The entire Duchy had gathered in the central plaza, now transformed into a solemn stage of mourning.
The air was heavy with incense and ash, and the banners waved slowly, as if even the wind itself were showing respect.
Upon a raised platform adorned with black and gold standards lay the body of Sofia Douglas de Mondring.
Covered by a mantle embroidered with the symbols of the Duchy and the ancient Douglas bloodline.
No one spoke too loudly.
The soldiers kept their heads bowed.
The citizens wept in silence.
And the magical beasts, normally restless and proud, remained lying around the plaza, disturbingly still, as if they too understood the loss.
Larriet's coffin rested beside the main platform.
It had been built especially for him.
And then... Lusian spoke softly.
So softly that it almost sounded like a thought.
—Take care of her for me... in the afterlife.
His voice broke at the end.
Thunder remained behind Lusian.
As if he were still waiting for her to wake up.
The electric steed had lowered its head since dawn and barely moved.
Umber, meanwhile, watched the funeral in complete silence, seated beside the platform like a dark guardian.
The nobles of the Duchy slowly began stepping forward to pay their respects.
Commanders.
Mages.
Beast tamers.
One after another, they bowed their heads before Sofia and Larriet, while the silence over the plaza grew heavier and heavier.
The sound spread throughout the entire capital.
And finally, one of the elders of the Douglas bloodline stepped forward.
He took a deep breath.
And spoke with a broken voice.
—Today... the Duchy bids farewell to our lady.
Then it happened.
A heart-wrenching cry echoed throughout the entire capital.
Then another.
And another.
Thousands of voices rose at the same time, filled with pain, sorrow, and despair.
They were saying farewell to their beloved duchess.
To the woman who had protected those lands for years.
To their lady.
To their shield.
To their protector.
Many openly wept.
Others raised their fists over their chests as a sign of oath.
And deep within their hearts, they all shared the same thought.
They would protect her son.
Their new lord.
They would not allow the young duke to suffer the same fate as Sofia Douglas de Mondring.
Lusian remained standing beside the coffin, motionless.
His eyes were red.
His jaw remained tense, as if he were restraining something far too great to break apart before everyone.
Emily stayed near him in silence.
She barely dared to look at him.
She did not know how to approach someone who seemed to have become hollow inside.
Then Albert, captain of the ducal guard, slowly advanced through the crowd.
The man knelt before Sofia's coffin.
Tears ran down his aged face.
His voice, broken by emotion, echoed through the silence of the plaza.
—My lady... —he whispered with a trembling voice—. I swear to protect my lord Lusian... even if it costs me my life.
The days began to pass slowly.
But for Lusian... time had lost all meaning.
The only thing left in his mind was to keep moving forward.
Every day became an almost self-destructive routine.
He trained until his muscles gave out.
Until his hands bled.
Until he could barely remain standing.
And then he stood up again.
Again and again.
Every day was the same endless cycle:
Train.
Fall.
Get back up.
And train again.
His pain had become strength.
His rage had become discipline.
Albert tried to stop him more than once.
But Lusian never stopped.
Albert clenched his teeth.
—My lord... your body has a limit.
—Then I'll break it.
The response came without hesitation.
Without emotion.
As if he truly did not care what might happen to him.
Albert watched him in silence for several seconds.
And for the first time since he had known Lusian... Albert felt fear.
Because that young man, who once showed barely any interest in training...
Now could not stop.
It was as if he were trying to fill the emptiness inside himself through pain and exhaustion.
But the worst came afterward.
Lusian began consuming absurd quantities of mana-infused resources.
His body could barely process it.
The mana accumulated inside him unstably, coursing through his veins like liquid fire.
His muscles constantly tore apart and regenerated under that absurd pressure.
And even so... he kept pushing himself further.
Until it finally happened.
Mana poisoning.
His body collapsed in the middle of training.
The accumulated energy began destroying him from within, unable to stabilize any longer.
And if Emily had not intervened in time...
Lusian would have died.
Not even the Duchy's greatest healers would have been able to save him.
The mana poisoning had already begun destroying his body from the inside.
His magical channels were collapsing.
His organs were beginning to fail.
And the uncontrolled energy coursed through his body like burning poison.
Only Emily managed to keep him alive.
The Heroine of Light used the divine blessing dwelling within her to purify the corrupted mana accumulated inside Lusian, stabilizing his core again and again while her own body began to wear down.
Emily did not leave his side until he woke up.
For days she remained seated beside the bed, ignoring the exhaustion, the dark circles under her eyes, and the pleas from those asking her to rest for at least a few hours.
The Heroine of Light had used her divine blessing over and over again to keep Lusian's body stable.
Because the mana inside him had reached absurd levels.
Too much for a human.
Too much even for someone like him.
His core had begun collapsing under the pressure.
The mana channels throughout his body slowly tore apart from within, unable to process such an enormous amount of accumulated energy.
And if Emily had not intervened in time…
Lusian would have died.
When he finally opened his eyes, the room remained dimly lit.
The smell of medicinal herbs filled the air.
And Emily was still there.
Asleep beside the bed.
Her hand still held his.
Lusian tried to sit up.
The movement woke Emily immediately.
Her blue eyes opened wide.
And upon seeing him conscious…
Tears began falling down her face.
—Idiot… —she whispered.
Her voice trembled.
Emily quickly stood up and embraced him tightly, as if she feared he might disappear again.
—Lusian, stop! —she sobbed—. You can't keep doing this! You're destroying yourself!
Her tears soaked Lusian's clothes while her body trembled in his arms.
—You almost died! Do you understand that?! You almost died!
Lusian remained silent.
Because he did not know what to say.
How could he explain it to her…?
How could he tell her that time was not on his side?
That in the future he knew…
His destiny was to die.
That someday…
She herself would kill him.
His fingers slowly tightened over the bedsheets.
Emily lifted her face to look at him.
Her eyes were red from crying.
—Sofia wouldn't want this… —she whispered—. She wouldn't want to see you destroying yourself with your own hands…
Those words pierced directly through Lusian's chest.
Emily slowly rested her forehead against his.
—You don't have to carry everything alone… —she said through tears—. You're not alone anymore… so please… stop trying to destroy yourself…
Lusian closed his eyes.
And for the first time since Sofia's death…
Something inside him truly began to break.