[The Imperial Palace — Later — Princess Seraphina’s Private Garden]
The private garden of the Crown Princess remained untouched by the troubles of the world; snow rested upon distant rooftops. Yet within the garden...spring bloomed.
Golden flowers swayed gently beneath enchanted lanterns. White blossoms climbed marble pillars. The air carried the fragrance of jasmine and moon lilies, and beneath a silk pavilion...two old friends sat across from one another.
A maid quietly poured fresh tea, then disappeared, leaving them alone. For a while...only the sound of birds filled the silence.
Then Seraphina lifted her cup. "I heard Lady Aerlia wishes to leave the Empire."
Levin glanced toward her, his fingers wrapped around the warm porcelain; a small smile appeared as he took a sip.
"It isn’t exactly that. She simply wishes to travel." His gaze drifted toward the flowers. "Honestly...I think it is better than locking herself away inside a manor and letting old wounds consume her."
Seraphina nodded slowly, then lowered her gaze. "I apologize for bringing up your sister."
Levin shook his head immediately. "There is nothing to apologize for, Princess."
The silence softened, comfortable and familiar. Then suddenly Seraphina leaned forward; the seriousness vanished from her face.
"When am I becoming an aunt?"
Levin nearly choked on his tea; the princess immediately laughed. "There it is."
"What?"
"That expression."
Levin sighed. "You are far too excited."
She leaned back proudly. "I am investing emotional energy into those children."
Levin laughed despite himself. Seraphina rested her chin upon her hand; her eyes sparkled with curiosity. "Though I confess...I keep wondering. When they hatch...will they emerge as humans? Or serpents?"
The question hung between them; for the first time, Levin found himself genuinely speechless. He blinked, then blinked again.
Finally, "I...I have absolutely no idea."
The answer made Seraphina laugh. Levin stared into his tea, his expression becoming distant and thoughtful.
"In Zahryssar...they call them Golden Blood. Yet no one truly knows what Golden Blood children resemble." His gaze drifted toward the flowers. "Will they hatch as serpents? As humans? Or perhaps...something entirely different."
The garden fell quiet. Seraphina lowered her voice. "I once read an old legend from an ancient book."
Levin looked up; the princess smiled. "They claimed the greatest blessing a serpent could receive was ascension."
"Ascension?"
She nodded. "The transformation into a dragon."
Levin raised an eyebrow. Seraphina leaned forward dramatically. "What if your children hatch as dragons?"
Silence.
Then, Levin stared at her. Seraphina stared back, neither moved; finally, he smiled.
"Your Highness."
"What?"
"You have been reading too many old scrolls."
She smiled, yet the thought lingered. Because deep inside...Levin remembered something, a dream. The dream he had seen after delivering the eggs.
His smile slowly faded; the memory remained vivid...too vivid. The children from that dream...they had not looked entirely human, nor entirely serpent. Something about them had been different, strange, ancient, and powerful.
The memory sent an uncomfortable chill down his spine. ’Will they look the same when they hatch?’
The thought lingered, refusing to leave. Eventually Seraphina broke the silence. "We shall simply wait. I am eager to discover what the offspring of a Prime Alpha and a human actually look like."
Levin smiled. "Unfortunately, so am I."
The mystery was driving half the continent insane; he set his cup down. "Enough discussing my life; now answer my question."
Seraphina immediately looked away, as she knew what question was coming. "How exactly are you receiving information from Zahryssar so quickly?"
The princess nearly paused, only for a moment, then she lifted her cup. "I have my methods."
Levin stared in silence; the princess looked away first, and that alone gave him the answer. A faint understanding appeared in his eyes.
"Lord Sharukh."
Seraphina almost coughed on her tea. Levin’s expression didn’t change, which somehow made it worse. The Princess immediately looked elsewhere.
Levin simply nodded. "I see."
That was all: no teasing, no smug grin, and no prolonged jokes...just a conclusion. Unfortunately for Seraphina...that was somehow more embarrassing.
