This girl... she knows this kind of magic.
I sat there without moving an inch as the girl summoned... butterflies?
The things flew to all corners of the room, appearing from nowhere other than behind the girl. They attacked all my servants, clouding over their feeble bodies. It was like the clouds of red were feeding on the flesh and bone of the person. But I ignored this and sat there as I watched more and more red cover the room
Soon after they finished feasting on the servants, their direction changed and charged to me. The swarm of red kept coming and coming in larger groups, surrounding me. I thought I could just reflect on their measly damage and get rid of these bugs, but surprisingly, it didn't work.
In a moment of shock, I increased my guard up, but it still did nothing to the bugs. I even pressured my aura even more, but they didn't even react and even charged faster at me.
Unable to reflect the bugs, the first time in forever I felt something;
Pain.
It actually hurt. I was hurt... Me, the emperor. The great ruler of Yuriana... got hurt.
The girl's mana actually hurt me...
How does she know this strength of magic? Did someone teach her? No, that can't be possible. That woman doesn't even know how to control her own magic. It can't be her.
Then... Did she learn it by herself?
I glanced down at the girl. She looked frail, and pitiful even. If I hadn't met in person that night, I'd be thinking she was some kind of weakling. But no, she was the complete opposite.
Despite her weak figure, she was strong enough to stand up to me without faltering, glaring at me with sharp eyes that could pair up to mine. Ordering the servants around as she pleased and they even followed as commanded.
How did she do it?
The girl glared at me from where she stood, another blonde girl hid in her chest meekly. But the girl's glare wasn't the usual mischievous, bothered look that she'd give me, her eyes filled with hatred and she steamed with annoyance.
"Illegitimate children can only be the emperor's weakness," they say.
For these reasons, Rurahel and the children couldn't live in the palace. They would have obviously become a great weakness of mine if they did.
Rurahel.
A woman who was filled with greed that couldn't be hidden. She didn't plan on keeping the illegitimate children alive, because of her secret.
But... I couldn't bring myself to kill them. They were babies with my blood.
So small and light...
"Their names will be Arein, Arjen and..."
At that time I gave them names without realising. I've never given my children names before, so I don't know where I suddenly came up with their names.
My youngest, a girl. Her name I hesitated as I spoke. It was just on the tip of my tongue and it rolled off smoothly as she said it.
"Aries."
Aries. The name meant war, it was the definition of war. I didn't know why, but I just said it once when I saw my youngest, I don't know why.
Why did she remind me of war? Why did she radiate bloodshed and screams? Why did I even give her a name...I don't know.
But as I named her, my thought of killing then disappeared. I looked at my hands as they shook, holding the handle of the blade, pointed at the girl, Aries.
I knew that she was going to cause mayhem in the future, I knew it, but I couldn't kill her, nor my two other children.
So, I changed my mind about killing them then and there.
If I couldn't kill them, then I'll just hide their existence, forever.
Leaving my newborns in the hands of the woman, I felt as if someone was whispering to me no, don't hand them to her! But I shook that away, and gave the three kids to Rurahel.
And because of a certain contract, Rurahel brought the children to an old castle and never came out.
After that, I forgot about the existence of the three kids. I forgot that I even had another three kids. But 5 years later, I got a report that the woman Rurahel had died. And hearing that, i was also informed that my three kids were still alive.
I heard this and ordered my knights to go over to the castle and bring the children to me. I came along in the end, being paranoid that the knights might harm my kids. And that was the night I had my first encounter with my children, more importantly, that girl, Aries.
She held two blonde kids in her arms and was hostile to the knights surrounding her. I wanted to step in, but before I could, I saw knights falling to their knees, bleeding and screaming for help.
The blood spilled from their eye sockets and clutching their chest, collapsing to the ground.
Bloodshed and screams.
I was taken back at how such a frail looking girl could do such damage, but somehow, her name fitted her even more.
I stepped out of the carriage that I watched the scene in. But as soon as I stepped out and placed my foot on the ground, a wave of a suppressing aura came my way. Seeing that it was from the girl, I walked up to her.
