Two days passed with barely any progress. But my mood was still pretty good and I hadn't given up hope. 

I put the ancient scroll down and yawned. It was getting late... I should go to bed soon. I began to put the books away, before noticing a ladder. Wait... there's a second floor here!? I hadn't even noticed! 

I quickly climbed up the ladder, seeing even more books. It wasn't that the forbidden section was small—it just kept most of its books on the second floor. The second floor was dimly lit by magic lights that hung by the bookshelves. It looked a bit eerie during the night. 

The setup on the second floor was different, instead of having one space for books, another for chairs and tables—this floor was like a maze of books. I walked through it, in awe. 

It had a strange beauty to it... I kept walking, wondering just how far I could get. The deeper I went, the dimmer the lights became. I slowed down, wondering if I should head back. At this rate, I might trip or—

"—!" Right then, my foot caught on something and I fell over, injuring my knee. I winced, swallowing a curse. Unable to see much, it dawned on me after a minute to use magic.

"...[Light]." And like that, the perpetrator revealed itself as one of the wooden planks had been uprooted. They should probably fix the floor here, or someone might gravely injure themselves while walking.

I turned, wanting to go back, when I noticed something strange. The maze of books seemed to have run out of books. All that remained was a narrow hallway made out of dark stone.

I studied it. 

Maybe... the really forbidden scriptures were there? It wouldn't hurt to look—no more than it did before I tripped.

I walked over carefully. I noticed the stone was slightly damp despite there not being any traces of water anywhere. I tightly clutched the wand in my hand, frowning.

Those forbidden scriptures must be super forbidden. I should just get a peek and then leave. I don't even think I was approved to go here in the first place...

It didn't take long for the hallway to reach somewhere. I squinted, seeing it open to darkness. I walked forward and—

"—Shit!" I tripped and dropped my wand. The light spell disappeared, leaving me in complete darkness. I scrambled to find the wand, feeling goosebumps as I had no idea where or what might be here.

Where was it?! Where, where, wherewherewhere—

Fear had consumed me. I had walked too deep in, I should've walked back! Why didn't I listen to my gut!

I was too focused on trying to find the wand to notice a small light. But as more and more came—I realized I could see again. And the fear that had consumed me began to fade.

It was an asymmetrical boxed room, with the same strange dark stone from earlier. And neatly engraved, shining bright, were patterns. I stared at them, noticing them light up one by one. They lined the whole room. I gaped at them before finally noticing my wand. I picked it up, wanting to quickly get out of this creepy place.

But that's when I glanced at one of the patterns and stopped.

Huh... why does that feel familiar? Isn't that... 'God'? I kept staring at the pattern, and growing more certain.

I'd never seen this pattern but... it was some kind of language. And the longer I stared, the more I recognized it. Was it some kind of magical language? It felt like each word was unraveling itself in my head. 

Unable to resist the urge, I began to read, starting from the brightest pattern at the top left of the stone room. 

'The first God wished for light. 

The sun was born on the first day.

The second God wished for darkness.

The moon was born on the second day.

The third and fourth God wished for life and death.

And life was born, and death was born on the third day.

The four Gods came together, watching over the light, darkness, life, and death that they'd created. As the ever-flowing time passed, the world they'd created grew more complex. But the Gods loved everything regardless. 

The first God wished for magic.

Magic was born. It brought joy and death. Monsters were born along with it.

The second God wished for servants. 

Beastmen and mythical creatures were born. Nations rose and fell, bringing life and death once more.

The third and fourth God wished for everlasting peace.

That was how it began. And that was how it ended. 

—g — - —— —- — -

— - —- — ———— — —- —

— - —- -

—— — —— —-

—- —- — —— ——- —— —- —- —- ——-

The third God asked; 'Why?'

The fourth God laughed. 'It's all for ——' 

— —— — —— —

— ——- —

'And a third of all life vanished, forever trapped in the Fourth God's lullaby. And the words they spoke came true. Their curse bore fruit in every —- that came, killing them on their —- day. 

Their laughter continues to echo in the minds of those who seek it. 

— —- —

May their curse forever taint those filthy — and those who come after. Their curse will —- —- and —-. May they return to the embrace of —— and beg forgiveness, despite their sins being unforgivable.

