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“Shed your mask lest your body be hung, fiend.” Her voice boomed and echoed throughout the halls of the Zofian Castle. “If you refuse to comply in the next minute, your pitiful life will meet its end.” A crimson light emitted from her eyes as well as an unrecognizable aura. The former human who owned the cursed body was gone.
Conrad laid down his arms, though he refused to remove his mask. He knew Celica was inside that demonic incarnation somewhere. Giving up was the last thing for him to do — he had to save his beloved sister, no matter the cost. Confidence was good for the heart, right? Better than a blade impaled through the heart.
“Hmph, very well.” Celica raised her sword. “Your time is… Gah!” A sudden sharp pain struck her head. “C-Conrad…! Help me!” she called out, scared.
The knight rushed toward his sister. Not the very best idea, as she raised her weapon and struck. “A-Anthiese!” Blood oozed from his fresh wound, and soon he began to hack some up. “Anthiese… w-why?” he groaned out in pain as his eyes shut tight underneath the mask he donned.
“Fool, how could a knight of your caliber fall for such a trick? Are you really that desperate to save this ‘Anthiese’ of yours?” She drew her blade from his chest. “She’s dead. Just like you.”
He lifelessly fell to his knees, then face-first onto the floor.
A satisfying sigh escaped Celica’s lips. Her bloodstained blade was sheathed, never to be used again against the Zofian knight. To make sure he had truly fallen, she forced a kick upon his body. His mask was sent flying on impact.
“Good. Very good,” she uttered to herself, “Lord Duma… Have I earned your love? …Yes, I feel it, no doubt. Your power… It has blessed me.”
The cold air gave her goosebumps. She gazed around. Her eyes fixated on one object.
Conrad’s mask.
She said nothing. Her eyes spoke for her.
There was a firm lump in her throat, one that she found difficult to swallow. Her eyes brimmed with tears. “Conrad…? You… No. I don’t know you,” she spat, “you’re nothing to me. I have no family, no friends, nothing… I only need Lord Duma.” Despite her words, the tears wouldn’t cease. “You’re nothing to me, knight. Do you hear me? Do you hear the… the lies… that I spout… Conrad…?!”
. . .
“Anthiese.”
Celica screamed out.
“Anthiese, please!”
She let out a long wheeze.
“Sister! Please, wake up!”
Celica’s eyelids opened. Her cheeks were damp, and her vision went blurry. Once her sight cleared up, she quickly noticed the young man at her bed.
“Are you alright, Anthiese?”
Celica nodded her head. Hastily, she wrapped her arms around her elder brother. “Conrad, I’m so sorry… I didn’t mean to kill you…” She coughed and stammered over her words. “You must hate me, Conrad. I wasn’t thinking straight and you died… by my blade… Pierced in the chest… Forgive me for the sin I had committed!” She paused. “No, I am not worthy of your kindness…”
“Anthiese, you must calm yourself! I’m still alive, you see?” Conrad replied, trying his best to reassure the princess. Usually, it had been Celica removing the doubts from Conrad when they were younger. He struggled to put her mind at rest, or so he believed.
Conrad took a deep breath. “It is I, your brother, in the flesh.” He reached for her cheeks and lifted her face. “Do you not see me, standing before you?”
There was a moment of silence before the prince spoke again. “I love you, Anthiese. You must’ve done it for a reason in that dream of yours.” For a good cause, he wished deeply — and he subconsciously crossed his index and middle fingers behind his back.
Celica chewed her bottom lip. “I was Duma’s servant, though I killed you… out of my own sheer will. I wanted you out of my way… You were destined to find me—Anthiese—hidden within the possessed shell that had bound me.”
Conrad gritted his teeth. “Duma… took my sister from me? I let that happen?” He clenched his fist before realizing how foolish it was to curse himself for something that never occurred. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, Anthiese. If it ever comes to that, in the real world… I’ll look for you. I’ll find you, for sure, and release you from the ties that bind you to Duma. I promise that.”
The Zofian princess smiled. “Thank you, Conrad. I love you, brother. I’ll do my best to fight.” She chuckled, prolonging their tight embrace.