"What exactly do they want?" Ceres asked, her voice already exasperated even before facing them. The mere mention of Celine Valeria had soured her mood. That woman, her younger sister in this life, was the root of her personal hell back in Vaelundis.
"According to Sir Draven, they're here to question us about the incident with Tuf, when we sought their aid," Legion reported calmly. "As well as the Leviacron… and everything else that followed."
"Let me handle it, Mother," Luna offered, stepping forward with calm authority.
"Are you sure?" Ceres asked, concern knitting her brows as she clutched Pixie's hand tighter.
"Yes," Luna nodded. "I believe their real purpose is to challenge Aquilonis. So who better to face them than me, a demi-human and Tofu's sister-mate."
"But we don't know what they'll do once they realize what you are," Ceres argued. "And I don't think you're in the right condition to fight right now."
"I'm fine, Mother," Luna assured. "Even if I'm not at full strength, it would still take a thousand humans just to wound me." She smiled faintly. "But to put your heart at ease, I'll take Neko and Comet with me. I'll do the talking… they'll do the fighting if needed."
Ceres turned to Neko, her eyes searching for reassurance.
"You can trust me, Mother," Neko said with a confident wink. "I might not be as terrifying as Tofu, but I'll give them a run for their gold."
"Alright," Ceres sighed, nodding. "But only fight if it's the last option, understand?"
After receiving firm nods from both Luna and Neko, Ceres turned and left with Pixie to return to the garden, back to the promised bubbles and laughter that awaited.
"Lead the way, Celestial Knight," Luna said smoothly to Legion.
"Mistress," Comet called softly behind her as they walked the pathway that connected the Empress's Palace to the Emperor's. Luna glanced over her shoulder and saw him holding out his wrist.
"I'm okay for now, Comet," she replied, quickly understanding what he meant. He was offering his lifeforce, to stabilize her own, after the toll taken by using Shadow Mist to conceal Caelum.
"I need you in perfect condition, just in case," she said. "But I will demand it if needed."
"Yes, Mistress. Just say the word," Comet answered.
Sir Draven met them halfway down the marble corridor and bowed slightly before guiding them to the receiving chamber. Legion excused himself politely, returning to the Empress's side.
"Pixie doesn't like that guy," Neko said casually in English, referring to Legion as they walked, making sure the humans nearby wouldn't understand.
"Why?" Luna raised a brow. "Isn't he Delphine's brother?"
Neko chuckled. "According to Pixie, he and the Duke stare at Mother like they want to steal her."
Luna's expression turned cold, but amused. "Well… Pixie's not wrong. But they can try all they want. It will never happen."
They arrived at the massive throne room of the Emperor's Palace. Grand and filled with tension, the room buzzed with restrained hostility. The moment they entered, the Holy Knights stationed under the Pyrrathis Church immediately unsheathed their swords, eyes locked on Comet, whose aura pulsed like a dormant storm.
"Where is the Empress?" Aurelian demanded from below the dais, his voice sharp as his gaze landed on Luna and Neko instead of Ceres.
But Luna barely flinched. What truly caught her attention were the male guests flanking Aurelian.
They stared.
Hungrily.
Disrespectfully.
And one in particular, seated with an air of entitlement and veiled arrogance, lingered on her far too long. His dark green eyes roamed with a mix of curiosity and desire, as if Luna were prey to be claimed.
Luna didn't have to ask.
She already knew.
The man leering at her was none other than Emperor Syron Pyrrath.
"Mind your tone, Duke," Comet warned coldly, his crimson eyes narrowing with a quiet fury. He didn't like how Aurelian was speaking, not to Neko, and especially not to Luna. "Don't forget who stands before you."
Aurelian swallowed hard, the weight of Comet's presence pressing against him like a storm barely held at bay. He sighed, forcing his voice calm.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. But our guests are here to speak with the Master of Seiryu," he said, carefully.
