The air in the study was stale, smelling heavily of ink and unburnt candle tallow. Sunlight fought its way through the heavy velvet drapes, casting thin, pathetic rays of light across the floorboards. But the light offered no warmth. In the center of the gloom sat Karas.
He was a shell of the man he used to be. His broad shoulders, usually squared and commanding, were now hunched and in agony. His hands-hands that had once moved with such steady confidence-shook violently as they gripped the edges of an ancient, leather-bound text. For days, he had been obsessively scanning these pages, He was searching for any mention of the Underworld, any ancient ritual, any forbidden spell, or any deal that would allow a mortal to cross the boundary. He would sell his soul to get him back. He was at the precipice of absolute insanity, and it was written painfully across every sharp line of his face.
A soft knock sounded at the door, but Karas didn't even blink. He didn't have the energy to spare.
Riosuka opened the door. She stood in the doorway for a long moment, taking in the state of the room. Her heart cracked in her chest.
"I know it's hard for you, Karas," Riosuka began, her voice a fragile whisper in the quiet room. She took a tentative step forward. "It's hard for all of us. Riru hasn't touched her meals... you too have refused to leave your study. You can't keep living like this."
Karas didn't look up from the page. His voice was a flat, dead monotone. "I'm fine. Don't worry."
"No!" Riosuka's voice suddenly cut through the air, loud and desperate. Tears began to spill over her lashes, tracing wet paths down her cheeks. "You are not fine! Ever since he left, you've become a shell of the man you used to be."
Karas remained completely silent. The only sound in the room was the heavy pull of his breath and the ticking of a clock that felt like a countdown to his own destruction.
"You'll have to let him go," Riosuka pleaded, wiping her eyes with a shaking hand, trying to be strong. "Karas, please. You have to accept it."
"No!" Karas suddenly roared.
The sound was a raw burst of pure, agonizing grief that seemed to shake the very foundations of the room. He slammed the ancient book shut, the sound echoing like a gunshot. He finally looked up at his mother, the dark circles under his eyes looked smoky.
"I will bring him back!" he yelled violently. "I can't give up on him, Who knows what he's going through right now? Has he eaten? What about the poison? How can I just give up on him?!"
The fight drained out of him as quickly as it had come. The rage collapsed inward, leaving nothing but hollow, aching despair. Karas broke down. The proud scholar fell to his knees, burying his face in his hands as heavy osobs tore from his throat.
Riosuka rushed forward, falling to her knees beside him and pulling his shaking body against hers. She wept with him, her own tears soaking into his hair. "Karas, I know how hard it must be for you," she choked out. "But this is what Zaliyah wanted."
"That's a lie," Karas stammered, his voice choked with bitter tears. He clutched desperately at Riosuka's skirts, pulling himself closer. "All lies... Zaliyah would never leave me. Mmm-mom... please. He promised he would never leave me. I was just angry, Mom! I didn't mean it!"
He cried bitterly, falling completely at Riosuka's feet, his forehead pressing against the floorboards. The guilt was eating him alive.
Riosuka rubbed his back with a trembling hand, trying desperately to console him. "I know, my boy. I know you didn't mean those words. Even Zaliyah knows you didn't mean it."
"Then why did he leave?!" Karas wailed, his voice a high filled with the sound of pure agony. He lifted his head, looking up at his mother with eyes that were red and swollen. "Mom, why did he leave? I wasn't angry at him... I just went out to look for the old man. I went out to look for solutions."
Riosuka wiped her own tears, desperately trying to find the strength to be strong for her son. She had never seen Karas so utterly vulnerable, so completely destroyed.
"Mom, I've never asked you for anything," Karas pleaded, his hands tightening painfully on Riosuka's legs, anchoring himself to her as if he might otherwise float away into the dark. He knelt there, looking up at her with tear-stained eyes. "M-mmom-mom, please give me Zaliyah. Mom, I want Zaliyah. Mom, how do I live without Zaliyah?"
