>>Amber

How do I get out of this?

This is clearly a scheme but I doubt someone else hurt Illaris. What the hell happened to her? How can she just fall into a coma out of nowhere?

"Your Majesty!" Serena stepped forward, "There is no way Saint Amber would do something like that! You can't trust the words of a mere maid over a Saint's!"

"A mere maid? She's my personal maid and I can vouch for her." Ophelia said, "Besides, this is a serious offense of harming another saint. The person who saw it all has to be taken seriously."

"Your Highness," Ahin left his position and walked over to the middle," I agree with Lady Serena,' He Kneeled down on one knee, putting his opposite hand on the ground in the form of a fist as he talked, "Saint Amber would never harm anyone!" I sensed the worry in his voice, "I know her personally, she's not like that!"

The King's gaze on Ahin got intense

>>King Matthias

Isn't that the Knight Hael told me to get rid of?

And he knows the Saint personally?

Amusing

So that's why the Tower Master wanted him away.

I looked back at the Saint. And no matter how many times I see her face, it gives me the chill because she's the exact copy of Corvina Cory.

I asked someone to do an investigation on her and no one knows where Amber came from. Two years ago she came out of nowhere and settled amongst the common people.

Right after the Cory Manor incident.

I have every reason to believe she is Corvina Cory, except that Corvina never had much mana. Hael must have used the same technique to give her Holy power that the temple did with Illaris, not that I have proof of that since there is no Holy artifact that has gone missing like it did when the temple made their saint.

Did this person really awaken as a Saint?

No, I doubt it.

And where did the mana come from? A person is born with it. It can't be given. Yet she has a lot of mana

That is the sole thing that I can't decipher. And that alone makes me doubt things.

But a mere lookalike?

"Were you there to witness what happened between the saints?" I asked the knight. Then I looked at the Duke's daughter, "Did you see what happened there?"

>>Amber

"I," Serena could lie about it, say that she was there with me but the chances of her getting caught are high, "No, Your Highness," It's better to tell the truth, "But I still believe in Saint Amber."

"Your Majesty," Ahin can't lie. He will be caught straight away since he lives in the Barracks with other guards and we went back with another guard who got off duty when we came back, "Please, I implore you to think about it. The Lady is a Saint, Saints are chosen by God. And God wouldn't choose someone who hurts other people. I'm sure there is some sort of mistake here."

"Saints are still human. And humans are all vile beings." Ophelia said, "Every person should be held accountable for their actions!" She turned to look at her father, "Right, Daddy?"

The king looked at her, then back at me, "Harming a Saint is a serious crime." He said, "Just because people think you didn't do it, doesn't mean anything. Just because you know someone isn't like that, doesn't mean anything. What matters is proof."

I know Serena and Ahin can't do anything here.

"Yes, I know, but I didn't do it." I answered him.

"But you have no proof to back up your claim." The King sighed, "If you can't defend yourself, you will be punished for the crime."

I closed my eyes for a moment. What am I supposed to do here? Even if I say that the maid is lying, Ophelia already said she vouches for her, and as an adored princess, her words carry volume. If I had one person who could do the same for me. Just one person who was there and claimed I had nothing to do with it, I'd be able to get out.

The situation is at every odd for me.

The only person who could have proved helpful here would be, "Hael" I whispered his name desperately. Oh God! I don't think anyone can help me but him! It's so selfish of me to think this when I've been trying to push him away all this time, "Hael," I wonder how'd he react to this whole thing when he comes back?

Will he be disappointed? He left and I got in trouble...

Something felt hot

I frowned.

There was searing pain below my nape which made me twitch.

"Saint Amber," Lyal said, "Do you have any proof of your innocence?"

I looked at him as sweat formed on my neck, the pain increasing in the lower part of my neck, making me panic.

What is happening?

"Saint Amber?" The Prince asked again, "Why did you harm Saint Illaris?"

"I didn't," I replied as my frown deepened.

"Your proof?" Ophelia said, "Oh! Right, you don't have any!"

A sudden gust of wind swept through the throneroom, rustling the tapestries. The air crackled with energy that everyone noticed.