He hated the timing of this visit, but he also knew it would serve as a reminder to Ceres that Aquilonis still needed her… that the weight of the crown had never left her head.
Luna didn't even spare him a glance. She walked straight toward the throne, the Emperor's throne, and without hesitation, sat down. Her legs elegantly crossed. Neko and Comet flanked her, each standing tall and imposing like loyal shadows.
Gasps rippled through the Pyrrathis delegation.
But not a single Aquilonian noble or officer reacted.
They didn't flinch. They didn't question it.
Because they already knew.
"Is this how Aquilonis welcomes its guests?" Empress Isolde Arwyn snapped, her voice laced with contempt as she glared daggers at Luna. "We've been kept waiting far too long, only to be met with disrespect toward your elders?"
She did not hide her disgust, not toward Luna's tone, and certainly not her attire.
Luna, dressed in her signature fitted bodycon mini dress, so short it didn't reach mid-thigh, and sleek knee-high boots, was a scandal by the standards of the heavily corseted and bejeweled noblewomen present. Every inch of her form was visible, unapologetically so.
"Elders?" Luna echoed, tilting her head with a lazy smile. "May I know who among you is the eldest? So we can appropriately express our respect?"
A man in deep red and black ceremonial robes stepped forward, his nose upturned in pride.
"I am Zarithan Emberthorn, High Court Grand Magician of Pyrrathis," he declared, puffing up his chest. "I am one hundred and twelve years old, the oldest living among all of Solmara."
A proud smirk tugged on his lips, expecting admiration. After all, to live past a century was an accomplishment reserved only for the most powerful magic users.
"I see," Luna said with a calm nod. "Then by your logic… there is no need for us to pay you respect."
"What?!" Isolde stood from her chair, eyes flashing. "Do you even understand what it means to reach such an age in human terms? And who even are you to speak so arrogantly? You're not part of the Aquilonis royalty, nor even nobility, I imagine!"
"My apologies for not introducing ourselves properly," Luna said coolly. "We are two of the ten children of the Demon Lord Caelum."
The room exploded into shocked murmurs.
But Luna remained unbothered, her expression never faltering, voice unshaken.
"This is my younger brother, Neko, the seventh child of Caelum. One thousand and seventeen years old," she gestured to him.
"This is Comet," she continued, "my aide. Born of the bloodline of the strongest demon clan, with a trace lineage tied to Celestial Solmara himself. Eight hundred and thirty years old."
The weight of their bloodlines hung heavy in the air now.
"And I… I am Luna. Fourth child of Caelum. Eldest daughter. And though they say it's rude to ask a woman's age, I'm one thousand and twenty-five."
She smiled sweetly, but it cut like a blade.
"And earlier, you said your eldest is one hundred and twelve. That makes you", her eyes flicked to Zarithan, "practically an infant. So if we're really speaking of respect according to age, it is you who should be bowing your heads."
Zarithan clenched his jaw, visibly humiliated. The humans behind him looked visibly paler now, unsure if they were more shocked by the truth or afraid of it.
Luna's eyes shifted, locking onto a woman seated near the front, Celine Valeria.
The moment their gazes met, Celine tensed.
"And if I'm not mistaken, some of you are from Vaelundis," Luna said, her tone turning sharp. "If so, you may already be familiar with my brother Neko here. He's visited your kingdom before… a long time ago."
She turned her face slightly to Neko. "What did they call you there again?"
Neko grinned, almost sheepishly. "The Messenger of Solmara," he said.
"And what exactly did you create and leave behind when you left that kingdom?" Luna asked, her gaze locked not on Neko, but on the Pyrrathis guests now watching with barely concealed unease.
Neko answered casually, as if recounting an old bedtime story.
"I created and left behind a spell, a chant, actually. Something the people could use to tap into a sliver of my power. It was designed to help feed the kingdom during their hardest seasons. But it could only be activated by the First Princess of Vaelundis. They perform it every year now. Call it the Bounty Festival."
