6 The Curse

Natalia knew it was not just her imagination, so when she saw the clouds turning grey and the light emerging from the young Prince - she immediately pulled out her two daggers.

She didn't want to reveal her identity in front of him so soon, but she has no choice but to do this right now. With her blades, she could deflect the pressure of magic, pressure of magic?

No, this is no normal magical pressure. Its wind! Is he a wind user? But why is there something malicious about this wind?

She didn't know what was going on, but even Natalia knew she could not handle this situation alone. She reached out for something in her back pocket and used a small amount of fire to lit the stick. In the next second, it shot up to the sky.

It was the Ageha family signal flare; unlike most signal flares, this one slightly differed. Since she lit it with magic, the color of the flames will differ, but only in the eyes of somebody with Ageha blood.

There were some exceptions to this; high-ranking knights within the family could see this because they took a blood oath. The knight that came with her today was one of her sisters' personal ones. Even though she ran away from him, surely he would still search for her.

Natalia took a deep breath as she turned to the boy in front of her; the large wave of oppressive wind aside, his appearance had changed slightly. His hair color seemed to have turned white, and the color of his eyes black.

This is a curse, isn't it? Oh dear, what on earth did she get herself involved in? Next time she plans on escaping her guard, she will rethink things.

__

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, a certain group of three had to halt their search.

Nightmares were similar to a plague for her, yet she often experienced that plague every day.

She has nightmares of all types, but the main thing she has nightmares about was death. No, not her own death but other people's deaths. She would see the face of every single person she killed, and they would haunt her and try to drag her down. But at the end of each of every nightmare, they would be dead again - she ended up killing them all over again.

It was a cycle she could never escape, a cycle where she has to kill.

Ever since she learned about the power of her eye, Lilian has remained distant from other people. Her family rules aside, the main reason she kept her distance from others was because of her abilities.

From a young age, she noticed there was something different about her than other people. By the time she finally realized what was wrong, it was already far too late. How many people did she kill the moment her powers woke up? How many people ended up sacrificed?

Lilian could clearly remember the many bodies at her feet. On that day, she massacred half the family and the servants. Many people lost their lives, yet that was the first day her father praised and acknowledged her.

"Lilian, li-li are you okay?" Jorah asked as she patted her back.

They had to stop the search momentarily since she felt sick and dizzy.

Lilian sighed deeply as she tried to shrug off the woman's concern. This is bad; why did this have to happen now? Moreover, her gaze fell on the woman's husband. This guy has watched her like a hawk since earlier, and there is no chance for her to escape.

Normally whenever she felt like this, she would find somebody to release her stress on. This wasn't a normal sickness. It was the power of her eye, kill. She has to kill somebody and see their blood; only then would she calm down.

This is no good, and she thought she would be all good today. Or was torturing that boy not enough?

Her childhood filled with struggles, so when she finally gained enough power and chose to become the general, she felt free.

Her family has a lot of enemies. There was a time when she was four years old where her father's enemies abducted her. But by that age, she already learned a lot from the ageha family and managed to escape. She already knew what fate awaited her if she stayed; they would sell her or force her into prostitution; that was why she escaped.

She escaped but ended up living in the slums for a while, she only meant to hide there temporarily, but she somehow lost her memories. It was still a mystery up to this very day how she lost her memories.

When people at home found her and told that she was the long-lost daughter of the Ageha family. She could not help but laugh. Although she thought there was something unusual with her appearance, the color of her dress had faded. Running through the slums ruined her dress, but Lilian remembered the jewels' traces and the high-quality material of the dress.

The first person who found her was a member of the branch family. Due to the circumstances, it was difficult for Ruth to get in touch with the main family, so she lived with her for a good few months.

She found herself not being too overwhelmed by the extravagant lifestyle; it all felt natural.

So when she gradually learned her identity, all the pieces came crashing together, and she recalled the reason how she ended up in the slums.

She recalled the smiles and faces of the very people who caused this situation. People who pretended to be her father's allies and that day betrayed him.

By the time she returned to the Ageha family, Lilian wondered if her father ever found out who caused the disturbance then. When she saw those very people again, they wore the same smiles.

Lilian understood. 'Ah, I've thrown a retch into their plans. 'Indeed, they probably thought they got rid of the hindrance. Lilian remembers her thoughts then the smiles of these people are empty; their emotions are mere acts. Ah, that's why. Even though she suffered in the slums, she did not shed a tear.

Being surrounded in that environment, it was only natural that she never thought of displaying her emotions. But even though she remained indifferent and unreadable, they still took advantage of her, and when they had the opportunity, they tried to dispose of her.

Her present lifestyle is one without worries, and she is living a life of luxury. But even now, she will never forget it—the smiles of those people when they disposed of her and when she returned.

Closing of your emotions or displaying them, both of them came with their fair share of trouble. If that's the case, she merely had to combine them both.

She will smile in front of those people, but she will not do everything they say. She will play a game with them, make them interested in her actions and lure them in. She will not bend to their will but not necessarily refuse them, and the moment they let their guard down, she will- Lilian's thoughts broke off when she saw something in the air.

A signal flare? One lit with a magical flame.

Lilian closed her eyes and concentrated on the flare for a minute, and several images floated in her head. "I see."

How troublesome, father will surely lecture that girl after all this. After all, Lilian knew what plan her father had for Natalia to befriend the little Prince. Father even set up a meeting for them in the first upcoming social gathering for the Empress. It seems that plan has gone down the drain.

"I think I found him."

Jorah, who was trying to find a medical shop, turned to her. "You found Braden?"

"I found my sister too." Lilian sighed deeply. "Before we go there, is there anything I need to know about the little Prince?"

At that comment, Lilian watched as Jorah turned pale. "Could it be--"

Lilian turned to the man behind Jorah. "Well? There isn't much time." From here, she felt a strong wave of malicious energy, and the skies gradually turned darker. As each minute went by, Lilian could imagine the situation where Natalia was turning worse.

That child is strong, so she ought to hold out but not for long.

"Braden he..when he was younger a witch cursed him," Simon muttered.

"Ah." Lilian nodded, understanding. "Now that makes sense." So a witch cursed the Empress child? Now that is very interesting. But a witch who would go around cursing children. She knew only one person in this Empire who would do something like that.

If it is that woman's curse, then it will be quite troublesome. It seems she has no choice.

"Jorah," Lilian called out. "Im sorry in advance. I know I said I wouldn't raise my blade when you are around, but you understand, correct?"

Jorah bit her lip but nodded.

It seems there is no choice here, and she has to stop the Empress child from going on a rampage.