CHAPTER 191: NOT YOU, OSRIC

[Osric’s Pov—Dawnspire Wing—Continuation]

The pressure around my neck tightened, stealing the air from my lungs. The Emperor’s crimson eyes burned like molten steel, a fury so raw it made my spine lock in place.

"Answer me, Osric," he snarled, his voice low and dangerous, each word vibrating like the growl of a cornered beast. "Did you say... last life?"

My hands flew to his grip—not to fight, but to keep myself upright. "Your Majesty—please, calm down," I rasped, the words scraping past his iron hold.

Solena shrieked and lunged at him, talons gleaming like silver blades. But Emperor didn’t even flinch. His free hand shot out like a striking viper, catching her mid-air by the throat.

"The Divines," he hissed, his glare slicing through her like a blade, "should remember their place and stay out of mortal affairs."

With a flick of his wrist, he hurled her aside as though she were nothing more than a bothersome insect. Solena landed hard, feathers scattering, a low growl rumbling in her throat but silenced by the Emperor’s piercing gaze.

I twisted against his hold, desperate for air. "Your Majesty—"

His grip tightened, cutting me off. "Tell me," he demanded, his voice thundering now, echoing down the hall. "Did you recall everything? Did you remember the past life where you—" his eyes burned brighter, the crimson of a dying sun—"chose that girl over my blood? Over my child?"

The words slammed into me like a physical blow. My eyes widened, my hands trembling against his iron grip.

He... he knows? Does the Emperor also remember?

"ANSWER ME, OSRIC!" His roar was thunder, shaking the very air. His fingers dug deeper into my neck, and for a moment I saw black.

Then...

"Your Majesty!" Ravick’s voice cut through the tension like a blade. He stepped forward swiftly, gripping the Emperor’s wrist. "Enough! You’ll kill him!"

Emperor turned his head slowly, his gaze a storm ready to break. "Do you think I care, Ravick?"

His voice dropped to a deadly calm. "Do you truly believe I hesitate to spill the blood of a traitor who betrayed my child?"

Ravick held his stare but his voice was firm. "We are steps away from the Princess’s chambers. I beg you, control your wrath. If she sees—"

Emperor stilled, his breath harsh, his rage thrumming just beneath the surface. Slowly, like a predator leashing itself, he released me. I collapsed to the floor, coughing, with the taste of iron on my tongue.

The Emperor’s boots shifted into my line of sight. When I looked up, his gaze was a blade pressed against my throat.

"Get up." The Emperor’s voice was sharp enough to cut stone, cold and commanding, each syllable falling like the strike of a gavel. "You will follow me. And, Osric..." His lips curved—not in a smile, but in something far darker. "Pray that whatever comes out of your mouth will be worth my patience."

My lungs still burned from his grip, but I forced myself to straighten. The weight of his words felt heavier than any sword. His crimson cloak swept the marble floor as he strode down the corridor, his fury trailing like fire in his wake.

Does he... remember? Did he also witness the nightmare of the last life?

I swallowed hard, my mind a storm of questions, but now was not the time to hesitate. I stepped after him, boots clicking against the polished stone, each sound swallowed by the suffocating tension that clung to the air.

Solena fluttered onto my shoulder, her feathers bristling, a soft but urgent trill escaping her throat. She nudged my cheek as if to say, I won’t leave you.

"I’m fine," I murmured, though my voice betrayed the tremor in my chest. "But this is no place for you. Go back to the estate, Solena. I’ll join you soon."

She tilted her head, defiant.

"I said go." I pressed my fingers gently against her feathers, a silent plea.

She let out a low, mournful sound before spreading her wings. With one last look, she took off, slipping out of the nearest window and vanishing into the night.

I exhaled slowly, feeling the chill of the Emperor’s rage ahead of me like a storm waiting to break.

***

[Imperial Palace—Throne Room—Later]

The heavy doors to the throne room slammed open, the sound echoing like thunder. We barely crossed the threshold before the Emperor’s voice cracked like a whip.

"EVERYONE. OUT!"

The command boomed through the vast chamber, reverberating off the gilded walls. The guards froze for a heartbeat, then scrambled like frightened deer, their armor clattering as they fled. The silence that followed was deafening—save for the distant thrum of my own pulse.

The emperor didn’t even wait for the last set of boots to fade. His hand went to his sword, steel hissing as it left its scabbard. His eyes burned—not just with anger, but with something far older, something that made the air feel thin.

And that blade—my death—was already arcing toward me when a figure stepped between us.

