First Arc (King of Euphorion) – 7. Twisted Fate

Angel extended his hand to touch the boy statue before him. In a blink of an eye, everything around him stopped moving. He swept his gaze around him one more time. The butterflies flying near him froze in the mid-air. Cley and Claire who were sitting on a branch of a tree, while Mayor Bernard stood below them in exhaustion stiffened on their position. Even the wind around him stopped flowing.

"I have been waiting for you, Angelus Raizel..." It was the same young man's voice that sounded inside his head a month ago. 

He turned his gaze to the source of the voice. A man the same aged as him. He had a warm face, his dark blue hair neatly combed back and his eyes were as sharp as him.

"Prince Lucian?" he guessed in confusion.

Lucian looked at him gently.

"This is the first time we meet face to face. Are you not afraid of me?"

"I'm a dead person who comes back to life, why should I be afraid?"

Lucian gave him a warm smile.

"You are still fearless as usual." Then Lucian turned his gaze to the statue behind him.

"It seems my father also knows you will come... He even makes a statue for both of us."

"What is this all about?" he asked.

Lucian returned his gaze to Angel.

"The crystal has tangled our fated together... Before he came to you, the shadow tried to insert the crystal into my body, but the power was too great. I couldn't control it, the crystal destroyed my body and mind from the inside. When the shadow was taking it back, my spirit fragments mixed in it and came to your body. That's why your hair colour changed into mine."

He blinked in confusion, his brows creased atop his forehead.

"You inside of me all this time?"

"Yes, when the shadow brings the crystal to us... Our fate is changed... While my fate ended because of the crystal... Your fate is to carry on my fate as well as to carry the burden for the Andromeda Continent."

"But... Why me? Why did the crystal choose me? What is this crystal? Who's that shadow? Why did he attack us? " he asked impatiently. The confusion overwhelmed his mind, he needed the answer right away.

Lucian shook his head.

"I don't know either... What I know is the crystal power is too great, I never felt a great power like that before. Even compared to my father... That crystal is far more powerful."

He sighed in disappointment.

"It seems you are as clueless as me."

"Forgive me, I can't give you more clues to avenge your father."

He pondered for a moment before returning his gaze at Lucian.

"Lucian, can you show yourself to anyone except me?"

"No... Even you can see me, but actually, I'm not here. I talk to you in your heart, in your mind. This form is only a reflection that my father made with his magic formation hiding inside the statue."

Angel sighed in disappointment.

"Is that so? That's a pity. Because I think someone really misses you." 

Lucian gave him another smile.

"You mean that foolish assistant of mine, Chay Fadington?" he guessed. 

"Yes, I think he feels guilty about your death."

"He is a stubborn person. If I didn't cast a Binding Spell on him, he would attack that shadow stupidly even though he couldn't fight."

Angel chuckled as he remembered how messy Chay's face was when he met him.

"I can see it. He is a reckless person, but he is a loyal subordinate. It must be fun to have a good assistant like him."

"Indeed... That's why I can't let him die..." Lucian turned his gaze to Cley and Claire who were not far from him. 

"They were just born at that time... I don't want them to grow up without a father."

He took a glance at Cley and Claire before returning his gaze to Lucian. 

"I would do the same if I was in your position."

Lucian returned his gaze to Angel and looked at him deeply.

"Angelus Raizel... Forgive me, I have to trouble you. I leave this kingdom with you. Please protect my people..."

He gave him a reassuring smile.

"I'll do my best, Lucian..."

Lucian walked toward him and vanished like smoke when he walked past Angel's body. After that, in an instant, everything around him moved again.

"Cley! Claire! Get down now!" shouted Mayor Bernard. But the kids ignored him and kept laughing and sitting on the branch.

Angel smiled and walked toward them.

"I'll get them, we must return to the city before the sun is set," he said as he turned his gaze to those naughty kids. 

Mayor Bernard's mouth stiffened. He turned his gaze to Angel as a frown started to develop on his forehead.

"Return to the city? Now?"

"Yes, Sir Chay will be worried if they don't come home early. Besides, the sun is almost set," he replied.

A slightly panicked expression began to appear on Mayor Bernard's face. With great effort, he managed to display a relaxed expression again.

"But I think you need to check this place more. I'm sure Chay doesn't mind if we stay here a little longer."

"I've explored this place enough for today. Besides this place is not far from the city, we can come back tomorrow and give the kids another adventure."

"I-I think we should stay a bit longer. This place... It's- It's a good place to relax around," said Mayor Bernard accompanied by his awkward laugh.

Angel frowned at Mayor Bernard's strange behaviour. But a second later, he suddenly remembered Chay's sad expression before he left the room. He quickly grabbed Mayor Bernard's shoulders and turned it. Angel's eyes looked at him with a serious expression.

"Mayor, tell me what exactly happened? Why are you holding us here?"

Mayor Bernard startled, but he quickly fixed his expression back to normal. However, his palms started to break out sweats of tremendous anxiety.

"W-What? Of course not... What made you think like that?" he said awkwardly. His eyes looked away in another direction, ignoring Angel's. 

Angel narrowed his eyes as his suspicions grew stronger.

"There's no way the city hall is closed without a reason. Moreover, Sir Chay refuses to come out of that place. What happened? Why is he hiding?"

Mayor Bernard kept looking side to side, trying to avoid Angel's eyes.

"W-What do you mean? H-He isn't hiding from anyone. "

"Mayor, don't lie to me. He's a nobleman. There's no way he doesn't own any property. He doesn't live in the city hall but is hiding there. He even planted thorns around the fence to prevent other people from entering," said Angel as he stared at Mayor Bernard intensely. He had realized this from the start but kept silent about it since it would be rude to question a lot of things to the person he just met.

Mayor Bernard turned away to cover his panic expression and remained silent, but Angel noticed it very clearly.

He couldn't help but raised his voice under frustration.

"Why are you panicking? What exactly happened? Tell me!" he insisted.

Mayor Bernard took a deep breath as he knew he couldn't avoid it anymore. His expression turned sad as his eyes started to glisten with tears.

"The king... Wants to destroy the city... And build a fortress before he wages a war with another kingdom... But Chay... He defied the king's order... He gathered other nobles' supports and fought back in the court... The king issued his arrest warrant so he had to hide in the city hall. But this morning... We received a letter from the castle... I thought it was for me... But, it turned out it was for him... They already knew... He was hiding there... "

He released his hand from Mayor Bernard's shoulders and let out a sigh.

"Is he the one who told you to bring us here? So he can face it alone?"

Mayor Bernard nodded as he kept his head down.

Angel quickly turned to the kids who were still sitting on the branch.

"Lucian is right, his assistant is so foolish!" he said. His hand extended to Cley and Claire. In an instant, his dark aura lifted their body and brought them to his arms. He quickly turned around as he carried them.

"Let's go!" he said. His legs moved towards the garden exit.

Mayor Bernard immediately followed him from behind.