Chapter 49 Liora’s Steps to Despair

Liora’s heels clicked against the polished marble as she followed the noise through the east hall, a stack of reports in her arms. It was supposed to be a normal day. But then, through the arched window, she caught a glimpse of movement across the courtyard below. Knights rushed back and forth in a hurry, some dragging stretchers, others barking urgent orders.

Her pulse spiked.

She didn’t think. The reports slipped from her hands, scattering across the floor as she rushed to the nearest stairwell. Her pace quickened, then broke into a run, the cold stone echoing her hurried steps.

By the time she reached the military wing, the air reeked of blood and sweat. Groans of pain mingled with shouts for healers. Armor clanged as soldiers scrambled to carry the wounded inside.

Liora seized the nearest knight as he dashed past, her fingers clamping onto the front of his chest plate with enough force it cracked. His eyes open wide in shock as she yanked him to a halt.

“What is going on?! Why was I not informed?”

“M-My Lady… it’s Commander Kael and his squad. They… they’re back, but— The injured… it’s bad. They barely—”

Liora didn’t wait for him to finish. She shoved him aside and stormed forward. When she reached the open gate of the field tent, the world stopped.

Inside, the scene was carnage. Bloodied knights sprawled on makeshift cots, healers chanting spells over bodies that barely clung to life. 

An older veteran with a scar down his cheek, bowed his head.

 “Lady Liora… I… I’m sorry.”

“Mavic, tell me where Kael… Where is Commander Kael?”

The knight’s jaw tensed. His hand lifted, almost reluctantly, and gestured toward a nearby cot. A white sheet covered the body lying there, though red stains seeped through the fabric.

“I’m sorry, Lady Liora,” he said again, voice cracking this time, “We were… ambushed. It was supposed to be a simple sweep—a scouting mission, nothing more—but the horde came out of nowhere. An ambush. Too many. We fought, gods know we fought, but… there was no way out. These monsters... they were different. Acting weird. Commander Kael… he held the line so we could fall back. If it weren’t for him, none of us would’ve made it. He… he saved us all.”

But Liora didn’t hear him anymore. His words blurred into a distant hum, drowned by the shrill white ringing in her ears. Her vision tunneled, the world dimming at the edges until all that existed, was that one bed. That one sheet.

She moved forward, each step heavier than the last, as if the stone floor itself tried to hold her back. Her fingers felt numb when they reached for the fabric. Time slowed to a crawl.

Slowly… too slowly… she peeled it back.

Kael. Her Kael. Or what remained of him. His once-proud armor was shattered, his body broken, blood soaking through what tatters of cloth clung to him. His face—or what was left of it—was pale, streaked with dirt and blood. But it was him.

Her heart fractured into pieces, each one stabbing deeper with every second she stared.

Everything went silent. No voices, no movement, no world beyond this moment. Just Kael, lifeless and cold, and the gaping void swallowing her from the inside out.

Slowly she lowered the sheet back over him. Her hands didn’t tremble. When she turned, her expression was carved from stone. The knights nearby froze under her gaze.

“Mavic.”

The scarred veteran straightened instantly.

 “Y-Yes, my lady.”

“I want a full report on my desk by the end of the day. You were Kael’s right hand. You are as strong and capable as he was. There is no one more suited to carry his mantle. Effective immediately, you are Commander of the Knights now.”

Mavic’s mouth opened but was silenced.

“I’ll handle the formal papers later. For now—see to the wounded. Regroup those who can still fight. Secure the ranks. We can’t afford weakness. Understood? Good, then proceed.” 

Without waiting for a response, Liora turned and walked out. Not a single glance back at the shrouded body. Not one word to the knight.

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Liora walked through the castle halls without a sound. Her steps were slow, her posture flawless, her face a mask carved in ice. No one dared stop her. No one spoke.

She didn’t remember how she used her teleportation magic to reach the abandoned wing of a castle long forgotten. She just needed… silence.

When the heavy door closed behind her, the mask shattered.

Her breath hitched—sharp, painful. The sound of it echoed off the stone walls. Her hands curled into fists so tight the gold rings bit deep into her skin, then burst in a spray of gold fragments that glittered like sparks before falling lifeless to the floor.

A sob tore through her throat, strangled into silence by sheer will—then fury swallowed it whole.

With a choked cry, she slammed her fist into the stone wall. The impact boomed through the crumbling castle. Her knuckles bled but she did not care. 

Again. And again. And again. Until there was nothing left of the wall.

She pressed her hand to her forehead, trembling, her breath coming in sharp, broken gasps. Images flashed in her mind—Kael’s smile, his laughter, the promises they whispered when no one was listening.

“They killed you… No… he killed you,” she thought, “He knew. He knew how much I loved you, you were my world, Kael, how I could marry his grandson while you lived. And he made sure of it. Sending you on that ‘simple’ mission—knowing you’d be overwhelmed… it was his plan all along. To keep me obedient. To clear the path for Rein, for his pure bloodline. He treated you like a tool, a distraction to be discarded.”

A fresh wave of grief sank into rage, hot and vicious.

“I will make him pay. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll tear his lies from this kingdom. I’ll burn his throne to the ground. I’ll show him what it means to lose everything.”

For a long moment, there was only the sound of her breathing and the faint creak of the walls settling around her. Then, slowly, she straightened, pulling the mask of calm back over her face like armor.

When she stepped out of the chamber, there was no trace of blood, no trace of tears. Only the cold, sharp glint of resolve in her eyes.