Reincarnated As The Villainess's Son

Chapter 312 Heart Of Yggrisial [8] [Shift]

Chapter 312  Heart Of Yggrisial [8] [Shift]

"So…" Zenith began, her sharp gaze fixed on the long-haired man trembling before her. "Dark Trinity wants to kidnap Pasithea, is that it?"

The man nodded feverishly, sweat trickling down his temple.

"And why would they do that?" she asked, her staff's gem pulsing with light closer to his face.

"I don't know!" he stammered, his voice cracking. "They never told us the reason. We just follow orders!"

"It's not hard to guess, though," Aimar muttered, stepping to her side. His eyes briefly flicked to Zenith. "Himmel did tell me about the elves' current condition."

"They want to exploit the elves?" she guessed, a frown appearing on her beautiful face.

"I believe so," Aimar replied with a curt nod of his head. "We should move."

Without warning, Zenith raised her staff, gripping it like a club.

Thwack!

The man crumpled to the ground, unconscious, blood trickling from a fresh wound on his temple.

Zenith twirled her staff in her hand, the blood staining its surface flicking onto the ground.

"Yeah, we should take Pasithea somewhere safe," she replied casually while glancing at the two bodies. "What about them?"

"Leave them here," Aimar replied, already turning on his heel. "We'll notify the guards. They can handle the cleanup."

"Hmm." Zenith nodded gently as she trailed behind him. "Let's do that."

But as she moved, Zenith waved her staff, making a rune of 'light' in the front space along with a rune of 'Barrier.'

The runes seamlessly merged, half of it encasing the unconscious man before vanishing while the rest etched itself onto her hand.

"This should do," she whispered softly, flicking the switch on her handcuff on.

"Hey, Zenith." Aimar's voice pulled her attention back to him.

"Yeah?" she asked, glancing at him curiously.

He hesitated for a while before he asked, "How strong are you?"

"Strong enough," she replied with a soft smile.

Aimar nodded, not asking anything else.

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"What happened?"

As soon as Zenith walked closer to them, Pasithea asked, her voice a little tense.

"You were right," Zenith said flatly, glancing at Siersha. "They're after Pasithea."

Siersha nodded stiffly, though her thoughts seemed elsewhere.

"Did you learn anything else?" Elijah asked, his eyes darting between them.

"Not much," Zenith admitted, shaking her head. "Only that they're with Dark Trinity and their mission is to kidnap her."

"So what now?" Elijah asked, folding his arms. "Protect Pasithea?"

"Yes, Mr. Obvious," Zenith quipped, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "But first, we need to inform the professors about the situation."

"Yeah, that will help," Elijah said, nodding as he took out his phone. "I'll try to reach Professor Wilhelm."

"Wait," Pasithea calmly said, looking at them. "Aren't you guys overthinking this?"

"What do you mean?" Elijah asked, frowning.

Pasithea's lips curled into a soft smile. "This is my kingdom. There's one place safer than any other."

"And where is that?" Aimar asked, looking at her.

"The royal palace."

*****

"Ugh, I hate this place," I muttered under my breath as I walked through the beautiful garden of the royal palace.

The place was filled with flowers of different types that I had never seen before.

Some were rare enough to be placed in Mariam's garden back in Imladris.

'Should I join the rest of the students?'

I wondered as I walked to the corner from where I could clearly see the world tree.

Even though it was clear, Yggdrasil was still hundreds of kilometers away from here.

"Sigh…"

I sank onto a bench near a shaded rest area, leaning back as nostalgia hit me like a tidal wave.

I despised this place, and yet... there was a strange familiarity to it, as though I'd walked these paths before.

'What the fuck is Mariam hiding from me?'

Even when I asked her again, she gave me the same vague promise: "I will explain later."

Later. Always later.

Leaning on the bench, I looked up at the clear afternoon sky.

Sometimes, I couldn't help but wonder how different things might have been if the tragedy with my family hadn't happened.

Maybe I'd still be on Earth, living a quiet, happy life with my parents and Senara.

A dream life.

'Would I have met her then?'

...Delilah.

It's only been a few days since I started seeing fragments of memories from my life after prison.

Most of my time in prison was spent fighting—desperately trying not to let the pain inside me swallow me whole.

For years, I blamed myself for my parents' and Senara's deaths.

Things only began to shift when I met Delilah.

Where is she now?

'I want to see her again.'

[<You will meet her eventually.>]

'.....'

I rubbed my eyes to clear my mind, but when I opened them, I saw something absurd flying above me.

I rubbed my eyes again, but it didn't go away.

"What the fuck?"

I groaned, standing up as the creature landed gracefully in front of me.

It was massive, nearly two meters tall, its sleek body covered in long, silky black fur.

Two enormous, pitch-black wings extended elegantly from its sides.

Despite its intimidating size, the creature possessed an air of grace and beauty.

"A Pegasus?" I muttered under my breath, my brows furrowing in confusion.

The beast snorted loudly, its sharp, intelligent gaze on me.

Slowly, it began to approach. Its eyes, dark as obsidian, stared at me.

Cautiously, I extended a hand, and the creature leaned forward, pressing its head into my palm.

I hesitated, then gently ran my fingers through its silky mane.

"Whose Pegasus is this?" I murmured, glancing around. "A spirit, maybe?"

The Pegasus moved closer, rubbing its massive body against me like a cat seeking attention.

I chuckled softly, letting it nuzzle me.

