Chapter 26: A Silver Secret: Silver learns his secret

The cold was so viscous it not only tried to freeze me but also my surroundings, sparing nothing. Both Lily and her brother were also affected.

"Lily! Step back!" her brother said, his body slightly frozen.

Lily hesitantly walked backward, staring at me with a face filled to the brim with concern as my skin was slowly getting covered with ice. I don't know why this happened, but I feel like something will happen if I survive this.

I tightened my jaw to endure the cold that felt as if it was trying to bite through my skin.

What's Roi trying to do? Why is he walking closer to me? Why is the ice melting around him?

"Silver, calm down. Just focus on what's in my hand."

It doesn't matter how gently you say that—how am I supposed to calm down when my body hurts so much? I'm barely even keeping myself from passing out.

"Silver, look closer at what's in my hand."

What? How will that help me? What even... is that... blue swirling... orb?

Confusion clouded my thoughts. How could this possibly help? But then my eyes locked onto the swirling blue orb, and something shifted. My body... it felt heavier. A wave of exhaustion crashed over me. My eyelids drooped, my vision blurred...

Lily... why are you... running towards... me?

My vision darkened, my body giving in to the cold. The last thing I felt was warmth—Lily's arms catching me before I hit the ground.

***

(Lily's POV)

I barely caught him in time. Silver collapsed into my arms, his body limp yet strangely cold—not like ice, but something colder.

This would be my second time carrying him like a princess.

I wonder what happened to him. Is this also all because of the magion overload? Maybe I should ask Brother.

"Third Brother, do you think that this could be caused by magion overload... Third Brother?"

"Y-Yes... what did you say?"

What? What's wrong with Brother? Why was he so intensely staring at Silvey?

"Are you okay?"

I asked him, tilting my head. This was my first time seeing him take interest in something other than his magic.

He quickly turned his head toward a window in the palace. "Lily, go place Silver in the palace. I have a guest."

"Shouldn't I take him to the Royal Physician?"

"No... Alfred will know more about what happened to him. Just wait until he arrives," he said.

I nodded my head and went straight to my brother Alfred's room, which was at the very top of the palace. It only took me a few minutes to arrive there. When I opened the door, my second brother was already sitting on a chair waiting, as if he knew we would come.

"Brother, how did you know we were coming?"

"There's no time to explain. Place Silver on the bed."

I gently placed Silvey on the bed and took a step back as my brother inspected his body.

He sent a small amount of his magion into Silvey's body. Not even a second later, Silvey quickly lunged forward, awakening from his sleep. All confused and jumpy.

***

(Silver's POV)

What happened? The last thing I remember is that I felt really tired for some reason.

Wait! The ice, my body...

I looked at my arms and hands. There was no sign of ice anywhere on them.

Then was that just a dream? No, it can't have been... I vividly remember the pain.

More importantly, where am I? And why are Lily and her sister also here?

This extravagant room and this huge bed I'm on can only mean that this is inside the palace.

But why haven't they said a word yet? They're just staring at me.

"Ummm... what happened..."

Before I could finish speaking, Lily's sister cut me off.

"Silver, before you continue speaking, drink this."

She handed me a bottle containing a bright red liquid.

I took the bottle and first looked at it with curiosity. It had beautiful carvings and golden patterns all around it. It could fit into my whole hand.

I opened the lid, and a metallic yet sweet aroma filled my nose. For some reason, I was very attracted to this smell.

I lifted it over my mouth and started to take a sip before I immediately spat it out.

What did I just almost drink? It was blood, definitely without a doubt. Why would they give me blood?

I wiped my mouth. "Why are you giving me blood?" I asked.

Why aren't they answering...?

"Hey..."

"Lily, could you please leave the room?" her sister asked with a serious tone.

Lily didn't even argue. She just left without saying a word, closing the door behind her.

Her sister glanced toward the door and back at me. "Silver, you're a Fallen."

"Hahahaha... Is that a joke to cheer me up? How could I be a Fallen when I didn't even drink enough blood to become one?"

I don't know what she was trying to do, but there's no way I'm falling for such an obvious lie.

"First, tell me how the blood you drank smelled," she asked with a serious expression, staring directly into my eyes.

What? Why do I need to answer such a ridiculous question?

"It smelled metallic and sweet."

As soon as I gave this answer, her eyes widened—only for a split second—before her expression returned to normal.

"Silver, the only smell I get when smelling blood is a metallic smell. Blood only smells sweet for a Fallen."

No, that can't be. This is a joke. No—maybe this is a dream. There's no way I'm a Fallen. It doesn't make sense

My hands clenched into fists. My breath came out uneven, my chest tightening. "What are you trying to do?" My voice shook "First, you give me blood, and now you say I'm a Fallen? Is this some kind of twisted joke?"

Smack

I held my cheek. What? Did she just hit me?

"Calm down, Silver, and finish listening," she calmly said, not even acknowledging that she had just slapped me.

But thanks to that slap, I could think straight again.

"Silver, you are a hybrid—between a Fallen and a normal Vampire."

That can't be possible, why would any sane Vampire have a child with a Fallen.

"What!?"

I can't believe what I just heard. A hybrid? Me? Is that also the reason why my body kept undergoing such strange changes? But how...? My mother... was she a Fallen...? Or maybe...

Now that I think about it, it all makes sense. When Emily and I made the blood pact, I enjoyed drinking her blood—although I denied it and thought it was just my natural Vampire instincts.

My mind became flooded with thoughts, like an ocean raging during a storm.

Lily's sister snapped her fingers to get my attention. "Silver, I know you're confused and overwhelmed right now, but there's a bigger problem."

"You're technically a criminal now," she said calmly.

"What? I didn't even commit a crime! Is it because I'm a Fallen?" I asked, my voice unsteady.

"Yes. That is the law—that every Fallen, hybrid or not, must be imprisoned."

"So... you're just going to lock me up... again?" I curled my fists.

She gently shook her head. "No. There is an option you can take, but you need to make a decision that will heavily influence your future."

"I don't care, as long as I don't get locked up for having done nothing."

I started to feel hopeful, as if all the cards were in my favor. But I couldn't have been more wrong. This would be the biggest and most unexpected choice I would have to make—one that would influence both my future and those around me.