'What's going on?' Lucia wondered as her world went black and she found herself in an unfamiliar world. It was bright, warm and comforting. And it was filled with blooming flowers.
"What's going on outside?" She heard a clear and seductive male voice, which surprised her
'Huh? Who is that?' she wondered as she turned her head to the voice. As soon as she saw the backside of the man, she felt a burning sensation on her back. It was a momentary feeling which immediately disappeared.
"Can't this generation live more quietly?" the man ranted continuously, as Lucia watched his hand move to his face
'I've never met anyone with a voice like this' Lucia thought as she noticed the man start to turn. It wasn't to the point where she could see his whole face, but to the point where, she saw his reddish-purple eyes peeking through strands of his long dark purple hair. 'Nor have I met anyone who could have such beautiful hair. Long dark hair that could be likened to midnight...with a texture like that of spider silk' she thought
"It's pretty" Lucia said in a daze, which caused the man's eyes to widened
'Pretty?' the man wondered as he turned away from her "You really... you shouldn't look at me" he said
"Wait a minute. Are you the one healed me?" Lucia asked, as she got up from the ground. His voice sounded so distant to her; like he was going to disappear.
"I didn't heal you. I just fixed what I caused" the man said, and Lucia tried to approach him. "What are you trying to do?" He asked, but this time, he was right behind her
"Who are you?" Lucia asked, as she tried to turn and see his face but she felt his breath against her ear
"I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but I'm not going to answer any" the man said and Lucia noticed her vision getting blurry, "I don't have enough magic power to make you forget about me, but this should be enough. You don't even need to know anything about me"
"I...want to" Lucia said in a slurred voice "What...if I...want to...meet you...again? No, what...if...we do...meet again?"
"We best not meet again" he said as Lucia fell asleep in his arms "If we do meet again, it would be at a time when this continent is in utter chaos. So, stay away from me, Lucia. It would be best if our fates never intertwine again" he laid her down on the flower covered ground again, before his body disappeared from that space.
******
Lupin
While Lucia was sound asleep in Luke's arms, Luke was maneuvering around the castle, clear following the black cat.
'This direction is the west tower of the castle' Luke thought as he continued to follow the cat 'The place where the ceremony is carried out, is right below that tower, and not many people frequent the west tower due to the fact that only an old library sits there. It's the perfect location for someone to live like they're dead'
Luke had already bumped into some servants earlier while following the black cat. He wasn't angry in anyway as these were all servants who were well known for keeping their mouths shut. He was quite sure that they'd be the ones in charge of taking care of Lucia while he got ready for the ceremony.
'I promise. I'll keep you safe, Lucia' Luke thought, but as the cat was leading him down a pathway, he sensed Marcia's magic power go off and couldn't help, but worry about her. 'This is frustrating' Luke gritted his teeth as he continued following the cat.
******
Outside the Magic Region
Lupin was clearly winning the battle with Diana's forces. The monsters created by Marcia had more reign over than the monsters created by Diana. This made it easier for Lupin's soldiers to fight.
'Knowing Diana, now that she knows that Lucia is here, she won't stop relentlessly attacking here' Marcia thought as she continued watching the battle go on "Quite the shame for a heart" she mumbled
"Queen Marcia, are you alright?" Bailey asked
"I'm fine" Marcia said with a wry smile "Let's finish this up quickly. I still have a meeting to attend" she said as she was swallowed up by a bright white light and was lifted above ground
Bailey pulled out a horn from a pouch around her waist. She lifted the horn to her lips and blew it. The sound vibrated all over the ocean, reaching the ears of Lupin's soldiers.
"Fall back" Adam yelled in a loud rebating voice and Lupin's soldiers began to pull back while the sea monsters Marcia had created, began to cover for the soldiers; guaranteeing their escape.
"Deliver this message to Diana" Marcia said as the light got brighter "Stay away from Luce and my kingdom" she said and a large ball of energy shot down on Diana's remaining forces while Marcia's sea monsters disappeared.
An explosion followed by a bright light set off and dust was raised. With a single snap of her fingers, the bright light instantly disappeared; as though it never existed while the dust instantly cleared.
"The power of a heart never ceases to amaze me" Leo said
"Correction. The power of our Queen never ceases to amaze you" Adam said
"Are the both of you seriously planning on starting another baseless argument?" Bailey asked with exhaustion on her face
The bright light surrounding Marcia immediately disappeared and she landed back on the ground.
