Rin and Harumi stepped into the master chamber of the Azure Dragon Palace, and their eyes were immediately drawn to the opulence surrounding them. The room was grand, with intricate tapestries hanging from the walls, their rich colors depicting scenes of mythical creatures and serene landscapes. The floors were polished marble, gleaming softly in the dim light, while ornate furniture, gilded with gold, added a regal touch to the atmosphere. Yet, despite the beauty of the room, both Rin and Harumi couldn't help but notice the heavy darkness that hung in the air.
The room was unusually dim, with only faint light filtering through the large windows, casting long shadows across the space. The lack of warmth and the oppressive shadows seemed to drain the vibrancy of the chamber, turning what should have been a tranquil, majestic setting into something cold and unsettling. The ambiance, instead of feeling inviting, felt suffocating, as if the very air in the room carried an ominous weight.
" Rin… something feels off about all of this. I've got a really bad feeling."
Harumi turned to Rin, her brows furrowed and her expression uneasy. The suffocating darkness in the room seemed to press on her chest, heightening the unsettling feeling that had been growing within her since they arrived. Her voice, though quiet, trembled slightly as she spoke.
"I understand how you feel, Harumi,"
Rin turned to Harumi, offering her a reassuring smile, though he too felt the heaviness of the room. He said quietly, his tone steady.
"But we're here to get to the bottom of this, and I'm sure we'll find the answers."
Harumi hesitated, her unease lingering, but she gave a small nod, feeling slightly comforted by Rin's calm confidence. They moved toward the bed, their steps measured as they approached the Princess. As they neared, a faint groan echoed in the room, making them both stop. The sound came from the Azure Princess, who lay there, her body still and weak, her suffering unmistakable in the subtle groan that filled the silence.
Rin and Harumi kneeled beside the bed, the weight of the moment settling heavily on their shoulders. Rin spoke gently, his voice calm as he informed the Azure Princess of their presence and the purpose of their visit.
"We've come to check on your condition, as instructed by the White Elder. Please, allow us to assist you."
But before either of them could react further, the atmosphere in the room shifted abruptly. A sudden, overwhelming presence filled their minds, and a hypnotic voice echoed within their heads, smooth and insistent.
"Kill her... End her suffering."
The words reverberated in their thoughts, chilling and alien, leaving them momentarily paralyzed. The voice was compelling, cold and unwavering, pushing through their thoughts with a force neither of them could resist. Rin's grip tightened, and Harumi gasped, their minds swirling with the command to kill the very person they had come to help. The intrusion was so strong that it left them breathless, struggling to regain control of their thoughts.
The sudden wave of mental intrusion was overwhelming. Rin's body, momentarily caught off guard by the psychic assault, began to obey the hypnotic command, his hand moving toward the dagger at his side. He had never anticipated needing to defend himself in this situation, and without the proper mental preparation, he struggled to summon his usual defensive magic. His fingers curled around the hilt of the dagger almost instinctively, each step forward feeling as though it was against his will, as though something was pulling him toward the Azure Princess.
But in the midst of the chaos, a strange clarity pierced through the fog in his mind. As he took another step closer to the Princess, his senses sharpened, and he realized the origin of the mental attack was coming from the Princess herself. His gaze flickered to her, and he could feel the invisible force emanating from her, like an unseen thread pulling at his very thoughts. The realization hit him like a cold wave: the Azure Princess, despite her condition, was somehow the source of the attack, her own suffering tied to the force trying to control them.
As Rin struggled to resist the compulsion to act, his gaze fixed on the Azure Princess before him. Her condition was far worse than he had anticipated—pale and frail, her once-vibrant complexion now ghostly and thin, her body weakened from prolonged suffering. The sight of her delicate form, barely moving, starkly contrasted with the rumors he had heard of her regal beauty and strength. The lively and powerful figure painted by those stories seemed like a distant memory as he looked at the reality before him: a princess brought to the brink of collapse, her vitality drained, and a shadow of something dark pressing down upon her.
