Chapter 16: What you want

Michael and DB seemed to both be in thought. The claims seemed so outrageous. And yet, the sincerity in Luca's eyes made them second guess.

"What would you have us do?" Michael said at last.

"First, I need to speak with the Prince. Ramelle and Rotan are already in talks. He's the only one who can slow them down."

"So you need us to arrange a meeting?"

"Exactly. I can't go into the palace right now."

"It shouldn't be that hard to arrange," Michael said, scratching his head.

"The other thing might be a bit more difficult," Lucia sighed. "I need to find out more about the door. Is there anyone who would know more about it?"

"No one has killed more monsters than the Sword Saint. It's possible he knows the origin of the monsters," DB speculated. "I can talk to him."

"What makes you think he'll tell you even if he does know? " Michael began. "If what Luca's saying is true, then Empire has gone to great lengths to hide everything about the door."

"My father knew the Sword Saint a long time ago," DB confessed.

"What? Why have you never said anything before now?" Michael exclaimed.

"The truth is I wanted to keep it a secret. I didn't want to rely on my father's name."

"Who is your father?"

"He was a member of the Golden March."

"The famous order of knights?"

"Yeah. But that was a long time ago. He never talks about it. I don't even know if he and the Sword Saint are on good terms, but I can try."

"Okay, that's settled then." Michael nodded.

"In the meantime, I'll try to find out what I can about the demon door," Lucia added.

The three parted soon after and set off on their respective task. The next day, Lucia followed a lead to an old bookstore. Her inquiries about legends of the Empire paid off. She found a sequestered bookstore with books on the topic. She purchased a few old tomes and made her way back into hiding.

On the other side of town, DB went to see the Sword Saint. Valentus was lecturing a group in the training field when DB found him. He turned sternly to DB with an eyebrow raised.

"What is it?" Valentus growled.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Sir." DB fumbled. "I needed to talk to you..."

"Speak up, boy!" The Sword Saint snapped. DB flinched.

"It's about the door."

"What are you talking about?"

"The demon door," DB repeated. The Sword Saint's eyes narrowed. His aura made the air tremble. He stepped toward DB.

"Who told you about that?" The Sword Saint asked growing serious. "Your little Ramelle friend?"

DB remained rigidly in place.

"I need to know more about the door. Have you ever come across it before?" DB asked meekly.

"I don't care about whatever you heard. Information on that door is on a need-to-know basis. And you, boy, don't need to know," Valentus snarled. However, DB didn't back down, he continued to address the Sword Saint.

"My father told me you fought together. He said that you faced an unspeakable evil. Was he talking about the door?"

"Your father?"

"General Brown. He was a member of the Golden March."

"Brown...He was just a boy back then." Valentus' eyes began to glaze over. "And you're his son?"

DB nodded.

"What happened to him after he left the Capital?" Valentus asked.

"He never fully recovered from his injuries. But that never stopped him. He was headstrong. Always on the go, up until he passed," DB smiled sadly.

"Sounds like him," Valentus replied in a subdued voice. He set his eyes on DB. "I owe your father a debt that I can't repay. If his son asks me, I can't refuse. But I need to know what you're going to do with the information."

"I believe it will help the Empire," DB stated firmly.

"Fine." Valentus relented. "Your father and I once met with another Demon Door."

"What happened? I thought all the doors were sealed."

"It's not that they're sealed indefinitely. Every century or so, a wizard has to strengthen the seal. For the last few centuries, we've never had any trouble. That's how the Empire managed to keep a wrap on it. They let it fade into legend so people would be less likely to interfere. Only the royal family knew the true nature of the doors." Valentus recalled.

"Anyway, somehow some demons managed to slip through last time. You see, the seal weakens over time. Usually, only a monster might escape and we could deal with it. However, a demon is a different thing altogether. What's worse, among them was a powerful Demon lord."

"I thought demons were just superstition?"

"No, they're very real. It tore through the Golden March. It was impervious to regular magic. Only holy-level magic had any effect. It took everything I had to even wound the thing."

"And the door?"

"We managed to seal it just in time. We took heavy damage on all sides. The Golden march was disbanded. I left the Empire. And as for him..." Valentus lapped into thought.

"You see, back then, mages had a lot more sway in the Empire. There was a powerful wizard who helped us seal the door. After everything happened, he became ...well, he changed. He closed down the mage's school and disappeared. They say he went mad," Valentus concluded.

"Do you think that wizard is still alive?" DB asked.

"If he is, I haven't heard from him,"

"What was his name?"

"He was called the Cirillian wizard. All I know is he was from some island off the continent. He may have gone back there."

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Lucia had spent the day reading through the old books without finding anything useful. She was relieved when Michael sent word. The Prince had agreed to meet. Lucia still didn't know what she would say to him. She didn't know how much he knew. Either way, she needed his help.

The following day, they arranged to meet at the statue of Lome.

Lucia arrived at the site. A hooded figure stood alone by the fountain. As she approached, her heart began to pound.

"Your Majesty?" Lucia called out. Keitel turned slowly towards Lucia. His strong azure eyes gazed down at her.

"I don't have long," Keitel began. "When you didn't reply to my letters I was worried."

"I didn't receive them," Lucia explained. No doubt they went to the inn where she used to stay but she couldn't tell him that.

"I wrote to tell you I was going to Ramelle," Keitel said. "I wanted to see you." He added with a hint of emotion sneaking into his voice.

"I..."Lucia hesitated.

"I can tell you now," Keitel added abruptly. "I know I was the one that walked away before, but I thought about it since then." Keitel caressed Lucia's hand.

"I know there are barriers. Even, I didn't know if I could go ahead with this. We're both men and there's a difference in status between us. But we won't know unless we try! Besides, one day, I'll be Emperor and no one will be able to say anything about it."

Lucia's eyes widened. Everything she had thought to say went out of her mind. All she could think of was the warmth of his hands, his smell, and the sincerity in his eyes. She breathed shallowly.

"But.. but we can't...the marriage" Lucia stuttered. Keitel winced.

"You've heard about that?" He remarked soberly. "It won't mean anything. It's just a political marriage."

"Wait, no you don't understand."

"I don't have a choice in the matter, Luca. The Emperor will never accept this. I have to go through with the marriage. It doesn't have to change anything between us"

Lucia shook her head. She tried to get the words to come out.

"The reason I wanted to meet with you today is to tell you, you can't go through with the marriage."

Keitel dropped Lucia's hands. His eyes twitched.

"What are you saying? It's a done deal, Luca. Forget about that. Are you hearing what I'm saying to you? I am asking you to stay by myself. Is that what you want or not?"

Lucia paused. She never thought she would hear those words. She wanted so badly to tell him everything but what good would it do now? Duke Morton's words rung in her ears. Ultimately, she knew the answer but she wanted desperately to give another. She choked back the lump in her throat.

"No," She answered in a low voice. A look of confusion and disappointment fell over Keitel's face.

"I see." He said flatly. "I'm sorry. I thought... it doesn't matter." His eyes dropped and he seemed to become unbalanced. Lucia stepped in towards him. He instinctively pulled away from her. Before she could say a word, a cold gaze came over Keitel's eyes.

"It's fine," He followed, taking another step back.

"You don't understand!" Lucia shook her head desperately. "Just let me explain!"

"I said, It's fine. I don't need to hear your explanation, Luca." Keitel said raising a hand. He turned on his heels swiftly.

"Wait!" Lucia called after him. He didn't stop. Keitel disappeared onto a busy street, out of view.

Lucia collapsed her face into her palms and let out a muffled scream.