AS KALEL closed his eyes, an important memory of the past played in his head like it was happening to him again…

"The child in the Supreme's womb is lifeless, my lord."

"I know," Kalel said. "Soleil and I just found out that the Moon Serpent doesn't have a heart. And as long as he doesn't have a heart, he will never be born alive."

He secretly met up with the Moon Priestess in the Moon God's shrine to talk about that.

They weren't talking face-to-face though. The Moon Priestess was inside the prayer room while he was outside. A thin wall separated them. Still, they could hear each other just fine.

"When Aku Moonchester killed the Moon Serpent after the war among the moons, he ripped out the Moon Serpent's heart to prevent it from being reborn," the Moon Priestess said. "He knew that the sky god would eventually find out that he lied to him. And so, to make sure that the only being capable of killing him wouldn���t be revived, he crushed its heart."

Unfortunately, they only discovered that fact after he and Soleil had conceived a lifeless child.

Our baby is nothing but a shell.

It was probably the reason why Aku Moonchester– now King Auro– allowed him to marry the Supreme Fire Mages. He knew that they wouldn't be able to conceive the Moon Serpent.

"Without the Moon Serpent, we can't kill that despicable king," the Moon Priestess said. "My lord, can you really not kill him?"

"I can," he admitted. "But if I kill Aku, Soleil will die with him."

When he and Soleil were reborn after they refused to ascend to the heavens, they weren't reincarnated at the same time.

His reincarnation was done earlier than scheduled.

Soleil was then left in the Plane– the world between the heaven and earth where souls await to be reborn. She was left there with Aku Moonchester's soul.

He didn't know how, but that was when Aku tied his soul with Soleil's.

Just like how the moon gets its light from the sun, Aku needs Soleil's soul for him to be reincarnated with the same amount of Mana that she has.

"Have you told Lady Rosenberg that her soul is tied with the king in that way?" the Moon Priestess asked.

To Soleil's followers, she would always be 'Lady Rosenberg' even though she was already married to him.

I don't mind though.

"No," he answered the Moon Priestess's question. "And I have no intention of telling her."

"But my lord–"

"Soleil will kill herself if she finds out that aside from the Moon Serpent, only her death can kill Aku," he said firmly. "But it doesn't end there. If she dies with Aku, she will never be reborn again." He clenched his fists tight. "I can't have that. I want to meet her in every lifetime that I will reborn into."

The Moon Priestess let out a frustrated sigh. "Is there a way to unbind Lady Rosenberg's soul with the king's?"

"Aku said he'd relinquish the bind if I give him Soleil's heart," he said. "According to him, he doesn't need to depend on Soleil's soul anymore because he has finally accumulated enough Mana to live on his own."

"And you believed him?"

"Of course not," he said. "I went to Asher's temple and forced him to connect me to the Sky God. According to that useless god, Soleil's heart doesn't have anything to do with the bind."

"So, the king lied to you just to force you to give him Soleil's heart?"

"Yes. But I don't know what he needs Soleil's heart for."

"How will you save Lady Rosenberg then?"

"Aku thinks I'm still under his control," he said. "I have to rip out Soleil's heart to get closer to him."

"Lord Kalel!"

"I need to get close to him to cut the thing that binds his soul to Soleil's," he said firmly. "The Sky God taught me a way to free Soleil from Aku's grasp."

"How, my lord?"

He fell silent for a few seconds before he answered. "I'll use my soul as a replacement."

The Moon Priestess gasped. "Does it mean you'll be the one to die if Aku dies?"

"I don't mind dying as long as Soleil lives," he said. "But I have to sacrifice her heart first."

"My lord, the king will surely use Lady Rosenberg's for his evil schemes."

"I know," he said. "I have a plan and I need your help for that."

"Tell me what I have to do," the Moon Priestess said eagerly. "I will do anything for the Supreme."

This was the reason why he sought the Moon Priestess. Her affinity was with the moon but she was attached to the sun instead. Perhaps, it was a testament of Soleil's charisma. People would just naturally get drawn to her.

"Once I ripped Soleil's heart out of her, I will protect it to make sure that we can return it to her," he said. "Then, steal it from me before I hand it to Aku."

"My lord, you're overestimating my ability."

"You can do it," he said confidently. "You can easily do it if you have Asher's Holy Scepter. If you have the Holy Scepter, Aku can't get the heart back from you."

"That brat won't lend us his Holy Scepter," the Moon Priestess said. "Are you telling me to steal it, my lord?"

"Yes."

Silence ensued for a few moments.

"I'll do it for Lady Rosenberg," the Moon Priestess said finally. "My lord, can't we tell the Supreme about this plan?"

"We can't," Kalel said firmly. Of course, he didn't want to lie to Soleil and keep her in the dark. But too many eyes were watching him. If he told her the truth, it would definitely reach Aku. "If I need to be an evil person in the eyes of Soleil and her clan, so be it," he said while his heart was thumping against his chest painfully. "I just want Soleil to live and be reborn again with a better life."