Just before Rin could drop his dagger on the Azure Princess, a sudden burst of energy erupted from within him, breaking the hold of the hypnotic command. His body jerked as the control over him shattered, and his eyes flickered with a brilliant purple hue, the irises now displaying a distinct pattern of five dots. In that instant, time seemed to slow down around him, the world halting as his mind processed the complex defensive magic he needed to shield his mental state. His hands, moving on their own accord, swiftly sheathed the dagger, the motion smooth and deliberate. The Quantum Eyes had activated. This was an ability deeply tied to his soul, an ancient power he had carried from his past life, and it surged through him with a force that both protected and enhanced his focus. The chaos of the moment became clearer to him as his senses sharpened, his mind fully in control once again.
With his Quantum Eyes fully activated, Rin's mind moved with a clarity he hadn't felt in a long time. His focus sharpened as he analyzed the source of the mental attack—the Azure Princess. Despite her frailty and suffering, it was clear now that she was the epicenter of the strange force that had almost taken control of him. He quickly pieced together the cause of her affliction, recalling the intricacies of magical conditions from his past life.
The White Elder had been right—it was indeed a magic-related issue, but more specifically, it was a case of constitution overload. Rin's mind raced as he connected the dots. In his past life, before his transgression, this kind of affliction was often seen as a blessing—a powerful enhancement that augmented the abilities of those who possessed it. However, this power came with a terrible cost. Constitution overload occurs when the body is forced to undergo extreme changes in order to accommodate the enhancement of the soul, pushing the body beyond its limits. It strained every part of the person, taxing their physical form and weakening it over time. This was exactly what the Azure Princess was suffering from—her body and soul fighting against one another in a desperate bid to channel an unnatural strength, leaving her on the verge of collapse.
In Rin's past life, constitution overload had not been an insurmountable problem. There had been a technique—an ancient method passed down through the ages—that could lessen the pain and mitigate the strain on the body. It was a delicate and highly advanced form of magic that balanced the changes to the soul and body, allowing the person to harness the power without succumbing to the toll it took. But in this life, that technique no longer existed. The knowledge had been lost to time, and with the limitations of the current technological and magical understanding, there was no way to alleviate the suffering the Azure Princess was enduring.
Rin's mind remained fortified, the hypnotic voice still echoing in his thoughts, urging him to kill the Azure Princess. But the defensive magic he had summoned, tied to his Quantum Eyes, kept the voice at bay, leaving him unaffected. His focus was unwavering as he turned back to the Princess, determined to find a way to help her.
It was then that his gaze fell upon Harumi. His heart sank as he saw her, the dagger he had sheathed moments ago now in her trembling hands, raised in the air. She stood there, eyes glazed, as if under the same dark influence that had almost consumed him. The realization struck him like a bolt of lightning—he had been so absorbed in the Princess's condition that he had completely forgotten about Harumi standing beside him. She, too, had become a victim of the mind control, and Rin now had to make a split-second decision.
A surge of electricity crackled around Rin, his body moving with inhuman speed as his instincts took over. In a heartbeat, he reached Harumi, grabbing her by the collar with one hand and effortlessly pulling her away from the dagger. With a forceful push, he threw her high into the air, sending her soaring away from the Princess. At the same time, he kicked the dagger out of the air, sending it skittering across the room, far from the Azure Princess's reach.
In the span of mere seconds, Rin's mind processed every move, each action calculated with perfect precision. As Harumi descended, he shot toward the exit, his feet barely touching the ground as he burst through the room with incredible speed. In another fluid motion, he caught Harumi mid-air, cradling her safely in his arms. All of this unfolded in the blink of an eye, but for Rin, time seemed to stretch as his accelerated thinking and heightened awareness turned the chaotic sequence into what felt like a minute of tense action—each moment drawn out as he acted with purpose, protecting both Harumi and the Princess from the dangerous influence that had nearly consumed them all.
As Rin landed outside the room, Harumi still in his arms, the head maid stood there, clearly taken aback by the swift and unexpected turn of events. Her eyes widened as she witnessed the sudden action, her surprise evident. Rin didn't waste a moment. He quickly placed Harumi gently on her feet and, with focused intent, reached out to touch her forehead.