His tears dropped heavily onto Riosuka's feet.
Riosuka cried silently, watching the agonizing display. She didn't have the words. She couldn't stop his pain. She couldn't give him the one thing he wanted, and it hurt her more than any weapon ever could to see her boy in so much raw agony.
"Mom, please, I want Zaliyah... I want him to come back," Karas whispered, his energy entirely spent, leaning his heavy head against Riosuka's legs as his shoulders continued to shake.
Thousands of miles away, beyond the mortal world, a mirror image of that same crushing grief was playing out in silence.
In the Underworld, Zaliyah lay in a massive, cold bed carved from dark stone. The chamber was grand, draped in heavy silks of deep crimson and gold, but it felt like a gilded cage. He had stayed in bed the entire day, the weight of his decision pressing down on his chest like a solid rock.
He had abandoned his human family. He had left to protect them, knowing his presence would only bring the wrath of the court down upon their heads. But the nobility of the sacrifice didn't stop the bleeding of his heart.
He wept silently in the dim light of the room. He had left without saying goodbye to Karas. He physically ached for the familiar sensation of those strong arms wrapped possessively around his waist. He closed his eyes and tried to conjure the smell of sandalwood that always clouded around Karas, or the warm smile that had always greeted him after a long day.
But worst of all was the iron-clad belief that gripped Zaliyah's mind: Karas hated him. He had left on such terrible terms, and now Zaliyah was trapped here, drowning in the bitter irony that while he was falling apart for Karas, he believed Karas had finally washed his hands of him.
From the dark corner of the room, two figures watched him silently.
Iruna and Harun stood side by side. Iruna's face was tight with sorrow, . She desperately wanted to step forward and help him, but she didn't know how to mend a shattered soul.
"Brother, I have never seen a soul so heavy," Iruna whispered, her voice barely audible. "He is physically here, but his spirit is still standing in the human sun."
Harun nodded solemnly, his eyes fixed on Zaliyah's shaking shoulders. "The Underworld is cold, Runa. It takes time for the living to realize the sun doesn't shine here. We can only guard his body; his heart is beyond our reach."
As night began to settle over the Underworld, a soft chime announced the arrival of the palace staff.
A group of low-ranking maids walked in, their heads bowed low in submissive deference. They carried heavy silver trays loaded with steaming dishes, setting them onto a small table near the bed. The rich, savory aroma of seasoned meat and fresh broth quickly filled the room, cutting through the stagnant chill.
Zaliyah didn't even turn his head. He stared blankly at the wall. "Take it away," his voice hollow and flat. "I'm not eating demon food"
The lead maid hesitated, her hands twisting nervously in her apron. "Forgive me, Your Highness," she spoke softly, her eyes glued to the floor. "But we are under strict orders from the Queen. You must eat."
The mention of the Queen acted like a spark to dry kindling. Days of swallowed grief, agonizing isolation, and sheer helplessness suddenly surged to the surface. Zaliyah sat up abruptly, his white hair fanning out around him like a shroud.
"I said," Zaliyah began, his voice was dangerously loud, "take it out!"
"Please, Your Highness," the maid pestered, taking a step closer out of sheer fear of her Queen's wrath. "If we return the trays untouched, the Queen will have our-"
Zaliyah didn't mean to do it. The wave of emotion was simply too great, and his raw, untamed power reacted to his distress. A brilliant, sudden pulse of energy exploded from his body.
CRASH!
The heavy silver tray flew backward in the air, slamming violently against the stone wall. Porcelain shattered, and food splattered across the floor.
The maids stood completely frozen, their eyes wide with absolute terror. Zaliyah himself stared at the mess, his chest heaving, stunned by his own sudden outburst.
"Leave. Now," Harun commanded. He didn't need to say it twice; the maids scrambled for the exit and bolted out of the room.
