CHAPTER 32: THE MYSTERY OF THE EYES

Shion stared at the first lines of the text in disbelief.

Dear Brother,

My mind has blackened from the truth... I can do nothing, for everything has destroyed him, everything from the past.

Do not look for me sixteen gazes, I’m going to gouge them out.

One last request...

...the curse has no worry.

Shion clenched the paper so tightly he almost tore it in half.

My sister... what has come over you?

Where have you gone this time? Who or what has driven you mad?

Shion tucked the message behind his belt and let out a heavy sigh. He decided to return to his chamber. He passed Gari, standing guard at the entrance, without a word, then entered the room.

Maldie was watching the two children sleeping peacefully. Haru was writing a letter at the desk. Shion glanced out of the corner of his eye – it was an invitation, addressed to his parents. Haru wrote that they needed to see their grandchildren.

Shion sighed. He had no appetite for guests, especially with the situation with Ayame frustrating and overwhelming him. Still, he knew he couldn’t say that to Haru. Besides, he wanted to enjoy these moments with him, now that they were finally together again after so many days apart.

Shion sat on the bed, resting his chin on his hand, his elbow on his knee, and stared off into the distance, lost in thought.

"Are you okay?" Haru asked, worried.

"Ayame... she disappeared again," the young king replied in a grave tone. "She wrote in the letter to not look for her."

"Perhaps that’s for the best," Maldie sighed, sensing Shion’s disapproving gaze. "Forgive me, Shion, but for now, you should rest, even for a few days. You’ve had enough worries these past days and enough experiences. Something tells me Ayame will return stronger from her journey, just like the first time. Take a few days to relax, enjoy your time with Haru."

"I can’t believe it’s you saying such harsh words," the ruler replied, his tone slightly irritated. "I thought you treated her like your own daughter."

Maldie exchanged a glance with the prince. Beneath the violet veil he wore, she saw deep disappointment and sadness.

Maldie’s lips trembled. Tears welled up in her eyes. She took it not only as a doubt in her good intentions but also as an insult.

"That’s exactly how it is!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

Yuri moved in her cradle, as if waking.

"But sometimes you have to be strict. If Ayame left the palace on her own, she must have had a good reason. Even after everything I’ve experienced with her, I believe this is for the best."

Yuri began to cry. Haru approached the cradle, picked up the girl, and began to lull and soothe her, whispering warm, tender words full of parental love. The child, though not asleep, stopped crying after a few moments, calmed by his gentle voice, warm embrace, and the fruity scent in the air. Haru rocked his daughter in his arms and began singing her a lullaby, one that he remembered from the earliest days of his own childhood.

"Shion, you know I’m not heartless," Maldie said, her voice trembling. "I worry about Ayame more than myself, I fear for her more than anyone. My heart tore seeing her in that state, but despite her madness, I saw glimpses of thought... she’s not completely insane, Shion."

"Insane or not, it’s my duty as her brother to find her. To make sure she’s safe and that we can cure her of this madness."

"Don’t make a fool out of me! I know that, but you should also rest. You can’t overwork yourself like this, Shion."

"Please, don’t argue, I barely managed to calm Yuri, and I can see Shion is starting to wake. Let’s talk about this calmly tomorrow."

A tense silence fell. Not the silence before the storm, but the one right after it, heavy with slowly fading emotions.

"Haru is right," Shion said calmly. "Maldie, take the day off today."

The maid gritted her teeth. She knew it wasn’t pure kindness on his part. It was just a polite way of saying, ’I don’t want to see you anymore today’.

"Alright. We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Haru, send for me if you need help with the children."

Maldie left the royal chamber in silence.

"What happened there?" Gari asked, worried.

"Nothing. Just a family argument, that’s all," Maldie replied, feeling the anger inside her slowly give way to sadness.

"Maybe you want to go out somewhere after I finish my shift?" Gari asked shyly

Maldie sighed. Usually, she refused Gari. When she finished work, she went straight home to have time for herself. But today was different. She needed someone with whom she could calm her emotions.

