On the 10th day of the month, less than three months before the Emperor of Verticulas' natal day and less than two weeks before the completion of the new barrier seal, it was a supermoon night for Irelina. It was also a supermoon for Dianthus, allowing her to discreetly open the cryptic portal and use the dark magic incantation of dilitírio thanátou of phosporos against Irelina.
She changed her clothes and put on her nude, laced nightdress while Ella arranged her bed. As everyone prepared to rest, Zeddrick scribbled his late-night signatures on several reports and petition letters. Dianthus was standing in the dim center of an enigma sigil symbol. She pricked her left pointer finger and pinched it. Three droplets of blood stained the emblem on the floor. It evaporated into a red mist as her diabolic eyes widened and her smile grew wicked. She began the incantation of dilitírio thanátou of phosporos.
A vine-like red mist emerged from the sigil and pointed at her like waiting for a command. With the portentous incantation sound, she commanded to kill Irelina Mercius. The red mist vine slowly crawled out of the cryptic portal, passing outside the emperor’s palace without being noticed by the guards strolling the premises.
Ella was combing Irelina’s hair as she smiled.
“Your hair is smooth as ever, Lady Irelina. Do you plan on cutting it?”
“I like it that way. I will keep it longer like Mother.” She smiled and added, “Tomorrow, the regent will visit to talk about the emperor’s natal day,”
“Then I will prepare some refreshments.” Ella smiled and added, “By the way, are you going to the emperor’s party? I heard it would be lavish and full of well-known aristocrats and music.”
“I’m not sure. I don’t think my presence is needed there. And you know, the false rumors about me having a ruined face have already spread outside the palace. I don’t even know what I look like. I don’t want the emperor’s special day to become a laughingstock because of me.”
“My lady, please don’t say that. To me, you’re the purest and most beautiful of them all.”
“I am fine, Ella. Besides, I’m glad that you’re with me.”
Ella smiled and remembered something. “Right! I just realized that the emperor’s natal day is also your coming of age.”
Ella put the hairbrush on the table. Irelina felt a sudden emptiness in her heart. Lena was right—she was turning 18 on the same day as the emperor’s birthday. But what is there to celebrate when mother and father are no longer here? And, so, I will not look forward to it.
The red mist vine entered underneath the door of her room and crawled through her leg without her noticing it. It went inside her nostrils without feeling irritated.
“Ella, it’s getting late. You’d better go to sleep. I will see you tomorrow.”
“Yes, my lady. Good night.”
She stood from her chair. The first three steps, she stopped. And when Lena was about to leave the room, she felt an eerie throbbing in her heart. Then, she felt the dripping blood out of her nose. She trembled out of shock. She wiped her nose and saw the blood on her fingers. Her stomach began to twinge, and she tried to relieve the pain.
“Ella—” She called. Ella turned sideways, holding the doorknob.
“Yes, Lady Irelina?” She wondered as Irelina stood still, holding her stomach.
“Call…call for…help— '' she coughed a profuse amount of blood and collapsed.
“Lady Irelina!” In her fear, Ella ran towards her.
“Stop! Don’t come any closer.” Ella was scared. “Just—just go and ask for help. Now—” Irelina groaned and coughed blood again.
“Yes!”
Ella hastily ran out of the room. She began shouting for help in tears. Irelina crawled back and tried to get up using the left leg of the table. The moment she balanced herself on the table, her siren eyes glowed. Behind her black veil, she locked eyes with the supermoon. A vision appeared of Dianthus's creepy smile, looking at her from a dark place surrounded by the red mist. Then Dianthus walked away and disappeared from the mysterious spiral portal.
When Irelina’s arms started to turn plum, she felt a stabbing sensation in her heart. She fell sideways on the marble floor and curled up, gripping her nightdress. She was severely in pain. She felt like her bones were randomly being shattered. With cold sweats and shivering, only her belligerence to the excruciating pain kept her conscious while waiting for help to arrive.
“Die, Irelina. Die!” Dianthus laughed as she stepped out of the portal. She felt so refreshed after committing such a crime.
The door banged and opened. Ella, Regent Robina with her servant, and three palace guards were shocked to see Irelina on the floor, covered in her blood, as she kept twisting and twitching to reduce the pain.
“Irelina!” The regent exclaimed.
“Lady Irelina!” Ella cried.
“What are you staring at? Go to the Emperor's Palace and ask for the Palace Doctor. Hurry!” The regent commanded.
One of the guards used his transport spell to reach the Emperor's Palace while the other two stood watch outside. But Irelina’s resistance to the pain was about to aggravate.
“I can’t take it any longer…” she said weakly.
For they were unable to see what was happening behind the black veil. Her siren-golden eyes slowly began to turn red. The red vines collided in her golden sapphire pupils. She waited in vain, trying to stop an ordeal that she didn’t know was happening inside her body.
The Palace Doctor, Medicius Aurelius, arrived sweating and carrying his leather medical bag. He was surprised to see her lying on the floor, barely breathing and almost bathed in her blood. He hastily came closer to her aid, but as he was about to touch her, Irelina’s left hand reflexed and unconsciously smacked his left hand. He retreated backward.
She was unconsciously and steadily in a lazy heel-sitting position with blood dripping from her lateral mouth. Medicius kneeled closer to her. And because he had peculiar eyes, he could briefly see her face behind the black veil.
His eyes widened to see such an innocent and pure face despite the trauma she was in now. He could not see her eyes because her eyelids were gazing down. But, at that moment, he was in awe by her countenance to the unbearable pain.
“I’m Medicius Aurelius, the palace doctor. I know you are in severe pain, so please let me help you.”
With her distorted voice, she gasped for breath to neutralize the pain and the blood that overflowed from her throat. She mumbled while she was dazed on the marble floor.
“I’m—sor-ry. Please—please call Ella.”
“Ella,” he called out while the regent was restlessly in the background.
“Yes?” Ella wiped her tears away.
“Could you please help me put her to bed? We might lose her if we don’t hurry.”
“Yes!” Ella hastily went beside her and helped her get up.
Irelina coughed blood again. She was about to faint. Ella laid her gently on the bed, and Medicius was about to reach for her veil.
“No! Don’t touch it!” Ella warned.
Medicius was surprised, but instead, he opened the medical bag and put out all his healing potions and syringes. He also gave instructions to the regent’s servant.
“We’re losing her! Please get me a bowl of warm water.”
“Ah—yes!” The servant complied and hastily ran out of the room.
“What is happening to her?! She was fine earlier,” Regent Robina’s tone was worried.
He checked her pulse. “She has been poisoned.”
“What? Who on earth did this to her?”
Regent Robina called out to the guards, “You! Make sure no one comes into this palace until I say so. And no word shall come out from this room. Do you understand?!”
“Yes, Your Highness.” The guards said.
Dianthus “Dianne” Aechmā, 20 years old, daughter of Doris Aechmā, Empire of the West with healing powers, and who discreetly practices dark magic. Who could have thought that such sophisticated beauty turned out to be wicked and greedy for power and love?
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