked the air, forcing my eyelids open.
My body felt unbearably heavy, as if my bones had been replaced with lead. But what unsettled me most was a faint tingling in my chest—a rhythmic warmth that didn't come from my implants.
I slowly turned toward the source, and my internal processor nearly short-circuited.
A cascade of black hair spilled across the pillow, blending into the deep blue silk beneath it.
Elara.
She was fast asleep, clinging unconsciously to my shirt. Her breathing was calm and steady, and for the first time since I met her, there was no trace of ice on her face. A faint, almost imperceptible smile rested at the corner of her lips.
I scanned the room, horror dawning on my face. Velvet curtains. Gold reliefs. And on a nearby chair, a stuffed dog plush watching over the room.
This wasn't the guest quarters.
I was in the private chambers of the Princess of Eryndor.
—Silas… Julian…— I growled internally, cold sweat running down my spine. —What happened last night?
—"Hmm… good morning, Tetsu~"— Silas greeted lazily with a yawn echoing in my skull. —"Relax. Nothing 'sketchy' happened. You collapsed right after putting the princess to bed. The crystal drained every last drop of your energy, and you passed out on the spot."
—"This is aesthetically unacceptable,"— Julian snapped coldly. —"Allowing biological exhaustion to compromise your strategic position… As expected of you, 03. If anyone enters now, your survival expectancy drops to zero in under three seconds."
I was about to argue—to say that the last thing I remembered was the warmth of the crystal and Elara's tears—when I felt movement beside me.
Her grip on my shirt tightened.
Elara let out a soft sigh in her sleep… and began to wake.
The Anchor had been released.
But now, I was bound to something far more dangerous than any battlefield.