Chapter 12: Magic

The news that his sister chose to stay at Caspiel's residence saddened him, knowing that Caspiel would also fall into his sister's deadly trap. It was certain that Astarte would seduce Caspiel with her magic and then sleep with him to spread rumors that their relationship was improving. His sister was so much like their father, cunning and willing to do anything to get whatever she wanted. Azoth knew that his sister was also aiming for the throne. The rule that the heir to the throne must be a male had been abolished, and his sister had great ambitions to gain power. When they were a child, they were like any other siblings. Little Astarte would visit Azoth's room to invite her only brother to play. That memory always lingered in Azoth's mind when he looked at his sister. Now, even just looking at him, his sister would show a disgusted face.

"You called for me, Father?" Azoth approached King Leviathan in his chamber. The king was lying down, accompanied by several of his concubines. The scantily clad concubines smiled seductively at Azoth, while he tried not to look at their bodies even an inch.

"I want us to expedite our invasion of Illuxar. Duke Ivvete said that to go to the Anthropa continent, we have to pass through the sea route from Illuxar." What Azoth feared had finally happened.

"Father, I think our army is still lacking. Shouldn't we wait for the Royal Army selection next year?" He tried to find excuses to stall for time.

"Do you know, Crown Prince? That the babies born in our kingdom for the past 20 years are 68% male. And I think involving all noble families in the war is not a bad idea." Azoth grasped his father's intent: to draft all the males in Craenitus into the war, regardless of their skills or physical capabilities.

"I believe if we involve beginners who have no skills in warfare, we will surely be defeated, Father. Illuxar has advanced technology. They don't even use swords anymore."

"Have you ever been to Illuxar, my son? I don't think so. Let me tell you, Crown Prince. They think their world is very small, and there is only one continent in their world, which is Illuxar. They have never managed to pass through the anomaly circle surrounding Illuxar. It's no wonder they have such foolish thoughts and consider their planet to be shaped like a plate bounded by very high walls." Azoth couldn't argue with that. Even though Illuxar was more advanced in technology than Craenitus, their knowledge was not as extensive as that of Craenitus.

"With such a mindset, what do you think they need to prepare the military for? They only have police. That's because the crime rate there is very low; their police are more like someone playing the role of a police officer. I'm sure they don't even know how to use firearms."

"But Father—"

"Your king hasn't finished speaking." Azoth flinched.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty."

"Hence, there's no need for concern regarding the technological disparity between us and Illuxar." Azoth nodded. He felt that even if he objected again, it would be futile.

"For the commoners, we don't require skilled soldiers for battle. What we need are shields to safeguard the trained warriors."

"I understand, Father."

"If you understand, then execute it. I anticipate positive updates from you. Let's hope you don't take after your naive mother too much."

Azoth left his father's room feeling troubled. Just when he had the chance to get closer to Celine, now his father ordered him to fight against people who were akin to Celine. His father's ambition to create a new world made him more ruthless. Craenitus itself was already sufficient, but his father wanted to live outside the portal and rule all the continents there.

He hoped he could find Celine's close relatives and bring them to Craenitus to save them from being killed in the upcoming war.

.

"Lady, the carriage is ready." I stared at my reflection in the mirror. Emily handed me a thick coat, saying that I would be traveling by carriage for a long time. It had been two weeks since the news about Caspiel and Princess Astarte spending the night together. Caspiel always tried to meet me, but I refused. The last time he sent Arthur to talk to me about what happened between them, but I said I had no interest in knowing. A week later, Caspiel stayed at the palace. He said he would train his swordmanship there, but I was sure there was another reason why he stayed at the palace.

"Emily, are you sure you want to come with me?" I looked at the girl who was five years younger than me. She nodded eagerly. I was surprised when this girl said she would be my personal servant there. Even though I wasn't a real noble, this girl was truly dedicated.

I sighed and walked out of the mansion. In front of the carriage, I saw Madam Lysa and Arthur preparing to escort me. Standing next to Arthur was a man I had been avoiding for two weeks.

"Celine!" He walked towards me. Honestly, another part of me missed his face and voice. But my pride held me back from being too enthusiastic.

"Count Caspiel, I didn't expect you to return today. Too bad, but I have to leave immediately." His expression turned disappointed when he heard my greeting.

"Celine, why are you talking as if we are strangers?" I didn't answer that question and boarded the carriage. He offered his hand, and I took it with a smile.

"Thank you." Something surprising happened after that. Caspiel also boarded the carriage and sat in front of me.

"What's the meaning of this?" I furrowed my brows.

"It's only appropriate that I escort you there. You healed me, it's just etiquette." He shrugged.

"Count Caspiel. You yourself know the reason you recovered." I replied, making Caspiel silent. After that, he looked out the window, and I did the same. We spent that day's journey busy with our own thoughts.

The snow today was quite heavy; I worried about the condition of the coachman and the horses carrying us. Caspiel said weather like this was normal for them, but I had a different opinion. Especially on nights like this, even though the snow stopped, the temperature became colder. I covered my face with a scarf and put on my hoodie coat. Maybe I was the person among them who could not stand the cold, as for them who were accustomed to the winter in Craenitus.

The carriage stopped, and Josh knocked on the carriage door.