***

KALEL WAS in shock.

Aku and his mother hit him at his weakest point. He couldn't believe that they were able to control him again. As soon as he snapped out of it, he went to the cave that he used as his hide-out. Only people he trusted knew about that place.

"Soleil," Kalel whispered to himself while looking at his bloody hands. He remembered ripping her heart out, and his wife dying in his arms. It was a part of his plan, yes. But he failed to hide Soleil's body to return her heart to her. He didn't expect the Red Phoenix to appear and snatch his wife's body from him. "No…"

"Lord Kalel."

He turned around to see the Moon Priestess. She wore a red cloak with a hood that obscured her face. She probably did that so no one would recognize her. "How's Soleil?"

"Lady Rosenberg survived," the Moon Priestess said. "Lord Winchell gave his heart to her. Since Lord Winchell doesn't need a physical body, he'll live even without a heart."

He closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. "I wasn't able to protect Soleil's heart," he said, then he opened his eyes. "Our plan failed."

"I managed to steal Lady Rosenberg's heart, my lord."

To say that he was surprised to hear that would be an understatement. "What do you mean by that?"

"For some reason, Aku gave Soleil's heart to Lord Ripperton."

"The Blue Dragon?" he asked in surprise.

The Moon Priestess nodded. "I stole it from the Blue Dragon using the Holy Scepter. Right now, the heart and the Holy Scepter are in the shrine. But we need to find a better place to hide them, my lord."

"Will the heart be alright?"

"I protected it with my spell, my lord," she said. She fell silent for a few seconds before she spoke again in a hesitant tone. "Now that Lady Soleil has a new heart, I think we can give her heart to the Moon Serpent."

His eyes widened– he didn't think about that.

"But we don't know when you'll be able to conceive the Moon Serpent again," she said in a worried tone. "My lord, I think we need a vessel for Lady Rosenberg's heart. My spell can't protect it forever."

"It sounds like you already have a plan."

"A second child," the Moon Priestess said. "You and Lady Soleil need a second child to be the heart's vessel, my lord."

That sounded cruel but it wasn't like they had other options.

And we will still take care of our second child.

"I need to talk to Soleil and confess everything to her first," Kalel said, then he let out a deep sigh. "Winchell and their clan will definitely stop me from getting near her though."

***

AS SOON as Kalel opened his eyes, he walked towards Soleil and hugged her tight– allowing the blade piercing through her chest to pierce through him as well.

"Kalel!" Soleil screamed in horror. "No!"

"Our son has already been born so you don't need me anymore, Soleil," Kalel whispered to her. "I know that you can protect the little rascal even without me."

"Kalel Moonchester!" Aku, who was now on the ground while clutching his bleeding chest, yelled angrily. "Do you seriously want to die now?!"

"Of course, I don't," he said honestly. "But if my death will bring you to your end, so be it." He looked at his "brother." "See you in hell, Aku."

"Kalel!" Soleil yelled while crying. She was trying to push him away but he didn't budge. "There has to be another way to kill Aku without you dying with him!"

"You're really pretty, Soleil," Kalel said while staring at her face. And then, he gently cupped her face between his hands. When her sobs got louder, he smiled faintly to console her. "Can I kiss you one last time?"

***

"YOUNG Master, I'm sorry but I have to put you to sleep," Roarke Sinclair whispered to the young lord who wouldn't stop crying. He had the ability to understand the emotions of people that he touched. Right now, he could tell that the young lord wanted him to find his father. "And I'm sorry because I can't follow your order. We can't bring the Black Serpent to the island."

The young lord cried louder.

This time, he was angry.

He didn't have to use his ability to understand the young lord's wrath. He felt it when little ice daggers appeared above his tiny hands. Then, he threw the sharp objects at him. The ice daggers dug into his chest area. But before they could even seriously injure him, they melted him with his flame.

Impressive, Young Master.

He bled a little but it didn't hurt that much.

"You got your nasty temper from the Supreme," he said softly, then he gently covered the young lord's eyes with his hand. "Good night, Young Master."

A few moments later, the young lord's breathing became even– a clear sign that he had already fallen asleep.

Please forgive me, Young Master.

Then, he carefully put the young lord beside Lady Luna.

After Crawford left, he carried the lady out of the carriage. He set up a warm blanket on the ground and laid her down. Fortunately, the poison in her body hadn't spread yet. He was able to take it out of her system. She was still sleeping deeply but her life was out of danger now. He was so glad that they found them before something bad happened.

It's thanks to Supreme's protection.

The Supreme had put a protective spell in the young lord that would send a signal to the Fire Mages near him if he was in danger. It was activated a while ago and that was how he and Crawford found them. They were actually on their way to the temple where the Supreme was when they felt the signal. But of course, the young lord's life was very important, too.

And he was glad that they just didn't find the Supreme's son.

"I'm glad to meet you again, Lady Luna," Roarke whispered while looking at the lady's sleeping face. "Welcome back, our Moon Priestess."

***

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