CH 4

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STEP ASIDE!" Aaron saw a dark figure frantically levitating towards him. He widened his eyes when he realised that that figure was about to collide against him.

"What-WOAH!!" Before Aaron could even think about moving from his place he was on the ground on his back with a heavy body lying on top of him.

The sudden crash brings a halt in the conversation between Regina and Theodore. They turned to see a mop of silver lying on top of Aaron.

"God! My back! Ah!" Aaron cried in pain.

"Derrek, you fool! Get off of me." The dishevled Prince hurriedly got up from the top of Aaron and brushed off any potential dust from his clothes.

He appeared slightly embarrassed that he failed in keeping control over his levitation magic and ended up falling on Aaron.

" I apologize for crashing into you like that." He apologized to Aaron when he finally gained some composure.

"Hey! atleast help me up." Aaron's voice is heard in the background as The silvernette quickly rushed towards The Empress and The grand Duke, who were quietly watching their exchange.

"Your majesty, I have grave news." Derrek reports with a grim voice. His face was dark indicating it was a serious matter. The others too gained a look of concern as they listened intently.

"I was traveling around the empire when I suddenly felt a presence of a deep, dark energy. It was ominous and unsettling." Derrek explained.

"Moreover, I also spotted dead remains that were covered in this energy. The body was utterly unrecognizable, having been completely rotted away by the effects of this unnatural energy." Derrek's face because unsettled when he recalled the incident.

"But, Your Majesty, about the body I saw. I fear that it may not even be real, but a product of that dark energy." Derrek voiced his concern.

"What makes you say this ? " Regina questions.

"The fact that there was a body lying on the middle of the street but everyone walked over it as if it was invisible. I saw it because of the nature of my eyes." Derrek justified, slightly hinting at Solon Lineage's ability to sense and detect magic affinity.

There was a tense silence in the room after Derrek's explanation of an ominous dark energy lurking around in Verdentia. They had never seen let alone even heard about such a bitter and negative magic affinity.

But, unknown to Derrek and Aaron who were lost in thoughts of countless possibilities about this incident, The Empress and The Grand Duke sneaked a glance at each other with something similar to a glint of doubt in their eyes.

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*ROYAL CHAMBERS*

"This is an alarming news, Your Majesty." The grand Duke said grimly after Regina finished narrating the maid incident and the traces of Balck magic that she found in court hall.

The four of them had left the study long ago. But Regina and Theodore had retired to the Royal Chambers. Apparently, Derrek was not the only one who interacted with that darkness.

"That maid was definitely killed by the real culprit." Theodore said after a while. "But,there could be a connection of that dummy body with this murder."

"Your right, after all both incidents are somehow related to this strange magic." The empress uttered sharply.

There was complete silence in the room for a while. Only their light breaths could be heard in the candle litted room.

The Empress was standing near the window, arms crossed, lost in thoughts. The Young duke carefully observed her before speaking.

"Regina, This couldn't be it, right? " He questions cautiously. If this was anyhow connected to that incident, then there's no way they could take this lightly any longer.

The empress sighs deeply as she uncrossed her arms and turned to face Theodore.

"I hope not."

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*Next morning*

The outskirts of Verdentia was lit alive. The commoners were busy working for the day and earn their livelihoods. The markets were flooded with people that hovered over stalls and shops that sell vegetables, fruits and handcrafted goods.

The whole place was filled with the echoes of bartering and bargaining.

But even in the midst of this hustle-bustle, it was hard for anyone to turn a blind eye towards an extravagant looking carriage that was making its way through the crowd.

Judging from the symbol of The Fierce Flames, they could safely guess that a Royal from the Blaze Empire had came to visit.

They all watched as the Carriage slowly left their sight and went back to their business.

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*Centre of the empire*

The Royal guards patiently waited for the royal carriage to arrive. From the message scroll that they received from the border of Blaze-Verdentia, it seemed that someone was visiting without prior notice. This usually doesn't happen but this one seems to be an exception.

After a while, they finally saw a Maroon coloured carriage enter their vision. It was covered in fine cloth and was well designed and finely crafted indicating the status of the person inside.

It eventually came to a stop. The coachman left his spot to help the passenger sitting inside the carriage. He pulled open the door of the carriage and helped get down not one but two of them. The guards observed the two young women make their way towards the grand entrance.

The taller one of the two had long mahogany hair tied in a half bun. She carried herself with confidence and grace. Her light brown eyes were sharp and turned a fierry gold when the correct amount of sunlight reflected against them.

The other had ashy black hair that reached her mid back. Her face was unreadable but a slight hint of nervousness slid past it. She too carried herself with elegance while her dark Black eyes were carefully observing around.

They both were cladded in The Blaze's traditional dress that was known all around the Empires.

The guards, however, knew that they were not someone related to the Emperor of The blaze empire because he had no daughters. It seems that they were Princesses from one of the Kingdoms located in the Blaze empire.

They royal guards bowed respectfully. They watched the two princesses make their way in the palace as they prayed that this visit goes smoothly.

To be continued.....





© lone_solo