"My Lord, it's getting too cold. There's an inn ahead, but I think it's a rundown place. Can we stay there for the night?" I glanced at Caspiel, who was watching me intently, cocooned in layers of warmth.

"Of course, bring all our belongings inside and rent rooms according to our party size."

Finally, our journey came to a halt that night, necessitating an overnight stay. Caspiel mentioned that if it snowed again tomorrow, the journey would be postponed. As we entered the inn, an elderly couple greeted us. Seeing the old woman offering me warm tea reminded me of my grandmother.

"I apologize deeply, sir, miss. Our inn is quite shabby and worn. Please forgive the discomfort you may experience while staying here." The old woman nervously handed us the room keys. I smiled and felt an urge to hug her. They must have been surprised by the unexpected arrival of guests carrying so many belongings and dressed in luxurious attire.

"Don't say that. I really like the atmosphere here. It reminds me of something I dearly miss." The crackling of the fireplace, warm tea, and the sound of the old woman's voice reminded me of the winters spent with my grandmother. She loved drinking tea during winter. So every night, we would sit by the fireplace, sipping tea and chatting.

"Thank you, miss! You're so kind." Now the old man couldn't stop praising me. He complimented everything from my manners to my humility and appearance.

I was escorted to my room. The room wasn't too small but also not large enough for activities other than sleeping. There was an old fireplace serving as the primary source of light in the room. A small oil lamp on the table seemed to be provided specifically for reading. Beside the table, there was a bookshelf containing several bedtime storybooks. The bed was adorned with a canopy, and the wooden floor creaked under my footsteps.

"At least it's warm in here."

I took off my thick coat and hung it behind the door. I decided to soak in warm water first to warm up my body. After finishing in the bathroom, I chose a nightgown to wear for the night. The nightgown was very thin and almost transparent. When I was at Evington Mansion, I always wore a robe when leaving my room. The neckline was also very wide. But sleeping in this nightgown was more comfortable than the pajamas I used to wear.

I dried my hair with a towel. If only there was a hair dryer here, the time needed would be shorter. On the bedside cabinet, there was a jar of cookies with a sign that read 'complimentary snacks' in front of it. I chuckled softly. It felt just like home with my grandmother.

"How is Renald doing? Is anyone taking care of Grandma's grave while I'm not there?"

The sound of the fireplace was like soothing music to my ears. As I began to drift off, suddenly the bedroom door opened. I woke up halfway and looked towards the door. His golden hair was the first thing I saw.

"Caspiel?!" I half-shouted. He covered his ears, seeming bothered by my exclamation.

"There are no other rooms," he explained casually when I asked what he was doing in a lady's room at night.

"Lies!"

"Just ask yourself."

I growled. As if not caring about my presence, he walked and lay on the bed. I grumbled and prepared to leave. I'd rather sleep in the living room than sleep with him!

By stomping my feet, I tried to escape from this awkward situation. How could he be so relaxed about entering a lady's room and lying on her bed? Before I could reach the door, my hand was forcibly pulled, and my body slammed into his.

"Ow!" It felt like hitting a rock; my body felt slightly sore.

"Sorry, was I too rough?"

I realized our position was now similar to Princess Astarte's at that time. I was on top of Caspiel. With the light from the fireplace behind us, my silhouette was clearly visible through the thin dress I wore. Realizing this, I saw Caspiel's face turn red, and his eyes glanced from top to bottom and quickly locked onto my face.

"You lunatic!" I exclaimed. I tried to leave, but he held me back.

"Celine, you haven't listened to my explanation."

"I don't need any explanation. I've already told you, it's not important!"

"But I think it is! You need to know what happened then, and it's important." His face looked very serious. I began to feel like giving him a chance, and then suddenly I felt something hard and protruding beneath me. My face heated up. My hand lifted to slap him, but before that happened, he caught my hand, bringing us closer together.

"It's magic!"

"What?"

"I was influenced by magic then. That's why I don't remember anything when you slapped me on the balcony."

"What nonsense is that? Do you think I'm stupid?"

"Celine. Every member of the royal family has their own magic power. They're born with their special abilities. The Crown Prince can manipulate time and space. While his sister can manipulate minds."

"How can I believe that?"

"I can prove it. But after that, you'll hate me." I could feel his warm breath sweeping my face.

"I already hate you," I whispered. He didn't reply. For a few seconds, there was only silence between us.

"Arthur said this is the way. I've never tried it before. I'm sorry, Celine."

"What-?"

After saying that, he pulled my hand. Making our faces closer. He didn't let me finish my question and silenced me with his lips. Our lips touched. My mind went blank. The blood in my head felt like it was boiling. This was my first kiss in my life, and with someone who had trapped me. He held my cheeks very carefully and gently. My held breath made me push his body to try to breathe. He gave me only one second to take a breath before making our lips touch again. This time his mouth was slightly open. At that moment, I felt like there was cold air entering my body through my slightly open mouth. After that, in my head, there was like a fast-paced movie clip, but I could see and remember all the details. It was Caspiel's meeting with Princess Astarte at that party. Like being in Caspiel's body, I could see and feel what he felt at that time. I could clearly feel the loss of control over my body, like what Caspiel felt at that time.