The chain crumbled from Vera's hold after she said the words, watching as the lady in white transformed into the very ball that had guided her into the dungeon. "Wait," she said when it was already too late, as she disappeared into thin air. Vera immediately snapped out of it as she went to help the king onto his feet.
"No, help the queen instead," he pointed to his wife as he supported himself with his other hand, shoving Vera in the queen's direction.
The queen's eyes met with Vera's as she held her hand. "It's true what they say," the queen said with a smile. "It's nice to meet another human after all these years," she said as she held both her cheeks. Then her fingers gently slid to her arm, and she noticed something strange about Vera.
"Look, child, your fingers."
Vera traced the questionable look down to her fingers that started to turn pale. The queen looked over at Yong with a worried expression.
"Yong, it has begun. Find out how we can take her back to her world before she permanently disappears from ours."
She saw the confused look etched on vera's face.
" What are you talking about? Vera stepped back as she exchanged looks between the mother and son, noticing the strong resemblance.
You will cease to exist on the fifty-first day of your stay in the Darian world, child. She froze as she saw darkness, hitting the ground as she fell unconscious.
At this time, the guards were fully back to normal as the spell lingering around was almost dissipated from the atmosphere. Yong was the last to come out of the dungeon as they prepared to continue their journey back to the palace.
Yu's lively mansion with loud music and lively people now looked like a place no one had lived in for decades. The people they saw at the beginning of the party lay bare on the floor, looking like they had died years back, with some decayed. The royal family walked past the scene with almost shocked expressions.
The journey back to the palace was quiet as Yong drove Vera back, with the king and queen ahead of them. He looked at her fingers through the rearview mirror and scowled at the way they looked different from the other humans that went through the same process when their days in the Darian world were numbered.
The palace soon came into view. He sped towards it. He tried to communicate to Lamen, but it didn't go through. Then that sudden unusual feeling sunk in. He left Vera in the car as he rushed into the house to find Lamen, but suddenly saw a pin trapped in a glass ball, placed in the middle of the way leading to Lamen's chambers.
He felt a sharp pain course through his chest the longer he looked at it, then he recognized the pin, —the very one Yu pierced his neck with back at the dungeon.
A sarcastic laugh vibrated through the hallway as Yu emerged from behind a pillar. How do you like the surprise? He laughed again. "Confused? Don't be.
What have you done? Yong could not keep his eyes off the pin as the pain he felt was now almost evident on his skin, with his vein almost popping out, his lips turning purple as his eyes darkened. He began to feel weak with every step he took.
I have another surprise for you, Yu said as he curled his finger towards the king's chamber, and a strange wind blew into the king's chambers,a cocoon that looked like glass came out with the king and queen trapped inside. Yong dropped to a knee as his skin became pale.
Helena, Yu called out as his wife came walking out, dressed in black, smirking at the scene unfolding before her.
You know what I want, Yong—hand it over. What is this about? He asked but got no response.
Yong clenched his fingers as he felt a surge of energy run through him. He could not help himself in any way. He spoke a spell that transported him outside the palace, and he ran straight to the car.
He couldn't quite understand how Yu had gotten to the royal family because he was right behind them. And if Yu had abducted them on their way back, then who drove the car to the palace? A lot ran through his mind as he sped away from the palace.
Vera was still unconscious in the back seat. Soon enough, as expected of Yu, Yong saw shadows moving in and around the bushes, chasing after the car.
They kept increasing the farther he drove, slamming their bodies against the vehicle, until the car was completely surrounded. Yong's breath caught as he realized what they truly were—the souls of ancient Darians, called back through an ancient witch spell.
With no other choice, Yong grabbed Vera into his arms and burst out of the car, escaping into the bush as the shadows closed in from all sides. He ran, heart pounding, the air thick with the whispers of the long-dead.
Just then, ahead of him, he saw a bush that was on fire—but strangely, it wasn't burning. The flames danced without consuming. His eyes widened with recognition. He immediately knew what it was,the very hidden passage that was created by ancient darian witches and now it was back the very one that brought vera into the darian world. He had gone across it several times but for no good reason. Shin screamed from behind as he panted for breath, yong didn't even bother to ask how he got there he just nodded in approval. Are you sick? Shin looked at yong with a angry expression. They are going to have our head, have you forgotten the commotion you caused in their land? Shin was about to say more when he saw the weak state of yong, and his eyes had completely changed into the color people feared. Not yet, Yong said to himself as he took his steps towards the passage.
Clutching Vera tightly against his chest, Yong walked straight through the burning bush, the flames curling harmlessly around them as if they were being swallowed by another world.