The moment his hand made contact, a surge of energy passed through him, his magic dispelling the mental spell that had clouded her mind. Harumi blinked, her eyes coming back into focus, and she looked around in confusion, as though waking from a trance. Slowly, recognition dawned on her face, and her gaze shifted to Rin. She seemed to realize the extent of her actions, the horror of what had almost transpired. Her body trembled slightly, the remnants of the spell still lingering in her consciousness, but her mind was now her own again.
" Feel any better now Harumi?"
Rin's voice was gentle but filled with urgency as he looked at Harumi, his concern still evident. He could tell she was shaken, but he needed to know if the effects of the mental spell had fully faded. The weight of the moment hung in the air, and he stayed close, ready to support her if needed.
" I... I almost killed the Azure Princess..."
The gravity of her actions hit her all at once, and the guilt began to weigh heavily on her heart. She could still feel the remnants of the dark influence, the compulsion to harm the Princess, and it made her feel sick to her core. Her eyes met Rin's, seeking reassurance, but the horror in her expression was undeniable.
Rin's gaze turned sharply toward the head maid, his eyes burning with anger. The tension in the air thickened as he took a step forward, his voice low but filled with authority.
"Why did you let us in without informing us about the Azure Princess using her psychic magic to force us to kill her?"
He demanded, his tone carrying the weight of his frustration and concern. His eyes narrowed, searching the head maid's face for any sign of explanation or remorse. The fact that they had been allowed into the room without knowing the true danger had nearly led to a catastrophic mistake, and Rin wasn't going to let that go unanswered.
The noise of Rin's confrontation with the head maid quickly drew the attention of the other maids serving in the Azure Dragon Palace. They gathered around, their faces a mix of concern and confusion, but as Rin's gaze swept over each of them, something far more unsettling became clear. His Quantum Eyes picked up on the subtle signs of the same mental influence that had tried to control him and Harumi. Each maid, despite their composed appearances, was under the grip of the same spell—just like Harumi had been.
Rin's mind raced as he processed the strange situation. How had they managed to resist the overwhelming urge to kill the Princess while he and Harumi were the ones manipulated? His eyes flicked back to the head maid, his suspicion growing. It was as if the others had been strategically controlled, kept in a state of subtle compliance, while Rin and Harumi were the ones drawn into the act of violence. It was almost as though the Princess, through her psychic magic, had chosen them for a specific purpose—to be the ones who would carry out the deed. The realization struck him like a cold wave: this situation was far more complicated than he had first believed.
With a decisive stomp of his foot, Rin unleashed a powerful dispelling spell that rippled through the entire Azure Palace. The air seemed to hum with energy as the spell washed over the walls, the floors, and the people within. The effect was immediate—one by one, the maids, including the head maid, blinked in surprise as the mental fog lifted from their minds. Their eyes cleared, their expressions shifting from confusion to realization.
The head maid, her face paling as the truth set in, looked around in shock. She now understood the gravity of what had almost happened—the manipulation, the control, and the dangerous spell that had nearly led to the Princess's death. Her hands trembled as the full extent of her failure became apparent. She had been too complicit, too unaware, and now the reality of her actions—and her inaction—was all too clear. Rin's spell had shattered the illusion, and in the wake of that clarity, the once-submissive maids stood frozen, their eyes now wide with disbelief and guilt.
" Since when did this happen Head Maid Rina.... "
Rin's glare was unwavering, his eyes fixed intensely on Head Maid Rina. Despite knowing that she, too, had been a victim of the same mental manipulation, his frustration still burned with an edge of anger. She held a position of responsibility, one that demanded alertness and accountability, especially when dealing with something as critical as the health and well-being of the Azure Princess. The fact that she hadn't informed the Imperial Palace about the true nature of the Princess's condition, instead relying on an outside party like the White Flower Palace, was an unforgivable lapse in duty.
With the dispelling spell now lifting from everyone in the room, Rina should have known the full scope of the situation—the intricate web of influence that had been quietly unraveling around them. Rin's eyes bore into her as he waited for her to process the reality of what had happened. She was now fully aware of the manipulation and the danger it had posed, yet her failure to act sooner had nearly cost the Princess her life. The responsibility weighed heavily on her, and Rin's glare made it clear that he wasn't willing to let her off the hook so easily.