Chapter 158: Reflection In The Mirror
In the royal palace of Dartmouth, lightning flashed outside, casting fleeting bursts of light through the dimly lit chambers. The brief illumination made the grand interior appear all the more ominous, with the air heavy with tension.
Jareld stood before Prince Valen in his room, as he reported the incident regarding Sylvie’s failure in the mission the prince had assigned her concerning Ivan.
Valen lounged leisurely on the sofa of his room, swirling a glass of wine in his hand. He clicked his tongue in disappointment at his failed attempt to keep Prince Ivan away from his golden bird.
"And what else, Jareld? Is she alive?" Valen asked carelessly.
"She appears to be in a coma at the moment, Your Highness," Jareld replied.
"Ah, I see...so she decided to sleep after failing at her task, did she?" Valen mused, his tone laced with mocking amusement.
Jareld remained silent, allowing his prince to think. After a pause, Valen’s lips curved into a faint smile, "Well then...since she has chosen to sleep, why not let her sleep forever? I’m sure Mother would be delighted with such an offering, especially after how disappointed she was with the last younger one. What do you think, Jareld?"
"I believe Her Majesty will appreciate it, Your Highness," Jareld said evenly.
Valen smiled, evidently pleased with his own decision. "It’s settled, then. Inform Mother that I’m sending her a sleeping beauty as a gift of apology."
"Yes, Your Highness," Jareld bowed deeply.
Valen’s smile widened, a glint of delight flashing in his pale green eyes, "Also...I think it’s time I paid my golden bird a visit. I ought to welcome my bride, don’t you think? Prepare for my departure to Rosemount tomorrow."
"I’ll make the preparations, Your Highness," Jareld replied before leaving the prince’s chamber.
Valen continued to swirl the wine in his glass before finally taking a sip. Rising from his seat, he turned toward the window, gazing at the storm raging outside, the flashes of lightning reflecting in his pale green eyes.
"Seems like the new specimen is working," he whispered darkly, a sinister smile curling his lips. Then, he burst into low, menacing laughter. "Oh, Prince Ivan... this must be the easiest way to get rid of the strongest man in the history of mankind."
His laughter grew louder, echoing through the otherwise silent room.
On one side, a man waited for Ivan to fall into his doom, while on the other, in the Rosemount Hotel, a beautiful woman stared at the stormy night sky with determined eyes...ready to do everything in her power to protect the man she had fallen for. The man she would give anything to save. But the question was, how? How could she?
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[Music Recommendation: RORE - the moon in your eyes]
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After returning to their room, Eve had insisted that Ivan take a relaxing bath to wash away any traces of another woman’s blood from him. And it didn’t take long for Ivan to agree when she pointed out the blood clinging to his neck.
Since then, she had been standing by the window, lost in thought, trying to figure out how to save him. And there was only one place she could think of finding her answers. The Vault of Ages.
’You have always been the one to save me,’ she thought, ’and this time, it’s my time to save you. I promise...I promise I’ll do everything in my power to save you.’
As the vow echoed in her mind, her eyes flashed golden, like the first rays of sunlight breaking through after a long and violent storm.
As she stood there, she soon felt herself being enveloped in the strong, warm arms of the man to whom she had given her mind, body, and soul. Ivan leaned forward to inhale her fresh, unique scent and nuzzled his face against her neck, his damp hair brushing softly against her skin.
Goosebumps rose along Eve’s skin as she slowly closed her eyes, savouring the touch she loved so much. And she just knew it, whether it was the Ivan from before or the changed Ivan now, she could never hate this man, nor could she ever recoil from his touch. Her body instinctively rejected the very idea of harbouring any negative feeling toward him...no matter what he did.
The feelings she had for him ran so deep that no matter what form or version of him existed, she would continue to adore him. It was that feeling Ivan felt permeate from her that calmed his darkness without him even willing it to. She was the only one...the only person he cared about when everything inside him was growing hollow, stripped of empathy towards others. Somehow, in the sea of endless darkness, she was his only light...the one thing he refused to let go of. Never! He would never let her be away from him. With that thought, his arms tightened around her.
Eve’s breathing hitched as she felt his hold grow firmer. Remembering the man in pain from her dreams, she couldn’t help but overlap him with Ivan. Turning her face towards the spot where he had buried his face against her neck, she raised her hand and gently caressed his cheek. He instinctively leaned into her touch, and that simple gesture made her heart flutter against her chest.
She smiled lovingly at him as he nuzzled his face on her hand before leaning in to plant a soft, innocent kiss on his cheek. She wanted to give him as much comfort as she could, to let him know that he wasn’t alone. She knew he must be silently suffering, and she felt terrified at the thought of losing him. Corrupted or not, he was her Ivan. Hers to care for, hers to love.
Turning around, she wrapped her arms around him and looked up into his molten red eyes, swirling with fire and faint smoke-like darkness. It was less intense than what she had seen when he was aggravated, and a small wave of relief washed over her to see that the corruption seemed weaker now.
"Feeling better?" she asked softly, as her fingers played with the damp ends of his raven-black hair.
He continued to stare at her with that same quiet intensity, as if she were the only thing anchoring his world, and finally gave her a slight nod in response.
"I’m glad," she whispered. Drawn in by his intense gaze, she found herself unable to move. Ivan stood just as still, his crimson eyes locked on her with quiet intensity before he leaned closer and murmured her name, "Eve..."
Her heart fluttered wildly in her chest at the sound of his voice, laced with such raw longing.
"Y-Yes?" she replied, her voice trembling.
Then, all at once, Ivan’s chest tightened, as if something invisible had coiled around his heart. A sharp pain shot through his chest, and he felt something rising in his throat.
Without warning, he pushed Eve away and rushed into the bathroom.
Panic surged through her chest. "Ivan!" she called out in a trembling voice.
She hurried after him, reaching the bathroom just as he stumbled to the basin. He hadn’t even closed the door properly before he began coughing violently. Eve rushed to his side and placed a hand on his back, feeling his skin burning hot beneath her palm. She noticed the abnormal heat but didn’t care; her only thought was to soothe him as she rubbed gentle circles on his back.
Pausing between coughs, Ivan turned to her, his voice strained and rough. "Go! Get out now!"
That’s when she saw it, thin, root-like veins spreading around his eyes, his fangs elongating, and his irises glowing a fierce crimson before swirling with black.
Eve froze, too stunned by the sudden transformation to process his words.
"Go now!" he shouted, his voice echoed sharply through the tiled walls, loud enough to make her stumble back, before coughing violently again. This time, a wet, guttural sound came, like a wet cough, before blood spilled from his mouth, splattering into the basin. It was a large amount of thick and dark blood, turning the white porcelain basin red like a scene out of a nightmare.
Eve felt as if she were being stabbed with a thousand knives, watching him suffer like this. True horror gripped her very bones at the thought of losing Ivan. Instead of running away after the way he shouted, she rushed back to him, her trembling hands finding their way to his back once more as she tried to swallow the hard lump rising in her throat.
She kept whispering in a broken voice, "You’re okay...you’ll be okay."
She didn’t even notice when her vision began to blur, or when fat tears started streaming down her cheeks, falling one after another as she continued to rub soothing circles on his back. Ivan heaved painfully, still bent over the basin, his face slick with sweat from sheer exertion.
She could only pray to every god out there to save him...to stop his suffering, even if just a little. Ivan coughed a few more times before slowly lifting his head and meeting his reflection in the mirror. It was then that he finally realised what was happening to him. His irises darkened to black before flashing back to crimson. His fangs had grown longer than usual, and the dark, vein-like roots around his eyes pulsed faintly before vanishing beneath his pale skin.
