Shine ||Sting Eucliffe||

LXXII

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Author's POV

"Where are we?" The White Dragon Slayer questioned the princess as he looked around the unfamiliar area. "I don't know," She sighed, not even bothering to analyze their surroundings; knowing that she won't be able to know their current location. "Irene must've casted Universe One,"

"Universe One?" Sting uttered in confusion, facing the black-haired as he noted how the black hair suits her. Though Kira looks good in both colors, he still loves her silver hair.

"Well, in short, she changed the landscape and messed things around. So, the geography at Fiore should be confusing," Kira tried to explain thoroughly for the blond to understand.

"Then, what do we do?"

The black-haired opened her mouth to reply but no words came out while a thought crossed her mind, causing a frown on her face. Sighing, she brought her hand to her hair as her fingers passed through the strands. "I shouldn't be here,"

She told the young master while he whipped his head to face the princess. "You're leaving?"

"I can't stay, if I were away too long they'll get suspicious," She shook her head, remembering their predicament. "Where will you even go, you said that the geography is messed up?" Sting questioned the Alvarez wizard, trying to make her stay.

"But I know where they'll meet up,"

The female sensed his confused gaze as she placed her attention on the male. "The plan was to use universe one so that Zeref could be near Fairy Heart,"

"So, yeah, I know where I'm going,"

Despite having the place wrecked, all she has to do is sense the presence of the Emperor since he'll be with the Fairy Heart. And she knows that the other Sprigan will be going where the Emperor is.

"I-," Sting uttered but he was interrupted by Kira, already knowing what he'll say based on the look on his face. His eyebrows furrowed, a frown present in his face as a hint of desperation can be seen in his gaze.

"No,"

"You don't have to leave, you can fight with us," The blond huffed, suggesting something to the female that he assumes can benefit them both while he grasped her shoulders with both of his hands.

Her gaze softens, noting his tight grip on her as she brought her hand to his and took it in her hold. "Even if I want to, I can't," She led his hands on her wrists as she willed for the reason of her obedience to be visible.

Out of nowhere, a thick band of metal appeared on her wrists and her neck, a short-chain hanging from it. The blond stared at the cuffs, shifting from her wrists to her neck; his eyes wide in surprise. "What the-"

The Dragon Slayer placed his hand on her neck, touching the metal while Kira followed his gaze. "With these, I can't fight," She told the male in front of her, who kept eyeing the symbols on the cuffs.

"These cuffs, I know them," Sting mumbled, racking his brain of where he saw them.

"They've been causing my magic to be unstable, I can't use it too much without it going haywire." Kira noticed how Sting's eyes seem to be distant as if he's not completely here.

She watched the blond widened his eyes in realization as a sense of panic ran through his body. "Kira, this sucks the magic out of you. How long have you been wearing these?" Sting clutched the metal on her wrists as he tried to take it off her skin.

The princess only shook her head, knowing that his actions are futile considering she also attempted to take them off. She stopped his hands and took them in hers tightly. "I know," She sent him a knowing look.