"That's not possible," came the sharp interjection of Lorelei Greyfin, Celine's chief lady-in-waiting and a highborn noble from Vaelundis. Her voice was thick with disbelief and scorn. "The Messenger of Solmara is described in every record as a man of immense magical and physical power, twice the size of any human male. With white hair and blue eyes. Not some lanky boy like you."
"You call me lanky?" Neko tilted his head, lips curling in amusement. His voice darkened as his energy pulsed faintly. "It's been… what? Three years since the chant was last activated. You probably expected the child in that concubine's womb would be a girl, to make her the First Princess and carry out the rite. But I suppose you'll be disappointed."
He straightened, smile gone.
"No need to worry about that anymore. I'm severing my connection to Vaelundis. Even if you breed ten First Princesses, the chant will never work again. Arrogant humans…" His voice dropped to a dangerous whisper. "At this very moment, the slab containing the inscription for that chant has already turned to ashes."
A beat of silence.
"And do remember," he added, his gaze cutting to Lorelei, "this happened because you insulted me."
Shock swept through the room like a bitter wind.
"Anyway," Luna said, voice light, almost bored, "the Empress of Aquilonis isn't available right now. She's attending a very important tea party. So if you have questions, ask me. I'll answer what I deem worth answering."
Syron Pyrrath, who had been observing quietly, finally spoke. His voice was smooth, almost charming. He looked around the same age as Duke Aurelian, blond, refined, with piercing dark green eyes that could command attention with a single glance.
"Then let me ask, Luna… Is it safe to assume that you hail from that empire hidden beyond the invisible barrier? The one with the Black Tower?"
"Yes," Luna replied with a nod. "The Black Tower is our home. The empire it resides in is Velrathis. Everything within the barrier you speak of belongs to us. It is a demi-human empire. Our father's empire."
"And what brings you to Solmara?" asked Duke Aldric Stormraven, tone clipped, suspicious.
"You're mistaken," Luna said coolly. "Velrathis didn't appear out of nowhere. We've been here the entire time. You just couldn't see us."
"If that's the truth, then why reveal yourselves now?" Zarithan asked, voice sharp, demanding.
Luna smiled, amused.
"That has nothing to do with you. And that's all you need to know."
Before anyone else could speak, Celine made a subtle hand signal.
And then it happened.
Five knights, quick as lightning, lunged from the shadows toward Luna.
But before their blades could even reach her skin…
Their heads rolled across the floor.
Clean severance. Wide-eyed. Mouths open mid-scream. They died not knowing how they died.
Screams erupted from the women. Chaos spilled into the chamber as the remaining knights and holy magicians prepared to attack.
Comet stood calmly over the bodies, the blood on his claws gleaming under the chandeliers. He stepped forward, knelt at Luna's feet, and bowed his head in remorse.
"I'm sorry, Mistress," he said quietly, drawing out a handkerchief and carefully wiping her boots where blood had splattered. "I was careless."
"You demons!" Zarithan bellowed, fury twisting his face as he raised his staff to cast a spell.
But he never got the chance.
In an instant, ten of Pyrrathis's own Holy Knights turned their swords on him.
"What are you doing?!" Empress Isolde cried out, stepping back in horror.
"We… we don't know, Your Highness!" one knight shouted, his voice shaking. "Our bodies, won't obey!"
And before another word could be spoken, the knights turned their blades inward, and sliced their own throats wide open.
The thud of bodies hitting the marble echoed across the room.
Their heads, nearly severed, hung at unnatural angles as blood pooled at their feet.
Luna turned her head slowly toward Neko, one eyebrow raised in sharp disapproval.
"Hey," she called out, her tone deceptively calm.
Neko instantly looked over at her, sensing something was off.
"The Empress said fighting is the last resort," Luna reminded him, voice laced with warning. "What Comet did was self-defense. What you did to those knights? That was something else entirely."
