"Change? What change are you planning to bring, Charlie?"
"The same change Sir Revan had suggested to me, Androma," the king replied, his gaze focused on the ground as he stood over the bed of their shared quarters.
"Remember how he once told us to change the entire system of the kingdom. The nobility, the justice system, everything. It's time I stopped hesitating," he continued, his hand clenching the top of the bed's headboard.
"What about your worries, Charlie? Are you sure you won't regret it in the future?" Androma asked, tilting her head as she leaned onto the headboard. She locked her eyes with her husband, trying to find any uncertainty that may lurk in him.
Charlie's eyes narrowed at her words, his grip on the headboard tightening slightly as he slowly turned his head to her. It was clear that her question had struck a chord with him.
After all, he hadn't taken any action that Revan had suggested due to hesitation. What if this went wrong? What if it didn't work out? What if the cycle repeats? What if things get worse?
"... I have no choice, Androma," he muttered, sighing as his eyes softened. "It's clear that Aethelgard is falling not only politically, but also culturally and socially. Even Marcus, who always considered Aethelgard to be the greatest nation in Varkana, could see how this 'greatest nation' is declining."
He let go of the headboard, pacing back and forth in controlled steps. "The child he brought, Dolfordo, was apparently heavily mistreated, abused, and tortured by his father. We planned to offer him special care and have him given off to one of the knights to be raised well, but Marcus took him under his wing instead. He is going to raise the boy himself."
His steps halted as he turned to her. "He called the boy a manifestation of Aethelgard's failure. The fact that Marcus was saying that about Aethelgard means that something needs to be done."
"Failure...? No way, did Marcus really say that?"
"Yes, Androma." Charlie nodded, continuing his pacing with clenched fists behind his back. "He said that he would not rule this kingdom and have it remain as it is. Even he recognises that change is required."
He then sat on the bed, his pupils dilated as he fixated his gaze on her. "Our son, who viewed Aethelgard as the perfect, ideal nation, now asks for change. He says that the rebellion is happening because of us, that he was nearly assassinated by the ones we helped ruin, and that people were suffering because of the lack of care we were giving."
Androma leaned forward, cupping his cheek with one hand firmly. "How dare he say that!"
Her brows were furrowed as she went on to cup his other cheek with her free hand. "Does he not know how you sacrifice your sleep for his people? How you oversee everything and think of how to make things better? How you continue to brainstorm ideas that would benefit the kingdom and its residents? Does he not see it?!"
Her voice betrayed a surge of exasperation, loyalty, and care. Her ocean-blue eyes were wide as they stared at him affectionately, her violet hair treading over her shoulders and stopping near her waist.
"Androma," he muttered softly, bringing his hands to cover hers that rested on his cheeks. "You truly are a blessing for me."
He proceeded to lie down, resting his head on her lap as he looked up at her, his eyes slightly moist. "However, my son has his reasons for saying all this. After all, even if I do sacrifice my sleep, even if I do oversee and think of beneficial ideas, have I truly succeeded in bringing a real, positive change to the empire?"
Androma's breath hitched as he continued. "The empire is still declining. People are still suffering. The fact that a rebellion was even needed during my 20-year rule is an insult to my monarchy."
He tilted his head, observing her solemn expression. "I have proved myself useless despite ruling Aethelgard for the past 20 years. I am a disgrace to my ancestors, especially my grandfather, who ascended to the Spirit Realm, entrusting the kingdom to his descendants. Many of my ancestors had done this before and had excellent results, but the fact that I am failing after my grandfather ascended and my father sacrificed his life for Aethelgard... It's insulting."
He gritted his teeth, his eyes glimmering with unshed tears. "But no more. No more will I take this uselessness any further. I have a clear path, and now I shall not hesitate to take it any further."
He held her hand, intertwining their fingers together. "It's time... time for us to bring the change we should have brought decades ago."
With that, he used his free hand to bring her head lower, giving her a kiss on the lips before releasing her. "Promise me, Androma... promise me that you will support me in this."
"Yes, my king! I shall support you all the way, any way you need!" With that declaration, she herself leaned down, sharing another kiss with him on the lips, which he reciprocated with equal passion.
The kiss demonstrated the immense love both of them held for each other, the moon bathing them with its light as Charlie pulled away to move closer to her, till they both were huddled together on the bed.
"I am glad... I am glad to have you as the one person who can support me throughout these trials, my love," Charlie murmured, resting his head on hers, who leaned onto his shoulder.
She smiled in response, leaning further onto him as their warmth enveloped each other. "And I am glad... glad to have you as my husband... as the father of my children... and as the king of our kingdom."
The two tightened their warm embrace before leaning fully on the bed, bringing the blanket over them as they closed their eyes and drifted to sleep, basking in each other's warmth.
***
The tubes were beaming with an ethereal, blue light as they channeled Vyr throughout the room and into the scattered carmlers. Carmlers were artifacts that the scientists of Aethelgard used to experiment on Vyr and magic, learning new things about it as well as everything around them.
These experiments were carried out in laboratories designed for research only. The greatest of them all was The Aldreach Laboratory, as it was the first laboratory ever made and has the credit of being the place where some of the greatest inventions were made.
Currently, the scientists were scrambling throughout the main research chamber of the lab, carrying out their usual experiments.
The carmler in the center, however, seemed to be oozing with a dark energy, which was different from the other carmlers present. This was because one of the artifacts retrieved from the rebels was being held there, seeing as it apparently held a form of Dark Magic.
