Like the rest of the knights and nobles, Aurelian stood frozen, staring at the golden canopy.
He couldn't move.
Wouldn't move.
Something inside him was pulling him toward it... a gnawing, burning need to see her.
To confirm it with his own eyes.
And when he finally took a step forward, attempting to approach the closed canopy, a sharp metallic sound rang in the air.
A long katana blocked his path.
"No one is allowed to enter."
The Holy Beast, still in his human form, remained standing at the entrance.
He didn't even look at Aurelian.
The blade did not waver.
"I am the future Emperor of this kingdom."
Aurelian's voice was colder than steel, but he couldn't hide the irritation creeping into his tone.
He wasn't sure why...
But the fact that he was denied the right to see that woman... the Empress...
It did not sit well with him.
The Holy Beast tilted his head slightly, his expression unreadable.
"That is the word, isn't it?" he mused.
"Future. But not yet."
His piercing blue eyes finally met Aurelian's, and a quiet challenge lay within them.
"If you wish to enter without my master's consent, you will have to strike me down first."
A tense silence gripped the air.
No one breathed.
Because they all knew...
Even if they all attacked at once, they wouldn't be able to scratch his skin.
"Holy Beast."
Xul stepped forward, her voice laced with a sweet, persuasive charm.
She smiled, her presence radiating soft allure...
But before she could speak further...
"Your charm does not work on me, woman."
The Holy Beast's voice cut through her like a blade.
His eyes turned to her, cold and sharp.
"Try using that ability to me again, and I will make sure you never use it again."
A shudder ran through Xul's spine.
It wasn't a threat.
It was a warning.
A deadly, absolute warning.
Her smile wavered.
"We…" she started, glancing at Aurelian and the knights, trying to regain control.
"We are the ones who awakened you."
Her voice held less confidence now.
"You are bound to answer to the one who awakened you."
The Holy Beast sighed, as if bored.
"You are correct."
Xul's lips curled into a triumphant smile.
"So if I am not answering to you, then it means you are not the ones who awakened me, right?"
Xul's smile vanished.
"What?"
The Holy Beast's gaze darkened.
"I do not waste my words on humans as foolish as you."
His tone dropped, cold and dismissive.
"Stop wasting my time."
A suffocating silence followed.
The knights didn't dare speak.
Even Sir Draven, usually brash and arrogant, hesitated before whispering...
"Your Majesty…"
His voice was tight with disbelief as he turned to Aurelian.
"That woman… Was that really the Empress?"
He had seen the Empress when she first arrived in Aquilonis two years ago.
And while the woman inside the canopy had platinum-blonde hair, that was where the similarity ended.
The Empress he knew...
The entire court knew...
Was short, fat, and easily frightened.
But the woman in that canopy…
She was ethereal.
Tall. Commanding. Radiant.
"She is the Empress," Aurelian confirmed.
His voice was steady, but his mind was chaotic.
"How did that happen?" Celion questioned, his brows furrowed.
Aurelian's jaw clenched.
"I do not know."
But his True Hearing ability had not detected a lie when she claimed to be the Empress.
He stood at the entrance of the canopy, unable to shake the restless feeling clawing at his chest.
His patience snapped.
"Celestial Knight."
His voice commanded.
Legion, still inside, did not react immediately.
"I demand to see the Empress."
The Holy Beast's brow arched slightly, but he did not move.
The silence stretched until the canopy parted.
Delphine stepped out.
She bowed her head, her voice soft.
"Your Majesty."
She lifted her gaze, eyes brimming with unwavering resolve.
"I am Delphine, the Empress's personal maid. She is very ill. I do not think she can speak with you."
"I do not wish to speak with her."
Aurelian's voice was clipped, strained...
There was something raging inside him, screaming to see her.
He couldn't explain why.
All he knew was that if he was denied, he would snap.
Delphine exhaled quietly, reading the tension in his posture.
She hesitated for only a second before stepping aside.
"But please beaware, when the Empress is in this state, every negative feeling she has is multiplied. She cannot tolerate pain or discomfort."
She pulled back the canopy.
Aurelian stepped inside.
Without invitation, Xul, Celion, Sir Draven, and Lady Layla followed.
Inside, Legion sat at the bedside, holding Ceres's hand.
She lay peacefully, her breathing soft, her face serene.
But Aurelian's gaze immediately locked onto their hands.
He hated the sight of it.
"Saintess."
It was Lady Layla who spoke first...
But not to Xul.
She turned to Delphine.
Xul's eyes sharpened at the name.
She gritted her teeth.
"Why did this happen to her?" Layla asked.
"When you arrived with the Celestial Knight, she was fine."
Delphine did not waver.
"I am no Saintess, Lady Knight," she said calmly.
"I am just a commoner. The Empress's personal maid."
She turned to Ceres, her expression softening.
"But this always happens when she uses her magic."
"The real Empress does not have magic."
Xul's smile returned, voice dripping with manipulative sweetness.
In her mind, she cast her Charm ability, subtly suggesting to Delphine that the woman before them was not the real Empress.
