Chapter 27 - Uri

  -Night in Luxana's Room, Moonlit Edifice; Elmir-

  *GRASP*

  I awoke with a jolt, the remnants of a dream slipping through my fingers like grains of sand. My heart raced, and I grasped the bightly, my fingers curling into the soft fabric like a lifelihe room around me was dimly lit, the moon casting a silver glow through the sheer curtains, illuminating the intricate patterns on the walls of my room in the Moonlit Edifibsp;“LUX!” Cillian’s voice sliced through the haze of my fusion, sharp and urgent. I turned my head slowly, the movement sending a ripple of pain through my body. Cillian was kneeling beside the bed, his face a mask of , framed by the delicate doll maids who stood behind him, their expressions mirr his turmoil. They looked like por figures, their eyes wide with worry as if they were caught in a moment of stillness, frozen in time. I blirying to clear the fog from my mind, feeling utterly drained, as if I had run a marathon in my sleep. The doctor’s voice broke through to my left, filled with relief. “I’m gd the Princess has regained sciousness.” His words felt heavy, den with the gravity of the situation. "You might not remember what happe night, but you fell unsciht after you asked me to wash up," Cillian excimed, gently pg my right hand near him and pressing his forehead against the bay palm. His body was cold. "HAAAaaaaaa.........I think I would've died if I'd lost you," Cillian murmured, his voice muffled as my eyes widened in bewilderment. I could not dis his tenance, as it was obscured by my hand. Why would he say that? No, what's that even supposed to mean? You'd die for me? ME? What have I even doo deserve such devotion? My mind raced with questions that burst forth like a volic eruption, but I was too fatigued to articute even a single sylble. In that moment, crity struck me. Cillian hadn’t killed me; the figure that had haunted my dreams was not him. I had merely been referring to him as such due to their resembn appeara must have been a memory belonging to someone else entirely. I had been ensnared in someone else's memories, And I suspect the Whisperer's maations are to bme. He still seems onto me. With Cillian's head still pressed against my hand, "Thank you. You may take your leave," I requested, gng towards the doctor in a low voice, despite it not being my pce to issue suands and the potential impropriety of my words. But I o verse with Cillian in private. "Huh? Oh! Of course, I shall depart forthwith. I wish you a swift recovery, Princess," the doctor excimed, bowing deferentially as he exited the chamber, apanied by the maids tasked with esc him out. "Is there something you wish to impart to me?" Cillian inquired, his voice muffled as he remained pressed against my hand. I attempted to rise, my efforts successful despite the bodily aches that apahe movement. With my back lightly toug the ornate headboard, "Yes," I replied, gently sliding my hand away from him. He lifted his head slightly aed his arms beh it, fag me with his eyes locked onto mine. "I desire an audieh your mother, the Duchess of Valentino. Will you ese to her?" I asked, my tenance devoid of emotion. I did not wish te any further es with this man, especially after his earlier words. I feared beiangled in a web ret. Let this be the st such request I make. I had an ominous feeling that he harbored feelings for...umhh...UGH, whatever! Regardless, his mother and mine had been the closest of panions for many years, so I believed she might also possess some knowledge of this Whisperer and Omeen thing, and perhaps even more than Leena, who had been even closer to my own mother. Cillian appeared perplexed, turning away from my gaze as he hesitantly responded, "Umhh................I............you see............................like.......................ummhhh......................" "It is of no sequence," I sighed, shutting my eyes and pressing further back against the headboard. It was evident that the Duchess of Valentino was, in fact, the illegitimate daughter of the Pope of the Kior Empire. They had long since relocated their residend temple to Elmir, after Kior's defeat and not to mention, no truly devout adherent of the Holy would ever desire es with the Royal Families of any region. They believed the monarchs to be tyrants who wished to disregard the God when iy, there was no such thing. It was merely a random belief held by the temple folk and ohat irritated every monarch, causing them to make this belief a reality. Moving on, for someone like Cillian, who was akin to a son to the Emperor, it was obvious that his mother's family would be displeased and disregard him for maintaining ties with their perceived enemies. So it was clear why he hesitated, due to his erratid perplexed retionship with his mother. "What if she's okay with you?" I murmured to myself, softly. “What do you mean?” Cillian’s voice was sharp, his head still resting on the bed, as if he were trying to decipher my thoughts. “Cillian, sit up straight. Isn’t the floor cold? You’ve been kneeling for too long,” I said, my voice softening. “Are you worried about me?” A smile danced on his lips as he finally rose, settling into the chair beside him, the movement fluid and graceful, as if he were a dancer in a grand performanbsp;Why did he kneel when there was a chair right beside him? I thought, narrowing my eyes as I gazed at the ceiling, trying to shake off the wearihat g to me like a shroud. Opening my eyes and fog on Cillian, "What if your mother really doesn't care whether you have a e with the Emperor or not?" Cillian scoffed lightly, “If that were true, I don’t think I’d be here right now.” “Yeah, sure, you’re a mind reader, a fortueller, an all-knowing being. I truly believe that,” I retorted, my voice ced with