Sacred Forest (3)
Luna blinked and stared intently at Ghea. Suddenly, her mind raced. Her perception of Ghea immediately shifted. Luna drew a shaky breath before whispering, “You… you did all of this… just to take advantage of my existence.” Disappointment instantly filled Luna’s face. She struggled, trying to break free from the bonds that held her body. “Let me go, Ghea!”
Ghea shook her head. “No. You’ve got it wrong!”
“You’re using my sacred bond with the Emperor for your own personal gain!”
“No, I…” Ghea lowered her head for a moment before smiling widely and laughing loudly. “I guess you’re not entirely foolish.”
“You want revenge for your brother’s death, using me,” Luna bit her lip, trying to hold back sobs. Her eyes filled with disappointment as she looked at Ghea. She should have never dismissed her suspicions or this possibility from the beginning. She had trusted Ghea, who had helped her in this strange world. She should have used her mind, not her heart.
Luna cursed herself and felt the urge to slam her head against the wall. She shouldn’t have trusted anyone from the start-Ghea, Alkrevas, or even Judith. All this time, she had only trusted herself, but that thinking vanished when she arrived. Was it her overwhelming desire to return to her world that had made her this foolish? Failing to notice something so huge that could be detrimental to her?
“Ghea, let me go!” Luna struggled again, trying to free herself from the roots binding her hands and feet, which made Ghea click her tongue in annoyance. Ghea stepped closer, pulling a small bottle from the box. Luna saw a thick, black liquid inside the bottle, and her face paled as Ghea opened the cap. “Ghea!”
“Luna, I truly want to help you. I’ve already told you that you’ve been brainwashed by the people in the palace, especially that Emperor. You’re my friend, and I will help you escape from here and return to your world.”
“What are you-Nggh!” Luna writhed and groaned as her mouth was forced open.
“The first thing we need to do is block the matebond, right? That way, you’ll be more aware and think clearly without the influence of the soulmate bond. I’m sure once your mind is clear, you’ll understand that everything I’ve said is true. That Emperor isn’t sincere with you. He’s only using you. He’s only using your existence. He’s never seen you as more than just a foreign woman bonded to him. Trust me. His sweet words, the illusion of being Empress, his affection, are all just a camouflage for his hidden goals. From the beginning, he needed you to control his wolf spirit, nothing more.”
No! That’s not true! Luna screamed in her heart. Everything Ghea said needed to be corrected. If that were the case, there’s no way Alkrevas would have announced her as his future Empress.Content © NôvelDrama.Org 2024.
Besides, Luna didn’t need the throne. Not at all. Luna didn’t believe Ghea’s words, but her heart began to waver. After all, what had Alkrevas done to her? Nothing. The man had only kept her locked up in the palace, put a tracking bracelet on her, and once even invaded her mind to keep watch. All this luxury… no! Ghea was trying to plant doubts! She didn’t trust Alkrevas, but she believed that he wouldn’t break the promises and words he had spoken.
Luna snapped out of her thoughts when she felt something cold touch her lips, and her eyes widened as the liquid in the bottle was forced into her mouth and flowed down her throat. Afterward, Ghea stepped back, letting go of Luna, who was coughing from the foreign substance that had entered her throat. “What did you give me?”
“It’s a potion.”
“A potion?”
“A potion to temporarily sever the matebond. The potion is sold on the black market at a very high price, so you should thank me for spending so much money on just one potion. Abigail could have made the potion herself since it’s primarily made from dark magic, but she needs a lot of strength to send you back, so you should also thank her.”
“Temporarily sever the bond?” Luna squeaked in disbelief.
“Yes. Its effect is stronger than a rejection ritual, where two werewolves reject their bond and separate. While that ritual weakens the bond, this potion completely severs it for one week. The effect makes it as if the mates had never met each other, even if they had already mated and marked one another.” What? Is this one of the reasons dark magic is forbidden? Because it can create something as terrifying as this?
“Impressive. I should have asked Abigail to give you this potion from the start, then killed you somewhere, but I think sending you back to your world is more effective. That man won’t be able to do anything to bring you back, and he’ll go mad.” Luna inhaled in disbelief, her heart skipping a beat. She couldn’t think much longer as she suddenly felt a burning sensation throughout her body, and shortly after, she felt something snap, which spontaneously made Luna scream.
“I’m grateful I asked Beth to cast a sound-dampening spell around this room.” Luna immediately slumped down, breathing heavily. “Why… why are you doing this?”
“Don’t worry. This won’t kill you or that tyrant Emperor. I’m doing this so that he can’t track you. With your bond severed,” Ghea knelt by one of Luna’s legs and murmured, “We also need to get rid of this.”
