King Theron felt an ominous feeling grip his chest as he turned around to face the old priest sitting on the stone chair. “There is someone else who wants to summon the Devil, Your Holiness? That ‘she’ you are talking about…”

“You are late, young man. She was faster than you,” the old priest responded simply.

“Who? Who is she? Who was here before me?”

Though he was asking these questions, the young king already had an answer in his heart. He didn’t know how it could be possible, but his intuition was screaming at him. Panic engulfed his mind.

The old priest shook his head. “I know not of her identity, only that she is a lady who is ready to sacrifice herself for the one she loves.”

“Esther…she was here…”

As soon as his greatest fear was confirmed, realization hit him and he ran towards the exit.

“No, no, no, Esther… you can’t—”

King Theron almost jumped his entire way down the winding path that led to the foot of the mountain. He fell on the stairs and rolled quite a few times in the dirt, but he didn’t bother with them and simply stood up again to continue towards his horse in a hurry. He even forgot about the apprentice who was having difficulty trying to follow his speed.

The moment he reached his horse, he climbed it without second thought and had it gallop as fast as it could, his eyes and mind fixed at the destination he must reach.

‘Esther…why? You made a promise that you will return to the palace. You said you will wait for me. You broke your promise. Why didn’t you wait? I told her to trust me and wait for me…’ His eyes were red-rimmed, but not a tear was shed as cold wind seemed to cut his face in his hurry. ‘Hah…of course, she’s a stubborn woman. I…I forgot who she is…’ He laughed bitterly. ‘But you forget I am just as stubborn as you. It is my duty to save my kingdom. As the King of Megaris, as your husband, the only one who needs to sacrifice is me.

‘Please, please, let me reach there on time.’

——–

Meanwhile, at the Temple of the Divine.

The High Priest and the previous King of Megaris stepped out of the ritual chamber with ashen faces. Especially the old king, he looked miserable, as if he was ready to fall dead at any moment while he slowly made his way to the worship hall where his wife and daughter-in-law were waiting. It wasn’t that the healing spell from Esther disappeared from his body—it wasn’t related to his body at all. What was making King Esteban appear wretched was heavy guilt and shame weighing his conscience.

Seeing his pale expression, Esther could not help but tremble. Anxiety slowly enveloped her body.

A while ago, she had heard the familiar thunder, and from the windows, saw the unnatural lightning falling from the dark sky, and thus, she knew that King Esteban had managed to summon the Devil.

‘Did it not work? Was asking Father to hold the summoning all in vain? Did ‘he’ not accept it since it wasn’t Theron who called for ‘him’…?’

“What happened?” she heard Queen Theodora ask in concern as the woman approached her husband. However, King Esteban merely walked away, not even having the courage to look Esther in the eyes.

The High Priest let out a bitter laugh as he faced the young queen, answering in the old king’s stead. “Queen Esther, you are expected to receive a guest in your bedchamber at the strike of midnight.”

After that, he too could no longer bear to stay in the same place as the woman they had sacrificed and immediately excused himself with a lowered head.

Esther understood that the summoning was a success and did not hold him back.

Her mother-in-law held her hand. “Esther…”

“Rest assured, Mother. I will be fine.” She gave the old queen an assuring gaze although her heart was breaking inside. It was a complex feeling. She should be glad that she was able to save her kingdom and her husband. She should be thankful ‘he’ gave them another chance to accept ‘his’ demand. She should be—

The older lady didn’t have any words to comfort Esther.

“Mother, you and Father should return to the palace and…and when Theron returns, please—” She closed her eyes, trying to keep her resolve firm. “I believe you will take care of him.”

Queen Theodora didn’t know how they would even face their son and simply nodded to assure her.

The two women left the temple, and saw the old king standing outside in a daze. Understanding the difficulty her husband just faced, Queen Theodora merely linked their arms together and silently accompanied him back to their carriage. It didn’t matter that he was suffering from the plague anymore. Both of them knew that once…that once Esther had paid the price, the spreading sickness would be resolved.

When the three royals arrived at the temple courtyard, Sir Galien bowed to them. Everyone felt relieved that the reliable knight didn’t ask them anything, although he looked confused, seeing the gloomy expressions on their faces.

“Mother, Father, have a safe trip back to the palace,” Esther said with a forced smile. “Rest assured, Father’s health won’t deteriorate for now and the sickness in his body won’t be contagious for the next several days.”

King Esteban and Queen Theodora felt another pang of guilt. Up until the end, their daughter-in-law was showing concern for others.

“And you?” the older lady asked. “Won’t you return with us?”

“I will go to my manor at the outskirts of the capital,” Esther replied.

The old couple’s heart ached for her but they could only agree with her decision. They left together in their carriage, praying for the future that she fought so hard to protect.

Esther watched their carriage disappear from sight in silence. The passing breeze felt like icy shards were stabbing her skin, yet her expression remained impassive, like a statue.

Although her face was calm, the turmoil inside her chest was immense. She felt sick in the stomach at the thought of what’s about to happen.

‘I am sorry, Theron. In the end, I couldn’t keep my promise.’

Tears slowly rolled down from her eyes. She gently wiped them with the back of her hand, trying to keep bottling up her feelings. She needed to be strong. She was yet to even carry out the price she had to pay…yet the hot tears flowing from her face continued to betray her.

‘I am sorry…I am so sorry, my love… I trust you more than anyone in this world, and that trust told me that you will sacrifice yourself for me. But I cannot let you meet such a cruel fate. I cannot leave you to suffer for eternity.’

‘Things will never be the same between us two after this. I know you will hate me for making this decision in your stead, but I will accept that hate as long as you are safe and in front of me… I will prefer you hurting rather than losing you forever…’

‘I have brought nothing but pain in your life when all you have given me is nothing but happiness. This is the price for trying to go against my destiny. You shouldn’t have loved me…You shouldn’t have met me…’

‘I will never forgive myself for causing you pain. I will never forgive myself for hurting you once again…So please, don’t forgive me…Don’t ever forgive me for hurting you again, Theron…’

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