She and the two other blondes in her hand looked so small that they could snap if I held them incorrectly.
Looking into the girls eyes, they dripped with venom of hatred towards me. Hostility to any being that moved or breathed.
I questioned myself; did I... did I do the right thing...?
Now that I have brought the three children back from that castle, I invited them over for a meal. They looked so frail and skinny, it looked like they hadn't eaten for days.
I wanted to enjoy this meal with them. Seeing that Aries' hostility up, I thought that she wasn't going to accept but surprisingly, she sat down and started to eat.
I was glad that she was eating, but when I saw those scars on her brother's arm... I couldn't control myself. I was frustrated. Did that woman do that!? How dare she!
But...was it my fault that they were like this?
I thought that if they were out of the public eye, they would be okay, living a decent normal life, away from the imperial troubles. But what they have on their bodies and how small they looked, it pained me to think I failed to do something that I promised her.
But here I am, my own daughter, trying to kill me with her killing intent bouncing off the walls and crashing into everything.
Her emotions were not displayed on her face, but her actions. It looked like she didn't even need help, she was strong, a bit too strong and mature for her age.
The very first time we met, it was soiled, she didn't want help, she could get what she wanted by herself.
I continued to just let the bugs do as they please, sinking their needles into my skin. I could feel my body rush with heat, my skin felt as if it was peeling off.
But before I could start enduring the pain, all of the bugs disappeared.
All of the wounds that it inflicted on me were still there, the pain remained but I couldn't help but to be mesmerised at the aftermath of the scene.
Red sparks were the remains of the haunting clouds of red.
They popped and bloomed like fireworks cracking up into the sky.
It reminded me of when she showed me the spring festival fireworks. For the first time in a while, I smiled, I smiled alongside her as she laughed replayed in my head.
Her brunette hair flowed in the wind as her lips curved up into a wide smile. Fluttering her eyes open to reveal her pair of hypnotic violet eyes as they beamed with life and joy...
Now if you look at it, Aries looks a lot like her.
A bit too similar.
"So... Your majesty, the three of us are going back to our room." Aries pointed over her shoulder at another blonde kid that stood there. Presumably, my fourth son. "I'm a bit tired, so I'll talk to you later, 'kay?"
I sat there in silence, I didn't know how to answer her, my mind was clouded with the memories of her.
Why did Aries look so much like her!
Why..!?
Why are the Gods cursing me to see her again?
But I couldn't think about that now, Aries was still standing there waiting for an answer.
She looked at me, and I looked at her. We stood there in silence for a moment.
It looked like she was getting tired of waiting and was going to leave. I looked at the guards that still were breathing and gestured my hand to let them leave.
"Is that so, then I shall see you later. Ishian sent them back to their room," I say.
Ishian bowed to me, then raised her head. "Yes, your majesty." She then led the children out of the room, shutting the doors behind her.
I just sat there, watching the three kids walk further and further away as the doors soon closed shut.
Flutter, flutter
I looked around me, but there was nothing... I must be over thinking, I need to get some rest.
***
"Sora."
'Ah... fuck'
Sora -who thought she was off the hook- slowly turned her head around to the familiar voice that she'd always heard and saw her brother with his arms crossed, narrowing his eyes at her.
The moment the three siblings arrived at their room, Sora distracted Arien and Arjen away from the topic of what just happened at lunch. She did NOT want to explain anything.
Her plan somehow succeeded. Arien fell asleep on her bed with no problems. But it seems that Arjen was not dumb enough to fall asleep along with his sister.
Sora smiled sheepishly at her brother, scratching her neck nervously. "Uh, hey Arjen... What are you doing up?"
"You know why."
"Fuck," Sora cursed under her breath. She couldn't avoid the problem this time, not with Arjen drilling his eyes into her skull. "Right, right... you want answers."
"Mhm." Arjen narrowed his eyes on his sister. He tapped his foot and waited for how long Sora would drag this out.
