"HAVE you identified what caused his death?" Prince Ciaran asked Tara who checked on the dead Kryst they saw at the border of the forest. Drake and Theo went to bury the dead.The three Krysts were his direct subordinates and close friends. They were with the royal siblings since their younger years. This is why Prince Ciaran was more comfortable with them than anyone else in the palace, other than his siblings.Tara shook her head. For once her sleep-deprived eyes seemed alert this time. "The mist around the memories of the Defense Kryst was thicker than usual, Your Highness. But it seemed that the soldier was on the run. We can assume that he was attacked.""But by whom?" Ciaran asked, more likely to himself rather than Tara.Drake and Theo went back to them and they all set forth towards the gate of the fortress. As Theo and Drake opened the gate, Ciaran could already sense something was wrong. There was a faint smell of rotten things, and the fort seemed deserted.Ciaran unsheathed
CHLOE let out a loud gasp and closed her eyes tightly; a sharp scream escaped her throat.She waited for her body to smash against the rocky ground when a pair of strong arms caught her from mid-air. She instinctively clutched her savior's shirt. They landed with a soft thud. "Are you okay?" a concerned voice asked. She blinked her eyes open and looked up before her jaw dropped. He was looking at her with his thick eyebrows scrunched in obvious worry. He has that strong perfect jaws, and the perfect curved eyes... and those thin pinkish lips... "J-Jared..." she stuttered. She realized that she was still in Jared's arms. She scrambled off him and steadied her balance. "Y-Yeah... Thanks for helping me." His lips curled in a lopsided smile. For once, Chloe was mesmerized. His face lightened up when he smiles... even a little. His eyes gazed upon the branch then back at her. "What are you doing up the tree?" he asked. He still had that emotionless tone of voice that she knew would erup
SHE'S absolutely not going inside without Lucian. That was Chloe's decision. She knew that Lucian's room will be in the Opall tower so she tried to find him.With more than fifty rooms in the Opall tower, Chloe knew she will not be able to find him before the said interrogation ended. Nobody knows what will happen if she's late.Goodness! Where, in the name of Demetrius, are you, Lulu-chi? she nearly screamed in her mind.Chloe started to wring her fingers together at her back as she stood at the stairs inside the tower. If Lucian was indeed inside, he must know that she didn't arrive yet. He will come to find her."Hey," a smooth, manly voice called out from the entrance of the tower.Chloe turned to him, recognizing her brother's voice immediately. She instantly saw him because of his blonde hair, blue eyes, and the white cloth that was covering his ears."Lulu-chi! Where have you been?" she exclaimed.Lucian jerked his thumb at his back. "We had some errands. Barbie and the others w
CHLOE was terrified. Lucian was calm. And the Teachers were all harder to read.When Master Levi lost his temper, Chloe thought they were dead. It turned out that it was just his nature. Because after Lucian said that he already knew that their parents were suspected, he sat down and relaxed. Chloe didn't know what to do or say at all."W-what.." Chloe felt a stone on her throat and she was having hard time to gulp it. "What do you mean?""It's true that our parents are members of the Knights of Shaula. We were not lucky to enter this academy. We're privileged." Lucian looked at her with his blue eyes glinting. It held many secrets, enough to deem it as betrayal on her part. How much does she not know? "Our powers are not just any other Kryst. Combined by two Knights, we're above them.""Miss Chloe Liu," Master Hunn called to her softly. She turned to the old man. "We would like to talk to Lucian alone. You can leave now."The said girl hesitated. She slowly looked at Lucian. "Brother?