"If you are insinuating she is not the real Empress, then you are wrong."
Delphine's voice remained steady.
Xul's eyes widened.
Her Charm did not work.
Delphine continued
"She is the Empress."
Her gaze hardened.
"If you doubt her because of her physical appearance, she may have been fat before, but she was never ugly."
Her next words made the entire room still.
"And regarding her 'lack of magic'... "
Delphine exhaled slowly, her gaze filled with deep sorrow as she looked at Ceres's pale face.
"She cannot detect or control mana, yes. But she has magic."
Her voice grew softer.
"And every time she uses it… it chips away at her life force."
A stunned silence followed.
Celion, was the first to react.
"Life force?"
His voice was laced with disbelief.
"That means… she could die from using her magic."
Delphine opened her mouth to respond...
But before she could, a soft, pained sound escaped Ceres's lips.
A low, weak groan.
"Your Highness!"
Legion's voice was urgent, his hands cupping her face gently.
His touch was careful, protective.
An action that made Aurelian's jaw tighten in irritation.
Ceres's eyelids fluttered open, but her gaze was heavy and unfocused.
Then, in a barely audible whisper...
"Throw… up…"
The words were so faint no one else heard it...
Except one.
The Holy Beast.
Before Legion or Delphine could react, a golden bowl materialized before them.
They both froze, startled, and turned to look at him.
"She wants to throw up," the Holy Beast stated calmly.
And as if on cue, Ceres's body jerked slightly, her face twisting with discomfort.
Legion immediately supported her, helping her sit up while Delphine quickly held the golden bowl in place.
A moment later, the Empress retched.
Nothing solid came out... just a thick, translucent liquid.
Delphine's hands tightened around the bowl, her heart aching at the sight.
"Can you not do anything about this?"
Aurelian's voice was sharp, laced with a frustration he didn't understand.
The sight of the Empress suffering…
He didn't like it.
Not at all.
The Holy Beast, however, remained unbothered.
"I can restore mana. But not life force."
His tone was neutral, almost dismissive.
"And the reason she is in this state is because she has very low HP."
Aurelian clenched his fists.
It was infuriating... knowing there was nothing he could do.
After a few more painful seconds, Ceres sank back onto the bed, exhaustion overtaking her completely.
She fell into a deep sleep once more.
The room fell silent.
They all exchanged uncertain glances, waiting for someone to speak.
Delphine broke the silence.
"Legion, she needs the fruits."
A soft smile tugged at her lips, despite her concern.
Legion sighed, already knowing what she meant.
Without another word, he teleported away.
Legion returned minutes later, holding a basket full of Malvera fruits.
Inside the canopy, Aurelian had made himself comfortable.
He sat in a chair beside the Empress's bed, his eyes locked onto her sleeping form with an unreadable expression.
The moment Lady Layla saw the basket, she gasped.
"Are those… Malvera fruits?"
Her voice wavered in disbelief.
Celion, Xul, and Sir Draven all turned their attention to the basket.
Legion wordlessly handed it to Delphine.
"Saintess."
The Holy Beast's voice rang through the silence.
Delphine lifted her gaze.
"You do know that the Malvera fruit does not boost MP or HP?" He questioned, his tone curious.
Delphine smiled gently.
"Please, Holiness, just call me Delphine."
He tilted his head, intrigued.
"And yes, we know."
She looked down at the basket in her hands.
"But one fruit can quench hunger and thirst."
She sighed.
"When the Empress is unwell, she needs to eat and drink more. But regular food makes her too drowsy if she eats more than one serving."
She looked at him again.
"So she eats this instead." Delphine explained.
"If you wish me to call you by your name, then please call me by my name as well... It's Seiryu."
Then, his gaze shifted to Legion.
"You too, Celestial Knight."
A small smirk played on his lips.
"After all, we serve the same master."
His eyes flickered toward Ceres, still sleeping peacefully.
"Or should I say… Empress."
Legion nodded absentmindedly, his focus locked onto Aurelian.
The Duke's movements were slow, deliberate...
His hand, inch by inch, reaching for Ceres's hand.
Legion's jaw clenched.
He wanted to say something...
To stop him.
But what could he do?
He was just her knight.
Aurelian didn't even realize what he was doing...
Not until his fingers were already touching hers.
He should have let go immediately.
He should have stepped back.
But... he couldn't.
Her skin was soft.
Her fingers delicate.
So small in his hand.
He had never... never... felt this before.
Aurelian, the future Emperor of Aquilonis, a man who had seen countless women, had never once paused to admire a single one of them.
But now... his fingers tightened slightly around hers.
The feeling was strange.
Unsettling.
Right.
Before he could stop himself, his other hand began to move toward her face.
He just wanted to see.
To understand...
But before he could touch her...
A sudden commotion erupted outside the closed canopy.
The tension snapped like a taut string.
Aurelian pulled his hand away immediately.
Legion, immediately moved toward the entrance, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword.
Seiryu remained still, but his eyes darkened...
A flash of deep, ancient power flickering behind them.
The peace inside the golden canopy had been broken.