I continued to coddle the girl in my arms, not saying anything more to her as she shed all of the tears she had left to cry.
After all that I had put them through, I still didn't have the strength to leave them like this: lost, confused, hurt, and worst of all...
Broken.
"Melissa," I spoke to the girl in the sweetest voice I could muster, not putting on any front or mask to hide my inner thoughts, "I'm sorry."
I kneeled down to her level and helped her wipe her last remaining tear with my fingers, not minding the snot that was smeared all across her face.
"I need to see Diana, Melissa."
I needed to confirm for myself the conclusion I had derived at...
Melissa simply nodded her head without saying a word more as she took me to the outside of a particular room.
I had somewhat expected to hear either pin-drop silence or the faint whispers of a crying girl from the outside. However, what I certainly did not expect to hear was the sound of weights and barbells being slammed down on the ground.
"Cough, cough," I found the surrounding temperature rising all of a sudden, as I unbuckled the top few buttons of my suit hack to prevent myself from overheating.
I was still wearing a simple tuxedo from my 'meeting' with Yujiro, as I simply had no time to change since coming here.
It warmed my heart beyond belief when, from the corner of my eye, I could see Melissa releasing a faint smile at my less-than-comfortable situation.
"Ahem," I cleared my throat loudly to announce my presence to the Princess, who was currently in the middle of working out in her room, and simply walked in, making sure to close the doors as I entered.
Before I could fully even grasp how to best 'move forward,' the Princess wasted no time in pulling me into a bear hug until I could almost not breathe anymore.
I had received a lot of hugs in my past life and especially in this one, from friends, from family, and even from that demon, but none of them were able to cause me this much pain to my heart as the one I was currently receiving from Diana.
'She's been working out.' I could tell that by the state of her room alone. Bar bells, dumb bells, weights, it was like a mini gym with a small bed in the middle, far from what I had been expecting.
I had believed that she would have fallen into despair at my 'change.' I had believed that she would have given up or taken a break after the emotional toll the past few weeks had taken on her. I had been expecting to enter a dark room occupied only by a broken girl, devoid of strength.
But she had so bitterly proved me wrong. She hadn't waited for someone to come 'save' her; she had no need for such things. I could see her conviction, her pride, her strength, to fight her own battles, to take what she wants with her own hands.
And it was beautiful.
"You were just going to continue training here until you became strong enough to bring me back by force, weren't you?"
I needed no words, as the silent crying alone and her refusal to let me go even after so long spoke volumes in her response.
"You're beautiful, Diana."
I pulled her face up to my own.
And kissed her.
"And I love you."
...
As I finished asking for forgiveness, by planting a few more little "jabs" onto her face, she finally let me go while trying to maintain her strong front for me.
"It's ok, Diana," I gently stroked her chin, assuring her I wouldn't be disappointed, assuring her that I wouldn't think less of her, "I love you both."
"I missed you so much, Kuzan..." Even the strongest of people have their own weak spots. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."
Her words of apology only continued to drive more nails into my heart, as I pulled her in for another hug, this time one that I would not release until she too had run out of tears to shed.
We stayed there in absolute bliss, as I made my way over to the bed and sat her down sideways on my lap, not releasing her from my hug for a moment as I did so.
"So, Diana, how's Emily?" I broke the tension once the moment had passed with an innocent question, just wanting to hear some small talk from the Princess about her sister.
I was still in shock at how long Diana's parents had been able to keep the girl's existence a secret from both her and her father.
I had, of course, talked to Diana about it before, about how Uncle Lander was able to spend so much time out of the castle to take care of her. I wouldn't underestimate Uncle Lander's heart, but it just didn't make sense to at least, once in a while, go home to 'relax' with his wife.
It was only then that Diana had confided in me that both Uncle Lander's wife and unborn daughter had passed during her birth.
Still, it had been strange to me. From everything that I had been led to believe by Diana's mention of her parents, of their desperation to hide her away from the public's eye when she was younger, to 'allow' Uncle Lander to take her all across the globe just didn't make sense.
They weren't nearly that kind-hearted, neither towards Uncle Lander and especially not towards their own daughter, considering her a 'stain' on their perfect royal facade.
I had always planned to confront them over it, to get revenge for Diana even if she had 'forgiven' them herself.
Diana was far too kind not to forgive, and I was far too just to let them go unpunished.
However, in my rage, when Uncle Lander and I had been both searching tirelessly for the identity of Diana's attackers, we came across a devastating piece of truth.
Despite all of his trust in his family, I had been the one to push forward with the investigation regardless, not wanting to leave any stones unturned...
and that's when we had eventually been able to find the truth about what happened on that day.
'Uncle Lander had not heard incorrectly that day; it had indeed been the cries of his daughter, being born healthy into this world.'
His wife had indeed died during childbirth, but his daughter had survived, hidden away from her own father since birth by his supposed family.
A 'noble sacrifice' born out of hate...
'To hate your own daughter so much that you'll put on this elaborate ruse just to make sure she would never become the Queen. Sending an assassin just to kill her to make sure Emily succeeded the throne.'
The venom inside their hearts and their minds made me sick.
There was nothing more that I wanted to do than to treat them like the snakes they were, seeing if they were capable of shedding their skin just as they were capable of poisoning the lives of those around them.
'Even when Uncle Lander and Diana had told me to stop, even when they'd begged me to not let them 'corrupt' me as well, I had not listened, forcing Uncle Lander to act in revenge just to 'save' me.'
Another life ended by my own hands then would've been another step closer to that 'path,' a path that I could not come back from, a path that they both would rather die than see me walk upon.
And a path that I would undoubtedly walk upon if they were to die.
"I love you so much, Diana," I interrupted the girl in her explanations of the behaviors of her sister that I was totally paying full attention to, and snuggled up closer into her chest as she continued to shrink slowly to her 'compact' size.
"So, Diana...", however I stopped myself just in time from saying such words that I would regret without her having all of the necessary knowledge to make an informed decision, "let's go have dinner with everyone. I'm sure they're all waiting for us to go back outside, not interrupting our 'time'."
The girl got red in the face from what I was insinuating, a color of blush that only increased in severity when she realized just how right I had been. As soon as I opened the door, a tower of people listening in to our private conversations just tumbled in through the now absent door.
I couldn't even reprimand them for their breach of privacy before I was pulled into a myriad of hugs, complaints, and words of worry by everyone present.
Melissa, Xiao Li, Diana, Aunt Elizabeth, Uncle Albert, Uncle Ikaria, Uncle Lander, and even the recently enlightened little Princess Emily were all taking their turns to show me just how much they had missed me.
I had a lot left to discuss and a lot left to explain, and what better way was there than to talk over a family dinner?
We all sat down together, with 8 seats in total on the long square table. There were 3 chairs on both the front and the back, while there were 2 chairs, one on the left and the other one on the right.
I sat in the middle in the front, with Xiao Li and Melissa on either side of me while Diana sat directly in front of me, with Uncle Lander holding Emily and Uncle Ikaria sitting beside her. Uncle Albert and Aunt Elizabeth took the spots at the end, wanting to watch over everyone as well as each other during the supper.
And so it began...
The last act of pain that I would cause to those that I loved, for both their sake and mine.
To free them from the curse my presence alone had caused them...