After several moments she sighed. "...Please keep it private."
Levin nodded. "I was never interested in other people’s courtship."
The princess visibly relaxed, then Levin added calmly, "As long as it does not interfere with the empire."
The princess stared, then sighed. "There he is."
"What?"
"The reason everyone finds you difficult."
Levin raised an eyebrow. "I fail to see the issue."
"You know..." Levin glanced at her as Seraphina continued. "I always wondered how I would move on from you."
Levin glanced at her, the garden suddenly felt much quieter, and Seraphina laughed softly; it was a bittersweet laugh.
"It was awful, no...horrific. Every minute felt unbearable. I cried enough tears to create an entire ocean; it seems excessive, but at the time it felt true."
The princess looked toward the sky. "I buried myself in work, books, politics, military reports, anything...at first it changed nothing, but then...the day I returned your ring."
Levin became still. Seraphina smiled. "The moment I gave it back...something finally ended, and for the first time...I allowed another person into my heart."
Levin already knew who she meant; the blush that followed confirmed it. "As soon as I ascend the throne...I intend to marry him."
Levin’s smile became warm. "You have carried that burden long enough. If you have found someone worth trusting, then keep him."
Then Levin ruined the emotional atmosphere entirely. "But become queen first; a throne must be secured before a marriage. Which requires His Majesty to relinquish the throne."
"Yes."
"And yet he refuses."
"Yes."
"So when exactly is the coronation happening?"
"I wish I knew." Seraphina’s expression darkened; something troubling lingered there. "Father has always followed Duke Aren’s counsel but recently...he has begun meeting different nobles."
The statement carried weight.
"And?" The answer came quietly. "He hesitates more; he trusts fewer people, and he questions everything."
Levin slowly nodded. "I suspected as much."
Seraphina lowered her voice. "And I believe I know why."
The tension returned; the flowers swayed gently around them, yet suddenly the garden felt far less peaceful. "Because Malik Zeramet no longer sits upon the throne of Zahryssar."
Levin leaned back. Seraphina continued. "The shift in Zahryssar changed the balance of power across the entire continent. The human kingdoms. The clans, the merchant alliances, and the lesser species. Everyone who once aligned themselves with Malik Zeramet has become uncertain."
Her fingers tightened around the cup.
"Fear creates strange decisions, and now Father fears surrendering power."
Silence settled between them, heavy, political, and dangerous. Then Levin finally spoke. "There is only one solution."
Seraphina already knew the answer. "Slyvarakh."
Levin nodded. "We end him."
The name alone seemed to darken the atmosphere. Seraphina lowered her gaze.
"Sharukh’s reports are becoming worse; entire districts are disappearing. Villages. Families, serpents vanish overnight." Her voice dropped further. "Zahryssar is burning."
Levin glanced at her calmly. "Slyvarakh is not merely killing people anymore. He is killing faith in the Empire itself."
Silence settled.
"Once people stop believing the throne can protect them..." His eyes hardened. "...the Empire has already begun to die."
Seraphina asked. "So, how do we stop him?"
The question lingered; neither had an answer. Finally, Levin exhaled slowly. "I do not know. Malik Zeramet cannot move until the children hatch."
His gaze drifted toward the distant horizon.
"Which means until then...the responsibility falls to me."
The garden became silent and is now perhaps the only obstacle standing between a continent and disaster. Levin’s eyes narrowed.
"There is only one person who may know the answer. High Mage Arkhazunn."
Seraphina nodded immediately. "He must have discovered something; he would not travel this far otherwise by taking such a strong risk of using a portal between two empires."
The princess glanced toward the garden entrance, then lowered her voice. "I dismissed every attendant, every knight, and every servant; no one is allowed near this section of the palace."
Levin’s eyes sharpened; the wind suddenly grew colder. "Good."