"Fine. I could use a little break."

"Awesome! You don’t mind if we meet later this evening today? I’ll still need to get ready and freshen up after work."

"No, it’s fine. I’ll have to do that myself too."

"So... we’re settled?" Gari asked, smiling widely, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Yes," Maldie said, smiling gently.

When the maid walked away, the half-dragon’s heart raced.

F-finally, I managed to ask her out, just the two of us.

C-could this be a date?!

I-I guess so. No, don’t overthink it... this is just the start of our... closer relationship.

I-I’m so nervous...

*

"You’re even lighter than before," the king said, his voice full of care and admiration.

"Really? Haven’t I become more beautiful? Because after our time apart, you’re even more handsome in my eyes than before – and you were already the most handsome man in the world to me," Shion replied, kissing him deeply, tongue entwining with his.

"Haru... yes, you’re beautiful. You’re the most beautiful," Shion breathed out between heated kisses.

"You have no idea how worried I was about you. Uncertainty and fear were eating me up inside, but along with that was hope... and I missed you so, so much. Just the thought of finally seeing you gave me strength."

"Haru, I... I feel the same. In the most dangerous moments, I thought about your body... and your incredible eyes."

"Then show me how much you’ve missed them," he whispered, pressing his lips harder to Shion’s before gently pushing him onto the bed.

Haru moved on top of him, kissing him harder and harder, panting with desire. Shion wrapped his arms tighter around Haru’s thin, smooth body, pressing him close as if he’d never let go.

Haru felt Shion move beneath him, low and close

Soon, from behind the royal chamber door, came loud, almost feminine moans.

A flushed Gari hung her head low.

My God... I didn’t even know Shion could make Haru sound like that. And I never thought Haru could sound... this high.

She turned completely red.

Never mind. What am I even thinking?

Anyway, it’s good that my shift is almost over...

Haru’s sounds of love didn’t stop; quite the opposite, they grew stronger and more intense as time passed.

He didn’t care if Gari – or anyone else – could hear him, even if the whole palace did.

That night, after so many events and such a long time apart, only one thing mattered: Shion was his, he was Shion’s, they loved each other, they had children together, and they wanted to spend this night just like they had right after their wedding.

When their bodies joined again, Haru felt better than ever. His mind, body, heart, and soul were flooded with a wave of overwhelming pleasure. He couldn’t control himself – he just wanted to show Shion how much he loved him and to be loved just as intensely in return. That night, they burned with the fire of pure desire, a desire born from deep love and even deeper longing.

*

A few days later...

Ayame walked forward.

She wasn’t able to think much. or rather, her mind no longer consisted only of her own thoughts. Ever since Hoshizuma had shown her the past with the first Hoshigane, her brain kept replaying memories from the beginning of the world up until today, memories shown from four different perspectives at once: Hoshizuma, the curse, and two other primordial beings whose names she was afraid to speak aloud.

She knew their names, after all, in her mind, they repeated endlessly.

Constantly, in a whirlwind of faces, events, voices, and emotions that never belonged to her. Her own thoughts were like small, insignificant details in a multigenerational saga.

Ayame, despite everything, managed not to lose awareness of herself. She knew who she was, she knew what she had to do... guided by intuition, by a consciousness existing outside the chaos of her mind and the babble of her lips.

She also knew she had fled the palace to meet the third primordial being, and the fourth... she didn’t want to face, even if it meant enduring the worst tortures.

Three, maybe four days had passed since she began her journey. Ever since her mind shattered from Hoshizuma’s vision, her body had felt no hunger, cold, heat, or chill – no physiological needs at all.

It was... simply a shell, armor for her mind.

Ayame went to a place no one knew about, because this place both existed and didn’t exist at the same time.

The Passage of the Vanishing Mountains.

When Ayame reached its foothills, on one of the peaks appeared a huge, burgundy dragon.

It looked directly into Ayame’s eyes with its golden gaze. It twisted its face, as if in pain and disbelief, then spoke to her with genuine compassion:

"So, here you are. I can help you, but it will come at a price."