A scientist with a tiny, barely visible white beard observed the artifact in the carmler, a glint of interest in his eyes. It was an earring that was shaped like a small dagger, black in color, though sharp like a blade.
"It's great that Prince Marcus brought this here," he muttered under his breath. "With this, we can have more insight into what kind of magic the rebels use."
Three more scientists approached the carmler holding the artifact. Their expressions were serious and weary, their narrowed eyes fixated on what was before them.
Their age was the same as the first scientist, though there was less youth in their face. While the first scientist smiled as he observed the artifact, the other three did not. Their lips were pursed as they studied the results they were receiving.
"The artifact's response at receiving further Vyr is tamer than we expected," one of the three scientists muttered, his voice hoarse.
The second of the trio then grazed his hand over the carmler. "It's not even showing subtle reactions like affecting the carmlers temperature, pressure, or any other physical state."
The third of the trio, and the eldest of them all, coughed slightly as he hovered his right hand over the carmler. His eyes were narrowed as his hands trembled, though that was merely because he was too aged to keep his hands steady for too long.
"It's not releasing any significant oathweight either. Even for a weak artifact, an oathweight this low is concerning." He retracted his hand, sighing as he placed both hands behind his back.
"This artifact is clearly special since it contains Dark Magic," the slightly youthful scientist mused. "His highness didn't give this to us for no reason. We need to uncover more than what's apparent."
"It seems that carmlers are unfit for this research, same with any other conventional methods. We need other ways to deal with this," the second of the trio remarked, his brows furrowed as he observed the artifact.
"And what ways are those?" The first of the trio asked, tilting his head slightly.
The second one turned to the door of a room that was above them, which could be reached using the stairs right inside the main research chamber. The door was made of solid platinum clad in Vyr tubes, giving off a clear distinction compared to the other doors, which were made out of steel or magile.
"The Crozzer chamber. That's where we should test it out further."
Upon hearing the second of the trio's suggestion, the other two and the youthful scientist among them widened their eyes.
The first of the trio narrowed his eyes. "Dr. Saichar, I understand that we need to learn more about the artifact at any cost, but don't you think that going to the Crozzer chamber first thing is a bit too much?"
Saichar, the second of the trio, turned to him. "I understand your concern. However, it's clear that this artifact can't be studied much in the other specialized chambers either, and since it also contains Dark Magic, the Crozzer is best in case the experiment grows unstable."
The scientists grabbed their chins, putting on a thinking pose as they pondered over Saichar's words. His reasoning was logical, and if the prince himself had given them this artifact, then it must be of an importance beyond anything normal that is experimented here, even though the normal stuff here is also abnormal by the common standard of normalcy.
BOOOM!!!!
Before they could do much, an explosion shook the laboratory. Alarmed, every single scientist turned to the doorway that led to the lab's entrance, finding smoke emitting from there.
As each of them stiffened further, cloaked individuals entered the room, surrounding the scientists in no time. They all had their oathweight released, making the scientists tremble slightly as they furrowed their brows.
Dr. Saichar turned to the doorway, finding two more cloaked individuals entering the chamber. One of them was clearly a woman, judging by how her chest area was more elevated than the other individual's, classifying that guy as a man.
"Who are you?" The most aged of the four scientists near the center carmler stepped forward, his eyes narrowed as he tried maintaining his composure.
"What do you want from us? Why attack this prestigious laboratory?"
The two individuals standing just before the doorway then took off their hoods, revealing their long pink hair and similar facial features, identifying them as twins.
Just as Saichar suspected, one was a woman while the other was a man, though it was hard to distinguish that, considering the man's rather androgynous face. In fact, it might not be wrong to outright call it feminine.
Even their clothing was the same. The only difference seemed to be their chest size.
Their bluish-red eyes scanned the room before landing on the eldest one. The woman had a toothy grin, while the man narrowed his eyes, though a faint smirk was visible if one looked more closely.
"Who we are is nothing for you to know. As for why we're here... well, isn't it kind of obvious? We want to take over this place." With that, the woman's grin widened as she stepped forward, placing her hand on her hips.
"Of course, we'll need some researchers alive to make this place useful, so the grandmaster gave us the perfect game that we could play," she added, her piercing gaze fixated on the eldest one in front of her.
Grandmaster?
"What game is this?" Dr. Saichar asked, his hand gripping the carmler that contained the artifact.
"Haha~, I'm glad you asked. Well, whoever withstands precisely 30% of my oathweight gets to live."
Before anyone could question her further, the room turned into a pool of blood as almost every single scientist imploded, crushed by the woman's oathweight.
"Gah!!"
Only the slightly young scientist, the one who seemed eager to experiment on the artifact, was intact on the ground, holding his head dearly as he struggled under the pressure.
"Ah, man! Only one guy? These old geezers are weak." She clicked her tongue, her brows furrowed as she then approached the surviving scientist.
"So you survived, huh..." she muttered under her breath, retracting her oathweight. "You don't seem very special, old man, though you do look slightly younger than the other ones here..."
Her twin appeared beside her, his gaze on the scientist before them. "He looks decent. I wonder what he looked like in his younger years..."
"Shut your gay ass up, Madoru!" The woman smacked him on the head, a scowl on her face.
The man, Madoru, yelped as he got hit, holding the back of his head with a somber expression.
"Y-Yes, Great Sister Manori..." he muttered weakly, prompting the woman, Manori, to turn to the trembling scientist.
"Now then, let's get you to use."