Sora looked at her brother's firm decision on making her spill, and sighed in defeat. "Fine, this is going to be short though."
Arjen seemed to accept the short explanation, and leaded on the side of the wall waiting for an answer.
"Well, you know that I have mana."
Arjen nodded. "Yeah."
"And you saw what I did in the past, right?"
Arjen was silent for a moment, recalling what his sister did in the past with her newly founded abilities, but nodded again. "Yes, you were experimenting on something... or someone."
"Heh." Sora touched her nape awkwardly, unconsciously digging her nails into her skin at the same time. "Yeah... But, I found something in this life. Something that was strong but suitable for me."
"And that is?"
"Poisonous butterflies. I did some experiments on the poison I found, and soon created my dearies!" Sora gave a wide grin to her brother, placing a finger on her cheeks. "It's totally worth all that abysmal I took"
Arjen didn't say anything, he knew that his sister messed around in the dark parts of society in the past, but he didn't think too much about it. Until that night, when he saw that she was injecting blue liquids into her arm. That was when he couldn't stop ignoring that fact, the fact that his sister was doing stuff to her body... for what?
Fun?
Money?
Work?
He didn't understand. But what he does understand, in this life; not to let his sister suffer again.
Arjen doesn't know how Sora died before, but what he does know is that it was something to do with her job.
Arjen looked at his sister in worry. Why was she doing this to herself... he didn't understand.
Sora noticed how her brother looked at her, so she went up and hugged him, tightly in her arms. Even though she was a twincy bit shorter than Arjen.
"Don't worry Arjen." Sora ruffled Arjen's gold locks and chuckled, "I didn't do anything stupid this time. It was only a small amount. And it was for the greater good!" Sora tried to make it sound better, but it didn't help.
"But...But! What if-!" Arjen couldn't hold it in anymore, he was worried. Worried for his sister who was always so reckless when it came to her body, worried that she might do something so stupid that it might kill her... again.
"Arjen look at me, am I dead? No, so don't cry, I'm fine..." Sora looked Arjen in the eyes but he just kept on spilling tears. She tried to comfort the crying Arjen but telling him how she was fine and nothing happened, but it didn't work. Fuck.
"Arjen, please stop crying..." Nope, asking politely didn't work.
What the fuck will then!?
...Oh, how about... singing! That always works in every Fanfiction/Anime/Gacha/Manhwa!
Yeah!
Sora opened her mouth, then soon the words, "ThIs iS my FiGht sO-"
(A/N: JK, I wouldn't put that song in here 🤣 But what if I did...😏)
Sora finished her last line, shutting her lips. She looked down at Arjen, who was in her arms, finally asleep. His eyes were shut, but Sora noticed the corner of his eyes were red from crying.
Sora internally smiled to herself. "Who knew this trick would still work..."
In both her past and present life, Sora or Soo Chae-Yu, would always be singing lullabies to their siblings to make them fall asleep. It worked like magic, working every time.
Sora was really bad at comforting people, like really bad. If she did try to comfort someone, it'll look like she was going to murder them.
Then on a sudden night, she remembered what her late mother did to help put her to sleep when she couldn't; humming a small tune.
It might sound really cringe, but it did help.
Actually never mind, it is cringe.
It feels like when Y/N is depressed because of some furry boi, she starts to sing every-single detail of her life; like a Disney princess.
But Sora couldn't deny it did the trick.
'This song is still stuck in my mind, even after every shit that happened.'
She was smiling that she could get peaceful nights of rest with this lullaby, but her mood darkened when she remembered who it was originally for.
Flashback to when Keigo was being roasted-
"Wow, is that for me?" His face seemed to light up and he suddenly walked closer to the shadowy figure that sat on the window's bridge, whose face was not seen properly due to the winds blowing the silky white curtain over their face.
Though, you could see their lips drag down, forming a frown.
"Of course not. Why would I write this for you out of all people?" The shadowy figure looked away from the man, pouting.