sarcasm. His puzzled expression only fueled my frustration. “Idiot, you’re human, not some demi-god. You don’t know what she’s thinking or what she’s going through. So stop ag like you know her to the core when you don’t even know the color of her shell!” I shouted, my anger boiling over. Silenveloped us, and Cillian turned his head away, avoiding my gaze, his lips pressed into a thin line. “To cim to know a soul is to overlook the substantial pressure of their unexpressed burdens; to think your words encapsute the depth of their struggles is to misuand the seriousness of their inner upheaval,” I excimed, my voice rising with fervor. Cillian pursed his lips, still refusing to meet my eyes. “To presume to know another’s heart is to turn a blio the shadows that dan their depths. You ever truly know someoil you walk a mile in their shoes,” I tinued, crawling toward him, my left hand reag out to touch his cheek. I turned his face toward mine, our foreheads gently bumping together, a spark ignitiween us as our eyes locked. In that moment, I felt the walls I had built around my heart begin to crumble. Staying away from him would only be a disadvantage; he owerful, wealthy, and had es that could prove invaluable. He was not just the son of my mother’s trusted friend. From what I remember in that dream like nightmare of yesterday was it said the 'king' wants to kill me. But not to mention, the look of the Edifice from my dream ay is pletely different, seems like the dream took pce long ago, s that period this Empire was just a Kingdom and maybe that's why he said 'king' or even possible, that the 'king' was my fath- no my UNCLE. Because if Uncle gives me away as a dead sacrifice to the Emperor/King of Elmir, he'd definitely benifit from my blood, si's the Dragoed. So it'd be good to have him by my side till I get things cleared up. “Are you dohinking?” Cillian’s question pulled me from my reverie, and I realized how close we had bee, the intimacy of our position sending a rush of heat to my cheeks. “Ye-yes, I am,” I stammered, pulling away quickly, my heart rag. “So, what were you thinking, Lux?” he asked, his curiosity evident. "You don’t know what exactly the Duchess of Valentino thinks about you and your es. To add on, as a demon tractor, your teleportations work just fine, right?" I asked, my curiosity piqued as I leaned forward, eager for his response. Cillian's face remained an inscrutable mask, devoid of aion. "Yeah, and where do you think all the Uri es from?" His words hung in the air.Mana is a mystical force, a spiritual energy that flows through people, animals, and even inanimate objects. Uri, however, represents a more advanced and dangerous manipution of mana. It involves mana users who have the unique ability to gee additional mana from their innate reserves—the mana they were born with—to produce diverse forms of this energy. Among these forms, Uri stands out as particurly fearsome. It is created by merging one's own mana with that of a retly deceased human, a process akin to fusing two souls into one. While it doesn't allow two souls to coexist within a single body, traces of the deceased's essence ma at times, haunting the user. However, the creation of Uri is fraught with peril. Should the deceased's mana prove insuffit to plete the ritual, the process backfires. Instead of f a Uri, the ritualist risks haviain personality traits suppressed or altered, leading to a fragmented soul. This inplete Uri inflicts severe sequences on the individual, triggerial decay and iably impag physical health. The deterioration is relentless, and over time, the damage bees irreversible, culminating ial colpse of both mind and body. Just as healing powers are associated with mana, demonic powers are lio Uri. If you're the result of a failed Uri bination, then not only will your Mana but also your Uri be drained equally, but there are suppressers these days that help keep a baween plete ption of your Mana. But these suppressors also e with a price to pay. They usually affect the physique of the ritualist. "Oh, really? Uri's suddenly the ter of your universe now? That's rich," I said with a teasing lilt in my voice. "sidering you were practically sprinting bad forth to my pace like it was a leisurely stroll in the park a few months ago without even a fleeting thought about it. How delightfully sistent of you!" Cillia out an exasperated sigh and rubbed his temples as if trying to massage away my words. "Fine," he ceded, his tned. "Hehe! Then when will you take me to her?" My excitement bubbled over; for someone like me, meeting the Duchess of Valentino was crucial. I o gather enough information for my uping jouro Kior—my future depended on it. "Hmmm..................I guess there’s a ba my maternal family is holdi week. Let’s wait until then," Cillian replied thoughtfully. " week? You meauesday? Isn’t that too far away?" I questioned, urgency creeping into my voibsp;"I know but-" Suddenly, before he could finish his thought, a soldier burst into the room, breathless and wide-eyed. "YHNESS!" he shouted, urgency g his tohe Tons are attag on the boundary again!" Without wasting another sed, Cillian sprang from his chair like a coiled spring released from tension. He rushed toward the exit with determinatioched across his features. "Prepare the knights! Inform His Majesty! Request troops to be sent immediately!" he anded, his voice ringing with authority. As the echo of Cillian's hurried footsteps faded into the distance, I was left standing in the quiet aftermath of his abrupt departure. The air felt heavy, charged with the urgency of his ands and the impending chaos outside. I could still hear the soldier's panicked voice ringing in my ears, a stark reminder of the dangers lurking at our borders.To be tinued...