!!?

Light flickered behind me and I turned around to see what was happening. On the floor, between me and Serena something tried to form but it looked as if it was failing. It looked like a magic circle, but I could be wrong since it didn't take its full form. It kept trying but kept fading away.

My skin felt like it was burning, the mana inside of me was getting sucked.

My heart began to pound because I had no clue what was happening and it hurt.

The Guards moved towards the royals to guard them. Ahin, Serena and I remained in our places when a blinding white light burst into existence in the center of the room.

Everyone gasped, shielding their eyes from the intense brilliance. I heard a thud then, as if something, or someone had fallen to the ground.

?!?!

It was strange, but as soon as I heard that the pain stopped.

??? It was confusing

"On Guard!" The Knight Captain shouted to his knights

When the light finally subsided, I blinked, trying to make sense of the scene before me. The hall was filled with whispers as we all tried to get our vision back to normal and then see what had happened.

I blinked as my eyes made out a man there on the floor.

Hmm?

Blood along with his insides were scattered around and the moment I saw that my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. Gasps filled the throne room as slowly every realized we had a dead man on the floor, who seemed to have been brutally murdered.

Though my eyes went wide when I realized something else.

There, lying on the polished marble floor, was no stranger.

"OH GOD!!" I ran to him, "Hael!" My heart skipped a beat as I took in his appearance—he was bleeding profusely, his clothing soaked with blood. His eyes were half-closed, his face contorted in pain.

"Hael!" I screamed, rushing forward, I dropped to my knees beside him, my hands shaking as I tried to assess the extent of his injuries. "Hael, Oh My God!!"

The courtroom fell silent, all eyes now fixed on the horrific sight.

"Hael?"

"The Magic Master?"

"What happened to him?"

'Is that really him?"

"Hael?" The King stood up from his throne, "That's Hael!?" He looked disturbed but I had no time to pay attention to anyone else, "No way..." His expressions fell.

I put my finger under his nose. From anyone else's perspective it might look like a stupid move because the body is so badly battered, the person should be dead.

But I still did it and checked.

Oh! Thank God!!

Hael's breath was shallow, but he was still alive. I placed my hand on his arm, or where his arm should have been, I could feel the warmth of his blood seeping through my fingers, the stream of blood coming out of where his limb should be.

My heart almost stopped at the realization that he didn't have an arm.

My breath hitched as I looked down at him again and saw that his organs were spilling out, his gut had been gashed through.

"Oh! My God!" Ophelia screamed and tried to come over but the guards didn't let her, "Let me go!!" She screamed but Lyal pulled her back.

"Don't move," Lyal scolded his sister

Tears blurred my vision as I began to panic. My hand was painted red and then both began to tremble.

"H-hael," I couldn't process what had happened. He appeared out of nowhere, looking like a brutally tortured corpse. I clutched his hand, feeling the coldness seep into my skin.

His body was cold

I heard someone puke in the crowd. People kept whispering but no one moved.

"S-stay with me," I gulped as I brought my trembling hands down, "Please," I begged as my emotions got so overwhelmed, I had no idea how to deal with them. There was so much blood, it stained my dress as I sat next to his head.

I desperately tried to channel my healing magic, my hands glowing with a faint, flickering light. But it wasn't enough—Hael's wounds were too severe, his life slipping away with each passing second.

SHIT!!! I couldn't get the power out.

Terror gripped me. The courtroom around me blurred into an indistinct haze, the faces of the onlookers fading into the background. My mind raced, it was fueled so much I couldn't think at all.

I was beyond terrified. I didn't want to lose Hael. Just the thought of it was agonizing me.

"L-let me try again," I tried to channel my power again, but right then I saw Hael's eyes move. The rest of his body was immobile but his pupils moved.

His gaze met mine and I froze for a moment.

That was when I noticed the blood on his head, streaming down from the side along with the red stains that came out of his mouth, falling down his chin.

My breath hitched again. How did he manage to stay alive?

As if mocking my words and trying to prove them wrong I saw him close his eyes, as if he was done here.

The last bit of life he had left his body.