Ghea touched the tracking bracelet wrapped around Luna’s ankle. “Unfortunately, neither Beth nor Abigail can remove it, so before that Emperor arrives, we need to be in the Sacred Forest.” Ghea then stood up and pulled a necklace with a ruby pendant from the box.
“And lastly…” Ghea smiled and placed the necklace around Luna’s neck.
“What are you…” Luna’s vision instantly blurred, and her gaze became empty. Ghea smiled with satisfaction and snapped her fingers, causing the roots binding Luna to release her body and disappear. She watched Luna slumping to the floor, and Ghea helped her stand.
Her hand touched the pendant around Luna’s neck. The necklace was imbued with high-level dark magic-a control spell-that allowed Luna to be easily manipulated, following Ghea’s voice and commands. It took a few seconds for Luna’s empty gaze to return to normal, and then her lips moved. “Ghea…”
Ghea smiled faintly, feigning sorrow. Should she test the necklace’s control spell? Of course. With that thought, she said to Luna, “Luna! Thank goodness you’re okay. We should leave here before that monster arrives! You want to go back to your world, don’t you?”
Yes, I want to go back to my world. Leave that mad Emperor and forget everything that happened, Ghea commanded silently in her mind, directing Luna to repeat her words.
Luna nodded and replied, “Yes. I want to go back to my world. Leave that mad Emperor and forget everything that happened.”
“Good. Take my hand. We’ll leave now.” Luna obediently reached for Ghea’s outstretched hand, and then Ghea touched the ring she wore, making it disappear. Not long after, the sound-dampening and door-sealing spell controlled by Beth outside the palace vanished.
Ghea was confident that Beth had already left the imperial palace grounds and was heading to the portal Abigail had created to take them to the Sacred Forest. Unlike before, when she and Beth entered the palace disguised as servants-since the servant gate wasn’t as tightly guarded as the main gate, Ghea now needed to find a new way out.
Disguising themselves again wasn’t a good option with Luna, as all the palace staff knew her. Beth and Abigail needed to conserve their mana to open the portal so that Ghea couldn’t ask for a disguise spell. Besides, it wouldn’t take long before the entire palace noticed Luna had disappeared. “Luna, where are the belongings you brought with you?”
“They’re with me.”
“Take them and bring them along,” Ghea ordered. She smiled as Luna nodded, then walked to one of the desk drawers, opened it, and retrieved the three items she had brought to this world, although the maroon dress she wore was now in tatters.
“So, Luna, do you choose me or that Emperor?” I choose you, Ghea. You are my friend. I was only using the Emperor to retrieve my belongings.
Soon after, Luna repeated the words she had spoken in her mind, just as Ghea had intended. Ghea smiled and stepped out of the bedroom, walking through the sitting room and out of the Emperor’s private chambers with Luna following her.
They walked down one of the corridors and then stopped. “How can we get out? This invisibility spell can’t penetrate the protective walls. If I disguise myself again and try to bring you, we’ll be discovered. Sooner or later, I’ll have to learn some other magic tricks.”
Then she turned to Luna and said, “We should go to the Emperor’s private study. Maybe we’ll find something useful there. Lead the way, Luna.” Luna nodded and followed Ghea’s orders. When they arrived at the Emperor’s private study, Ghea saw something that shouldn’t have been there-a glow of powerful magic, as her Fae eyes could see the light of magic, whether ordinary or dark. It wasn’t a unique ability but something inherent in the Fae and elves, as mana originally came from nature.
Ghea approached the glow, which emanated from beneath the carpet. “Well, I made the right decision. There’s teleportation magic here, and it seems to be a personal teleportation spell not registered with the Magic Tower.” Then she glanced at Luna, who stood motionless nearby.
Ghea had a feeling that the Emperor had told Luna about this. “Luna, tell me how this teleportation works.” Luna immediately explained what Alkrevas had told her, and when she finished, Ghea sighed softly. “Shall we try it out?” She extended her hand to Luna.
“Give me your hair. No. Injure your palm and drop your blood here.” Ghea pulled out a dagger and tossed it to Luna.
“Use the dagger.” Luna obeyed instantly, and as her blood dripped heavily onto the floor, she walked over to the magical portal circle, letting her blood fall onto the circle. Moments later, the teleportation glow became even brighter. Ghea laughed and said, “It seems he added your blood to activate the teleportation spell. Did he do this on purpose? Or was it just a coincidence?”
How far has that Emperor fallen for Luna? To the point where he’s sharing such a well-kept secret with her and even using her blood to activate a high-level portal? How precious is Luna to that monster? Ghea wondered, gazing at Luna with envy. “Come on, Luna. Let’s go now.”
Ghea pulled Luna into the teleportation magic circle. “Say ‘Sacred Forest.'”
“Sacred Forest.” Luna obeyed, and moments later, the two of them vanished through the portal, heading to the Sacred Forest.
….