The heavy doors clicked shut, leaving the chamber in a tense, ringing silence.
Iruna was the first to move. She didn't look at the broken plates. Instead, she rushed to Zaliyah's bedside, sliding onto the bed to sit close to him. She reached out and gently gripped his shaking hands between her own, squeezing them reassuringly.
"Your highness... are you okay?" Iruna asked, her eyes filled with genuine concern.
Zaliyah pulled his hands back slowly, wrapping his arms around his knees. He reverted right back to his empty, indifferent defense mechanism. "I'm fine."
"It wasn't 'demon food your highness" Harun spoke up quietly from where he stood near the wall.
Zaliyah blinked, pulling his gaze away from the floor. "Huh?"
"The dishes were human meals," Iruna intercepted, looking at him earnestly. "His Majesty specifically instructed the kitchens that you are only to be served human food."
Zaliyah's brow furrowed in genuine confusion. He felt a strange, uncomfortable squeeze in his chest. "What would Malachi know about human meals?"
Harun cleared his throat, a faint, knowing look passing through his eyes. "His Majesty has... peculiar interests."
"Like roaming around in the human realm," Iruna added with a shrug.
Zaliyah stared at his hands. "Yes... how could I forget." The realization that Malachi had actually paid enough attention to notice what he ate-and went out of his way to command the kitchens for him-felt like a direct assault on the walls Zaliyah was trying to build up.
"I fear for Your Highness's health if you continue starving yourself," Iruna said softly, bringing him back to reality.
Zaliyah managed a faint, tired smile and patted the top of Iruna's head. "I'm fine, don't worry about me." He paused, his gaze hardening as a specific name from his memories floated to the surface. "But tell me... who is Ailla?"
The change in the room was instantaneous. The air seemed to drop several degrees, and the twins' faces were instantly filled with absolute, pure hostility.
"So she is the reason why I am poisoned?" Zaliyah asked, reading the answering rage in their eyes.
The twins nodded solemnly. Seeing that Zaliyah was finally ready to understand the court he was trapped in, they sat down and began to unravel the complex, dangerous web surrounding the woman.
Because the Queen had practically raised the twins, they had never known an easy childhood in the palace. They had survived by watching everything, learning where the knives were kept in the dark. They knew every bit of backstory.
"Ailla is not some ordinary, dumb lover girl, your highness," Harun began, his voice deadly serious. "She hails from a powerful family of incredibly wealthy and well-respected warlocks, her brother is the commander of the northwest territory. Her obsession with Malachi is like a raging fire that will burn anything in her path."
"When the kings mother, the late empress killed herself," Iruna continued, "the king was left with nothing. It was Ailla's family who took him in. They fed his ambition. They backed him and supported him with their wealth and power in his quest for the throne. She believes she owns a claim to his crown and his soul, she views you as a parasite in her palace."
Zaliyah listened in silence, processing the heavy information. This wasn't just a jealous girl; this was a political titan with deep roots in Malachi's past.
"Do you want to confront her, your highness?" Iruna asked, leaning in. "We can arrange a meeting in the gardens, or find a way to corner her."
Zaliyah let out a soft, humorless laugh. He leaned back against the headboard.
"I have no intention of wasting my energy on a nobody," Zaliyah said, his voice filled with pure, dismissive confidence. "If she wants a war with me, she can come find me herself. Until then, she is just background noise."
The twins stared at him, absolutely mesmerized by the royal authority radiating from him. He wasn't cowering. He was claiming his space.
Sensing the shift, Harun and Iruna stood up and stepped back from the bed. Synchronized, they dropped to one knee on the cold stone floor, bowing their heads deeply.
"We did not have an easy childhood in this palace, your highness" Harun spoke, "We know how to survive the snakes."
"Let the Warlocks have the King," Iruna added, looking up at Zaliyah with absolute devotion shining in her eyes. "Our loyalty belongs strictly to you, your highness, your shadow is our command."