LUCIAN landed on the ground, butt first. "Aw.." He groaned as he rubbed his painful rear.Jucel landed more smoothly, doing a full turn before landing on her feet. "S-Sorry for that," she said as she helped him up. Lucian stood before he quickly scanned the field around them. They were in an open field, anyone could see them if they were just going to walk across the road."Where are we?" Lucian asked. His blue eyes were alert and narrowed, ready for any danger that might come to him."We're i-in a secluded field of Graire Province," she answered. He turned to her questioningly, and she pushed the rim of her thick eyeglasses up her nose. "You.. y-you were ready to kill me. I needed to bring you s-somewhere you can't use your p-power. You can't invade my mind, ei-either."Lucian inhaled sharply and tilted his head. His eyebrows are scrunched while his hands on his hips. "You seemed to know my powers more than I do." Why would I invade your mind when I can't even look through it the mome
THE night was high. The moon shone upon the river that ran from the Diana Province to Galenus City. There are few residents going back and forth but most of the stores in the market were already closed.Along the banks of the river in the city, two figures were walking. One of the figures bent down and traced the hand on the ground. The other stopped to watch the actions of its companion."Do you see the blue light?" a drawling accent came from the bending figure. Jucel Greyn looked around once more before she stood.Lucian Liu furrowed his eyebrows, his handsome face scrunched in concentration. "All I see is the ground with stones around."Jucel laughed a little bit, covering her lips with the back of her hand. "I forgot that you need to see beyond what's seen.""Beyond what's seen?"The silver-haired woman nodded then she pointed at the ground before them. "You saw the floor of this place as normal, nothing happened to it, right?"Lucian nodded quickly. He stepped back in alert when
IT HAD been five days since the group stayed at the new house in Graire Province.Chloe quickly felt comfortable living with Lucian's friends. Barbie was like a nagging mother of the group, keeping all of them moving. Jucel seemed to adjust pretty well, too. Although there were times that she would just stay in one place and read books rather than goofing with them.The house had two floors with a small balcony. A pavilion was located in the front yard with a small set of outdoor coffee tables and chairs.The area was wide, fenced with bricks and stones. The backyard was enough to set up a training ground... which they did. Lucian had put an archery range. They also made posts that will serve as their dummies when they practice close combat.The province in Graire was surrounded by fields and trees. The back of their new house has a forest that led to an open field.Their house was a little far from Krystalline Academy, but it just motivated Chloe to jog from the house to the school. L
AFTER the interrogation, Chloe Liu received more attention from the Krystalline students than before. In a bad way.She was walking alone that day. Jucel was nowhere to be found and so were Lucian and his friends. She went to the Opall tower to look for him when a group of second year Kryst students approached her. They were all males and good-looking so they attracted many eyes from the girls in the surroundings."Are you Chloe Liu?" one of the men inquired.Chloe looked warily at the one talking. "Yeah. Why?"The male smirked. "Are you a relative of Lucian Liu in some sorts?"Chloe straightened her back and stared at him with furrowed eyebrows. "Well, yes. I am his younger sister."The other male from the back tapped the shoulder of his friend and moved him away from Chloe. "Back off from her, guys. She's off-limits." He offered his hand to her. "I'm Sean Olair."Chloe looked down at his hand, searching for anything that might harm
The ceremony was short and rushed as everyone were exhausted and distraught. They paid tribute to every single fallen Kryst and then buried the Knights of Shaula in their own monuments. Neptos was buried in the cemetery for the Rein Tribe while Vivien Li in her own tribe. Kieran Lornn was brought to the Lornn Tribe in a closed casket, never to be opened.Those who led in the war were given rewards. Barbie Lewelyn, Lucian Liu, Zabdiel Lewelyn, Clive Travis, and Jared Dale were hailed as the new Knights of Bellatrix."I know it's late. But this is how I wanted to honor her," Queen Elisa told them in a hushed voice.Barbie regained her strength two months after and it was enough for Zephrain to make some sentiments with the Krystalline Palace.Zephrain was standing right in the middle of the vast graveyard, the horizon looming ahead and the Mountain Ranges surrounded him, as if looking over on what he had been gazing at for many times in a day... everyday.He heard a rus
When the Knights positioned outside the barrier, Chloe removed her armor from her body. She wore a plain red shirt with gray pants. The young Blood Star sat on the ground, her legs crossed under her.Lucian positioned behind her, standing with his right palm pressed behind her head. "Are you sure about this, Chlo'?" he asked."I must be asking you that, Lulu-chi." Chloe smiled. "I never had the chance to thank Demetrius for this."Lucian gritted his teeth to control his tears. He didn't say anything at all, afraid that his voice might give away his sorrow.Jucel brought the Bellatrix sword to Chloe. The latter shook her head. "You must do it."The freckled woman let out a deep breath. "You're cruel."Chloe just smiled. She stared at the back of a familiar duo. "Mē, Zē." She swallowed. "Thank you."Outside the barrier, Faline Liu and Iwaoka were trying their best not to cry. They neither answered her nor looked back. The three inside wouldn't hear them, anyway.