"Unfortunately, I have to attend a meeting right now" Marcia said "I can't keep you all company, nor can I teleport you back" she said as the suit of armour turned into the attire the chamber maids had dressed her in
"We understand, your Majesty" Jay said with a bow "We'll find out way back on our own" he said and all the other soldiers bowed
"It might take us a while, but we'll be sure to return" Leo said
"Okay" Marcia said, as she teleported back to the royal palace.
******
The Unnamed Empire
When the young man opened his eyes again, he was still seated on his throne, in the dark throne room. The sky was still dark out and the palace was still deathly silent.
'This is the usual place, but why does it suddenly feel so lonely' he wondered until he remembered Lucia and he suddenly felt the urge to laugh at himself 'It's that child's fault I'm like this. That space was so warm and comforting, I guess I got attached to it and didn't want to leave....To the point I've started to think of unnecessary things' he sighed
"It's been years since I last heard you sigh" a woman's voice rang through the room
"Well, annoying things keep showing its head, Aunt Yukia" he said "What are you doing away from Lupin?"
"You should already know why since your territory spreads across the whole continent" Yukia replied"Don't worry, I'll be returning soon"
"I....see" he said, tiredly
"What's wrong?"
"Just...a bit tired...is all" he yawned as he shut his reddish-purple eyes "I think...I used...too much...to fix the issue....you caused"
"Thank you" Yukia said as she kissed his forehead "Take a good rest, Eles___" she said
******
Lupin
Hessia. This was the name given to the west castle tower of the royal palace of Lupin. Hessia was divided into six parts; the underground temple, the kitchen, the dining room, the drawing room, the library and the bedrooms at the top of the tower. It was the only place in the whole of Lupin which still had lingering connections to the deities of old. This was all due to the thousand of years old temple ruins, which were once used to offer up sacrifices and conduct rituals.
It was a place once known for offering prayers to deities, but now, it was known as a place where, only old and unused books about the past were kept. Nobody really cared for knowledge of over a thousand years, and as time went on, other than for cleaning purposes, barely anybody came to this part of the castle. Making Hessia, the most secluded part of the whole royal palace.
However, now Hessia was in use by Lucia and Luke. Servants had been assigned to take care of Hessia, but these servants were to keep their mouths shut on the occupants of the place. They secretly brought food in, but still, also cleaned the place like they usually did.
It was early in the day and the servants had come to clean Hessia like usual. Some servants opened the door to Lucia's bedroom at the top of the tower.
The room was silent unlike what many might expect of a young teenage girl, however, the servants had already grown accustomed to this silence.
"It seems like the princess still hasn't awoken" one of the chamber maids said courtly, as she pushed open the curtains around Lucia's bed
"It's been three days since she was brought here and not once have I seen her awake" another maid said as she brought over a bowl of water and a clean towel "Nevertheless, Sir Luke and Queen Marcia are entrusting us in caring for her"
"Enough chitchat and help sit the princess up so we can bath her" another maid addressed the first maid while holding a soaked towel
"Sorry" the first chamber maid said as she carefully sat Lucia up and helped strip her while the other maids focused on cleaning her.
"No matter how many times I see it, I can't get used to hair like this. Even among Neinhart's royals, the princess is probably the only one with this type of hair" the second maid said while cleaning Lucia's hair "It sparkles like gold, but feels like silk threads. When the sun shines against it, it's hard to tell which is brighter and more beautiful"
"'The Sun Of The Country' is a title given to only pure Neinhart royals" the third maid said as she used a towel to dry Lucia "And by pure, I mean those who inherited the Roosevelt family's bloodline magic"
"You really know a lot, Emerald" the first chamber maid said as she brought over a change of clothes
"Of course I know a lot, Pattery. My uncle is from Neinhart" Emerald said while Pattery dressed Lucia
"It's a shame that Neinhart was overthrown by someone who didn't deserve the throne" the second chamber maid said as the others finished dressing Lucia and she helped lay her back on the bed
"You shouldn't say that, Cana" Pattery said as she took away the materials used in giving Lucia a bath. "We aren't to consign ourselves with the matters of Neinhart. What if by accident, word gets out that the Princess of Neinhart is here" she said
"She's right. Other than the knights, and the servants working in Hessia, nobody is allowed to know that Neinhart's princess is here or the current situation in Neinhart" Emerald said as picked up a duster and handed a broom to Ruby "Sir Luke is even planning on keeping it a secret from the knights and the other servants of the castle"
"I'm sorry for saying such unnecessary things" Ruby said, with her head bowed
"Nevermind" Emerald said "Let's just get to cleaning" she said and the three of them scattered around the room, making sure to clean every nook and cranny while opening up the windows for ventilation.
However, as they were cleaning, they had failed to notice the faint glow that was coming from the bracelet around Lucia's wrist.