Azphira Tales

[Black] "Are you afraid?" He asked her, whose shoulders trembled faintly. [Liene] "..." She found herself unable to answer, neither yes nor no. [Black] "Just endure it for a moment." And then, his lips touche her. Liene instantly gasped, choking back a breath. The contact of his unseen lips against the nape of her neck felt indescribably unfamiliar. Perhaps it was because the nape of her neck had never been touched—not even brushed—by anyone's lips before.

She waited in tense silence for his next words. [Black] "I cannot understand if the Princess is being overly clever, or simply ridiculously naive." [Liene] "...Neither sounds like a compliment." [Black] "Are you acting this way because you know I am unable to refuse your requests, as if I'm ensnared by some spell?" [Liene] "Is that... true?" [Black] "You know what happened today." [Liene] "..." She knew perfectly well. She knew what he had done for her. She also knew that tho

For a moment, her mind faltered, but thankfully, her hands moved instinctively. Quickly snatching the nearby towel, she veiled her naked body and stammered. [Liene] "Wh-what are you... doing..." Unlike her hands, her mouth couldn't articulate the words properly. [Liene] "Why, why did you... I bolted the latch..." Only then did Black tear his gaze away and speak slowly. [Black] "....I thought so." [Liene] "..." [Black] "I wondered why the door wouldn't open

Her voice was strained and high with panic. [Liene] "What?! That's not what I meant at all!" [Black] "Then what did you mean?" [Liene] "..." But she couldn't answer; her lips felt stiff, sealed tight. They both were fundamentally different. She had tried her utmost to prevent the rupture of Nauk, but in his eyes, her actions likely appeared as a series of poor lies thrown out only to protect her former lover. [Black] "As I said, I no longer trust you." Strangely, those words

[Black] "Look out!" He shoved her away. Thanks to his swift action, Liene narrowly scrambled back as the heavy, thundering cargo crashed into him. [Liene] "Lord Tiwakan!" She shrieked. The street instantly erupted into chaos. Thick dust billowed up, and the wooden barrels rolled loudly. Everyone screamed and scattered, desperate to avoid the barrels that felt like they could shatter bones if they hit. [Liene] "Lord Tiwakan... Ugh!" Amidst the commotion

Chapter 29 Klima, the Servant (2) [Tiwakan] "The Princess left the castle, My Lord." [Black] "What?" [Fermos] "Where to?" Black and Fermos simultaneously looked up, startled. Both men were utterly swamped with work. The tasks demanding completion were countless. The most urgent was determining the royal treasury's income structure and debt scale; reviewing ten years of records was proving unnecessarily complicated. Layered atop that were the temple staircase construction, t

[Klima] "I... had no choice." A muted voice scraped out from beneath the leather-shod foot. Since adolescence, since the day he dedicated a life that should have been extinguished to the Kleinfelter family, he had served as the executioner for every foul deed Lyndon commanded. He had also murdered the previous Cardinal. Everyone believed the former Cardinal had simply slipped on the stairs and snapped his neck. This time, Lyndon had wanted the same kind

DING, DONG! The twelve chimes announcing the funeral's died out. Yet, the ceremony showed no signs of beginning. [Liene] "Does this make any sense?" The Cardinal meant to preside over the ceremony had vanished without a trace. The attending priests merely stated they knew nothing of His Eminence's whereabouts. [Liene] "Who was the last person to see His Eminence Milode?" Tired of waiting, Liene stepped forward and confronted the priests and deacons who had traveled

Laffit stared at his uncle with a look of displeasure. [Laffit] “Since… Since when did our family become like this?” Lyndon clicked his tongue at his nephew, who had a bewildered and stunned look on his face. [Lyndon] “Have you really been that naive all this time?” [Laffit] “Even without doing something like that, Kleinfelter will still be the most powerful family in Nauk.” [Lyndon] “It's because we do things like this that you can live comfortably, so you should be thankful

[Liene] “What?” He wants me to postpone the wedding? Does he know what he's saying? How does he think I'll be able to postpone it? [Cardinal] “The wedding is not permitted until the Princess of Nauk is free from her sins. If you ignore God’s will, there is no doubt a great tragedy will occur.” [Liene] “Do you know what you're asking of me?” Liene clenched her hands and restrained herself. Her action didn’t escape the Cardinal’s notice, but he still pressed on. [Cardinal] “G

Fortunately, there was still water in the bathroom. Liene took a soaked cloth and began to clean the wound. The candlewick was getting shorter, and the flame almost went out a few times as it flickered. However, Liene's eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness, so she could easily see objects that were close enough. [Liene] “It must hurt.” And now she could see the wound was not a minor one. The severity was difficult to notice because his hand was so large, but if she had

Of course, Mashilow denied it. There was a difference between giving veiled advice and openly discussing the atrocities of the Kleinfelter family. He was not that brazen or an impolite man. [Mashilow] "Revenge? Preposterous!" [Liene] "You say preposterous? Didn't you just speak with that intention? That Kleinfelter could commit even worse acts." [Mashilow] "I meant they would be extremely displeased." [Liene] "Merely because they are displeased, they could harm the Royal Fam

The wind blew. As he stood precariously on the windowsill, even a gust of wind felt like a terrifying threat. However, a whisper far more dangerous mingled with the wind. She was speaking. [Liene] "—Lets go somewhere else." Laffit couldn't observe what was happening inside the room. Instead, he strained his ears and listened to her voice. [Liene] "—Move to the room next door." Those were words meant for him (Laffit), not for the savage: I will risk my life to bring this

When Liene finished getting ready and stepped outside, Black was already waiting with his horse, ready to depart for the funeral. [Liene] “Ah…” Seeing him standing there, Liene froze. Perhaps because he had deliberately dressed to accompany her, Black was wearing all black. Not only him, but the Tiwakan soldiers behind him were also dressed the same. Every piece of his dark clothing seemed to explain why the rumors about him—that he had been abandoned by the God of Death a

[Black] “No.” Black’s answer was so quick that Fermos was confused for a moment. [Fermos] “Then why…?” [Black] “She is still in the Princess’s heart.” Considering everything that happened that day, that was how Black saw the situation. Even though Liene didn't summon him herself, Liene’s ex-lover still came to see her. And Liene was clearly in a panic, trying to hide the man’s presence from Black. She even went to the extraordinary lengths of trying to seduce Black just

Did he know? Was he deliberately asking despite knowing everything? Was he baiting me to confess before he opened that window? She struggled to prevent herself from turning toward the window where Laffit was likely clinging precariously to the ledge. [Liene] "Yes... That is correct." [Black] "Then all is well." The man who seemed to know everything simply uttered those words. [Liene] "..." She could not afford to feign composure. She had to move him away from the chamber as