Only then did Neko seem to realize what he'd done.
He quickly dropped to his knees beside Luna's seat like a scolded child, eyes wide with playful panic.
"Big sis," he whined, "what I did was self-defense, right? Come on, you can't throw me under the carriage like this!"
He pouted, clutching her arm as though the dramatic gesture might earn him mercy.
"They pissed me off! They implied I was a fraud! They even credited Alpha in their history books for creating the chant when it's my power they've been siphoning for centuries! You've gotta cover for me! Please!"
His voice dropped into an exaggerated whisper, "And that vermin Zarithan was just about to attack with his magic. Ugh, Tofu was right. These stupid humans really are vermin."
Luna rolled her eyes, unimpressed with his theatrics. She tapped into her mindlink and called out silently.
Milo. Come here.
A crack of magic echoed across the room as Milo suddenly teleported into the throne hall.
Gasps erupted among the human nobles.
"What the fuckkkk!?" Milo shouted the moment he landed, unfortunately, right in the puddle of blood where the five knights' corpses had been. "These boots were designed by Mother!" he groaned, staring in horror at the blood on his pristine soles.
He grimaced as if that was the true tragedy of the day.
Then, looking up and frowning, he asked, "Big sis, why did you call me? We were just about to ride the bicycles, and Mother's joining the race!"
"Neko broke a promise to her," Luna said flatly, gesturing toward the lifeless bodies strewn across the floor, a smirk curling her lips.
"Seriously?" Milo turned to Neko, stunned. "You promised?"
Neko stood and quickly stepped toward Milo, draping an arm over his shoulder with a nervous grin.
"Brother, help me out. Just this once."
Milo narrowed his eyes. "You'll raise my monthly allowance to 500 gold coins."
"What?! That's highway robbery! I'll give you 100!" Neko protested.
"You're so cheap. 400," Milo countered.
"I'm not rich like Tofu, damn it! Are you trying to bleed me dry? 150!"
"300. Or you can explain to Mother why you broke your word." Milo gave him a sweet, innocent smile, so much worse than a threat.
"Ughhhh!! Fine! 250! No more, no less!" Neko snapped, grinding his teeth.
"Deal!" Milo chirped, shaking Neko's hand triumphantly.
Then he turned to Luna.
"All of them?" he asked.
"Yes. All of them," Luna replied with a faint smile.
Milo snapped his fingers.
In an instant, it was as if time reversed.
The fifteen knights, those who had drawn their weapons, those who had died in seconds, all returned to their original positions, perfectly intact. No blood. No wounds. Their armor gleamed as if nothing had happened.
But the horror remained in their eyes.
Because the memory of what happened, the blood, the death, the helplessness, remained. Burned into their minds like a curse.
They paled, visibly shaken, struggling to comprehend what had just occurred.
"Is that all?" Milo asked, dusting off his sleeves, clearly bored.
"Yes. You may return to your race," Luna said.
"Okay, bye," Milo waved and vanished in a blink.
"You're going to regret that," Luna said to Neko with a knowing smile.
Neko blinked. "What do you mean?"
"You do realize he tells Vivi everything, right?"
"Fuckkkk!!" Neko swore, and just as the word left his mouth, Vivi appeared in a flash of light, teleporting straight into the throne room with a cheerful grin.
Before she could even speak, Neko lunged forward and clamped a hand over her mouth.
"Two hundred. No bargaining. You didn't do anything, and do not tell a soul, or I'll cancel your allowance."
Vivi blinked, her mouth still covered.
"I didn't even say anything yet!" she protested once he let go. "But okay! Byeee!"
And she disappeared again with a spark of glittering magic.
Luna stood from the throne, her movements fluid and regal. As she descended the steps, her heels echoing ominously across the marble floor, an instinctive ripple of fear spread through the hall.
Every guest, save for Emperor Syron, took a trembling step back, pale, wide-eyed, and barely breathing.