—— —

I finished reading before exhaling. Who... wrote this? And why was more than half of it unreadable? 

But the ones I could read revealed a big secret I never knew. 

Those afflicted by mein... were being cursed? By a God? And there were four Gods, not three?

I placed a hand over my mouth. This... this was revolutionary. If this was a curse, it was obvious why the mortality rate was nearly 100%. Unless the curse bearer dies... it'd be impossible to break it. 

How had Rael found a way to break it? Or did he really break it? And what did Urel have that no other country had? Why did they have a 'cure' despite there not supposedly being a cure for curses?

My head felt lightheaded from all the thoughts and questions. But I knew I couldn't stop here. I ran out of the strange room and left the forbidden section. Surprisingly, I didn't trip a single time. 

——

I was out of breath by the time I reached the carriage. I might be the only person who was allowed to run through a giant library in the middle of the night. None of the librarians tried stopping me, or I might've had to shove them aside. 

One of the drivers stared at me puzzled. 

"Um, sir—" I slapped a handful of gold into his hands while trying to communicate through pants.

"Please... get me to... ugh... the Tenn Castle as... fast as you can." He looked at the gold and hesitated. He opened his mouth, saw my face, and then closed his mouth.

"Yes... Sir." I caught my breath and then relaxed my face. Ah... I might've looked a bit 

 crazy there. Then again, I had just discovered one of the biggest secrets in the world. I was so excited, my legs couldn't stop shaking. I impatiently checked the clock, hoping to be home soon.

It felt like forever when the carriage slowed down.

"We're here, sir." I didn't bother replying and handed him another handful of gold before sprinting out. I made it to the gates and walked towards them. 

Tenn specialized in magic, so most entrances were guarded by advanced spells. They were hidden—and unactivated unless the castle was under attack or intruders slipped in. The knights still had to guard the gates though as not everything can be stopped by magic.

As one of the royals, I could easily walk through the gates—which also doubled as a barrier. I didn't want to waste time getting the knights to open it, anyway.

I quickly ran up the stairs and opened the doors before pausing.

Wait... why weren't there any knights? I looked around, not seeing anyone. 

Were they inside? 

I went inside and closed the double doors behind me. The hallway was just as quiet. I began to run, trying to see where the knights and attendants had gone. I stopped to listen for sound.

But nothing. It was quiet. 

Too quiet. 

The unnerving feeling grew as I hurriedly checked all the rooms. I first ran up the stairs and slammed the doors to the Queen's suite open. But there was no one there—no knights stopping me or a mother to collapse and sob at the sight of me.

I quickly ran down, heading to Lu's favorite room—and found her grand piano sitting lonely in the dark. There wasn't even anyone here to maintain it or clean it like usual. 

I nearly fell over, trying to rush to my father's study. But his room was just like the others. Except that his papers were now scattered everywhere. 

He hated having his paper on the floor. I... I should pick this up before he sees this and gets upset. 

I began to try and clean up the papers, grabbing one after the other. I turned, reaching to grab one more before stopping.

There, hastily drawn yet beautiful, was a drawing. Father enjoyed sketching and did it whenever he was trying to avoid working. 

I picked up the drawing and stared at it. It was... a family portrait. I saw the four happy faces of my family, and there, to the left, was me. My hair, my favorite clothes, and... unfinished. My face was blank, as if he'd rushed out before finishing it.

I held it tightly. And then, I folded it and put it in my pocket. Even if he got mad at this... I wouldn't give it back.

I stood up, leaving the room. Now what? No one was in their rooms and there wasn't a single person in the hallways. The chances of everyone being out were... zero. So what the hell was going on? Had an alarm gone off without me noticing? But I would've noticed traces of it...

Wait... there was one place I hadn't checked! I began to run, past all the rooms I'd checked, going deeper into the castle. 

In other countries, throne rooms were usually at the center. But in Tenn, it was back. And heavily secured with both spells and guards. There were layers upon layers of spells, formations, and arrays hidden in the seemingly ordinary hallway that led to the throne room.

As I reached it, I noticed none of them were activated. Stopping to catch my breath, I tried to calm my nerves down.

It's fine... they're probably all in the throne room. Surely it was large enough to fit everyone in there? 

And as if to reassure me, I could faintly hear music from the double doors. I nearly fell over with relief.