[<You do know dark Pegasi avoid virgins, right?>]

'What?'

[<Yeah. They're picky. They won't let a 'pure' being ride them.>]

'Huh?'

I blinked at the creature, which seemed oddly comfortable around me.

The Pegasus snorted again, flapped its wings, and launched itself into the sky, vanishing as swiftly as it had appeared.

"Isn't it odd?"

A voice echoed from behind, making me turn.

Nymeria walked toward me with her hands clasped behind her.

"What is?" I asked, straightening up.

"A dark Pegasus being so close to you," she said, her golden, spiral-filled eyes staring into mine. "She doesn't usually approach anyone."

"Is she yours?" I asked cautiously, keeping my distance.

"How did you do that?" she asked curiously, ignoring my query. "Is that related to your race? Bloodline perhaps?"

"Why does it matter?" I replied, looking into her eyes. "Or are you jealous because you can't ride her?"

"..."

It seemed I hit a nerve as her smile died down.

But her smile slowly returned the next instant. "You lesser beings sure have sharp tongues."

"Yeah, whatever," I replied as I turned around, trying to walk away.

"For a lesser you are pleasant to look at," she said, making me halt.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, turning back.

"Don't let anything happen to your face," she replied, walking past me. "If I ever kill you, I'll make sure to keep your severed head with me."

"...."

Did this bitch just threaten me?

And what does she mean by "pleasant to look at?"

[<Didn't you say she had OCD?>]

Ahh, right.

'My face doesn't trigger her OCD?'

I thought as I glanced after her, noting how she meticulously adjusted everything in her path to be perfectly symmetrical.

What a lunatic.

"Himmel."

The familiar voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

I turned to see Elijah and Aimar approaching, the rest of the group trailing behind them.

"What's going on?" I asked, my eyes landing on Siersha.

Her crimson gaze bore into me, and I swallowed hard, quickly averting my eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Zenith's ember eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I'm the heir of the Segyal Highbloods," I replied, folding my arms. "I have responsibilities—"

"So you are passing time, got it," she cut into my words. "Anyway, we have a problem."

"I'm listening."

She glanced back at Pasithea. "Dark Trinity is trying to kidnap her."

"....."

Wait. Why does this feel so familiar?

****

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

Hayes hissed, pacing back and forth across the dimly lit room, biting at the edges of his nails.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"Calm down," Reis drawled lazily, reclining on the worn leather sofa, one arm slung over the back. "They might be hearing us."

"I've already checked everything thoroughly," Hayes snapped, his sapphire eyes turning sharply in Reis's direction. "And don't talk like we're equals."

"..."

Reis's relaxed demeanor stiffened momentarily.

His gaze flickered with irritation, but he averted his eyes, knowing better than to antagonize Hayes.

"Unless you have an actual plan, keep your mouth shut," Hayes barked, resuming his frantic pacing.

"What are you so scared of?" Reis smirked, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. "Just tell them you don't have a cure for Yggdrasil—"

"Then what!?" Hayes interrupted, glaring at him. "Lose the chance to take Aetheria from them?"

"You can't take it from them either way," Reis scoffed, leaning forward on the sofa. "I don't get why you're dancing around the elves. Why not just take it by force?"

"Are you stupid?" Hayes sneered, tapping his temple with two fingers. "Or is that horn of yours growing roots inside your brain?"

"What exactly is wrong with what I said?" Reis snapped, his irritation finally surfacing. "Solace is strong enough to crush the elves if it comes to that."

"You don't get it, do you?" Hayes spat, looking down at him with disdain.

"Solace may be powerful on Kandam, but starting a war across the continents would leave us vulnerable."

"Then send in a few high-rankers and get it over with. No armies. No wars. Problem solved," Reis scoffed.

For him, a power like the Solace kingdom was strong enough to kill elves.

"And you wonder why people call you a barbarian," Hayes said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "If we do that, then Sir Vulas, the leader of the Archons, will be at our throat."

"You're afraid of the Archons?" Reis asked, raising an eyebrow. "Aren't they just peacekeepers who meddle where they're not needed?"

"They're far more than that," Hayes replied, his tone firm.

"The Zemior race is divided into four clans, each barely tolerating the others. The Archons exist to keep that fragile balance intact. You think they'll ignore us stirring up trouble?"

"So, what's the plan now?" Reis leaned back, arms crossed.

"Let me think," Hayes muttered, running a hand through his disheveled hair.

"Things would've been so much simpler if Princess Vanya just didn't desire Yggdrasil."

"By the way..." Reis began, his voice steady. "....were you seriously considering marrying your princess to Heir Himmel?"

"...."

Hayes froze mid-step, his gaze shifting briefly toward the blue-armored figure stationed silently in the corner of the room.

Reis's eyes followed suit.

"I don't know," Hayes finally admitted, shaking his head. "I still don't understand why I was ordered to say that in the first place."

"Figured, the shift wasn't natural," Reis shrugged, looking at him. "You were adamant about marrying him to Demiurge's Princess."

"It's easier to control someone through a woman," Hayes said bluntly, sinking onto the edge of the bed. "But what does it matter now? We've already lost our advantage."

"So, what's next?" Reis pressed, leaning forward again. "Do we go back home like clowns, empty-handed?"

"No."

A commanding voice echoed within the room, but neither man flinched at its suddenness; they had been expecting it.

"Then what should we do?" Hayes asked with a tired sigh.

"If we can't have it," the voice replied smoothly, "why not steal it?"