Chapter 9 – Revelations part 3

  The sun began to break through the wintry landscape of Sorine. The glassy drops of rain gradually vanished under the rays of light warming the atmosphere. The characteristic calm of the Dokovic mansion was disrupted by the incessant complaints of an agitated Yuna, eager to leave the place.

  "You can't leave," Vincent informed her with his usual composed demeanor.

  "What do you mean, I can't leave?" Yuna asked, raising an eyebrow.

  "They will come after you."

  "I can defend myself."

  "I disagree. If you’re capable of watching your own back..." he replied, slightly irritated by her reckless attitude. He took a deep breath to compose himself and continued the conversation. "What will happen to your sister?"

  "My sister..."

  "They will do whatever it takes to capture you, and that will involve those you care about."

  "What do you want from me?! I’m just an ordinary girl!"

  "Look at that painting," Vincent instructed, gesturing toward the object behind her.

  When Yuna turned around, her body froze. She couldn’t believe what her eyes were seeing. In that enormous Renaissance-style painting was a woman identical to her. There were slight differences, but they were like two drops of water.

  "That..."

  "Is you—or at least a part of you," Vincent replied as gently as he could, careful not to overwhelm her with too much information.

  "What do you mean?" she asked mechanically, utterly absorbed by the image in front of her.

  "This woman’s name is Kassandra."

  "Kassandra?"

  "Let me tell you a short story..."

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  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  A long time ago, in a world parallel to this one, humans coexisted with beings of light and darkness. Back then, my brother and I were two abandoned orphans. We survived as best we could—begging, stealing small things—just to stay alive... Yes, a long time ago, we were human.

  The thing is, humans can harbor both light and darkness in varying degrees, allowing us to cross the barriers between realms easily. But it wasn’t permitted—nor recommended. Still, strange objects from other realms fetched a good price.

  So, we decided to take the risk and crossed the barrier into the realm of darkness. That night, as we made our way through a forest toward the nearest village, we were attacked by shapeshifters. They say human flesh has many beneficial properties—I didn’t know that until they informed us with blood-stained smiles as they tore into us. Just when I thought all was lost, she appeared.

  Lying on the ground, I saw a figure engulfed in flames. A surge of crimson fire erupted from her, incinerating the shapeshifters in an instant, just as they were about to devour us alive.

  "Do you want to live?" Kassandra asked me, her blood-red eyes piercing through the darkness.

  "Yes."

  "Are you willing to give up everything you know and serve me?"

  By agreeing to that question, I not only condemned myself and my brother to an eternal existence, watching the people we loved fade away one by one, but I also forfeited everything that made us human.

  From that moment on, I became her servant, her right hand, and her protector. But we made a catastrophic mistake—we fell in love with each other.

  However, the kidnapping of the princess of the realm of light marked a turning point in our forbidden relationship.

  "If we want to maintain peace between all the realms, we must save the princess and return her to her rightful place," Kassandra told me, her voice heavy with sorrow.

  "That’s not our mission. That’s for the elders and the royal guard of the realm of light to handle," I replied angrily.

  "You know full well that if it’s left to them, we’ll all be doomed."

  "You know Devon’s intentions."

  "You swore to protect me," she concluded softly, trying to calm me. "I trust you."

  I had a bad feeling. Things wouldn’t be as straightforward as she made them seem. Alexander’s clan was mired in internal conflict, and only our family would face Devon’s clan.

  I had to protect her at all costs. And yet, I failed in my duty.

  When we embarked on the mission to rescue the princess, I let my guard down on the way back, and Kassandra sacrificed herself to save me.

  "Why did you do it?" I asked her as she bled out in my arms.

  "It seems you still don’t know me," she replied.

  "Don’t speak. Save your strength."

  "My soul isn’t gone... Will you look for me?"

  "Even if it takes a thousand years, I’ll never stop searching for you."

  And in that moment, she immolated herself, using the last of her life to ensure our escape.

  Kassandra’s body died, but not her soul. Every time she dies, she is reborn into a new body.

  And for the past fifteen hundred years, I’ve been searching for her—until I found you.