See? I was right... I knew it. I was just being too paranoid. The knights and attendants were too busy inside to be here outside. The rest might be resting in the servants' quarters or something.

I took a deep breath, wanting to share this discovery as soon as possible with anyone willing to listen.

I opened the doors and—

Huh?

It hit me all at once. The smell, the sight—and the beautiful music. My nose wrinkled at the strange, yet sweet and pungent smell that seemed to cling to the room. The color theme of the throne room was typically blue and beige—as those were the national colors of Tenn. But now... the sight was unlike anything I'd ever seen. The color red was in all shades around the spacious throne room. It dripped down the walls and expensive chandelier, soaking the previously beige carpet in its selfish glory. 

I nearly fell into a trance from the music too. It was unlike anything I'd heard... if Lu could hear this, she'd—

It was only then that I finally saw it. No—him.

He was at the center of it all, his red hair overpowering even the deepest shade of red in the throne room. And he was adorned in only white, appearing spotless despite the state of the throne room. He looked ethereal, like an illusion about to disappear the next moment.

The moonlight peeked out of the large windows, illuminating his still figure. He stood en pointe, as the music began to slow. Like... some kind of ballet dancer. And then, as the music began anew—he danced.

He spun, jumped, pirouetted, and glided across the throne room. He performed, entertaining the only spectator in the throne room. It was only then that I remembered to breathe.

As I began to breathe, still staring at the scene with wonder, the ballet dancer finally turned to face me. And he smiled. My heart had a mind of its own and fluttered. 

Despite the person smiling at me being Rael.

Why was he here, dancing in my throne room—? All of the questions left my mind when he extended a hand to me. I was unable to look away. Before I knew it, I'd taken his hand and been swept into a dance.

It seemed to last both forever and just a few seconds. I led him, and yet he seemed to take over control as he'd sometimes let go of me to spin, before winding up in my arms again. 

I considered myself a skilled dancer but this... this was something else. I'd never danced like this. There was no need for words, it's as if each step, glance, and touch conveyed any words I could stammer out.

At times, Rael would giggle, and my heart would flutter. It was a sensation foreign to me. Was I growing sick again?

At some point, the tempo quickened, reaching its climax. I felt a flash of disappointment, not wanting this to end. But the smile on Rael's widened as the song began to conclude. He let go of my hand, spinning farther and farther away. I'd unknowingly followed, and right as the song was ending, he tilted, falling towards me. I caught him, holding him tightly as I panted. He panted as well, staring back with his golden-brown eyes. 

And then he leaned closer. I was frozen, unable to react as he leaned forward. He whispered.

"Thank you."

Before I could blink, there was a faint cracking sound. And in the next moment, I was all alone, in the crimson-stained throne room. There was no music. No Rael. But he'd left me something...

I touched my neck, feeling a strange bump on it. What... is that...? I tried picking at it—

But the sound of the door opening made me turn. And there, stood Lola Hasselt. A graduate of Lore Academy, who'd been traveling the continent for the past year and a half.

Why was she here? 

Lola's attention wasn't on me at first. She stared at the throne room with large eyes. And then she saw me.

"Ru...?" Her voice was trembling. She dropped the paper she'd been holding. She began to step towards me but abruptly stopped. She stared at something above me, and her pale expression became one of terror. 

"Lola...?" I muttered, looking up. The only thing above me was a red...chandelier?

Hanging there was something else. It looked like an amalgamation of flesh and bones merged together. But in that horrifying moment, I was able to identify what it was.

Mother's head was at the center, surrounded by Father's outstretched body. Organs kept the 'chandelier' afloat somehow, and I saw Lu's precious fingers dangling at the base, as if tapping down on piano notes. 

I looked at what remained of my family. And realized I'd just been dancing underneath their remains just moments prior.

All of my plans, everything, fell, dripping onto the crimson throne hall decorated with the blood of my family, attendants, and knights.

I fell over, and Lola ran, screaming.

"Ru!? W-what's going on— what is this, what is happening?!" She was both panicking and sobbing. I continued to retch, whilst choking on tears.

But despite trying to drown it all out, it was everywhere I looked.

Red.

Red.

Red.

It was a world of red.

__

Fan art time! It's from a reader, and this time they made Rael into an idol! He looks so pretty! 

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reading!