Chapter 51 Everything that comes Around in Circle

Rein’s chair scraped against the floor as he half-rose from his seat, his face pale.

“No—wait. If what you’re saying is true, then… then Aura—She’s alive? That’s what you’re telling me? But you said—You said yourself you saw the last Demon Lord kill her. You stood in front of me and swore that was what happened! Don’t—don’t start twisting it now. This isn’t funny, Liora. You don’t get to joke about something like that. Not her.”

"It's the truth, Rein."

He dragged a hand across his face.

“If the Demon Lord is Aura—if she’s really alive—then what the hell is going on?! No. No, this doesn’t make sense. It can’t be true. Maybe—maybe your mind’s still scrambled from that Tier Six spell. You bled yourself dry out there, Liora. You’re not thinking straight. You can’t be. Because if what you’re telling me is true… then everything I’ve been fighting for… everything I’ve believed in… is a lie.”

“Rein… the Demon Lord is Aura. The girl who stood at your side. The girl you trusted. She didn’t die that day. She defeated Demon lord, the hero before her, Vex Rion. But after Arthur's assassins failed to kill her, she became the enemy your grandfather needed to be gone. He expected them both dead and take over the demon plains, enslaving the rest of the people who mutated, to mine him magi stone ore.”

Rein’s face twisted, but she pressed on, merciless.

“You think Arthur was kind? He was kind to you because you’re different. Because you were born shining with blessings that others would kill for. Even the king himself admitted it — that in all his three centuries of rule, he had never seen a child born so perfect, so favored by gods. You were his miracle, Rein. His chosen heir. His legacy.

To you, he was a grandfather. To everyone else? He is a tyrant. He discards those who displease him like trash. He executes nobles who fail him. He banishes the poor to the Demon Plains to rot, to mutate, until they’re no longer even considered human. That’s the man who raised you.”

His hands dug into the table, wood splintering under his grip.

“Lies… It’s all lies. It has to be. My grandfather is a good man.”

“Rein… Arthur is evil. Do you remember the marriage he pushed on us? Remember when you looked at me and said I was a beautiful woman?”

Her fingers trembled as she reached for her glasses. Slowly, carefully, she slid them off. For a moment her face glitched, the illusion faltering like static across water. Then, illusion broke.

Her true face stared back at him.

Scars. Cruel lines carved across her skin, running like a map of suffering down both sides of her face. They cut deepest over her eyes — eyes that were no longer bright, but gray and dull, glassy in their blindness.

“This… is your grandfather’s doing. He scarred me. He made me like this.”

Rein’s lips parted, but no sound came out. He slumped back into his chair, eyes wide, staring at her like he was seeing her for the first time. 

“What… How… why… why would he—?”

Liora’s lips trembled, but she forced the words out.

“I told you once, Rein, that I know what it feels like to be forced into a marriage you don’t want…"

Rein said nothing. He just stared, pale, still reeling from the sight of her scars.

“The truth is… I wasn’t always of this kingdom. I was born a princess. Not here — another kingdom, a small one. The kind bigger nations fight over like scraps. My father was the king. Desperate. Paranoid. Clutching at anything to keep our land alive.”

Her voice cracked, but she pressed on.

“Back then, I was promising. A child of talent, clever with books, with magic… but when I turned seventeen, he saw what others had started whispering about me. My eyes… emerald, ocean blue. My smile. My mana. They said I resembled Arthur’s first queen. Aura. He thought… if Arthur saw me, he would see his wife again.”

Rein’s heart skipped a beat at that name.

“My father thought it was a blessing. A way out. He offered me to Arthur as a gift. A new wife, to forge an alliance. If Arthur accepted, my father’s kingdom would live. If not… well, at least he tried. And I… I agreed. Not for him. Not even for my father. For my people. If one girl’s life could save a kingdom, it was a price I was willing to pay.”

Her hands clenched until her nails dug into her palms.

“The day came. I walked into his throne room. I stood in front of him. And the moment he looked at me, I saw it — disgust. His eyes burned with rage. He called my father a traitor. He spat on the resemblance. Said this was mockery of his wife’s memory. An insult.”

Her breath grew shallow.

“My father tried to explain. Tried to say it was a resemblance meant as respect, not insult. But Arthur was angry. He rose from that throne, stepped down to me, and lifted his hand. I thought… I thought it would be a slap. A humiliation, nothing more. So, I braced myself. I accepted it. But then I felt it — the magic. Enough to destroy half a castle. I panicked. I cast three shields at once, desperate. But it wasn’t enough. His swipe broke through them like glass. The explosion tore the throne room apart. Stone, fire, screams. And my face…”

“My face— beautiful as it was... gone.” She touched the scars, her fingers tracing over them.

 “My eyes. Gone. Even the best healing magic couldn’t mend it. These eyes… he burned them blind. And he still wasn’t finished. He lied to the people of his kingdom. He called my father a traitor. Said the explosion was an assassination attempt. He branded our whole bloodline as conspirators. His knights marched on my kingdom that night. They burned it all. My people. My home. My family. Razed to ash."

Her hands shook now, trembling with remembered fire and screams.

“So, when I tell you Arthur is evil, Rein… understand me. I don’t mean it in metaphor. I have lived it. I carry it on my skin.”

Rein sat frozen, hands gripping his knees. His throat worked, but no words came.

“This—” He swallowed, trying again, louder, harsher. 

“This makes no sense, Liora. Why are you telling me this now? Why wait until now to spit all this at me?”

 He stared at her ruined eyes, at the scars etched deep into her skin — and still, still he shook his head.

“My grandfather—Arthur—he’s… he’s not like that. He’s not! He raised me. He was there before I could even walk. He taught me to stand proud. He—he laughed with me, pampered me, treated me like I was the whole damn world! He’s never—he’s never hurt me. Never raised a hand against me. So how can you—how can you expect me to just—”

He dragged a hand through his hair, pulling at it, eyes wild.

“If what you’re saying is true… then you—” his finger shot out at her, “You’re as much to blame as him! You admitted it! Then this war, all this blood—it’s on you too!"

His voice broke again, fury and fear mixing into one.

“Proof. I need proof, Liora! Don’t sit there and spin me tales like some cursed bard. Show me! Prove it! Because if I believe you without it, then everything I’ve ever known, everything I’ve ever fought for—my whole damn life—it all crumbles. Do you understand that?! ...So, give me something. Anything! Just—don’t expect me to throw away my grandfather on your words alone. But first, Liora, I want to know, what the hell happened?! Why are you telling me all these things now?!”

Liora set a few crystals down on the table. Her voice was low, heavy with grief.

“Rein, Commander Kael… is dead. Remember the expedition Arthur sent him on? It was no mission. It was an ambush. Monsters tore them apart, the very same creatures that attacked you and Mira. But those beasts weren’t acting on instinct. They were ordered. By Arthur.”

Liora took a deep breath and continued, “Kael was my love. Yes… I loved him. Not many knew, but whispers travel—and they reached Arthur’s ears. And Arthur… he couldn’t have it. He gave me to you, Rein. To him, Kael was only an obstacle. And like every obstacle in his path, he made sure it disappeared. I believe he ordered Mira’s death, too. That attack you survived—it wasn’t chance.”