The man stepped closer to the figure and twirled a strand of black hair in between his defined hands. Smirking when he saw the red hue rise on the figure's ears.
"I love it~" He lowered his voice making it sound raspy, but it was directed towards the figure's earlobe, making them shiver up hearing the man's voice.
The man placed his lips onto the strand of hair that was intertwined in his fingers. This action made the figure turn to him and look at the man with widened eyes.
"What-! Shameless. We're still at work!"
"Don't be like this, yeobo. I know you love it."
The man smiled after seeing his lover's face turn into a beating red color. The figure stared into the man's eyes, bewitched at the sight of seeing millions of scattered stars in their reflection.
Oh how lucky they are to experience this.
"You sneaky rat, doing this at work" the figure mumbled, huffing away.
The man chuckled at how childish his lover could be, and used his two fingers to move their chin, making them face him. Their eyes met with one another, creating a spark of red, like fireworks going off in the midnight sky.
The mood was setting the two up. The midnight sky was pitch black, with the moon in the sky being the only thing for the two lovers to see each other. The moonlight glowed on the twos' faces, revealing the defined features of one another.
How the figure's neutral lips looked so soft and kissable. How their eyes drowned in love, the man almost felt pity for them.
And, with no words spoken, the man leaned in closer to the figure. Being in a dark room, the only thing that you could possibly see was the lining of two people holding each other on their arms. The moonlight beaming through the window, creating a perfect shadow of the two.
End of flashback, Keigo is now a roasted chicken.
"Tsk, what bullshit." Sora shook her head, getting the bad memory out of her head and looked at her brother who was sleeping like an angel in her arms.
Her face once again softened at the sight of her brother and how peaceful he looked. Sora then gently lifted Arjen with wind mana. Slowly and quietly, placing him down in the bed, next to Arien.
But with her using wind mana, it blew some of her own strands of hair into her sight. Blonde was the first thing that Sora thought of. How distant she felt with that color being on her head.
Though Sora got used to having a new body, and the reincarnation shit. But not her new look, blonde hair? It was really eye-catching, and annoying. Why couldn't she keep her black hair?.
Sora closed her eyes and got that thought out of her head as well. She leaned on the lead with a hand under her chin so that she was sitting up right. Her eyes intensely stared at her siblings, but it then wandered over to the moonlight being shone on Arien's back, almost making her look angelic.
Her heterochromia eyes trailed up to the window that projected the moonlight. It was already night, with the moon up in the pitch black sky and the stars scattered across the galaxy as they shine separately in millions of pieces.
Bewitched by the sight, Sora almost fell in love with the scene. The corner of her lips rose, forming one genuine smile, something that she hasn't been truthfully showing to others. It looked so liveful, but somehow, longing for something, this was shown in her eyes, how they looked ever so enraptured with something, or someone.
Oh how she longed for him.
How their relationship was toxic and unhealthy for her and all the shit he made her go through. Soo Chae-Yu craved for him to come back to her.
How addicting he was just from a single bite. It was like poison that stuck with her. She just wanted more and more, aching for her thirst to be quenched.
But seeing a hue of white cover the moon's presence, Sora snapped out of her lovesick expression and her lips settled back down. She turned her head away from the window, morely, from the outside. Sora crawled into the blanket that was snuggling Arien and Arjen in their slumber and lied down.
Sora chose the spot beside Arien, making her and Arjen squish Arien like a sandwich.
Sora gazed out the window once more, but after a while of staring out into nothing, she turned her back on the window and lightly pecked both of Arien and Arjen's forehead.
"Sweet dreams, Arien, Arjen."
[]
I got carried away with Sora's backstory😅
Tell me if you find the flashback's to be annoying, I'll try and reduce them.
And if you're wondering why I'm editing my chapters instead of posting new one's, I find every time when I re-read this fanfic, I cringe. And with me being indecisive just adds to it.
Do pls be patient! The next chapter will be out soon!
I just have to get a pass on the upcoming tests I have🗿