A long silence followed, and both stared toward the garden entrance, waiting and watching as the flowers swayed gently, yet neither of them spoke because somewhere beyond the palace walls...beyond the Empire...beyond the mountains and deserts...a war was already moving toward them.
And both knew that when Arkhazunn arrived...whatever he revealed would decide the fate of the continent.
***
[Later — Princess Seraphina’s Private Garden]
Then a faint ripple appeared in the air. Levin’s eyes immediately sharpened. Seraphina straightened slightly, and the space beneath the pavilion distorted. The flowers nearest it bent unnaturally and then—
CRRRRACKKKK...
A silver tear opened through reality itself, a portal. As ancient runes rotated around its edges, power surged. The wind exploded through the garden. Several flower petals scattered into the sky.
Then two figures emerged; the first wore dark robes embroidered with golden runes with an exhausted expression.
High Mage Arkhazunn.
The second stepped through immediately after him, with armor, a sword, and a steady posture.
Captain Varesh.
The portal closed behind them instantly, and silence followed; then both men immediately lowered themselves, one fist against their chest, heads lowered respectfully.
"My Malika," Arkhazunn’s voice echoed softly.
Varesh lowered his head as well. "We greet the Malika of Zahryssar."
Levin remained seated, calm and composed. The air around him shifted subtly, not because of power but because of authority.
The authority of a ruler, the authority of the Malika.
"Rise."
Immediately both obeyed. Arkhazunn finally lifted his head. For a moment...the High Mage simply stared because Levin looked healthy and alive. Far healthier than when he had disappeared, relief flickered through Arkhazunn’s eyes.
Then vanished, replaced by urgency because there was no time...not anymore. Levin immediately noticed it, his gaze narrowed.
"Something happened." It wasn’t a question.
Arkhazunn nodded. "Yes."
The atmosphere changed instantly. Everything became irrelevant. Levin rose from his seat, blue eyes locking onto Arkhazunn, direct and unwavering, and then he asked the question everyone was waiting for.
"Did you truly find a way to end Slyvarakh?"
Silence.
The wind stopped; even Seraphina found herself holding her breath. Then Arkhazunn nodded once firmly.
"Yes, Malika."
The answer struck like thunder. Levin’s eyes sharpened immediately. Seraphina’s fingers tightened around her cup; even Varesh lowered his gaze because none of them celebrated.
Not yet, because Arkhazunn wasn’t smiling, not even slightly. Instead...his expression became grim...far too grim.
"But..." The single word darkened the atmosphere.
Levin noticed immediately. "Speak."
Arkhazunn inhaled slowly, as though preparing himself and as though preparing to deliver a sentence.
Then finally—
"The method puts you in danger."
Silence.
The garden became deathly quiet, the flowers swayed gently, and the sky remained blue. Yet suddenly everything felt heavier, much heavier.
Then Seraphina stepped forward. "What kind of danger?"
Arkhazunn looked toward her, then toward Levin, then quietly said, "The kind where there is no guarantee you return."
Silence...absolute silence.
Varesh lowered his head, and the princess froze...even the wind seemed to disappear, but Levin remained calm, only accepting because he had already prepared himself long ago.
Then the Malika spoke, his voice steady, firm, and certain. "I am prepared."
Arkhazunn clenched his fists.
Levin continued. "I have watched my empire burn. The clans are disappearing, the bloodlines are dying, and the serpents are losing faith."
Every word carried weight, and every word carried responsibility. Then his gaze locked onto Arkhazunn directly.
"As Malika...I do not have the luxury of choosing safety."
The garden froze. Even Seraphina felt chills because in that moment...Levin wasn’t speaking as a husband, nor as a father, nor as a son...he was speaking as a ruler and a ruler prepared to sacrifice himself if necessary.
Then Levin stepped closer. "Tell me, how do we kill him?"
The flowers continued swaying, the tension became unbearable, and Arkhazunn finally realized...the answer he carried might save Zahryssar or destroy the very person trying to save it.