"Your Majesty!"

Ravick’s voice cut through the tension, low but firm, as his arm stretched protectively across my chest.

The Emperor’s glare could have melted iron. His words came like the strike of a hammer: "You dare? Are you protecting this traitor, Ravick? Have you forgotten what he’s done?"

The venom in his tone made my stomach knot.

So Ravick knows too?

Ravick didn’t flinch, though I saw the slight tightening of his jaw. He exhaled slowly, steadying himself before speaking.

"Your Majesty," he said, measured, respectful, yet unyielding, "I beg you to sheath your sword. Not here. Not like this. You know well who stands before you. Lord Osric is heir to Everheart—and if any harm befalls him, there will be more than just a blade to answer for. You will have to face the Princess herself."

The Emperor’s knuckles turned white around the hilt. The blade trembled—not from hesitation, but from restrained violence.

Then, with slow, deliberate steps, he closed the distance between us until I could feel the heat of his anger. His voice was low, but it carried the weight of a storm.

"From when?" he demanded. "From when did you remember everything?"

My throat was dry. I forced the words out. "F-from the coming-of-age ceremony, Your Majesty."

His eyes narrowed, sharp as a drawn blade. "Is that why you took that damned oath?"

I swallowed hard and nodded. "Y-yes, Your Majesty."

The temperature in the room seemed to drop as his voice turned cold, every word laced with venom. "By taking that oath before my daughter... do you think you can wash away your sins? Do you think one show of loyalty erases what you did?"

Before I could respond, his hand shot out, gripping my neck with crushing strength. My feet nearly left the ground as he dragged me closer, his face a mask of grief and fury.

"Because of you," he spat, his words vibrating with rage, "because of your scheming with that viper of a Marchioness... because of you, I lost my daughter!"

There was more than rage in his tone—there was pain, the kind only a father could hold, sharpened into a weapon.

My vision blurred at the edges, but I didn’t fight him. I couldn’t. He was right. The ghosts of my past life clawed at me.

"I... I am ready to die again by your hand, Your Majesty," I rasped. "But hear me—I never wished to harm her. Everything I did... I did because she was in danger!"

His grip tightened like iron, and for a moment, I thought he would crush my windpipe. His face twisted, torn between disbelief and hatred.

"Danger?" His laugh was hollow, deadly. "You dare call it protection? You betrayed her. You sided with vipers. You think these pathetic excuses will save you? Don’t forget, Osric—I can kill you here and no one will stop me."

Ravick finally stepped forward, voice steady but tense. "Your Majesty. Please. He may deserve your wrath, but you should atleast listen."

The emperor’s glare could have cut through steel.

"Speak then, Osric. But remember—one wrong word, and tonight will be your last."

My throat burned as I forced the words out.

I begin telling him everything...

...that while I was away at war, I grew close to Lady Eleania. I...fell for her, perhaps. But I never forgot that I had a fiancée waiting for me. Lavinia mattered—she always mattered to me.

But when I returned, I discovered something darker. The Marquis Everett and certain nobles—they were weaving treason. A conspiracy aimed not just at his majesty, but at the Princess herself. And Eleania...she was part of it. I thought if I played along, if I drew closer to them, I could uncover their allies and destroy the plot before it reached the throne.

But every step I took only made Lavinia jealous. My actions destroyed her reputation and shattered her trust. And when I finally realized the scope of my failure, it was too late—she was poisoned by Caelum.

"Your Majesty, I swear, Princess was always my priority. I only wanted to protect her—"

"ENOUGH!"

The roar shook the room. The emperor strode toward me, eyes blazing, each step like a hammer strike.

"No matter how noble you make it sound," he hissed, voice trembling with rage, "you are still the reason I lost her. My daughter—my blood—was dragged into the shadows because of your weakness."

He stopped so close I could feel the heat of his anger, but behind it, I saw something else—a glint of pain, a father’s grief.

"And hear me well, Osric," he said, voice dropping to a deadly calm. "In this life, I will not allow you to repeat your sins. You will be nothing more than a shield to her—an invisible sword. But as a man? As anything more? Never."

My fingers twitched.

His lip curled. "My daughter will remain unmarried before she is sullied by your presence. Or..."

He paused.

"...she will belong to ’him’; he’s the only one worthy of her."

Confusion sliced through me. "Him?"

The Emperor’s eyes burned, a rare, dangerous light in them. "The one who brought my daughter back to me. The only man worthy of standing at her side. Not you, Osric. Never you."