I felt a warm embrace. It was so gentle and cozy that my body, which was stiff with tension, gradually became relaxed, bringing a feeling of liberation from all the harshness and desolation of the world.
I wish I could stay in these arms forever.
- Darling.
A gentle voice rang in my ears. The hand caressed my cheek affectionately. A soft humming melody echoed. A very old lullaby, I once heard it somewhere.
I don't know why my tears keep flowing. In my heart, I felt both nervousness and excitement. But immediately, my heart hurt like it was on fire. That's because someone is looking at me with tears in their eyes.
- Mom.
The word burst out of my mouth. At that moment, I suddenly realized. Ah, this is a dream. I'm looking at someone's dream through
Wisdom Eye Thien Ly
.
Because I've never called Annalise that word. Annalise never gave me permission to use that form of address.
I always wondered, but never dared to say it.
Once, when I was a child, I saw other children calling me that way, so I accidentally called them too. But Annalize looked so stern that I was scared and could only nod.
Even though I'm a bit sensitive and irritable, I clearly love Annalise. It's just that the person I love seems to be difficult to understand and tough, so it was very difficult for me, as a child, to approach her.
Whenever she gets especially sharp, I try to be careful not to provoke her. I always tactfully defuse the situation so as not to offend her. And I…… always try to make Annalize happy. I thought that she, who had spent most of her life in pain and sadness, needed my help.
Sometimes I think it's about money. It's difficult for an unmarried woman to raise a child like me. So, I voluntarily went to the street to sell flowers and bring money back to her.
At that time, Annalize had an indescribable expression. I still can't forget that face. The face looks like it's both smiling and grimacing.
Why is Annalise looking at me with that expression?
— My dear child.
Once again, I felt a hand touch my forehead. At that moment, a hot emotion rose, as if tears were about to flow. My body moved involuntarily.
— Mom, are you hurt?
— No, not at all, child.
The woman in front of me shook her head and caressed my cheek. Just that simple action made hot wetness flow in my dry chest.
I reached out and took her hand. Something warm flowed through the hand.
— Lucia.
The gap is getting bigger and bigger. I feel like the world I know is being distorted. Somehow I don't want to see this anymore.
That moment, that warm smile coincided with a person's face.
And I opened my eyes. I realized this was a dream a long time ago so I wasn't surprised.
It's just that the face of the person I last saw was so warm. So peaceful. So full of passionate love…….
I unconsciously silently shed tears. With an empty feeling, I clutched the bed sheet tightly. Maybe because I realized the feeling of loss that I had not known for a long time. I quickly blinked, wiped away the remaining tears from the corners of my eyes and calmed down.
"Lace?"
Cesar was lying next to me, head up. Realizing I was crying, he quickly sat up.
“Is something wrong?”
“……It's Countess Elvira.”
His eyes were asking me. I suddenly jumped up and cried, surely Cesar was also startled.
“No, no. It's nothing……”
But the loneliness is still overwhelming and unbearable. So I hugged him. Cesar also hugged me tightly.
That's right, now I also have someone to share this same warmth with. How comforting that truth is…….
The sadness and resentment just now seem to disappear. I whimpered for a moment in Cesar's arms, then calmed down, humming the lullaby I'd heard in my dream.
Cesar quietly listened to that song, patting my back.
“Cesar, Countess Elvira has a child……”
She is the mother of a child. An extremely devoted mother. A person who loves his child very much…….
“Child?”
“Yes, I saw it in my dream.”
The child's name is Lucia. Richard said that work
Wisdom Eye
show me something unintended surely because it is something important.
“Could that child be a clue?”
I still don't know. But I feel it will be an extremely important link.
“Whatever Ren does, everything will be fine.”
At that time, he buried his head in my back and said. Hot breath touched my back, making my neck warm.
“Thank you……”
We hugged each other like that for a long time, spending the long night.
I heard that Lucia has a high fever. Countess Elvira received that news from her close servant, hurriedly returned to her room in Thanh Kim Thach Palace and found her daughter's room.
This is a temporary residence provided by the Queen, and Elvira sometimes stays here during her time at the Royal Palace.
But that's just a name. More precisely, it was the place where her daughter, Lucia, was kept. There was a time when the Queen accepted to be Lucia's godmother, but now, Lucia is officially a dead child.
Even her husband thought the child was dead. The fact that Lucia is still alive here and acting as a hostage is a secret that only the Queen, Elvira and a few close people know.
The lady hurriedly walked towards the bed where her daughter was lying.
“Lucia, how are you feeling, dear.”
"Mom?"
The girl with the pale face raised her head. A six year old child. An innocent child still only knows how to remember his mother's breath. But fate followed in a cruel way.
The child, Lucia, lived up to her name (
Lucia
ie
light
), has a characteristic. The light that she possesses is the Divine Power.
Even before the child was born, the Queen recognized Lucia's strength. Perhaps Countess Elvira relied on the Queen's power from that time.
At first, she seduced her with sweet words. That you will be the child's godmother, so become her subordinate maid.
As an insignificant low-ranking maid at the time, she could not refuse the new Queen Cornelia's offer, and to this day, she still regrets that decision.
But how dare she go against the Queen's will. In the end, she gave birth under the Queen's protection.
Divine Power is a type of power similar to magic but with different properties.
That is the power recognized by the Holy See. Magical power with anti-magic properties is often called Divine Power, and in particular, this Divine Power exerts its power in the fight against Demons.
The fact that humanity was able to defeat the Demons was thanks to this Divine Power, and thanks to that, the prestige of the Holy See increased greatly after the war against the Demons, greatly influencing the Empire.
After that, the Holy See gathered people with such Divine Power to train priests, and those with even stronger Divine Power were invited into the temple and worshiped as Saints.
And Lucia. That child was born with a huge Divine Power. The tragedy is that Countess Elvira is behind Queen Cornelia.
There are many ways to enhance Black Magic, and one of the effective ways is the pain of others.
And especially, if it causes pain to people with strong Divine Power, the effect will be doubled, so Cornelia cannot ignore this.
“I'm sorry, honey.”
Countess Elvira lived with her daughter's pain in her heart. She could not forget the plight of the child who had never escaped this cramped cellar since birth and growing up. That was always a piece of glass cutting into her heart. It would be better if it stabbed her and she would be satisfied. But reality is cruel to mother and child.
They did not have enough strength to escape the Queen's hands, so Elvira tried her best not to sacrifice her daughter in those arms.
And so she volunteered to become the Queen's hunting dog. She became the most loyal servant, doing whatever the Queen told her to do. No matter what dirty job it is. Regardless of whether that action gets her hands dirty or not.
Otherwise, the Queen will torture her child. Therefore, she can do anything to protect her daughter.
“Mom, this part of you hurts, doesn't it?”
The girl held out her tiny hand.
“No, no!”
Before she could stop it, the girl stroked her grandmother's back, and immediately, Divine Power flowed from her fingertips. The pain from the whip gradually lessened. But she knew that equal pain had been transmitted to the child. The reason is because of the mark engraved on her body.