The Abandoned Princess

17: Heart of Glass

Even my eyes were moistened with unshed tears I knew just who those piercing gold eyes belonged to.

Had he come to torture me?

"Elaine," he uttered with rawness in his voice, a sound too heavy as if every word carried the weight of the world. "My child."

My slowing, dying heart skipped a beat, and I blinked my eyes repeatedly to see clearly. What I witnessed was beyond belief.

His usual cold and expressionless visage was replaced with an unsettling mix of worry and regret. His eyes now carried a depth of fear.

"Fa–Father..?" I stammered, my voice quivering. Emotions stirred inside me that I couldn't describe.

The curse was acting up again that I was seeing something so unnatural, something unrealistic, and going through such emotions that I shouldn't have.

As I coughed for the third time, blood splattered upward and back down to my face. That's when I understood I wasn't hallucinating. This man was real, with his face stained with my blood, and his gold eyes were as mesmerizing as ever. 

Another wave of pain came over as someone came to my side and took my other hand. Another set of gold eyes stared down at me.

"Sister! Please, please don't die." His voice full of desperation and fear fills my ears. Aiden, my two years older brother yet acts like the younger one. "I promise I won't force you to move to Emerald Palace... I beg you, don't leave me."

"I..I'm sorry," I weakly whispered, unable to offer him the reassurance he needed. I was dying. My body was getting colder and colder. And I knew he could feel it, both father and son could feel the warmth of my hands slipping away.

"What do we have here?" The evil spirit's voice was unnaturally strange. A bizarre combination of high-pitch but had a cold. It doesn't match his bulky body at all. With words filled with malice, he commanded, "If you want to be with that girl, why don't you go with her and die! Attack my little ones!"

The eerie voices of the children who had once been lifeless could be heard at the end of the aisle.

"M-mommy? Are you my mommy?"

"Hey, I'm scared. Can you hold my hand? Forever?"

"Let's sleep together from now on."

With his sword in his hand, Edmund stood up. His voice was quiet yet dangerous like a subdued thunder as he told Aiden to stay by my side, disappearing from my weakening line of sight. Lucas was probably engaged in the battle as well.

Everything was getting blurry, no, it wasn't blurry but it was turning into a blinding field of white.

I could even see a face begin to materialize, surrounded by glowing light.

"Cianna?" I gasped.

So this is my end. Instead of facing my father's wrath, I found myself entangled in a sacrificial ritual.

'I didn't expect that you'll die this quickly,' the Goddess of Light said shaking her head like she couldn't believe it but her smile was still on her godly face. 'Why don't you use your magic, Elaine?'

'What do you mean? There's no ounce of magic in this body! If there was then I won't be laying half-dead in the first place.' I responded through my mind.

Cianna stared at me, checking my body from head to toe.

'There is. You haven't awakened it yet. Did you forget the story? The Abandoned Princess has magic.'

'I know she has magic but it manifests when she's in her teens.'

'As long as there's a desire to have magic you can manifest it. And since you had already claimed to be unable to use magic it was forced not to awaken, that's why you can't feel the magic in that body. You're pretty much useless when you're not with me huh.' The goddess chuckled.

Knowing what she was about to do when she extended her hand I quickly said, 'W-wait! What are you doing? You should be taking me with you not heal me!'

The goddess withdrew her hand from my head.

"—Mother, please don't let the gods take my sister away."

'You heard your brother.'

'He's not even my brother.'

"Elaine," Aiden's broken cry almost made me regret what I just said to Cianna. His desperate plea tugged at my heart. "Please stay with me, even for a bit longer. Please please please."

'...'

"What...what do I do, Father?" Even Edmund couldn't hear him, the little prince asked softly. The sound of his voice had become dull like he had lost all hope. "Ah. Sister's eyes... are now just like mother's."

'...Why did you bring me here?'

Cianna took it as a sign and gently placed her hand on my head once again.

Immediately, I felt light-headed, the pain slowly disappeared and a soothing warmth covered my entire body.

'Didn't I already tell you? It's your destiny.' Before I could speak with furrowed brows, she continued, 'Now that I awaken your magic, which by the way that body has little affinity for magic. It only serves as first aid. Your body will heal itself against small wounds. It will take a lot longer with larger wound or not heal you at all, leading to death.'

'Pretty useless to me.'

'That is why I blessed you once again. You'll be as powerful as you were before. Aren't you happy I gave you a cheat? You'll be an OP character like the isekai mangas I've read!'

I disregard the last part since she's talking in Earth language again, which I find hard to understand. 'So I'll have to finish the damn story before I can return to you?'

Her smile turned somewhat sad. 'We will see... By the way! Your magic won't fully come back. You have to grind until you drop dead! Ah–. . .It seems my time is up. Then I'll be taking those poor souls and bring them to the God of Dream and Nightmare.'

She paused for a moment and gave a sincere smile. Her parting words echoed in my mind.

'And Elaine, I'm doing this because I care about you. You don't have to overthink about everything—about this. You'll find someone who will give the answer you are looking for. Just enjoy your life. I'll see you again soon.'

And with that, she was gone before I could even blink my eyes.

"Sis– Sister? You're.." His red, tear-stained eyes stared at me with wide eyes. With a quivered voice, he said in relief and exhaustion, "Thank the gods. I-I thought...then you were suddenly glowing and-and then your color is back."

My heart ached for what Aiden had gone through. He was crying again, clutching my hand like it was dearest to him.

"Don't leave as mother did."

"Aiden," I called him with a small smile. "Do you trust me?"

He quickly gave a nod while I internally apologized for what I was about to do.

I took a deep breath. "Then I won't die," I said before pulling the dagger out of my chest.

I was dumb enough to think it wouldn't hurt as the excruciating pain went through my body. A piercing scream escaped my lips, followed by a fit of coughing. I might even think I choked out from the blood coming out from my mouth, I was not sure. And then another agonizing scream echoed before I finally passed out.

At that moment, I wished I had died peacefully rather than experiencing that hellish pain.