She stopped directly in front of Celine Valeria.
Their eyes met.
Luna didn't blink.
"You're the younger sister of the Empress, aren't you?" she asked, voice soft, dangerous.
But she didn't wait for a reply.
"The Empress told me… you are the reason she can no longer bear a child. And you were the one who ordered your knights to hurt her."
"I—I don't know what you're talking about," Celine stammered, her face bloodless, frozen where she stood.
Luna leaned in slightly, her voice like silk draped over blades.
"Don't worry. The Empress will be the one to deal with you personally. But don't think I didn't notice it was you who signaled those idiotic knights to attack me earlier."
She smiled, viciously beautiful. Her black and gold eyes glittered with merciless power.
"So… allow me to return the favor."
She placed a hand on Celine's shoulder, firm, deliberate.
"In every life after this," Luna said, voice low, rich with venom, "you will always be reborn with the same beautiful face. But no one, aside from your parents, will ever acknowledge it. You will live a life of deprivation. Your parents, no matter who they are, will struggle desperately just to feed you.
And even if by some stroke of luck you receive a blessing, the moment you begin to forget where you came from… the moment pride touches your heart… everything will be stripped from you. Slowly. Cruelly. Until you are left with nothing again. Again. And again.
And this curse will only break when Ceres Evadne Valeria forgives you."
Her voice laced the curse into Celine's soul, not her body. A searing, unseen mark burned into her spirit.
Then Luna leaned closer and whispered.
"And this… is for making her barren."
Her palm slid down to rest over Celine's abdomen.
Her eyes darkened.
And without flinching, Luna consumed the life force inside Celine's womb.
Celine's body convulsed.
Blood erupted from her mouth as Luna stepped away, her touch vanishing.
"No… NO!! My baby!!!" Celine's scream ripped through the throne room, agonized and primal.
Luna didn't look back.
She walked away, untouched and composed, even as Celine crumpled to the ground, clutching her stomach and sobbing.
Celine's ladies-in-waiting ran to her side, panic-stricken.
"I believe whatever reason brought you here today has now been addressed," Luna said, turning her mismatched eyes toward the stunned assembly. "Also, my father is hosting a banquet. Invitations have been sent to the Duke of Aquilonis."
Without another word, no goodbye, no bow, Luna walked out of the hall, Neko and Comet silently following.
Every Aquilonian noble bowed deeply as she passed, not out of courtesy… but submission.
The guests remained rooted in place, shocked, pale, speechless.
Except one.
Emperor Syron watched her go, lips curved in a slow, deliberate smile of admiration.
"Your Majesty!!" Lorelei cried out, cradling a bloodied and hysterical Celine. "The Princess needs medical attention! She's bleeding heavily!"
"My baby… my baby's gone!" Celine wailed, her voice breaking, tears and blood staining her pale dress.
"Summon Saintess Delphine!" Lady Layla commanded, pushing forward with urgency. Her voice cracked. She turned to the three Saintess Knights.
Cecilion exchanged glances with Robin and Renee. Then he nodded.
Robin vanished, teleporting in front of the stunned guests.
Gasps echoed again.
Teleportation without a chant or circle was considered an advanced and rare magic. For a knight to do it silently, without a single word, was unthinkable to most.
"But…" Cecilion said softly, stepping closer to Layla. "We doubt the Saintess can do anything."
"What are you saying?" Layla asked, shaken.
"Luna's power is… beyond the Saintess's capabilities," Cecilion said grimly. "We spent five days in the Black Tower. We witnessed things no human saint could reverse. Even the Saintess cannot counter her."
He paused.
"There is only one being who possibly could, Orso. But he is not here. And Alpha, the eldest son of the Demon Lord, warned us himself, never provoke Luna."
Cecilion looked over at the fallen Celine, blood still pooling beneath her.
"Because Luna is every knight's worst nightmare."