Meanwhile, Barbie ducked under Kirsten's staff and swiped her leg under the latter. Kirsten lost her balance but regained herself, and flipped away before she could reach the hard ground.Barbie stood and twirled her sword while her dagger was positioned in front of her. The electricity from her body was back, recharging her energy through the wrath that she felt.Kirsten charged again and swung her sword before giving Barbie a side kick. The latter crossed her wrists to block another kick but grunted when Kirsten's high heel dug on her flesh. She gripped Kirsten's ankle, electricity ran through the Great Witch who screamed. Barbie hurled her away, the heel ripping her skin in the process.Blood oozed from Barbie's wrists and ran down her fingers then dripped to the ground. She could feel her nerves shaking on her right wrist where a hole from Kirsten's heel dug into. An open wound near her large vein."Tch," Barbie said as she wrapped her left hand around her righ
Snow endlessly falls down from the cloud-covered sky. But despite that, the whole land of Markus was not freezing in cold. The Fire Land was warmer below at the same time colder in the surface. Although the surroundings were frozen in ice crystals and covered with snow, it was not enough to freeze a Demetri.Chloe Liu walked for a few meters to the center and stopped under the tree. Her golden eyes roam around and saw that she was surrounded by Black Shaols.The young Blood Star smirked. "You really brought them out for your gain, Liege."A large man with a black armor emerged from the crowd of enemies, a triumphant smirk etched on his face. He had a golden crown with the symbol of Illinor at the center. He's holding a large sword with broad blade. Chloe thinks he could cut a large tree with it.But, not her.She figured out that the Southern Region has a tunnel underneath it, used by the same enemy fifty years ago to infiltrate the land of Markus. It doesn't fa
The time had been ticking that moment. It runs around the clock day and night. Not even the prince I served, Særi ust Trūx Ciaran, can stop the time all at once. There will be choices to make. There will be memories of pain.The Great Witch, with Kirsten Zūng as its vessel, has ordered a massive hunt for our deaths. The Kingdom of Demetrius, my home, experienced its biggest war in history.Once again, many shall lose their lives for the peace we so wanted. Witches from Illinor began to make their way to the Eastern Region where they will be able to invade the city of Markus.The whole population of the bloodlust witches and traitors of Demetrius bounded off around the Ahn Mountain Pass and made their way to the city of Markus, the city which the great General Dana Rein conquered. The Land rich of Fire Element. There's no mercy, no holding back.I haven't been into this kind of war. None of us have. Bellatrix of Orion, will you save us from sure death?Only I, a Mnemos
Jared landed on the ground face-first. He pushed himself up and sighed softly as he opened his now blazing dark green eyes. He pushed out of the way in time to avoid the axe of the enemy. Jared picked up the fallen soldier's sword and swung it blindly in front of him, cutting deeply on the skull of the enemy.He grimaced as he stood limply, his injury now bothering him than before."Red!" Clive's voice rang through the noise of the battle. He turned and raised his hand to catch his sword. Jared didn't waste time swinging his blade across the approaching enemy's chest.~O~O~O~"Damn it! Where the hell was Kirsten?" Tara asked as she kicked away an opponent and swung her spear to another Illinora.Vivien swung her two white silver swords across the Illinora's face and whirled around the enemy's side before bringing her blade down their injured necks. She put her blades together and ran the blades across each other. The blood was quickly wiped off the blades, clean
Clive and Celine stepped back as another explosion occured at the boundary.Huge dark brown ugly-looking beasts were roaming around; snarling and shaking their heads furiously as blood were oozing from their faces and body.Clive whirled at Celine who was standing calmly beside him. Celine began to bark orders in a calm voice. Fire began to float all around them, courtesy of the Fire Element Krysts."Archers!!" Celine shouted. Clive raised his hands and the fire enveloped him. It made him smile with joy. Being enveloped in fire made him think about the time he discovered his power as a boy.The archers notched their arrows and aimed at the borders. Clive brought his hands towards the arrows, the fire began to lick the tip of the arrow notched.Celine smirked at him and nodded. She looked at those beasts that managed to enter the borders. "Hold!!"Silence enveloped the whole area. Five kilomenters. Four. Three. The archers didn't move an inch.Celine pulled an ar
The Krysts began to follow Ciaran and Zephrain's instructions. The Travis Tribe and the other tribes from the Markus City vowed to help in the war against the Great Witch. They prepared traps everywhere. It took them a whole day to prepare.Lucian and his friends decided to get over the grief they had over Kieran. With Jucel and Celine's efforts, Zabdiel's consciousness came back.Upon hearing about Kieran's death, Zabdiel didn't know what to say. He started to blame himself, but there's no denying that no one wanted to lose Kieran Lornn."Where's his body?""Chloe said he's at the palace back in Vestia," Lucian murmured.Zabdiel could only nod his head and then he went back to his trance, mourning for his older friend. He clenched his jaws and his fists. Zabdiel vowed that he will seek revenge on Kieran's death.Three days came and no Kirsten Zūng appeared. Celine brought Lucian, Barbie, Zabdiel, and Clive to a storage room."What are we doing here?" Clive aske
Queen Elisa stood at the first steps outside the palace. She was covered with wool coat to prevent the freezing cold from seeping through her body. Her white hair cascaded on her shoulder and her crown sat atop her head.The soldiers are already positioned, all of them sitting on the Pegasi - another type of horses used for battle. These horses have the wings of eagles they can fly the soldiers towards Markus and pass the Dark Forest. Because of the vulnerability of the Pegasi under the sun, they had to wait under the weather was colder so they can use them for transportation.Chloe was sitting on her own Pegasi, a jet black horse with stronger, wider wings than the others. Her golden eyes looked up at the Queen and found her staring. Chloe just nodded at her which she answered a small smile and a nod. The Blood Star then took hold of the reins and bounded to the front lines.Jucel and Jared went out of the palace. Jared still looked emotionless as before. Ever since Jucel'